Looking at Dennis writer Paul Kemprecos, you'd never think all that murder and mayhem could be created between those ears. On the contrary, you'd buy a used car from a guy like Kemprecos, loan him your boat, or maybe let him date your sister (before he married his wife Christi, of course). He's that affable a guy.

You'd even be willing to write a few books with him, which is exactly what the internationally bestselling thriller writer Clive Cussler proposed and here we are four books later and well into a fifth. Is that a cash register we hear ringing?

For backstory, after graduating from the Boston University School of Journalism, Kemprecos washed ashore in 1961 and began working for the old Cape Cod Standard Times. He eventually worked at The Cape Codder and, in sum, put 25 years into newspaper work here on the Cape.

But there were mysteries lurking in Kemprecos's pen that emerged with the first in an ongoing series of Cape-based Aristotle Socarides books.The initial book, Cool Blue Tomb, was well received and gained Kemprecos many fans who could hardly wait for the next "Soc" mystery to roll off the presses. Before he was through and ready to move on to more lucrative pastures, Kemprecos had penned six mysteries in the series. Then Clive Cussler came along and changed everything.

"Cussler gave me a jacket quote for Cool Blue Tomb," Kemprecos recalls. "It was very favorable and he gave me another on my second book, Neptune's Eye. Then he called me up one night and we chatted. We kept in touch through the years, and then I sent him my last book in the series, Bluefin Blues, with an inscription saying, 'Rumors of my literary demise have been greatly exaggerated.' Six months later, Cussler called up and said he was doing a spin-off on his bestselling Dirk Pitt series and wanted to know if I was interested. And I said, 'Sure, I'll give it a go.'"

That was four bestsellers ago and he's working on the fifth with a contract to do another after that. In his own humorous and self-deprecating way, Kemprecos grudgingly allows he's a smashing success as a writer. He's also more than capable of collaborating on fiction that sells well internationally.

"All my books have been difficult for me," Kemprecos admits, "even the old Soc books, but these are a little more involved and complicated. But the rewards are greater than the Soc books, where I really wasn't making a living."

The ways collaborations work are reinvented every time one is forged. Out of the Fog has shown thus far that the collaboration of authors works, but it has its own unique parameters. With the Clive Cussler connection, Kemprecos has found it to be relatively easy, despite nearly a continent separating thetwo authors.

"Generally, we work out a concept together," Kemprecos says of his well-known partner, "and I'll start writing, trying to get pieces of the manuscript off to him. Theoretically, it's supposed to be about a third at a time. Then we'll get together and just talk over what I've done and where it's going from there - I've usually gotten into trouble by the time I'm two thirds of the way through - and I need his guidance and suggestions. Then I write more and it goes off to him and he adds anything that he wants to or edits what he wants. We correspond by snail mail, mostly, and I have a lot of leeway. He's great to work with because he has such a firm grasp of the underwater thriller. I've learned a lot, but still not enough so that it's easy for me. But eventually we come up with a book."

Kemprecos enjoys the process with Cussler, and Cussler is still churning out his own series of Dirk Pitt books. But what of Aristotle Socarides? Is he going to be left hanging in the abyss of series characters?

"I have a lot of people ask me about it," Kemprecos says, "and I tell them that, one, I can't afford to and, two, no publisher has come up and asked me to do one of those things. I think in some respects they're a little more literate than the thrillers I'm doing now. A little more character development. The stuff I'm doing now is pure formula, pure escapism."

Despite his busy schedule, Kemprecos eventually agreed to contribute a chapter for the series novel, Out of the Fog. He began with some trepidation, but now Kemprecos is one of the hardier serial novelists, appearing frequently at Fog-based public events.

"Dan Adams called me up one day," Kemprecos says. "I wasn't sure who he was, so I checked with a couple of people who said he was legitimate. When he called, I had some down-time - I had just finished a book - and I didn't want to work on writing for a little bit. So I put him off until the summer. As it turned out, it was a little more difficult writing in the middle of the book. But the major characters were all developed and it was just a question of doing something to move the plot along."

Kemprecos is yet another Anne LeClaire recruit into the serial novel, and his approach was a bit roundabout. He put off writing the chapter because he became involved in another Cussler project. It took a trip to Las Vegas to bring Kemprecos around to coming Out of the Fog.

"I went back and read some of the chapters," Kemprecos says, "and then we went out to Las Vegas for a wedding and I took the thing with me and read all of the chapters. I sat by the motel pool out there, making notes of characters and so on, and reading it over and over again until I had familiarized myself. I read it again on the plane when I came back, then essentially wrote it in two days."

Kemprecos admits to some skepticism at first, especially trying to integrate all the different styles of eight dissimilar authors. Now, after reading the completed chapters several times, he's very enthusiastic.

"I've already figured out - in my own mind - who the murder or murderers are," Kemprecos says. "It will be interesting to me to see how that differs from the final chapter."

However different that chapter and his version will be, only time will tell. One thing we know about Paul Kemprecos, however, is that he understands the fine art of collaboration.

written by Michael Lee
Out of the Fog

Cool thanks Tony th:

Very interesting. Thanks tony for the info! b:

Interesting. I never knew much about him, but now I do. Thanks! th:

How cool, that was interesting :)

Here is a list of the six Aristotle "Soc" Socarides mysteries written by Paul Kemprecos:

Cool Blue Tomb
Neptune's Eye
Death In Deep Water
Feeding Frenzy
The Mayflower Murder
Bluefin Blues

I have only read Bluefin Blues and Neptune's Eye so far. But I highly recommend reading this series. His contribution to the Kurt Austin series is clear, and the combined Cussler-Kemprecos style definitely works! ;)

Thank Tony, It's nice to know something about the man. Don't see much infor about him. th:

Paul and Christi are two of the NICEST people you could ever meet. I had the privilege to chauffer them from the airport and have dinner/breakfast several times with them. WOW!

Liz-I'll certainly second that: We had a chance to sit with Paul and Christi the first night in the nightclub, well, maybe sit and yell, but found them both to be very modest, kind, interested and friendly. Paul and I talked books and writing for about a half hour... what a treat!
-pete

I have to agree - they're great people! You feel perfectly at ease when you talk with them - and you can talk about pretty much anything, lol. :lol:

Absolutely agree. Maybe Paul and his wife were the "underdogs"" in Denver, but for me meeting and talking to them was just as special as the time I sat with Clive at the same table during the Banquet. Hope to see Paul on the next Convention as well. I sure wish him lots of success and let Polar Shift be his first number 1 of many to come

Wim beer:

I had lunch with Paul and Christi today in Massachusetts. They said to say "Hi!" to everyone! w:

I'm entering this late - but I echo everyone's sentiments for Paul & Christi. They are both very nice people and Paul is amazing to talk with. Everyone I know can't wait to see what he has cooked up for Kurt Austin next!!