Introducing Linda Maria Frank by Marilyn Levinson

I met Linda at the Long Island Romance Writers luncheon in June when she came over to chat because I’m president of Long Island Sisters in Crime, and she wanted to find out more about the organization. I was delighted to discover she’s the author of The Madonna Ghost, whose cover I’d be admiring. Linda interviewed me on her TV show, The Writer’s Dream http://bit.ly/PkMJdE She joined our Long Island Sisters in Crime chapter, a big plus for us, because she’s taught forensic science, and every mystery writer has dozens of forensic questions waiting to be answered.
I asked Linda to talk about her background, what led to her becoming a mystery writer, The Writer’s Dream, and her mysteries.

“I grew up in Queens, N.Y. I started to read avidly in the sixth grade, my focus being Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, Judy Bolton and Rick Brant. I always loved mysteries. I enjoyed the puzzles, and the mental gymnastics, but, most of all, the adventure. To a city girl, who’d never been farther than Staten Island, the allure of traveling and having daring adventures was intoxicating. The books gave me an inkling of the life I wanted to lead one day.

"I attended St. John’s University, and went on to teaching. I spent most of my public school career in Seaford, Long Island. I taught forensic science at Seaford High School and at Hofstra University.
My writing career began when I came up with the idea of having my seniors write case studies focusing on aspects of forensic science. They had to include the necessary clues and suspects in order to solve the mystery. The students then took on the roles of detectives, expert witnesses, scientists, eye witnesses, D.A.’s and defense attorneys to present a court trial in class. I was the judge, the class the jury.

"I fell in love with some of the cases, and, after reading some YA mysteries, decided I could write a mystery. Combining the love of mysteries and my history with forensics, I have tagged my Annie Tillery Mysteries, Nancy Drew meets CSI.

"The latest Annie Tillery Mystery, Secrets in the Fairy Chimneys, takes place in Turkey at an archeological dig where artifacts and treasures are disappearing in the labyrinthine land of caves in Turkey’s interior. To me, archeology is the most intriguing branch of forensic science, solving ancient mysteries of the past. DNA fingerprinting plays a major role in solving the mysteries in Secrets of the Fairy Chimneys. It is a topic I find most fascinating and that I truly enjoyed teaching.
The Writer’s Dream started with a lead I got about a local access TV station, while doing an author’s event at Riverhead Library We decided the show should be a forum for authors to discuss writing, publishing and marketing. My guests on The Writer's Dream include authors of all genres, from children's books to self-help, mysteries, historical novels, and memoirs. The show appears all over Long Island on Cablevision’s local access stations, usually 20.


Linda can be reached at: www.lindamariafrank.com