I’m so pleased to introduce my Tell Me Your Story Guest for August 2024, Emmy award-winning journalist Christina Estes, whose debut novel, Off the Air, received the Tony Hillerman Prize for Best First Mystery Set in the Southwest. Off the Air features a Phoenix TV reporter investigating a controversial murder, was inspired by Christina’s award-winning reporting career. During 20-plus years as a journalist, she’s covered presidential campaigns, public policy, education and business. Her stories have ranged from the whimsical – like a fish visiting a dentist – to the weighty – such as witnessing a lethal injection. Christina now reports for the NPR member station in Phoenix. Learn more about Christina’s illustrious career at https://christinaestes.com.
Christina’s Story
“What do you want to be when you grow up?”
I don’t remember who first asked me that question, but I remember my response.
“An author.”
I devoured books so it made sense–until I got older. I didn’t know any authors and I didn’t know anyone who pursued writing as a career. But I did see reporters on TV, hear them on the radio, and read their names in newspapers and magazines. My love of reading grew to include current events and I had found my career path.
For many years, I reported for various TV and radio stations, and when I wasn’t working, I was enjoying mysteries, just as I had as a child. But I’d moved on from Encyclopedia Brown, Trixie Belden, and Nancy Drew to Michael Connelly, Janet Evanovich, and J.A. Jance.
Jance’s Ali Reynolds series, about a former Los Angeles newscaster who moved back home to Arizona, planted the seed for my writing. I squealed with delight while reading about specific locations close to where I lived. Then, I read Hank Phillippi Ryan’s Jane Ryland series about a reporter in Boston and thought, “Maybe I can write about a reporter in Phoenix.”
And voila! Fifteen years later, my debut novel, Off the Air was published.
You know the sayings, “Write what you know” and “Write what you love”? Both apply. When I moved to Phoenix, I never expected to stay past my three-year contract in local TV. That was more than twenty years ago. Off the Air is a love letter to Phoenix and local news. Many characters are composites of people I worked with or met covering stories. I even include a couple real-life reporting stories in the book.
I originally wrote Jolene, my main character, with a different name and backstory. I made the mistake of writing about the 29-year-old reporter I wish I had been rather than a flawed character to root for. I eventually created Jolene’s backstory using my personal experience as a former foster parent. I know technically Jolene is a character but she feels real to me and I love her.
My journey to publication was filled with rejection, frustration and ignorance. I made the mistake of thinking that because I’m a reporter and write every day that I could easily write a novel. There’s a huge difference between writing a 30-second or 3-minute broadcast story and a 300-page novel. I needed to learn the craft of writing – and I’m still learning.
“What do you want to be when you grow up?”
When my younger self answered, “An author” she couldn’t have known it would be decades before grown-up me spoke these words out loud: “I’m going to write a book.” And, grown-up me had no idea it would take 15 years to reach this point.
I’m thrilled to share that I’m working on a sequel, which will not take that long! The Story That Wouldn’t Die will be published in 2025.
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Contact Christina at authorestes@gmail.com
@reporterestes on Instagram, X/Twitter, Threads
https://www.facebook.com/ChristinaEstesAuthor/
Off the Air introduces Jolene Garcia, a local TV reporter in Phoenix trying to cover real issues in a society that seems more interested in clicks and reels.
When a controversial radio talk show host dies on air, Jolene’s managers are ecstatic because she conducted his last interview. They’ve got the advantage – but not for long. National media descend on Arizona with bigger budgets and better scoops. Jolene is determined to solve this murder. It’s an investigation that could make or break her career—if it doesn’t break her first.
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