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When I quit my job to write novels full-time, it was by far the most risky decision I’d ever made in my life. At that point I hadn’t sold anything; I didn’t even have an agent. There were no guarantees that I would accomplish anything before my savings ran out.
But I did it anyway.
My reasoning was: if I don’t take the chance now, I never will. So I took that chance... and to my delight (and immense relief ) it paid off, with THE HUNT FOR ATLANTIS being published by Headline in November, and the sequel, THE TOMB OF HERCULES, due in 2008.
My goal when writing THE HUNT FOR ATLANTIS was simple, if ambitious: I wanted to create the ultimate action thriller... to out-Hollywood Hollywood. High stakes, extreme danger and global scope, Indiana Jones meets James Bond with the most spectacular special effects possible – those created in the reader’s mind.
But at the same time I wanted to make it distinctively mine, to have fun playing with the conventions of the genre. Adventure heroes are usually tall, handsome, suave and superhumanly skilled at everything from flying a helicopter to identifying fine wines with just a sniff of the cork. My hero, Eddie Chase, is... well, somewhat more down to earth. Similarly, my heroine, Nina Wilde, is no mere damsel in distress, but instead drives the entire story. Not knowing how to use a gun doesn’t make her helpless – her intelligence and resourcefulness are worth more than any number of bullets.
Nina and Eddie took on memorable lives of their own during the writing of the book, as you’ll find when you meet them. I hope they’ll have many more adventures to come – and that you enjoy reading their first one as much as I did writing it!
When I quit my job to write novels full-time, it was by far the most risky decision I’d ever made in my life. At that point I hadn’t sold anything; I didn’t even have an agent. There were no guarantees that I would accomplish anything before my savings ran out. 