Featured Interview With J. R. Lindermuth
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was born and raised in a small town in Pennsylvania’s anthracite coal region. The Army and then a career as a newspaper reporter and editor took me around the world. Now I’m back in my hometown again, living in the house where I grew up.
I’ve been a dog-person most of my life. Since the loss of my most recent ‘friend,’ a border collie named Shannon, I haven’t had incentive to replace her.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
Like many writers, I was an early reader. Our community had no library until I was in high school. Fortunately, my dad had books ranging from the classics to mysteries and Westerns. As I got older, I started emulating some of the writers I admired. Eventually it became something I ‘had’ to do. When I entered the Army, they recognized that I had some ability and sent me to J-school. That provided me with a career which paid the bills as I learned to write fiction.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I can’t really name one favorite writer; there are too many I admire and love reading. And I’m always discovering new writers who make me envious. I have eclectic tastes in reading and devour both fiction and non-fiction, though mysteries and history are primary choices.
I have a broad streak of curiosity about many aspects of life. That provides an unlimited source of inspiration for writing. I don’t understand people who complain of being bored.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest is Something So Divine, an historical mystery set in rural Pennsylvania in the 1890s.
When a young girl is found murdered in a Pennsylvania rye field in the autumn of 1897, Ned Gebhardt, a feeble-minded youth known to have stalked the victim, is the prime suspect. Incidents involving another girl and gossip stir emotions to a frenzy, nearly leading to a lynching.
Evidence against Ned is circumstantial and there are other suspects. Influenced by the opinions of Ned’s stepsister and Ellen, a woman who has perked his interest, Simon Roth, the investigator, is inclined to give Ned benefit of the doubt. Then he discovers damaging evidence.
Still unwilling to view Ned as a cold-blooded killer, Roth puts his job and reputation in jeopardy as he seeks to assure a fair trial for the accused.
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Looking forward to reading this one, as I have all of John’s work.
Great interview, John. I’m adding your book to my “must read” list.