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Author News & Interviews

Interview: Greg Mitchell , author of The Beginning or the End: How Hollywood — and America — Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb

Jul 9, 2020

Greg Mitchell is a journalist, blogger and author of more than a dozen books. His latest title, THE BEGINNING OR THE END: How Hollywood — and America — Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, is about the MGM film that started as a cautionary tale of the dangers of a nuclear arms race, but was twisted by the Truman White House and military into pro-nuclear propaganda. In this interview, Mitchell talks to Michael Barson, who has worked in book publicity since 1984, about the “Hiroshima narrative” that promotes the idea that the two atomic bombs were the only way to end World War II; the falsehoods in the movie and the head of the Manhattan Project’s role in portraying these outright lies; and the ultimate failure of this 1947 epic.

Author Talk: Steven F. Havill, author of Less Than a Moment: A Posadas County Mystery

Mar 19, 2020

Steven F. Havill is the author of a series of mysteries set in fictional Posadas County, New Mexico, the 24th installment of which, LESS THAN A MOMENT, is now in stores. In this interview, Havill explains why he decided --- over the course of the series --- to replace his almost-70-year-old protagonist, Sheriff Bill Gastner, with a younger generation of law enforcement officers, Bob Torrez and Estelle Reyes-Guzman; how New Mexico is drastically different now than it was when he moved there in 1965; his opinions on the evolution of the publishing industry from the early ’90s (when he began writing the Posadas County mysteries) to today; and why he got such a kick out of one reader who commented on enjoying his books.

Author Talk: Betty Webb, author of The Panda of Death: A Gunn Zoo Mystery

Mar 5, 2020

After wrapping up her 10-volume series featuring Scottsdale private eye Lena Jones last year, Betty Webb has resumed her Gunn Zoo Mystery series with the sixth entry, THE PANDA OF DEATH, which is now in stores. In this interview, Webb talks about how she decides which animal will be the key element in each of these novels, the premise of her new series and why she enjoyed doing the research for the opening installment, the authors whose works can be found on her nightstand, and the one aspect of the publishing industry that she considers to be an improvement over the state it was in when her first book came out in 1976.

Author Talk: Jane Thynne, author of The Words I Never Wrote

Jan 22, 2020

Jane Thynne’s latest novel, THE WORDS I NEVER WROTE, revolves around a chance discovery inside a vintage typewriter case, which reveals the gripping story of two sisters on opposite sides of World War II. In this interview, Thynne talks about her inspiration for the plot line and the research she conducted, her interest in family conflict as a major theme in the book, her fascination with prewar Europe and Nazi Germany, and why she incorporates real people into her fiction.

Author Talk: J.P. Smith, author of If She Were Dead

Jan 15, 2020

“Amelie and Janet are in love with the same man: Janet's husband. One knows it; the other doesn't. Or does she?” That’s the intriguing setup for J.P. Smith’s eighth novel, IF SHE WERE DEAD, a psychological thriller that, according to Booklist, “compels attention to the final line.” In this interview, Smith talks about unreliable narrators, the art of slowly building suspense that grows until it’s almost unbearable, writing from the perspective of a female protagonist, and why he doesn’t read many thrillers.