Tag Archives: crime
Don’t Let the Y.A. Label Fool You
I had the chance to read a Y.A. paranormal novel, The Emerald Talisman by Brenda Pandos. I’ve known Brenda for years and much to my embarrassment, I hadn’t read her work. We write two different types of fiction. I write crime and thriller novels like Little River and she creates paranormal beings living in with […]
You Are What You Read
When did choosing a literary genre become so difficult? In the “olden days” of books, there were vast collections of works contained within a single place. The Library. In this mystical building, there existed a structure, a set of expectations to guide those who sought out new tales and adventures. All books were created along […]
Human Trafficking is a Third World Problem, Right?
Law enforcement struck a heavy blow against human trafficking organizations in the last month, with major arrests in Thailand and Spain. Police raided a prison island off the coast of Thailand where hundreds of Burmese refugees were held for ransom, or auction. The European arrests netted 75 criminals in a Chinese-based trafficking ring. But, what […]
Desert Secrets
I’m in the early stages of drafting a new novel. My recently released thriller, Little River, (cheap shameless plug) confirmed the importance of research on the subject matter. The details make all the difference between a meh story, and a good story. The overarching theme in Little River is human trafficking and the new work […]
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 […]
Natural Selection – Felony Stupid Criminals
Once in a blue moon, you stumble over a true crime story that gives you faith in the theory of Natural Selection. The human gene pool is also suffering from the ravages of global warming and the contents are evaporating at a rapid clip. The meth-riddled, video game shortened attention, deficit disordered strands of DNA […]
Murder, He Wrote
Criminals come in different flavors. Violent offenders, rapists, extortionists and drug addicts, each commit their crimes for reasons that germinate in their minds. In the dark ages of criminology, the ridges and bumps on a man’s head predicted his criminal future. I’m not a big believer in conspiring clouds of fate, or forces of biology […]
From the Archives – Felony Stupid Criminals
I’m starting a new feature here on my little slice of the blogosphere. Life is too damn serious most of the time and the headlines are enough to make you want to weld your doors and windows shut. So, in this segment, we will feature the criminal equivalent of David Letterman’s Stupid Human Tricks. Let’s […]
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 