Events
The folks at the Jefferson City Public Library were kind enough to invite me to a book signing. Take a look at the poster they made up for the event. Find me at 108 City Center Drive, Jefferson City, TN. Call 865-475-9094 for more information. See you then.
Graceland On Wheels
Sam Jenkins has been fishing all his life, but he’s never caught anything more interesting than the dead body of an Elvis impersonator. While the chief and Deputy Sheriff Jackie Shuman are angling for trout in Crystal Creek, Sam hooks the body of Garland Humphries, a murdered man wearing a white leather jumpsuit. Garland had been a human train wreck just looking for a place to jump the tracks and let his cowcatcher plough into the soft earth of east Tennessee. Purchase books and eBooks from: Purchase from Amazon Purchase from Barnes &...
read moreAlvis Is In The Building
Pool huckster Alvis Seebold didn’t make any friends when he sandbagged his way into a big playoff with resident professional Tommy Crowe at Prospect’s only billiard club. When visiting pool shark Cannonball LaShott is found stabbed to death after losing to Alvis in a major upset, Chief Sam Jenkins investigates a murder seemingly without motive. Lacking an apparent suspect, Sam looks for help from the proprietress of what he calls the best little whorehouse in Tennessee, a place patronized by the hustlers and prominent locals who would prefer...
read moreThe Swan Tattoo
Jerome Lee, owner of the Magic Panda, a new Chinese restaurant in Prospect, suspiciously has a finger cut off. Three days later, he’s found hanging from a second floor landing in his home, a suicide note only a few feet away. But Police Chief Sam Jenkins thinks Mr. Lee was the victim of gangster Jimmy Fong, a thug employed by loan shark and triad leader Martin Kee. Sam’s investigation takes him to Atlanta, Malaysia, and back to Tennessee with twists and turns and false leads. Purchase books and eBooks from: Purchase from Amazon Purchase from...
read morePigeon River Blues
Winter in the Smokies can be a tranquil time of year–unless Sam Jenkins sticks his thumb into the sweet potato pie. The retired New York detective turned Tennessee police chief is minding his own business one quiet day in February when Mayor Ronnie Shields asks him to act as a bodyguard for a famous country and western star. C.J. Profitt’s return to her hometown of Prospect receives lots of publicity . . . and threats from a rightwing group calling themselves The Coalition for American Family Values. The beautiful, publicity...
read moreA HALOWEEN COLLAR
I entered this in a contest calling for a drouble, something with exactly 200 words. It had to begin with the words “I had a wonderful time” and refer to something appropriate to Halloween. I won a magazine. See how you like it. A Halloween Collar By Wayne Zurl “I’ve had a wonderful time, but this wasn’t it.” I smacked the kid on the back of his head. A ghoul mask fell from his hand to the floor. “Up yours,” he said. I grabbed his nose, twisted, and put my face an inch from his ear. “The next time I hit you, smartass, you’ll lose...
read moreREVIEWER ROY MURRY LIKES A LEPRECHAUN’S LAMENT
Specifically, he said: “Law and Order, Castle, and Bones—look out, here comes a Sam Jenkins’ TV series—my opinion. Wayne Zurl’s …Tennessee humor mixed with New York sarcasm will have you laughing. But when it comes to police procedure, his writing is on spot—according to me, a police TV series nut case.” http://www.conniesbrother.blogspot.com/2014/03/wayne-zurlsleprechaun-lament-sam.html That review was preceded by an interview centered around A LEPRECHAUN’S LAMENT. Roy asked good questions....
read moreKaren Docter asks some pretty off-beat interview questions.
KAREN DOCTER ASKS SOME PRETTY OFF-BEAT QUESTIONS” target=”_blank”>Blogger/author Karen Docter asked some pretty off-beat and interesting questions when she invited me to her blog to talk about HEROES & LOVERS. And if you visit quickly and leave a comment, you’ll win a free eBook of that full-length Sam Jenkins novel. Take a look: http://www.karendocter.com/author-peek-interview-with-wayne-zurl.html
read more2 MORE OUTTAKES FROM A NEW PROSPECT
These two scenes were deleted from A NEW PROSPECT because my “Book Doctor” thought a first time novel shouldn’t shift from the prevalent first person POV to a third person narration. But he said they were very well written. So, for any fans of the 1st Sam Jenkins full-length novel, here are a couple of outtakes: Sunday July 23, 2006 U.S. Congressman Jimmy Dillworth sat in the living room of his Washington D.C. townhouse on a warm Sunday afternoon, reading a copy of the Knoxville News-Sentinel, one already several days old. He liked to keep...
read moreRECYCLING UNUSED SCENES FROM A BOOK
Shake and Bake and Double-O Buckshot By Wayne Zurl This story is fabricated from an outtake which originally appeared in the award winning Sam Jenkins novel, A NEW PROSPECT. The scene was deleted prior to publication. It’s based on an actual incident which took place in New York in 1975. At ten past five, Stanley Rose and I walked back into Prospect PD. We found Bettye Lambert sitting at her desk reading the latest Jesse Stone novel. Her blonde hair shined like a lighthouse in the mist. I felt contented with a job well done. Stanley, the...
read morePERFECT IS BORING
When I began writing police mysteries I said to myself, “Aha! This is fiction, not a documentary. I have the opportunity to make everything come out perfectly.” I thought it would be cool to chronicle my old cases and correct any mistakes or ask the questions that never came to mind or make the clever comments I only thought of the day after. It looked like an “if only” moment—a chance for perfection. Then it rained on my parade. The precipitation came in the form of a middle-aged man with lots of experience in publishing and some pretty good...
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