T. Jefferson Parker T. Jefferson Parker (born 1953) is an American

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others asp ...

. Parker's books are

police procedurals The police show, or police crime drama, is a subgenre of procedural drama and detective fiction that emphasizes the investigative procedure of a police officer or department as the protagonist(s), as contrasted with other genres that focus on eithe ...

set in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban a ...

Early life and career

Parker was born in 1953 in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, and he has lived his entire life in Southern California. He was named T. Jefferson Parker. The "T" doesn't stand for anything. His mother said she thought it would look good on the presidential letterhead. He was educated in public schools and received his bachelor's degree from the

University of California, Irvine The University of California, Irvine (UCI or UC Irvine) is a public land-grant research university in Irvine, California. One of the ten campuses of the University of California system, UCI offers 87 undergraduate degrees and 129 graduate and p ...

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

. He began his writing career as a

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalis ...

for ''The Newport Ensign''. Parker later switched jobs to the ''Daily Pilot'', winning three

Orange County Orange County most commonly refers to: *Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area Orange County may also refer to: U.S. counties *Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando *Orange County, Indiana *Orange County, New ...

Press Club Awards. It was at this time that he began writing his first novel, ''Laguna Heat''. He received the Edgar Award for Best Novel in 2002 for ''Silent Joe'' and again in 2005 for ''California Girl''. In 2008, his short story "Skinhead Central" won Parker another Edgar award, making him one of the elite few writers to have won the Edgar three times.

Writing style

Parker's stories usually have one protagonist, and occasionally part of the story will be shown from the antagonist's

point of view Point of view or Points of View may refer to: Concept and technique * Point of view (philosophy), an attitude how one sees or thinks of something * Point of view (literature) or narrative mode, the perspective of the narrative voice; the prono ...

. His stories usually build suspense as the protagonist tries to prevent further

crimes In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Can ...

. The crimes depicted in the story are usually gruesome acts, which cause much unrest in the town where the story is set. Parker is renowned for using California settings and depicting the effects of crime on a community. He draws on his experience as a lifelong California resident. Although most of his work is set in

and Los Angeles County, he has relocated to

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...

and some of his more recent writing is set there.

Life

Parker lives in Southern California, where he writes and spends time with his family. His hobbies include hiking, hunting, fishing, and playing tennis.

Novels

Stand Alone Novels * ''Laguna Heat'' (1985) * ''Little Saigon'' (1987) * ''Pacific Beat'' (1991) * ''Summer of Fear'' (1993) * ''The Triggerman's Dance'' (1996) * ''Where Serpents Lie'' (1998) * ''Silent Joe'' (2001) * ''Cold Pursuit'' (2003) * ''California Girl'' (2004) * ''The Fallen'' (2006) * ''Storm Runners'' (2007) * ''Full Measure'' (2014) * ''Crazy Blood'' (2016) *A Thousand Steps (2022) Roland Ford series * ''The Room Of White Fire'' (2017) * ''Swift Vengeance'' (2018) * ''The Last Good Guy'' (2019) * ''Then She Vanished'' (2020) Charlie Hood series * ''L.A. Outlaws'' (2008) * ''The Renegades'' (2009) * ''Iron River'' (2010) * ''The Border Lords'' (2011) * ''The Jaguar'' (2012) * ''The Famous and the Dead'' (2013) Merci Rayborn series * ''The Blue Hour'' (1999) * ''Red Light'' (2000) * ''Black Water'' (2002) As editor * ''Hook, Line & Sinister'' (2010)

Notes

References

Interview with and Biography of T. Jefferson Parker

External links

T. Jefferson Parker's Official WebsiteInterview with T. Jefferson Parker

1988 audio interview with T. Jefferson Parker at Wired for Books.org
by Don Swaim
T. Jefferson Parker FansiteThe VJ Books Podcast Interview with T. Jefferson Parker
Talking About "A Thousand Steps," December, 2021. {{DEFAULTSORT:Parker, T. Jefferson 1953 births Living people 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American male novelists American mystery writers Edgar Award winners Writers from Los Angeles 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers