My Journey as a Award Winning Author
If you had told me six years ago that I would be winning two awards at the IIBA and be nominated for Author of the Year in the True Crime category, I would not have believed you. I probably would have laughed it off and said, “Me? You’re joking! My writing isn’t that good.” Growing up, I always loved writing. I had vivid imaginations, and when I went to college my passion for writing only deepened. I endured many professors who told me my work wasn’t good and that I should give up, but there was one man who believed in me — the same man who later inspired the character Rafael. When the pandemic hit in 2020, I realized I had to do something meaningful with my time, so I set about continuing my first novel, Deadly College Murders, the story of Hannah Walker and her godfather Rafael and their harrowing journey to uncover the truth behind the murders Hannah is accused of.
The one thing that I always experience on my writing journey is writer’s block. I cannot fathom how many times I have gone through it, and each occurrence feels both familiar and frustrating. But once I get over it, I fall into a steady rhythm and can write for hours at a stretch. From the very beginning I knew I wanted to create a mystery series, a layered set of stories that reward careful reading. For readers to fully appreciate the plots and character development, they need to take their time and read the books in order — beginning, of course, with Deadly College Murders, followed by Deadly Vows: Echoes of College Crimes (Winner at the International Impact Book Awards 2026), and then Paris Noir: Deadly Obsession (Winner at the International Impact Book Awards 2025), which was also nominated for Author of the Year 2026 in the true crime category.
While I continue writing the Hannah Walker Mystery Series, including The Thirteenth Riddle, A Poisoned Silence, and Shadows of Her Past, I am also beginning a new series titled the Astrid Fitzgerald Mystery Series, starting with “Who Murdered Erica Ivy.” Astrid Fitzgerald will be markedly different from the Hannah Walker books. Where Hannah is portrayed as a long‑suffering protagonist, Astrid will be the opposite—cold, detached, and uncompromising in every way. Similarly, whereas Rafael is portrayed as deeply devoted to his beloved goddaughter, Thomas will serve as a foil to that dynamic. Thomas is Astrid’s former professor who offers counsel when she needs it, all the while concealing his true feelings for her.
