with Landon Parham
We are delighted to welcome novelist Landon Parham to Omnimystery News today, courtesy of Partners in Crime Tours, which is coordinating his current book tour. We encourage you to visit all of the participating host sites; you can find his schedule here.
Landon's debut thriller is First Night of Summer (Valient Books; February 2013 hardcover, trade paperback, and ebook formats). When tragedy strikes, a father discovers that a journey of misfortune is sometimes the path to deliverance.
We asked Landon to tell us about his journey as an author, and he titles his guest post, "Life Isn't about Darkness or Light, Rather It's about Finding Light within the Darkness."
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Photo provided courtesy of
Landon Parham
July of 2009 marked my first bout with insomnia. Work was fine. Home life was fine. Everything was fine. But I could not sleep — not a wink. Through the wee hours of the morning I would lie awake and stare at the ceiling. At precisely two o'clock on a weekday morning — for no reason I can explain — I arose and found myself headed to our small study. I began to write with a simple ballpoint pen and yellow legal pad. There was no purpose or goal, other than to lull myself into slumber. A plethora of incomplete journal entries, short stories, and doodling followed. This became a pattern.
One night, I look up to find my wife staring at me through the dim light of a single lamp. She normally sleeps in a near state of lifelessness, so you can imagine my surprise. She gazed at me with neither anger nor joy, but a slightly accusatory crinkle to her brow. Unbeknownst to me, she was aware of my chronic early hour absenteeism from bed. Arms folded across her chest, she finally asked, "Why are you in the computer room at three in the morning?"
I quickly went on to explain that writing had become my outlet for restlessness. This took her completely off guard, as I had previously shown no literary interest — writing, reading, or otherwise. Mind you, morning is not my wife's favorite time of day, so the response I get is as surprising to me as my explanation was to her.
She shows no concern for my mental state, or the fact that I cannot sleep. Instead, she moves her hands to her hips and asks flat out, "Are you any good?"
A lengthy scrutiny of my work ensued, followed by an overdue concern for my feelings. Then — to gild the lily — she throws down the gauntlet. "If you're going to spend the time to write, you might as well try to do a novel." And so my debut thriller, First Night of Summer, began.
The next year marks the most amount of frustration I've ever experienced. It was filled with tireless research and learning curves. I had found more purpose than I'd ever known, but by August of 2010, I had hit a brick wall. It was then that fate intervened and met me in the middle.
It began with a gift from an unlikely source, the discovery of a new author, Vince Flynn, and his then current release, Pursuit of Honor. Over the next two months I consumed every book he had in print and was able to break down the wall.
Fate intervened yet again — and at another timely juncture. Vince released American Assassin. A cross-country book tour followed. Little did he know, it was his last.
Photo provided courtesy of
Landon Parham
The one and only time Vince came to Texas was a month away, and of all places, at a small, out-of-the-way bookstore about forty-five minutes from my house. This is nothing short of a miracle considering the size of Texas.
I am last in line at the signing, a bag full of first editions clutched in my hand for signatures. Even after four hours of shaking hands and small talk, he is personable and unhurried. I share with him my recent developments, speak of the struggles in writing a thriller, and ask for help. It is then that he asks me to the coffee shop where we can sit and chat.
Vince shared his personal experiences, including dyslexia, and that his college English professor once said he had no business writing — ever. Vince's books have reached the #1 spot on the New York Times list, and he also holds many Simon & Schuster sales records.
Aside from Vince directing me to people who could help, he also gave me one invaluable piece of advice. "Write what you're passionate about. Nothing else will be good enough."
He was right. My passion in life is to help people. I now use my platform as a writer to help those who are — in many ways — helpless. First Night of Summer has caused a bit of a stir in the industry due to a portion of the subject matter. And I make no apologies. It tackles child predation head-on, shedding a light on a very dark subject. On the flipside, the pages are filled with the love and fortitude of a torn family; the power of friendship; and the inextinguishable spirit of hope.
One thing I can absolutely attest to is this: First Night of Summer has helped — and will continue to help — children and their families from the predators who are truly out there. It is real. It is a problem. And the only way to make it better is to acknowledge it.
Vince lost his life to prostate cancer in 2013, but not before affecting my life. Thank you, Vince, for your help. Through me, I can only hope the wave of kindness breaks against another.
I am currently at work on my second thriller. And just as First Night of Summer had its inspirations, so does this one. Two quotes that enrich my writing are as follows:
"If we choose not to acknowledge evil, we will never stand up to it." — Dean Koontz
"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." — Edmund Burke
When I die, let it not be said that I did nothing. Maybe you feel the same.
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Landon Parham lives in the suburbs of Dallas, Texas. His goal as a writer is to raise awareness on everyday issues through fiction, and expose taboo realities that the masses give precious little attention to. The wild, majestic expanses of America inspire his visions and will continue to show up as integral parts of his work.
To learn more about the author and his work, please visit his website at LandonParham.com or find him on Facebook and Twitter.
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First Night of Summer
Landon Parham
A Suspense Thriller
The quaint mountain town of Ruidoso, New Mexico is the perfect place for Isaac Snow to raise his family. But when eight-year-old daughters, Caroline and Josie, commit an innocent act of heroism, media coverage attracts the wrong kind of attention. Soon, their life unravels, leading them to the crossroads of love and hate, forgiveness and retribution.
In the dark hours of a drizzly morning, Isaac, an ex-air force pilot, wakes to find a masked intruder cradling one of the twins in his arms. Before he can react, the man in black leaps through the nearest window, plummeting in a tangle of body parts and glass. Isaac charges in pursuit, but is suddenly faced with a new dilemma. Caroline is unconscious, lying facedown in the lawn, cuts from the shattered window saturating her pajamas. If he gives chase, his little girl will surely bleed to death.
From a secretive loner with a pension for unrestrained violence to the pristine granite peaks of the Rocky Mountains — from laughter filled family dinners to a string of cross-country abductions, this psychological thriller relentlessly explores the horrific realities of unnatural lust and obsession.
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