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I am an attorney, currently working as Counsel to the Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives. It’s a hard job with long hours but I promise (or threaten) to keep finding time to write novels. I just became a proud father to Abigail, who by all accounts is the most beautiful baby ever born. She is getting along nicely with our two pugs, Otis and Molly. My wife, Susan, will soon be returning to the Attorney General’s office after a maternity leave.
> How I started writing People always ask me, "What made you start writing?" The truth is, I was a writer before I was a lawyer. When I was in fourth grade, I entered a school district-wide writing contest. I wrote a story called "The Loch Ness Mystery" about two boys who solved a crime in Scotland. Guess what? It won the contest. Guess what else? In hindsight, I realized that every entry won. Undaunted, I entered again in fifth grade with a story creatively entitled "Kidnapped." Who'd have thought, I won again, as did everyone else. I thought I'd be a writer when I was a kid, but then I got caught up in sports, girls, studies, and girls, and the next thing I knew, I was studying business in college and going to law school. In 1996, when I had been practicing law for three years, I was on vacation, watching the sunset, and I started doing that thing we all do in moments like that—reflecting on life, and whether I was doing everything I wanted to do. I realized that I had a creative side that I wasn't exploring. It seemed so obvious to me, once I realized what was missing. So I set out to write a novel. I hadn't taken any English courses, and I didn't have any formal training, but I knew one thing: I knew what good writing was. So I started out, and most of what I was writing was not very good, but I kept at it, kept improving. I wrote an hour a day for almost three years, and then I had the first draft of what later became LINE OF VISION. You should know that LINE OF VISION was rejected by about seventy-five agents before it was accepted. But I kept at it. When LINE OF VISION won the Edgar Award for Best First Novel, I got a lot of calls from agents who had taken a pass. The lesson? Perseverance. Don't be afraid to stick your neck out, and don't let anyone tell you that you can't do something.
> My advice on writing Bobby Knight, the basketball coach, may have his faults, but a line he uttered has stayed with me: "Everyone has the will to win. But few have the will to prepare to win." A lot of people would like to publish a novel. Few succeed. The problem is getting from point "A" to point "Z." And believe me, most of the hurdles are psychological. Hey, I can give you a million reasons why you won't get published. It takes a lot of time to write a manuscript, with no guarantee of a reward at the end. That's time you could be spending elsewhere. And sure, you could fail, and who wants to tell their friends that they tried and failed? And there are so many others out there trying to do the same thing, so what makes you think you will stand out of the crowd? So what was the difference between me and those others? I can sum it up in one word: Will. I had the will to do whatever it took. I didn't quit my "day job" as a lawyer. I made time—one hour a night, for almost three years, to write my first one. My first draft wasn't that good, honestly, but I had the will to show it to people and wait for the inevitable criticism. I knew that the only way I would succeed is to get honest feedback. Then I edited, and re-edited. I wrote several drafts. And when I finally got around to sending it to literary agents, I got rejected nearly a hundred times. Most agents rejected me on my cover letter, without even reading my manuscript. Quit? No way. I wrote a better cover letter, and I worked on my book some more. The first agent who said "yes" to me told me this manuscript would never be published—that the most I could hope for was a television screenplay. No way. I kept going. I finally found my agent, and the rest is history. My first novel won the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best First Novel. Be open-minded about your talent. Accept criticism. Be willing to improve. Try to master every aspect of the business-not just the writing, but the cover letter you have to send, because it's all most agents will read. And don't take no for answer. Believe me, most of those "other people" who don't get published gave up, or didn't put their best foot forward. Don't be afraid of failure. Be excited about the possibility of fulfilling a dream. Good luck!
> My favorite authors God, it's hard to know where to start. Oddly enough, I don't read a lot of mysteries. I really thought that Donna Tartt's first novel, The Secret History, was an amazing piece of literature. I love almost anything that Joyce Carol Oates writes, and she writes a lot. To Kill A Mockingbird is another obvious classic that has stayed with me. What a powerful novel! For the lover of thrillers, I have two favorites currently. Lee Child writes a series featuring Jack Reacher, a nomadic ex-MP with physical and intellectual gifts galore. Lee writes a snappy, thoughtful prose filled with action and terrific plot twists. The other is Barry Eisler. Barry writes a series featuring John Rain, a half-American, half-Japanese assassin. Rain is a brooding, enigmatic hero whom you respect and even like, despite his occupation. Barry's descriptions of Japan and other locales are haunting and beautiful. He writes some of the best prose in the business. For police procedurals, check out J.A. Konrath, a new kid on the scene who shows great promise. Konrath writes about a Chicago detective named Jacqueline "Jack" Daniels and her partner, Herb Benedict. His first novel, Whiskey Sour, was filled with enough humor to cause a stomach ache and enough eerie suspense to make you want to leave the light on at night. We're talking guaranteed entertainment here. In terms of pure dramatic prose, I think that Scott Turow is still the best around. My favorite is still his first one, Presumed Innocent, but I enjoy all of his work. As a fellow Chicago lawyer, Scott was kind enough to give me some advice along the way, and I will never forget his generosity. A friend of mine—yes, another Chicago lawyer—named Laura Caldwell writes what most people call "chick-lit." Not normally my genre, but she's a real talent, and now she's into suspense. Her first suspense novel is coming out soon, and it's a winner.
> My promises to you I make these promises to you: 1.
I will try to answer your e-mail as promptly as possible; Please keep in touch with me, so I know what you want! Feel free to drop me a line at Dave@DavidEllis.com. Or jump on my message board here.
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