About Lynn
The author of numerous thrillers, including the Sonora Blair and Lena Padget detective series, Lynn Hightower’s internationally-bestselling novels have been included in The New York Times List of Notable Books, the London Times’s bestseller lists, and the WH Smith Fresh Talent Awards.
Hightower’s books have been published in numerous foreign countries, including Great Britain, Australia, Japan, Germany, Italy, Norway, Sweden, Israel, and The Netherlands.
Hightower has a degree in Journalism from the University of Kentucky, where she studied creative writing with Wendell Berry. She teaches Master Novel classes in the UCLA Extension Writer’s Program and works with private clients as a manuscript consultant and writing coach.
Hightower spends ridiculous amounts of time curled up reading and wandering around garden centers, is brilliant at cooking new dishes but terrible at remembering these spur of the moment recipes. She loves small sports cars, tame horses, opinionated cats and big dogs.
Hightower is witty after one glass of wine. She has studied French and Italian, but is only fluent in Southern. She has no sense of direction and is often lost. Hightower is a Kentucky native, and lives in a small Victorian cottage with a writing parlor. Her yard is too small to get lost in.
You can find Lynn on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Her literary representation is Matt Bialer at Sanford J. Greenburger & Associates. Her film agent is Joe Veltre at Gersh Agency.
Say Hello to Leah.
Muse, Navigator,
Athletic Director
Asst. Gardener,
and Very Good Girl.
Lynn Hightower
I love all things French. The people, the language, driving through the countryside and mysteriously winding up in Luxembourg.
I write my first drafts by hand. I like the tactile feedback of pen on page.
I have a desk obsession. I am down to four now, one is in the attic. Trying to cut down.
I read so fast I never have enough books so I have to write them too.
I am so bad at returning library books, and the fines get so big, it’s cheaper for me to buy books new. The local library has a wanted poster with my picture on it.
My mom always made sure I had pen, paper, a desk of my own, and lots of books to read. But when it was time to do the dishes, I’m writing was not considered an excuse, though she did laugh and say nice try.
I actually started school at four, not five, if you count Kindergarten. If you don’t five is fine. I was utterly desperate to learn to read, to get away from home, and have big adventures out in the wide world. I could not get away fast enough, and I was always the kid who wanted to grow up fast. I spent many hours up in my favorite tree reading, for two reasons. One is I was engrossed in a book, and the other because though I could climb up I could not climb down. I am afraid of heights. I usually took a sandwich and a book and if I did not show up for dinner my mother sent my big brother out to find me and bring me in. He did this by pushing on the bottoms of my feet until I fell out of the tree. He was the best of brothers, and always caught me before I hit the ground.
I started my first novel in the fifth grade, and have been writing novels since. I write the stories I wish someone would write for me.
I get up early, I like to write in the morning, after coffee, yoga, and training with my dog, Leah. She has a lot to teach me.
I write half the day, then go to work on feedback and zoom conferencing with the writer’s that I am mentoring and teaching. Leah wanders into my office at regular intervals to get me outside — going for walks, throwing a ball. She does not like me to spend too long at my desk. I would like to tell you that when I am done with work, I am out working on my Tango, canoeing level zero rivers and streams, and throwing paint on a canvas while music plays in the background. But it would be a damn lie. I am toast by the end of the day. I put on a pair of ancient worn out Levi’s, pile my hair on my head, and take Leah for a ramble. Then I open a bottle of wine and cook and curl up. I will be bingeing Netflix or reading a book until I fall asleep.
On the weekends I don’t like a schedule but it usually comes down to brunch, farmer’s market, antiquing, movies, and an extraordinary amount of time spent at gardening centers. When I travel, I do the exact same thing except in other countries. I hope to curl up and read a book in every city in France.
If you say something witty, I’m going to steal it for my book.
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