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Today’s interview is with Patrick Jones, a great storyteller and bestselling author of  THE WOLF’S MOON, who just launched his latest book, THE RIVER.  A thriller that is another suspenseful page-turner, as his first one is!

In rural Missouri, Crawford County has had more than its share of wildlife problems. Not even a year earlier the woods were home to a vicious killer brought back from extinction. Something is haunting the rivers in Crawford County. The Missouri State Water Patrol must solve the deaths of several residents who died in the river but can they stop this menace before more people are killed?

Patrick, thanks a lot for talking with us about your latest title: THE RIVER… Fishing will never be the same again…
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***How did you get the idea for this new work?***
Very often I drive past several of the local rivers to get to the shooting range located nearby. Sometimes on the way back home I’ll stop and just think.  I have a favorite spot where I like to go, described in the story.
One day as I sat with a fishing line in the water, a young boy asked if he could fish alongside me.  I, of course, said he could. He asked what kind of fish I was fishing for. My response was, “Moby Dick”. He looked puzzled asking, “What is a ‘Moby Dick’…”? I explained that it was a white whale in a book I read as a youth.  A few minutes later, my rod bent straight out and what was on the end fought like a whale. I landed a four and one-half pound Catfish. The boy had a surprised look on his face asking, “Is that ‘Moby Dick’…”?
“No,” I said, “just a Catfish”.
“Mister, I thought you caught a Shark or something”.
“Just a Catfish, son”.
On the way home, I wondered what I would have done if it was a shark.  Probably just cut the line.  That was when the idea hit me.

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***You are interested in paleoanthropology and archeology, did it help with the research for this book***
My interests in paleoanthropology helped a great deal with researching the story.  My main research was years ago when my wife took a biology course that included many marine animals long extinct.  She would quiz me after each chapter in an attempt to catch me up.  Luckily, she never did (and until today I never told her I had the same textbook she used).

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***You like fishing, don’t you?  Will your buddies be scared when reading the story?***

I love to go fishing but the last couple of years I haven’t been able to go.  All of my old fishing buddies have gone to the “Great River in the Sky”, but I still have my wife (though she doesn’t like to bait the worm on the hook), and my grandchildren.

Cameron might be scared – a little anyway.
Cade and Bryce would just laugh.
Cody would ask if I was the one who shot the monster.
And my Evie would just smile.

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***Is there a connection to the real life of fishermen in the story***
Some years ago when my wife was out of town working, I’d go to a local Grill & Pub called “Blazer’s”. I had the pleasure on many evenings to sit and listen to people from the area talk about their fishing exploits.  I know all of the signs of someone telling a true story or a “fish tale”.  Either way, it was always an evening well spent.

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***Everybody I meet has their own special story; one simply has to take the time to listen… Do you get lots of ideas for your books from talking with people?***
I try to take the time to listen and watch people no matter where I am. They have so much to say without knowing that they are. People are willing to talk about themselves.  They want to think that their lives mean something – to themselves and to you.  Each person IS special!  I develop many of my characters based on people I know or have met.  I like to think that, by basing a character on them, I have captured their uniqueness in my writing.
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***Do your protagonists in THE RIVER resemble real-life persons?***
In any story that I write, the good guys are always from real life people. What is hard is coming up with new villains.
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***Many of your books’ readers might think about traveling to the beautifully  Ozarks in Missouri where your books take place.  Are you now “famous” in your area?***
I have gone far out of my way so that no one knows where I live. My house is on a small one-lane gravel road and my neighbors are so glad that I am low-key. Can you imagine the traffic?
When I go to the gas station or the grocery store, I am always asked when the next book is coming out. I’m not sure if they like me or my books, but either way I like them.  So if any of my readers want to come to the Ozark Region of Missouri, they will not be disappointed in the area. It is a wonderful place to visit and even a better place to live.
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“The River by Patrick Jones will keep you reading,
on the edge of your seat AND out of the water…”
Chris Graham, Amazon UK /Goodreads UK Reviewer

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THE RIVER is available in print and in e-book format.  Maybe one day it will be an audio-book like THE WOLF’S MOON 

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THE RIVER book trailer on YouTube

Follow Patrick Jones on his social media and author pages too:
Patrick Jones’ author page at Amazon
Patrick Jones’ Twitter page is, another link to Twitter
Pinterest
FaceBook
Goodreads
Goodreads The Wolf’s Moon
Goodreads The River
LinkedIn

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