BookLife Talks with Anthony Eddolls

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Debut author Eddolls publishes the first two books in his Elliott Murphy Adventure series this month, with another on the way. We spoke with Eddolls about Special Agent Murphy and the unique way the books follow him during significant points in his life.

What inspired you to create Special Agent Elliott Murphy?

As with all my characters, Murphy’s development has been an organic process. I wanted to offer the reader traits that provide realism yet lace the story with tension and suspense: Will Murphy succeed in overcoming adversity with specific aspects of human frailty? Will he rekindle broken relationships? Will he succumb to temptation? And, most important, will he capture the bad guys and prove good will triumph over evil?

I want to emphasize the organic aspect of character and plot development. I’ve found that this process has allowed me to consider unique twists of both narrative and character that keep the story fresh and exciting yet believable. The premise of considering that one pivotal action and how different life could be from there is something I explore throughout my work.

What makes Crossing Over different from other action thrillers?

I would have to say the relatability of the characters. Each one of the three central characters has traits, desires, and shortcomings that just about everyone can relate to or at least will be familiar with. These people aren’t superheroes or celebrities; they’re everyday people with everyday problems, fantasies, and issues. This can also make the story unsettling at times, as we might see ourselves in the same predicaments. When we cross the line, in either direction, there are always consequences.

When we meet Elliot in the first book, he’s trying to get sober and get his life back on track. How far has he come in The Lines We Cross?

The Lines We Cross shows Murphy at the top of his game and builds on the maturity he has developed in the 10 years since the first book. In Crossing Over, Murphy might be described more as a street cop, but in The Lines We Cross, Murphy is an international law enforcement officer who has climbed the ladder within the FBI. This transition was easy for me to illustrate, as I simply drew from my own life experiences. I spent more than 40 years building a career in real estate, mortgage banking, and real estate development. I started my own company, then merged with another, and ended up a senior officer and director of a billiondollar corporation.

The Lines We Cross has Elliot working on his final case, which is unusual as many thriller series keep the status quo. Why are you retiring him now?

Each book presents Murphy at a different stage of his life. In Crossing Over, he is fighting to get his life together after a rather dramatic midlife crisis; The Lines We Cross finds Murphy at the peak of his law enforcement career; and the third and last book in the series, The Final Cross, will show Murphy in a different phase altogether—adapting to retirement, yet being thrown into the middle of a hunt for a prolific serial killer.

What can readers expect from the upcoming third book in the series?

The Final Cross takes Murphy and several other characters from the previous book into an entirely new phase of their lives. Murphy is retired and, along with his wife, Sally, is traversing the U.S. in a luxurious RV. His former number two, Special Agent David Stilley, now leads a team with the exalted Behavioral Analysis Unit of the FBI. We meet Marvin Helms, who is also a recovering alcoholic and a dedicated dog lover. His eccentricity is rivaled only by his viciousness, as he leaves a trail of bodies across the nation and, eventually, into Mexico.

provider such as IngramSpark, you can add an imprint name to your dashboard. This means that you need to check which one you use for each book you publish to avoid it defaulting to the wrong one); someone reports you for copyright infringement (even if the claim is not valid); or a bot error that is beyond an author’s control.

What can you do once your account is suspended? The answer varies depending on what triggered your suspension, which, according to some of those affected, is hard to get a clear answer from Amazon about. Here are a few things you can provide:

1. A screenshot of your ISBN account showing your name as owner and the imprint name with your book’s ISBN displayed

2. Approved copyright documentation from copyright.gov, not just the application (which can take up to eight months to receive)

3. Invoices and bank statements for editing costs from both your end as the publisher and from the editor’s end

4. Similar invoices and statements for cover design 5. Strongly worded emails with website links showing that you are the author

6. Affidavits from distributors

7. Your letter of proof/ownership if you have purchased the rights to something (e.g., an English translation)

8. For a book previously published through KDP or CreateSpace, an email from the address listed in the previous publisher’s account indicating that the company does not object to your edition

If you need outside help, I suggest contacting industry organizations such as the Independent Book Publishers Association, Authors Guild, Authors Alliance, Copyright Alliance, International Intellectual Property Alliance, or Authors Coalition of America.

I always strongly advise authors and publishers alike to copyright their manuscripts to have a stronger position in court. Fighting a corporate giant such as Amazon is challenging at best. But you never know what difference that $65 at copyright.gov can make when you stand your ground.

Alesha Brown is an entrepreneur, a book and magazine publisher, a consultant, and the CEO of Fruition Publishing Concierge Service.