Witness in the Window begins with a woman being attacked on one of the bike paths in my community, Lincoln, Nebraska. It is witnessed by a Korean War veteran. He sees the attacker's face clearly, but he has not spoken in three years. The detectives we met in my first novel, A Step Ahead of Death, must try to find and arrest this man who is spreading panic on Lincoln's bike paths.

This is a sequel to A Step Ahead of Death, taking place a year-and-a-half after the close of the first novel. Jack is now married and his wife, Kathy had one daughter, Esther who still lives at home with them. He finds out that Jacques Levant, from the previous novel, is out to get him.

Honestly, I started out as a traditionally published author. My first novel, A Step Ahead of Death, was published in 2011 by Comfort Publishing. When I sent the manuscript to them for the second novel, Congo Mission, they showed no interest. In fact, they showed little interest in promoting the first novel or in communicating with me.

I wanted more control and more feedback about my publishing efforts. Likewise, I was able to publish novels at a price, much more realistic for the average reader.

Self-publishing is fascinating and exciting. It takes some preparation, but the satisfaction of having done it myself has been worth all the effort.

Smashwords has the unique ability of making my novels available in a wide range of formats. Smashwords provides a forum for many to check out my novels and purchase them if desired, while getting them into mainstream bookstores as well. Smashwords makes preparing the manuscript for conversion, simple. The publishing guide was easy to read and follow and provided insights that clearly reduced the stress.

I enjoy seeing the characters come to life. I find myself experiencing their joys and sorrows. I don't even think about the fact that they are mere products of imagination. I also enjoy the challenge of writing scenarios that aren't obvious. Nothing turns me off, in a novel, faster than being able to predict the ending. I want my novels to test the reader and, so far, I believe I have succeeded.

I started the process of writing without any fans. I threw my novel up to the shelves with no preamble and no following. Now I have dedicated followers and fans and I love them. They make me write better. They help me to know what readers want. They give me encouragement to keep writing.

I have already started three more books. I want to get back to writing. The publishing process and marketing takes a major toll on productivity. My plan is to work on a sequel to Congo Mission (my second novel). Congo mission was a prequel going back to 1988 when Jack Sharp was a medical missionary in Congo (Africa). The working title of the sequel is "On Ice." This takes Jack to the frozen continent of Antarctica. It is exciting to be thinking about going back to writing.

I have loved the Tom Clancy novels, especially the ones written only by him. John Grisham's work grips me in a way that I don't understand, but enjoy immensely. I'm kind of sappy and enjoy reading novels by Nicholas Sparks and Jan Karon as well.

This goes way beyond writing. I enjoy life, because of my faith. I am married to a wonderful woman with whom I would spend every waking minute if I didn't have to make a living. My profession is Family Medicine, and I get up day after day to meet the needs of my beloved patients.