Greetings, and thanks for taking a look at the first chapter of my mystery novel! I’m Ryan Smith, and when I’m not working on this book, I’m a regular old journalist. In fact, many of the elements of this story (not the murders and mayhem, thank God) are drawn from my days as a crime reporter on a barrier island off the coast of North Florida.

These days my beat is less exciting, so I’m returning to this old, unfinished novel (I’ve been working on it sporadically for about five years now) as a way to do a little writing that interests me again. I’ve posted my progress so far on Inkshares in the hope that actually having an audience will push me to finish the damned thing.

If you’ve read the chapter below (and are already a fan of the detective -- as opposed to "mystery" -- genre), I’m sure you’ve noticed that I owe a debt to Chandler and Hammett. I’m aware of that, and I embrace it. If you’re going to write private-eye fiction, it’s pretty much unavoidable, anyway. What I’m hoping to do is play around with the familiar elements of, say, a good Philip Marlowe yarn, transplanting them into both a new locale and a modern timeframe. How well I’ve succeeded is up to you to judge. Again, thanks for reading! I look forward to your thoughts.