I had the pleasure of conducting a Q and A interview with writer Robert Kaplow. This is a must read for anyone who enjoys a brilliantly written novel!

“…wildly funny, biting satire…”

—Publisher’s Weekly

“This parody is outrageous, outlandish, and laugh-out-loud funny.”

—The Globe and Mail

“Joyful and alive, crackling with wonder.”

—Kirkus Reviews (starred)

“Mercifully short.”

—Susan Stamberg, National Public Radio

“Kaplow writes with the ear of a van Gogh.”

—Cindy Adams, syndicated columnist and author of

The Gift of Jazzy

“Robert Kaplow is a gifted storyteller. He writes with originality and humor and lifts the human spirit.”

—George Shapiro, Executive Producer, Seinfeld

“This book is so exciting and inventive. It'll make a great movie. I'd like to be the one to do it.”

—Carl Reiner, writer/director/actor

“Funnier than Citizen Kane.”

—Alex Chadwick, National Public Radio

“'Diarrhea on the Orient Express’ describes the unfortunate experience of SUE GRAFTON as she celebrates another series of books, starting with AA Is for Aardvark. Even more unfortunate for Grafton is her chance meeting with ramblin' guy STEVE MARTIN. After dispatching Grafton, Kaplow, author of the Top Ten BookSense selection Me and Orson Welles, aims his satiric pen at best-selling writers DANIELLE STEEL, CURTIS SITTENFELD, and TOM CLANCY. It is up to STEPHEN KING to solve the murder mystery as he risks becoming the next victim. Along the way, Kaplow fires volleys at the likes of President GEORGE W. BUSH, former shock jock DON IMUS, and Deepa, a Verizon customer-service rep who prefers to be called Scarlett. In an unforgettable finale on Swan's Island off the coast of Maine, King encounters former Enron executive KEN LAY, a terrifying lizard, and ANNE BANCROFT, who reprises her role as Annie in The Miracle Worker. Funny. Irreverent. Fast-paced. Parody at its best. Kaplow's clever spoof will please everyone but its victims.”

—Library Journal

Question: When did you first know you had a love for writing?

Answer: Probably some time in middle school I knew this is what I probably ought to be doing, although I couldn't have articulated it at the time.

Question: What was the first book you authored?

Answer: It was published as TWO IN THE CITY. I think my working title for it was JOY. It was a bitter-sweet story a high-school couple who decide to live together in New York rather than go on to college as their parents expect.

Question: Do you have a second career other than writing?

Answer: I am teacher of AP English, Creative Writing, and Film Studies.

Question: What are the titles of the previous books?

Answer: TWO IN THE CITY, ALEX ICICLE: A ROMANCE IN TEN TORRID CHAPTERS, ALESSANDRA IN LOVE, ALESSANDRA IN BETWEEN, THE CAT WHO KILLED LILIAN JACKSON BRAUN, and ME AND ORSON WELLES. (ME AND ORSON WELLES is currently being developed as a film by Richard Linklater.)

Question: What inspired you to write " Who's Killing the Great Writers of America? How did you choose the title?

Answer: The title was actually suggested to me by the publisher Michael Viner of Phoenix Books in Beverly Hills. It was a funny title and a provocative concept. I thought about it for about two years, and by the time I had cleared the time to write it, the novel came relatively fast. I found myself laughing as I wrote it, which I thought was a good sign.

Question: What has the response been to the book?

Answer: Reviews have been excellent and, perhaps more significantly, readers have told me how funny they though it was. The novel's sole intentions were to be entertaining, amusing, and surprising, and it seems to have scored on those points.

Question: Can you give our readers a synopsis of the book...include your favorite characters

Answer: The bestselling authors in America are disappearing one by one: Danielle Steel, Tom Clancy, Sue Grafton, Curtis "Prep" Sittenfeld. Up in Bangor, Maine, Stephen King is convinced he will be the next victim, and so it falls on him to solve the mystery before the murderer can add him to his list. I think King is my favorite character in the novel because he moves from a paranoid, broken man to the actual hero of the book. The novel is also a sort of strange love story between King and his wife. Which I like

Question: Are you scheduled for appearances?

Answer: I write for NPR, so I've been doing a lot of radio appearances. Radio is good because you can wear a wrinkled shirt

Question : Where can our readers purchase the book?

Answer: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, any good book store. The audiobook, read by Laugh-In's Arte Johnson, is a wonderful tour de force by Johnson. He's an extraordinary performer.

Question: Have you begun your next novel?

Answer: I am working on a funny/sad novel about teachers called NOBODY'S HEART.

Published by: Phoenix Books- Beverly Hills, CA
www.phoenixbooksandaudio.com

For more information contact:

Karen Ammond - Publicist - kbcmedia@att.net