Author Wayne Zurl
What is the working title of your book?
PIGEON RIVER BLUES
Where did you get the idea for the book?
During my time in the Army and later in the police department, I had several assignments doing VIP security. They represented a good opportunity and a way to meet some interesting people, but I never really liked the work. I mean, how would it look on your resume’ if some famous person got killed on your watch? In this story my hero Sam Jenkins gets saddled with protecting a celebrity who’s received death threats. It gave me another opportunity to write about something I know.
What genre does the book fall under?
A police mystery / thriller.
Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
Mark Harmon as Sam; Patricia Richardson as Kate; Sasha Alexander as Rachel; Jessica Steen as Bettye; Henry Simmons as Stanley; Michael Imperioli as Ralph; and Gordon Clapp as a new regular, John Gallagher.
What is a one sentence synopsis of your book?
Police Chief Sam Jenkins ventures into the world of country and western music when he reluctantly accepts an assignment to act as bodyguard for the singer C.J. Profitt who has received hate mail from a radical right wing coalition threatening to cause serious trouble on Sam’s “peaceful side of the Smokies.”
What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
Take a blend of Robert B. Parker’s Spenser and Jesse Stone mysteries and add the Sam Jenkins New York factor with a smattering of Nelson DeMille’s Detective John Corey thrillers.
Who or what inspired you to write this book?
I’ll refer back to question number 2 and embellish that by saying I’ve been dying to introduce the new character, John Gallagher, but needed a plausible vehicle to do so. “Gallagher” represents a man I worked with for almost 8 years. He was a good cop and one of the funniest people I’ve ever met. Always down on his luck and hard up form cash, “Gallagher” finds his old boss from New York, Sam Jenkins, and asks for a job. Since they have no detectives in little Prospect PD, Sam gets innovative and finds a position for his old comrade.
What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?
New readers will like the very authentic police work. I’m a stickler for details and I refuse to let down anyone who wants to see what it’s really like to work a case—none of the outlandish and unrealistic stuff you find in some of the modern best sellers. This is real police work…complete with liberal doses of black humor. It’s what being a cop is all about. Repeat customers get a new glimpse into Sam’s back-story, not only from his former co-worker, but more about his time in the Army.
My list of good writers who may want to tell your fans about their new books or works-in-progress.
Amy Metz writes about crime in the small southern town of Goose Pimple Junction (yes, there is a real one) I know she’s working on the sequel to the first mystery. She does a great job with down home humor and hillbilly murder.
Betty Dravis has been a radio show host, newspaper columnist, and now suspense writer. She recently co-authored A SIX-PACK OF BLOOD which reminded me of old episodes from The Twilight Zone. And as a lifelong fan of the Beach Boys, Betty satisfies my need for a California girlfriend.
Christina Howard asked me not to tell anyone about the TV show she used to write for and which her new paranormal mystery BLOOD TOMEMS is a (sort of) continuance of. I love her characters.
Jerry Last writes mysteries set in South America that remind me of the classic Graham Green novels set in the that region. He writes with years of experience in that part of the world.
Jeff Whelan and his outlandish character Space Orville has started me on the first sci-fi book I’ve read since Star Trek was cancelled. This guy has a fantastic imagination.
You can find Wayne at : http://www.waynezurlbooks.net/
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