What We Have in Common
American Roulette.
What We Have in Common
A while ago, I realized I felt sheepish when talking about the shooting at my son’s school. After all, no one was killed. And it happened years ago, when he was in daycare. The children were sleeping, the bullet passed through the window and landed in the wall, the other bullets fired at the school weren’t even at his classroom. Those ended up in the playground.
The local news barely covered it. The police thought it was just a kid firing shots at the empty rooms in a high-rise office building which is, they assured us, common. Happens more than you’d think.
At the time, of course, my wife and I were shaken, and pulled our son out of that daycare. We knew how lucky we were. Had the children been playing rather than napping, one of them (or more) would likely have been killed. This very well could have been an American tragedy (for a day, anyway).
It was during an interview, earlier this year, with a British radio duo when I realized my sheepishness. We were talking about how I use violence in my writing, and I mentioned how this incident had shaped me. They were silent after I explained what happened, and I felt the need to downplay it. “I mean, no one died or anything.”
“What happened?” they asked. “What did people do?”
“No one did anything,” I told them.
“Nothing?” they asked, incredulously.
No one did anything.
That is, for me anyway, one of the most galling aspects of gun violence in America. When the bullets comes near you and your loved ones, no one will do anything to stop them. It is up to us to increase security, to implore our local schools to maintain security, to ensure our children are taken at the earliest age possible through active shooter drillers, to decide whether or not this mall or church or grocery store or classroom or other crowded American institution is safe. Because we have been taught that this is our only recourse. The bullets will come for us and our children.
So I was gratified to come across American Roulette in my email, both as a writer and as a citizen. As a writer, I’m intrigued by the intricacies of the project, an anthology of linked stories about the effects of a typical American mass shooting. As a citizen, I was grateful that someone had the courage to speak out on this issue, particularly since we live in a time where violence is becoming an accepted solution to any disagreement. The contributors of American Roulette have attempted to do something morally courageous and artistically remarkable, and I interviewed one of those contributors - Sherry Knowlton - for this issue of Crime Fiction Works about the project. You can read the interview below.
Yes, no one did anything after the shooting at my son’s daycare. But at least I wasn’t alone. And what an awful, necessary feeling that was.
EA
I wrote about this incident, after it happened, for Eric Beetner’s anthology, Unloaded: Volume II, which you can order HERE. All proceeds went to the non-profit States United to Prevent Gun Violence.
Before we get to the interview, here’s a quick rundown of some stuff happening in the world of crime fiction:
My friend L.A. Chandlar wrote this article for Medium - fearlessly, honestly - about her sexual assault, and the infuriating response from the Dallas Police. Chandlar hasn’t relented in her search for justice, for herself or other women, and what she’s gone through is both horrible and unsurprising. Read and share her story here.
I wrote a review of Hot Springs Drive by Lindsay Hunter for The Washington Post, which is probably my favorite of all books I’ve read this year.
The writer Damyanti Biswas had me on her writing advice series, and I discussed waking up way too early, the key components of my own work, writing violence, and more. In addition to her own writing, Damyanti offers a number of newsletter resources to writers and readers, so make sure you check those out.
DC Virtual Noir at the Bar is BACK! Taking place on your computer screen December 10th at 7 pm ET. I’ll be hosting the event, and the readers include Amina Akhtar, Sara DiVello, Jennifer Anne Gordon, James Grady, Tara Laskowski, and Sandra SG Wong. Plus a custom cocktail from Chantal Tseng! These events are so much fun, and we keep it to an hour. Want to come watch? Register HERE.
Just a quick reminder that my psychological thriller, They’re Gone (named one of the best books of 2020 by the South Florida Sun Sentinel) is only $1.99 on Kindle for a very limited time.
And I interviewed Alex Segura and Lydia Kang about their work writing for Marvel and Star Wars, which is my dream job and I deserve praise for keeping my envy in check. Please praise me.
About American Roulette
One unremarkable Friday in April, a stream of ordinary people make their way to Liberty Mall in Anywhere, USA, to shop, work, keep appointments, or catch a movie. A typical day in an average town. American Roulette tells the story of eight of those people.
An eclectic group of authors spent six months collaborating on American Roulette, a blockbuster novel full of tension, dread, and anguish. Each author created one of the eight key characters—complete with a supporting cast—who find themselves sharing a common destiny. Readers have but a single day to get to know each of the protagonists before time and circumstances seal their fate.
About Sherry Knowlton
Sherry Knowlton is the award-winning author of the Alexa Williams suspense series and the Beyond the Sunset series of travel memoirs. Sherry was born and raised in Chambersburg, PA, and spent much of her early career in state government, working primarily with social and human services programs, including services for abused children, rape crisis, domestic violence, and family planning. In the 1990s, she served as the Deputy Secretary for Medical Assistance in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The latter part of Sherry's career focused on the field of Medicaid managed care. After retiring from executive positions in the health insurance industry, Sherry ran her own health care consulting business.
Thanks to Sherry for the following interview, and to all the contributors of American Roulette.
EA: Gun violence is such a fiery debate within the United States. Have you been concerned about placing yourself within that maelstrom, or receiving pushback?
SK: Perhaps it sounds naïve, especially for someone who spends a good amount of time on social media, but I was so intrigued by the purpose and the positive potential of this book that I didn’t think about anything else at the outset. However, early in the writing process I – and the other authors – started to discuss two inevitabilities that we should anticipate. First, that there would be many more mass shootings before and after this book was published (and, in fact, the Lewiston, ME shooting took place the day after American Roulette was released). Second, that we would likely receive pushback and, possibly, controversy because gun violence is such a hot-button issue.
The authors tried hard to avoid taking positions on policy issues and specific solutions for reducing gun violence but wrote the book to raise awareness and spark discussion. The overarching theme of the book is that gun violence tragedy could strike any one of us or our families on any given day – before we even know that someone has picked up a gun and started their own little game of American Roulette. We want readers to conclude that such a situation is simply unacceptable and to begin to take action to demand solutions.
Despite that approach, we have received some negative, knee-jerk but relatively mild comments to our social media posts about the book. Our author events and media appearances are in the early stages, so we don’t know whether the book will generate protests or harassment from avid gun-rights advocates. We remain alert and mindful.
This book has received support from prominent members of the gun safety coalition, including Fred Gutenberg and Kris Brown. How much pressure did you and the other contributors feel about writing about trauma that would be read by people directly impacted by gun violence? Did you have outside editorial assistance, in that regard?
The other authors and I have been humbled by the support we’ve received from key gun safety advocates like Fred Guttenberg, Kris Brown, and others. They and several of our early readers who’ve had experience with mass shootings note that tackling this novel could be hard for survivors and family of gun violence victims. The authors tried to balance presenting an honest and realistic depiction of a gun violence tragedy with ensuring we avoided gratuitous or unnecessarily graphic descriptions. Our readers will ultimately be the best judges of whether we achieved that balance.
However, an early reader, Thomas Law, Retired Executive Director of the Tarrant Baptist Association, who was involved in the immediate aftermath of the Wedgwood Baptist Church shooting in Texas, put it this way. “American Roulette was so real I needed to work through some personal trauma before I wrote this review. Be warned, if you have suffered trauma, particularly gun trauma, this book may bring it all back. The authors hope that it does not just overwhelm people but calls them to action for gun control. I completely agree!”
While our team sought no outside editorial assistance on this aspect of the book, one of our authors, Robert Bradshaw, is a crisis management consultant who spends much of his professional time these days training schools, governments, and companies to be prepared for, or assisting them, in recovering from gun violence incidents. Another author, Andrew Carey, PhD has a background in practicing and teaching counseling. Their guidance was key as we wrote American Roulette.
How did this project come together? Was there one author who invited others, was it a publisher-initiative, a chat over coffee that turned into a published book?
The idea for American Roulette originated with Reverend Matthew Best, a Lutheran pastor in the Harrisburg, PA, area. After reading about a mass shooting in early 2023, Best couldn’t stop thinking about the insanity of the response cycle America has developed for these tragedies: wall-to-wall media coverage, thoughts and prayers, and then move on to the next one. As he pondered the distressing situation, he came to believe that the national conversation about gun violence was missing a focus on the real people and lives these shootings impacted. He thought a fictional book about mass shooting that focused on the people might break through the useless chatter, prejudices, preconceived notions, and more that seem to interfere in the real-life reactions to these shootings. Having never written a novel before, he approached his friend and author Pat LaMarche about the idea of a book. Together they developed the initial concept for American Roulette, including asking different authors to each write an individual character in the book.
The authors approached agreed to participate, hoping that American Roulette could do what art has done throughout history: spark discussion and create a safe environment to have difficult conversations. Often people say that they can’t watch TV coverage or talk about gun violence because the reality is just too terrible. In writing American Roulette, the authors hope that a fictional gun tragedy can be discussed more openly and pave the way toward real-life engagement and solutions. Note that the authors have all agreed to donate our book royalties to gun violence prevention organizations.
We were thrilled that Sunbury Press, which publishes my books and those of a few of the other authors in this project, agreed to release the novel through its Milford House Press imprint.
How difficult was it working with nine other writers to craft a cohesive structure for what seems to be a novel-in-stories? Can you talk a little about that process?
Writing American Roulette turned out to be a bit more difficult than any of us imagined at the start. The book is not a traditional anthology but a single cohesive novel. Ten authors spent six months collaborating on American Roulette. Eight of the authors each created one of the eight key characters—complete with a supporting cast. Another did an introduction. And the tenth helped weave the stories together and provided other creative assistance. Some of us had never met prior to writing this book.
The eight authors wrote the original character chapters on our own after agreeing on some parameters, like character outline, length of each character story, the format which uses time of day to break up chapters, that all the characters would visit the same shopping mall, etc. During the initial stages, we met periodically by Zoom and discussed issues, progress and more. When a conflict came up, we brainstormed ways to have one or another of the characters tackle that issue.
The hard part came when we had to intertwine the stories of our characters – both from a timing and character-activity perspective. We did much of that at a multi-day, in-person retreat. The crafting of the book also required creating a map the Mall where much of the action takes place and preparing a detailed, almost minute-by-minute timeline for the crucial ending chapters. Even with all that attention to specifics, our Sunbury editor caught a few discrepancies which required minor tweaks at the eleventh hour.
I’d never worked on a project anything like writing American Roulette. I found it challenging, but ultimately rewarding. My co-authors and I are hoping the novel reaches a wide audience and, in some modest way, becomes a brick in the path toward reduced mass shootings and other gun violence in America.
Thanks again to Sherry Knowlton for this interview. And click HERE to learn more about American Roulette.
All of these books were - in almost every case - published prior to this newsletter.
Sweet Thing, David Swinson
In a red brick house on a tree-lined street, DC homicide detective Alex Blum stares at the bullet-pocked body of Chris Doyle. As he roots around for evidence, he finds an old polaroid: the decedent, arm in arm with Arthur Holland, Blum's informant from years ago when he worked at the Narcotics branch.
But Arthur has been missing for days. Blum’s only source: Arthur’s girl, Celeste—beautiful, seductive, and tragic—whom he can’t get out of his head. Blum is drawn to her and feels compelled to save her from Arthur’s underworld. As the investigation ticks on and dead bodies domino, Blum, unearths clues with damning implications for Celeste. Swallowed by desire, Blum’s single misstep sends him tunnelling down a rabbit hole of transgression. He may soon find the only way out is down below.
The Party Season, SJI Holliday
It's the most deadly time of the year. The festive season is in full swing - parties, mistletoe and Christmas crackers abound. In a hotel bar, a woman approaches you. Her party dress glitters with sequins. What you don't know is that your life is now in her hands - and now that you've met, there's only one thing that will determine whether you live or die.
Are you a good person? Are you really?
Barbacoa, Bomba, and Betrayal, Raquel V. Reyes
A surprise trip to Miriam's parents in Punta Cana, which should be filled with arroz con pollo and breezy days under the tamarind tree, quickly becomes a hunt for a possible property saboteur. But before Miriam can begin to uncover the person damaging the vacation rentals her parents manage, she’s called away to Puerto Rico to film a Three Kings Day special. She's welcomed to the blue ballast-stone streets of Old San Juan by crime scene tape, and things only get worse from there.
An anonymous personal gift on Miriam's doorstep on New Year's Eve screams stalker, and the 400-year-old guesthouse creaks and moans like there is something trapped in its walls. Luckily, her BFF, Alma, and their mutual friend Jorge are in town to keep her distracted between filming cultural segments for the network. But private chef tables and spa days come to an abrupt halt when Jorge's telenovela heartthrob novio goes missing. And there is something worrisome about Alma's too-perfect boyfriend--specifically, his duffle bag full of cash.
Will demon masks, African drumbeats, and dark alleys lead to Miriam's demise? Or will the mysterious events come together like the delicious layers of a pastelón?
Blood Betrayal, Ausma Zehanat Khan
In Blackwater Falls, Colorado, veteran police officer Harry Cooper is hot on the heels of some local vandals when the situation turns deadly: believing one of them has a gun, Harry opens fire and Duante Reed, a young Black man, is killed. The "gun" in his hands was a bottle of spray paint. Meanwhile, in nearby Denver, a drug raid goes south and a Latino teen, Mateo Ruiz, is also killed.
Detective Inaya Rahman is all too familiar with the name of the young cop who has seemingly killed Mateo: Kelly Broda. Kelly is the son of the police officer John Broda, who led a violent attack on her when they were both in Denver. No one is more surprised than Inaya when John turns up on her doorstep, pleading for her help in proving the innocence of his son.
With the Denver Police force spread thin between the two cases, protests on both sides of the cases begin. Inaya and her boss Lieutenant Waqas Seif have their work cut out for them to consider the guilt of the perpetrators and their victims. Harry was by all accounts an officer dedicated to the communities he served: was this shooting truly a terrible mistake? Duante was, to some, a street artist with no prior record, but to others, he was a vandal. Mateo was either in the wrong place at the wrong time, or a dangerous drug dealer. In either case, was lethal force truly necessary?
Forced to reckon with her own prejudices and work through those of her colleagues around her, Inaya must discover the truth of what really happened on one fateful night in Blackwater Falls.
The winner of my newsletter contest is g__ake@______.lib.il.us! Congrats, and you’ve won a copy of American Roulette! I’ll slide into your DMs (send you an email, so not exactly slide into your DMs) soon.
Until next time, much love and Happy Reading!