In the Author Spotlight

J. R. Lindermuth

CONTEST: J. R. will give a print copy of Being Someone Else to a commenter. He’ll select in a random drawing. Best wishes!

AL: Hi John! Welcome back to Blog Bites.

John: Thanks for having me. It’s a pleasure to be here.

AL: So, tell us what’s happening with you.

John: I’m librarian of my county historical society. We are visited throughout the year by patrons from all over the U.S., Canada and even abroad who have roots in this area. We close down at the end of December for two months to give the staff a rest and get caught up on cataloging, shelving and related tasks. After a busy summer, I’m ready for a break.

AL: Please tell us about your current or upcoming release.

John: My current release, Being Someone Else, is the fourth in the Sticks Hetrick mystery series set in Swatara Creek, a fictional community near Harrisburg PA. Daniel ‘Sticks’ Hetrick is the former police chief and he’s come out of forced retirement to serve as unofficial consultant to his less experienced successor.

I’ve also signed a contract for Fallen From Grace with Oak Tree Press for their new Western line. I don’t have a release date yet.

AL: What other works are you deep into?

John: I’m nearing completion of the first draft of another Hetrick novel, tentatively titled Practice To Deceive.

AL: When you write do you do a detailed outline before you get started or do you have the idea then just 'fly by the seat of your pants'? :-)

John: I’m definitely in the pantser category. I have a general idea where I’m going and jot some notes to keep me on track, though they’d be meaningless to anyone else. I’ve tried the detailed outline procedure and it doesn’t work for me. I like my characters to surprise me. If I knew every step along the way I’d get bored before I reached my destination.

AL: How do you decide upon your settings? What about the names of characters? Do you ever change either mid-stream into a story?

John: With the Hetrick books I’ve been using the same setting and cast of characters long enough they’ve become almost real to me. For my other novels—if it’s unfamiliar territory—I’ll do the necessary research. In fact, thanks to my newspaper and genealogical background, I enjoy research. As to names of characters; yes, I have changed them at times when they didn’t resonate with what I later discovered about the character.

AL: What do you hope for your writing career in the next few years? Any goals that you have yet to obtain that you have set for yourself?

John: I wouldn’t mind making the New York Times bestseller list or having one of my books made into a movie. But, seriously, my primary goal is just to keep on writing and, hopefully, make each book better than the one before.

AL: Let’s get personal! What would people be surprised to know about you?

John: I’m a skinny little guy and you wouldn’t believe how much I like to eat. If I’m adventurous in any area it would be in willingness to try any dish once. I’m not Andrew Zimmern, but I’ve sampled some ethnic fare many might consider bizarre.

AL: Do you and your family have a favorite Thanksgiving tradition?

John: Since my children live nearby we manage to get together for all the major holidays. My daughter’s and her youngest son’s birthdays are near Thanksgiving, so that’s an additional incentive for getting together. The main traditions are being together and eating too much.

AL: What book(s) are you reading right now?

John: Elmore Leonard’s Djibouti and Douglas Starr’s fascinating book about the birth of forensic science, The Killer of Little Shepherds.

AL: Do you have a favorite sport, &/or team that you follow?

John: I’ve never had much interest in team sports. Three of my grandsons participate in baseball and I do try to attend their games. I used to hunt and fish when I was younger. My son was never interested in hunting, but we occasionally target shoot. My son-in-law recently got interested in that, too.

AL: Fun question! If you could have any car in the world; would it be a slow rider, or one that the wind has to hurry just to keep up with you?

John: In regard to my driving, my kids call me A. J. (Foyt). Does that give you a hint? Actually, I’ve never been much of a car buff. My main interest in a car is that it get me from point A to B in comfort and without any problems.

AL: Please share a favorite quote(s) with us.

John: “The difference between the right word and the almost-right word is the same as the difference between lightning and a lightning bug.” Mark Twain

AL: Thanks so much for sharing with us, John.

John: Thanks again for the opportunity to share some information on my writing. I’ve enjoyed it.

AL: If you’d like to find out more about John please visit:
 
http://www.jrlindermuth.com/
http://jrlindermuth.blogspot.com/
 

FEATURED TITLE: BEING SOMEONE ELSE 
Fourth book in the Sticks Hetrick mystery series.
 
Blurb:
 
Some people believe violence is foreign to our nature. Dan ‘Sticks’ Hetrick, retired chief and consultant to the Swatara Creek police department, knows better. We put a lid on our natural tendency to violence when we started living in groups, devising moral codes to hold it in check and allow us to live in harmony with others. But, deep down in the Id, there is always that tendency to violence.
 
When an out-of-state reporter is found murdered in the restroom of a disreputable bar the tendency to violence spirals in the rural Pennsylvania community, and the investigative trail keeps bringing Hetrick and his team back to the family of a wealthy doctor who has come back to his hometown in retirement.
 
Hetrick and his protégé Officer Flora Vastine are joined by an old friend from his State Police days as they unravel old secrets and mysteries in a tale with as many shocking twists as a country road.
 
Excerpt:
 
http://www.whiskeycreekpress.com/chapters/BeingSomeoneElse_JRLindermuth.shtml
 
REMEMBER: J. R. will give a print copy of Being Someone Else to a commenter. He’ll select in a random drawing. Best wishes!