Two things I’ve loved since I was a kid: writing and mysteries. It feels like I was destined to join those two loves together. But in the words of Shakespeare (a later passion of mine), “The course of true love never did run smooth.” 

I genuinely believe most writers begin as readers. When I was young, I loved adventure stories. I loved the idea of mysteries. While some of that came from Scooby Doo (I’m not afraid to admit it), much of it took the form of The Hardy Boys and Encyclopedia Brown. I eventually wanted to emulate the writing I enjoyed. That resulted in the creation of Joe Davis and a collection of mystery short stories, probably twenty or so by the time I graduated high school, none of which ever saw the light of day. But I thought it would just be a matter of time.

I started trying to write mysteries as a teenager. Looking back, they owed a lot to Encyclopedia Brown and Scooby-Doo. I didn’t have the staying power to write a mystery book and discovered it was much more satisfying to complete a short story. It was something I could share with others and feel successful. Joe Davis was created for those short stories. He was a slightly different version. Sort of a prototype for the current version. Still, I wonder sometimes if I’m tapping that early writing when I do “flashback” stories that show Joe in high school. But this was my first chance to develop as a writer. I must have written more than 20 of those stories over the course of four years.

By the time I hit my twenties, I had taken an interest in theatre and film, and my writing moved toward plays and screenplays. Joe Davis and friends were left behind. There was always an action element to my work that I now realize was pointing me toward returning to the mystery genre. The closest I got, though, was writing an adaptation of The Hound of the Baskervilles for a theatre company I had founded. It WAS nice to reconnect, but I didn’t think anything of it.

In the latter part of 2004, I came up with an idea for a mystery story. It wasn’t particularly special when I first thought of it. It was just another idea. During a Sunday in which I was watching British mysteries on the old History International channel when I started to outline the story. I started the chess game of putting together a plot. And it became more than I had anticipated.

I not only realized this–writing mysteries–was what I wanted to do. It had ALWAYS been what I wanted to do. I had just lost sight of it. The best way I can think to describe it is that I felt like coming home, after a long time in the wilderness.

My first few attempts at a series were scotched, not because I didn’t see potential in them but because the early books didn’t work out. One was called Martini Summer and would have featured a married couple falling backwards into various mysteries. The other was Stage of the Game and would have featured a small-time actor named Jim Sullivan. In both cases, the mysteries driving the stories were hopelessly complicated and just didn’t come together. 

Joe Davis had been the main character in the series of short stories I wrote as a teenager. Mike, Carol and Lars were from a screenplay I wrote in my 20’s. I decided the marry the group of them to create a series that felt like one part mystery, one part sitcom. While piecing together the mystery in Death is a Clingy Ex was sometimes challenging, I very much enjoyed the comedy segments and the camaraderie of the characters. It carried the book to completion and gave me plenty of ideas for more. I finally had a series to pitch.

The challenge, of course, was finding someone who was interested in that pitch. I spent the next four years querying various agents and small presses. I refined my query letter and sample chapters. I worked on a second book and planned others in the series. And I got nowhere. It wasn’t fun. Four years feeling like I was stuck in neutral, knowing I had a series people would enjoy, running up against gatekeepers again and again. I did have some interest from a local small press, but it didn’t work out. You can read the story (link). 

At that point, I decided to go it alone. I did the research and secured the funding. I founded Ghost Light Press as the vehicle for the Cup o’ Joe Mystery series. And, to my everlasting joy, I started putting the adventures of Joe and his friends out to the public. Every reader I’ve picked up since then has been a thrill.

Where will this journey take me? Not knowing is the fun part. I’m looking produce a series of books that readers will find funny, engaging, exciting, and, on occasion, moving. I’d love readers to enjoy the characters I’ve created and find themselves rooting for Joe, Mike, Carol, and Lars through their various adventures and misadventures. I’d love readers to look forward to each new book and feel satisfied with each one they’ve completed. I’d love to pick up new readers and friends and bring them along on this journey.