The character of Jaguar fascinated me in Cafe Au Lait, His story of a man facing great change unveiled itself in my mind as soon as I wrote the last words on Zion's latest adventure. I knew he had to have his own book, but as soon as I finished it, I wasn't sure what genre of book I had written.

I'm apparently not the only one. A few early reviewers have sent me emails telling me Jaguar isn't like their usual read. Talking with my father about it, we both couldn't decide what category it best fits under. That probably has a lot to do with the character himself. Jaguar just doesn't want to be labeled.

I teach my high school students about static and dynamic characters every year. A static character is a character that stays pretty much the same over the course of a novel. Think Rip Van Winkle. Old Rip has pretty much the same outlook at the start of the novel as he does when he wakes from his long slumber at the end of the novel. He winds up telling and retelling his story to keep alive his past, and this rehashing of events doesn't allow him to grow.

A dynamic character changes over the course of a novel. It can be a good change. For instance, Scrooge from A Christmas Carol is the most dramatic example of this. He undergoes a vast transformation that turns him from a miserable, old curmudgeon into a loving, charitable benefactor. However, dynamic characters can also change in the opposite direction. They can become so damaged by their experiences that they are not able to function in society any longer. I think of Raskolnikov in Crime and Punishment, who commits murder at the beginning of the book, then falls into psychological turmoil as a result of his actions. He constantly battles with his own conscience throughout the novel – on one hand, wanting to get away with the "perfect crime" and on the other, to receive redemption.

Jaguar fascinated me because I could feel he was a dynamic character. He had the potential to grow, but at the same time, I could still envision him snapping his fingers at his underlings, expecting absolute obedience and servitude. I'll leave it to my readers to decide if he's more Scrooge than Raskolnikov.

Ultimately, what did I decide to do about the genre designation? I picked family drama because when all is said and done, aren't we all a product of our family drama?
 
I hope you enjoy this latest entry into my catalogue of characters. I know I enjoyed writing about him. 

A number of people have suggested that I compile the crazy drink recipes Abe makes in the Peyton Brooks Mysteries into a recipe book.

I've finally taken that advice and here it is. It was so much fun to "research" his recipes and read back through the scenes where he crafted them.

I did come to realize that Abe serves many of his drinks in martini glasses and I have not a single one. Time to go shopping. I hope you enjoy his recipes and prepare one in his name while you're relaxing in the backyard.

​I intend to do the same.

So often when I write a book, I find myself interested in the peripheral characters. Sometimes these subordinate characters become just as interesting as the main ones.

This happened with Cafe Au Lait. Jaguar, the rockstar who returns to Sequoia to play a concert in his hometown, became so interesting by the end of the book, I just knew he had to have his own novel.

Of course, that in no way takes anything from Zion or Tate, the main characters of this series. The two of them have such different personalities from my other main characters and their connection to each other has become so much more interesting than in the previous novel.

I look forward to many more years of writing Zion's adventures and hope that my readers will find as much enjoyment in it as I do.

Going back to the original Peyton Brooks series to write a prequel about a single case Marco and Peyton solved was both easy and difficult. It was easy because these characters are such an integral part of my psyche, but it was difficult because I had to remember what their relationship was before it evolved.

If you'd like the prequel, I'm offering it for free. Just refer someone to the newsletter or give me a review and I'm more than happy to send this novella to you as my gift for your loyalty.

I’m grateful for everyone who has undertaken this grand adventure with me and I’m delighted to show my appreciation. Happy New Year, everyone!

It's been nine months since the last Peyton Brooks, FBI was published. I love writing Peyton's adventures, but sometimes I need to take a break and write something a little less violent. However, whenever I come back to Peyton, it's like I've come back to a close friend I haven't seen in a while.

The characters are so real to me, I can slip into writing their personalities with little effort. And although the plot is usually a bit more complicated than, say, the cozy mystery series, Peyton and her crazy group of friends are always fun to visit again after an absence.

The same thing that makes Peyton's adventures so much fun to write, the characters, are what I look for when I read for pleasure myself. I want a good plot, but more importantly, I want to care about the characters, I want to believe they exist somewhere in the universe, and I want to be part of their lives for at least the length of a novel.

To me, if a writer makes you feel for the characters, then that writer has done his/her job. I hope my readers feel like Peyton could be a friend. When all is said and done, there is no better compliment than that.

When I decided to write the next World of Samar installment, the storyline naturally lent itself to a discussion of the greatest blight on humanity – slavery, but I wondered if modern readers would see this as an issue in 2016. After doing a little research, I discovered it was and continues to be a shameful mark on our world.

As of 2014, in the Global Slavery Index produced by the Walk Free Foundation, researchers estimate modern day slavery to affect approximately 35.8 million people worldwide.

This is a toll on men, women and children that my mind cannot wrap itself around, and one we as a world should be addressing more agilely.