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On The Table Read Magazine, “the best entertainment eBook magazine UK“, Jody Weiner discusses his new book, Raise Your Other Right Hand, which follows attorney Archie Krafter as his life is disrupted by a high-profile case and mafia entanglements.
Written by JJ Barnes
I interviewed Jody Weiner about his life and career, the inspiration behind his new thriller book, Raise Your Other Right Hand, and his creative writing process.
Tell me a bit about who you are.
I was born and raised in Chicago, where my legal career began. After practicing in state and federal courts for eleven years as a criminal defense attorney, I moved to San Francisco to write a novel and escape the cold winters. I’ve lived in San Francisco for nearly forty years now, practicing all manner of civil law and providing pro bono service, writing fiction, producing films and literary events.
When did you first WANT to write a book?
I’ve always been a storyteller. My parents were funny. But they were not around much, so I used to tell stories and jokes to get attention. I was also an avid reader and spent a lot of time in the library. But I didn’t start writing in earnest until I was backpacking around Europe and Morocco for a year after college, and I began an autobiographical novel that I never finished because I came home, went to law school (for 3 years) and right into practicing law for the next decade.
When did you take a step to start writing?
I moved from Chicago to San Francisco for the purpose of finally writing a novel, something I’d been thinking about ever since I’d abandoned my earlier creative writing. I wrote a draft novel within the year, got an agent, but it wasn’t published. I took the California Bar exam and have since learned how to balance the two commitments over the years, practicing civil law, and writing Prisoners of Truth, my first published novel back in 2004. I guess I was a natural born writer who developed the skill later.
How long did it take you to complete your first book from the first idea to release?
Prisoners of Truth went through one major shift in structure and many drafts before it was published so the entire process took about seven years.
How long did it take you to complete your latest book from the first idea to release?
Raise Your Other Right Hand took longer to find a publisher than it did to write. The entire process was about five years.
Focusing on your latest release. What made you want to write Raise Your Other Right Hand?
I’ve always admired Hammett’s The Thin Man especially for the playful banter between Nick and Nora Charles, as she’s always meddling in to help solve the crime. Archie and Lora Krafter were conceived as an homage and fleshed out with a touch of reality. The storyline about an addicted superstar caught up in a drug-related double homicide came from an amalgam of actual cases and clients, based on my experience in sports and entertainment management as well as criminal defense.
What were your biggest challenges with writing Raise Your Other Right Hand?
I was trained to write legal briefs and appeals that are quite structured and specific. As an attorney you are (usually) paid to respond to an existing set of facts and circumstances and then apply the case law within a deadline. My biggest challenge with writing novels was learning how to switch from left brain (analytical) to right brain (creative) so I could self-generate a completely fictional story with made up characters and no deadline.
Who or what inspired you when creating your Protagonist?
In addition to Dashiell Hammett above, Louise Penny, “Travis McGee,” “Magnum PI,” and my wife Nancy Calef, who’s music and spirit imbues Lora Krafter’s character.
Who or what inspired you when creating your Antagonist?
Vincent Patrick’s Pope of Greenwich Village and Richard Condon’s Prizzi’s Honor.
What is the inciting incident of Raise Your Other Right Hand?
When NBA superstar Radon Jaalaba goes missing from a nationally televised game on Christmas, after fleeing the scene of a drug-related shooting that kills his intimate friend and a responding police officer, attorney Archie Krafter is handed the case of his career. Once America’s hero on the basketball court, Radon is now on trial for his life, battling addiction and the weight of a career-threatening secret.
What is the main conflict of Raise Your Other Right Hand?
Archie and his lovely wife, Lora, find themselves ensnared in her notorious family’s business. Lora’s estranged father, Sal Dellacozzi, the aging “Rapini King” of Northern California, calls on Lora to look after her younger brother, Dominic, who also seeks Archie’s legal help as he has been unjustly accused in an international identity theft ring operating from a Dellacozzi Industries building. As Archie and Lora careen toward Radon and Dominic’s days of reckoning, does their bond prove unbreakable or will her family’s influence prevail over Archie’s soul fighting for justice?
Did you plot Raise Your Other Right Hand in advance, or fly by the seat of your pants and write freely?
Raise Your Other Right Hand and Crime Therapy (second in the series) are a combination of planning in that I outline chapters with general plot points and then I let the characters take me wherever they choose to go.
Did you get support with editing, and how much editing did Raise Your Other Right Hand need?
Trusted readers gave feedback to early drafts of Raise Your Other Right Hand; we had a great sensitivity edit, shedding potentially offensive humor and stereotyping, and my publisher did a line edit as well.
What is the first piece of writing advice you would give to anyone inspired to write a story?
Regularly sit at your computer or however else you write, even when you do not want to. You must show up and be ready when the muse strikes. Relax and enjoy the journey without fixating on the destination. Love and trust the process.
Can you give me a hint about any further books you’re planning to write?
I’m currently writing Crime Therapy, Book 2 in the series: The Krafters: Partners in Time. In the further adventures of Archie and Lora Krafter, Crime Therapy digs deeper into the making, care and feeding of the couple’s enduring love affair, while taking the reader on a roller coaster ride through the criminal justice system.
And, finally, are you proud of your accomplishment? Was it worth the effort?
Duh; and Duh.
Pop all your book, website and social media links here so the readers can find you:
Raise Your Other Right Hand
Apple Books: https://apple.co/3G0H2H5
Kindle: https://amzn.to/3QWVfqX
Paperback: https://amzn.to/3XGi3ip
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/raise-your-other-right-hand-jody-weiner/1146959422
Speaking Volumes: https://speakingvolumes.mybigcommerce.com/raise-your-other-right-hand-by-jody-weiner-print/
Kobo E-Book: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/raise-your-other-right-hand
https://www.litquake.org/staff-board
https://www.facebook.com/jody.weiner/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jody_Weiner
https://jodyweiner.com/bio.html
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