From Laura

Write what you know. It’s a mantra all writers have heard at one point or another.

And while I like to think my life is much more calm and peaceful than a murder mystery, I must admit that Jury of One is “what I know."

Like my main character, Elise Jenkins, I was once a news reporter fresh out of college with all of the eagerness and excitement that comes from pursuing a dream.

Her boss, Sam, is—in a lot of ways—reminiscent of the first editor I ever worked for.

The location, a beachside town in New Jersey, was a favorite family vacation spot when I was growing up...though, I must admit, I never had the guts to actually venture into any of those fortuneteller booths on the boardwalk. (The similarities can only go so far, you know).

And the rest? Well, that came from the part of my brain that comes to life every time I take a pen to paper or my fingers to a keyboard. The same part that made me want to be a writer since the fifth grade.

So, on second thought, I guess there is one more part of me in Jury of One. It’s the perseverance to achieve a goal just like Elise and Detective Mitch Burns had when they set out to find the killer who was wrecking havoc in Ocean Point. Only my goal was to become an author.

Jury of One made that happen. I made that happen. And I can’t wait to see what’s next for Elise, Mitch...and me!

Stay tuned...