Friday, March 25, 2016

Author Interview- Joe Cosentino

PORCELAIN DOLL, a Jana Lane mystery
By Joe Cosentino
Published by The Wild Rose Press



ASIN:
Released: March 16, 2016
Pages: 260
Cover Artist: Debbie Taylor
Paperback: 978-1-5092-0603-2
Digital: 978-1-5092-0604-9
Heat Level: Sensual, PG-13  
  
Is art imitating life in 1982? Jana Lane, ex-child star, is doing a comeback film about murder. When a crew member is killed on the set, it looks like Jana could be next.Thickening the plot is Jana’s breathtakingly handsome and muscular leading man, Jason Apollo, whose boyish, southern charms have aroused Jana’s interest on screen and off. Will Jana and Jason stop the murderer before the final reel, or end up on the cutting room floor in this fast-paced whodunit with a shocking ending?

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Praise for PORCELAIN DOLL, a Jana Lane mystery:

Praises for PAPER DOLL, the first Jana Lane mystery:

Paper Doll is a superbly crafted mystery with an eclectic cast of characters that will engage you and elicit some very emotional responses as you are completely caught up in the events that unfold in these pages. Everyone has secrets and the people in Paper Doll have them in spades!” Fresh Fiction

“If you like novels that are filled with new and old Hollywood, and a range of sub-plots, you are going to love this!” Saguaro Moon Reviews

“I liked that there was enough evidence for each of the suspects to keep me guessing until the very end.” Molly Lolly Reviews

“Joe Cosentino knows how to keep his readers’ interest with every page.” Universal Creativity Digital Magazine

“The setting, the characterization and the plot keep you turning the pages.” The Book Mistress

“Joe Cosentino has crafted an engaging tale of secrets, lies and deceit set in that crazy, ego driven scene called Hollywood.” Deb Sanders

"Mr. Cosentino has produced a masterpiece of mystery" "The story gripped me from the start and there were enough twists and turns, with a bit of romance thrown in for good measure, to keep hold of me until the end of the book." "Great book, can’t wait for book 2." Readers’ Favorite

AN INTERVIEW WITH JOE COSENTINO, AUTHOR OF PORCELAIN DOLL,
A JANA LANE MYSTERY FROM THE WILD ROSE PRESS

Tell me three words that describe yourself starting with A, B, and C.

Actor, Bright, Cosentino

What are your three favorite things?

Mysteries, Movies, Mayhem

Are you self- published or with a publishing company (if so, which one?)?

The Wild Rose Press

Is there a process you stick to, or do you just write as it hits you?

I generally wake up at 3am with a great idea and jot some notes on my night table. If I can read them in the morning, I plan out the clues, plot twists and turns, and surprise ending. Next I write a plot summary and biography for each character. I let the characters talk to each other as I did when doing improvisation as an actor. I show the second draft to my spouse for notes. The third draft goes to the publisher. The fun thing about writing a series (I have two) is the leading characters are so real to me, each book is like visiting with old friends. I love Jana Lane and I enjoy every moment with her. On the negative side, for continuity I need to keep a notebook full of information on each recurring character and the various repeat locations—i.e. every room in Jana’s Hyde Park mansion. I write at night after my spouse has gone to bed. I have a beautiful cherry wood study with a fireplace, huge desk, bookcases, and window seat. My mother asked me, “Don’t you have anything better to do than write at night?” I wonder if Shakespeare’s mother asked him that? Hah.

Was there any particular inspiration for your characters or story?

As a child I loved child stars like Shirley Temple, Hayley Mills, and Patty Duke, seeing their movies over and over. So I created a heroine who was the biggest child star ever. Now approaching middle age in PORCELAIN DOLL, she is making a movie comeback in a murder mystery and life imitates art.

After college I became an actor in film, television, and theatre, working opposite stars like Bruce Willis, Nathan Lane, Rosie O’Donnell, Holland Taylor, and Jason Robards. Morphing into writing plays and now novels seemed like the perfect progression. It occurred to me that acting is storytelling in the same way that writing is storytelling, so I decided to give writing a try. After writing some plays, I knew my novels would include show business in some way, since show business has always been such a huge part of my life. As an avid mystery reader, it was clear to me that my novels would also be page-turning mysteries with clever plot twists, engaging characters, romance, and lots of clues leading to a surprising conclusion. Since coming from a funny Italian-American family, I also knew humor would play a role in my novels.

What is the ultimate goal you have for your career?

I want to come full circle and play Jana’s funny agent Simon Huckby in the The Jana Lane Mysteries and Martin Anderson the theatre department head in The Nicky and Noah mysteries on television!

 Will there be more books in your series, or can you tell us about any previous books?

PAPER DOLL gives us Jana’s backstory, revealing the mystery of how and why Jana left the business at eighteen. In PORCELAIN DOLL (current release from The Wild Rose Press), it is 1982 and Jana is thirty-nine years old, living in a mansion in Hyde Park, New York. Jana makes a comeback film and uncovers who is being murdered on the set and why. Her heart is set aflutter by her incredibly gorgeous co-star, America’s heartthrob Jason Apollo. The other suspects include Jana’s James Dean type young co-star, her older John Wayne type co-star, her children’s Eve Harrington type nanny, the film’s gossipy makeup and hair artist, a local reverend trying to stop the film’s production, and Jason’s agent. In SATIN DOLL (not yet released from The Wild Rose Press), Jana and family head to Washington, DC, where Jana plays a US senator in a new film, and becomes embroiled in a murder and corruption at the senate chamber. She also embarks on a romance with Chris Bruno, the ex-professional football player detective. In CHINA DOLL (not yet released from The Wild Rose Press), Jana heads to New York City to star in a Broadway play, enchanted by her gorgeous co-star Peter Stevens, and faced with murder on stage and off. I am currently writing RAGDOLL, where Jana stars in a murder mystery TV series and again life imitates art. Through the course of the books, Jana not only solves the mysteries, but also reclaims the courage and fortitude she had as a child. This is an important message for all of us. As one reviewer wrote, she starts out as a wounded bird, and ends as tiger.

The reviews so far have been great. For example, here are two review quotes for PORCELAIN DOLL:
Porcelain Doll is Joe Cosentino at his finest. We are drawn back to the fashions and attitudes of the 1980's in a character-driven story full of intrigue and passion." Kirsty Vizard, Divine Magazine
“Beautifully written and intensely detailed, Porcelain Doll is one not to be missed. Flirtatiously decadent with a strong moral undertone, set in a decade of extraordinary social change this is a story of its period that is as poignant today as it was then. Joe Cosentino controlled the emotions that the book encouraged with a deft but delicate touch. Suspenseful and mysterious, Porcelain Doll is a masterful creation, one that was impossible not to be affected by.” Carol Fenton, BooksLaidBare Reviews

When not writing, what can you be found doing?

I’m a college theatre professor/department head like Martin Anderson in my Nicky and Noah mystery series (DRAMA QUEEN and DRAMA MUSCLE), which takes place at a theatre department at a college. I also like doing interviews like this one. And I love hearing from readers. They can contact me at http://www.JoeCosentino.weebly.com.       



Author Bio:



Amazon Bestselling author Joe Cosentino wrote Paper Doll the first Jana Lane mystery (Whiskey Creek Press),Porcelain Doll the second Jana Lane mystery (The Wild Rose Press), Drama Queen the first Nicky and Noah mystery (Lethe Press), Drama Muscle the second Nicky and Noah mystery (Lethe Press), An Infatuation & A Shooting Star & A Home for the Holidays & The Naked Prince and Other Tales from Fairyland (Dreamspinner Press), Cozzi Cove: Bouncing Back (NineStar Press), and The Nutcracker and the Mouse King (Eldridge Plays and Musicals). He has appeared in principal acting roles in film, television, and theatre, opposite stars such as Bruce Willis, Rosie O’Donnell, Nathan Lane, Holland Taylor, and Jason Robards. His one-act plays, Infatuationand Neighbor, were performed in New York City. He wrote The Perils of Pauline educational film (Prentice Hall Publishers). Joe is currently Head of the Department/Professor at a college in upstate New York, and is happily married. His upcoming novels are Satin Doll the third Jana Lane mystery (The Wild Rose Press), China Doll the fourth Jana Lane mystery (The Wild Rose Press), Drama Cruise the third Nicky and Noah mystery (Lethe Press), and Cozzi Cove: Moving Forward (NineStar Press). Joe was voted 2nd Place for Best Author of the Year in Divine Magazine’s Readers’ Choice Awards for 2015.

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