About the Author: "In 1966 I got a job as a clerk in the library at The Denver Post, which was then the city's afternoon daily. Eventually I became copy boy on the newspaper, and from that I began writing stories. Finally I was given a trial run as a reporter and soon was put on the newspaper's three-man investigative team.

"This only goes to prove that the hardest thing about any job is getting it.

"I was a collector of old-time radio shows for 30 years. I grew up with this stuff. It was like collecting part of my own life. I parlayed that into a weekly radio show, which I hosted on Denver radio for more than 25 years.

"I worked in politics for a while: campaign press secretary to candidates for mayor of Denver, U.S. Senate, and House of Representatives. I taught writing and journalism at the University of Denver and at Metropolitan State College and In 1973 I worked on the Robert Altman film, Thieves Like Us. Altman's film was based on the 1937 novel by Edward Anderson, and he wanted it scored with old radio shows. My job--which lasted six weeks--was to find the right sounds to fit his story.

"In 1984, with my wife Helen, I opened the Old Algonquin Bookstore in East Denver. We closed the store in 1994, two years after Booked to Die was published, and have been online booksellers ever since."

John's latest challenge has been a large benign brain tumor, which was partially removed in 2006, causing the loss of one eye and a long recovery period. But he is now writing again and working at getting back Janeway's unique voice on the page.

Awards: Edgar Awards Best Novel nominee (1996) : The Bookman's Wake