T Jefferson Parker Biography, Books, and Similar Authors

Author Biography  | Interview  | Books by this Author  | Read-Alikes

T Jefferson Parker
Photo: Marion Ettlinger

T Jefferson Parker

T Jefferson Parker Biography

T. Jefferson Parker is the author of numerous novels and short stories, the winner of three Edgar Awards (for Silent Joe, California Girl, and the short story "Skinhead Central"), and the recipient of a Los Angeles Times Book Prize for best mystery (Silent Joe). Before becoming a full-time novelist, he was an award-winning reporter. He lives in Fallbrook, California.

T Jefferson Parker's website

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Interview

T Jefferson Parker answers questions about his books and himself, and reveals what the "T" stands for.

When did you first decide to become a writer?
My "Mythology and Folklore" teacher in high school hated our class because we were troublemakers. One day she refused to teach us, and made us each close our eyes and pick a book out of a box she'd brought from home. We were to read silently all period. I got Catch 22 by Joseph Heller and I read it in a few days. I couldn't believe how funny it was, how hip and right-on. I told myself that if I could ever write something that would give someone 1/1000th the pleasure that Heller gave me, I'd be proud.

Where do your plot ideas come from? What inspires you?
The plots usually take shape in the writing or outlining stage. You create them, like a carpenter laying the foundation of a house. It's a gut feel, whether the story is good and the plot is right. I'm inspired by everything—the front page of the LA Times, a weird dream from the night before, an interesting story told by a friend, or even sitting at church. Snippets of conversation I overhear, things I see and experience, life itself—the mind drifts, hatching disastrous plots. But I'm inspired most of all by novels. There's something about a good, I mean a very good, novel, ...

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Books by this Author

Books by T Jefferson Parker at BookBrowse
Desperation Reef jacket Then She Vanished jacket The Last Good Guy jacket Crazy Blood jacket
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Read-Alikes

All the books below are recommended as read-alikes for T Jefferson Parker but some maybe more relevant to you than others depending on which books by the author you have read and enjoyed. So look for the suggested read-alikes by title linked on the right.
How we choose read-alikes

  • Diana Abu-Jaber

    Diana Abu-Jaber

    Diana Abu-Jaber is the award-winning author of seven books of fiction and nonfiction, including Crescent and The Language of Baklava. She lives in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. (more)

    If you enjoyed:
    The Fallen

    Try:
    Origin
    by Diana Abu-Jaber

  • Giles Blunt

    Giles Blunt

    Giles Blunt was born in 1952 in Windsor, Ontario, and grew up in North Bay, Ontario.  He describes his parents as being "so English that the space on their passports for citizenship could only be filled in 'British... (more)

    If you enjoyed:
    California Girl

    Try:
    By the Time You Read This
    by Giles Blunt

We recommend 21 similar authors


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