A Conversation with Omnimystery News

Omnimystery News: Tell us a little more about your novels and anthologies. Jonathan Santlofer: I have written two series, one with ex-cop Kate McKinnon, the second with police forensic sketch artist Nate Rodriguez. I love the idea of a recurring character and I intend to write more books in each of these series though I am currently writing a stand-alone because I wanted to stretch. I don’t see any reason why an author can’t do both. The challenge in a series is to keep it fresh but I always want my character to develop and grow. I love seeing them change, which is necessary if the character’s life changes. I have also edited several anthologies, The Dark End of the Street, LA Noire, the Collected Stories, The Marijuana Chronicles, and the current serial novel Inherit the Dead for Touchstone/Simon& Schuster, which was a complex though totally rewarding experience, getting 20 writers, including Charlaine Harris, James … Read more

Interview with Seattle Post Intelligencer for Inherit the Dead

Here’s a preview and link for an interview I did with Seattle Post Intelligencer for Inherit the Dead: “Jonathan Santlofer is the editor of Inherit the Dead, a book similar to No Rest For the Dead, which I did an interview for here in 2011. In both cases the books are written by at least 20 well known mystery writers. They are doing that old thing where one person starts a story and hands it off to another author who continues the story. The result is a fascinating thriller. This kind of project can have hilarious results as was the case when Lisa Lutz co-wrote a novel, Heads You Lose, with her ex-boyfriend, David Heyward. In that case the book contained the communications between them as they’d complain about each other’s writings. They also dispatched with each other’s favorite characters just to be irksome. I found it delightful, but I think Lutz and Heyward were less … Read more

Book Q&A’s with Deborah Kalb

This is an excerpt of my interview with Deborah Kalb on her great blog Book Q&A’s. Q: How did The Marijuana Chronicles come about, and how did you determine which authors to include in the collection? A: That’s a two-part question, Deborah. The first part is easy. I was at a book party and was talking to Johnny Temple, the publisher of Akashic Books, and he mentioned that he was looking for an editor to do The Marijuana Chronicles, the third in his ongoing drug series. I immediately said I was interested. Not because I’m a pothead – I’m not – but I thought it would be a great project, obviously topical and that it would be fun to do, all of which turned out to be true. Read more…

Book Talk Interview with Kory French – Break Thru Radio

Here is a recent interview I did on Break Thru Radio with Kory French. The 1st half is about “me” and the 2nd half about THE MARIJUANA CHRONICLES. I thought is was going to be all about the book so I was a little unprepared for the personal questions but I did my best. The show has a long musical Intro and then another at the midpoint but you can skip past them. And you may have to hit “DJ Kory” when you get to the site. But have a listen and let me know what you think. Listen here: [audio:http://bak.jonathansantlofer.com/wp-content/uploads/book_talk_with_kory_french.mp3]

Val McDermid Interviewed by Jonathan Santlofer at the Center for Fiction

The Scottish writer, Val McDermid is a dream interview, fast, funny, and filled with great stories. Frankly, I could listen to her beautiful lilting accent for hours and her advice about writing is just as beautiful. Like all of the terrific writers who come to Crime Fiction Academy this interview was only the 1st half of a great evening. The 2nd half continued upstairs with the CFA students only and was even more inspiring and more personal.

Mary Higgins Clark Interviewed by Jonathan Santlofer at the Center for Fiction

Mary Higgins Clark is smart, funny, down to earth and earthy. When I asked her to speak at Crime Fiction Academy she didn’t hesitate. She contributed a chapter to the serial novel I put together for Touchstone/Simon & Schuster, “Inherit the Dead” and was never a diva, though she could have been. As you will see in this video, Mary is always Mary.

Linda Fairstein Interviewed by Jonathan Santlofer at the Center for Fiction

Linda Fairstein is one of those people who is so accomplished and so smart she could be intimidating if she were not so damn nice. Her life as a NYC prosecutor informs her novels with a kind of veritas we all wish we had. When she met with the CFA students afterwards, she divulged all sorts of details about her real life cases, her personal life and her writing, much of which is still resonating with me.

Me and Lawrence Block on Leonard Lopate Show on WNYC

Lawrence Block and I were interviewed on the Leonard Lopate show about writing crime fiction. “Jonathan Santlofer, Director at the Crime Fiction Academy, and Lawrence Block, author and Crime Fiction Academy Master Class Instructor, talk about the academy, a program at the Center for Fiction that’s dedicated to crime writing in all its forms. Jonathan Santlofer is the author of five bestselling novels, including Anatomy of Fear and The Killing Art. Lawrence Block has been writing award-winning mystery and suspense fiction for half a century, and his most recent novel is A Drop of the Hard Stuff.” Listen here: [audio:http://bak.jonathansantlofer.com/wp-content/uploads/lopate082312cpod.mp3]