J.M. Adams
Second Term
DOSSIER: Since you were covering the news during Desert Shield/Desert Storm from Kuwait and Iraq, The Dossier (who may have been stuck in the middle of the desert somewhere eating an odd, gray substance out of a 5-10-year-old plastic bag) has some serious questions. What was your gourmet food like with the Air Force, and did you have daily room service at the place where your news network put you up? Was there a nightly turn-down service and chocolates?
ADAMS: I hate to spill secrets about the Air Force, as they were such gracious hosts, but yes the food was exquisite and not intended for any of the grunts slogging it out in the field. After drinks in the lounge inside the luxurious Ahmad al-Jaber Air Base, it was off to the grand ballroom in Tent City where rows of fresh flowers were flown in daily to ward off the 110-degree-in-the-shade desert setting. The meals were catered each night by the finest French chefs with four course meals that often featured morel mushrooms and a steady diet of delicate pheasant. When I recall my time in the desert, it wasn’t about the Highway of Death, the Pave Hawks or the pulverized bunkers on the Kuwaiti fields, it was about the feelings and emotions that came with the wonderful meals I feasted upon in Tent City.
DOSSIER: With all the news stories you’ve covered in and around the greater New York area and beyond, (your work as a mild-mannered reporter is, after all, Emmy-nominated) was there any other topic you considered writing about before you decided on the thrilling concept in SECOND TERM? (Available October 17, 2023, from Oceanview Publishing.)
ADAMS: At some point, I will tell the backstory of Cora Walker, the female protagonist in SECOND TERM. I was deep into a kidnapping and recovery novel featuring Cora Walker when I found myself distracted by the unfolding political mess and polarization that has gripped our country. I decided that if anyone could straighten this mess out, it was Cora.
DOSSIER: When and where do you write, and what kind of environment do you prefer? (Music/silence/sitting in NY/NJ traffic?)
ADAMS: When I’m writing a novel, every day starts between four and four-thirty in the morning. This usually takes place at the kitchen table at home, but I’ve also found myself in hotel lobbies, coffee shops and even park benches. This is where you often encounter all the fine people who work the midnight shifts.
DOSSIER: When it comes down to writing a female lead in a fiction novel, what character elements were important to you when you created Cora Walker? People are curious of what you drew from to come up with a former defense operative and single mother who finds herself at a secret installation trying to stop a terrorist plot. Was it the Laura Croft poster above your computer?
ADAMS: OK – You came so close to nailing this one. Yes, it was Angelina Jolie, but NO, it was NOT LARA Croft. My fictional female inspiration was born in 2010 with Evelyn Salt. Spoiler alert, if you haven’t seen the movie Salt, stop right here. BUT, if you saw the movie – You know what I’m talking about. Anyone, man, woman or hamster who can jump off a banister and kill Ray Donovan with the chains that are binding her is the Undisputed American Badass Champion of the world! Although technically I suppose, SALT WAS A RUSSIAN.
DOSSIER: When The Dossier texted you about releasing your classified writer’s file, you were coaching girls tennis. When you provide your world-class instruction, do you do it in your polished anchorman voice? And speaking of Anchorman, the movie, if you were to play one of the characters based on your years doing the news, which one would it be? The Dossier has its money on Brick Tamland due to your love of lamps and hammers.
ADAMS: Before every tennis match, I gather my female warriors and with great pomp and circumstance, I deliver the same earthshaking quote from my hero Ron Burgundy. In my rich and deep baritone voice that shakes the courts I proclaim:
“I am very important. I have many leather-bound books and my apartment smells of rich mahogany.”
These motivational words of wisdom stir great emotion in each and every player that drives them not only to overcome any obstacle, but also to vanquish any and every opponent. I know that Serena quietly retired to avoid having to face one of my players in a public venue.
DOSSIER: They’re not reading any of this, are they?
Website: jmadams.com
Jeff Circle 