Mark Stevens’ inspiration for his new mystery came “in a flash” — in 2001

Mark Stevens is the son of two librarians and has worked as a reporter, as a national television news producer and in public relations. He is the author of “No Lie Lasts Forever,” “The Fireballer” and The Allison Coil Mystery Series including “Trapline,” which won the Colorado Book Award for Best Mystery. He has also published short stories in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, Mystery Tribune, and “Denver Noir.”

SunLit: Tell us this book’s backstory – what’s it about and what inspired you to write it? 

Mark Stevens: The inspiration came in a flash. It was, in a word, weird. It hadn’t happened to me before. It hasn’t happened since. I wasn’t trying to think up an idea for a book. Or a plot. Or a character. The idea came fully formed, at least in terms of a rough structure. And the idea was good enough that I knew I had to do something with it. 

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The idea was built around a retired and uncaptured serial killer. Somebody who had moved on. Somebody who wanted to go down in history as infamous, notorious. The second character was a veteran television reporter who had done something to be suspended by her station. And the spark for the story is a brand-new murder victim who appears to be the work of our retired killer. Only he knows he didn’t do it and he wants his reputation intact. He also doesn’t want the police stirring the pot on all the old evidence, scant as it was. 

So he reaches out to the television reporter for her help as his surrogate investigator. And what forms is a case of mutual redemption. He’s trying to restore his legacy, she wants her job back. Of course at first she doesn’t believe—in a million years—that it’s really him, the notorious PDQ killer trying to contact her. So he comes up with a dark means of getting her attention. And help.

SunLit: Place the excerpt you selected in context. How does it fit into the book as a whole and why did you select it?

Stevens: I’ve have two excerpts—one from the perspective of television reporter Flynn Martin and one from the point of view of Harry Kugel, our reformed serial killer. With a few exceptions at the beginning of the novel, “No Lie Lasts Forever” alternates points of view between Kugel and Martin. 

In Chapter 34, Flynn is accompanied by her father (a longtime but retired print journalist) to visit the newspaper in an attempt to review the notes left behind by a reporter who has been murdered. 

In the second sample, Chapter 43, the police are starting to get active. It’s been 15 years since Harry Kugel’s last murder. The police failed to catch him then and the new case, to use a phrase, is putting them back on their feed. The police always thought they knew the general area where Harry lived—the high-density neighborhood around Governor’s Park in downtown Denver. And this is Harry walking home one day to find that cops are poking around near the condo building where he lives.

SunLit: What influences and/or experiences informed the project before you sat down to write? 

Stevens: Well, I wish I could remember. Why do I say that? Because I wrote the first draft of “No Lie Lasts Forever” in 2001. It’s been a work-in-progress ever since. I would pull it out every once in a while and work on it, applying things I’d learned along the way as I published the five books in the Allison Coil Mystery Series and then “The Fireballer,” which came out in 2023. 

“No Lie Lasts Forever”

>> Read an excerpt

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For many reasons, “No Lie Lasts Forever” didn’t reach its first editor until April of 2024. And she bought it. So I would be telling lies if I knew what I read at the time, but my general process is to immerse myself in every scrap of relevant fiction, nonfiction, television shows, and movies that I can get my hands on. As a former longtime reporter, I love the research stage of a novel and trying to understand my characters. And writing a serial killer was particularly challenging. How do you begin to channel that kind of madness, sickness?

SunLit: What did the process of writing this book add to your knowledge and understanding of your craft and/or the subject matter?

Stevens: Given the circumstances of publishing “No Lie Lasts Forever,” can I flip that question around? What was interesting to me was how “No Lie” evolved as I wrote the other books. And if there’s one thing I’ve focused on more and more it’s the emotional content of each scene. 

I think plot or setting draws us into a book, but we read for emotion. And emotion, it turns out, is what energizes a character. If they are reacting to their circumstances or their situation, it’s emotion that makes them want to protect what they’ve got or head out the door and go fix something that needs fixing. As a writer, if you don’t understand your character’s emotional state in each scene you probably have a fairly two-dimensional moment. 

That doesn’t mean your character has to chew the scenery with their attitudes—in fact, those emotions are often concealed from other characters in the book—but it all starts with knowing those feelings. In all their infinite varieties and combinations.

SunLit: What were the biggest challenges you faced in writing this book?

Stevens: I think the biggest challenge was making sure that Flynn didn’t immediately succumb to Harry’s request to help him out. She had to disbelieve it was the long-vanished serial killer who was reaching out to her. She had to keep pushing back at his invitations to work together and remain in a state of disbelief until he finds a way to prove himself. She’s pretty cynical to begin with, so it wasn’t that hard to do. At the same time, I couldn’t drag that out too long. 

SunLit: What do you want readers to take from this book? 

Stevens: It might be a bit of a reach, but I hope “No Lie” celebrates the role of reporters and the critical role they play. They can tell us when our public institutions and public officials are lying to us. Or deceiving us. And there are reporters who follow the facts, double-check the facts, and those who aren’t quite so fastidious. It’s critical that we know who is relaying solid information and who is trying to tell us how to think. 

SunLit: What is up with our fascination with serial killers?

Stevens: Good question. And I’m going to turn my answer over to S.A. Cosby, who wrote “All The Sinners Bleed” and the forthcoming “King of Ashes.” He’s one of my favorite writers today. He said this: 

“Serial killers are our modern-day boogeymen (and women). They have replaced the vampire, the werewolf and even the ghost as the harbingers of doom and the avatars of societal degradation. The serial killer is the Red Death wearing the mask of civility and friendship. They are the Other, disrupting the masquerade of order that we collectively agree to maintain. They are the all-too-human monsters that wait for us in the dark. For me, serial killers are a fascinating subject to write and to read about. Through their abominable acts, we see a twisted fun-house reflection of what we could become as a society — or what we already are.”

Couldn’t have said it better. And you need to read S.A. Cosby! “Razorblade Tears” is fantastic, too. 

SunLit: Tell us about your next project.

Stevens: My editor is reading the sequel to “No Lie Lasts Forever” and then there is a planned third book in the series (and no more).  My agent is also shopping a novel set in the world of rock & roll. It’s called “The Ballad of Gabe Barley.”

A few more quick items:

Currently on your nightstand for recreational reading: “Hang On St. Christopher” by Adrian McKinty. It’s the latest in his dynamite series featuring Sean Duffy. It’s 1992 in Belfast. The writing is exquisite. And, at times, hilarious.

First book you remember really making an impression on you as a kid: “Robinson Crusoe” by Daniel Defoe.

Best writing advice you’ve ever received: Keep writing. And keep writing some more. You will get better.  

Favorite fictional literary character: Thomas Ripley as created by Patricia Highsmith, particularly “The Talented Mr. Ripley,” “Ripley Under Ground,” and “Ripley’s Game.” The movie versions of “The Talented Mr. Ripley” are good, especially the recent Netflix series “Ripley” starring Andrew Scott, but nothing beats the books.

Literary guilty pleasure (title or genre): I refuse to feel guilty about any of my reading choices. You can’t make me! However, I do have a soft spot for gripping true crime and for a great music memoir from any era of rock & roll.  

Digital, print or audio – favorite medium to consume literature: I love a great audiobook. I have yet to read a digital book. I have nothing against them in theory, but I haven’t done it yet. 

One book you’ve read multiple times: “Heart of Darkness” by Joseph Conrad.

Other than writing utensils, one thing you must have within reach when you write: Black coffee.

Best antidote for writer’s block: Write whatever you’re thinking at that moment. Make a list of distractions. Or make a list of the questions you’ve got about the plot at that moment. Or write a list of the options for where the plot could go at that moment. Or back up a few pages and rewrite a scene or two. Whatever it is, keep writing. If that doesn’t work, take a break. Cut yourself some slack. Ask your subconscious to work out the problem. It’s in there, believe me.  

Most valuable beta reader: Without question, my highly discerning wife, Jody Chapel. Close second is my highly discerning agent, Josh Getzler.