MLC: Do you remember the first mystery you ever read? If so, what was it, and what pulled you into it?
AUTHOR: I don’t remember the first mystery I ever read. I was reading everything I could get my hands on at an early age. I must have been a little older when I pulled a copy of The G-String Murders, by Gypsy Rose Lee off my parents’ bookshelves because the lives of the strippers made quite an impression on me.
MLC: When did you first decide you wanted to write a mystery, and what led you to that decision?
AUTHOR: I wrote my first mystery (unpublished) 15 years ago. I like to solve puzzles: crossword puzzles, logic puzzles. I like to watch people find solutions to difficult problems. What could be more appropriate for a mystery writer?
MLC: Do you write in any other genres? If so, which ones?
AUTHOR: I write about walking. I am the author of a nonfiction book: Walking the World: Memories and Adventures, and a lighthearted fictional romp called Walking to Denver. I also write poetry. My wife demands that I write four poems a year for her (on Valentine’s Day, her birthday, our anniversary and Christmas).
MLC: Which comes first for you, the plot or the characters?
AUTHOR: Plot precedes characters. I have an idea for a story and pick the appropriate characters for it.
MLC: When you are all wrapped up in the story, do you feel like you could solve the crime, or maybe even solve all the world’s mysteries?
AUTHOR: Of course, but that is part of the reason I write, so that I can live vicariously through my characters, who are some combination of smarter, younger, more daring, more extroverted, sexier and better looking than I am.
MLC: Do you write every day, or what kind of a schedule do you have? Do you write fulltime, or do you have a “day job”?
AUTHOR: I am retired from my day job, and I try to write every day when I am working on a book, in the morning after my walk. But life (and travel) often get in the way.
MLC: Other than your writing, what do you enjoy doing? What is the most important thing to you in your day-to-day life?
AUTHOR: The most important thing for me is my relationship with my wife. I like to read and walk and hike. And travel—my wife and I have traveled widely throughout the world.
MLC: Who are your favorite mystery authors? Do you try to emulate them in your own writing?
AUTHOR: Some of my favorite mystery authors are those who have written mysteries that take place in California, such as Ray Bradbury (who of course is an everything author), Sue Grafton, Robert Crais and Michael Connelly. I can’t emulate them. I can only write in my own style.
MLC: In your present book, is this part of a series, or is it a standalone book?
AUTHOR: Hotline to Murder was written as a standalone book because of the unique circumstances—working on a crisis hotline.
MLC: If you are doing a series, do you see an end to it sometime, or do you plan to go on for several years with it?
AUTHOR: I have written a two-book series: Thirteen Diamonds and Catch a Falling Knife, with Lillian Morgan, a senior-citizen protagonist. No other books are planned at the moment.
MLC: Do your characters ever drive you a bit crazy by going off in their own direction? If so, how do you rein them in, or do you just let them run off on their own?
AUTHOR: Characters do tend to develop lives of their own, but, after all, the author is in charge. I can’t let them destroy the plot because of their willfulness. I keep a pretty tight rein on them.
MLC: Do you pattern your sleuths after yourself or someone you know? If so, do you let that person know they were your “pattern”?
AUTHOR: My sleuths are composite characters, with some traits of people I know. However, I doubt that anybody will recognize himself (or herself), and I don’t tell them what I’ve borrowed from them.
MLC: How long did it take you to get published? How many rejections did you have to suffer through first? Were you ever tempted to give up? What do you think made the difference when it was accepted?
AUTHOR: I have had countless rejections. My love of writing transcends any temptation I have to give up. More avenues are open to the writer in today’s world. Persistence pays off.
MLC: Do you ever attend any conferences? If so, which ones?
AUTHOR: I attend Men of Mystery in Orange County, California every year. I have attended Bouchercon and Left Coast Crime in the past and probably will again.
MLC: Do you have to promote your own work, or does your publisher do that for you?
AUTHOR: My publisher makes it available to distribution channels, but I have to promote it.
MLC: If you have to do marketing, what methods have worked the best for you?
AUTHOR: Giving talks at libraries, senior centers, anywhere I can attract readers.
MLC: Do you have any idea how your book is selling?
AUTHOR: It sells best when I’m out promoting it.
MLC: What has been the best review you have gotten, and why?
AUTHOR: I think Cynthia Chow, a librarian in Hawaii, grasped the essence of the book and summarized it in understandable language. The review is on Amazon and on my website.
MLC: Have you won any awards, either as an author or for your books? Please tell us about them.
AUTHOR: I have won some local awards, but nothing on a national scale—yet.
MLC: Is there any one certain thing that a reader has written to you that made you just want to jump up and shout “Yes!!!!”?
AUTHOR: I have been told a number of times by readers that they couldn’t put my book down. I like to hear that because it means I’m having an effect on their lives.
MLC: What is your next project, and when will it be out?
AUTHOR: I am writing a mystery that takes place in a high school in the 1950s. I can’t project a publication date yet.
MLC: If you could write anything at all, ignoring what editors and publishers say they want, what would it be?
AUTHOR: I would write the mystery I’m writing now. I’m sure it violates all the wisdom about what a mystery should be like.
MLC: Do you have any words of wisdom for aspiring mystery authors?
AUTHOR: Read mysteries, of course. Write from your heart, join a writer’s group and a mystery e-mail group. Mystery loves company. (Sorry—couldn’t resist.)
MLC: Do you have any teasers for your readers and fans about the next book?
AUTHOR: Small town America, circa 1950. Communist sympathizers, ancestors who were black sheep.
MLC: If a genie suddenly appeared and said they would grant you just one wish for your books, what would you wish for?
AUTHOR: That somebody with national stature would demand that they be banned.
MLC: Please give us your website url and your email address where people can contact you.
AUTHOR: Website: http://alancook.50megs.com E-mail: alcook@sprintmail.com
MLC: Thank you so much for giving us a little glimpse into your books and your life. We look forward to a lot more books from you.