News & Events
June 29: Come on out to Huntington Beach on Saturday, 29 June, at 1pm. Hosted by Mystery Ink Bookstore, I’ll be doing an author talk and book signing at the Fernhill Clubhouse. It’s a great venue near the beach and an intimate setting for storytelling. Hope to see you there! Fernhill Clubhouse, 5472 Diamond Drive,Huntington Beach, CA 92647 (at the corner of Graham & Warner)
May 2024: A few more interviews … and like the ones from March, I regularly listen to these podcasts. They host some great guests and have fascinating, engaging conversations. I typically listen to them when I’m working out it the garage. Kettlebells, pull-ups, pushups, box jumps, heavy bag, TRX, and everything in between …
- Spies, Lies, and Private Eyes with Terrence McCauley
- Rendezvous with a Writer on LA Talk Radio with Jim and Bobbi Jean Bell
- Spies in Disguise with Gavin Stone
- The Artful Periscope with Larry Davidson
April 10: Since I was traveling when The Underhanded officially came out, I had to delay my official book launch, but here it is. Please join me at Arvida Book Co. in Old Town Tustin, CA, where I’ll be in conversation with crime writer Travis Richardson. Light hors d’oeuvres and refreshments will be served, along with wine featured from SUTRO winery. The doors open at 6:30pm, and children are welcome.
April 6: Join me at the Yorba Linda Public Library from 2 – 4pm for Read Locally: Local Author Festival. I’ll be doing a reading from The Underhanded and signing books. If you’re in the area, please stop by to say hello and support the library.
April 2: Pub day! The Underhanded will be released on 2April 2024. It’s available now for preorder, and will be available from all major retailers as well as your local bookstore.
March 2024: Here are a few interviews to check out …
- Course of Action with Jeff Clark
- Mystery and Thriller Mavens with Sara DiVello
- Nancy’s Bookshelf on NPR with Nancy Wiegman
November 2023 to … Writing feverishly to finish the sequel to Landslide.
August 30 – September 3, 2023: Are you coming to Bouchercon: Murder at the Marina in San Diego, CA? If so, please reach out — I would love to connect in person either at a signing or panel. I’ll also be moderating the panel Spies and Intelligence: Tense Plots and Diplomatic Angles Around the Globe, which is scheduled for Sunday, 3 September, starting at 11:30am. I hope you attend and hear from these amazing authors.
August 24, 2023: I’ll be speaking to the San Fernando Valley Historical Society at the Andres Pico Adobe in Mission Hills, CA, about Landslide and the CIA in fiction and in reality. The talk starts at 7pm, followed by a meet and greet and book signing. Check out my Instagram for additional details.
June 20, 2023: Landslide announced as a finalist for the 17th Annual National Indie Excellence Awards in the category of Action/Adventure. I’m so honored and grateful for my agents, the team at Oceanview Publishing, and most importantly, the readers who made this happen. Thank you!
May 31 to June 3, 2023: What a great time at ThrillerFest XVII! In addition to being recognized as a Debut Author, I attended a host of panels and events about the craft of writing, the ins and outs of publishing, developing an author platform, and all things in between. I also reconnected with friends and met some of my favorite authors—Marc Greaney, Joanne Leedom-Ackerman, Connor Sullivan, Simon Gervais, Andrews & Wilson, Taylor Moore, Ward Larsen, and many others. If you love thrillers and mysteries and live in NYC (or are willing to make the trip), you should consider attending next year—and I hope to see you there!
January 14, 2023: I signed another book contract with Oceanview Publishing for my forthcoming international thriller, The Underhanded, set to release in April 2024! A full description and cover reveal will occur in early summer, but until then, here’s a teaser:
Neo-fascism and extreme nationalism are rising across Europe. But Professor William Dresden has his own problems and would rather ignore the headlines. When an adrift MI6 officer tells him his family is connected to the forces behind it all, however, he’s thrust into a shadowy war that is tearing apart Western society.
Some of you have asked about the sequel to Landslide, my debut spy thriller … stay tuned. It’s coming soon!
December 1, 2022: For the next two months, between 01 December 2022 and 31 January 2023, I intend to donate the entirety of my author proceeds from Landslide book sales to a charity helping the innocent civilians affected by the war in Ukraine. The charity is the International Rescue Committee (IRC), which is dedicated to providing humanitarian assistance to the millions of innocent civilians who have been displaced by the ongoing Russia-Ukraine War. And now, given the harsh winter that is approaching and that there is no sign of the conflict ending, the need could not be greater.
Some of you may be wondering why I chose the IRC and why I chose to do this now. Well, if you’ve already read Landslide, you know that the latter half of the book is set in eastern Ukraine in the middle of the conflict. I wrote Landslide well before the Russian Federation invaded, yet by chance the backdrop of my fictionalized story tracks all too closely with real-world events. Thus, I feel compelled to try and help some of those who are suffering. Like some of you, I have seen and experienced war up close—my heart goes out to the men, women, and children who have to live day-to-day with this war on their doorstep.
This is also the season of giving, and if any of you are perhaps wondering how you might contribute to those less fortunate, please consider this cause. As I stated above, I will dedicate all of my author proceeds from book sales that occur between 01 December 2022 and 31 January 2023. If you haven’t read or picked up a copy of Landslide or you are considering giving it as a gift during the holidays, now is a good time.
But, if you don’t want to buy a copy of Landslide yet feel inspired to help in other ways, please consider making a direct donation to the IRC-Ukraine. Any amount will help.
Thank you for listening.
November 9, 2022: Author signing at the Barnes & Noble in Burlington, MA.
November 7, 2022: Author reading and signing at the Toadstool Bookshop in Nashua, NH. Signed copies are still available!
November 5, 2022: Was an attending author at the Men of Mystery conference in Long Beach, CA, alongside many other amazing writers included Connor Sullivan, Paddy Hirsch, Matt Cole, and Stephen Mack Jones, to name a few.
October 30, 2022: Weekend with Locals at Warwick’s in La Jolla, CA. Come get a signed copy of Landslide as well as visit the country’s oldest family-owned and operated bookstore.
October 15, 2022: LAUNCH PARTY at the Mystery Ink Bookstore in Huntington Beach, CA. Please come to hear a reading, get a signed copy of Landslide, and eat some cake.
September 20, 2022: Landslide launched! You can get a copy at your favorite local bookstore or online retailer. I hope you enjoy it!
September 1, 2022: Hosted by the SoCal chapter of the Mystery Writers of America, on 25 September 2022 I’ll be giving a talk in Los Angeles about how the CIA is portrayed in books and on the screen. If you’re a MWA member, I hope you can attend!
July 1, 2022: I launched the first issue of my newsletter, The Black Cache, where I will discuss all manner of books and writing, as well as spies, covert action, paramilitary operations, foreign intelligence, counterintelligence, and a host of other topics related to the dark arts. If you missed it, you can sign up on my homepage.
April 5, 2022: I will be attending ThrillerFest XVII in New York City, 1 – 4 June 2022, and serving on the panel “STORY STRUCTURE, LINE EDITS OR TWEAKS: Making Your Writing Shine” on Saturday, June 4th, from 10:30 AM to 11:20 AM.
February 26, 2022: Chicago Review Press announced it will issue Open Skies: My Life as Afghanistan’s First Female Pilot in a paperback edition in November 2022.
July 23, 2021: Now available, CNN’s Anderson Cooper’s interview with Niloofar Rahmani, discussing the book Open Skies: My Life as Afghanistan’s First Female Pilot and the situation in Afghanistan in light of the pending withdrawal of US forces.
July 6, 2021: Open Skies: My Life as Afghanistan’s First Female Pilot launched on July 6, 2021! It’s now available through all major retailers and independent bookstores.
June 22, 2021: I recently signed a book deal with Oceanview Publishing for my new international thriller, Landslide, set for release in September 2022. The story rockets across Europe onto the simmering battlefields of Ukraine as Mason Hackett descends into an underworld of killers, spies, and corrupt corporations while searching for someone who should be dead. Stay tuned …