Summer of Interviews: Michael Eldridge

Today I'm pleased to welcome Michael Eldridge!

1. What was your inspiration for your book? Can you tell us about how your own experiences influenced this story?

I’m an avid reader of mystery and private eye books. I made a living as a musician/entertainer for 52 years. Many of my characters are based on some of the thousands of people I met along the way.. I was writing for the last 15 years of that time. I have 3 other finished manuscripts in The Spaghetti & Rice series, along with 8 other novels and a short story collection

2. Would you classify this series as plot driven or character driven?

Characters

3. Can you tell us a little about your main characters?

Retired Italian Homicide Lieutenant, Frank  Borelli has started a private eye firm with his friend, retired Chinese call girl, madam, Ming Li Chow. Frank has a wacky Italian family, and three ex-wives. Ming Li has an 11-year-old son, Tommy, who is the offspring of the head of the Chinese Mafia in Boston, MA. Since retiring from her madam-ship, Ming Li took courses in criminal forensics, received a double black belt in Tai Kwan Do; and has become extremely proficient in the use of several firearms, and many different deadly weapons. She is definitely a person to be reckoned with. Several million dollars remain from her previous profession. Frank brings 22 years of experience in homicide and a proficiency with his Glock .45, and Remington shotgun to the show. He is a scratch golfer and insists he has a black-belt in 9 iron. The name of their firm is Spaghetti & Rice Investigations.

4. Without giving away too much, tell us about the main conflict.

The Jack of Harts story line; Tommy Chow’s best friend, Jack Hart and his mother, Jean, have found themselves tangled in a battle with the head of the local Colombian drug cartel in Boston, MA. Frank and Ming Li are called in to help. Jean was involved in illegal money laundering and wanted out. Drug lords don’t let people out when they know as much about their business as Jean does. Carmen Diablo and his henchmen try to stop her, but are thwarted at every encounter by Frank and Ming Li, among others. The boy’s kidnapping, and an ingenious assault on the drug cartel compound, and explosive mayhem ensue.

5. What do you hope readers take away from this book?

That is was a fun experience.

6. What song best describes your writing style?

 What is funny is that I know sooo many songs, and I can’t think of an answer for this one. How about ‘Simply Irresistible’ ??

7. Night Owl or Early Bird?

Night owl

8. Skittle or M&Ms?

M&Ms

9. Who are your favorite authors?

Steven King, James Patterson, Michael Connelly, Dean Koontz, and Janet Evonovich.

10. Can you tell us about any other future projects?

Journey in a Pale Blue Chevy will be my next attempt, unless I sell a bunch of the Spaghetti & Rice novels; then I’ll present # 2 in the series.


You can fin out more about Michael and his books here:

www.aleme.com  and pianoman264@hotmail.com
                                                         

   
      


Meet Michael Eldridge
I am an up-and-coming new writer. At 72 years-old, I have made a successful living as a musician/entertainer for the last 52 years.

I was born in Dayton OH., but grew up in Denver CO. I graduated from South High School in 1960, with another year at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. Besides Ohio and Colorado, I have lived in Florida, Maine, Arizona and California.
After graduating high school, I immediately started playing music in night clubs. My dog, Freckles, was my constant companion from age 7 to 19, until I left home to become a big name recording star. (Freckles lived another 4 years, living with my father.)

Obviously, I never became a star, but my music has taken me to 66 countries, including; Canada, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Iceland, England, Scotland, all of Scandinavia, Russia, Estonia, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Europe, Morocco, Turkey, Greece, Malta, Spain, Portugal, South and Central America, Mexico, all of the Caribbean Islands, and 49 states.

I have met literally thousands of people in my travels, working in hotels, night clubs, resorts, and on major cruise lines. And now, I want to be a novelist when I grow up.

I self-published my first novel, ‘Mustang Blue’ (A murder mystery with a supernatural twist.) You can still get a signed hard copy of Mustang Blue by going to my website and ordering it. I published it in 2003 and sold 220 copies across the piano. (Enough to pay for the printing, 250 copies, and to go out to dinner at Red Lobster a couple of times.)

I've been writing short stories, off-and-on since my high school creative writing class in Denver, CO. I would have them running around in my head for months, until I finally had to spew them onto paper. Because I had told several people my idea for the Mustang Blue story, they all said “You have to write that.” I was working on a horrible cruise ship job (Yes, Virginia, there is such a thing) and to fight the depression of the job, my terrible cabin, and the (how do I put this? complete a-----e officers. There, I guess that will do) I finally started writing what became my 1st self-published novel. Since then, I have written a total of eight more novels, including four in the Spaghetti & Rice Investigations series; the first of which is ‘Jack of Harts-A Spaghetti & Rice Mystery.’ I just finished working on my 9th novel, a Western set in 1869-70 in Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, and Wyoming, ‘The Dancing Gunfighter’

My short story collection, ‘Romance and Other Strangeness’ is on amazon/kindle; a collection of stories from the romantic to the bizarre.

Praise for Michael's books:

“One of the most creative writers I’ve run across in years . . .” “In Mike Eldridge, I really feel that I’ve discovered a talent deserving of publisher consideration. He’s refreshingly receptive to editorial suggestions. More important, he has a fertile imagination. His ‘Spaghetti & Rice’ series concept is pure genius. I wish I’d thought of it.”

Donald Bain; author of the Jessica Fletcher Murder She Wrote novels