Jeff Stratton lives in southern New Hampshire with his wife, Kathleen, three horses, a cat and our beloved 12+ year-old Newfoundland. He is a lifelong avid reader and has taken a special interest in writing over the past fifteen years. He is mostly interested in the suspense/thriller genre but is also fond of exploring the spiritual realm. Creating interesting, realistic characters and keeping the plot moving swiftly are two of his highest priorities.
He is a licensed clinical mental health counselor, as well as a licensed alcohol and drug counselor.
Among the writers he admires most is Dean Koontz for his ability to create compelling story lines and memorable characters, while at the same time being inspiring with often subtle spiritual elements and beloved gifted dogs and children. It is Jeff Stratton’s hope to create something approaching that rarified air in the world of fiction.
Dear Readers: It is amazing that despite me and my wife having no children, finding time to begin, continue, and finally complete writing a novel can be so challenging. I do not know how couples with children find the time to do anything else but work and care for their offspring.
I had always harbored the notion of writing something longer than a poem, but it wasn’t until I got my first laptop computer in 1997 that I began to write in earnest. It is exciting to create something out of nothing; to let your imagination guide you as begin with a simple sentence and months later end with a completed story with a comprehensible, compelling plot and interesting, realistic characters that most of us could relate to knowing.
Probably against most writers’ advice, I do not use an outline when creating a novel. Part of my joy is sitting down at my computer on a new day and seeing where my mind takes the story. I find that just knowing what I’m going to use as a title for the novel helps me form the story and the characters. When I begin, I usually have an idea of how I want the story to end; however, that can change to some extent along the way.
It is my most sincere wish that you find this novel satisfying and compelling—a page turner, as they say in the industry. I want it to be the kind of book that, after having finished it, the reader is eager to recommend it to family, friends, and coworkers.
I thank you for your interest in this novel over which I toiled for what must have been hundreds of hours.