Author T. Jefferson Parker's crime novels have catapulted him onto the bestseller list. His first book was turned into a movie for HBO and his novel Silent Joe won the Edgar Award for Best Novel.

FictionAddiction.NET's Apryl Duncan caught up with Parker while working through a deadline for his next big writing project.

How did you go down the path from newspaper reporter to an accomplished author?

It was a pretty smooth transition. I worked nights and weekends on my first novel, which ended up in a drawer, where it belongs. My second one was published and that was that.

Laguna Heat, published in 1985, was made into a movie for HBO and the paperback hit The New York Times bestseller list in 1986. Did you feel any pressure to follow up that first success?

No, I thought I was golden and could do no wrong. It was only after reading the Kirkus review of Little Saigon that I became aware of the "sophomore jinx." I don't consider Little Saigon a jinxed book, though. It's a mainstream novel disguised as a mystery. Some liked it and some didn't.

To date, you've written 10 novels. Which one did you personally enjoy writing the most and why?

My last one, Black Water. I just loved the character of Archie Wildcraft and what happens to him -- he gets shot in the head and lives -- and what he does with the hand he's dealt. I couldn't wait to get up in the morning and find out what he'd do next.

Black Water is actually your third novel featuring the character Merci Rayborn. Do you plan on writing about her again?

Yes, I do. Not the next book, which I'm finishing now and is called Cold Pursuit, but the one after.

When did you say - This is it. I've made it as an author?

When I held the first copy of Laguna Heat in my hands. It was a thrill, absolutely.