On episode 68 of the WRITER 2.0 Podcast I spoke with Iris Johansen, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of close to 100 books. This was an especially enjoyable interview for me because Iris and I quickly connected like old friends. We discussed:
- her transitions between genres over the last 30 years;
- writing canine characters;
- her latest Eve Duncan novel, SHADOW PLAY;
- the process of writing a trilogy;
- our shared love of minimal, tight prose.
I also asked her a series of questions that arose from the WRITER 2.0 Facebook Group:
- Day to day, year to year, how are you so productive?
- How do you know when a book is done?
- Do you listen to music when you write and, if so, what kind?
- How do you constantly find fresh ideas?
- What change in the publishing business over the last 30 years has most affected your career?
Plus, on “Today in Writing”–Churchill goes to South Africa.
About Our Guest:
IRIS JOHANSEN is The New York Times bestselling author of Your Next Breath, The Perfect Witness, Live to See Tomorrow, Silencing Eve, Hunting Eve, Taking Eve, Sleep No More, What Doesn’t Kill You, Bonnie, Quinn, Eve,Chasing The Night, Eight Days to Live, Blood Game, Deadlock, Dark Summer, Pandora’s Daughter, Quicksand,Killer Dreams, On The Run, Countdown, Firestorm, Fatal Tide, Dead Aim, and more. And with her son Roy Johansen, she has coauthored The Naked Eye, Sight Unseen, Close Your Eyes, Shadow Zone, Storm Cycle, and Silent Thunder.
Johansen began writing after her children left home for college. She first achieved success in the early 1980s writing category romances. In 1991, Johansen began writing suspense historical romance novels, starting with the publication of The Wind Dancer. In 1996 Johansen switched genres, turning to crime fiction, with which she has had great success. She had seventeen consecutive New York Times bestsellers as of November 2006.[1]
Johansen lives near Atlanta, Georgia and is married. Her son, Roy Johansen, is an Edgar Award-winning screenwriter and novelist. Her daughter, Tamara, serves as her research assistant.
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2 thoughts on “#1 NY Times Bestseller Iris Johansen–Episode 68–October 14 2015”
I loved this interview with one of my favourite authors. I’m currently reading YOUR NEXT BREATH (Catherine Ling novel), and I love the Eve Duncan stories.
I found it interesting that you write similarly to her, AC. I also write in the same style (not much description, lots of dialogue). I write what I like to read. When I’m thinking about buying a novel, I see how many pages I have to turn to get to the first line of dialogue. If I have to turn more than two, I don’t buy, and two is pushing it! I guess it’s not uncommon for writers to write in the style that appeals to them as readers.
Thanks, Sarah. That’s great to hear. Iris was so nice. Even though it was the first time I’d spoken with her, I felt like we hit it off like old friends.