Sunday, June 30, 2013

Getting to know mystery author, J.L. Greger



Janet with her dog, Bug
 
Janet, I'm pleased to have you visiting with us today.
 
Patricia: Tell us, what are your favorite things to do when you’re not reading or writing?

Janet: I love to travel to new places. No that’s not right. I like to revisit places too, as long as they’re interesting. What make a place interesting to me? First off, places that were forbidden, at least at one time, - like China, Russia, Lebanon, Cuba. Maybe I’m a bit of an adrenaline junkie. Second, places where important history occurred and in some cases is still occurring, i.e. London, Paris, Berlin, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Boston, and my all time favorite Washington, D.C. Third places with unique “culture” and great food, such as the south of France, New Orleans, Charleston in South Carolina, Santa Fe, the Maine coast. My lists often overlap.

The problem is the other thing I like to do most is spend time with my dog Bug. We walk a lot and do pet therapy in the pediatrics wards at UNM Hospital and at the VA hospital in Albuquerque. While Bug travels well on airplanes (under my seat) and in the car, he can’t do international travel. Thus I’ve done less traveling during the last few years and more cooking, which is my third most fun thing to do. Maybe that’s why I called my second mystery/suspense novel Murder: A New Way to Lose Weight.

Patricia: What’s you favorite color? Why?

Janet: Warm pastels, especially pale yellow. I like warm cozy colors that aren’t brassy or pushy.

Patricia: How would you describe yourself, personality wise?

Janet: An introvert who learned to speak up.

Patricia: You've mentioned that you love to travel. Please name three of the most interesting places you've visited.

Janet: Three of my most interesting trips were done as a consultant on science and education issues. I visited the Marshall Islands (to assess safety issues near former H bomb test sites) and Dubai, Al Ain and Abu Dhabi in the Untied Arab Emirates and American University of Beirut in Lebanon (to help develop university and research infrastructure). I guess Lebanon was the best – archaeological sites that are over three thousand years old, the best of Middle Eastern cuisine, and a will to survive among the people. If the factions in Lebanon stopped fighting, I think Beirut would quickly become one of the top tourist cities in the world.

Patricia: How would you complete this sentence? If I won a million dollars, I would. . .   
 
Janet: probably not live much differently. Perhaps I’d hire someone to stay with Bug when I traveled and/or hire an agent to do much of the publicity on my books Coming Flu, Murder: A New Way to Lose Weight, and a third in this series of medical mystery/suspense novels which will be partially set in Bolivia. (Yes I have traveled there.)

Bio: J.L. Greger, as a biologist and professor emerita of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, enjoys putting tidbits of science into her novels. In Coming Flu (published by Oak Tree Press in 2012), epidemiologist Sara Almquist is trying to stop two killers:  the Philippine flu, which is rapidly wiping out everyone in a walled community in New Mexico, and a drug kingpin determined to break out of the quarantined enclave. In Murder: A New Way to Lose Weight (published by Oak Tree Press in April 2013) Linda Almquist, Sara's sister, is scrutinizing two "diet doctors" for recklessly endangering the lives of their obese research subjects. Soon she finds her research entwined with a police investigation of the murder of one of the diet doctors.

JL included Bug, her Japanese Chin dog, as a character in all three of her novels. To learn more, visit her website: www.jlgreger.com or her blog at www.jlgregerblog.blogspot.com.


Amazon sell tag line for Coming Flu: www.amazon.com/Coming-Flu-J-L-Greger/dp/1610090985/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1363872699&sr=1-1&keywords=Coming+Flu