This is a rather lengthy interview, so grab your coffee or a cool and refreshing beverage; as this post is worth reading on… I accidently met Joe through my virtual brother, Dennis Higgins. Dennis is a time travel author and he started writing about time travel books and movies on his blog. He did a post on a 1980 movie called My Mother Was Never a Kid. Joe Cosentino visited his blog post as did I, and this is how an author guest post on my blog with Joe was born. You see, Joe was an actor in the movie that Dennis was blogging about.
Joe Cosentino’s Jana Lane mystery series (beginning with PAPER DOLL) is about an ex-child star uncovering secrets about her past. Joe Cosentino’s favorite ex-child star is Hayley Mills. Who is yours and why? Post a comment. I will select the one that wets my appetite the most and forward your name and email address to Joe Cosentino who will email you a PDF of PAPER DOLL (Jana Lane mystery book 1).
Joe Cosentino is the author of An Infatuation (Dreamspinner Press), Paper Doll, the first Jana Lane mystery (Whiskey Creek Press), Drama Queen, the first Nicky and Noah mystery (Lethe Press-releasing this summer), and The Nutcracker and the Mouse King (Eldridge Plays and Musicals). He has appeared in principal acting roles in film, television, and theatre, opposite stars such as Bruce Willis, Rosie O’Donnell, Nathan Lane, Holland Taylor, and Jason Robards. His one-act plays, Infatuation and Neighbor, were performed in New York City. He wrote The Perils of Pauline educational film (Prentice Hall Publishers).
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Joe is currently Head of the Department/Professor at a college in upstate New York, and is happily married. His upcoming novels are Porcelain Doll (the second Jana Lane mystery) and Drama Muscle (the second Nicky and Noah mystery).
Web site: http://www.JoeCosentino.weebly.com Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/JoeCosentinoauthor Twitter: https://twitter.com/JoeCosen Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4071647 Joe_Cosentino Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00KRPXJP6 
PAPER DOLL (Jana Lane mystery 1) 
by JOE COSENTINO
A mystery/romance novel from Whiskey Creek Press e-book $3.99 purchase links: Whiskey Creek Press: a A mystery/romance novel from Whiskey Creek Press e-book $3.99 purchase links: Whiskey Creek Press: http://www.whiskeycreekpress.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1292 Amazon: http://amzn.to/1xGDOJZ
Book description:
Jana Lane was America’s most famous child star until she was attacked on the studio lot at eighteen years old. Now she’s a thirty-eight-year-old beauty and mother of two living in a mansion in picturesque Hudson Valley, New York. Jana’s flashbacks from her past turn into murder attempts in her present. Forced to summon up the lost courage she had as a child, Jana visits the California movie studio she once called home. This sends her on a whirlwind of visits with former and current movie studio personnel. It also leads to a romance with the son of her old producer – Rocco Cavoto – the devilishly handsome filmmaker who is planning Jana’s comeback both professionally and personally. Can Jana uncover a web of secrets about everyone she loves, including the person who destroyed her past and threatens to snuff out her future?
Pg 2 Excerpt from AN INFATUATION by Joe Cosentino …
Pg 3 Excerpt from PAPER DOLL (Jana Lane mystery book 1):
Hummus Recipe by Joe Cosentino
Joe Cosentino the Actor
ABC TV …
Q & A with Joe Cosentino
- How many books have you written so far?
Eight-and-a-half, but only two have been published so far. The other seven should be published soon, but not soon enough for me. I can’t wait! PAPER DOLL (the first Jana Lane mystery/romance novel) is published by Whiskey Creek Press/Start Publishing. PORCELAIN DOLL (finished) and SATIN DOLL (which I am writing now) should follow. AN INFATUATION (an MM Bittersweet Dreams romance novella based on a one-act play I wrote) is published by Dreamspinner Press. A SHOOTING STAR and A HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS should follow. The first Nicky and Noah MM comedy/romance/mystery novel, DRAMA QUEEN, will be released by Lethe Press this summer. DRAMA MUSCLE and DRAMA CRUISE should follow. My mother said to me, “Don’t you have anything better to do than write all those books?” I wonder if Shakespeare’s mother said that? Hah.
- Were you an actor or writer first?
As a kid I played make believe constantly. “Let’s put on a show!” was my motto. Thankfully my parents and teachers indulged me (rather than committed me-hah). Eventually I became an actor working opposite stars like Bruce Willis (A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM in regional theatre), Nathan Lane (ROAR OF THE GREASPAINT in dinner theatre), Rosie O’Donnell (AT&T Industrial), Holland Taylor (ABC-TV movie MY MOTHER WAS NEVER A KID), and Jason Robards (Commercial Credit Computer commercial). Morphing into writing plays and now novels seemed like the perfect progression. I use my knowledge of show business to tell shocking, riveting, and entertaining stories.
- What inspires you to write? When & how do you get the ideas & do you immediately note the ideas down in a diary or elsewhere?
I never get writer’s block. There are stories in my head constantly. My challenge is figuring out which ones to write. Like many writers, I keep a pad and pencil on my night table and wake up constantly to write down ideas. Sometimes they are terrific ideas. Other times they make no sense. I can’t figure out where they come from.
- Could you offer any advice to unpublished writers?
Write every day. I love reading and writing stories with engaging characters who I want to spend time with. I recommend letting your characters talk to one another and seeing what happens. I prefer mystery suspense novels that drop lots of clues leading to the murderer. I also recommend incorporating many other characters with secrets into the story. A writer should create an entire world of suspense above and beyond “who done it.” When a reader finishes a book, he/she should be satisfied that the various parts equaled the whole, rather than the author pulling an ending out of the hat.
- Which other author’s books, do you feel, come close to your style of writing?
Many readers have compared PAPER DOLL to an Agatha Christie or a Mary Higgins Clark novel. They’ve compared AN INFATUATION to Armistead Maupin. I am incredibly flattered and hold on to those comparisons dearly!
- Do you prefer listening to music or having it silent when writing?
The only sound I like to hear when writing are the voices in my head, and boy do they have a lot to say.
- Did your acting, directing, or teaching theatre become an influence in your writing?
A number of reviewers and readers mentioned my writing is theatrical and cinematic. They love the humor, mystery, romance, drama, surprises, and plot twist and turns. I think that comes from my background in acting, writing plays, and directing plays, as well as teaching acting. AN INFATUATION began as a one-act play. I believe my novels would make terrific films. So come on, producers, make me an offer I can’t refuse!
- Do you reach out to your viewers if so, how?
I absolutely love hearing from readers. I’ve received so many beautiful and touching emails from readers who say reading AN INFATUATION changed their lives and they will always cherish it. I’ve also received quite a number of messages from both men and women who are begging for the next Jana Lane mystery. I love hearing that! So in addition to my web site, I am quite active on Facebook, Goodreads, and Twitter.
- Are you an author who likes to cook? If so, please include one of your favorite recipes.
I’m a hummus fanatic. I’m also a fan of healthy and simply prepared food. So here’s my hummus recipe. Blend in a blender 2 cups of drained canned chickpeas, 6 tbsp of fresh-squeezed lemon juice, 1/3 cup of sesame tahini, 1 tsp. of plum paste, 2 cloves of cooked garlic, 1 tsp. of liquid amino acid/unsalted soy sauce. After blending for 1 minute, top with toasted sesame seeds and toasted seaweed bits. Serve with organic unsalted vegetable chips.
10. Do you have a next work in progress? Tell us about it.
In the first Jana Lane mystery novel (PAPER DOLL), ex-child star Jana Lane learns amazing secrets about everyone from her past, including who killed two people. She also embarks on a forbidden romance. In the second Jana Lane mystery novel (PORCELAN DOLL), Jana makes a comeback film while embarking on yet another romance, and uncovering the murderer of two individuals on the film. I am currently writing the third (SATIN DOLL), where Jana travels to Washington, DC for business and personal reasons. Of course she solves two murders there as well. Each Jana Lane mystery has lots of juicy secrets that are revealed and a shocking ending. Enjoy! And let me know what you think!
Great interview and blog post. I loved that you asked Joe for a recipe.
Thanks for stopping by, Dennis. LOL I was tickled pink when Joe gave me a recipe, it fit in quite nicely with the recipe portion of my blog. :-)