Lean, Mean, Writing Machine?

A lighthearted (and sometimes serious) look at Alan Jacobson's journey to literary success
 
The route to Alan Jacobson's writing career was circuitous... and it might even be said that it happened by accident. Literally...

Alan was inspired by his junior high school English teacher (Louis Brill--if you're out there, take a bow!), who thought Alan showed an affinity for writing. (Little did he know....) English was a focal point for Alan until he developed migraine headaches as a young teen (though some claim they were actually caused by his annoying younger brother). Unable to shake the debilitating headaches with medication (or get rid of his brother), he was referred to a chiropractor--and within a short period of time, he was headache-free. Combined with Alan's innate desire to help people, it was clear right then that a career in chiropractic was in his future. He took the required pre-med courses, graduated from Queens College with a degree in English and applied to chiropractic school in California to pursue his goal. (Actually, he wanted to get away from the cold weather, and he needed an excuse to bolt to California.)

After graduating with his Doctor of Chiropractic degree, Alan established an excellent reputation in the medical community. He achieved notice as an Agreed Medical Examiner and was subsequently appointed to the position of Qualified Medical Evaluator by the State of California. He lectured at insurance companies and law firms on spinal injuries, and gained extensive experience testifying as an expert witness, which exposed him to many of the strengths and weaknesses of the judicial system. (And, as he discovered, there are a few weaknesses.) When a freak accident prematurely ended his chiropractic career,  he reached into his past experience and transitioned into a career in writing. (The power of words makes it sound so easy, doesn't it?)

Alan was certainly no stranger to publishing, however. (Rather, in the interim, publishing had gotten stranger.) While at Queens College, he was co-editor-in-chief of The Fugue, a literary magazine produced by the Writing Skills Workshop. In addition, his short stories and poetry appeared in the college's literary magazines, Drum and Non-Sequitur. Later, his chiropractic school named him editor-in-chief of The Argus, the college's monthly newspaper. But these credits were far from writing an intriguing, bestselling novel. (The editor asks: was that last sentence really necessary?)

While refreshing and sharpening his skills in the nuances of character, setting, dialogue and the like, Alan heard of an ongoing legal case that intrigued him: the 1954 Sam Sheppard murder trial. The basis of the TV show (and future Harrison Ford movie) The Fugitive, it was the tragic tale of a physician who was falsely accused (and convicted) of murdering his wife. (This part is serious, folks.) Those who are familiar with the story know that it was not until decades later--after Dr. Sheppard served ten years in prison and died a few years after his release--that it was definitively determined through DNA analysis that the doctor had been falsely accused. "I was fascinated by the concept of being innocent--yet being unable to prove it," Alan says. (No humorous comment here.) "False Accusations grew out of that inspiration."

While writing False Accusations, Alan audited a class at the Department of Justice's Criminalists Institute. Not only was this instrumental in shaping the plot of False Accusations, but it also put him in contact with two FBI agents. One agent, a profiler for the Bureau's Behavioral Analysis (Profiling) Unit at Quantico, established a long-term friendship with Alan. As a result, Alan spent the next five years researching the FBI and working with its agents in uncovering behind-the-scenes material for stories and characters that would appear in his future novels. The first of these novels, The Hunted, was released in hardcover (and paperback) by Pocket Books (a division of Simon & Schuster).

Alan was ecstatic (minor understatement) when False Accusations met with critical acclaim and landed on the USA Today Bestseller list. False Accusations was translated into seven foreign languages and produced as an audio book by noted actor Zeljko Ivanek (A Civil Action, TV series Homicide and Damages).

The Hunted, a regional bestseller, is loosely based on Alan's neighbor's real-life experience with a spouse who had gone missing. Also translated into several languages, The Hunted has garnered rave reviews from critics, booksellers and readers alike. Like False Accusations, The Hunted weaves through various twists and turns before turning on a dime with a jaw-dropper ending. "The impact of a strong ending is too often overlooked," Alan says. "When a reader finishes one of my novels, I want him or her to be intensely satisfied, to march right into his or her local bookstore and ask for my new book." Judging by his reader's comments, it appears he's succeeded.

Alan has recently put the final coat of polish on his third and fourth thrillers and is currently engrossed in his fifth while simultaneously developing a stand-up routine on the side. (Not really. He'll stick to writing fiction.)