with Brian Lutterman
We are delighted to welcome mystery author Brian Lutterman to Omnimystery News today.
Brian's latest corporate thriller, Downfall (Conquill Press; April 2014 trade paperback and ebook formats), introduces attorney Pen Wilkinson on the search for a saboteur who destroyed her life.
We recently had the opportunity to catch up with Brian to talk about his work.
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Omnimystery News: Your three published mysteries to date have a common corporate theme to them, but appear to be stand-alones.
Photo provided courtesy of
Brian Lutterman
Brian Lutterman: My first two books, Bound to Die and Poised to Kill, are stand-alones. However, my new book, Downfall, is projected as a series. I didn't really sit down and make a conscious decision about whether to do a series or not. My first two books seemed to resolve things for their characters in a fairly satisfying way. For Downfall, I wrote the book first, then realized that there was a lot of potential for future books.
OMN: How do you categorize your books?
BL: My books are mystery-thrillers. Their sub-genre is one I call Corporate Thriller, although I haven't seen the term used elsewhere. The corporate world is a faced-paced environment with larger-than-life characters — ideal for mystery and suspense. For mystery fans, my books have a strong element of whodunit, and hopefully, the kind of character development they expect. But there is also plenty of action and nail-biting suspense for thriller readers.
OMN: Tell us something about Deadfall that isn't mentioned in the publisher's synopsis.
BL: My protagonist, Pen, is a thirty-six-year-old attorney, who is a paraplegic as a result of a car accident. She is feisty, funny, fashionable, and vulnerable as she tries to cope with both corporate chicanery and adapting to life in a wheelchair.
OMN: How much of your own personal or professional experience have you included in your books?
BL: Like my character, Pen, I am an attorney who has worked in the corporate world, and some of the characters and situations are based loosely on people I've known and experiences I've had. My basic premise, that of embittered, laid-off employees taking revenge against their former employer, is also based generally on some real-life examples.
OMN: Where do you usually write?
BL: I have no fixed writing environment. I write not only at home, but at Starbucks, while waiting in line at the post office, while, waiting in my car, or at the ice rink where my daughter has figure-skating lessons. This is a disjointed — even chaotic — process, and I don't recommend it for others. But you do what you can, when you can, wherever you can.
OMN: Tell us a little more about the title and cover of Downfall.
BL: Downfall is the name of the plot hatched by saboteurs to bring down major corporations. It's also a play on words, since one murder victim is thrown out of a tall building. That scene is depicted on the cover.
OMN: How do you go about researching the plot points of your stories? And have you come across any particularly challenging or exciting topics?
BL: I have done most of my fact-checking via personal experience and the Internet, although I'm relying more on experts for my next book. My most challenging topic to research has been, for want of a better term, "girl stuff" — the details of writing for a female character. The most exciting part of research for me has been visiting some of the settings, especially in California. For a Midwesterner like me, that's a nice break.
OMN: How important are settings to your stories?
BL: I try to be as true to the geography and local environment as possible, but I take minor liberties when necessary. I'd say my settings are important, but not critical, to the story. I was at an event for my first book, reading from the first chapter, when a reader exclaimed, "Hey, I've been to that state park in Maryland where your scene takes place." I didn't have the heart to tell her that the park was one of my few locations that never existed. I invented it out of whole cloth.
OMN: If you could travel anywhere in the world, all expenses paid, to research a setting for a book, where would it be?
BL: Wow — if I could pick anyplace to travel, I have a feeling I could find a strong reason for my characters to solve a mystery in Italy. I would love to go there and soak up the art and culture.
OMN: What are some of your outside interests? And have any of these found their way into your books?
BL: I'm afraid writing is the only real hobby I have, but I'm interested in sports, and occasionally I'll drop a sports-related scene or reference into the story.
OMN: What's the best advice — and harshes criticism — you've received as an author? And what might you say to aspiring writers?
BL: I guess "write what you know" is as good a piece of advice as I've received. That allows you to write authoritatively, which is absolutely essential to the willing suspension of disbelief. The harshest criticism I've received is that my stories move too quickly, with inadequate attention paid to the details. I've taken that to heart, and tried to develop a balance between character development and moving the plot along. I advise aspiring authors to simply keep writing and get the best feedback you can.
OMN: Complete this sentence for us: "I am a mystery-thriller author and thus I am also …".
BL: I am a mystery-thriller author, and thus I am also obsessed. For better or worse, richer (or mostly) poorer, in sickness and in health, it's who I am and what I do. I have tried to quit, but haven't been able to.
OMN: What kind of feedback have you received from readers?
BL: I enjoy just about all feedback I receive from readers. I just enjoy talking about books, especially mine.
OMN: Suppose Downfall were to be adapted for television or film and you're in charge of casting. Whose agent are you calling?
BL: I think Reese Witherspoon would be an ideal choice for Pen.
OMN: Have any particular authors or titles influenced how and what you write today?
BL: One of the first thrillers I read was The Wind Chill Factor by Thomas Gifford, which I enjoyed immensely and planted the idea that I might try to write mysteries myself someday. More recently, I'm influenced a lot by Harlan Coben, who writes what might be called "suburban thrillers" — everyday settings featuring everyday people, but incredibly suspenseful.
OMN: When you have a quiet moment to catch up on a book, what might we find you reading?
BL: I try to read mysteries and thrillers when I can. Occasionally, I'll also read some history and biography.
OMN: Do you have any favorite series characters?
BL: Two of the most fully-realized, enduring characters for me are John D. MacDonald's Travis McGee and John Sandford's Lucas Davenport. They are virtuous and resourceful, as a mystery-suspense character must be. But they are are realistic, not cartoonishly heroic or superhuman. Two other favorite characters, whom I don't consider as realistic, but are immensely enjoyable, are Robert B. Parker's Spenser and Harlan Coben's Myron Bolitar.
OMN: Create a Top 5 list for us on any subject.
BL: My top five spy/espionage novelists:
1. John LeCarre;
2. Len Deighton;
3. Daniel Silva;
4. Alex Berenson; and
5. Alan Furst.
OMN: What's next for you?
BL: I'm busy at work on the next Pen Wilkinson novel, and refining the corporate thriller concept.
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Brian Lutterman is a former trial lawyer and corporate attorney, who writes cutting-edge corporate thrillers, bringing to life the genres outsized conflicts and characters. A graduate of the University of Minnesota and Georgetown University Law Center, he lives with his family in the Twin Cities.
For more information about the author, please visit his website at BrianLutterman.com or find him on Facebook and Goodreads.
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Downfall
Brian Lutterman
A Corporate Thriller
Paraplegic young attorney Pen Wilkinson is putting her life back together after a tragic accident, working for a large bank in a faraway city. She soon begins to suspect that the job and the company are not what they seem to be, and suddenly she is thrust into a nightmare. Unbelievably, her employer and the media accuse Pen of fraud and wrongdoing, creating a scandal that threatens to bring down her company.
Fired from her job, alone, and dodging attempts on her life, Pen uncovers a string of sophisticated, deadly corporate sabotage incidents. Her search for the unseen saboteurs who destroyed her life takes her across the country, reaching a terrifying climax, as she finally confronts the real force behind the plot called Downfall.
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