Bruce Robert Coffin here, manning the helm of the Maine Crime Writer’s Blog, albeit a bit behind my time. This month I thought I would revisit one of my blogs from two years ago. I was curious to see how much had changed. Turns out not as much as you might think. I’m still bingeing (or is it binging?) on audio books and trying to finish up my latest manuscript before the July 1st deadline.

Several weeks ago, before taking a much needed tropical vacation to Florida, I stopped by my town library and obtained a card. You’re probably thinking, what’s the big deal? Everyone has a library card, right? Well, I don’t know if everyone does or not, but this is the first card I’ve had since I was a youngster living in the Southern Maine town of Scarborough (Yes, John Rogers Clark IV, I am ashamed). My old card was from the historic Black Point Library. I got the idea after being told by several librarians, that my novel, Among the Shadows, is always checked out, and has a list of folks waiting to read it.

You might think that I don’t need any more books to read. After all, my to be read pile is already huge and, like most writers, ever-expanding. But like most writers, my love of reading equals my love of writing. Can’t have one without the other, right? It occurred to me that I might make more efficient use of my travel time by listening to audiobooks. Driving to appearances and conferences is time consuming. And since I would rather conserve the bulk of my time for writing, driving is the perfect time to digest books that I’ve been wanting to get my hands on. Assuming that you’re not already on the Cloud Library, you might be surprised how many books are available in this format.

As my intake of new books increases so has my list of favorite authors. As of late I have been enjoying the wonderful sardonic wit of Jeff Lindsey’s Dexter Morgan and the descriptive and insightful prose of James Lee Burke’s private sleuth from the Big Easy, Dave Robicheaux, as read by Will Patton. For the record, if HarperCollins ever gets around to producing my novels in audio, I hope to land a reader half as entertaining as the great Will Patton. (Author note: I did land a great narrator in the form of Adam Verner when Harper produced an audio version of Beyond the Truth. Be sure to check it out if you haven’t!)

Well, I could go on about my new found love of audiobooks all day if you let me, but I’m afraid my writing must come first. Hey, I have deadlines to meet. And there are a few chores that need doing. Chores which will require me to hop in the truck and drive… I wonder what Dexter’s dark passenger is up to now?
Write on!