From the Desk of Susan Walter:
Hello, readers!
Susan Walter here, author of the upcoming locked-room mystery-thriller Murder at 30,000 Feet. “Why oh why would you murder someone on a plane?” you ask. “Isn’t air travel scary enough?”
If you think about it (which I don’t recommend), riding inside a steel and aluminum capsule thirty thousand feet above the earth (or sea!), surrounded by strangers, breathing recirculated air, sounds like madness.
Like many of you, I have subjected myself to said madness, but in my defense, I was led from a very young age to believe it was perfectly normal. My dad was a pilot. He was corralling my brother and me into car-sized, winged metal canisters since before I knew what gravity was (and about the risks of trying to defy it).
I remember one particularly harrowing flight. We were heading to Sedona, AZ, in my dad’s four-seater, single-engine Mooney (picture a VW bug with wings and a propeller). This was my first (and last) visit to this mountainous region. Nobody warned me that mountain air can be “unstable,” with updrafts and downdrafts that can catapult you out of your seat. (Yes, I’m still mad about that.)
I was wearing my seatbelt (I swear!), but didn’t believe my dad when he told me it should be pulled tight. (No, really, it should.) As we were descending toward the airport, we hit a downdraft and the aircraft dropped like a stone. My head slammed against the ceiling as I shot out of my chair. At first, I was too dazed to realize that salty taste in my mouth was blood—from my tongue, where my front teeth had sliced through it.
I was fine. (My shirt, not so much). And I learned my lesson. I love to travel. Meeting readers from all over the country is one of my great joys. But you’d better believe I have that seatbelt pulled tight at all times, because (contrary to popular belief) “unexpected turbulence” is not a myth to keep you out of the aisles.
If you have to fly, be safe, enjoy the view, and I hope to see you up at thirty thousand feet!
Warmly,
Susan
Susan Walter is a recovering screenwriter and film director who started writing books to kill people because it was frowned upon in real life. Her first two novels are set in the movie business, but then she discovered there are places that are even more dangerous and is now murdering people on airplanes, on ski hills, and in safe houses while on the run from organized crime. When not writing (and also maybe while writing) Susan can be found streaming Red Sox baseball and drinking too much coffee. You can follow her on Instagram @SusanWalterAuthor
