Pacific Coast Highway

Retired, no longer LAPD’s chief of detectives, Derek Cheney plans to spend more time with his wife, Elizabeth. But then a wealthy neighbor asks him to investigate a hit-and-run death that the neighbor believes was no accident. Soon a young woman with an apparent connection to the hit-and-run victim, is found viciously murdered. Then another…and another.

Cheney’s marriage begins to slip away as he follows the cold ten-year-old trail of a serial killer from Las Vegas to an L.A. film studio where a brilliant madman splices his obsession into a chilling vision of passion, betrayal, and terror – and the final cut is death.

 

Pacific Blues

LAPD chief of detectives Derek Cheney has retired after nearly thirty years of learning how not to feel. But when his ex-partner is brutally murdered, Cheney comes roaring out retirement to nail one last killer.

All too quickly, another victim turns up, and then another, each bearing the same mysterious blue ribbon that was found on his dead partner’s body. Yet each victim appears to have been murdered in a different way. Cheney’s frustrating search leads him down a twisted path paved with unanswered questions. And what he discovers about the killer – and the victims – will shock and cynical city and haunt Cheney forever.

Writing the Novel Workbook

Mr. Smoke taught the Writing the Novel course at the Palos Verdes Art Center in 2005 and 2006. Even though he has spoken at seminars and at colleges in the past he never offered a multi-week course before then. This course is based on Stephen Smoke’s Mystery Writing Course, first published in 1983. Since that time Mr. Smoke has written and published nearly thirty books, most of them novels.

The Workbook helps writers turn ideas into chapters and chapters into a finished book. It focuses on the two most difficult steps of novel writing: getting started…and finishing. Learn plot and character development, pacing, sustaining interest/tension, editing and getting your manuscript ready for the marketplace.

This book is for writers who want the motivation and discipline that come from making a commitment to writing. Learn advanced “tips and tricks” from someone who has actually published major lead-title novels through major New York publishers. The Workbook focuses on developing the student’s work beyond the initial stages and includes unique writing exercises specifically designed by Mr. Smoke to stimulate creativity.

THE PRINCE OF PALOS VERDES Justin Wright is a collector...of things and people. Nothing in his multi-billion dollar empire was more precious to him than his wife, Judy. And nothing had ever threatened that empire...until the night he discovered Judy's dead body in the foyer of their Palos Verdes mansion. Sawyer Black is a retired LAPD homicide detective who now writes crime novels, some of which have been made into feature films. He leads an idyllic life in Palos Verdes and spends most evenings sipping brandy while petting fish in his koi pond and watching the sun melt into the Pacific. But his life, not unlike the lives of the characters in his novels, is not always what it seems. His marriage is in trouble, he's drinking too much...and his friend's wife has just been murdered. When Justin Wright becomes the prime suspect in his wife's murder, and his life and freedom hang in the balance, he turns to Sawyer for help. But Sawyer is not sure he can save his friend...until he saves himself.

Trick of the Light

"She was the kind of woman who could knock a monk off a celibacy vow at twenty paces."

The woman in question is Valerie Tyrell and she wants San Francisco private eye, Nick Sands, to find somone. She wants him to help her find God. "Your ad in the phone book says you can find anybody. If God is everywhere, this ought to be a piece of cake."

Thus begins Trick of the Light, two people's spiritual quest played out against the backdrop of the hardboiled detective genre.

On the road to locating the ah..."missing person," Valerie and Nick encounter some of the most bizarre and thought-provoking characters this side of the looking glass. It is a journey that challenges their assumptions and belief about themselves, the nature of reality and the universe itself.

Black Butterfly

Twelve years ago Victor Larkin, an LA artist, was arrested for the murders of six women. Larkin's "signature" was a colorful and meticulously detailed rendering of a Painted Lady butterfly done on each victim's back.

Two days after his arrest Larkin hung himself in his cell.

Now, twelve years later, LAPD detective E.L. Nash is looking for a serial killer who paints butterflies on his victims' backs. Painted Lady butterflies.

Just like before...

Tears of Angels

One of conservative radio host Kyle Talbot's listeners is taking the host's message way too seriously. Drug dealers, sexual predators and corrupt politicians who have evaded justice are being systematically and brutally murdered.

FBI agent and serial killer expert Matt Baldwin is assigned to the case. But as he gets more deeply involved he realizes that although the killer may be mad, he is also quite brilliant.

Teen Bill of Responsibilities

This is a book about teens, their choices and their responsibility for those choices. It's a book that is meant to be used even more than it is meant to be read. When the reader is finished with it, most of the pages will contain the reader's words, the reader's ideas and the reader's realizations.

Corporate Bill of Responsibilities

The Corporate Bill of Responsibilities gives readers a unique and no-nonsense guide to balancing corporate rights with corporate responsibilities, and individual rights with individual responsibilities. It is the author's hope that corporations, employees and the community will understand the important synergies they share, and that they will all act on that knowledge in a more responsible manner that benefits them all.

Palos Verdes Peninsula Artists

Palos Verdes Peninsula Artists features twenty-two prominent local artists: Donna Anderson, Lois Barnes, Elma Beck, Don Crocker, Phyllis Ferrara, Laura Hines-Jurgens, Cinthia Joyce, Gloria D. Lee, Frank Minuto, Margaret Mohr, Lois Olson, Dael Patton, Aapo Pukk, Lynnie Sterba, Kathryn Stinis, Richard Stephens, Ruby Wang, Carol Morris-Ward, Joyce Weiss, Karen Wickham, Patricia Woolley, and Jean Zaske.

Real Life Pet Wisdom

All the stories in Real Life Pet Wisdom are written from the point of view of the pet. Some of the stories are poignant. Some are humorous. Still others are full of adventure and dangerous escapes. There are stories about dogs, cats, birds, even a lizard.

Our pets listen to us. We tell them things we tell no one else because we know they will keep our confidence. Now it's time to listen to those who have been silent - well, at least not talkative...

Until now.

Becoming American

Becoming American offers perspectives on the realities and challenges of Americans at the crossroads of two cultures. From a biracial romance during the Vietnam War, to the Ping Pong Diplomacy Chinese Americans faced in 1970s China, to the intergenerational gaps between immigrant parents and their gown American-born children, each story resonates with the voices of people from different walks of life. Becoming American explores fascinating bicultural experiences in these dramatic and compelling short stories.

Crystal Meth Cowboys

The naked man looked up at the rookie cop. His eyebrows were plastered flat, a vein in his forehead pulsed four beats a second and his nose gushed watery mucus all over Wes Lyedecker's brand new wool uniform shirt. He had a pleading look in his eyes.

Officer Bell raised his baton over his head and, using all the leverage of a long arm on a tall body, RANG the crown of the naked man's skull like a ball peen hammer on a ten penny nail. The man spasmed, splashing sweat in all directions. Bell stepped back, pleased with his effort, waiting for its effect.

The naked man smiled and yanked Wes Lyedecker's gun from its holster, snapping the leather restraining strap in two.

Writing Bestsellers

Your absolute, quintessential, all you wanted to know, complete guide to writing a bestseller.

Turn your idea into a blockbuster hit!

Stan Corwin is the former president and publisher of Pinnacle Books and the President and CEO of Tudor Communications. He has been involved as a publisher, author, and packager in numerous national bestsellers, including the #1 bestseller And Ladies of the Club.