Robert Dugoni Blog

On the Road with Dad

2010-06-15T11:44:00.000-07:00

Today is the second anniversary of my Father's death. He died on Father's Day 2008. I still miss him everyday. I'm on a book tour, but I always keep his picture with me, so we've been to Dallas, Houston, South Carolina, Atlanta, Florida and Phoenix together. Today we go to Tucson. Rest in peace Dad. I wrote you a tribute. It will be posted on Bookreporter.com,

Life on the Road

2010-06-12T12:59:00.000-07:00

I'm feeling a bit like a pin-ball at the moment, bouncing here and there. It's tough sometimes to even keep track of the day. I started in Seattle with the book launch on May 25th and from there I've been to Dallas, to South Carolina - Litchfield and Charleston, Atlanta, Florida, Houston and at the moment, Phoenix. I actually had a day off yesterday and my wife joined me in Sedona with a stop in Campe Verde to see the cliff dwellings and then to Jerome, an old mining town where I took a picture with a life size figure of Elvis the store owner would unfortunately not part with. Check out my facebook page, bob@robertdugoni.com and you'll see what I'm talking about. After Phoenix I'm off to Tucson for an event at Mostly Books, then to the Bay Area for a series of four. I finally make it back to Seattle June 21st, but not to rest. A few more events, then I take off for Portland.

So, what's it like on the road? Well, you get used to living out of a suitcase and having the hotels do your laundry, which isn't bad. But the most fun is meeting the fans all over the country, people who come to the signings with hardbacks of every book I've written and say things like, "I've been waiting for you to make it here." Well, here I am, and glad to be there to. Still, it's easy to miss things, like going to watch my kids play sports. I got an email last night that Joe just missed going yard, hitting a fence 300 feet from homeplate on a fly and the boy is just 13. Three doubles in the game, all fence shots. Man, I wish I could have seen that! And my daughter? She just managed to score 24 points in a game while I was away and she's 10. That's more points than I scored in my high school career - I was vertically challenged.

Okay, I'm off. I'm surprising Craig Johnson and interviewing him at Poison Pen today.

Bob

Books Beer and ....No more books

2010-05-28T08:36:00.000-07:00

Check out the post below from my time at Seattle Mystery Books. You have to love a local mystery bookstore and Fran and JB always treat me right.

From there I made it down to The Tin Room in Burien, David Sloane (and my) favorite hangout. Great party and a lot of fun. Thanks to Page 2 Books for supplying the books and to the many that came out. Dan House knows how to through a party and bring in the dignitaries. Great to talk to Mayor Joan and to meet Tin Room-Florida-Reg. Thanks to Marjorie and all the members of the bookclub for coming out as well. Sorry we ran out of the backlist - Jury Master and Wrongful Death. Normally I'd say you don't have to read before Bodily Harm but given the surprises in Bodily Harm, it has more punch if you read JM and WD first.

It's the Fort Lewis PX today!

Best,

Bob

The Best Mystery Bookstore for Bodily Harm? - Seattle

2010-05-28T08:35:00.000-07:00

The Best Mystery Bookstore for Bodily Harm? - Seattle

And We're Off

2010-05-26T09:17:00.000-07:00

With the launch of Bodily Harm last night in my hometown of Kirkland Washington I'm off on the latest book tour. Eleven cities in the next 25 or so days around the country. If last night is any indication, we sold out of books, it should be a grand time. A friend asked me to blog the experience so here I sit, doing so. The adrenaline always begins to pump when you hear the bookstore owner beginning your introduction and of course, you feel like George Costanza from Seinfeld and think maybe it best to just leave after the introduction because you can't go anywhere from there but down. But it all seems to work out in the end and its a chance to see and talk to fans and friends you never thought you'd meet in life. Next stop Seattle Mystery Books tomorrow at noon. Great store, great people. Looking forward to it.

Check out the New Article on Bodily Harm

2010-04-13T19:32:00.000-07:00

http://www.highlinetimes.com/2010/04/13/opinion/dugoni-sets-his-novels-three-tree-point-and-tin-room-burien

Note, the party at the Tin Room is May 27th at 4:30

Chicago is...

2010-03-30T18:31:00.000-07:00

My kind of town.

Just back from the SEAK Advanced Fiction Conference. Truly one of the best weekends of the year. Long days. I teach 8 hours the first day and seven the next, but a great group of students who are eager to learn. Had dinner and a cigar with Bill Young, the media guru. Bill knows more interesting and famous people than anyone I have ever met and yet he took the time to have dinner with yours truly. That says it all. Thanks Bill.

Thursday before I did Friends of Mystery in Portland with Phil Margolin. Another good man who puts out quality books every year.

And now, back to writing. New book due in September!

Bob

Goodbye, Again

2010-03-24T22:27:00.000-07:00

Seven months ago my daughter rescued a kitten from an alley in Cle Elum Washington. The mother had a litter and a man found them. We appropriately named the kitten, Allie. I've never been much for cats, but there was something about this kitten that just touched everyone. She ran away once and a neighbor found her. Didn't want to give her back. She was tiny, a runt and had an amazing personality. Since I work at home Allie used to find her way into my office and jump into my lap. Sometimes she would just lay down and nap and others she would chase the cursor on my screen. But she also had a bit of the wonderlust, maybe from being born wild. If she got out, she'd run and we'd have a devil of a time getting her back. But she always came back, every time....except two nights ago.

Despite my daughter calling and calling, Allie never came home and in the morning she wanted to go out and find her, but she had a presentation at school and she had to be there. When I arrived for the presentation I found my wife fighting back tears, eyes swollen and red. Someone had found Allie the night before, in the road, dead.

We waited until the afternoon to tell our daughter, but she somehow had already sensed it. Still, the shock of hearing the words, "Allie is dead" sent her screaming - not crying - but screaming in anguish. "NO, No, NO." And then the tears, floods and floods of tears, followed by the questions. "Why? Why would God do that?" and "Why would someone just leave her in the street?"

And then she broke my heart. She said she felt most sad for Daddy "because you know, Mom, I think Dad really loved Allie and now she won't be with him in his office anymore."

And then I cried.

We buried Allie in the yard, under a cedar tree she loved to climb. We buried her with bulbs so the flowers would always remind us, every year, of the joy she brought in seven short months.

It's just a cat, I know some might say. And I would have maybe been one of them seven months ago. But not anymore. She was my daughter's cat, and that meant something to her. And it came to mean something to me. She wasn't just a cat. She was Allie.

And now she is gone and I have had to admit I'm going to miss her. I'm going to miss her an awful lot.

Carol Fitzgerald and St. Patty's Day

2010-03-21T11:12:00.000-07:00

So how do two Italians from opposite ends of the country end up spending St. Patrick's Day together? With Carol Fitzgerald in town my wife and I had the pleasure of going to dinner with she of BookReporter.com. Lest you think that "Fitzgerald" means she's Irish, she was quick to note, "Irish in name only." I however, am half Irish and as proud of it as my Italian side. And if you don't believe me, just ask my Irish mother. Anyone out there have one of those? Then you know what I mean. Carol is as fun without her knitting needles as she is with them. She still owes me a sweater, by the way, though I didn't bring that up at dinner. Looking forward to seeing her again in NY at Thrillerfest. If you've never been, it is great for writers and fans. Where else can you find Steve Berry, James Rollins, Phil Margolin, John Lescroart and other great writers all in one place!

That's all for now,

Bob

If it's Friday... Did I mention Elmore Leanord

2010-03-18T18:42:00.000-07:00

it must be San Diego, San Francisco, Tucson, Portland...Chicago

Sorry I've been away, but for good reason.

San Diego Writer's Conference

I presented the keynote for what turned out to be a fantastic conference. Lots of classes on the craft and some talented writers. While I wanted the weather to be 80 degrees, I had to settle for mid-sixties the last week of January. I'll take it.

San Francisco Writer's Conference

I was set to do a half-day workshop when the great storm hit the East Coast. I was at the airport when Kathy Atrium, she being the Thrillerfest guru, to advise that my fellow panelists were trapped in New York and instead they wanted a repeat of the Thrillerfest workshop on editing. Having my materials with me, I agreed. Then I learned that Don Maass, uber-agent and teacher was one of the stranded and it was looking like his all-day workshop would need to be cancelled. Having taught all-day and two-day workshops I volunteered. Next thing I knew Elizabeth Pomada and Michael Larsen were on the phone asking, "Really?" I love to teach and was grateful for the opportunity. And what a great class - sharp students and terrific questions.

But no time for the weary because...

Tucson Festival of Books

I've been to several book festivals around the country, and all I can say is "Wow Tucson!" Could it get any better? When my driver picked me up from the airport he advised that he had one other writer to bring to the hotel as well. "Do you know Elmore Leonard?" Needless to say, that was a thrill of a lifetime meeting the master of the Western and crime novel. Got signed books to add to a growing collection. And just when I thought the weekend couldn't get any better, it did. The hospitality was amazing and the sessions were outstanding. I was on a panel with my buddy Phil Margolin and then met Thomas Perry for a second panel, two of the best in the business. That night we all dined together with Bill and Brenda Viner, the hosts of the entire festival. Don't know where they get their stamina, but thanks for a great evening and meal.

So now I'm back, meeting with homicide detectives, defense attorneys and other experts for the David Sloane book to follow Bodily Harm - to be released in May. But I'll have to write much of it on the road. I'm off to Portland for a Friends of Mystery event with Phil and then to Chicago for the annual two-day SEAK conference. I'm on my feet 16 hours over two days teaching and it remains one of the best weekends of the year for me. That old adage about learning more from the students rings true and any chance to hang out with John Hough Jr and talk writing is better than any text book on the craft.

Did I mention the tour doesn't start until May?

Be well,

Bob

The Writer Magazine Article

2010-03-16T18:32:00.000-07:00

I've been asked a lot about the article I wrote for The Writer Magazine, so here it is. I hope you enjoy it.

Bob

www.WriterMag.com • The Writer | 13
Don’t be afraid of striking out
In writing, as in baseball, you have to stick with it to hit one out of the park
I’m a Little League Baseball coach.
I’m also a writer, and the two have
more in common than you might
suspect. In both baseball and writing,
you often fail more than you succeed,
a hard but important lesson my
son taught me. When Joe turned 9, he
moved to minor-league baseball, in
which players pitch to the batter rather
than the batter hitting the ball off a tee.
It is a big adjustment.
The first game that year, Joe stepped
to the plate, and like many of his teammates,
he struck out. Paralyzed by the
thought that he might swing and miss,
he never took the bat off his shoulder.
As he walked back to the dugout, I tried
to be the good coach, shouting encouragement:
“That’s OK, Joe. We’re just
having fun here.” A few innings later,
Joe stepped up to the plate again. And
again the bat remained on his shoulder.
Again I offered encouragement. “No
problem, Joe. Good try. We’re just having
fun.” When Joe got up a third time
and again the bat never moved, my
mantra was well-rehearsed. “Hey, great
try, Joe. We’re just ...” Cutting me off,
tears in his eyes, Joe shouted, “Dad! It’s
no fun striking out all the time.”
My son was right. It is no fun striking
out all the time. It’s no fun feeling
like a failure. As a writer, I should have
been more sympathetic. I had struck out
many times.
In baseball, if you are going to play,
you must accept that you will strike out.
The statistical odds can’t be ignored. It
doesn’t mean you’re a bad player. In fact,
if you get a hit just three times out of 10,
you’re considered very good. Writing is
also a profession of failure. Rejection is,
at some level, inevitable. As writers, we
can’t become paralyzed at the thought of
rejection. We can’t fear it, or seek to
avoid it. Rather, we must confront it
head on, charge into it with reckless
abandon. We must look at rejection like
a ball player looks at striking out, that
thin line between trying and succeeding,
a line we must cross as many times
as necessary, knowing that on the other
side exist our dreams and goals.
In terms of my career, I bridged that
thin line by learning the three P’s—
patience, perseverance and persistence.
Patience
I have known that I wanted to write
novels since the seventh grade. But I am
also the product of a large family of
compulsive overachievers, and so I felt
compelled to attend graduate school
after college. I decided to attend the
UCLA School of Law, and knew within
the first three weeks of classes that I had
made a mistake, that practicing law was
not going to satisfy me. But compulsive
overachievers don’t quit. So for three
years, I gutted out the law-school experience,
and, like my classmates, I sought
out the best jobs. Before I knew it, I was
on that treadmill—and I was running.
I accepted a job at a fast-growing San
Francisco firm that suited me well, but
with each year it seemed that the treadmill
picked up pace, until I was sprinting,
working 50- to 60-hour weeks, feeling
as if I could never catch my breath. I
was named a partner of the firm early. I
was making more money than my parents.
By all accounts I had succeeded.
But I wasn’t happy.
Finally, one morning as I readied for
work, I had an epiphany. I thought of
that seventh-grade kid who wanted to
be a writer, who wanted to see his name
on the cover of a book, and I realized
that dream was slipping away. Standing
in my bedroom, my back to my wife, I
uttered five words that would change
my life. “I can’t do this anymore,” I said.
My wife never hesitated and whispered
back, “Then we won’t.”
It would take me almost a year before
I would utter those words to my partners
and colleagues. Some were genuinely
happy for me, and some later told
me that my courage had inspired them
to also change their professional course.
But it had not been courage that led
me to utter those words. It was fear. I
was afraid of looking back on my life
and realizing that I had never taken a
chance at my dream. I was afraid of
growing old and bitter and resentful,
feeling professionally unfulfilled. I was
afraid of never taking the bat off my
shoulder and swinging for the fences
because I was too afraid of striking out.
And I did not want the fear of failure
and rejection to dictate my life and how
I chose to live it.
Perseverance
In July 1999, I left the practice of law
and my home in the Bay area for Seattle.
I rented a charming, brick-walled office
—8 feet by 8 feet and windowless—that
my wife affectionately called “the prison
cell,” and I set to work.
By my calculations, I would write a
novel in a few months, and publication
would be right around the corner. Yes, I
was that naïve. So, following the mantra
of writing what you know, I created a
Off the Cuff Robert Dugoni
I was 40 years old, living in my wife’s
grandmother’s home and unemployed.
I felt like George Costanza.
14 | The Writer • February 2010
Off the Cuff
character named David Sloane, a San
Francisco lawyer who, though successful,
felt unfulfilled. Sloane, however, had
a remarkable ability to not only win trials
but get a jury to do whatever he
wanted. I called the book A Wrongful
Death. I had no idea if it was any good,
but I entered it in the Pacific Northwest
Writers Association’s literary contest
and, lo and behold, it won.
Buoyed by my success, I sent queries
out to five agents. Four rejected it, but
the fifth called and wanted a six-week
exclusive to read the manuscript. Of
course, I agreed. After six weeks, Clyde
called to tell me that the manuscript had
promise but that the second half needed
work. We set out to fix it.
Nearing Christmas, when it finally
came time to send the manuscript to
publishers, I had been gainfully unemployed
for 18 months. In that time, my
wife and I had a second child. I was nervous
but hopeful. Then I didn’t hear
from Clyde for months. “Why don’t you
call him and find out what is happening?”
my wife said. “No,” I said, “I don’t
want to bother him.” I was so happy to
have an agent that I didn’t want to screw
it up. “He said he would call,” I added.
Finally, in March, I received a 5-by-
8-inch envelope from the agency. It
looked suspiciously small for a contract.
Inside I found a card with a picture of
Clyde and the words “In Celebration.”
Needing no further prompting, I called
his assistant. “Please tell me that Clyde
is having a birthday,” I said. “I’m sorry,”
she said, “Clyde died.” “Oh, my God.
Was it sudden?” I asked. “Yes, about
three months ago. I’m sorry no one
called. ... And no one here does the kind
of ‘boy books’ you write. Good luck.”
I was 40 years old, living in my wife’s
grandmother’s home and unemployed. I
felt like George Costanza from Seinfeld.
Persistence
The first thing I did was reconfirm
my goal. I said, “God, you gave me the
talent to write. I know that. I’ve written
all my life. I’ve written my way through
Stanford University and worked as a
reporter for the Los Angeles Times. No
one has ever said, ‘Son, you suck. Have
you ever thought of accounting?’ ”
The next thing I did was evaluate my
work. I realized that while I could write,
what I didn’t know was how to write a
novel. So I dedicated myself to learning
the craft. I immersed myself in the writing
business. I joined a critique group. I
began to attend writers conferences—
not to win competitions but to learn
from others. I pulled writers aside and
asked them all kinds of questions, including
what books on the craft they
recommended. Then I bought the books
and studied them until the pages were
falling out of their spines.
I realized that I had been making all
of the mistakes that agents and editors
could spot in a moment. My query letter
didn’t explain the theme of my novel,
and the synopsis was so long and convoluted
that they never read it. The opening
sentence of my first chapter didn’t
hook the reader, and the opening chapter
wasn’t compelling. I had flashbacks
and biographies that slowed the first 50
pages to a crawl. I had too many characters.
The plot drifted. I asked my wife to
give me more time, and she agreed.
It is said that we make our own opportunities
through hard work, and I
believe that. But sometimes we also
need a little luck. At a party I almost did
not attend, I met an agent from the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency. He
told me about an investigation that had
gone to trial and had become a seminal
case in the history of the EPA. That case
would become the subject for our nonfiction
exposé, The Cyanide Canary.
This time, however, when I sat to
write, I was armed with all of my hard
work. When I sent the book proposal to
10 literary agents, all of them wanted
the book. When an agent with the Jane
Rotrosen Agency called from her cell
phone to tell me she was getting on a
plane and asked me not to sign with
anyone before she landed, I knew that
was the agency for me.
We sold the manuscript, and it appeared
that I was on my way. But then
the editor who bought and loved Canary
soon thereafter left the publisher,
as did my publicist. Enthusiasm at the
house fell, and the book came out of the
gate like a three-legged horse.
Undaunted, my agent and I turned
our attention to my novel A Wrongful
Death, as well as two others I had completed.
She sent A Wrongful Death to an
editor generally considered one of the
best in the business, and again I allowed
my expectations to be raised. When my
agent called to inform me that the manuscript
had been rejected, I couldn’t
hide my disappointment. The next day
Jane Rotrosen called me, and she would
give me the best advice of my career:
“You have to be a bulldog in this business,
kid. You got to be a bulldog.”
I committed to being a bulldog.
Shortly thereafter, two publishers bid on
my first novel. Both were enthusiastic
not only about it, but about my writing.
I signed a two-book deal, and A Wrongful
Death became The Jury Master. It
made the New York Times bestseller list
and stayed there for three weeks. Damage
Control followed, and hardcover
sales surpassed The Jury Master.
Even after that success, however, I
have had to endure some anxious moments,
but I don’t panic anymore when
they arise. I have confidence in myself
and in my agent. When I signed with
Touchstone, a division of Simon &
Schuster, the publisher changed my
third novel’s working title to Wrongful
Death. Fate? Perhaps. All I know for certain
is that I never would have had the
chance to see any of my books to publication
had I never taken the bat off my
I did not want the fear of failure and
rejection to dictate my life and how I
chose to live it.
continued on page 47
www.WriterMag.com • The Writer | 15
shoulder, or quit when I first struck out.
My son Joe also never quit. He committed
himself to becoming a better
baseball player. He took hitting lessons.
He went to catching clinics. He hit in
the backyard until his hands hurt. When
he turned 11, he was named the starting
catcher on the Kirkland Little League
All-Star team and led the team in hitting
and runs batted in at the tournament
that year. More important, he smiles a
lot when he plays, even if he strikes out,
and now he tells me he has a lot of fun.
So do I.
We get through life with hard work, a
little luck, and the kindness of others.
During one particularly bleak moment
in my career, a good friend, Michael
Collopy, now one of the premier portrait
photographers in the world, but
once an executive at IBM, shared with
me advice that his father gave to him
when he expressed his desire to leave
the corporate world to pursue his art. “If
you follow your dreams, the money will
come,” he said. “Follow the money, and
you’ll lose your dreams.”
You have the ability to follow your
dreams, to overcome your fears of striking
out and to cross that line between
failure and success. You may have to
cross it more than once. Like me, you
may have to cross it many times. It won’t
be easy. You will strike out. When you
do, remember: Be patient. Things don’t
always happen on your schedule. Be
persistent. Those who succeed are almost
always those who have first failed.
Persevere. Those who give up have no
chance of success.
You have to be a bulldog in this business,
kid. You got to be a bulldog. Choose
to be bulldogs.
Robert Dugoni
Robert Dugoni is the New York Times bestselling author of The
Jury Master, Damage Control and Wrongful Death. His next
novel, Bodily Harm, will be published by Touchstone/Fireside
in May. Web: www.robertdugoni.com.
Adapted from Robert Dugoni’s speech at the Pacific
Northwest Writers Association’s literary conference.

Hello. Is it me you're looking for?

2010-02-08T13:45:00.000-08:00

Okay, okay. I'm not a big Lionel Ritchie fan, far from it, but the lyric seemed appropriate given the length of time between my last blog. But I have an excuse, sort of. I was coaching two basketball teams, promoting Wrongful Death, finishing Bodily Harm and trying to complete two book proposals for upcoming David Sloane novels. On top of that, I'm traveling quite a bit, as the schedule on my website can attest.

San Diego. Who wouldn't want to go to San Diego in the winter. My first time at the San Diego State Writer's Conference and I must admit it was a blast. I met a lot of people from all around the country and had a great time teaching and doing the Sunday morning keynote address. Here's the lesson. You never know how successful a writer's conference will be for you until months and sometimes years down the road. Don't focus on "getting and agent" so much as learning the craft. If you learn the craft and create memorable characters doing interesting things, the Agent will take care of itself.

San Francisco. Speaking of another great place to go in the winter, my old stomping grounds. God I love that city and I'm excited to be a first time invitee to the San Francisco Writers Conference. My thanks to Mike Lawson, Elizabeth Pomada and Laurie McClean for the invite. I'll be teaching a seminar on Writing the Legal Thriller, but really, its all about writing Genre fiction. Looking forward to hearing Steve Berry speak as well. Have you read his books? If not, you're missing out. Great stuff. There's a good reason he is a perennial New York Times Best Seller. The man can flat out write, and you won't meet a nicer guy.

Chicago - My kind of town. I'll be returning for the 5th annual Advanced Fiction seminar. This is a two day intensive, class participation workshop. In addition to the 120 page workbook, you'll have one of the best weekends of your year. I guarantee it because I always do.

Wrongful Death. The paperback comes out this month, with an absolute killer of a cover. I'm excited as ever about this book.

Bodily Harm. Below is the Press Release for the third David Sloane novel. I couldn't have written it any better, so why try when you can cut and paste. Enjoy.

For Immediate Release
“John Grisham, move over.” —The Seattle Times

“Smart and savvy with more muscle than the average legal thriller. . .
Dugoni has put the thrills back in the genre.” —Nelson DeMille

New York Times bestselling author Robert Dugoni delivers a searing courtroom drama in his newest thriller, BODILY HARM (May 25, 2010; Touchstone; $25.00/hardcover; 978-1-4165-9296-9). When parents lose their six-year-old son to an esteemed pediatrician’s seeming negligence, they turn to attorney David Sloane for justice.

In his return as “the lawyer who does not lose,” Sloane is on the verge of another victory, but something about the malpractice case has bothered him from the start. And his uneasiness grows when toy designer Kyle Horgan confronts him on the way to the verdict to claim responsibility not only for the child’s death but also for the fate of a second little boy in central Washington.

When the toy designer vanishes, leaving behind only a ransacked apartment, Sloane teams up with his longtime investigative partner (and former CIA operative) Charles Jenkins to reexamine the deaths and dig deeper into Horgan’s claims. They are forced to enter the cutthroat world of toy manufacturing—where hundreds of millions of dollars are staked on finding the next “It” product. Sloane must dodge a vicious and calculating killer, exonerate the doctor, and overcome a devastating personal loss that nearly destroys him—all while keeping in check his overwhelming desire for revenge.

Sound enticing? Hope so.

Okay, got to run. Basketball practice tonight. Keep writing.

Bob

Saying Goodbye to a Friend

2009-07-19T09:25:00.000-07:00

We buried our 15 year old Rhodesian Ridgeback, Nick, yesterday. He was my wedding present 15 years ago and so he spent every day of his life with my wife and I. The words fifteen years old and Rhodesian are not supposed to go together. Dogs that big don't live that long, but Nick did. He survived melanoma, a 6 pound tumor, epilsepsy, you name it. My wife said it was because we used to run him every morning on the beach or at Fort Funston in San Francisco. The vets were always amazed at how strong his heart was, even to the very end. But I know it wasn't the running.
It was love.
My wife loved that dog more than any person could love an animal, and he in turn loved her. He simply wouldn't go. He would not leave her behind. We had to make the decision for him, yesterday, when he could no longer get up, would no longer eat, blind and had another tumor growing in the bridge of his nose. His heart, however, continued to beat like a lion. Amazing.
I cried yesterday, and I cry as I write this piece. In all honesty, that dog deserved better than he got from me. I was raised in a family of 10 kids, we didn't have much room for dogs and they were treated as dogs. When he came into my home he promptly ate two electric razors, chewed holes in two of my better suits, ate two leather watch bands and, oh yes, my wedding ring attached to one of those bands. No, we never found it.
My wife, however, loved Nick as if he were a child. No person could have loved an animal more. Nick fell under a lucky star when my wife picked him out of the litter, the runt, the puppy that no one else wanted because he had an overbite and small hips and never would be a show dog. I'm betting Nick outlived every other sibling in that litter, probably by a good many years.
I in turn came to love Nick as a friend. Some say that animals are "dumb." Maybe because they cannot speak, but Nick taught me that they are often more intelligent than people. Nick loved unconditionally. He didn't judge and he always forgave. Everytime I came home he would be at the door, tail wagging, just happy to see me. And he was fiercly protective of my kids, often getting between them and any stranger who came to the door or approached on the street. In the end, when he could no longer get up, he'd still manage to raise his head and acknowledge that I was home. What more can you ask for in life?
So Nick taught me much about friendship and about love. He taught me that pets can be more than just a pet. They can be a family member, if we will allow them. He also taught me that we can never go back in life, that we can only go forward, and how important, therefore, it is to go forward with kindness and love.
I will miss him. Not exactly like I miss my Dad, but I will miss him just the same. I already do. It's hard to walk into the house now and not see him, sitting in his bed, looking up at me.
We buried him on my wife's beloved farm where he loved to run. We picked a spot under an old growth cedar he seemed particularly fond of. If he could have spoken, I think he might have chosen the spot himself.
Rest in piece Nick. It is hard saying goodbye, my friend.

Michael Jackson, Elvis and Mortality

2009-07-02T11:18:00.000-07:00

Anyone else feel like they lost a bit of their childhood with the news this week? Was there a boy out there who didn't have the Farrah Faucet poster in his room, or marvel at the talent of an eight year old boy? My sister had the Thriller Poster in her room and my disabled brother was enamored with "Michael Jackson." Yes, he was troubled, maybe more than that.

I look at the photos on television and I wonder how a good looking 18 year old man could become an unattractive 50-year old woman? I wonder where was the person in his life that could have stepped in and straightened him out? Where were his parents, or his friends, his spouse. But then, I remember my parents talking about Elvis, what a talented young man he was and how he grew up to be so troubled and how he too died alone.

Neither could go out during the day and resorted to medication to help them sleep. What a lonely, sad existence. Do we need any more illustrations to prove the old adage that money cannot buy happiness?

So much talented wasted in the end.

Dads and Sons

2009-06-30T09:11:00.001-07:00

I lost my father last Father's Day. It was only fitting given that he had 10 children. He had a flair for the dramatic, my father. He was born on Christmas Day and was quite a guy. With so many kids he worked a lot but he always tried to be at our sporting events to support us.

This past weekend my son and I were scheduled to go to Moses Lake for a big 12 and under tournament. He hurt his foot two weeks ago and we figured he bruised it. Played five games on it and did really well, even hit a three run homer. But in an abundance of caution we went to the doctor on Friday. Doctor came in and said, "When did you break your foot."

Joe handled it well. He really wanted to play this weekend, but we held him out so his foot will be healed for the all-star tournament. We debated going to the tournament at all, but then I realized why wouldn't we? How often do you get to share three days with your son - sleep in a tent, be in the dugout with him, eat all meals with him.

On the ride home, with a trophy in the car, Joe said, "Thanks for taking me, Dad."

I replied, "Thanks for going with me. You know, Joe, I know you were disappointed not to play, but I really appreciate your maturity. I never had this kind of experience with my dad, but these are memories I hope we both have for a lifetime."

His response? "I know I will."

ON-line writing tip: Sorry I've let this lapse. Okay, you have a protagonist and he or she has received her call to adventure and decided to step forward. Now what will be at least three obstacles he or she will encounter on his quest?

Anyone see Transformers? I watched it last night. The plot was one of those plots where it looked like someone told the screenwriter, "No, it needs to be longer so we can squeeze in more action scenes. Come up with yet another obstacle, even if it really makes no sense to the plot you've already developed." Watch it. It's a good lesson on plotting and how not to do it.

Service, Fort Lewis and Fathers

2009-06-18T11:45:00.000-07:00

I signed last Saturday at the Fort Lewis PX. In May I had appeared at the base to give away free copies of Wrongful Death on Armed Forces day. Simon and Schuster also provided two organizations with free copies of the novel to be sent to Afghanistan and Iraq.

Being on base is always a moving experience. It is a world within a world, one that most civilians, myself included, don't fully understand. For anyone who wants to criticize the military, I would invite you to visit one of the military bases and talk to the men and women who are deploying to Iraq, and now to Afghanistan again. Talk to their families. It is a sobering experience. I spoke to one woman from Germany who met and married her husband while he was stationed there. The week before he had deployed to Afghanistan. She was a lovely woman, happy and very interested in the book. I was surprised to learn that her husband would be gone for a year and even more surprised when she returned to introduce me to her three children, the oldest just 12.

I lost my father last Father's Day, June 15. This one year has felt like ten. I can only imagine it must feel the same way for so many of these military families, with one very significant difference. I have achieved peace knowing my father is not coming home. These families go to bed every night wondering if their father, or mother for that matter, will be coming home. It is a sobering thought for all of us.

God bless those soldiers and their families who are making the sacrifice every day. Maybe wars are political. But the soldiers aren't. They're mothers and fathers and wives and husbands just like all of us.

May they all come home safe.

On the Road Again, Willie Nelson, "Beefcake" and Bookreporter.com

2009-04-16T10:45:00.001-07:00

I can't get Willie Nelson out of my head - "On the road again..."

Thanks to all who have come out and seen me in Chicago, Spokane and Seattle. After an appearance at the Bellevue University Bookstore tonight at 7:00 I hit the road tomorrow for Portland, San Francisco, San Mateo, San Jose, Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, Tucson and Denver and finish with a couple more parties here in Burien and Kirkland. It's been a lot of fun so far and I'm looking forward to more of the same back out on the road. So come on out and ask me questions or just say hello. The venues are all posted on my website.

Beefcake

In Portland I'll be participating in a photoshoot for a calendar to benefit the Oregon Writer's Colony and its efforts to renovate its historic meeting house. The theme is for writers to "bare" their inner writing soul so rumor has it there will be some skin showing. I told them they'd have to shoot me in the dark so "beefcake" doesn't become "beefycake."
All in good fun and for a great cause.

BookReporter.com
Wow, check out the link to the review from Bookreporter.com. I'm grateful that the reviewer enjoyed the book, and understood the book so well. I know that Joe is a lawyer by background, so the review was especially gratifying.

http://www.bookreporter.com/reviews2/9781416591009.asp

Writing Tip of the Week

Okay, you have your protagonist in his ordinary world and you've incited him into action. You now also know what is the end game, his ultimate goal. Draw a horizontal line with each event on the line. 2/3 of the way down the line, write in what is the climax of the story. Note this is not the ending, but the climax, that defining emotional moment like the verdict in The Cyanide Canary or when Dana Hill discovers who killed her brother in Damage Control. It's the wow moment in the book and from there it will be a race to the conclusion. Don't know the climax, yet? You really should, because next week we'll start to fill in that time line you're creating.

Best to you all,

Bob Dugoni

Chicago My Kind of Town

2009-04-07T09:16:00.000-07:00

All:
Chicago
I've started my tour, in Chicago, for Wrongful Death.

What a great city. I've been here before and can't believe how great the people are. The weather has been as unpredictable as Seattle. We've had beautiful sunshine, rain, snow, and hail. I feel like I am the weatherman.

I signed the first night at Centuries and Sleuths in Forest Park. Great store and Augie, the owner is a great guy. Go see him and tell him I said hello.

Last night I went out with my old College roommate, Peter Gabrielle. Not the singer, the financial whiz. After 22 years in New York, Pete took a promotion and moved his beautiful wife and kids to Chicago. Great to catch up and see one of the good guys doing so well.

Tonight I'm at the Borders in Oak Brook. Looking forward to it.
Then back home for a day before leaving for Auntie's in Spokane.

Writing Tip of the Week

Now that you have your protagonist in her ordinary world and you've given her a call to adventure or inciting incident, ask what is the throughline of your story. That is, what is the ultimate goal for your protagonist. What does he or she seek to accomplish. For instance, Dorothy's ultimate goal in The Wizard of Oz is to get back home. Be specific.

More to come.

Bob

Seeing Color? Become a character in a book.

2009-04-02T07:52:00.000-07:00

Forget writer's block, how about writer's cramp?

When I was a kid, my brother and I liked that commercial where the learned owl is trying to determine how many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie roll, tootsie pop.

I was reminded of that commercial on Monday when I flew to Spokane to see how many books I could sign in six hours and still make my flight home. The answer, 2520. I never knew writer's cramp until now.

Seeing Color?

But, to have a little fun, I signed all of the books in black ink, except for one. If the lucky person who buys that book emails me and can tell me the color of the signature and answer one other conversation, I will name a character after them in my next book.

I leave Friday for Chicago where I'll teach a two-day seminar on writing and then the tour begins. If you've signed up for my mailing list you'll be getting an email today or tomorrow loaded with information on where and when I will be signing, hopefully in a store near you.

Writing Tip of the Week:

Okay, if you've been following along, you should now have created your character and the world in which he or she lives. You should also have come up with the inciting event that has set the story in motion. Now that your character's journey is underway, where does it first take him or her - to a new world, perhaps, new state, new job, new house - someplace different than his ordinary world and what is the first obstacle he or she encounters in this new place. (An obstacle is anything that gets in the path or your protagonist's goal, whether his or her ultimate goal in the book - to save the world before the bomb explodes, or his or her goal in the scene - to get a hot cup of coffee)

Hope to see you at one of my book stops.

Bob Dugoni

Here is the new video!

2009-04-02T07:30:00.000-07:00

Romance in the back seat - Now I have your attention

2009-03-26T11:55:00.000-07:00

So my good friend and mentor, Susan Wiggs emailed me to tell me of a really cool project by a documentary film maker from Los Angeles. Seems this person was filming authors reading and answering questions from the back seat of their cars. How fun was that. Yesterday morning I pulled the 1964 Cadillac Coup de Ville out of the garage and with my wife playing chauffeur, we drove around the neighborhood while Terri Kate asked me questions and I read from Wrongful Death. The three minute video will be up soon on romanceinthebackseat.com. In addition, Simon and Schuster will be posting its three minute video to highlight Wrongful Death very soon. I'll get the link up on my website soon, as well as the link to the video interview which will appear in Author Magazine, Author.org during the month of April.

Writing Tip of the Week:

Okay, we're working on story structure and you've written one or two sentences on your protagonist's Ordinary World. Now, what is their "call to adventure" or the "inciting incident" that is going to get the story rolling along. In Wrongful Death, Sloane's call to adventure comes when Beverly Ford enters the courtroom and tells him she is the widow of a Washington National Guardsman killed in Iraq and she wants Sloane to sue the United States Government and Military.

Keep on writing,

Bob

Writing Tips

2009-03-18T09:32:00.000-07:00

Okay:

I said I would provide a weekly writing tip. So here is the tip of the week.

Whether you are writing fiction or nonfiction, romance or thrillers, you have to understand story structure. Go and buy Chris Vogler's book, The Writer's Journey and study it. Understand classic story structure that has worked for hundreds of years. Once you understand the structure, you can use this as a way to outline your novel.
Start with:

What is your protagonist's "ordinary world?" Be specific. For instance, in my upcoming novel, Wrongful Death I would write:

"Acclaimed San Francisco attorney David Sloane has moved to Seattle with his new wife Tina and son Jake. Sloane has just won his eighteenth jury verdict in a row. "

That's it. That's who Sloane is at the beginning of the novel.

Okay, send me your protagonist's ordinary world at bob@robertdugoni.com and I'll provide my two cents.

Looking to attend a great conference in April, look into Field's End. I've attended and taught at the conference and it is always first rate with great writers and a lot to learn:

April 18 (Saturday)Field's End's fourth-annual writers' conference takes place at beautiful Kiana Lodge on the shores of Agate Passage, just north of Bainbridge Island. Enjoy a day of camaraderie, inspiration, and learning about the art and craft of writing. The conference includes break-out sessions, hands-on workshops, a delicious salmon buffet lunch, and plenty of time to meet and discuss the writing life with fellow writers.

Bob

Literary Lions & Writing Tips of the week

2009-03-11T12:47:00.000-07:00

First, I'm going to try something new starting Monday March 16 when I'll post my writing tip of the week. I get asked a lot by aspiring writers what books on the craft I recommend, what tips I can provide. So each week I'll have a writing tip that hopefully helps someone out there in the nebulous Internet world. If it's you, let me know at Bob@robertdugoni.com .

Literary Lions:

Saturday night, March 6 I had the pleasure of being a guest author for the King County Library's annual Literary Lions dinner to help raise funds for the library system and literacy. As usual it was a fun evening with the chance to hang out with other authors I see far too little of. Susan Wiggs, she of the #1 New York Times bestselling novel was there, which gave me a chance to buy her new hardback, Just Breathe. Susan has become one of my wife's favorite writers and as usual, she was curled up in bed with the novel as soon as I got home.

It was also great to have dinner with Mike Lawson, another really talented thriller writer whose novels are destined for the big screen once someone in Los Angeles gets it figured out. Think of Jack Ryan in the Tom Clancy series. I also had dinner with Kevin O'Brien, the nicest thriller writer you'll ever meet. As I told one person buying Kevin's novel (and yes, he sold out at the event) "I don't know how such a nice guy can write such scary books." But Kevin pulls it off and keeps you up late turning the pages.

I sat next to and had a chance to talk with Garth Stein, the keynote speaker for the evening and author of The Art of Racing in the Rain. The novel has been an incredible success with 23 translations and time on all the best seller lists. Garth told the audience they had also just signed papers for the movie, with Patrick Dempsey. Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy. Garth professed to not being certain what he would talk about, but he was just being coy. His speech was entertaining and poignant, a tough combination.

Okay, got to run. Put a note on the calendar. Writing tip Number one on Monday.

Bob

So Far So Great-Wrongful Death

2009-03-07T07:50:00.000-08:00

Have I mentioned I'm new to the blogging game? Probably. So here goes.

The reviews for Wrongful Death, which is to be launched in just a few short weeks, are coming in and so far, so great. Booklist wrote, "Mixing the suspense of a Grisham legal thriller with the political angle of a Baldacci. Dugoni is knocking on the A-list thriller door." More about those comparisons in a minute. Kirkus also liked it, calling Wrongful Death "An entertaining thriller about a hotshot lawyer. Good guys to like, villains to hiss, windmills to attack."

I can't ask for much more than that. I'm hoping readers like it as much, if not more.

South Carolina on my mind.

I attended the South Carolina Writers Conference last weekend. First time at the conference and first time in South Carolina. Unfortunately, I brought the Seattle weather with me - lots of rain and even the threat of snow. Just my luck. People in South Carolina apparently don't do well in snow. The threat of one-inch falling on the city caused a panic the likes of which you would have thought Sherman was marching on the city again. Still, nothing seems to dampen the Southern spirit and hospitality. Those who put on the conference, like Paula Watkins, really know how to make you feel welcome. They take the extra step and I was grateful. Thanks to Cathy Pickens, a friend and great Southern writer, I had my first authentic Southern meal. Cathy and husband Bob took me for chicken fried steak, grits, collared greens and more. I was so full I had to say no to desert, banana pudding.

A member in the audience for one of my panels asked how I liked the comparisons to Grisham, and more recently to Baldacci. What's not to like? I told him that I wasn't greedy. I'd take either man's career.

I also learned how to speak "Southern" with the help of Shellie Rushing Tomlinson. Shellie, whose from "Lisiana" and no, I did not misspell it, knows Southern. That's probably why she has her own radio and television show, "All Things Southern." You can find it at her website, which, shockingly, is also called Allthingssouthern.com. Trust me, you won't be disappointed. Shellie's a riot. I learned what it means for a man to "fly straight" and what a Southern woman might do if he doesn't. They take that "woman scorned" thing seriously in the South, apparently. I also learned the meaning of the phrase when someone is "straight running crazy," which apparently means they are no longer deviating from the path between crazy and lucid. Shellie read from her book, "Suck your belly in and put on some color." It was about the trials of being pregnant, but even I could relate.

And I couldn't stop without mentioning Karen Spears Zacharias. Karen is also a Southern girl, having been raised in Georgia, but lived much of her life in Oregon and has shed the accent. Still, she'll tell you she was born and raised in a trailer in Georgia and her only goal growing up was to not be dismembered and stay out of jail. Life took a cruel twist when Karen was young. Her father was killed in action in Vietnam. Karen not only survived, she prospered. She became a beat writer for the Oregonian and has since written three books. She went back to Vietnam and learned more about her father's death, documenting it in "After the Flag has been Folded." I started it on the plane ride home. It's a moving story. Her current book is "Where's Your Jesus Now." Provocative title? Even more so when you learn its genesis.

Okay, I have to run now. But the new book tour is almost finalized. I'll be in Chicago for the launch and also hit Denver, Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Tucson, Phoenix, Spokane and a few more. I'll post the schedule when it's final and I hope to keep a blog about the adventure, sort of news from the front.

Keep reading, and writing,

Bob

A white Christmas or Home for the Holidays

2008-12-16T14:30:00.000-08:00

Well, just my luck. It is supposed to snow here in Seattle on Christmas, but I'll be going to California, home for the holidays. I've never had a white Christmas and can only imagine the first time is special.

Christmas will be bitter sweet this year. It is my favorite time of the year, but I lost my father in June and since he was born Christmas Day, we'll all be a bit melancholy to not have him with us. He lived the spirit of Christmas.

I wish all of my readers a Merry Christmas and the happiest of New Years with much health, happiness and success.

Bob Dugoni

Change is good

2008-12-04T17:13:00.001-08:00

If you're reading this, you've probably noticed a long overdue overhaul of my website. The reasons are several. After two successful and great experiences with Warner Books I recently changed publishers. I'm happy to announce that I'm now with Touchstone/Fireside, a division of Simon and Schuster. The change resulted in a delay in the publication of my next novel, "Wrongful Death," but that book, a sequel to The Jury Master, is now scheduled for publication April 2009.

With the new book ready, it was time to make other modifications to the site. In so doing, I decided to seek additional artistic input from people much more savvy than me. The result is what you now see, and I must say that I like it, a lot, and hope you do as well.

So welcome, and thanks for visiting. I'll update the site with upcoming classes I'll be teaching as well as information about the upcoming tour for Wrongful Death and my other appearances. If you'd like to receive my newsletter as well, an unobtrusive way to let you know when I'm coming out with a new book, just sign up and I'll be in touch.

Thanks again, and hope to see you at an upcoming event.

Bob Dugoni