Sidney Williams's Blog - Posts Tagged "noir"
The Dreams I Had - When Writing Midnight Eyes
Doug Dorow's recent blog post on the research he did for his novel The Ninth District jogged my memory about the original writing of Midnight Eyes.
Although I did an extensive re-write recently, I set down the first draft a few years ago while I was working as a librarian. Handy inter-library loan tools were at my fingertips.
While I'd worked for years before that as a newspaper reporter, often shouldering police beat duties that included late-night visits to crime scenes, I spent a lot of time reading books and references about serial killers and pouring over police training textbooks and FBI journals. Read more
Although I did an extensive re-write recently, I set down the first draft a few years ago while I was working as a librarian. Handy inter-library loan tools were at my fingertips.
While I'd worked for years before that as a newspaper reporter, often shouldering police beat duties that included late-night visits to crime scenes, I spent a lot of time reading books and references about serial killers and pouring over police training textbooks and FBI journals. Read more
What's on the iPod - Miami Purity - Feminine Noir
I'm not sure how I missed Vicki Hendricks' dark, noirish Miami Purity (1995), often dubbed a feminine The Postman Always Rings twice, but I was happy to discover the audiobook recently. That's due to a mention in a Salon article about what to read after Gillian Flynn's brilliant Gone Girl.
Miami is brilliant also, a steamy--in more ways than one--and grim crime excursion told by the protagonist, Sherri Parlay. She's a former stripper who's maintained a vestige of innocence in spite of her rough thirty-six years and a deceased husband. He's deceased because she clipped him with a boom box while he was being abusive.
After her husband's death and some suspicion about it by the cops, Sherri lands a job in a Miami cleaner called Miami Purity. She's hired by the owner, Brenda Mahoney. More
Miami is brilliant also, a steamy--in more ways than one--and grim crime excursion told by the protagonist, Sherri Parlay. She's a former stripper who's maintained a vestige of innocence in spite of her rough thirty-six years and a deceased husband. He's deceased because she clipped him with a boom box while he was being abusive.
After her husband's death and some suspicion about it by the cops, Sherri lands a job in a Miami cleaner called Miami Purity. She's hired by the owner, Brenda Mahoney. More
The Trade Paper Cover for Fool's Run
I don't think I've shared the trade paper cover art here for my upcoming book Fool's Run, which is planned as the first adventure for Si Reardon. A cop who is just out of prison and faced with a job nobody wants.
It'll drop in ebook and trade paper formats Nov. 24, 2020.
“This thriller-cum-caper will keep readers eagerly turning the pages.”
– Publisher’s Weekly
Here's a look at the nigh final version with a sense of the wrap-around effect.
There's one repeated line of copy that will get tweaked, but by and large, this is the look.
It's now up for pre-order on Amazon and other sites.
It'll drop in ebook and trade paper formats Nov. 24, 2020.
“This thriller-cum-caper will keep readers eagerly turning the pages.”
– Publisher’s Weekly
Here's a look at the nigh final version with a sense of the wrap-around effect.
There's one repeated line of copy that will get tweaked, but by and large, this is the look.
It's now up for pre-order on Amazon and other sites.
A Chance to Win a Signed Print Copy of Fool's Run - my upcoming thriller.
Fool's Run: A Si Reardon Novel
I know you've probably seen me talking about my new book here on Goodreads. It's always exciting to have something new in the pipeline, and it's also exciting to have some positive reviews coming in via ARCS. Crossroad Press/Gordian Knot sent out.
As the release of Fool's Run approaches, I'm happy to announce a giveaway leading up to the event.
Fool's Run Giveaway
The giveaway is underway through Nov. 22. You can enter to win one of three signed print copies.
A NetGalley ARC reviewer just gave it five stars saying: "I like this book because it's well written in a tough language, the pace is very good, there are twists and thrills, and it's fast and easy to read."
Here's a bit of the first chapter:
I wouldn’t have agreed to meet with the woman at all under normal circumstances, but my circumstances hadn’t been normal in quite a while. When she called on my new, disposable cell, I was wandering the French Quarter and wondering where my ex-wife had taken our daughter.
I’d just bought a bottle and was thinking I might employ someone to help drink it. I scanned the crowd for the right candidate.
My old friend Jerry Clement had just kept me in his waiting room at hour thumbing back issue of Security magazine before he decided I wasn’t going away. He finally had a 19-year-old receptionist show me into his office so he could tell me he was glad I was out, thought I’d got a raw deal in fact, but that he couldn’t have an ex-con working at a security firm. Not even on the cyber side. No crooks behind the firewall. The fact that my conviction had been overturned was a technicality he didn’t really want to debate. Didn’t change the headlines.
Jerry hadn’t been my first stop. I’d knocked on three doors, people I’d known on the force who now had business interests. Nobody wanted me. Not even standing guard outside a hotel room.
Until it rang, the cell I’d purchased to have a call back number was seeming like a waste of my limited cash. I answered, hoping someone had had a change of heart, decided I was at least worthy of following an errant husband and fished my resume out of the trash.
“Silas Reardon?”
A crisp, professional and efficient voice. A little deep but quite sultry.
“Yeah?”
“My name is Rose Cantor. I followed your case in the news.”
“Fame’s not all it looks like in the tabloids.”
“I thought we might talk.”
She had the number. She knew somebody. Somebody I’d talked to recently. She couldn’t be just a random groupie who’d fixated on a cop, but I couldn’t rule her out as a representative of one special interest group or another. I’d had letters from them when I’d been doing time, sitting and marking off calendar days in a protective unit in North Louisiana.
“What’s this about?” I asked.
“A possibility.”
I’d turned down various fringe group offers during the appeal. The offers hadn’t come with any big payouts. My new attorney, Clinton Laroque, hadn’t turned his meter off, but he had advised against aligning myself with anything high profile. Since the possibility of re-trial still rested in the prosecutor’s hands, that recommendation still held.
I said: “What’s the offer?”
“This would just be a conversation.”
The potential employee I’d been watching walked away on a tourist’s arm, getting lost in the crowd.
I said: “Why not?”
I know you've probably seen me talking about my new book here on Goodreads. It's always exciting to have something new in the pipeline, and it's also exciting to have some positive reviews coming in via ARCS. Crossroad Press/Gordian Knot sent out.
As the release of Fool's Run approaches, I'm happy to announce a giveaway leading up to the event.
Fool's Run Giveaway
The giveaway is underway through Nov. 22. You can enter to win one of three signed print copies.
A NetGalley ARC reviewer just gave it five stars saying: "I like this book because it's well written in a tough language, the pace is very good, there are twists and thrills, and it's fast and easy to read."
Here's a bit of the first chapter:
I wouldn’t have agreed to meet with the woman at all under normal circumstances, but my circumstances hadn’t been normal in quite a while. When she called on my new, disposable cell, I was wandering the French Quarter and wondering where my ex-wife had taken our daughter.
I’d just bought a bottle and was thinking I might employ someone to help drink it. I scanned the crowd for the right candidate.
My old friend Jerry Clement had just kept me in his waiting room at hour thumbing back issue of Security magazine before he decided I wasn’t going away. He finally had a 19-year-old receptionist show me into his office so he could tell me he was glad I was out, thought I’d got a raw deal in fact, but that he couldn’t have an ex-con working at a security firm. Not even on the cyber side. No crooks behind the firewall. The fact that my conviction had been overturned was a technicality he didn’t really want to debate. Didn’t change the headlines.
Jerry hadn’t been my first stop. I’d knocked on three doors, people I’d known on the force who now had business interests. Nobody wanted me. Not even standing guard outside a hotel room.
Until it rang, the cell I’d purchased to have a call back number was seeming like a waste of my limited cash. I answered, hoping someone had had a change of heart, decided I was at least worthy of following an errant husband and fished my resume out of the trash.
“Silas Reardon?”
A crisp, professional and efficient voice. A little deep but quite sultry.
“Yeah?”
“My name is Rose Cantor. I followed your case in the news.”
“Fame’s not all it looks like in the tabloids.”
“I thought we might talk.”
She had the number. She knew somebody. Somebody I’d talked to recently. She couldn’t be just a random groupie who’d fixated on a cop, but I couldn’t rule her out as a representative of one special interest group or another. I’d had letters from them when I’d been doing time, sitting and marking off calendar days in a protective unit in North Louisiana.
“What’s this about?” I asked.
“A possibility.”
I’d turned down various fringe group offers during the appeal. The offers hadn’t come with any big payouts. My new attorney, Clinton Laroque, hadn’t turned his meter off, but he had advised against aligning myself with anything high profile. Since the possibility of re-trial still rested in the prosecutor’s hands, that recommendation still held.
I said: “What’s the offer?”
“This would just be a conversation.”
The potential employee I’d been watching walked away on a tourist’s arm, getting lost in the crowd.
I said: “Why not?”
Five Days Until the Fool's Run Release
Fool's Run: A Si Reardon Novel
The release of Fool's Run is just five days away.
Here's a snippet:
I didn’t like being the one in hiding. The one sweating. When you’re a cop you can almost pick up the scent of that sweat and fear. You’re usually on the trail of a stupid kid who’s botched a job that seemed easy enough when all the factors weren’t weighed.
Now I knew how it felt.
Icicles were melting in my armpits and spilling down my torso. I’d acted on impulse, thinking I could pull it off with bravado and will power. I was starting to feel like I’d knocked over a liquor store and found my car blocked in…
The release of Fool's Run is just five days away.
Here's a snippet:
I didn’t like being the one in hiding. The one sweating. When you’re a cop you can almost pick up the scent of that sweat and fear. You’re usually on the trail of a stupid kid who’s botched a job that seemed easy enough when all the factors weren’t weighed.
Now I knew how it felt.
Icicles were melting in my armpits and spilling down my torso. I’d acted on impulse, thinking I could pull it off with bravado and will power. I was starting to feel like I’d knocked over a liquor store and found my car blocked in…
One Day to Go on Fool's Run
It's always exciting to have something new on the cusp of release.
Fool's Run, my new novel featuring an all new hero, drops tomorrow in all formats. Shop with your favorite online retailers. ;-)
I'll share a Books2read link when that link propagates.
Fool's Run, my new novel featuring an all new hero, drops tomorrow in all formats. Shop with your favorite online retailers. ;-)
I'll share a Books2read link when that link propagates.
Release Day: Fool's Run is Here
It's release day for Fool's Run.
It's now available from your favorite online retailer including Kindle.
You can find it from a variety of retailers via this link:
https://books2read.com/foolsrun
Two New Arrivals At Our House
The holiday season is always an exciting even in a time of pandemic.
We've had a lot going on. Authorwise it was exciting to get author copies of Fool's Run in from Crossroad Press. They traveled quickly via UPS. It reminds me of the days when I published by Pinnacle and author copies shipment would turn up. It's a feeling that never gets old.
Signed copies were quickly turned around for recent Goodreads giveaway winners, and those are now headed toward their destinations via the good people at the USPS.
Fool's Run: A Si Reardon Novel
Familywise, well, the other new arrival is Miss Zoe Moonshadow, who was a guest of the humane society after two previous owners were deployed in quick succession.
She's about five and will be taking on companion animal and editorial assistant duties shortly.
We've had a lot going on. Authorwise it was exciting to get author copies of Fool's Run in from Crossroad Press. They traveled quickly via UPS. It reminds me of the days when I published by Pinnacle and author copies shipment would turn up. It's a feeling that never gets old.
Signed copies were quickly turned around for recent Goodreads giveaway winners, and those are now headed toward their destinations via the good people at the USPS.
Fool's Run: A Si Reardon Novel
Familywise, well, the other new arrival is Miss Zoe Moonshadow, who was a guest of the humane society after two previous owners were deployed in quick succession.
She's about five and will be taking on companion animal and editorial assistant duties shortly.
Obligatory Holding Up Book Pic
Things to do once writer copies are in hand.
1. Send one to my old writing partner Robert Petitt.
2. Take the "holding up book" picture.
The Making of the short Story Playmate
It's a post on ye olde other blog, but I jotted down a few thoughts about how my story in the magazine Dark Dossier, #56, came to be.
Get the mag here.
Get the mag here.
