I’ve always loved hard-boiled American detective novels, be they mysteries or crime thrillers, and cut my teeth on the masters — Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler and James M. Cain. I firmly believe this is an American art form that, at its best, rises above the whodunit or violent roller-coaster ride. Three latter-day masters, all of them dead Texans, are also in my personal Hall of Fame — Max Crawford, Milton T. Burton and James Crumley. Of the three, Crumley, who wrote gritty and over-the-top stories laced with drugs, sex and violence, has probably had the greatest influence on my writing.

Here is a short list of the authors I currently follow:

• R.G. Belsky
• Baron R. Birtcher
• Michael Ludden
• James Lee Burke
• Bill Crider
• Carmen Amato
• James Ellroy
• James Lileks
• Lawrence Block
• Todd Scott
• Bruce Robert Coffin
• Geri L. Dreiling
• James McCrone
• Dana King

And some of the crime fiction blogs and websites I’m following:

• Detectives Beyond Borders, Peter Rozovsky’s blog
• Kevin’s Corner, Ace Texas book blogger Kevin Tipple’s reviews
• Mystery Ahead, Carmen Amato’s excellent newsletter
• Writers Bar with Baron R. Birtcher, Big Fun with the Great One