Tales from the Downfall Trail

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When you’re an author on tour, geography is your natural enemy.  At the moment we’re on AZ 51, headed from Phoenix to Prescott.  Siri must have been out partying last night.  When I asked her the distance between the two, she claimed Prescott was “nine miles as the crow flies” from Phoenix.  It’s actually 99.4 miles.  We’re supposed to be there by 9:45 for a 10:00 AM event.  That made for an early up and out, which included makeup, washing and ironing my hair, and having breakfast. (Since there’s not enough time between the first scheduled event and the next event to a: drive there and b: have something to eat, breakfast was a must!)

It doesn’t matter what time zone you’re on—daylight savings or not—being “show ready” and on the road at this hour is challenging.  And by the way, although this is Arizona, it is definitely NOT a dry heat.

Last night, a few hours after we traveled this same freeway, AZ 51, there was a road rage shooting.  A woman on her way home from work was pursued by three men in a pickup truck.  Several motorists had reported aggressive driving on the part of a “work” truck prior to the incident, and the woman herself was on the phone to 911 reporting what was happening when the truck sped by, firing three shots into her vehicle through her passenger window, causing her to crash into the median, taking out three other cars in the process.  She was transported to a hospital where she later died.  I’ve been too busy getting ready this morning to watch the news, so I have no idea if her assailant has been caught.  I expect the guy doing the aggressive driving is the one who pulled the trigger, and I hope one or the other of his two passengers comes forward and identifies the creep.

Yesterday, during a Q & A session at one of the events, someone asked me why I used a freeway shooter as the center piece of the Random Acts novella. One of my recent book tours took place while Arizona’s “freeway shooter” was active.  Believe me, that made a big impression on me, something that was only underscored by last night’s senseless violence.  I have a few choice words for people like that—those would be UGW—Un-Grandmotherly Words—but since I try to write this blog in the manner in which morning newspapers used to be written, I can’t use ANY of them.

Geographical considerations aside, however, the tour is going well.  Lots of people at the signings; lots of interest in the book.  Having a chance to talk to people is always fun. Yesterday in Mesa, a woman told me I was her inspiration.  When she saw my weight loss results last time, she said, “I told myself, if she can do it, I can do it!”  She’s lost 38 pounds and shopping for clothes is “fun again.”  Someone in the audience at Sun City West, turned out to be from Rapid City, South Dakota, and that caused me to relate the story of the tragic loss of my gospel singer cousin, Polly Johnson.  And something else brought to mind the story of Bill’s astonishingly expensive, cruise ship, limited edition, Faberge tie. Those of you who read this blog are already well versed on all those topics, but for most of the people in book tour audiences, it was all brand new.

Book tours also put me in touch with people I’ve known for years.  Ralph Whitehead, a kid from my neighborhood in Bisbee, showed up at the Poisoned Pen.  I hadn’t seen him in more than fifty years.  Tom and Carol Quijada, friends from my college days at the University of Arizona, were also in the audience that night, as was Barbara Alvord who was first my District Manager and later my Agency Manager back during my insurance days in Phoenix. And last night we had dinner with a friend from more than thirty years ago, Anne Corley.  She and I met in Al-Anon during a very tough time in both our lives.  And yes, there is a connection between my Anne Corley and Beau’s Anne Corley.  I intended to name that character Anne Morley, but no matter what I did, I couldn’t get my M finger to work faster than the C finger.  (This is a whole lot like trying to train myself to put only one space at the end of a sentence instead of the old archaic way of putting two—the way was taught to do it back when dinosaurs still roamed the earth.)  On the Morely/Corley Issue, I finally just gave up.  Anne Corley she is, in fiction and in real life!

And so, here we are now, turning off I-17 and headed to Prescott.

As former Governor Jack Williams used to say, “It’s another beautiful day in Arizona.  Leave us all enjoy it.”

27 thoughts on “Tales from the Downfall Trail”

  1. Thanks so much for visiting Cottonwood yesterday. I really enjoyed your Q & A and talk. You are so open, honest, funny and inspirational. Thanks again.
    Holly Flint
    P.S. — I’ll save you the trouble–I’m already in your database, thanks.

  2. Hi Judith! Love your blogs and your books. In my fantasy, I have dinner with you, Louise Penny, Steve Hamilton & Randy Wayne White, and just sit back and listen to your stories.
    Query: I just retired recently and always wanted to write. My question: when you wrote your first book, who was your audience? A big hurdle for me. While I write well to friends and associates-I know how to direct my message/story-I have trouble relating a fictional story to a general (ghost) audience. Any hints?
    I always forward these to my 89 yo mother-in-law who also lives your books and blogs. And btw, our cousin, Margi Koppany, lives in Prescott, in the unlikely event your paths cross.
    PS We’ll be in Tucson in February, if, by chance, your are available, and willing, to meet.

    • When I’m writing my Arizona books, I want to make the desert come alive for the “little old lady in upstate New York” who has never BEEN to Arizona. Ditto for the Seattle books—I want to bring that place to life for people who have never been there. But most of all, you have to write to please yourself.

      • I’m Mike Sayle’s 89 year old mother-in- law. We both read your books and he forwards your blogs. Which I also enjoy. He is indeed a good writer and my family of ten children enjoy reading his emails as we sometime have long chains going. Besides a good well written story, what I enjoy while reading is revisiting locations I have visited in the past. Went to highschool in LA, mother-in-law lived in Tucson (honeymooned for a whole summer there), grade school in Quebec (LouisePenny),lived in Michigan (Steve Hamilton) children livng in New England, wintered in Florida, daughter living in Australia, plus five cruises, loved the tie story. I’m not very iPad savvy or I’d get your blogs direct. We live in different cities.

  3. How sad for everyone involved in that shooting, so many lives forever changed because of simple stupid impatience. I see so many accidents here, five o’clock rush nonsense. I transport the grandkids from school and to activities three days a week and make a point of leaving plenty of time to get there with increased traffic issues. We got slowed down by an accident going and followed a car leaving that almost got smacked by a pickup turning into her lane from the other side of the street. It must be my age, I see an accident and dollar signs start scrolling, between vehicles and medical the rush simply is not worth it. The mail-in license form here asks if you have insurance. If you don’t you need to submit $500 with it, I wonder if it actually gets checked. Safe travels!

  4. Wait! When did it change to put only 1 space after a sentence? Guess I’m really behind the times.

  5. As always, I very much enjoyed your talk and book signing at the Prescott Valley library. I look forward to reading Downfall and Random Acts.
    Something I meant to ask: How did you decide on Sedona for the Ali Reynolds series? I understand your connection to Seattle and Bisbee/Cochise County and the location for the Walker books, but was wondering about your connection to Sedona.

    Safe travels for the rest of your book tour, and I look forward to seeing you again at your next signing in Prescott Valley.

    • We spend a good deal of time in Sedona with our good friends, Michael and Sheri Coleman. He’s a Sedona-based artist whose oil paintings grace both our homes.

  6. Just want you to know that in a one week period, I inhaled both the Brady and Reynolds series. My pocket book is tons lighter. I have no idea why I hadn’t read your books before now, but binge reading them in order is beyond wonderful. I’m trying patiently to wait on the e-books for the Beaumont series to come available through the library. Patience never was one of my virtues.

    My daughter and her family live in Anthem and traverse the 101 and I-17 for work every day, so reading about road rage shootings is quite horrifying to me.

  8. My husband has a question. He’d like to know how you knew of Big Stone Lake, MN where Sheriff Brady’s mother and step-father summered.
    You mentioned enjoying knowledge of how your books have impacted readers’ lives. Here is a true and present impact revelation.
    Dear hubby likes me to turn in when or before he does. If not, I’m noisy and wake him. I’m a bear the next day. This is easy with the exception of times I’m on the downhill side of a JA Jance thriller. Quitting not in my power.also, rationalize that is owe it to the next person on the Greater Phoenix ebook lending system to turn the book over within a day or two.
    A year ago turned a leaf.
    1. Never start the book until afternoon.
    2.Stop half way.
    3. Get up early.
    TADA. Everyone is happy. Downhills? You just get better and better!

    • I went fishing on Big Stone Lake with my Grandpa Anderson and younger brothers. Grandpa was an old Swede. He went fishing to fish. Just because he had kids along didn’t mean he actually brought food–not so much as a peanut butter sandwich. We were starved when we got back home to Summit. And I never went fishing with him again!!!

  9. I stayed up late finishing “Downfall.” ? Love the characters and setting descriptions, which make me homesick for AZ. Best of luck on the book tour!
    BTW, sometimes it’s easier to put 2 spaces between sentences, and then use the “Find-Replace” function to take out the extra space.

  10. Thank you, for writing “Downfall”.
    I almost wish that I could hibernate until “Man Overboard” is released as e-book.
    Downside would be that I would miss your blog posts.

  11. My copy just came. Can’t wait to read it. I thought that “Random Acts” was very real. We haven’t had a sniper here in Vermont (Thank goodness), but we do have a couple of young teens currently under indictment for coming into Brattleboro and throwing rocks at cars. Several people were injured. I thought about the kid in “Random Acts” who just wanted to see what it was like.

    • If you’ve read the Brady series books, you’ve been there! Went there for the first time last February. It was like I’d already been there, I “knew” it so well! Deja vu!

  13. I, too, am a dinosaur. I have trouble figuring out where you’re going to be, and it looks like I missed seeing you yet AGAIN! Drat!!!
    Remember, I learned to e-mail primarily TO be able to “talk” to you, and I’m still not good with visiting your site. I had tried to check your itinerary last month, and didn’t see anything about Prescott or PV, or you can bet I would have BEEN there, dear friend!
    Frustratedly,
    Victoria

  14. Finished Downfall early this morning and just loved it. You just get better and better. I think this may be my favorite Joanna Brady so far. Can’t wait for the next one. Now I’m going to catch up on J.P. Beaumont.

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