Meet P.J. Parrish

[Jerry Peterson]

P.J. Parrish, as a crime writer, is a powerhouse – 10 New York Times bestsellers with her Louis Kincaid thrillers, the first, “Dark of the Moon”, out in 2000; and the most recent, “The Little Death”, out just this year.

The pronoun “her” suggests Parrish is one person. She’s actually two – sisters, Kristy Montee of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Kelly Nichols of Houghton Lake, Michigan.

Montee is a former newspaper writer and editor, and Nichols, of all things, was at one time a blackjack dealer.

Don’t ask me how the sisters do it, come up with such good books while writing at great distances from one another . . . well, I know how they do it. They swap electronic files. Thank you, Internet.

And they talk a lot via Skype. Again, thank you, Internet.

Still theirs has to be a world of compromises, but Montee and Nichols make co-writing work. They have the book sales to prove it, and they have the honors. They’ve collected 11 major crime fiction awards, including two Shamus awards, an Anthony, and an award from International Thriller Writers.

You can meet P.J., or one-half of her – Kelly Nichols – tomorrow afternoon if you’re in the Chicago area. She and four other crime writers will be at Centuries & Sleuths Bookstore in Forest Park, talking about their books.

[Mark Young]

Thanks for the background on these writers, Jerry.