June 20, 2008 - To quote a famed British actor from the 1930's (Colin Clive), "It's alive, it's alive!"

Yes, I'm alive, and after the gentle prodding from my wife Mona, I've realized that I haven't posted here for an entire season. So now I think it's appropriate that I update this site on the first day of Summer.

The past few months have been busy and challenging. My novel AMERIKAN EAGLE is in the very last throes of being polished up prior to submission, and I'm busy outlining and researching my next novel, DESPERATION BAY.

On the never-ending short story front, I was very happy to sell my 97th short story to an upcoming MWA anthology, and was very not happy to learn that a magazine I had earlier sold a short story to has apparently gone out of business. So my short story sale number remains at 96. Ah, the Big Editor in the Sky giveth and taketh away...

During the past few weeks I was a guest speaker at two special events: a conference sponsored by the Seacoast Writer's Association, and a charity event for the Manchester City Library Foundation. I spoke to scores of people at both events, met old fans and made some new friends, and I thank everyone involved for welcoming me.

So thanks again for coming by, and let's see if I can't do a better job of updating on a more consistent basis.

February 13, 2008 - Happy day before Valentine's Day, where we've had snow, sleet, freezing rain and now just rain over the past several hours. Anyone hear of Spring I hope?

It's been a busy few weeks as we slide into the new year, and I've been thrilled to report that I've sold my 95th and 96th short stories, both to markets overseas. First, I'm pleased that I cracked the science fiction short story market with a story of mine called "Not Enough Stars in the Night," which will be published by an Australian science fiction magazine called Cosmos.

And to spread the joy to the other side of the globe, I also sold a story called "A Favorable Favor" to The Strand Magazine, a mystery magazines published in Great Britain. And just four more to go before I break that magic one hundred number...

In novel news, not much to report. AMERIKAN EAGLE is under consideration, and I've just come up with a great idea for a new thriller, which I'm busily plotting out and researching as you read this. And a couple of weeks ago, Mona and I were fortunate to spend an evening out with two special friends in the local writing community, where we had a blast.

I've also been doing local appearances to promote TWILIGHT and the American edition of FINAL WINTER, and if you're in the local area, check out the Appearances page to see where I might end up.

Take care and think warm thoughts!

January 26, 2008 - Belated and happy New Year to you all.

I hope this is a great new year for everyone, but it distresses me to talk about the death of a friend, mentor and giant in the mystery field, Ed Hoch.

Ed had more than 900 short stories published in a career that began in 1955, and since May 1973, he has had a story published in *every* issue of Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine. An Edgar Award winner, and a past grandmaster of Mystery Writers of America, Ed still kept a fresh and eager approach to his writing.

I was fortunate enough a few months ago to talk to Ed about an article I was asked to write for the MWA's newsletter, The Third Degree, about short stories, and Ed was gracious and helpful with his time.

And that wasn't the first time Ed had been helpful. I published my first short stories in 1986, and one of the biggest thrills was to get a nice letter and contract from Ed, asking for permission to reprint one of my early stories in his "Year's Best" anthologies, which he had edited for Walker Books.

For years Ed has been a big fan of my works, and was a big supporter of other short story authors as well. He was one of the last mystery short story authors who had his start with the pulps of the 1950's, and he will be greatly missed.

October 3, 2007 - Holey moley, where did the summer go?

No excuses, as one would say in the military, so... no excuses.

So on to the news.

Over the past weekend, at the annual Bouchercon mystery convention - held this year at Anchorage, Alaska - I was honored to receive the Barry Award for Best Mystery Short Story of the Year. As I couldn't be at Bouchcercon this year, fellow short story author Laura Benedict accepted the award on my behalf. The award was for my story, "The Right Call," which appeared in the September/October 2006 issue of "Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine."

The Barry Award was named for famed mystery critic and enthusiast Barry Gardner, who died in 1996. In 1997, to honor his memory, Deadly Pleasures magazine set up the Barry Award, to honor the best in mystery fiction. This is the eleventh year these awards have been presented. Previously, they were voted on by the readers of Deadly Pleasures, but this year, balloting was open to readers of Mystery News as well.

Here are my prepared remarks:

"Thanks to all of you here for the joy of receiving this award. I'm just sorry that I wasn't able to be in Anchorage this year to share with this joy in person, and I appreciate Laura accepting this award on my behalf.

"First, my thanks to the readers of Mystery News and Deadly Pleasures for nominating, and then awarding me this wonderful award. And I'd also like to thank Janet Hutchings of Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, for publishing this story and so many others.

"But finally, I'd like to express my appreciation to Barry Gardner, for whom this award is named. I met him a number of years ago, before his untimely death, and recalled his enthusiasm for my short stories and my first published novel. He had a keen eye for us writers in the mystery field, and I'm honored that I, at least, got to hear his high praise in person."

Next month, my eleventh novel - TWILIGHT - will be published by St. Martin's Press. This particular novel was published earlier this year in Great Britain by Time/Warner Books under the title of DEAD OF NIGHT.

Just this week, "Publisher's Weekly" gave TWILIGHT a starred review, which is an enormous thrill and honor.

I'd like to share this review with you:

"With exceptional restraint and the accretion of small but telling details, DuBois, already acclaimed for his 2003 thriller BETRAYED, leaps to the forefront of speculations on the future of the war on terror with this quietly devastating cautionary tale. His callow but sympathetic hero, Canadian journalist Samuel Simpson, has joined a United Nations unit attempting to gather evidence against those responsible for a devastating terror attack and document war crimes in the ensuing civil strife. In a twist Rod Serling would have been proud of, DuBois reveals that Simpson's beleaguered team, dodging gunfire in a shattered landscape, is assigned to the United States, which has fallen into anarchy after a dirty bomb destroyed lower Manhattan and other attacks seriously damaged electrical systems across the country. The balance between action and introspection is superb, and DuBois is confident enough of his readership and his premise to avoid a pat, upbeat ending. Those seeking a thoughtful look at a plausible aftermath of further attacks on America will find much to ponder."

Wow. It's reviews like that that can really make a writer go back to the keyboard and try to do better...

And speaking of doing better, I was quite fortunate a few weeks ago to attend Donald Maass' weeklong seminar, "Writing the Breakout Novel," which was held in Westminster, Massachusetts. The seminar ran from September 10 through September 16, and with more than 30 other participants, Ilearned new ways of character development, plotting, building tension, and the other skills that must all come together to write and publish a successful novel. It was quite the learning experience, and I have to thank my wife Mona for suggesting it to me.

In the meantime, I'm encouraged by the re-writing and tinkering that's going into AMERIKAN EAGLE, my twelfth novel, and I just sold my 92nd short story to Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine. Alas, it doesn't look like I'll break the 100 short story mark by the end of 2007, but as we Red Sox fans are wont to say, "Wait 'til next year!"

And last night, for the first time in a long time, I attended the monthly meeting of the New England Chapter of the Mystery Writers of America. It was fun, seeing old friends and meeting new ones, and I was impressed by the attendance. There was a time, a number of years ago, that the New England chapter could practically meet in a phone booth, but last night, it seemed like nearly 50 people were in attendance. Very impressive...

So, thanks for stopping by, and happy Fall to all of you.

May 11, 2007 - It certainly has been a busy few weeks since my last update, complete with a 24-hour whirlwind visit to New York City.

Thanks to the encouragement of my wife Mona, for the first time in several years I went to the Edgar Allan Poe Awards, held by the Mystery Writers of America at the Hyatt-Regency Hotel in New York City, right next to Grand Central Station. The awards were held the evening of Thursday, April 26, and I had a wonderful time.

Of course, no trip to New York City wouldn't be complete without traveling hassles - a postponed flight going to New York City, followed by a nearly hour delay the next day in returning to Manchester, N.H. - but I still had a jam-packed time in Manhattan. Once I got to my hotel room that afternoon, I hurriedly got dressed in my tuxedo (a past birthday gift from Mona) and went to a reception sponsored by Dell Magazines, the publishers of Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine and Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine.

After getting caught up with editors, agents, and fellow authors, I then went to the award ceremony itself, which was hosted by Al Roker of the Today Show, and which had as its highlight, the presentation of the Grand Master Award to Stephen King (earlier I even had a few minutes of charming conversation with Mister King, with whom I share a fondness for White Birch Books in North Conway, N.H.). I sat at a table sponsored by the University Press of New England (thanks John and Linda Landrigan!) and had a lovely time with my tablemates.

After the ceremony, the post-Edgar cocktail parties and get-togethers beckoned, until finally I made it back to my hotel room at 1:30 a.m. the next day, several hours past my usual bed time. I caught up with so many friends that my head was buzzing, and I thank my dear wife for encouraging me to go.

On the writing front, I've sold my 91st short story to Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, meaning I'm less than ten stories away from reaching the magic 100 mark. Of course, I would still have to work extra hard to reach the mark of Ed Hoch, who's nearing his 1,000th published short story!

I'm also tinkering a bit with AMERIKAN EAGLE, and am about 100 pages into a new novel, of which I'm going to keep close-mouthed for a while. It's something new and experimental, but a lot of fun, and I hope to finish it in a few months.

And last week, Mona and I were fortunate to have dinner with and spend a lovely evening with two dear friends who've been traveling a lot lately, and it was a magical night, especially for our English Springer Spaniel Tucker, who got some extra attention and playtime.

There... an update less than a month away from my previous update! Let's see if I can keep the streak going.

April 19, 2007 - Sorry for the lack of updates... though some things have been going on.

I recently sold my 90th short story - ninety! - to the nice folks at Tekno Books, anthologists extraordinaire, and I realized that with some luck (and some kind editors, of course!) I might be able to break 100 before the year's end. Quite the accomplishment of which I'm proud of, but which pales beside the king of mystery short stories, the very prolific Ed Hoch.

Since May 1973, Ed has *never* missed having a short story in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, a record that frankly leaves me breathless. A stunning accomplishment, which I don't think anyone will ever equal.

And speaking of Ed, the May 2007 issue of Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine announced the results of its EQMM Readers Award, where the magazine's readers vote on their favorite short story for the previous year. Friend and fellow short story author Doug Allyn came in first place, while Ed came in second... congratulations to both!

And I'm pleased to see that one of my stories, "The Right Call," came in eighth, tied with a short story by author James H. Cobb. It's always a pleasure to see readers acknowledge your works.

Besides short fiction, final tweaking goes on with AMERIKAN EAGLE, I'm outlining a new thriller, and I'm working on a couple of projects, one of which I'm quite excited about, but intend to keep somewhat confidential for the forseeable future.

On the homefront, one of these days Spring will no doubt make an appearance... we've had rain, snow, rain, snow, a Nor'easter that caused flooding in the area, and more snow. Tucker loves the snow and the flooding means swimming opportunities in the area, but Roscoe can't understand why his humans can't fix the weather so he can go out more often.

Neither do I, frankly...

Thanks for visiting!

January 14, 2007 - A few weeks ago, a good friend, teacher, and mentor passed away.

Don Murray, a retired professor of English from the University of New Hampshire, died on December 30, 2006. I was privileged and honored to have him as a teacher, advisor, and friend all these past years.

A paratrooper during World War II, and later a Pulitzer-prize winning journalist, he came to UNH in 1963 to teach writing and journalism. Scores of journalists across the United States were among those he taught, including myself. After retiring from UNH, Don continued to teach writing, and continued to write as well, turning out well-reviewed and received books on writing and on life.

I first met Don when I was a student at UNH, from 1977 to 1982. I came to UNH with the desire to become a writer, but still unsure of myself and my talent. Through his classes and those of other talented teachers at UNH, I began to really start to learn the craft of writing. At the time, I was also quite active (perhaps too active!) on the student newspaper, and through my experiences, I served an internship at a local newspaper, Foster's Daily Democrat, of Dover, N.H.

By then Don had agreed to become my academic adviser, and helped me wend my way through the UNH English Department and college bureaucracy. During my internship, when I was a young, naive reporter, working at a "real" newspaper, I remember one challenge, where a reporter on the newspaper's staff kept on trying to be my supervisor, though that wasn't his role. I brought my problem to Don, and after a moment of quiet reflection, he smiled and told me to tell the nosy reporter to "f___ off."

That was Don. With a ready smile behind a Burl Ives-type face, he was one to cut to the chase and give you clear advice. And he also kept a close eye on his students, no matter where they were or what they were doing.

One of the few cherished memories I have from a lengthy hospital stay at Mary Hitchcock Hospital in Hanover, N.H., during my senior year was a phone call I received from Don, to check up on me, while he was vacationing in St. Petersburg, Fla.

After I left UNH and worked as a reporter, I later turned to my first love, fiction, and kept in touch with Don over the years. By then he was writing a regular column for the Boston Globe newspaper, and every now and then, would drop a line in his columns, saying how much he enjoyed my novels. He was a true and dedicated fan of my work, and at lunches we had together over the years, I often told him how much I owed him in helping me become a writer.

And always, Don had the same reply. He hadn't helped me at all, he said (graciously lying, I might add). He always said that he just got out of my way and pointed me in the right direction.

Mona and I had lunch many times with Don and his famed wife, Minnie Mae, who died in 2005. Usually we ate Chinese food, and the conversations were always filled with laughs and good times.

The last time Mona and I saw Don was this past October, during a taping of a program for our local PBS affiliate, where I was being interviewed by another student of Don's, author and humorist Becky Rule. You could see in his cheery expression just how proud he was of his students, and where they had ended up.

He will be missed.

In my novel SIX DAYS, I penned the following dedication: This book is for Don Murray, veteran, teacher and writer.

And so much more.

December 20, 2006 - Just a number of days left before the end of the year... hard to believe!

I'm pleased that this week and next, I'm going to be appearing on our local PBS television station, WENH-TV, out of Durham, N.H., as part of the UNH Author's Series. The half-hour interview will be broadcast at 10:30 p.m. on Friday, December 22, and at 9:30 p.m., on Thursday, December 28. For those in my area of the world, it will be appearing on Channel 11, or any one of the New Hampshire Public Television Channels. The interview was conducted by the talented author and humorist Becky Rule.

In other news, even though the calendar states winter begins in less than a day, it's been a bizarre late fall. The ice in the pond in front of our house has melted, the goldfish have woken from their slumber and have swum around, and ticks are still attaching themselves to our Tucker. Strange... but I have no doubt we'll get a dumping of snow sooner rather than later.

I'm nearing the end of the revisions for AMERIKAN EAGLE, and I'm eagerly awaiting the publication of TWILIGHT next year. It will appear in Great Britain in February 2007 (under the title DEAD OF NIGHT) and will be published in the fall of 2007 in the United States.

And in a bit of good news, FINAL WINTER - which was published earlier this year in Great Britain - will be published in the United States in early 2008 by Five Star Books. I welcome the chance for this thriller to find a home in the United States.

In the meanwhile, best wishes to my readers for the very best of holiday seasons, and a wonderful, peaceful and healthy 2007.

November 10, 2006 - Well, it's been a while since I've done an update, and this one will be quick and to the point.

All is well, and I've just completed a series of book signings and appearances to promote my latest Lewis Cole novel, PRIMARY STORM. I'd like to offer my special thanks and good wishes to all the bookstore owners and employees who hosted me at these appearances, and a special thanks to my readers, who showed up to have their books signed and their questions answered.

One highlight during the past several weeks was an interview I taped for Channel 11, the local PBS affiliate from Durham, N.H. The interview was conducted by New Hampshire author and humorist Rebecca Rule, and will be broadcast later this year as part of the Author's Series from the University of New Hampshire, where I received my B.A. in English.

Once I know when this program will be aired, I'll post the date on my website.

On the writing front, I'm re-workng and 'tweaking' my latest thriller, AMERIKAN EAGLE, and I hope to have this manuscript off to my agent by early December.

And just yesterday, I learned that Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine has purchased a new short story from me, "Blue Plate Special." This short story marks my 87th sale (man, I find that number hard to believe... ) and is part of my not-so-secret effort to reach 90 short stories by year's end.

Again, thanks for stopping by, and for all of my e-mail correspondents, I so appreciate hearing from you.

September 8, 2006 - As summer begins to fade away, I'd like to start out with condolences and then apologies

First, the condolences. From my e-mails and other messages, I know that I have a fair number of enthusiastic fans from the land Down Under, a/k/a Australia. Mona and I were very sorry to hear about the tragic death of Steve Irwin, the enthusiastic 'croc hunter.' As people who care about animals, we were saddened at his tragic and very untimely death. We always enjoyed seeing him on the morning news shows, and occasionally saw some of his programs. He seemed like a fair dinkum.

Next, the apologies. A while ago a reader of mine (Ken, I believe his name was) wrote a lengthy and greatly appreciated Guestbook entry about my works, and even gently pointed out an error in one of my latest short stories. Well, a few days ago, in the never-ending quest to kill spam, I cleaned up some of the more foul entries on my Guestbook, and accidentally deleted that message. My apologies, Ken, and if you'd care to re-post your entry, I'll make sure I don't delete it.

And speaking of my Guestbook, there's a sweet note there from the owners of a restaurant here in Exeter - 11 Water Street - where Mona and I recently had a wonderful dining experience with two dear friends, where we spent more than two hours with fine food, fine wine, and even finer laughter and conversation.

Now, with this entry, I'm quite pleased to report that PRIMARY STORM will soon by hitting the bookstores, and it's a wonderful book. My deep thanks to every one at St. Martin's Press for putting together a very attractive volume, with one of the finest covers I've ever had for one of my works.

Please go to the Appearances section of my website, where you'll see a listing of area bookstores and other places where I'll be giving readings and signing copies of PRIMARY STORM. I do hope that if you're in the area of one of these readings, that you can stop by to say hello.

Meanwhile, final edits proceed on AMERIKAN EAGLE, a book that I'm very enthusiastic about, and I have a few short stories out making the rounds, and I'm beginning the very first steps in figuring out what the next novel is going to be.

Thanks for coming by, and enjoy the last few days of summer!

August 7, 2006 - Hi! Remember me?

Yes, I know it's an odd way of saying hello, but this is an update that is coming to you, two weeks after my last entry, which - in the history of this website - is practically hyperdrive.

In doing book signings and appearances, one of the most common questions I get - besides, of course, the ever popular: "where do you get your ideas?" - is one concerning book covers. How do the covers come about? And do you - the author - have any part in the process?

Well, here are the answers: covers come from the art departments of publishers, who send out the manuscripts early in the editing process to artists or illustrators they have worked with in the past. After reading the manuscript, the artists usually present a sketch or two to the art department, starting the process that leads to a finished cover.

As to the author's part in the process, well, for me, I usually get to look at the cover just before publication and say whether I like it or not. And trust me, whichever answer I provide ends up with the same result: the cover goes to press, as is. But I shouldn't complain; for the most part, I have been extremely pleased with the covers that have appeared on all of my novels, save for one or two that have graced a Lewis Cole mystery, and which left me scratching my head.

And looking at the cover, I wasn't sure if it was a photograph or a painting. Then, I received an unanticipated yet extremely welcome e-mail from a couple in Australia, Dan and Jen Bradby. With their kind permission, I reprint their message below:

"My wife and I are very excited to be part of your latest novel Primary Storm. We were contacted recently from the Art Director at St Martin's who wanted to get permission to reproduce a photo we had taken on the cover of Primary Storm. We of course accepted and are happy to see it up on Amazon already!

"I wanted to let you know some of the story behind the photo we took. My wife and I are Australian but were living in Boston for a year or so. During the winter there we spent most of our weekends visiting your great ski resorts. This particular weekend we were heading to Bretton Woods and were fortunate enough to get a snow storm to provide us with fresh powder. From memory we took the photo somewhere between Conway, NH and Kittery ME on the 11th Feb 2005. The aftermath of the storm made for some amazing sights as we slowly drove up that Friday afternoon.

"We loved New England and are glad we get to share one of our favorite images of it through your book. In fact I just picked up a copy of FINAL WINTER this afternoon from a store here in Australia. I'm up to chapter 3 and am already hooked!"

So there you go.

And what is amazing is that my wife Mona and I know the territory between Conway, N.H., and Kittery, Maine, quite well - and that area becomes the cover of my next novel, courtesy of two people from Australia.

Strange world, ain't it.

In the meantime, editing continues on AMERIKAN EAGLE - a book that I'm quite excited about - and I also have a couple of short stories in the proverbial hopper.

My latest published short story, "The Right Call," is currently on newsstands in the September/October issue of "Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine."

And with the publication next month of my latest Lewis Cole novel, be sure to visit my Appearances page to see where in New England I will be appearing to do readings and sign copies of PRIMARY STORM.

See you again soon!

July 20, 2006 -- Happy Apollo Day!

All right, I know that most of you are probably shaking your heads over that last sentence, but it does make sense... after all, thirty-seven years ago today, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first humans to step on the moon.

And to make this date even more historic, exactly thirty years ago today, Viking I landed on Mars.

So to a certified space geek like myself, today is a special day. Of course, it makes whatever hair I have left turn even a bit more gray realizing it's been so long since the first moon landings. And to paraphrase Tom Hanks as Jim Lovell in "Apollo 13," when are we going back?

Soon, I hope. Soon.

And speaking of soon, I realize once again the length of time since my last journal entry. I have a semi-excuse, not a particularly good one, but right after that last entry, my old and somewhat reliable iMac started dying a slow and terrible death. Nothing too blatant; the poor dear would "hang up" while trying to start up, and lots of times, it would crash and burn while trying to load a program.

So it was time for a new computer, and once again, I went to Apple, as one of the proud "ten percenters" who own a Macintosh. My first Mac, nearly twenty years ago, was an Apple Mac Plus, followed by a Performa, then the iMac, and now I have a Macbook that I'm still learning how to use. It's a nice piece of equipment, though I was bummed to learn that I had to use Microsoft for a word program. That meant all my old Appleworks files (i.e, short stories and novels) can only be converted through a long and clumsy process.

Ah, progress.

And speaking of short stories and novels, I'm pleased that I'm making a lot of progress on several fronts. My alternative history novel, AMERIKAN EAGLE, is finished and is currently being read by my best first editor, Mona. I've gone through the edits from my British editors for TWILIGHT, which is due to be published in Great Britain in February, 2007. Alas, TWILIGHT - which will also be published in the United States in Fall 2007 by St. Martin's Press - won't be called TWILIGHT in the United Kingdom.

It seems my publisher had another author who had a work called TWILIGHT and which was earlier published in hardcover. The paperback edition was set to be released in February, 2007, when it was quickly realized by somebody in my publishing house that two novels called TWILIGHT, released in the same month by the same publisher, would cause a lot of confusion.

So TWILIGHT in the UK will be called DEAD OF NIGHT, but as of now, will remain TWILIGHT in the United States and in Spain and Italy, where rights to it have already been purchased.

Got that? Good...

Recently Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine published one of my latest short stories, called "Redemption Cove."

I think it's one of my best short stories, and I was pleased to see that it made the cover of the current issue of AHMM. If you have a chance, do pick up this issue; this story - I hope! - will raise the hair on the back of your neck.

I also have a short story coming out this month from a magazine called "108", which is dedicated to baseball. The story is called "No Truer Fan," and, of course, is about a Red Sox fan. When I was approached by the editors of this new magazine to submit a story of them, I said I would love to write a story with a Red Sox theme, but I wasn't sure if I could do a story that wasn't a horror story.

However, with some luck and work on my part, I think I produced a story that does the Red Sox and its fans justice. If you'd like to order a copy of this magazine, click here.

Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine has also purchased a new short story of mine, called "The Best Revenge," and I'll let you know more about that story when a print date has been set.

In other news, Roscoe continues to adjust well to his new household. He's getting a bit heavier, as he eats more regularly, and he doesn't draw nearly as much blood from Mona and me as he used to. We now let him outside on a leash, attached to a container filled with stones, so he doesn't go far, and he seems content to spend hours near our pond, trying to capture frogs. In fact, a couple of weeks ago, he did grab one, and I managed to intercede before Roscoe sent the poor amphibian to that Great Lillypad in the Sky.

He's a funny boy. There are times when he likes to cuddle a bit and switch on his purr engine. And there are other times when you try to pick him up, and he rolls on his back and bares his fangs and comes at you with all four paws.

I guess that's what makes him a cat, eh?

Once again, thanks for coming by, and I'll try to keep this more updated, especially as I get used to my new MacBook.

May 11, 2006 -- Remember that old saying? If April showers bring May flowers, what do May flowers bring? People! Yuck-yuck, except during this particular spring, April showers are bringing May showers, lots and lots of May showers. We've had cool rainy days for the past couple of days, with more rain promised over the next week or so.

Which, I suppose, means that with the wet weather, and no excuse to go out and mow the lawn and do landscaping work, I should spend more time in the office, writing and working on, um, updating my website on a more regular basis.

Good idea.

My latest novel, FINAL WINTER, was released a few weeks ago in Great Britain, and I'm quite pleased to report that according to a British trade magazine, "Bookseller," FINAL WINTER is selling very well. Thanks to my loyal fans in the UK and elsewhere who are supporting this novel. And I'm pleased to report, though I don't want to jinx anything, that odds are improving that FINAL WINTER will find a home in the United States.

My next novel up to be published will be PRIMARY STORM, the sixth novel in my Lewis Cole series. The unbound galleys of PRIMARY STORM have arrived and I'm busy reviewing those pages, which are due back to my publisher next week. As I said before, PRIMARY STORM will be published this September.

And speaking of PRIMARY STORM, the cover art for this book arrived in my e-mailbox a few weeks ago, and is reproduced nearby. It's a beautiful cover, and I'm quite fortunate that my latest covers from St. Martin's Press -- BURIED DREAMS and BETRAYED and now PRIMARY STORM -- have been well done indeed.

Work continues on my latest thriller, AMERIKAN EAGLE and again, not to jinx anything, I believe the first draft will be completed within the next couple of weeks. Then, some revision time, and another draft will be printed out to my loyal and trustworthy first editor and first reader: my wife Mona, who is skilled at pointing out inconsistencies ("why is her hair red in Chapter Two, but brunette in Chapter Eight?") and who also has a very sharp eye for grammatical problems, spelling errors, and the such. Also, she tells me when something works, and, equally as important, when something *doesn't* work. (Hi, dear, and thanks again!)

Short story production continues apace as well, and I've sold a short story to a new magazine that will publish its premier issue next month. Called "108 Magazine," it describes itself as a "quarterly publication that celebrates baseball's contribution to and role in American history, culture, and social fabric." My story is called "No Truer Fan,"and I'm thrilled that it will appear in the very first issue of "108 Magazine."

Now, to answer the question from my non-baseball readers: what the heck does the name of the magazine mean? Easy answer: there are 108 stitches in a regulation baseball. To learn more about this new magazine, click here.

I also have a new short story,"Redemption Cove," coming up in the July/August issue of "Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine." It's a tale of a young lady, found murdered in a New Hampshire lake, and how this discovery changes so many lives. I believe this story is one of my best, and if you read it, I hope you like it.

In other news, our new cat Roscoe is managing to fit himself better and better with each passing day in our household, and Mona and I have a fewer number of scratches on our hands and fingers to show for it. We even think that Tucker and Roscoe are becoming more used to each other, with the first hints of play time between them.

Encouraging news, I suppose...

Thanks for stopping by!

March 28, 2006 -- Well, not much to say except that it's been a very busy past few months, with many challenges and some sad occurrences.

To begin with, at the very beginning of the year, there was a health problem for a dear family member that has moved to a positive resolution. This meant many hours on the road for Mona and I, and many visiting hours as well. The current situation is just much more upbeat since this loved family member has been discharged from the hospital.

Sadly, a number of weeks ago, we lost Oreo, our cat and boon companion. Oreo had shared more than fifteen years of his life with at first Mona, and then the two of us, after Mona and I got married. He was a special boy, with fans from across the nation and literally, the world. He traveled well with us, going in the car with a minimum of fuss, and enjoyed meeting new people.

He wasn't shy; if you came to our house, he would often stroll up and introduce himself with a loud meow. He also had a taste for people food: lobster, shrimp, hamburg, steak, chicken and pork were his favorites, as well as strawberry ice cream and cantaloupe. Mona and her knitting skills meant that this special boy had a number of hand-knit blankets, which he loved in his own way.

Oreo was never a cuddly lap cat, which some would say was part of his charm. He was persnickity, opinionated and when Tucker the English Springer Spaniel moved into our household, he wasted no time in bopping Tucker on the nose with his paw, to show him who was boss.

He now rests in the flower bed in front of our house, where he would often sunbathe and terrorize the occasional chipmunk or red squirrel. He will be missed.

And now... we introduce Roscoe. Just over a month ago, we decided it was time to have a cat return to our household. The fine people at the Harvest Hills Animal Shelter in Fryeburg, Maine, welcomed us as we spent part of a Saturday morning, looking for that special someone... which we found in Roscoe. Big, muscular, and sharing some of the black-and-white fur patterns of Oreo, Roscoe has settled in well. Unlike Oreo in his later senior years, Roscoe is full of energy and play, and both of us have scratch marks on our hands to mark his roughhousing.

But, like Oreo, when Roscoe met Tucker, he tried to bop him on the nose with his paw to show him who was boss. I guess some things never change.

And on the writing front... visitors will notice a new look on the front page of my website. Yes, FINAL WINTER will be availably shortly to my fans overseas in Great Britain, Ireland and the Commonwealth nations, and I do hope that an American publisher will be found so that it will appear on *this* side of the pond as well.

I'm quite proud of FINAL WINTER, though its topic --terrorism -- is probably not one I will return to any time soon. All too often, real news events quickly outstrip any fictional ideas myself and other authors come up with.

One caveat to my overseas fans: when you click on the Amazon.co.uk link for FINAL WINTER, you'll get the correct homepage for my novel. However, due to a communications glitch, the synopsis for this novel is incorrect. I'm told that work is underway to insert the correct synopsis; I sure hope it occurs soon!

Just yesterday I mailed back the corrected manuscript of PRIMARY STORM, which will be published this September -- one of my favorite months! -- by my American publisher, St. Martin's Press. This will be the sixth adventure for Lewis Cole, and involves his participation in the New Hampshire presidential primary.... and believe it or not, candidates are already up here, making the rounds and introducing themselves to long-suffering New Hampshire voters.

Work continues on AMERIKAN EAGLE, and on last check, I have three short stories out making the rounds. So writing continues, and continues well, and my thanks again for stopping by, and here's to more timely entries on my part in the future!

January 3, 2006 -- Here's to a happy, safe and wonderful New Year for all my visitors.

The past several weeks have been a jumble of Christmas preparations, planning, some travel up north, and the usual fun chaos of Christmas in New Hampshire with my wife Mona, our creatures Oreo and Tucker, and all of our extended family members. Now that the holiday season is over, it's time to update the website and get back to a regular routine.

In a couple of weeks -- on Tuesday, January 17th, to be precise -- I'll be doing a book signing at 7 p.m. at the Water Street Bookstore at 125 Water Street in Exeter. Along with authors J.E. Seymour and S.A. Daynard, I'll be signing copies of the "Windchill" short fiction crime anthology, published by Level Best Books. This is the anthology -- see entry below -- in which my short story, "The Forever Reunion," appears, and for which I was honored to receive the Al Blanchard Crime Fiction Award.

Meanwhile, I continue to work on AMERIKAN EAGLE, and I was pleased that Tekno Books -- hi Marty, hi Larry, hi John! -- have purchased another short story of mine, "The Unplug War," for an upcoming science-fiction anthology tentatively titled "Man vs. Machine." I find it quite sweet, based on the reams of science fiction that I both read and wrote as a youngster, that I am now selling science fiction short stories. Of course, I have yet to crack the ultimate science fiction market, ANALOG magazine, though I've been trying since I was about twelve or thereabouts. Hmmm.... thirty-plus years of trying to crack a market; you'd think they'd give me a break or something.

Sometime this spring -- still not sure of the definite date -- my newest thriller, FINAL WINTER, will be published in Great Britain and other Commonwealth nations by my superb British publisher, Time-Warner UK. There's still a chance that FINAL WINTER will find a publishing home in the land of my birth, but in the meantime, here's a copy of the cover (my British publisher excels at wonderful covers).

The battle against my guestbook spammers continue, with my tech support adviser Will Eastler doing his part. I would hate to disable my comments section, but I also hate having all that junk clog up my guestbook and offend my readers. So I hope the future brings success to all, and death to spammers!

November 16, 2005 -- As I write this, I still have very fond thoughts concerning an award I received this past Saturday night.

At the banquet of the annual New England Crime Bake conference -- held in Lowell, Mass., November 12 and 13 -- I was quite honored to receive the first annual Al Blanchard Crime Fiction Award. It's named after short story author and novelist Al Blanchard, an energetic author and volunteer who did a lot for mystery writers and aspiring writers in New England. Al was serving his third year as president of the New England Chapter of Mystery Writers of America when he suddenly died at last year's conference. A photo of Al is nearby.

The Crime Bake is organized by the New England MWA chapter and Sisters in Crime, and after Al's death, it was decided to honor his memory at this year's conference by establishing the Al Blanchard Crime Fiction Award. Requests for submissions were sent out, and as I understand it, more than 80 submissions were received. They were all submitted anonymously and were judged by a committee of MWA members, plus Enid Blanchard, Al's widow.

In addition to a lovely plaque that is now hanging in my office, my winning story -- "The Forever Reunion" -- was published in a mystery anthology published by Level Best Books of Massachusetts, called "Windchill." This is their third anthology; the previous two books in the series were called "Riptide" and "Undertow."

Upon receiving the award, I made the following remarks to the banquet attendees at the Crime Bake after receiving the award from Enid Blanchard:

------

Thank you, Enid, for that wonderful introduction.

Before I begin, I'd also like to thank the judges for this fantastic award: Enid, of course, as well as Susan Oleksiw, Leslie Wheeler, Paula Munier and Toni Kelner. As one who has served as an awards judge several times for MWA, I know and appreciate the work that goes into reading and re-reading scores of submissions.

And I'd also like to thank Susan Oleksiw again, and the other members of Level Best books, Skye Alexander and Kate Flora, who are publishing the Wind Chill anthology, which includes not only my story, but those of other New England authors. In these times when it seems like we will eventually end up with three or four corporate publishers, it's heartening to see publishing houses like Level Best exist. And I'd also like thank as well, the members of the Crime Bake committee for organizing this wonderful event...

In accepting this award tonight, the honor really doesn't go to me, but goes to Al Blanchard. It says so much of Al and the lives that he touched that this award was created in his memory.

I confess that I didn't know Al that well, and I am poorer for it. I had met him a few times at meetings of the New England MWA at Kate's Mystery Books, and I remember his twinkling eyes, the ready smile under his thick moustache, and the way he seemed to enjoy having a part in reinvigorating the New England chapter.

But I do know we had things in common, besides being short story writers and novelists. We shared a love of New England and its geography and its people.

If I may, I'd like to read something that Al had said, some time ago, about the importance of setting when it comes to creating a mystery. He said, "A setting in a mystery isn't simply an arbitrary backdrop to a story. A good setting makes things happen. It forms the characters and has a personality and life of its own. Massachusetts has cities, suburbs, farms, wilderness, mountains and the seashore. It also has a mixture of cultures, religions and languages. Basing my mysteries in Massachusetts gives me the opportunity to weave some unique tales."

How true, and I echo Al's words in creating my own mysteries, many of which take place in my home state of New Hampshire, which shares so many of the geographical traits Al mentioned here in Massachusetts... except of course, for a sales or income tax...

So for all of us writers -- those published, those working to be published -- take Al's words to heart when it comes to creating your own tale. Find your own true place, your own true voice, when you sit down at the keyboard.

And Al's life, I think, should also inspire all of us, for he had had a long and satisfying career as a teacher before turning his energies to writing mystery fiction. So many of us come to writing from other fields, other places, after determining we could no longer ignore that voice inside that demanded we write, we create, we take part in this mysterious world of fiction. And Al made it happen.

But when he also turned to writing, he made sure he brought others along with him as well. He was so very active in the New England chapter of MWA, and he had a huge part in working with Sisters in Crime and others in putting on this successful New England Crimebake. He wrote and talked and inspired so many of us to keep at it, not to be discouraged, to try and try again.

In closing, I have fond memories, years ago, of a trip my wife Mona and I took to Sun Valley in Idaho, where Ernest Hemingway spent his last years, where there's a stone monument in his honor near a place called Trail Creek. One winter day the two of us skiied out to this remote area, to find this place of honor. On the monument is the following poem, written by Hemingway, mourning a departed friend:

"Best of all he loved the fall / The leaves yellow on the cottonwoods / Leaves floating on the trout streams / And above the hills / The high blue windless skies / Now he will be part of them forever."

Look around you, look at the writers and the aspiring writers that Al knew, look at this convention he helped organize, look at what Al did in his life, and as long as there's a New England and as long as there are mystery writers, Al will be a part of them forever.

Thank you.

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So there you go.

If you'd like to know more about Al, click here.

If you'd like to order a copy of "Windchill," click here.

In addition to receiving the award, I also had a chance to meet some old friends in the mystery field, and to make new ones, and to raise a drink or two in Al's memory.

Writing can be a very solitary business, often conducted through keyboards or modems, and it's a delight sometimes to sit with fellow travelers in this weird trip we call mystery fiction, and to swap tales and lies and to finally agree at the end that yes, it's all worth it.

November 10, 2005 -- Well, another Halloween come and gone... *sigh*.

Perhaps it's my genetic makeup, which is Celtic Irish in origin, but there's something about this time of year that just interests and intrigues me. As I said earlier, not for me the blood-spattered gore fests of certain horror movies or books... I just like the old Druid belief that this time of year -- called Samhain -- was when the barrier between the physical world and the spirit world thinned out, and spirits could come visit their prior life.

I'm an educated man of the 21st century, but late at night, when the lights were off downstairs, I would go out and step on the porch, and look up at the bright stars. The wind would rustle leaves across the yard, and there would always be those small sounds from animals and birds, out there in the darkness. During Halloween, I have two candles burning on the porch, in tiny candle holders that cast shadows of a skull and a skeleton. And when the cold night wind makes the shadows flicker on the walls of the house, that's when I have the faintest feeling of what my Celtic ancestors felt like a thousand years ago.

One of these days... and I don't know when... I'm sure I will write a novel inspired by my love of Halloween. But other novels beckon...

Such as AMERIKAN EAGLE, which is proceeding nicely, and I'm pleased with the wonderful cooperation I'm getting from my sources (hi mom, hi dad) and members of the Portsmouth Police Department, who are all assisting in this novel's background.

St. Martin's Press has also officially accepted PRIMARY STORM, my latest Lewis Cole novel, for publication, though a release date hasn't been set yet. When I find out, I'll post it here on my site.

New short stories continue to make the rounds, and I've also been told that one of my newest stories, "The Lights of Crawford Hills," will appear in the March/April 2006 issue of Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine.

Amazing, when you think of it... my first published short story, "Dark Corridor," appeared in EQMM in February 1986. Here it is, twenty years and more than eighty published short stories later, I'm still at it...

I'm glad I still enjoy it so.

Thanks for visiting!

October 25, 2005 -- And now, we are into October, one of my most favorite months.

Ever since I was a young'un, there was always something magical and mysterious about October. Beyond the changing of the seasons, the cold nights and crisp mornings, the changing colors of the leaves, there was also a magical feeling with the approach of Halloween.

My brothers and I would spend hours dreaming up what kind of costumes to wear, we'd plan our trick-and-treat route like generals planning an invasion, determining the best and quickest way to hit certain streets and households. Some houses were high on the list: those, for example, who actually gave out full-size Hershey bars, and not those little bite-size bars. And then there were the households to avoid: those who shut off all the lights or those -- horrors! -- that gave out apples.

There were decorations in school, pumpkin to carve out, and of course, the true highlight, the Charlie Brown Halloween special, where I loved hearing the spooky music as Snoopy escaped through the fields of France after being shot down by the Red Baron.

Then, came the special night. For some odd reason, here in New Hampshire, at least, trick-and-treat is done on October 30th, *not* October 31st. Why? No idea... but in any event, we'd rush through dinner -- and groan whenever the doorbell rang, meaning other trick-or-treaters were out there, beating us to the punch -- and change into costumes, grab our flashlights and empty treat bags, and head on out.

Ah. The sound of candy making that satisfying "thump"sound when it was dumped into your paper bag. And the wonderful joy of the next several days, diving in and out, eating the goodies, trying desperately to ration them out to Thanksgiving... knowing there was always some kid (some nameless, kid, of course) was able to ration his candy out to Christmas.

Designing costumes were always the best part of Halloween, and I still fondly remember one costume that really stands out. It started off with a draped white sheet, with me wearing a skeleton mask (this being the 1960s, it was that brittle plastic mask that made you sweat and suffocate after having it on for more than ten minutes) and on top of my head, a Boy Scout-issued Indian headdress that once belonged to my older brother Brian. The headdress was made of fur and had two horns sticking out... and it was a heck of a sight, though the horns were heavy! I remember going to one household up the street, and the male neighbor was so impressed he had to call his wife over, while holding his Doberman by the collar, said Doberman barking furiously at me, no doubt wanting to rip out my throat.

To this day, Halloween remains my favorite holiday, and I still have decorations and pumpkins out -- I usually try to put them up about October 1st -- and I enjoy re-reading two of the greats of American horror literature: Edgar Allan Poe and H.P. Lovecraft, both of whom have New England connections. Not for me the blood-spattered tales or violent movies; I prefer the quiet spookiness that plays around the edges, that make you wonder about a moaning breeze, a creaking branch, and that odd bump in the night.

Have a wonderful Halloween, wherever -- and whoever -- you are...

September 23, 2005 -- Well, I guess the Apocalypse hasn't struck *quite* yet... Apologies once again for not updating the site in a more timely manner.

Now, it's time to take a deep breath and explain where I'm at on the novel front. It's quite confusing -- especially for me, the author -- but it's a lot of fun in a warped way.

First things first... FINAL WINTER, a terrorism-related saga that took me nearly two years to write, is in production at my wonderful British publisher, Time Warner UK. I just went through the copyediting process a few weeks ago, and for the first time in my writing career, I can honestly say that the process was a complete joy, from start to finish. Kudos to Time Warner UK, especially copyeditor Nick Austin, who was a joy to work with.

As of this writing, FINAL WINTER has not yet found an American publisher, but I'll update if and when this changes. The current schedule shows FINAL WINTER being published in Great Britain in the first part of 2006.

Next up... is TWILIGHT. This particular thriller -- a quiet thriller about, well, bad things happening in the United States (don't want to give too much of the plot away at this time ) -- has made a bit of a splash, much to my surprise and enjoyment. TWILIGHT will be published in the United States by my American publisher, St. Martin's Press, and will also be published in Great Britain by Time Warner UK. In addition, TWILIGHT has been picked up by publishers in Holland, Spain, and Italy, and there's hope for a few more foreign publishers jumping on the bandwagon. Much thanks to Liza Dawson and Chandler Crawford for their efforts in making this piece of magic happen.

And last on the hit parade is the sixth novel in my Lewis Cole series, PRIMARY STORM, in which Our Hero Lewis gets mixed up in political shenanigans during the quadrennial circus known as the New Hampshire primary, where residents of my home state have a big hand in choosing the next president. That book is now with my editor at St. Martin's Press, and when a publication date is announced, I'll make sure it appears on my website.

Now, speaking of novels, I'm currently at work on my new thriller, an alternative-history novel called AMERIKAN EAGLE. I don't want to hex anything, but so far, this book has been a blast to write.

In other news, I have three short stories out making the proverbial rounds, and am working on a new one. A few days ago I had a delightful appearance at the Exeter Public Library where I gave a sneak peak to the appreciative audience (hi Mom and Dad!) of TWILIGHT, and gave a bit of a behind-the-scenes look at being a writer.

Now, despite the news about hurricanes and such, I'm going to do my best to usher in the Apocalypse by updating this site on a more frequent basis...

August 12, 2005 -- Ouch! Hard to believe it's been *months* since I've updated my pages... apologies all around, but first things first.

My Guestbook is now up and running again. I had been concerned recently that there had been a lack of Guestbook postings, and after checking in with my web guru, Will, of monkeymind.net, I discovered that a bit of um, aggressive deletion of spam on my part in my Guestbook had deleted a key portion of code. Will made a snappy repair (thanks!) and now we're back where we belong.

My apologies if you tried to post a Guestbook message and nothing appeared. Please try again if you'd like... and, of course, Death to Spammers! Or as Cato the Elder might have said, Spammers Delenda Est!

I'm now in the curious but not unpleasant position of having *three* novels out and about, and I'll tell more once I'm in a better position to do so.

In other news, the summer is progressing along nicely, except for the past several days, I had a wicked viral infection that offered coughing, a sore throat, a constant fever and achiness. I napped a lot, ignored yardwork and writing, and read old science fiction and napped. (Old science fiction to me is like comfort food; though I'd call it comfort reading...) Thanks to Mona for taking care of me, Tucker for amusing me, and Oreo for not biting my forehead while I was napping.

Now that I'm feeling better, writing lurches ahead, with work proceeding on my latest thriller, AMERIKAN EAGLE. Hope your summer's going well, and here's hoping to a sign of the Apocalypse: me updating this website next week...

May 18, 2005 -- At about 9:10 a.m. this morning, I finished the sixth novel in my Lewis Cole series, PRIMARY STORM. I celebrated this blessed event by taking Tucker out for a quick walk on the front lawn, and by folding some laundry!

Now, the real work begins, as I return to PRIMARY STORM for editing, re-writing, checking for continuity errors -- i.e., two widely different characters sharing the same last name, ouch! -- and spellchecking. Then, a print run and it goes to my very first dear reader, Mona, who takes out her trusty red pen and finds all the mistakes I overlooked. From there, one more pass through on my trusty iMac and off it goes to my agent Liza.

It was fun working through PRIMARY STORM as it approached the end, and as the characters somewhat took control of their destiny and made everything -- I hope! -- work out fine. I usually find that working on a novel has three distinct phases: the wildly optimistic first few chapters, as things come alive and you're excited at the new world you're creating; the sullen middle portion of the book, which is often a slog punctuated by self-doubts, i.e., does any of this make sense?; and the frantic last few chapters, as you realize the darn thing is almost finished.

Writing continues as well on my new thriller, AMERIKAN EAGLE, and I'm looking forward to spending more time in my fictional United States of 1943 with PRIMARY STORM esssentially having been completed.

In other news, I'm quite happy with two recent short story sales. The first, "The Temptation of King David," will appear in an anthology edited by Anne Perry (with able assistance by Marty Greenberg and the fun folks at Tekno Books) and to be published by Carrol & Graf. This anthology is called "Thou Shalt Not Kill: Biblical Mystery Stories."

The second sale has a bit of meaning to it. This short story, "The Last Flight,"will be in an anthology edited by Harlan Coben (again, with the able assistance by Marty Greenberg and the fun folks at Tekno Books) and will be published by Tor Books. This anthology, "Relationships Can Be Murder," is an anthology put together by the Mystery Writers of America , the professional organization for mystery authors. I've been a proud member of MWA for nearly twenty years, and I hope this anthology does well for them

There are also other projects out there -- including my thriller-that-used-to-be-called BLACK WIND, and I hope to have some more information on this in the future weeks. Again, my thanks to my agent, Liza Dawson, who's really been out there pitching for me.

Thanks again for stopping by.

April 7, 2005 -- Spring has finally sprung in our little corner of New England, though piles of snow still remain in our yard and along the local roads. Our English Springer Spaniel, Tucker, loves to jump and play in the snow -- digging and then retrieving a green tennis ball -- but he seems to be adjusting to our wet lawn and the muddy woods nearby.

I put on my Wellington boots yesterday and tramped around the yard for the first time, seeing the places that need to be trimmed, the leaves that need to be raked, and other stuff that emerges once the snow melts. A muddy mess, overall, but after this long and grueling winter, it's still a pleasure to see. Mona and I are also enjoying our early morning walks with Tucker as well, as we hear and see birds in numbers that we haven't seen in months.

And as we bid a fond farewell to winter -- hah, hah! -- here's a photo of our home taken a few weeks ago, after the last major dump of the white stuff. Sharp-eyed readers will note our two boys sitting in the middle of the front porch; one of whom would love to jump and roll around in the snow, the other who can hardly wait to get back inside and snuggle up next to the radiator.

Writing continues well the past few weeks, with good progress being made on the new Lewis Cole novel, PRIMARY STORM. It's funny how the writing process happens anew with each novel. When a novel starts, the writing is a bit clumsy, hesitant, as the characters begin to take life and interact with each other. Then, at some time, there is a "tipping point," where the characters begin to take on a life of their own, and the writing becomes smoother and faster. A couple of weeks ago, I reached this tipping point with PRIMARY STORM, and it's fun to see Lewis and Felix and Paula and Diane and the other characters in my Lewis Cole series do what they do best.

I've also begun serious work on my new thriller, AMERIKAN EAGLE, and have enjoyed immersing myself win the world of the United States, circa 1943. More to come on this book as it proceeds...

The past couple of weeks, I had the fun opportunity to meet with the staff and readers of the public libraries in nearby Brentwood and Hampton, N.H., and it's always a pleasure to meet my readers in person.

Work also continues on other projects as well, and I'd like to give thanks to my agent Liza Dawson, who's been working very hard on my behalf these past few weeks.

Happy spring to all!

February 25, 2005 -- As winter grinds along, we just had another snowstorm, following yet another snowstorm... and more snow is predicted in just a few days. Ah, the joys of living in New Hampshire.

And speaking of joy, I'm excited to announce that my wonderful British publisher, Time Warner UK, has agreed to publish my latest thriller, the-book-no-longer-called BLACK WIND. Once I have more details of a publication date and when the title is nailed down, I'll let you know.

I'm also pleased to report that an interview with me is now up on a website in Brazil devoted to time travel and alternative history. The site is hosted by Octavio Aragao, a Brazilian science fiction author and fan of my alternative history novel, RESURRECTION DAY. You can view the interview by clicking here.

My thanks to Octavio for conducting the interview, and for exposing me to Brazilian readers.

As an aside, it's *always* a big thrill to hear from my fans overseas. It's wonderful to be a published American author; it's even better to know that your works are being read and appreciated overseas.

In other writing news, I've completed a short story for the merry anthologists of Marty Greenberg and John Helfers at Tekno Books, I've finished a special project for my agent (hi, Liza!) and work continues on my new Lewis Cole novel, PRIMARY STORM.

By the by, my head feels much better, though some parts are still tender to the touch... but at least my yellow bruise has faded away! Here's to warm weather and best wishes for all of us.

February 11, 2005 -- Another week, another snowstorm. And a misadventure that still has my head ringing...

Let me set this misadventure up. Part of my morning routine, after kissing Mona goodbye as she heads out to work, is to take Tucker out on the leash on our front porch, and meet Mona as she's backing out the Honda from the garage for one last wave, especially from Tucker.

Well, this past Tuesday, the routine became anything but. We have had a bout of warm days here but cold nights, and as I went down the steps, a thin film of ice was on the steps. And you know what? It really is true; when you have an accident, things do *really* move fast, for I don't remember falling down the steps. I just remember being on my side, realizing that my head hurt like hell, and trying to get up while checking to make sure my jaw wasn't broken, as well as any limb or ribs. Luckly, I just had a couple of big eggs on the side of my head, as well as a scraped cheek.

Mona acted fast, putting the Honda in park, and helping me back inside. And for the rest of the day, well, not much got done except for laying down, putting ice packs on my head, and taking Tylenol.

Today my head is better, I have a faint black eye -- actually, more yellow than black -- and I'm a few days behind on my writing obligations (sorry, Liza). And yesterday, more snow, but I walked much, much more carefully...

Speaking of snow, here's a recent photo of Tucker, playing out in the snow, and enjoying himself tremendously. Mona and I believe that he could probably spend the entire day out in the snow, if he could.

And speaking of writing, my latest published short story, "Cold Waters," is in the March/April 2005 issue of "Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine." I'd like to take this moment to thank my neighbor and friend Patrick O'Halloran for his technical advice in the research for this story. It was a great help. And it's always a pleasure to appear in EQMM, especially since they published my first short story... good Lord, in 1986, almost twenty years ago!

Where in heck did the time go?

Other writing continues, including a new short story for Marty Greenberg, my new Lewis Cole novel, and other projects as well.

And in the spirit of fairness, here's an old photo of our cat Oreo, doing what he does best. He has spent time in the snow, but Mona and I think that if he had a choice between walking in the snow or snoozing, he'd pick snoozing, every time.

February 4, 2005 -- For those fans who read this site on a regular basis -- come on, there must be four or five of you out there! -- it's no secret that I was and am a big fan of science fiction and fantasy. Growing up in the 1960's and 1970's, I devoured the works of Robert Heinlein, Arthur C. Clarke, Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, Larry Niven, Harlan Ellison, so forth and so on.

Besides novels, I also read all the magazines: Analog, Amazing SF, The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine, Galaxy (now long gone, *sigh*), and others as well that didn't live long, like Galileo and Vertex.

When I first started writing short stories, when I was about 12 or so, those stories were all science fiction. I think my very first short story -- still stuck in one of my filing cabinets -- was called "Two Light Years to Doom." Pulpy stuff, right? (I just now took it out and read it.... oh my, how delightfully horrible it is!) And even at that young age, and all through high school and college, I wrote many, many science fiction short stories and sent them out to the science fiction magazines that I read, magazines that I loved.

I had a dream back then of being the youngest published science fiction author ever, a dream, alas, that never came true. With every story that went out, it would come back regularly with a rejection slip. After college and some years in the newspaper and technical writing business, I tried to resurrect my science fiction career, only to find the same responses. Rejection, rejection, rejection.

Eventually I wrote a short story that was rejected by all of the science fiction magazines, but had a mysterious twist to it. I sent this story out to Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, and instead of a rejection slip, I received a contract. That's how my mystery/suspense-thriller writing career began.

Yet... yet... even as I had novels published, and many more short stories, there was still a dreamy 12-year-old boy inside of me that wanted to publish *science fiction.* So every now and then, I'd craft a science fiction story and sent it out to Analog or Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine. And every now and then, I'd get a rejection in reply. Even with the short story awards and recognitions I've received, even with the sales to Playboy and other magazines, I still wanted that success of selling a short story to a science fiction magazine.

Which brings us to the present... and thank you for indulging me for this lengthy set up. Last year I had a science fiction short story published in an original anthology, called SPACE STATIONS, edited by the merry anthologists Marty Greenberg and John Helfers. And just a few days ago, I received a nice form letter from the famed science fiction editor and author, Gardner Dozois, informing me that he wanted to re-print my short story, "Falling Star," in the 22nd edition of "The Year's Best Science Fiction," to be published by St. Martin's Press.

So there you go. Not in a magazine, but a short story of mine will appear in a "Year's Best" anthology of science fiction stories.

Somewhere out there, I think there's a very pleased 12-year-old boy.

January 18, 2005 -- My first entry of the New Year, and I'm happy to note that so far, I'm doing better when it comes to updating this site!

After a bout of warm weather last week that seemed *very* odd (temperatures rising into the 50's, ice and snow melting, the roof fairly dripping with streams of water) we are now back to the usual New Hampshire January weather, i.e., cold! Not as cold as some parts of the country, but cold enough for us, thank you kindly. Mona and I have been trying to get out for walks in the morning, and most mornings, we do make it... though this morning it was *quite* cold, with a stiff wind blowing. We were both bundled up and had our English Springer Spaniel Tucker, walking along. Tucker's such a sweet boy... I'm convinced that if we were somehow able to walk to Hell, he'd be there right beside us, trotting as we enter the infernal region!

We're usually out the door at 6:15 a.m. or thereabouts, and it's still quite dark. It gives me a chance to try out my early morning astronomy -- "Look dear, I do believe that's Mercury over there" -- and it's a nice bit of exercise and quality time with loved ones that I do enjoy... though sometimes, getting out the door when it's in the teens is a bit of a challenge!

On the writing world, Lewis Cole continues his adventures in the New Hampshire primary, and work also continues on outlining and researching my next thriller, AMERIKAN EAGLE. I've also been invited to contribute a short story to a new anthology being edited by the King of Anthologists, Marty Greenberg, and I've eagerly jumped into writing this new tale.

My fight against the Forces of Darkness, i.e., spammers, continues, and I now find that I have to visit my site on a daily basis to get rid of all the idiot messages posted for web hosting, poker, and a host of sexual and recreational activities, some of which are probably illegal in New Hampshire.

I continue to wish the very best to all my readers and visitors to this site. And I wish the very best to my poor mom, who's recovering from wrist surgery after breaking her wrist a couple of weeks ago. The surgery was to place pins and a plate to keep her fractured bones together, and my dad's doing yeoman's work in keeping the household running. Hi mom!

December 30, 2004 -- As we near the end of 2004, one of my New Year's resolutions is to keep this site more up to date. Since I'm writing this entry just a couple of weeks after my last entry, I think I'm making good progress... okay, maybe not *good* progress, but progress just the same. One challenge I've been finding lately has been clearing our the spam that has been clogging the guestbook. It's times like these, when I see these long lists of spam messages, that I believe these spammers should be hunted down and... well, you get the idea. As my wife Mona would say, "Not that you have an opinion on that!"

A bunch of news from the short story arena. Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine has just purchased my latest, "The Lights of Crawford Hills," which is my 77th short story sale. Boy, if I get off the mark and get cracking, I might be able to break 100 by the end of 2005... yeah, right.

I'm also pleased to note that one of my short stories, "One Shot Difference," which was first published in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, has been reprinted in the fifth annual edition of "The World's Finest Mystery and Crime Stories," edited by Ed Gorman and Marty Greenberg. I'm also *very* pleased to note that I believe -- without spending a lot of time perusing my bookshelves -- that I've had a short story in each edition of this fine collection since it was first begun. My thanks to Ed and Marty for this continuing honor. For a direct link to this collection, click here.

For my Japanese fans out there -- and I know there are some! -- I have an essay in a mystery magazine published in Japan, called Giallo. It's in the Giallo Winter 2005 Issue, number 18. I'm on page 374. I'd also like to thank Japanese mystery fan/editor/writer Jiro Kimura for asking for this essay, and please, do visit his wonderful webpage, The Gumshoe Site. Please visit his site by clicking here.

On December 16th, I was a guest of Gardner Goldsmith, radio talkshow host for WGIR-AM, who was broadcasting from the Manchester Public Library in celebration of the library's 150th anniversary. It was a lot of fun, talking about writing, mysteries, and of course, the mystery of writing...

I had a funny experience this past weekend, looking through the New York Times Book Review, and seeing that BLACK WIND had made the hardcover bestseller list. There was just that briefest flash of recognition of my novel title, before I quickly realized that of course, it was the novel by Clive Cussler. Good for him... I met him a number of years ago at Bouchercon in Omaha, and he was charming and friendly.

Writing continues on the latest Lewis Cole, PRIMARY STORM, and I'm keeping fingers, toes, and other appendages crossed that magic will strike on the novel-once-called-BLACK WIND, and the other top-secret book project.

Here's to a great, healthy, safe and wonderful New Year for all of us.

December 13, 2004 -- This is turning out to be an odd end to fall, weather-wise. It's been unseasonably warm here in New Hampshire, with some brief snow storms, but no snow of any duration or depth. However, the snow that has fallen has proven to be an irresistible play area for our English Springer Spaniel, Tucker. He *loves* the snow -- digging and jumping and rolling around -- and he sometimes gives Mona and me a look, as if to say, "How come you guys didn't arrange for this earlier?"

For those of you who are interested, here's our Christmas card photo this year, of Tucker and our cat, Oreo. Tucker seems to be putting up with this humiliation, while Oreo has the look on his face that says, "when I paw you awake at three a.m., you'll know why!" And the amusing part of this is that while I was taking the photo, Oreo was more patient... poor Tucker kept on shaking his head off, trying to knock the antlers off. In any event, we all wish my readers and fans a very safe and happy holiday season...

On the novel-writing front, I'm pleased to report that my agent is enthused about my latest thriller, the novel-once-called-BLACK WIND. Yes, it's finally complete and a copy of it now resides with my spectacular British editor, Hilary Hale at Time Warner UK. And why isn't it BLACK WIND anymore? Well, it seems that a couple of months ago, this obscure and little-known writer named Clive Cussler came out with a new novel, called, of course, BLACK WIND. The plots have nothing in common but its better not to confuse book buyers, bookstore owners, readers, so forth and so on, so the title of BLACK WIND -- which I've been using for almost two years! -- is gone. I have a new title but I'm going to wait a bit before publicly announcing it.

And speaking secrets, there's another book project I'm involved with that has some potential in it, but I'm *really* playing this one close to the vest. Let's just say that my agent was pleasantly surprised to look at this project, and she and I have high hopes for it.

In the meantime, in addition to the usual Christmas time demands, I'm plugging along with Lewis Cole and his new book, PRIMARY STORM. (As an aside... I almost wrote, 'Lewis Cole and his latest adventure...' Like the old Tom Swift books that I read as a kid and loved, you know, Tom Swift and his Amazing Diving Seacopter. I loved those books!) What's been unusual with this book is that in the run-up to the presidential election, I really had to force myself to get to work on this book.

You see, PRIMARY STORM takes place during the New Hampshire primary, and since New Hampshire was one of the 'battleground' states, that meant we got a lot of attention. And a lot of attention translates into yard signs, rallies on street corners, tons and tons of junk mail, idiotic TV advertisements and lots of phone calls -- from pollsters to campaigns. Even on election day, we got three or phone calls, and two visits from folks wanting to know if anyone needed a ride to the polls that day! So with all of this political activity, writing a book about politics just seemed to be too much.

But now that another political season is behind us -- for now! -- I find PRIMARY STORM to be a lot more fun to write.

Thanks again for coming by, and I promise -- as always -- to keep this site more up to date. For one thing, I have to, for those damn spammers are visiting more and more often, clogging up the guestbook with some really vile junk, so I have to be a better up-dater and writer. Not a bad New Year's resolution, a few weeks early, right?

Do take care.

September 14, 2004 -- As I write this, I'm taking a deep breath because my latest thriller, BLACK WIND, is finished. Oh, it's not completed by any means -- there is rewriting ahead and facts to check and more edits to be done -- but the first draft was wrapped up just over a week ago. Boy, it's a great feeling to finish a novel... but it's also a bit nerve wracking. You've got to polish, edit and re-write to make it the best book possible for a) yourself b) your fans, and c) a nice publishing house with an even nicer editor!

And speaking of nice editors, my love and thanks to my wife Mona, who read the 500-plus page manuscript and pointed out all the areas that needed fixing -- including my nasty habit of changing character's names halfway through a book -- and still read through the book with good humor and a sharp eye. And she said she loved the book, though a character or two she liked unfortunately came to an untimely ending.

Over the past several weeks I've been privileged to meet a number of fans at various booksigning events in the area for my latest Lewis Cole novel, BURIED DREAMS. Each of these events have been fun, and here are some highlights of what happened:

-- The first one, at Water Street Books in Exeter, where I always kick off my signings. The audience was good-sized, enthusiastic, and one of the best parts of the evening was telling a "Da Vinci Code" joke that had the entire audience roaring with laughter, including that book's author and his lovely wife.

-- Going to Kate's Mystery Books in Cambridge, and spending time with the great Kate Mattes at her unique and lovely store.

-- Dining on rich chocolate cheesecake at Barnes & Noble in Manchester, and meeting a few fans who had literally waited hours to see me.

-- Riverrun Books in Portsmouth, seeing mom and dad and niece Bridget, and running into an old science fiction fan (hi Chick!) who managed to have my very first piece of published writing, a self-published newsletter I created while a dedicated member of the New England Science Fiction Association, so many years ago.

-- A very special night in North Conway at Horsefeathers Restaurant, hosted by Donna Urey of White Birch Books and Brian Glynn of Horsefeathers, who provided spirits and appetizers to an appreciate group of fans who were glad that Lewis Cole had traveled to their fair town.

-- And last week, a very large turnout at Toadstool Books in Milford, where a very dedicated audience peppered me with questions and comments about my works, and where I promised that in the next Lewis Cole novel -- PRIMARY STORM -- Lewis will pay a visit to Milford and Nashua.

So there you have it. I have a few more signings ahead of me (check out the Appearances section if you're interested) and I do so enjoy meeting my fans.

In other news, I'll be editing BLACK WIND and sending it off to my agent in a few weeks, I sold another short story to Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine -- "The Devil's Girlfriend" -- and work continues on PRIMARY STORM and doing research for my next thriller, AMERIKAN EAGLE.

Now, Tucker is at my side, gently snoring, but obviously telling me that he wants to go for a walk...

As always, thanks again for visiting.

July 28, 2004 -- A quick, important note... the signing set for next week at Kate's Mystery Books in Cambridge has been changed from Thursday, August 6th, to Tuesday, August 3rd. Hope this doesn't cause any problems!

And a big thanks to everyone at Water Street Books who set up my first appearance last week, which was a great success. Thanks, too, go to all the fans who showed up to hear about my new Lewis Cole novel, BURIED DREAMS. It was a pleasure and honor talking to you all, and I enjoyed myself tremendously.

One more note: a very big thanks to Liza Dawson, my American agent, Antony Topping, my British agent, and Hilary Hale, my editor at Time Warner UK, for a very nice piece of news I received last week, and which I will reveal more of as circumstances warrant... sorry to be so mysterious, but that's what you get when you read a mystery/thriller writer's website!

July 7, 2004 -- Promises, promises... my apologies for not updating this in a more timely fashion. As they say in the military, "no excuse!"

As you can note from the front page of my website, my new Lewis Cole novel, BURIED DREAMS, has just been released by St. Martin's Press. It's the fifth novel in the series, and I think it's one of the best... and I'm also quite pleased by the cover. Looks like something from the movie, "The Blair Witch Project," doesn't it? (A fine movie that I will never see, for I enjoy being outdoors in the dark, and don't want to be so frightened that I'll never do that again...) What makes BURIED DREAMS a fun book -- for me, at least -- is the high number of in-jokes and references to friends and family that are scattered throughout the novel.

Initial reviews for BURIED DREAMS have been positive, which just reinforces that old writer's joke: good reviews mean the reviewers in question are intelligent and insightful, while bad reviews mean the reviewers in question are ignorant and clueless.

Check out the Appearances section of my website over the next few days to see a list of area bookstores where I'll be meeting my fans and signing copies of BURIED DREAMS.

Meanwhile, a short story of mine, "Death of a Gemini," appears in the September 2004 issue of Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine. My thanks again to good neighbor David Barnes for his technical expertise in this story.

On a personal note, the English Springer Spaniel my wife Mona and I adopted a couple of months ago now has a new name: Tucker. He responds quite well to that name, and I find it a point of pride -- and oddness -- that when we switched his name from Jeter to Tucker, his Yankee's namesake went for a very long hitless batting streak.

Just recently, Tucker underwent surgery for a torn ligament, and he's been doing well, though we've had to hide his tennis balls and other toys, and his walks are kept to a minimum. But with his incision healing so nicely, my wife Mona was able to take him for a few swims this past weekend, to give him some fun and to work out his right rear leg. Of course, it was hard to tell who was having more fun in the water... Mona or Tucker!

Nearby is a photo of Tucker in my office, wondering when in heck I'm going to stop this writing nonsense so I can take him out for a walk.

Guess he has his priorities straight!

Thanks again for stopping by, and have a great and safe summer.

April 14, 2004 -- Remember my last posting, where I indicated I would be updating this portion of the website on a regular basis? Hmmm... wonder if I could attribute this lack of regular posting to a "keyboard malfunction" or something similar...

In any event, the writing continues. I'm pleased with my new thriller, BLACK WIND, which is more than halfway done and which has been read both by my wife Mona and my agent, Liza Dawson. As benefiting these two intelligent and insightful women, they both liked the book so far and made a number of positive suggestions. This wonderful feedback has caused me to re-double my efforts to successfully conclude BLACK WIND as soon as I can.

Speaking of remembering... recall the Secret Book Project? Well, it seems like it's now on hold. As much fun as I had in researching and writing portions of this project, it's now on the back burner unless things change. And to quote Forrest Gump, that's all I'm going to say about that.

Short story production continues, and I've learned that "Death of a Gemini," a lengthy story that takes place a month after 9/11, has been accepted for publication at Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine. This story should appear sometime this summer. I'd like to thank my good neighbor, Dave Barnes, former U.S. Navy F-14 pilot, for his technical advice in the researching and writing of this story.

BURIED DREAMS, the next Lewis Cole book, is slated to be published on July 1 by St. Martin's Press. In this book, a friend of Lewis' is convinced that at some point, nearly a thousand years ago, Vikings had settled at what is now known as Tyler Beach, N.H. This character is known as an eccentric, but one night, he reports to Lewis that he has found the evidence he has spent years searching for... archaeological proof that Vikings had in fact been in New Hampshire. And just as this evidence is discovered, Lewis' friend is murdered and the evidence vanishes.

And Lewis doesn't sit still with that particular adventure, as work continues on PRIMARY STORM, a Lewis Cole novel about that wonderful three-ring circus that rolls into my home state every four years, the New Hampshire Primary. What's wonderful about this novel is the research is so easy... just live in New Hampshire and keep up with the news!

A few weeks ago, my wife and I traveled to Florida to meet her cousin Amy, and Amy's husband, Mike. Both are colonels in the U.S. Air Force, and both are stationed at Hurlburt Air Force Base in Florida, home of Air Force Special Operations. I'd like to thank Amy and Mike and many others at Hurlburt for the wonderful "behind the scenes" tour of this fascinating facility. And yes, you can be sure that what I learned at Hurlburt -- within reason, of course -- will find its way onto some pages of fiction.

On a personal note, there's a new addition to our household. Mona and I are now the proud keepers of a six-year-old English Springer Spaniel named Jeter (okay, as Red Sox fan, I'm struggling with his name, but I don't know if the poor guy will respond to Nomar...) and he's fitting right in. Our sixteen-year-old cat Oreo is getting along fine with him (mostly along the line of, stay out of my way and nobody gets hurt) and he's been a real sweetheart.

For the past few years, Mona and I grew to love an English Springer Spaniel named Mulligan (who makes an appearance in both BETRAYED and BURIED DREAMS) who belonged to the Glynn family of Center Conway, N.H. Two days before Christmas last year, a very ill Mulligan had to be put to sleep. He's still greatly missed, and Mona and I decided in part to honor his memory by adopting Jeter through a wonderful organization called New England English Springer Spaniel Rescue. Now, if only I can teach him to answer my e-mail!

December 18, 2003 -- For those readers who've been wondering... no, I haven't fallen off the face of the earth... but thanks for asking! Things are well, but just quite busy.

First, let me send holiday wishes to all of my friends and fans around the world who check on this website, and second, let me tell you that one of my resolutions for the New Year is to keep this website updated on a more regular basis.

Since the last posting, I've continued work on the Secret Book Project, and we'll see where this project goes. I'm afraid I still can't talk about this fun project, as much as I'd like. I'm also working on my new thriller, BLACK WIND, and I'm closing in on the half-way mark, always a great milestone in writing a new novel. I also have a couple of short stories out there, making the rounds, and within the past few months, I've been pleased to see that there's been some movie interest in a couple of my short stories. Now, having been down this road a few times, it *doesn't* guarantee that a movie will be made. But having said that, it sure is fun to have your works considered for a movie!

I'd also like to note that for the past several months, I've been ably represented by my new agent, Liza Dawson of Liza Dawson Associates. Liza was my editor at Penguin Putnam when my alternative history novel, RESURRECTION DAY, was first published.

And speaking of agents... a few months ago, my former literary agent, Jed Mattes, passed away. Jed represented me from the very start of my writing career, back in the mid-1980's, and I have very many fond memories of the work we did together. He will be greatly missed.

Just recently I reviewed the copy-edited manuscript for the new Lewis Cole novel, BURIED DREAMS, which will be coming out sometime next year by St. Martin's Press. Once I get a firm publishing date, I will let you know. And in reviewing this manuscript, I realized again that this Lewis Cole adventure is his best, and there are a lot of tidbits in this book about Lewis’ past, and his future.

The next Lewis Cole novel, PRIMARY STORM, involves the New Hampshire presidential primary, and one of the joys of living here in New Hampshire, is that doing research for *this* particular novel means just reading the local newspaper and watching the local news. Ah, if only all novels were so easy to research!

Again, best wishes for the upcoming holidays, and the very best wishes for a safe, happy and productive 2004 for all of us!

July 12, 2003 -- For the past several weeks, I've been meeting my readers at area bookstores, and to those who have made the trek to see me speak and have copies of my books signed, thank you very much. It's a pleasure to meet my readers in person, and to answer their questions about my work.

It seems that BETRAYED -- with its theme of loss, betrayal and duty -- has struck a chord with my readers, and for a writer, there's no greater praise. it's nice to know that somebody has enjoyed your book; it's even better to know that a read book stays in someone's mind for a very long time.

And speaking of readers... at an appearance at River Run books in Portsmouth, I met with an older gentleman, a British tourist, who just happened to hear about my book and wanted to meet me. It seems that in the 1950's, as a teenager, he was in the British Army and was captured, becoming a prisoner of the North Koreans.

it's those kinds of moments that make being a writer the best possible job in the world, your writing touches someone's memories and they, in turn, touch your life.

Meanwhile, the signings continue -- check the Appearances page on the site to see where else I'll be appearing -- and so does the writing. I'm nearing the hundred page mark on my new thriller, BLACK WIND, and I've been involved in another book project that's very hush-hush... I could tell you, but then I'd have to kill you, and the chore of tracking down each and every visitor to my site seems to be just too much work! ;-)

I hope you're enjoying your summer (and for my fans in the Southern Hemisphere, your winter) and I appreciate you stopping by, and I also appreciate -- as always -- the work of my expert webmistress, Mona.

May 24, 2003 -- Now that the war in Iraq has finally come to a halt (although unfortunately, deaths still occur everyday in that poor land) I'd like to pay tribute to a reporter/editor who died while covering the war. That reporter/editor was Michael Kelly, who was editor of The Atlantic Monthly and a weekly columnist for The Washington Post. Thousands of words and hours of video have been dedicated this past month to honor this brilliant writer and editor, but I still feel I need to add just a little bit of my own thoughts.

Mike and I both attended the University of New Hampshire in Durham, and we both were active on the student newspaper, The New Hampshire. Mike was a few years ahead of me, and though he was slight in stature, he could fill a room instantly with his energy and charm. He knew the joys of a good smoke and a good drink, and for a college freshman like myself, I was impressed at the constant attention he received from the young ladies. Though meeting deadlines did sometimes prove to be a challenge, he brought great joy and dedication to writing his stories. While in college, I also had the true honor of meeting his parents in Washington, D.C., as a guest at one of the many dinner parties they held in their home.

I'm not saying that we were best friends or hung together; no, just for the briefest of times, decades ago, we were colleagues, and I was always proud later -- especially when his Post columns drew wide attention, when he received praise for his book, MARTYR's DAY, and when he made such a drastic improvement at The Atlantic Monthly -- to say that I had known Mike, and had worked on the same paper as he.

When the war began I so looked forward to reading his dispatches from the front, and I recall telling my wife Mona that, "Boy, when this is over, Mike Kelly's going to write a hell of a book."

Alas, the war is over, but I don't think there will be a Mike Kelly book, and that's a shame. He died in the company of men and women whom he loved and honored, the United States military, and even now, I feel a tinge of sadness each Tuesday, looking for his column in the Washington Post.

He will be missed.

As for myself, work continues on my new novel, new short stories, and with the release of BETRAYED, my annual swing through area libraries and bookstores. Make sure to check the Appearances section of my website to see where I'll be reading from BETRAYED and signing copies of my seventh novel.

Thanks for visiting, and as always, thanks to my expert webmistress, Mona, for all her work.

March 24, 2003 -- Much of the past several days has been spent glued to the cable news networks and the web as the war with Iraq commenced. Since I believe most of you come here to read about what's new with my writing career, I'll spare you my opinions on this latest conflict, except to say that I hope it ends soon, that our servicemen and women come home soon as well, and that peace comes to the Iraqi people.

A new anthology of my short fiction has appeared, from Five Star publishing and Tekno Books. it's called "Tales from the Dark Woods", and I'm pleased with this anthology, save for one bone-headed error on my part, in the book's dedication. The dedication should have read: "This collection is dedicated with thanks and affection to the memory of Cathleen Jordan, my editor at Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine." I apologize to readers, friends and fans of Cathleen for the error in the dedication.

I invite you to visit Five Star, the publisher of this anthology, by clicking on the link under the cover on the front page of my site.

Meanwhile, my new novel, BETRAYED, is getting ready to be published in a few weeks in Great Britain by Time Warner UK, and their cover art for this suspense-thriller appears nearby. Once this book is available for sale, I'll post a link to it via Amazon.co.uk.

Work also continues on my new suspense-thriller, THE DARK SCHOOL, and I've just started Chapter Seven. I'm closing in on that first big milestone of any new book, the first hundred pages. I also expect that I'll have some good news to report in the weeks ahead concerning my new Lewis Cole mystery, BURIED DREAMS.

At last count, I have five (yes, that's five!) short stories out making the rounds at various magazines, and I'm also working on a new short story for my friends at Tekno Books, about the Texas Rangers. This will be quite the experience for me, as this will be my very first Western story... and I'll have to make sure my research is meticulous! (Can't have 9 millimeter semi-automatic pistols in Texas in the 1870's, as much fun as it sounds...)

Thanks for stopping by, and as always, thanks to my wonderful webmistress, Mona, for all her work. I do hope the next time you visit, the news from the outside world will have improved.

March 8, 2003 -- With experiencing two snowstorms within the span of a week, it seems like what's on our mind here in New Hampshire is a simple two-word phrase... think spring!

I'm happy to report that I'm now working on my new suspense-thriller, THE DARK SCHOOL, and am currently on Chapter Five, making good progress. As much as authors whine and complain about the writing process, I have to admit there is something exhilarating about wading into a new novel. I've also finished a couple of new short stories and they are out "making the rounds" to two of my old friends, "Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine" and "Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine".

And speaking of short fiction, I was thrilled to learn that one of my short stories, "Richard's Children", has been selected to appear in the annual anthology published by Houghton-Mifflin, "Best American Mystery Stories". This will be my fourth appearance in this excellent anthology series, started and ably edited by Otto Penzler. "Richard's Children", a modern-day look at Shakespeare's RICHARD III, appeared last year in the Berkley anthology "Much Ado About Murder", edited by the famed mystery author, Anne Perry.

The past couple of weeks have also seen me busily editing the galleys for both the American and British editions of my new suspense-thriller, BETRAYED. In the United States, BETRAYED will be published in June by St. Martin's Press, and in Great Britain and other Commonwealth nations, it will be published in April by Time-Warner UK. Both publishers have done spectacular jobs with the cover art for both books as you can see from the St. Martin's Press version here. With the wonderful assistance of my webmistress (hi, Mona!), both covers will be put up on my website, with links enabling you to purchase both editions on-line, as soon as that information is available.

Thanks for stopping by.

January 4, 2003 -- A very special New Year's Greetings for all of my friends and fans. Despite the clouds on the horizon (Iraq, Al-Qaeda, North Korea) I do wish that this year is better one for all of us.

The past few weeks have seen me being reacquainted with winter illness -- both myself and my wife Mona -- and the snow shovel. Snow looks delightful on the trees and on the lawn -- shoveling the damn stuff is painful! We've had our share of snow already, with a nor'easter on Christmas Day, and another foot of the white stuff predicted for my home state as I write this.

Speaking of writing... I'm pleased to report that Tekno Books has purchased my latest short story, "Fagin's Revenge," which will be published in a short story anthology called DEATH BY DICKENS, edited by the esteemed Anne Perry and published by Berkley Books.

And speaking of short stories, I again urge all my visitors to notice my my very first short story anthology, "The Dark Snow and Other Mysteries," recently published from Crippen and Landru. The eleven short stories in this volume, I believe, represent the very best of my short fiction, and I hope my fans take the time to visit the Crippen and Landru site -- linked from the front page -- to check this out.

Meanwhile, I'm wrapping up another series of edits for my new thriller, BETRAYED, set to be published in the United States by St. Martin's Press, and in Great Britain by Time Warner UK. I also plan to start *very* shortly on my new thriller, details of which I'll reveal over the next few months.

Thanks again to all for visiting.

November 23, 2002 -- Ah, Fall. With autumn comes thoughts of... leaves on the ground. In my part of the world, the fall leaves have taken their time to drop, and only just now -- as snow threatens -- have I been able to take out my handy Black and Decker leaf blower, to get rid of the leaves that threaten to choke our yard. it's mind numbing and monotonous work that has as its only reward a) a clean yard and b) a chance to do some plotting along the way.

Besides leaf blowing, I just finished a new short story for a Tekno books anthology, titled "Death by Dickens," due to be published in 2003 by Berkley Books. My story is called "Fagin's Revenge," and is currently in the hands of my most capable editor, my webmistress, Mona.

For those of you coming in through the front page of my site, I hope you take notice of my very first short story anthology, "The Dark Snow and Other Mysteries," published from Crippen and Landru. I hope those fans of mine who aren't familiar with my short fiction take the time to check out this anthology.

Contained in this book are eleven short stories, and of these, one was nominated for a Robert L. Fish Award for Best First Mystery Short Story of the year ("Dark Corridor"), another was nominated for an Edgar Allan Poe Award from the Mystery Writers of America ("Driven"), and yet another, "The Dark Snow", was nominated for an Edgar, an Anthony Award, was reprinted in the "The Best American Mystery Stories of the Century," and has appeared in at least three other anthologies. Plus, one other story, "The Road's End," won a Shamus Award in 2001 from the Private Eye Writers of America.

As you can probably tell, I'm proud of these stories...

Meanwhile, a few weeks ago I finished revisions for my June 2003 thriller, BETRAYED, and my British publisher, Time Warner UK, sent along a cover proof for their edition of BETRAYED which is just spectacular... which is nothing surprising coming from my friends in Britain.

I'm working on a new short story involving an old steam train that currently travels through the White Mountains of New Hampshire, and the outline work for my new thriller. I've also done some preliminary research for my new Lewis Cole novel, tentatively titled PRIMARY STORM.

For my American visitors, I hope you have a happy and safe Thanksgiving. Thanks to all for stopping by.

October 19, 2002 -- I'd like to start out this update by passing along my sincerest condolences and best wishes to my fans in Australia in the aftermath of the horrible events in Bali. In response to my novels RESURRECTION DAY and SIX DAYS, some of my most thoughtful and encouraging fan mail has come from "Down Under." In these troubling times, we're lucky to have such friends as the Aussies. Good luck and good wishes.

On the writing front, Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine has picked up a new short story of mine, "Always Another War." This short story features one of my favorite characters, Owen Taylor, a retired man with a fascinating background who gets involved in things mysterious and criminal in his new home in Pinette, Maine. Owen has been a character in four previous short stories -- "The Dark Snow," "Netmail," "The Shadow Trees," and "Old Soldiers" -- which have appeared in a little-known literary magazine called Playboy (g).

I've also been informed that another short story of mine that is in the November issue of Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, "A Matter of Empire," will be re-published next year in Ed Gorman and Marty Greenberg's continuing anthology, "The World's Finest Mystery and Crime Stories."

My newest Lewis Cole novel, BURIED DREAMS, is now in the hands of my publisher at St. Martin's Press, and I'm currently working on revisions for my next suspense thriller, BETRAYED, which will be published next June by both St. Martin's and my British publisher, Time Warner UK.

My first short story anthology, "The Dark Snow and Other Mysteries," (which will be published from Crippen and Landru) is nearing publication. Just a couple of weeks ago, I signed and numbered 250 sheets that will be inserted into the limited hardcover edition of this book. Once this book is available for purchase from Crippen and Landru, I'll have a link here for those interested in purchasing it.

Writing continues on a new short story assigned to me by my friends at Tekno Books, and outline work for my new thriller, and yes, a new Lewis Cole novel!

I hope all of you have a happy and safe Autumn.

September 9, 2002 -- As summer departs, somebody Up There didn't get the word, as my part of New Hampshire -- usually experiencing the first cool weather that means the approach of fall -- is having a mini-heatwave of temperatures approaching 90 degrees Fahrenheit!

Yesterday, the Portsmouth Herald newspaper out of Portsmouth, N.H., (or Porter, N.H., to those fans of my Lewis Cole novels) ran an extensive profile of me in its Sunday edition. If you’d like to read this story on line, click here to view it. And thanks to Gina Carbone for her time in doing the interview, and for doing a thorough and accurate job.

My newest Lewis Cole novel, BURIED DREAMS, is being read by my literary agent (hi Jed!) and I've just learned that my next suspense thriller, BETRAYED, will be published next June by my American publisher, St. Martin's Press, and my British publisher, Time Warner UK. More information on this book to come as we get closer to the publication date.

I've also been told that my first short story anthology, "The Dark Snow and Other Mysteries," (which will be published from Crippen & Landru, a fine publisher of mystery anthologies out of Virginia) is in final production. As promised before, once this book is complete, I'll have a link here for those interested in purchasing it.

Prep work continues on my next thriller, and a couple of new short stories are out "making the rounds."

And in two days, a somber anniversary is upon us, and I hope -- though the news is not encouraging -- that the next year will be a more peaceful one for all of us.

Once again, thanks for taking the time to visit my site.

August 10, 2002 -- With the exception of maybe another bookstore or two, and a library appearance here and there, my summer tour to promote my latest novel, KILLER WAVES, is complete. I'd like to thank all the bookstore owners and employees who hosted me, as well as the readers, fans and family members who came by to hear me speak or to get a book autographed. it's wonderful to be able to meet my readers and to talk to them about my writing and especially my series character, Lewis Cole.

I'd also like to express a special thanks to my wife, first reader and webmistress, Mona, who often came home to an empty house and a crying cat while her husband was off at another bookstore.

In the meantime, my latest Lewis Cole novel, BURIED DREAMS, is at my agent's office in New York (hi Jed, Fred and Aaron!) and final production work is underway for my first short story anthology, THE DARK SNOW AND OTHER MYSTERIES, to be published in a couple of months from Crippen & Landru, a fine publisher of mystery anthologies out of Virginia. Once this book is available for sale, I'll have a link placed on my site for those interested in purchasing it.

I'm also plotting and outlining my latest thriller, THE LAST ANGEL, and expect to shortly start the very exciting "page one, chapter one" of any new book project. And, of course, a couple of short stories are out there as well to be worked on.

Thanks again for your interest, and enjoy the rest of the summer (for my fans in this hemisphere; for my readers in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, think spring!).

July 9, 2002 -- Last night my half-hour interview on New Hampshire Public Radio was aired. Thanks to John Walters, host of the "Front Porch" program, who did a great job in interviewing me about Lewis Cole and KILLER WAVES.

If you would like to hear this interview from the NHPR site, click on this link: NPR Interview

As always, thanks for stopping by.

July 4, 2002 -- Happy Independence Day to my friends and fans, and wherever you might be -- in the United States or overseas -- I hope this is a great day for all of you.

I'm pleased to announce that I will be appearing on two radio programs over the next two weeks to discuss my latest novel, KILLER WAVES.

From 6:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Monday, July 8, I will be the guest of John Walters on New Hampshire Public Radio's "Front Porch" program. This interview was taped a couple of weeks ago, and John was a well-prepared and thoughtful interviewer.

This program can be heard on the following FM frequencies from WEVO or its affiliates in New Hampshire:

Concord 89.1
Nashua 90.3
Keene 90.7
Hanover/Littleton 91.3
Dover 104.3
Berlin 107.1

Also, from 11 a.m. to noon on Tuesday, July 16, I will be appearing on the Mike Pomp program on WTSN-AM 1270 in Dover. This program will be live, and callers are invited to ring me up at 603-742-1270. I've been a guest of Mike's several times before, and he's a fun interviewer who knows Lewis Cole well.

In the meantime, I'm editing the latest Lewis Cole novel, BURIED DREAMS, working on a couple of short stories, and plotting a new thriller. I've also come up with the basic plot of another Lewis Cole mystery, to take place during the circus that comes to town every four years, a/k/a the New Hampshire Presidential Primary. The working title for this novel is PRIMARY STORM.

As always, to see local bookstores where I'll be appearing over the next several weeks, check the Appearances section of my website.

Thanks again for visiting.

P.S. from the first editor/webmistress/wife--As some of you were reacquainting yourselves with Lewis and the gang in KILLER WAVES, I had the pleasure of being a book ahead editing BURIED DREAMS. Like many of you have told us, reading a new Lewis Cole for me is like getting caught up with old friends. Throughout the book I worry about the characters and between books I wonder what they are up to! I really enjoyed BURIED DREAMS and like the fact that Brendan manages to keep each outing fresh and interesting. For those of you who have finished KILLER WAVES, there is something good to look forward to. (The beauty of being webmistress is that Brendan doesn't know how to edit this out!)