Today, Norm Goldman Publisher & Editor of Bookpleasures.com is honored to have as our guest well-known author of legal thrillers, Paul Levine.
Paul’s novels have been translated into twenty-one languages and he has written three series, known generally by the names of the protagonists: "Jake Lassiter," "Solomon and Lord," and “Jimmy Payne.”  I recently reviewed his latest novel, Illegal.

Good day Paul and thanks for taking the time to participate in our interview.

Norm:

How did you get started in writing? What keeps you going?

Paul: 

After practicing  law in Miami for 17 years, I realized that, not only wasn’t my work a positive factor in society, I wasn’t enjoying it.  You gotta have one or the other, and preferably both.  I think I was born with the storytelling gene, and I probably started writing fiction in my appellate briefs.  I started the first book, “To Speak for the Dead,” on the beach in Maui.  I’d gone there to windsurf and had injured a leg.  I had a ball writing it; Bantam bought it; I quit my day job, and now it’s 13 books later.

Norm:

How long does it take you to write a book?  What is your work schedule like when you're writing?

Paul

I treat it as a full-time job.  At work by 8 a.m., quit in mid-afternoon for a swim or a trip to the gym, or a walk on a nearby trail with the dog.  Then work again in the evening.  I spend from 9 months to 18 months on a book, depending on how much research it takes. The first book of a series takes the longest.

Norm:

I noticed, after reading your bio that you have worked as a newspaper reporter, a law professor and a trial lawyer before becoming a full-time novelist. How have the experiences of these various occupations help you in becoming a full-time novelist?

Paul: 

I think every job helps the writer.  Certainly, in my case, a background in the law helped create my 3 lawyer-protagonists: Jake Lassiter, Steve Solomon, and Jimmy (Royal) Payne, the tarnished hero of “Illegal.”

Norm:

Why have you been drawn to legal thrillers? As a follow up, are there aesthetic advantages and disadvantages peculiar to the legal thriller? Does it have a form?

Paul: 

I still love the law, even if I grew tired of lawyering.  The structure of a murder trial can serve as the structure for a book.  However, my books do not focus on the trial, but rather the characters.  It’s hard to write a trial that hasn’t been done before.  And if you do try it, see if it’s as good as “Witness for the Prosecution.”

Norm:

In fiction as well as in non-fiction, writers very often take liberties with their material to tell a good story or make a point.
But how much is too much? As a follow up, your recent novel Illegal contains a great deal of information pertaining to illegal Mexican immigrants. How much of this information is accurate and how did you go about tracking down the information?

Paul: 

I like to think that nearly everything in “Illegal” sticks to the truth or so closely that it could have happened.  I traveled from Mexicali to Kings County in California’s San Joaquin Valley.  It’s the same route Jimmy Payne takes in “Illegal.”  I talked to Border Patrol agents, cops, vigilantes, Catholic charity workers, and a couple illegal aliens as well.  In Kings County, I learned to pick peaches.

Norm:

What was your secret in keeping the intensity of the plot throughout Illegal?

Paul: 

Norm, I honestly don’t know the answer to that one.  In thrillers, part of the secret is withholding a bit of information here and there but still playing fair with the reader.

Norm:

Are the characters in Illegal based on people you know or have encountered or are they strictly fictional?

Paul: 

The character of Simeon Rutledge is based, in part, on a mega-grower in California.  But the real man is not so villainous.  The other characters, including Jimmy Payne, probably spring from real people, but they’re buried deep in my subconscious.

Norm:

Do you feel that writers, regardless of genre owe something to readers, if not, why not, if so, why and what would that be?

Paul: 

I try to both entertain and enlighten.  A book should do both.  How can you expect the reader to spend a dozen hours or more with your book?

Norm:

Do you have any suggestions to help authors become better writers? If so, what are they?

Paul: 

I believe the way to polish your craft is to read authors you respect and to keep writing.  I think my work has improved with age. 

Norm:

Where can our readers find out more about you and your novels?

Paul: 

They should head straight to http://www.paul-levine.com for more about me, a chance to win a prize, and read an excerpt of “Illegal.”

Norm:

Is there anything else you'd like to share with us and what is next for Paul Levine?

Paul: 

I’m working on the second Jimmy Payne novel. 

Thanks once again and good luck with Illegal and all of your future endeavors.

Click Here To Purchase Illegal

CLICK HERE TO READ NORM`S REVIEW OF ILLEGAL