Troy Cook: The Business of Crime Fiction

Stacy Alesi, Boca Raton, FL -- Library Journal, 4/15/2007

Your titles seem to have been influenced by successful business books; first was 47 Rules of Highly Effective Bank Robbers and your upcoming book is called The One Minute Assassin (Sept.). Is this business influence deliberate? Do you start with a title or does it come later in the writing process?

I work on titles throughout the process, but I have to admit that once I settle on a title it really influences the story. Coming up with the 47 Rules for robbing banks was a blast. Especially having the rules come from a delightfully wicked bad guy as he trains his nine year old daughter to be his partner in crime. But, yes, the business influence is deliberate. Working in the film industry made me think of business and creating in a whole new way—that the two ideas needed to be married together. I also think crime and business often go together, unfortunately. Corporate crime is rampant. When I did a film in Russia I saw first hand that the Mafia members there were among the most successful businessmen in the country. So of course I had to have some Russian criminals in The One Minute Assassin.

Your father, Bruce R. Cook is also a crime writer (Philippine Fever, LJ 8/15/06) What sort of influence did he have on your own career aspirations and your writing?

He set the expectation that following your dream job is a worthwhile pursuit, even if it's in a creative arts field that often doesn't pay well. And his love of words probably didn't hurt either. Growing up, we actually had a dictionary in every room of the house, including the bathroom—you know, just in case there was a word emergency and you had to look something up that instant. And I guess it worked. We've both been fortunate enough to have successful careers in very competitive creative fields.

Getting a first novel noticed is not always easy. What was your marketing strategy? Do you think working with a small press like Capital Crime Press was an advantage or disadvantage?

My strategy was to promote, promote, promote and then hope for a little luck. With so many books coming out every month, I wanted to meet as many people as possible. I did a signing tour in 47 cities across the country and I went to ten mystery conventions to meet new fans, authors, and reviewers. I still spend a lot of time speaking on panels and workshops, as well as meeting with book clubs. Luckily the story resonated with readers and my novel picked up a couple of awards as well as a movie deal with a very good production company. As for small presses, their biggest disadvantage is that they usually can't get books into as many bookstores as a big publisher. But Capital Crime Press does have a national sales force so my books got into more stores than your typical small press. And they really care about every one of their authors, which is wonderful. Overall, I think Capital Crime worked very well.

Your next novel, The One Minute Assassin, doesn't appear to be a sequel to 47 Rules. How does it differ from your first novel?

You're right, they're both standalones. The biggest similarity is style—they both share my unique mix of crime and humor. But The One Minute Assassin raises the stakes, targeting murder and politics. It features an ex-PI who charges to the rescue of his sister when she becomes a target for assassination during one of the strangest elections in California history. Amateur assassins, Russian Mafia, and a meddling senatorial mother also make things interesting. I'm currently working on my third book, which will have some characters cross over from my first two books. So even though they're all standalones, they will all be connected.

See the Q&A's with Jason Pinter and Robert Fate.