Page 35 - Novelist Post – J.D. Barker and more

BEHIND THE BESTSELLER
least expect them. With this one, my wife and I were having dinner one night discussing a house she’d bought in Georgia and hoped to turn into
a short-term rental. It had a lot of bathrooms so
I suggested a company called Bathfitters. We’ve all seen the commercials, right? They come in an renovate a bathroom in a single day. Later that night, we both started seeing ads for Bathfitters
on our various devices and on television. Keep in mind, neither of us typed Bathfitters into a device, we just spoke the word aloud. I did a little research and realized our phones are listening to us. We give the manufacturers permission to do that when we agree to the Terms of Service. That sparked
the “what if” gene in the writer in me. I paired that with two characters I’d recently created, Abby
and Brendan Hollander. After several years of marriage, they’d hit a rough patch. The book opens and they’re in couples therapy where the therapist suggests they download an app called Sugar & Spice to help rekindle their marriage. It’s basically Truth or Dare for adults. They’re assigned a series of tasks which become increasingly more and more taboo until they find themselves caught in
a dangerous web of seduction and violence with no chance of escape unless they learn to trust one another.
Barker was born January 7, 1971 in Lombard, Illinois and spent the first fourteen years of his life in Crystal Lake, Illinois. A staunch introvert, he was rarely seen without a book in hand, devouring both the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew series by the age of six before moving on to classics such as the works of Dickens and Twain. The discovery of Shelley, Stoker and Poe fueled a fire and it wasn’t long before he was writing tales of his own which
shortly thereafter, helping others fine tune their writing for publication. Barker has said this experience proved invaluable, teaching him what works and what doesn’t in today’s popular fiction. He would continue in this profession until 2012 when he wrote a novel of his own, titled Forsaken.
he shared with friends and family. These early stories centered around witches and ghosts thought to inhabit the woods surrounding their home.
Stephen King read portions of Forsaken prior to pub- lication and granted Barker permission to utilize the character of Leland Gaunt of King’s Needful Things in the novel. Indie-published in late 2014, the book went on to hit several major milestones – #2 on Audible (Harper Lee with Go Set a Watchman held #1), #44
At fourteen, Barker’s family relocated to Englewood, Florida, a climate better suited to his father’s profession as a contractor. He attended Lemon Bay High School and graduated in 1989. Knowing he wanted to pursue a career in the arts but unsure of a direction, he enrolled
at the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale where he later obtained a degree in busi- ness. While in college, one of his writing assignment found its way into the hands of Paul Gallotta of Circus Magazine. Gallotta reached out to Barker and asked him to join the staff of 25th Parallel
on Amazon U.S., #2 on Amazon Canada, and #22 on Amazon UK. Forsaken was also nominated for a Bram Stoker Award (Best Debut Novel) and won a handful of others including a New Apple Medalist Award. After reading Forsaken, Bram Stoker’s family reached out to Barker and asked him to co-author a prequel to Dracula utilizing Bram’s original notes and journals, much of which has never been made public. The novel, titled Dracul, sold at auction to G.P. Putnam
Magazine where he worked alongside the man who would later become Marilyn Manson. Assignments dropped him into the center of pop culture and by 1991 Barker branched out, interviewing celebrities for the likes of Seventeen, TeenBeat, and other national and local publications. In 1992, Barker sy- ndicated a small newspaper column called Revealed which centered around the investigation of haunted places and supernatural occurrences. While he
Barker’s initial indie success drew the attention of traditional agents and publishers and in early 2016
his debut thriller, The Fourth Monkey, sold in a series of pre-empts and auctions worldwide with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt set to publish in the U.S. and Harper- Collins in the UK. The book has also sold for both film and television.
He has since gone on to write numerous titles which have appeared on bestseller lists around the world. He is also a frequent collaborator with James Patterson.
Barker splits his time between Englewood, FL, and New Castle, NH, with his wife, Dayna, and their daughter, Ember.
often cites these early endeavors as a crash course in tightening prose, his heart remained with fiction. He began work as a book doctor and ghostwriter
& Sons, with film rights going to Paramount. Andy Muschietti (IT, Mama) is attached to direct.
A gripping, twist-filled thriller with razor-sharp prose, unforgettable characters, and relentless sus- pense that keeps you hooked until the explosive finale.
The Lies We Tell by Ri- chard Bailey is a master- fully crafted thriller that grips you from the very first page and refuses to let go. This book is a pul- se-pounding journey into the depths of deception, memory, and survival, with every twist and turn leaving you breathless.
The story follows Sier- ra Coleman, a woman who wakes up from a devastating crash with no memory of her past. What begins as a quest to piece together her life quickly spirals into a dangerous game of lies and betrayal. The stakes are high, and the tension is palpable as Sierra un- covers shocking truths about her life, her allies, and even herself. The amnesia trope is given a fresh and thrilling spin,
as every revelation Sierra uncovers only deepens the mystery and raises the stakes.
Bailey’s writing is ra- zor-sharp, with prose that cuts straight to the heart of the action. The pacing is relentless, kee- ping readers on the edge of their seats as the story hurtles toward its explo- sive conclusion. The cha- racters are complex and layered, with Sierra stan- ding out as a fierce and determined protagonist. Her struggle to reclaim her identity and protect her daughter, whom she cannot remember, is both heart-wrenching and em- powering.
What truly sets The Lies We Tell apart is its ability to keep readers guessing. Just when you
think you’ve figured it out, another twist throws you off balance. The book is a masterclass in suspense, with each chapter building on the last to create a story that is as unpredictable as it is compelling.
If you’re a fan of ps- ychological thrillers packed with twists, betrayals, and high-sta- kes drama, The Lies We Tell is a must-read. It’s a rollercoaster ride of emotions and revelations that will leave you ques- tioning everything you thought you knew. Prepa- re to be hooked from start to finish.
NOVeLIST POST II 35
J.D. BARKER
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