I had wanted to write Ghost Country for a long time, but it wouldn't work.

White-collar crime gets more outrageous by the second in America.

Most people don't have the money to spend on advertising to create awareness among readers, nor do they have the contacts at newspapers or magazines to get their books reviewed.

Write what you care about.

Around the time I turned 30, I wanted to publish a novel

Sometimes I panic and think I can't really write.

And the fury in my community was just staggering. The young priests in the parish were behind the message. The older priests weren't necessarily, but they all followed the orders of the cardinal and read the letter. Every Sunday, 2,000 people came to mass at that parish. The following Sunday, the attendance dropped to 200, and never recovered.