The October Edition of The Big Thrill

Read the stories that were featured in the October edition of The Big Thrill.

32 new thrillers this month from ITW members, including Lee Child, John Sandford, Tom Bale, Debra Webb and Wendi Corsi Staub, plus News From South Africa by Mike Nicol!

Print the Big Thrill list and head on down to your favorite bookstore, or download your selections to your electronic e-reader, and enjoy a month’s worth of great reading from your friends at the International Thriller Writers.

Hot off the press:

Click on a book title to read the feature story

• News From South Africa by Mike Nicol
• Hell to Pay by Wendy Corsi Staub
• Blood Falls by Tom Bale
• Bad Moon by Todd Ritter
• Zillionaire by Gary Alexander
• Starcraft Ghost: Spectres by Nate Kenyon
• Hominid by John C. Boland
• The Affair by Lee Child
• The Dark at the End by F. Paul Wilson
• Shock Wave by John Sandford
• Freezing Point by Elizabeth Goddard
• If You Hear Her by Shiloh Walker
• Lethal Remedy by Richard Mabry
• The River Panj by David Raterman
• The Towman’s Daughters by David J. Walker
• Skating Over The Line by Joelle Charbonneau
• Murder by Music: The Wedding Quilt by Barbara Graham
• Horizontal Collaborator by Adrianne Sainte-Eve
• Cold Glory by B. Kent Anderson
• Picture Of Lies by C. C. Harrison
• Miss McGuire is Missing by Eileen Robertson
• Wolf’s Edge by W.D. Gagliani
• The Vengeful Dead by J.N. Duncan
• Scream Catcher by Vincent Zandri
• Reflections In Blue by David Hodges
• Always the Bad Guy by Shane Briant
• The More the Terrier by Linda O. Johnston
• Ionshaker by Felix Timothy
• Darkness All Around by Doug Magee
• Reckoning for the Dead by Jordan Dane
• Classified by Debra Webb
• One Step Away by Eric Wilson
• Net Impact by Donald J. Bingle

Coming Next Month

Coming next month: the latest thrillers from David Baldacci, Kat Martin, Vince Flynn, Diane Kelly, Rochelle Staab, Yasmine Galenorn, Ann Parker, Marc Cameron, Gina Robinson, David Hodges, R.J. Jagger and more. It’s gonna be a thriller!

ThrillerFest VII Registration Is Now Open!

This year, spotlight guests will include 2012 ThrillerMaster Jack Higgins, 2011 ThrillerMaster R.L. Stine, Lee Child, John Sandford, and Ann Rule.

ThrillerFest VII offers something for everyone:

CraftFest — New York Times bestselling authors will share their secrets on the craft of writing.

AgentFest — The top agents and editors in the business will be on hand to hear your pitches.

ThrillerFest — Network with other writers and meet industry professionals at the fabulous panels.  Special guests will be announced soon.

Special pricing for a limited time. To get the best deal, Register Online Today!

If you prefer to mail your registration, you can download and print the appropriate registrations forms here:

ITW Author-Member Registration

ITW Associate-Member and Thriller Fan Registration

Volunteer Needed

Are you interested in getting more involved in ThrillerFest? If you have strong graphic design skills, we are currently looking for a volunteer to design street banners, internet graphics for ThrillerFest and The Big Thrill, and the ThrillerFest logos.

Requirements:

• Extensive experience with Adobe PhotoShop and InDesign.
• Professional commercial design and layout experience a must.
• A creative flair.
• The ability to meet tight deadlines.

If you would like to apply for this position, please contact Kimberley Howe, Executive Director of ThrillerFest at kimberleyhowe@me.com

2011 Operation Thriller USO Tour

In Fall 2011, ITW members Clive Cussler, Sandra Brown, Kathy Reichs, Mark Bowden, and Andrew Peterson will deploy to the Middle East on a week-long USO tour to visit and uplift troops. The authors will sign autographs, pose for photos with the troops and talk about their books, movies, television series and writing.

The tour, conceived of and organized by Andy Harp, and entitled Operation Thriller, is the second USO Operation Thriller tour. Last year, authors David Morrell, Douglas Preston, James Rollins, Steve Berry, and Andy Harp kicked off the tour with a special visit to Washington, D.C., where the group visited with troops at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and National Naval Medical Center. The group then flew to the Persian Gulf, visiting five bases in Kuwait and Iraq, where they talked fiction, inspired service men and women, spread cheer and, most importantly, showed their heartfelt gratitude.

Read more about last year’s tour here, and find links to what the authors had to say about their experiences.

Thriller Roundtable

Whether you’re a fan or an author, you’ll want to join the Thriller Roundtable discussions at the Big Thrill website, where each week, a new group of authors discuss what inspires them, who their favorite characters are, what advice they’d offer the next generation of thriller authors, and more.

Week of September 26 – October 2: “In On Writing, Stephen King tells the story of asking Amy Tan what’s the one question she’s never asked in a Q&A. She responded, “They never ask about the language.” So, we’re asking: What about language? How much credence do you give it? What does it do for your story? Characters? Dialogue? Setting? The reader? How important is it?” Catriona McPherson, D.E. Johnson and Kelli Stanley

Week of October 3 – 9: “Why do some authors make it, and some don’t?” For every successful writer, there are many more who aren’t able to break in. They write well, tell a good story, pay their dues, and yet, despite their efforts, they remain unpublished.  What’s the difference between a successful author and the not-yet-published?  Is it a well-connected mentor? An agent who can open doors?  Sheer, dumb luck?  Karen Dionne and Ron Barak

Week of October 10 – 16: “Where do you get your story ideas?” Are you a ripped from the headlines type? Do your story ideas actually start with character? Do they reflect your life/interests? Are they more intuitive? And, how do you know when they’re good? C. C. Harrison, Miranda Parker, Todd Ritter, Ed kovak, Yvonne Anderson and Allison Brennan

Week of October 17 – 23: “Who is your favorite fictional mentor?” Mentors can be some of the most intriguing characters in fiction as they are often deeply layered and, at times, seem counterintuitive. Who is your favorite fictional mentor? What is foremost in your mind as you create your mentor characters? TBD

Week of October 24 – 30: On the eve of Halloween, we have to ask: “Which novel, more than any other, just scared the @#$%* out of you? Which characters?” Debbie Viguie, Cammie Eicher, Joseph Nassise and Trevor Shane

Monthly Giveaway

Congratulations to Leslie Norman, the winner of this month’s BIG THRILL giveaway. Leslie will receive an assortment of signed thrillers including Low Town by Daniel Polansky, The Towman’s Daughter by David J. Walker, Exit by Phillip Thomas Duck, A Rhumba in Waltz Time by Robert S. Levinson, Where All the Dead Lie by J.T. Ellison, Under the Dog Star by Sandra Parshall, Snapped by Laura Griffin, The Knowledge of Good & Evil by Glenn Kleiner, Always the Bad Guy: An Autobiography by Shane Briant, Flash and Bones by Kathy Reichs, Sweet Justice by Christy Reece, In Seconds by Brenda Novak, Secrets of the Dead by Tom Harper, Classified by Debra Webb, The River Panj by David Raterman, Zillionaire by Gary Alexander and a bonus book, The Black Stiletto by Raymond Benson.

All subscribers to THE BIG THRILL webzine are automatically eligible for the monthly drawing. CLICK HERE to subscribe to the BIG THRILL email.