Since his retirement from The University of Western Ontario in 2005, Jim Anderson’s life has been filled with murder, action and romance.
Jim Anderson
Wait, it’s not what you think. The former Western News editor has penned his first full-length novel, with the release of the thriller Deadline, a glimpse into the world of newspapers and the mind of a serial killer prowling the streets of Toronto set over a 24-hour period.
“I’ve always been an avid reader of thrillers and mystery novels, but there have been very few with a Canadian setting,” Anderson says. “I decided to write a thriller combining my love of the genre with life in a big city newspaper.”
It was 2008 when Anderson decided to put pen to paper and hash out the story. The initial draft took about eight months to complete, working a couple hours a day. A few re-writes later, Anderson had the tale that intertwines the stories of a Toronto crime reporter, an Afghanistan foreign correspondent, a financially strapped Canadian publisher and his U.S. counterpart called in to boost circulation.
“It is a thrill and the fulfillment of a lifelong dream to be a published author,” says Anderson, who has been writing stories since he was 8 years old. “I went into journalism because I loved to write, but it left me little time to pursue creative fiction. I thought I would take a stab at writing a novel, so I decided to write about what I know – newspapers – and combine it with my love of thriller and mystery fiction.”
While spending time with family and occasionally hitting the golf course in retirement, Anderson still can’t shake that “compulsion to write” with many ideas floating around his head.
But from first-hand experience, Anderson can tell you writing a book is one thing, getting it published is an entirely different ball game. “I thought being a Canadian thriller, of which there are very few on the market, that I should start sending it to Canadian publishers and literary agents. Every one of them rejected it,” he says, accumulating 80 such letters.
Somewhat discouraged by the whole ordeal, Anderson recalls being told during a novel writing seminar to expect countless rejections but, more importantly, not to give up. Anderson notes famed horror writer Stephen King received more than 300 rejections for his first novel Carrie, and Harry Potter author J. K Rowling was told her children’s fantasy books would never sell. “She didn’t end up doing too badly,” says Anderson.
While he continues to enjoy the initial excitement of being called a “novelist,” Anderson is hoping it’s not a one-off deal. “I have other ideas for novels, including perhaps a sequel involving one of the characters from this one,” he says. “Right now I am waiting to see how this one does and if it sells. I will be putting most of my energy in the immediate future into promoting the book and getting it known. Then it is up to the readers. I hope to get back to writing another in the near future.”
To purchase a copy of Deadline, ($19.95 paperback, $5.99 ebook) visit lulu.com/product/paperback/deadline/12468881 or click on the QR code. The book will soon be available from Amazon.com, Amazon.ca and BarnesandNoble.com.