When I first was approached to help write THE SHAWCROSS LETTERS I had no idea what I was getting into. I knew it to be the story of Arthur Shawcross, one of America’s most notorious serial killers, and his friendship with a man named John Paul Fay. As a fan of true crime, I have read books before where a famous killer befriended a member of society, and I always found them lacking, they always seem to be reaching for something, promising some … [Read more...]
Army Combat Veteran Finds Healing in Rescue Dogs and Writing
DENVER. Dec. 28, 2017: After spending six years as an Army Infantryman, Lawrence Davis, returned to civilian life, adopted a Pitbull named Max to help cope with the transition, and began to write. “Max saw me through some of the darker periods of that difficult transition…The way a dog can love you more than itself has always astounded me,” Davis said. But writing took things to a whole new level. “Originally, it started as a kind of cathartic … [Read more...]
10 Things You Didn’t Know About North and South Korea
With North Korea making headlines on a near-daily basis, US relations are on edge (to put it nicely). But what do we know about the socialist state? Books such as The Korean Crisis, seek to answer some of our questions about the history and current status of North Korea, but it’s near impossible to cover it all. Here are some facts you may not know about the isolated country and its democratic neighbor to the south: Abandoned, homeless … [Read more...]
M. William Phelps: In An Age of True Crime Excess
MY NEW BOOK, TARGETED, IS ABOUT A former Oglethorpe County Georgia sheriff’s deputy who claims to have been framed for a particularly brutal—for a female killer—murder. By whom, you ask? A few of her former fellow law enforcement officers—which has become somewhat of an ornamental and allegorical theme running through our (seemingly) “violent” and (seemingly) “corrupt” American law enforcement community today. We are living in an age of … [Read more...]
Author Robert Dodge on His Writing Journey
Greetings, My name is Robert Dodge and I would like to describe the journey that brought me to writing my most recent book, Tempest-Tost. This will be my seventh book and it is a book about refugees, what they endured that caused them to flee their countries and how they have been received since arriving in America. I might seem like an unlikely author for a book on this controversial topic, having been born and raised in Fargo, North … [Read more...]
Chris Russo Blackwood
Chris Russo Blackwood has always had a passion for solving mysteries. In 2012, she became intrigued by the uncanny coincidences and drama surrounding My Brother's Keeper and began chronicling the myriad facts in this case that would become the basis for her first book. Working side-by-side with her friend, public relations executive Ann Edelman, and Ted Kergan, the victim’s brother and protege, whose dogged determination kept this case alive for … [Read more...]
Man And Woman Killed In Miami Murder-Suicide
Isis Valdes Cruz, 40, was getting out of her car on Wednesday when she was approached by her estranged husband, Heriberto Garcia Ortega, 55, on 58th Court. They got into an argument and Heriberto slashed his wife's throat with a knife, then stabbed himself. Responding officers found Isis dead at the scene and Heriberto conscious but bleeding profusely. He later died at Jackson Memorial Hospital. More Florida Murder-Suicides Man Shoots Neighbor … [Read more...]
A “Smooth-Talking” Serial Killer Keeps On Lying, Stays In Prison
Subject of New York Times Bestselling Author Steve Jackson's True Crime Book SMOOTH TALKER, Murderer Roy Melanson, Denied Parole He's 80 years old, in poor health, confined to a wheelchair, and twice-convicted serial killer Roy Melanson believes he should be paroled to a nursing home to live out his remaining days on Medicaid. Besides, as he told a Colorado parole board on September 6, he didn't commit the murder that got him sentenced to … [Read more...]
Neighborhood Blames ‘Squatters’ In Fatal Shooting
Neighbors claim a man’s death might not have happened last Tuesday if the city had listened to their cries for help with the rundown squatter home in the neighborhood. The house was an eyesore with an overgrown lawn and broken-in windows. Residents of the Northwood Hills Historic District say the house has been filled with squatters since the owner died a few months ago. Yet despite their many calls for help to police and city officials, the … [Read more...]
Relatives Fear Facebook Posts Led To Murder
It took the rags to riches mom, Makeva Jenkins, just two years to work her way from homelessness to financial success. Late Wednesday evening, she reached out and wrote the following post on FaceBook: “I’m in awe of how far I’ve come … Fast forward to now: We overcame being homeless in 2013/2014 to reaching my six-figure mark in 2015…” Early Thursday morning at around 2 a.m.—barely two hours after that post—a masked man knocked on the front door … [Read more...]