Eric Stone

Los Angeles, CA

United States

Profile Information:

Hometown:: Los Angeles
About Me:: I'm a writer of fiction and non-fiction. I was a journalist for many years, 11 of them living and working in Asia. I'm currently writing the Ray Sharp series of detective thrillers. The books are based on stories that I covered while working in Asia.

The newest book is SHANGHAIED. It's book four in the series. The first three books in the Ray Sharp series (in order) are:THE LIVING ROOM OF THE DEAD, GRAVE IMPORTS and FLIGHT OF THE HORNBILL.

I also wrote a true crime / sports biography of the greatest prison baseball player of all time: WRONG SIDE OF THE WALL.

As for the personal stuff: I like traveling to strange places and trying to talk with people whose language I don't speak. I love urban exploration - especially by car - which I know isn't PC but I grew up in Los Angeles and have gasoline in my blood. (I also love long road trips, which is why I usually drive on my book tours.) I love cooking and am a pretty good cook if I say so myself. I love blues, 1940s and early '50s bebop - especially honking sax, and a lot of strange foreign pop music. I've worked as a photographer and now just do it for fun. I read more non-fiction than fiction, especially history and biography. I love baseball and have recently particularly enjoyed minor league games. I live with Eva (girlfriend, SO, partner?) in Silverlake, one of my favorite neighborhoods in the world and can see the Griffith Park Observatory and part of the Hollywood sign out my home-office window. You want any more than that, you're just going to have to ask.
I Am A:: Writer
Website:: http://www.ericstone.com
Books And Authors I Like:: Chester Himes, Dan Fesperman, Megan Abbott, Laura Lippman, Loren Estleman, Jonathan Valin (where'd he go anyhow?), Martin Limon, Colin Cotterill, Qiu Xiaolong, Graham Greene, William T. Vollmann, Eduardo Galleano, Mark Twain, Christa Faust, Sophie Littlefield, Flannery O'Connor. A bunch of others. My favorite book of all time is Moby Dick. I reread it once every 10 years or so.
Movies And TV Shows I Like:: Movies: Battle of Algiers, King Kong (the original), Sullivan's Travels, The Killer, Christine, Barton Fink, Badlands, Ali Fear Eats the Soul, Chinatown, Painted Faces, The Conformist, Once Upon a Time in America, Infernal Affairs, The Big Heat and others that escape me at the moment.

Comment Wall:

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Krystal Waters

The book should be coming out in a year around this time. I did get a good contract considering being a new author and getting into the book industry.

I look forward to meeting you in November and getting a book signed. Also, I will enjoy talking to you if there isn't a long line, and meeting you in person.

All the best,
Kristine

Sep 8, 2007
ITW Debut Authors - First Kill

You qualify as a very cool author dude and that's good enough for me. Hi, Eric--This is Jordan Dane. I got tagged with the design and set up for our new page, but I wanted to make sure we had plenty of familiar faces on our site. Thanks for swinging by. See you in AK.

Sep 10, 2007
Jonnie

How do Eric...Thanks for the invite..never read your books, but I will start looking!! My friendly neighborhood used book store has a couple of books they are holding for me, so I will see if they got ya while I'm there!! I'm always looking for new authors. I read quicker than ya'll can write!!LOL!!! I loved Deadwood..did they ever come back out with it..I cancelled my HBO so don't know..if they did, I might get it back!!! Not much into baseball, but my brother in law is & his son just went off to college to a school with a great baseball program..my bro in law works for the dodgers! He used to work for the Toronto Bluejays & has 2 world series rings!! They are cool!!! The thing about tattoosis.. YOU don't have to look at them & you forget they are there!!!(I have 3!!) Take care..peace

Sep 10, 2007
Krystal Waters

I saw you on my comments, thought I would stop by and say hello! Are you getting excited for your book signings?

Kristine

Sep 11, 2007
Jennifer aka Willa

Thank you for the welcome! I'm very much looking forward to meeting others as well as learning.

Sep 13, 2007
James K. Bashkin

Thanks for inviting me along. I look forward to reading through your site and your books. I writing about fiction and crime fiction at my main site, so I hope to see some feedback from you about what I have to say, and perhaps a link back to my site if you find it worthwhile. I think I'll start a second blog roll devoted to the sites of authors, so people can navigate readily to creators or critics. Best wishes, Jim

Sep 14, 2007
Douglas Quinn

When you get a chance, check out my Crimespace Blog re the info and pics from my recent book signing event.

Smiles,
Douglas Quinn
www.douglasquinn.com

Sep 19, 2007
Bruce Findleton

Hey Eric,

Your books look interesting. Thanks for the invite.

Sep 27, 2007
Krystal Waters

Hi Eric, I hope you are enjoying yourself with the book signings and conferences. I am sure you are delighted to meet all of the other authors.

Everything seems to be going well for me with the contract and having the time of my life learning all the lingo!

Kristine

Sep 30, 2007
David Magayna

Hi Eric,
Great meeting you at Bcon07. Looking forward to reading your books.

Thanks for posting the moose photo. We didn't have the time to take any excursions and our time on the Knowles Trail didn't reveal any moose. Of course I could show you some great pictures of the bar.

Dave

Oct 2, 2007
Morgan OReilly

Darn, I nearly ran over a mama with twins as I backed of out my driveway on my way to B'con. Haven't figured out how to get the photos from my phone to my computer yet, though. That's what the teenager is for, I guess. Great photo!

Oct 4, 2007
Cyndi Martin

I missed your booksigning. I didn't forget but had car trouble. Nothing serious, just smoke billowing out of it. How did it go?

Oct 24, 2007
012158

Sorry I missed you at MBTB last night (Tuesday, Oct. 30), but I was exhausted from my dialysis treatment and fell asleep in the afternoon and didn't wake up in time.

But I got both of your books today, plan on passing the ARC of Grave Imports to my kidney doctor who also likes mysteries, and the discussion group at MBTB is doing your first book in our discussion later in 2008.

Hope you are writing another book and plan another visit to MBTB when it comes out. I will plan to be there then as I will make sure I'm able to get there.

Steven Sill

Nov 1, 2007
Maryann Mercer

I just realized I never told you how much I enjoyed Grave Imports! Read it just before the chaos of merger with another bank and haven't been in the real world for a while. Ray is wonderful, flawed, and so much on a quest to right the world's wrongs, and the people he meets with along the way are every bit as intriguing, good or bad. It was a great read! Thanks.

Nov 22, 2007
Eric Eckert

Hi, Eric: Thank you for the invite. I took a quick look at your titles. How might I get a copy of Wrong Side of the Wall? Keep in touch.
Eric

Nov 26, 2007
Eric Eckert

Thank you for the information. Yes, I am a baseball fan. Like you, I am a Cardinal fan -- actually, a huge Cardinal fan. My wife and I took a dream 30th birthday trip to Cooperstown this past March to see the Hall of Fame. I see that your book is about a former St. Louis Brown. I have a ball autographed by several old Browns; some of them played in the Streetcar Series of 1944 against the Cardinals. Great to meet a fellow St. Louis baseball fan!

Nov 26, 2007
Rick R. Reed

Hi Eric! Thanks for adding me to your line-up of friends. I look forward to finding out more about you and your work. I hope you’ll check out my new thriller, IM, about a serial killer preying on gay men using Internet hookup sites.

Nov 26, 2007
Liz Mugavero

Hey Eric,

Thanks for being my first Crimespace pal...looking forward to checking out your stuff.

Nov 28, 2007
Beverly J. Rowe

Thanks for the invite. I recently read a gret baseball book: Playing With The Enemy by Gary Warren Moore. It's a super nonfiction about one of the greatest players who never made it into the big leagues but taught German Prisoners of War in WW II.

Nov 29, 2007
Beverly J. Rowe

I live right in Kenai. I Missed that earthquake, but you can still see damage that it created around Anchorage. I came here in 1987. We have little earthquakes constantly, and once in a while one of the volcanos sprinkles us with ash. Generally, though, it's a great place to live

Nov 29, 2007
Liz Mugavero

Journalism is definitely interesting...never a dull moment. Lots of story fodder!

Nov 29, 2007
Troy Nelson

Thanks for adding me!

Dec 3, 2007
Ana Dziengel

Hi Eric,
Thanks for adding me as a pal. I just ordered The Living Room of the Dead which I'll review on my blog: Crime Beat Street. I'll look forward to reading it!
Ana

Dec 5, 2007
Troy Nelson

Have a great weekend!

Dec 8, 2007
Sarah M. Chen

Hi Eric. Yeah, we've met a couple of times, at a Sisters In Crime/LA meeting and your launch party at The Mystery Bookstore in Westwood (where I work). Great to hear from you and looking forward to chatting with you/seeing you again.

Dec 8, 2007
Sarah M. Chen

Also wanted to say thanks for the beer. You gave me a beer (from Malaysia I think it was?) at your launch party as I was leaving. Very good.

Dec 10, 2007
Sarah M. Chen

That was it! From Laos. I love Thai Beer - Singha anyone? and thought the Laotian beer was right up there. Will have to compare Asian beer thoughts with you sometime soon. We still have your Cambodian whiskey at the bookstore and Bobby was trying to get rid of it the other day.

Dec 10, 2007
Graeme S. Houston

Thanks for the invitation. Greetings from Malaysia. I see you lived and worked in Asia for a long time, and that it's proven to be a source of inspiration for you. Asia has also had a profound influence on my own work. Good for you dishing out Malaysian beer at your launch party ;)

Good luck with your book tour, and congrats on your continued success.

Dec 10, 2007
Graeme S. Houston

No stars (Bintang) in Hollywood!!?? heh

Dec 11, 2007
Graeme S. Houston

(bintang-bintang) I forgot to make it plural...

Dec 11, 2007
Graeme S. Houston

juga boleh ;)

Dec 11, 2007
len howlett

Eric,

I was glad to read your profile after you listed me as a possible friend. And especially to see your choice in music. I love the Mighty Howlin Wolf and 'Goin' Down Slow ' is one of my all time favorites of his. I also love Muddy and the great guitarist Hubert Summerlin (sp?) . And Mark Twain's 'Mysterious Stranger' is one of the best pieces of fiction I ever read. And Bertolucci's 'The Conformist.' I lived in L.A. off and on for about 18 years. We have a lot in common. Why I could tell you a story about an English blues band I heard one night in Amsterdam's red light district that did only Howling Wolf covers, but there would be a lot of self incrimination there and I don't remember most of it.

Jan 8, 2008
Ron Adams

Eric
Worse than just a baseball fan, a life long Red Sox fan!
Thanks for the invite and the comment

Jan 9, 2008
Ana Dziengel

Hi Eric,
I just finished Living Room of the Dead. I really enjoyed it! I put a review up on my blog and I'm warning you I was honest about my feelings on the subject matter:
http://crimebeatstreet.blogspot.com/2008/01/living-room-of-dead.html

Still you are a gifted writer and I look forward to reading more of the Ray Sharp novels.
Ana

Jan 23, 2008
Ana Dziengel

Eric,
I'll definitely check out Grave Imports, I'd like to see how Ray has evolved since his experiences in Living Room! Also, I love the images on your web page. Take care,
Ana

Jan 23, 2008
Gayle Wigglesworth

Hi Eric, thanks for inviting me to be your friend, I'm very new to this list and haven't quite worked out how to use it but I'm enjoying hearing from a lot of people who want to be friends. I will check out your books and think of you writing in the Silverlake district. I grew up in Long Beach and worked several years not far from Silverlake so know how nice it is.

Jan 26, 2008
Geoff McGeachin

Hi Eric,
Always happy to accept an invitation from a man whose blogs lovingly detail meals on the road. It tells me so much. Yogya was always the place for great fried chicken – the words Ayam Jogja still make my mouth water - though I’m lucky to be living in Sydney where we have some of the best Asian food outside Asia. And pretty much every other cuisine to boot.
I first travelled overland across Java in 1970 when Indonesia reopened after the turmoil of Sukarno’s overthrow and for a callow Aussie teenager the people and culture and food were like a blow to the head – and I’m glad to say I’ve never recovered from the experience.
Geoff

Jan 26, 2008
Laura L. Cooper

Thanks for the invite. It's been fun traveling via your blog.
--Laura

Jan 27, 2008
Laura L. Cooper

I lived in Lincoln, NE for a long time and loved it. Now I live in a rural area north of there.
--Laura

Jan 27, 2008
Christopher Valen

Eric,
Thanks for the friend invite. I'll have to read your books. They sound very interesting. I'm always looking for something new and different.
Chris

Feb 19, 2008
Betty Gordon

Eric, how nice to see a familiar face. Yes, I took the reins of SinC and it's a fast track, but I believe in giving back to a group who has done so much for me.

Thanks for your note and you know I love your books. I haven't read the new one, but I'm looking forward to it.

My best to you and your writing, Betty Gordon

Feb 26, 2008
Chris Ewan

Hello Eric. Thanks for the invite. I like the sound of your roadtrip book tours...
Cheers
Chris

Feb 29, 2008
Jim Gracie

Hi Eric. Thanks for the invite. It's confession time, so I have to admit I haven't yet read any of your books, but I'm about to put that right. I'm looking forward to exploring everything this siten has to offer!

Mar 1, 2008
Mary Ellen Carmody

Hi Eric - the photography I do is mostly landscapes and flowers. check out my website at www.maryellencarmody.com

Mar 4, 2008
Mark Ellis

Hi, Eric....very interesting work...thanks for the add!

Mar 4, 2008
Gerrie

Thanks Eric. I look forward to reading your work.

Mar 5, 2008
Tina

Thanks Great Boulder in the Pines...Is the Indonesian story based on the Bre-X scandal? Like 90% of Canadian I lost money on that.

Apr 4, 2008
Tina

Canadians lived and breathed Bre-X, we didn't want to believe it was fake. It was one of the biggest news stories ever. If you are distributing in Canada, it is worth mentioning, you will gain plenty of media coverage. We framed our Bre-X certificate too! Let me know if you are coming up to Vancouver, I can give you a heads up on media that would gobble that up. Vancouver is the capital of questionable mining ventures.

Apr 4, 2008
L.J. Sellers

Hi Eric
Your travels and stories sound fascinating. Happy writing.

Apr 6, 2008
L.J. Sellers

Good news, that you're hearing about my book and plan to read it. I hope you enjoy it.

Apr 6, 2008