Ask the Author: James L. Thane
Answered Questions (45)
James L. Thane
No, I don't know this author.
James L. Thane
Hi Jane. Thanks for reaching out, and I'm very glad that you enjoyed CROSSROADS. Yes, TYNDALL was released on November 2 and is now available. Happy Thanksgiving to you too.
James L. Thane
Thanks for reaching out, Joan. TYNDALL will be released on November 2. Copies will be available in select bookstores and are available on-line from retailers like Amazon.com, Barnesandnoble.com, Target.com, etc. Signed copies can be ordered from the Poisoned Pen Bookstore here: https://store.poisonedpen.com/?search...
James L. Thane
None of my books have been made into movies thus far. Like the late Sue Grafton, I'm very proprietary about the characters I've created and so I'm not sure that I would like to have someone else take them over and adapt them to movies or TV. If someone were to approach me with an offer, I'd want to ensure that they were going to be faithful to the books before agreeing to it.
James L. Thane
I have two traditional mystery novels, CROSSROADS, which is set in the Flathead Valley in Montana just south of Glacier National Park, and my newest book, TYNDALL, which will be released on November 2. Neither of them has any grizzly details. My four Sean Richardson novels, NO PLACE TO DIE, UNTIL DEATH, FATAL BLOW, and SOUTH OF THE DEUCE, are police procedurals and they do have some graphic descriptions of crime scenes, but still not as grizzly as a lot of other medium-to-hard-boiled novels.
James L. Thane
I first realized that I wanted to be a writer when I was a very young child, Marila. I was an avid reader very early on and it seemed to me that it would be a lot of fun to be the person writing books as well as reading them.
James L. Thane
As a general rule, no. Even though I was a history major in college and even though I still read history, I've never been a big fan of historical fiction for some reason.
James L. Thane
I'm reading Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari and The Last Good Guy by T. Jefferson Parker, who is one of my favorite crime fiction authors.
James L. Thane
Like most other authors, I read very widely, more fiction than non-fiction these days, and mostly crime fiction, which is what I really enjoy the most.
James L. Thane
Basically, all my life. I was one of those kids who enjoyed writing essays and term papers, even in grade school. My first published work was in my high school newspaper, and after writing a M.A. thesis and a dissertation in college, I wrote my non-fiction book. While working on a second non-fiction book, I got the idea for my first novel, and the non-fiction book has been on hold ever since.
James L. Thane
That's always a difficult question to ask an author! Like a lot of other writers, I'm tempted to say that my current favorite is the one I've just finished, Crossroads, which will be released on December 2.
James L. Thane
Hi Diana,
No, I don't write only mysteries. I have written a non-fiction book, a number of journal and magazine articles and have done some television work as well. But at the moment, I am writing crime fiction. My next two books, which come out in December, 2019 and November, 2020, are both crime novels, and I'm not sure what will follow after that. I assume, though, that it will be another crime novel.
No, I don't write only mysteries. I have written a non-fiction book, a number of journal and magazine articles and have done some television work as well. But at the moment, I am writing crime fiction. My next two books, which come out in December, 2019 and November, 2020, are both crime novels, and I'm not sure what will follow after that. I assume, though, that it will be another crime novel.
James L. Thane
I'm sorry to hear that, Lori. I know that a lot of libraries do have my books, and I'm not sure why yours wouldn't. Most libraries have forms, often online, where patrons can request that the library purchase a particular book. I assume that you've tried that?
James L. Thane
No, Janet, she's one I've missed. So many books...
James L. Thane
That's an excellent question, Janet. In fact, while the five novels I listed were all written by men, I do read and enjoy books by a number of female writers. I'm a huge fan of Tana French, for example, and I'll read anything written by Megan Abbott. I read all twenty-five of Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone novels and even though I was a bit disappointed by some of the latter ones, I thought that the first books in the series were brilliant.
I also liked very much the first several books in Sara Paretsky's V.I. Warshawski series, and I love Christa Faust. If my list had extended to six books, her novel Money Shot might well have been number six. Certainly it would be in my top ten.
I'm also a big fan of Christine Carbo's four books that are set in and around Glacier National Park. I think that she does a fantastic job with setting, and her plots are very good as well. I also loved Jamie Harrison's six books featuring Jules Clement and really wish that she had written a lot more of them.
Those are the female authors that I read a lot and that pop immediately into mind, but I know that the second I post this, I will think of several others that I should have included. Thanks for asking the question!
I also liked very much the first several books in Sara Paretsky's V.I. Warshawski series, and I love Christa Faust. If my list had extended to six books, her novel Money Shot might well have been number six. Certainly it would be in my top ten.
I'm also a big fan of Christine Carbo's four books that are set in and around Glacier National Park. I think that she does a fantastic job with setting, and her plots are very good as well. I also loved Jamie Harrison's six books featuring Jules Clement and really wish that she had written a lot more of them.
Those are the female authors that I read a lot and that pop immediately into mind, but I know that the second I post this, I will think of several others that I should have included. Thanks for asking the question!
James L. Thane
Nice job, Melliott--very interesting!
James L. Thane
Thanks, Lori. Sorry your library doesn't have the books. The new book, FATAL BLOW, will be out in November. Perhaps then you could request that they buy it for their collection. Once the book is released, I will be offering copies for free on a Goodreads giveaway. So keep checking the giveaway list and register to win a copy. Maybe you can get one that way.
James L. Thane
Hi Trish,
Yes, this did start as a college project and the book was published by the Tanner Trust Fund at the University of Utah. The print run sold out; it was never reprinted, and it's not available in POD. I see copies occasionally in used bookstores and on line at places like EBay, and I imagine that some libraries still have copies. If you're interested, you might see if your local library could get it for you on inter-library loan. Sorry it's not more readily available.
Yes, this did start as a college project and the book was published by the Tanner Trust Fund at the University of Utah. The print run sold out; it was never reprinted, and it's not available in POD. I see copies occasionally in used bookstores and on line at places like EBay, and I imagine that some libraries still have copies. If you're interested, you might see if your local library could get it for you on inter-library loan. Sorry it's not more readily available.
James L. Thane
Thanks for the tip!
James L. Thane
Hey Greg,
That's a very good question, but not an easy one to answer. And I feel like I'm still trying to answer it for myself, because I know there are a lot of very good books that I haven't gotten to yet.
I'd pick out two or three writers whom I believe have not gotten the attention they deserve. One is Tom Kakonis who wrote a small series featuring a gambler named Tim Waverly. The first was Michigan Roll, which was published in 1988. Though his books got a lot of critical acclaim, I gather that they didn't sell as well as the publisher would have hoped though (hardly a unique situation), and that he lost his contract. Fortunately, Brash Books has now reprinted all of Kakonis's books so they are now available again both in print and ebook formats.
Another one that comes to mind is Sam Reaves, who wrote a number of novels in the early 1990s that didn't get the attention that I thought they deserved. His Homicide 69, is really excellent.
Finally, I'd cite Jenny Siler who wrote three or four books beginning with Easy Money in the late 90s before she dropped from view. I really loved everything that she wrote and really wish that she had done more.
Certainly, there are a lot of others out there, but those are the ones that come immediately to mind. I believe that I've reviewed all of these books here on GR if you want to get a sense of them.
Hope that's of some help, and thanks for raising the question.
That's a very good question, but not an easy one to answer. And I feel like I'm still trying to answer it for myself, because I know there are a lot of very good books that I haven't gotten to yet.
I'd pick out two or three writers whom I believe have not gotten the attention they deserve. One is Tom Kakonis who wrote a small series featuring a gambler named Tim Waverly. The first was Michigan Roll, which was published in 1988. Though his books got a lot of critical acclaim, I gather that they didn't sell as well as the publisher would have hoped though (hardly a unique situation), and that he lost his contract. Fortunately, Brash Books has now reprinted all of Kakonis's books so they are now available again both in print and ebook formats.
Another one that comes to mind is Sam Reaves, who wrote a number of novels in the early 1990s that didn't get the attention that I thought they deserved. His Homicide 69, is really excellent.
Finally, I'd cite Jenny Siler who wrote three or four books beginning with Easy Money in the late 90s before she dropped from view. I really loved everything that she wrote and really wish that she had done more.
Certainly, there are a lot of others out there, but those are the ones that come immediately to mind. I believe that I've reviewed all of these books here on GR if you want to get a sense of them.
Hope that's of some help, and thanks for raising the question.
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