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Iris Johansen Biography, Books, and Similar Authors

Author Biography  | Interview  | Books by this Author  | Read-Alikes

Iris Johansen
irisjohansen.com

Iris Johansen

Iris Johansen Biography

Iris Johansen is the New York Times bestselling author of Your Next Breath, The Perfect Witness, Live to See Tomorrow, Silencing Eve, Hunting Eve, Taking Eve, Sleep No More, What Doesn't Kill You, Bonnie, Quinn, Eve, Chasing The Night, Eight Days to Live, Blood Game, Deadlock, Dark Summer, Pandora's Daughter, Quicksand, Killer Dreams, On The Run, Countdown, Firestorm, Fatal Tide, Dead Aim, and more. And with her son Roy Johansen, she has coauthored The Naked Eye, Sight Unseen, Close Your Eyes, Shadow Zone, Storm Cycle, and Silent Thunder.

Johansen began writing after her children left home for college. She first achieved success in the early 1980s writing category romances. In 1991, Johansen began writing suspense historical romance novels, starting with the publication of The Wind Dancer. In 1996 Johansen switched genres, turning to crime fiction, with which she has had great success. She had seventeen consecutive New York Times bestsellers as of November 2006.

Johansen lives near Atlanta, Georgia and is married. Her son, Roy Johansen, is an Edgar Award-winning screenwriter and novelist. Her daughter, Tamara, serves as her research assistant.

Iris Johansen's website

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Interview

Iris Johansen discusses her writing process as well as the fascinating careers found in her recent suspense novels.

What is the most exciting moment in the writing process for you? Does it vary from book to book?
It does vary from book to book. Usually it is near the climax when everything is moving tornado-fast and I am carried along with it. However, there are times when I'm just as excited when I get some complicated bit of research right and feel I did a good job making that part of the story interesting.

How do you begin your fiction? Does a plot come first? A character? A theme or conflict?
The plot definitely does not come first. I sincerely wish it did because life would be a great deal easier for me. I'm one of those writers who cannot plan ahead. I have to let the story carry me along to reveal the twists and turns. Every book starts with just the kernel of an idea that, hopefully, matures into a full-grown tree. Other than that constant, everything else is up for grabs.

What questions do readers most often ask you? Have you ever learned something unexpectedly from reader comments? What questions would you like to ask your readers?
Readers ask where I get my ideas (answer: everywhere!). They ask how many hours I work every day (between six and twelve, depending upon where I am in the book)....

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Books by this Author

Books by Iris Johansen at BookBrowse
Hindsight (Kendra Michaels) jacket Hide Away jacket Close Your Eyes jacket Bonnie jacket
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Read-Alikes

All the books below are recommended as read-alikes for Iris Johansen but some maybe more relevant to you than others depending on which books by the author you have read and enjoyed. So look for the suggested read-alikes by title linked on the right.
How we choose read-alikes

  • Jeffery Deaver

    Jeffery Deaver

    Jeffery Deaver is the #1 international bestselling author of more than thirty-five novels, three collections of short stories, and a nonfiction law book. His books are sold in 150 countries and translated into 25 languages... (more)

    If you enjoyed:
    The Killing Game

    Try:
    The Vanished Man
    by Jeffery Deaver

  • Mary Higgins Clark

    Mary Higgins Clark

    Mary Higgins Clark's books are world-wide bestsellers. In the U.S. alone, her books have sold over 80 million copies. She is the author of over twenty-five suspense novels, including Where Are the Children? (1975), A Stranger... (more)

    If you enjoyed:
    Fatal Tide

    Try:
    Before I Say Goodbye
    by Mary Higgins Clark

We recommend 9 similar authors

View all 9 Read-Alikes

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