Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
PARKERSBURG, W.Va. (AP) — Joe Stephens, an English teacher at Parkersburg High School for almost 18 years, has recently published the third book "In The Shadow" in his series "The Shalan Adventures."
He is working on publishing his fourth book, "Harry and the Redheaded Angel," a prequel to the series that tells how the narrator and his wife fell in love.
The series follows Harry and Deanna Shalan — a husband-and-wife detective team. Harry is tough but compassionate with a strict code of honor that guides his life.
Early in the first book, he agrees to take Dee on as his partner, and it's the best decision he made since he proposed. She's every bit his equal as they work together to solve crimes, protect the weak and oppressed, and bring the evil to justice.
"I've enjoyed writing stories since I was in about the third grade," said Stephens. "Later in elementary school, I read my first Sherlock Holmes adventure and was hooked on detective fiction."
Stephens' newest book "In The Shadow" has a local feel as the cover was created by Charlie Gessel, another PHS teacher, and features a PHS student.
The main character was based on a former student of Stephens.
"The biggest influence on my style and subject matter was Robert B. Parker, who was, until his recent death, acknowledged as the great voice of private eye fiction for my generation. Spenser, his first (and, in my opinion, greatest) protagonist, was my inspiration when I created Harry Shalan," Stephens said.
All of his books are available at the J & M Used Bookstore on Blizzard Drive, the Emerson Avenue and Vienna public libraries, and school libraries.
The novels are also available online from most booksellers in paperback and Amazon as ebooks.
You can find fuller descriptions of each book at his website, joestephenswrites.com, along with reading his blog and joining his mailing list there.
"I always enjoyed writing and entertained the idea that I would write a book someday. In fact, I started and rejected the same novel about a dozen times before I mentioned in passing to a student that I was a frustrated novelist. That student made it her mission in life to make sure I wrote that first book. And the rest, as they say, is history," Stephens said.
___
Information from: News and Sentinel (Parkersburg, W.Va.), http://www.newsandsentinel.com
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
