First Thrills - Lee Child [1]
“My Father’s Eyes” copyright © 2010 by Wendy Corsi Staub
“Program with a Happy Ending” copyright © 2010 by Cynthia Robinson
“Killing Carol Ann” copyright © 2010 by J. T. Ellison
“Chloe” copyright © 2010 by Marc Paoletti
“Cold, Cold Heart” copyright © 2010 by Karin Slaughter
“Calling the Shots” copyright © 2010 by Karen Dionne
Afterword copyright © 2010 by Steve Berry
We dedicate this collection to
our friends and families for their unending support
and to our readers: you are the reason we do what we do.
Because of all of you, we can write what we love.
Thanks for reading!
Contents
INTRODUCTION * Lee Child
THE THIEF * Gregg Hurwitz
SCUTWORK * CJ Lyons
THE BODYGUARD * Lee Child
LAST SUPPER * Rip Gerber
AFTER DARK * Alex Kava and Deb Carlin
WEDNESDAY’S CHILD * Ken Bruen
EDDY MAY * Theo Gangi
THE PLOT * Jeffery Deaver
EYE OF THE STORM * John Lutz and Lise S. Baker
THE DEAD CLUB * Michael Palmer and Daniel James Palmer
UNDERBELLY * Grant McKenzie
THE GATO CONUNDRUM * John Lescroart
THE PRINCESS OF FELONY FLATS * Bill Cameron
SAVAGE PLANET * Stephen Coonts
SUSPENDED * Ryan Brown
INVISIBLE * Sean Michael Bailey
WHEN JOHNNY COMES MARCHING HOME * Heather Graham
ON THE TRAIN * Rebecca Cantrell
CHILDREN’S DAY * Kelli Stanley
MY FATHER’S EYES * Wendy Corsi Staub
PROGRAM WITH A HAPPY ENDING * Cynthia Robinson
KILLING CAROL ANN * J. T. Ellison
CHLOE * Marc Paoletti
COLD, COLD HEART * Karin Slaughter
CALLING THE SHOTS * Karen Dionne
AFTERWORD
Acknowledgments
A lot of people work very hard behind the scenes to bring a book to life. A collection like this involves even more work because of the number of authors involved. We would like to thank these unsung heroes:
Scott Miller and everyone at Trident Media Group, for their unending enthusiasm and hard work in bringing this project to life.
Our editor, Eric Raab, his assistant, Whitney Ross, and everyone at Tor/Forge, for taking our words and giving them a home.
International Thriller Writers’ board of directors, for their inspiration and guidance. The ITW staff who work tirelessly to keep everything in working order. ITW’s Debut Author Program, which provides new authors with support, encouragement, and camaraderie.
And, finally, our guardian angels: Lee Child, Steve Berry, Liz Berry, Jon Land, Kim Howe, and Eileen Hutton.
Thanks, guys! We couldn’t have done any of this without you!
LEE CHILD
As of this writing, the International Thriller Writers, Inc. organization—ITW—is a little more than five years old. It grew quickly and strongly and in short order became very good at what such organizations are supposed to be good at, but what was fascinating was the way it ebbed and flowed and tested uncharted areas and developed skills and interests that were new. Its annual conventions—ThrillerFests—were immediately distinctive. Its internal disciplines were immediately professional. But I believe its support of new members will be most remembered.
New authors face a tough challenge. Publishing was never an easy field to break into, and it gets harder all the time. Sometimes lightning strikes, but for most of us, a career is built slowly and painstakingly, year on year. The first couple of years are crucial. Early buzz means survival. Established ITW members know that—indeed, how could they not? By definition, they all survived that test, and they all remember it well. So, early and organically, the organization felt its way into a situation where sending the elevator back down became a major priority.
Not that it wasn’t a two-way street. Our first debut generation organized itself into Killer Year 2007, and ITW recognized a great idea and ran with it. Some members of that class are now three or four books into stellar careers and are well on their way to becoming household names. The obvious quality of their emerging talent reinforced ITW’s commitment, and the organization stepped up its efforts and developed a solid program of support. Inside the organization, debut authors get access to advice and mentoring,