Denise Hamilton writes:
I have been extremely lucky in my writing career.
My first novel was The Jasmine Trade and was inspired by several stories I actually covered for the Times. I wrote it over about a 3.5 year period while working full-time as a journalist and being pregnant and caring for babies (two). For me the creative writing was an intellectual escape from journalism and the baby bottles, diapers, strollers etc.
I had much help and encouragement from my writing group, a bunch of writer moms in the Silverlake part of LA. We'd meet every other Sunday at someone's house and read and critique.
I sent it out about 10 times before I got an agent. My agent sold it to the first house (Scribner) that she approached.
Denise Hamilton is the author of the superb Eve Diamond series, featuring a reporter who solves murders in contemporary multicultural Los Angeles. The four books she has written so far have already catapulted her to the top ranks of crime writers.
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