Author Interview: Mark Mynheir
Today, Mark shares with us another passion—writing.
Mark has four published novels with a common thread—cops as protagonists. Take the time to check out his web site at www.MarkMynheir.com for more information about his writing: Rolling Thunder, From the Belly of the Dragon, The Void, and his latest, The Night Watchman.
Q: Mark, thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to share with us your writing life. First, tell us about your latest novel, The Night Watchman.
Mynheir: Thanks for having me, Mark. In The Night Watchman, the protagonist, Ray Quinn, is an Orlando homicide detective who is severely wounded in an ambush and forced to medically retire from the force.
Ray battles the haunting guilt for his partner’s death and the nagging physical injuries from the attack. Numbing the pain with alcohol and attitude, he takes a job as a night watchman at a swanky Orlando condo.
But when a pastor and an exotic dancer are found dead in one of the condos in an apparent murder-suicide, Ray can no longer linger in the shadows. The pastor’s sister is convinced her brother was framed and begs Ray to take on an impossible case–to challenge the evidence and clear her brother’s name.
Crawling from the wreckage of his former life, Ray struggles to find healing and purpose again. But when the case of a lifetime is thrust upon him, Ray must decide whether he’ll succumb to his depression and pain or use the God-given gifts he still has inside him to catch a madman.
Q: Interesting story. Mystery readers are often interested how the author came upon the idea for the story. So … how did you come up with this idea?
Mynheir: I saw an interview with a severely wounded police officer who was trying to rebuild his life after a violent assault that crippled him. I wondered what would happen if I, like him, lost everything in an instant—my health, my strength, and my job, as well as the love of my life. That idea blossomed into The Night Watchman.
Mynheir: I imagined a police officer experiencing all the terrible things that Ray Quinn had but without the framework of faith to work from. He’s trying to do it all on his own (like I used to do), and it’s not working out so well for him.
Q: Holding down two careers must be tough. In your forthcoming interview on March 22nd, you will talk about how you became a police officer. Now, tell us a little about how you become a writer? Many writers struggle to cross that threshold into the publishing world. Your web site explains the struggles you endured to become a writer and to acquire an education. Would you mind sharing a part of that story here?
Mynheir: When I was growing up, writing was the worst thing imaginable to me. I loathed putting words to paper. I’m Dyslexic and the very reason (I believe) that God invented spell check. But soon after I became a Christian, I felt the Lord leading me to write. It didn’t make much sense to me and seemed impossible. I shared with my wife what I thought God was doing, and she encouraged me to go to school and learn the skills I needed to write.
So, it took about ten years of classes, writing, and more classes. I met my agent at a writer’s conference. He shopped my first novel, which got some good reviews but didn’t sell. I wrote the proposal for Rolling Thunder, my first published novel. He sent it out. I expected it to take six months or so before I heard anything. But about a week later, I got an e-mail from Multnomah, asking if I would be interested in writing a series. I had to wake my wife up to read the e-mail, just to make sure I wasn’t losing my mind.
To say the least, I got kind of weepy when I held my first book. But don’t tell anyone.
