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| Interview with Lynnette Baughman, author of A SPY WITHIN (Top Publications, 1999) a spy thriller within a murder mystery, revolving around an old man's mention of espionage at the time of the making of the atomic bomb. Read our review of A SPY WITHIN. Feature by Susan McBride Little did Lynnette Baughman know how current the theme of her first novel A SPY WITHIN would be when it was released in November 1999. After all, the tale of murder and espionage is based on events that happened long ago, back in the 1940s, when the first atomic bomb was being constructed in her hometown of Los Alamos, New Mexico. So now seemed the perfect time to discuss with Lynnette the ongoing investigations of missing - and found - hard drives in the Los Alamos Nuclear Weapons Lab. I also wanted to ask about the recent fire televised nationally, which came a bit too close for comfort, and about her experiences as a newly-published novelist after so many years spent as a freelance journalist with credits that include a host of newspaper and magazine articles as well a monthly column, "Los Alamos Scene," for the Santa Fe New Mexican. But, first, the book. SUSAN McBRIDE - A SPY WITHIN is a spy thriller within a murder mystery, all revolving around an old man's mention of espionage at the time of the making of the atomic bomb. Is the tale based on truth? Or rumor? How did the idea for this story take seed in your mind and develop into the novel? LYNNETTE BAUGHAM - In 1992, a Russian spymaster told the Washington Post that the United States had uncovered less than half of his network of spies inside the Manhattan Project [the top secret project to build the first atomic bomb, during World War II - the center of which was Los Alamos]. He gave details of a spy, a physicist code-named Perseus, who had never been identified. Since I live in Los Alamos, I began doing research, planning to write non-fiction about the spy. I ended up writing a novel instead, but the research underpins the fiction. Also, I use the history I researched in talks I give on "The History of Atomic Espionage." Do you find it ironic that after all these years espionage at Los Alamos is still in the news? Any comments on this latest flap about the missing hard drives? The bureaucracy is its own worst enemy when it comes to security. If the rule is that you’re fired (and fried in public like a sausage in hot grease) if you make a mistake, naturally you try like hell to cover up that mistake. At this point, the director of Los Alamos National Laboratory is testifying before Congress and he can't answer the questions. Because from the moment the FBI got into the case, the Laboratory Director has been forbidden to speak to the people who work for him. I - like many Americans - do not sleep better with the FBI in charge. On top of the spy issue, you as a Los Alamos resident, had to deal with raging fires not so long ago. Talk about real-life being more unbelievable than fiction! What was your situation during this threat? During the Cerro Grande fire, my husband and I were in Austin, Texas watching CNN and calling home to friends who were watching live news in New Mexico to ask them for more current information. I'll never forget hearing a friend report, "They're saying now that hundreds of homes are burning in Western Area and North Community. It's completely out of control. The winds are gusting to 80 miles per hour." Since our home is in Western Area - and all wood, as everything is there - we thought ours was gone. We had to live with that for several days, until a list of addresses was released of the 400 homes that burned to the ground. Our home and our immediate neighborhood survived with no damage. About two and a half blocks away, 17 homes in a row burned. We now look at the forested hillsides we love, and it's a hideous sight. The horror is not over. In many ways, it will never be over. The forest will not come back for a hundred years or more. But the debris of 220 burned structures (many of them duplexes or quadruplexes) must be dug out of the ground and removed immediately. Easy to say - but reality is horrible. The piles of ashes and metal and concrete include friable asbestos, the form of asbestos that can get in your lungs. And the piles contain rotten food. Guess what happens if we have an infestation of mice and rats? Hanta Virus. Oh, and the local landfill is nearly at capacity. Where are we going to put 400,000 cubic feet of debris? 800,000 cubic feet if you include the burned trees in the town site. Now there’s the recent scandal on top of it all. We're all feeling so battered and heartsick, the town is full of the walking wounded. As someone said in the newspaper yesterday, "What's next for us - a plague of locusts?" Have you always lived in Los Alamos? Is it as interesting a place as it seems to those of us on the outside? It's a wonderful place. It used to be so beautiful. The level of education is one of the highest of any town in the country. People are very big on exercise, clean air, protecting the environment. Art and music are also very important. We have excellent community service organizations, such as Kiwanis (of which I am a member). I'd say if there is one word that describes Los Alamos residents best, it's generous. Your protagonist in A SPY WITHIN, Patrice Kelsey, is a newspaper reporter. Your background is as a newspaperwoman, is it not? How did your experiences affect the writing of this novel and the creation of Patrice? In the process of researching "who was the spy, Perseus?" I realized that if I figured it out, no one would believe me. Who would think an ordinary, garden-variety writer for a small paper could figure out something about an international conspiracy? A reporter for CNN or TIME magazine, maybe - but not little old me. So that became the "What if…?" of my plot. What if a woman historian in Los Alamos figured out who the spy was, and what if she were murdered before she could publish the information? Can you tell us what you're working on now? Another book with Patrice? Or something different entirely? I'm working on a lighter mystery set in Las Vegas, Nevada. All different characters. Title is THIN DISGUISE. Is being published in novel-length fiction vastly different from being a published print journalist? I tried writing for magazines, true dramatic stories, and I had some success, including two features for Reader's Digest. But not only do you have to struggle past layers of editors, you also have to fight the possibility that some other magazine will print the story, and the magazine you're working with will suddenly drop it. I was very close to getting an article in McCall's for example, a story I'd spent countless hours on and a fortune in long distance calls. But a short version of the woman's story appeared in the weekly magazine Woman's World. So the editor at McCall's said it was no longer of interest to them. Sorry, good-bye. And the big magazines' print horizon is months out, where Woman's World can get a story in print about two weeks after it breaks in a newspaper, simply by a staffer doing a phone interview. I got a lot more pleasure from writing a novel. The story was entirely mine. What's the best part about promoting your book? I'm so gratified by the response my book has earned locally. I've had people buy one, then come back to buy five more as gifts for family and friends. The worst? Doing book signings where nobody ever heard of me has been very difficult. I'll admit, it's been demoralizing to look at the numbers. Especially when I compare it to my expenses in getting to the bookstore in that town, maybe a 700-mile drive each way. And I'm not getting any writing done while I'm doing that. What goals have you set for yourself as a writer? Do you find that they've changed throughout your career? Sure they’ve changed. My goal for years was to see 'one book of mine in print'. Now I want to see my second book in print and both of them in foreign language editions. And - call me crazy - but I'd like to make a profit. Right now I've spent far more on promotion than I got as an advance. What advice do you have to aspiring novelists? Don't work in a vacuum. Take a class. Join a writers' group that actively shares what each one learns at writing conferences and from reading. Read books about how to write in your genre and books and articles about the current market. I wrote two novels in the early 1980s, and I had no idea what the market wanted. I got two rejections and quit. Funny thing was, the rejection on one book was an invitation to rewrite it and send it again. Did I do that? No. I saw the word "No" and quit. And while your first book is out making the rounds to agents and/or publishers, write your second and your third. Tell yourself you're going to have a three-book contract and give yourself a deadline. In other words, act like a professional. What are your favorite books and authors? Nelson DeMille, especially PLUM ISLAND; Sandra Brown, especially THE WITNESS; Michael Connelly, especially BLOOD WORK; J.A. Jance, the Sheriff Joanna Brady series; and Tony Hillerman. I like some of Susan Isaacs' books, especially AFTER ALL THESE YEARS. And I love Martin Cruz Smith's three Arkady Renko books, GORKY PARK, POLAR STAR, and RED SQUARE. I'm also very fond of the legal thrillers by Robert K. Tanenbaum. I've read all of Sue Grafton's books, and I like O IS FOR OUTLAW best. Anything else you'd like us to know about Lynnette Baughman? I'm a member of the Rocky Mountain Chapter of Sisters in Crime and Rocky Mountain Chapter of Mystery Writers of America. I'm also a member of my local group, Los Alamos Writers Group, and over the years we've all improved and we're seeing more and more success. It's not a coincidence. Our motto is: "The harder we work, the luckier we get." How can readers contact you? By email at nmauthor@juno.com |
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