Paul Martini Author Biographies

Steve Paul Martini was born in 1946 in San Francisco, California and grew up there and in southern California. He graduated from the University of California at Santa Cruz and started his career as a newspaper reporter in Los Angeles.

Steve was also worked as a capital correspondent for the state house in Sacramento, California. He covered both State and Federal courts and has written extensively on law and politics.

Paul returned to college and received his law degree at the University of Pacific’s McGeorge school of Law. He went into private practice in 1974.

As a representative of the State Bar Association of California, Steve regularly appeared before the State Legislature. Steve has served as Director of the State Office of Administrative Hearings. Steve has also been an administrative judge and has served as special council on assignment to the California Victims of Violent Crimes Program.

Steve Martini published his first book in 1988. He has been called a master of legal thrillers. He has received international acclaim. A few years later he started writing full time. In 1992 he published the first of his Paul Madriani series.

These days Steve Martini and family reside in the Pacific Northwest.

Books by Steve Martini:

The Paul Madriani Series:
Compelling Evidence (1992)
Prime Witness (A Paul Madriani Novel)(1993)
Undue Influence (1994)
The Judge (1995)
The Attorney (1999)
The Jury (2001)
The Arraignment (2002)
Double Tap (2005)
Shadow of Power: A Paul Madriani Novel (Paul Madriani Novels)(2008 )
Guardian of Lies (2009)

Stand Alone Novels:
The Simeon Chamber(1988)
The List (1997)
Critical Mass(1998)

Scott Turow Author Biographies

Scott Turow was born on April 12, 1949 in Chicago, Illinois. He said that he had wanted to write since he was 17 years old. He attended Amherst College where he graduated in 1970. Scott won a scholarship to attend Stanford College Writing Center where he graduated and began teaching creative writing from 1972 to 1975. From 1975 to 1978 he attended Harvard Law School.

He says that he wanted to write and practice law when he realized he was not going to be able to support himself as a writer. During his first year at Harvard, he was commissioned to write a book on his experiences as a first year law student. One L is the published outcome.

Scott married Annette, a painter, in 1971. They have three children. Scott and Annette divorced in 2008.

From 1978 to 1986, Scott Turow was an Assistant US Attorney in Chicago where he prosecuted several high profile cases.

Besides his books, Scott has published many articles including book reviews and a treatise on why he does not believe in the death penalty. In 2003 his book, Ultimate Punishment: A Lawyer’s Reflections on Dealing with the Death Penalty, was published.

Scott Turow is a partner in a large national law firm, Sonnenshein, Nath and Rosenthal. He has worked pro bono cases especially for those wrongfully convicted, such as Alejandro Hernandez. Mr. Hernandez was accused and convicted of a murder and spent 11 years on death row before Scott won his release in 1996. He was also appointed, by then Governor George Ryan, to the commission of capital punishment reform.

Scott is a trustee at Amherst College. He was also the president of the Author’s Guild for a year and still serves on the board. He is very active in charitable causes.

So far three of Scott Turow’s books have been made into Movies: Presumed Innocent (1990), The Burden of Proof (1992) and Reversible Errors (2004).

Scott Turow Books:
Presumed Innocent(1987)
The Burden of Proof (1990)
Pleading Guilty (1993)
The Laws of Our Fathers (1996)
Personal Injuries (1999)
Reversible Errors (2002)
Ordinary Heroes (2005)
Limitations(2006)

Nonfiction:
One L (1977)
Ultimate Punishment: A Lawyer's Reflections on Dealing with the Death Penalty(2003)

Jeffrey Archer Author Biographies

Jeffrey Howard Archer was born on April 15, 1940 in London and raised in Somerset, England. His parents were William, a printer, and Lola Archer, a journalist. He gained his education at Wellington and Brasenose College, Oxford. There he earned the position of President of University Athletic Club. He met his future wife, Mary Doreen Weeden at Oxford where she was studying chemistry. They married in 1966 and have remained married. They have two sons, William and James.

Jeffrey won a position on the Greater London Council. In 1969, at the age of 29, he became a Member of Parliament for Louth. He resigned from the House of Commons in 1974 after he suffered near bankruptcy behind some bad investments. He turned his attention to writing and his first novels became best sellers. Still today, he says he likes politics more than writing.
From 1985 to 1986 Jeffrey was Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party. In 1986 he sued a publication for falsely accusing him of paying for sex with a prostitute. He won the case and was awarded an astounding 500,000 lira in damages.

He ran for Mayor of London, but in 1999, he withdrew his nomination. He had been charged with five counts including perjury and conspiracy to pervert the course of justice. It seems a friend finally admitted that he lied for Jeffrey on the witness stand. Jeffrey Archer was convicted and sentenced to four years in prison.

Jeffrey spent two years of his term in prison. His time in prison brought about three nonfiction books known as the Prison Diaries.

There seems to be mixed feelings toward Jeffrey Archer. He has been called a controversial character, a rogue, humorless, charming, a liar, a cad, charismatic, funny, and a man lacking self introspection. One thing we do know for sure; he is a brilliant writer of novels and short stories. He is also a playwright.

He says he usually starts writing from 6AM for two hours then takes a break for two hours. This continues through the day until 8PM. He writes in long hand with a felt tip pen. He says that writing is serious business and not easy. You must be dedicated. He says, “A good novel combines good story telling with good writing.”

Books by Jeffrey Archer:

Series:
Shall We Tell the President? (1977)
Kane and Abel(1979)
The Prodigal Daughter (1982)
Kane and Abel 30th Anniversary Edition (2009)

Novels:
Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less (1976)
First Among Equals (1984)
A Matter of Honour (1986)
As the Crow Flies (1991)
Honour Among Thieves (1993)
The Proprietors (1995)
The Fourth Estate(1996)
The Eleventh Commandment (1998)
Sons of Fortune (2002)
False Impression (2006)
A Prisoner of Birth (2008)
Paths of Glory (2009)

Collections:
A Quiver Full of Arrows (1980)
A Twist in the Tale (1988)
The Play’s the Thing (1990)
Twelve Red Herrings (1994)
The Collected Short Stories (1997)
To Cut a Long Story Short (2000)
A Collection of Short Stories (2000)
The Expert Witness and Other Stories (2000)
The Grass is Always Greener and Other Stories (2000)
Cat O'Nine Tales: And Other Stories(2006)
Word Play (The Jeffrey Archer Collection (2007)
And Thereby Hangs a Tale (2010)

Plays:
Willy and the Killer Kipper (1981)
Beyond Reasonable Doubt (1989)
The Perfect Murder (2001)
The Accused (2001)

Nonfiction Series:
Hell (2002) (writing as FF8282)
Purgatory (2003)
Heaven: A Prison Diary Volume 3(2004)

Sue Grafton Author Biographies

Sue Grafton was born on April 24, 1940 in Louisville, Kentucky where she and her sister were also raised. Her parents were Attorney C.W. Grafton and Vivian Harnsberger Grafton. Her father also wrote in his spare time had four mysteries published.

After graduating with a BA in English Literature from the University of Louisville in 1961, Sue worked in Santa Monica and Santa Barbara, California, as cashier, medical secretary and hospital admissions clerk. Although she started writing when she was 18 years old, she wasn’t published until 1967. She started writing screenplays, television movies, television pilots and episodes.

Sue was in the middle of a divorce in the 1980’s when she started writing her Kinsey Millhone books. She joking says, “Your homicidal urges can be turned to good in this world. Don’t let that ex-husband get you down! Just start a new job.” Sue and Steve divide their time between Santa Barbara California and Louisville, Kentucky.


Sue is married to Steven F. Humphrey and has three children from previous marriages.

Sue says that when she first did her book signings, most of the people in line were women, but now there are at least as many men if not more. She is not a gender neutral writer.

Sue was writing one book a year but decided that was too much, so now she publishes a book about every eighteen months. She says that when she dies, she will leave all of her papers to Boston University. She absolutely refuses to let Hollywood get hold of Kinsey Millhone.


Books by Sue Grafton:

Kinsey Millhone Series:
"A" is for Alibi (The Kinsey Millhone Alphabet Mysteries)(1982)
B is for Burglar (1985)
C is for Corpse (1986)
D is for Deadbeat (1987)
E is for Evidence (1988)
F is for Fugitive (1989)
G is for Gumshoe (1990)
H is for Homicide (1991)
I is for Innocent (1992)
J is for Judgment (1993)
K is for Killer (1994)
L is for Lawless (1995)
M is for Malice (1996)
N is for Noose (1998)
O is for Outlaw (1999)
P is for Peril (2000)
Q is for Quarry (2002)
R is for Ricochet (2004)
S is for Silence (2005)
T is for Trespass (2007)
U is for Undertow (Kinsey Millhone Mysteries)(2009)

Kinsey Millhone Omnibus:
Three Complete Novels 1: A, B and C (1990)
The Omnibus: "D is for Deadbeat", "E is for Evidence", "F is for Fugitive"(2001)
Three Complete Novels 3: G, H and I (2002)
Three Complete Novels 4: J, K and L (2007)
Three Complete Novels 5: M, N and O (2008)

Novels:
Keziah Dane (1967)
The Lolly-Madonna War (1998)

Anthologies Edited:
The Best American Mystery Stories: 1998 (1998) with Otto Penzler
Nonfiction:

Alice Walker Author Biographies

Alice Walker was born on February 9, 1944 near Eatonton in White Chapel, Georgia. Her parents, Willie Lee Walker and Minnie Lou Tallulah Grant Walker, were impoverished sharecroppers and raised eight children, Alice being the youngest. Later on Alice changed her Middle name to Tallulah-Kate in honor of her mother and paternal grandmother.

In high school, Alice was voted “Most Popular Student”. She was also Prom Queen and graduated Class Valedictorian. She attended Spelman College and graduated from Sarah Lawrence College on scholarships graduating in 1965.

Alice and attorney Mel Levanthal entered into an interracial marriage in 1967 when it was still illegal in some states. They had a daughter Rebecca in 1970 and divorced in 1976.

While in college Alice became an activist and a feminist (she calls herself a womanist) and still is active as reflected in her books and poetry. It is also apparent in her children's books. Alice teaches peace and equality.

Alice Walker became well known for her Pulitzer Prize winning book, “The Color Purple”. Many of us could not wait for the subsequent movie directed by Steven Spielberg and starring, Danny Glover, Oprah Winfrey and Whoopi Goldberg.

Books By Alice Walker:

Fiction:
The Third Life of Grange Copeland (1970)
In Love and Trouble: Stories of Black Women (1973)
Meridian (1976)
You Can’t Keep a Good Woman Down: Stories (1981)
The Temple of My Familiar (1989)
Possessing the Secret of Joy: A Novel(1992)
The Complete Stories (1994)
By the Light of My Father’s Smile (1998)
The Way Forward is With a Broken Heart (2000)
Now is the Times to Open Your Heart (2005)

Nonfiction:
In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens: Womanist Prose(१९८३)
Living by the Word (1989)
Warrior Marks: Female Genital Mutilation and the Sexual Binding of Women (1993)
The Same River Twice: Honoring the Difficult (1996)
Anything We Love Can Be Saved (1997)
Sent by Earth: A Message from the Grandmother Spirit After the Burning of the World
Trade Center and the Pentagon (2001)
Langston Hughes, American Poet (2002)
We Are the Ones We Have Been Waiting For: Light in a Time of Darkness(2006)


Poetry:
Once: Poems (1968)
Revolutionary Petunias and Other Poems (1973)
Good Night Willie Lee. I’ll See You in the Morning (1979)
Horses Make a Landscape Look More Beautiful(1988)
Her Blue Body Everything We Know: Earthling Poems 1965-1990 91991)
Absolute Trust in the Goddess of the Earth (2003)
A Poem Traveled Down My Arm (2003)

Children’s Books:
To Hell with Dying (1988)
Finding the Green Stone (1991)
There Is a Flower at the Tip of My Nose Smelling Me(2006)