Author’s Note

In every story there is a hint of truth. When I gently sat in front of LaToya Jackson to talk about how she could divorce Jack Gordon, she said to me in a soft voice, “Why would anyone write a novel that no one is going to read?” I was motionless for a second. LaToya looked down at the carpeted floor, lost in thought. Emotionally, she realized how she had sold-out her soul to express her own talent. The choice LaToya Jackson made was because of a deceitful lying and double-dealing influence. Because of this untruth, it would affect her life, her family, and finally forever – her extraordinarily famous brother. But, it was me that truly understood how a beautiful person like LaToya could get involved with skullduggery. Looking into her tiny eyes – her soul – I could see the private crime that had entered into her life…

It was shortly after my first meeting with LaToya that I scribbled down the words, “Art makes us immortal.” I was thinking that our memories we carry inside our hearts will be lost in time, that the earth will reclaim our bodies, and that the soul will return to eternity. But, it is our works of art that will last for generations to come…

The idea of a novel first came to me as a way to tell the truth about the end of Montyne’s life. The people that touched our lives were powerful and famous. It seemed that no one wanted to hear or read the truth. In reality, certain people didn’t want this story in play. So, soon I began to develop a fictional story that was inspired by these special events in my life. The first event was the death of Montyne, and then the most famous basketball scandal in twenty years took place. It involved the fall of Jerry Tarkanian of UNLV fame; no one ever knew why it happened. No one dug into how the newspaper acquired the now infamous and pricey Hot Tub Photo that lead to the famous coach’s resignation. Soon after, a story on Jack Gordon, who was married to LaToya Jackson at the time, was printed in the same newspaper that published the Hot Tub Photo. The deal directed me to the Jackson family. Joe Jackson was an interesting man, Michael Jackson was surrounded by yes men, and soon I discovered how fragile this family was. Later, the next event was enough to inspire me to create a small story-line for the novel. It was the OJ Simpson trial. Simpson’s cousin, an associate to a good friend of mine, wanted to get on television for money. This produced the only interview with OJ’s brother. Montyne’s Inferno was created in the wake of all this, and with it the cool, intelligent, and romantic character Taylor Blackmoore…

Enjoy and discover the mysteries and secrets that are woven into this fictional story….