Category Jamaica
Will New Human Trafficking Laws Make A Difference?
When I wrote Little River, my human trafficking thriller, I was struck by how the Jamaican government responded to the issue of human trafficking on their island nation. Silence. With the disappearance of Natalee Holloway from Aruba, in May 2005, media accounts of the search, reports of the girl’s last known location and focus on […]
Human Trafficking – It’s Not Only About Sex
The topic of human trafficking brings a certain set of preconceived ideas and images to mind. Popular media expresses trafficking as something they can market – and sex sells. Here in California, a recent voter initiative on the ballot passed after a frenzied campaign of television commercials promising tough anti-trafficking laws. All the new statutes […]
Behind the Cover of Little River
You can’t judge a book by its cover? Yeah, maybe. I admit when I browse the aisles in a bookstore, or scroll through the e-book offerings in Amazon, or Barnes and Noble, I look for something more than a flashy, photoshopped image. I think I’m like most readers when I expect something more – something […]
It Ain’t What it Looks Like
During a recent drive from Northern California to Phoenix, I witnessed thirteen hours of desert, farmland and urban sprawl, most of which you’d never find as a feature in any self-respecting travel guide. When people think of California, fanciful visions of surfers, bikini-clad beaches, palm trees and Disneyland fill the imagination. Living in the Northern […]
Behind the Scenes – Crime in the Caribbean
After my first trip to Jamaica, I wanted to bring my fictional story about human trafficking to life. I knew the basic plot lines that I wanted to write, but my two decades of work in the criminal justice system didn’t give me enough to flesh out my story. I’ve seen the extortion of prison […]
Little River
During a recent trip to Jamaica, I had some down time waiting for my connecting flight and then again waiting in the customs lines in Montego Bay. My mind wandered, as it often does, but this time, it drifted and formed the framework of my novel. The plot line lay in the faces and unspoken […]
Human Trafficking – The 32 Billion Dollar Industry
Let me start out by stating that I’m not a social worker, reformer, or activist. I’m simply an observer – a writer. As I develop a novel and the plot lines within, I pull together source information and research the subject area to provide the reader with a realistic story line. In the process of […]
James L'Etoile
James L'Etoile 