Super new author!!!!

I'm so pleased to host a terrific friend of mine, the wonderful debut author Ed Gaffney. Ed is a lawyer, like me, but he's a criminal lawyer who specializes in court-appointed criminal appeals. That means he's represented some people who were accused and convicted of truly heinous crimes. Ed's first book, the fantastic legal thriller PREMEDITATED MURDER, is in stores now, and I was lucky enough to read an advance copy of it -- it rocks!!

I thought I'd ask Ed some questions about the book and writing life, and what it's like to be married to a NY Times bestselling author. Here's what he had to say:

Q: What made you decide to write a book?

Ed: I've always loved to write. When I was in high school and college, I used to write stories for my brothers and sisters (they were the main characters) as gifts for them. After Suz and I got married, I wrote screen plays and teleplays (some with her) as she was doing the same. Than, a few years ago, I got the idea for a book (which turned into PREMEDITATED MURDER), and I decided to give it a try. I thought it would be fun. I was right!

Q: For those who don't know, your wife is Suzanne Brockmann, award-winning author of wonderful romantic suspense books about Navy SEALs. Is it intimidating to write a book when you're married to a NY Times bestselling author?

Ed: Sometimes. After I learned that my book had been accepted by Bantam/Dell, I went to a bookstore to bask in the imagination of what it would be like to have my book on the shelves. Bad idea. I opened the door, and all basking was put on hold. The store was HUGE! There were tens of thousands of books everywhere! No one would ever be able to find the two or three copies of my tiny little insignificant book, way in the back, on the bottom shelf, behind the display featuring the many important books of the really good authors.

And then I realized that Suz had written books that were the 5th or 9th or 11th bestselling OF ALL OF THE BOOKS IN THE STORE!!!!! It was very, uh, instructive.

So, yeah, sometimes it's intimidating. But I tend to focus on the other side of the coin, which is a really awesome side. How many first time authors have a NYTimes bestselling author looking over their shoulder, offering help whenever asked?

Q: As you know, I'm a (recovering) civil trial lawyer. In my field, there are moments of excitement surrounded by months of paperwork and motion practice. Is being a criminal trial lawyer really as exciting and action-packed as it sounds in PREMEDITATED MURDER?

Ed: Not really -- but that's why writing books is so cool! I try to leave out all the dull stuff -- or at least try to make it funny!

Q: Did you ever have any cases like the one in your book? Do you still practice law?

Ed: I am not taking any new cases, but I still have a few to finish. My primary area of law was court-appointed criminal appeals, and so I've represented people accused and convicted of some terrible things. Nothing as terrible as what the defendant was charged with in PREMEDITATED MURDER, though. In my real-world practice, having a client charged with one murder at a time was plenty.

Q: What can we expect next from Zack and Terry?

Ed: Zack and Terry will be featured in my next book, SUFFERING FOOLS, where they meet a new kind of challenge -- a client who seems committed to making it hard for them to effectively defend him. I'm in the final stages of revision with that manuscript, and I hope it will be available sometime next year!