One for the Money (Stephanie Plum, #1)

by Janet Evanovich

Dear Reader,

They say write what you know. My first published works were romance novels. Obviously, I don’t know a whole lot about that subject since I almost immediately ran out of whoopee positions. So, I left the romance genre for crime. Problem was I didn’t know anything about crime, either. I’ve never been in law enforcement, criminal law or robbed a bank. I was a mom and a really crappy employee at any number of really crappy jobs. Then I saw the movie Midnight Run and realized the main qualification needed for being a bounty hunter was lying. That seemed like a skill I could embrace, and Stephanie Plum was born. I gave her all the things I knew. Things like being fired from your job. Not having money. Driving around in an embarrassing car. And together, Stephanie and I learned how to do the job of bringing in failure to appears. I’ve never actually brought in an FTA, but I did interview bounty hunters (they were more than happy to talk for a free lunch) and toured the Trenton Police Department (they gave me a hat and a fake badge and the cops were awesome). I cruised the streets of The Burg, a neighborhood I was already familiar with. I ate fresh filled cannoli, homemade tomato pies and vodka rigatoni. While it’s been many years since ONE FOR THE MONEY was published, and some things are definitely dated and time-warpish, I’d like to think the essence of Stephanie Plum remains timeless. She’s a survivor, a devoted daughter and an everyday hero in small ways. If Stephanie Plum can make it through her day, so can you. Of course, it would be a lot easier to get through the day if we all had a Joe Morelli and Ranger in our lives to look forward to, but that’s what books are for. Happy reading!