A lawyer and former diplomat, Otho Eskin served in the US Army and in the United States Foreign Service in Washington and in Syria, Yugoslavia, Iceland and Berlin (then the capital of the German Democratic Republic). He was Vice-Chairman of the US delegation to the United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea, participated in the negotiations on the International Space Station, was principal US negotiator of several international agreements on seabed mining and was the US representative to the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space. He speaks French, German and Serbo-Croatian. He was a frequent speaker at conferences and has testified before the US Congress and commissions.

Otho Eskin has also written plays including: Act of God, Murder As A Fine Art, Duet, Julie, Final Analysis, Season In Hell, among others, which have been professionally produced in Washington, New York and in Europe.

Otho is married and lives in Washington, DC.

Tell us a little about yourself, how and when you started writing.
I love to read and I love the theater and this has stimulated a lifetime interest in plays and in writing. In my career in the Foreign Service, writing was an essential skill where accuracy, clarity and concision were the highest priority and I have adapted these skills to writing plays and, later, fiction. My first efforts in the field of fiction were short stories in the science fiction genre. I later decided to adopt these techniques to long-form fiction. I wanted to draw on my many years of living in Washington and working in the US Government. I know the city—from Capitol Hill, to the elite social circles of Georgetown, to the poor, sometimes desperate, sometimes dangerous parts of town out of the limelight. My work has involved me in the world of interagency government cooperation and infighting—sometimes savage and brutal—and have drawn on that experience to describe how Washington actually works.

What inspired you to write this novel?
I have lived much of my life in Washington, DC and know the city well—from its public monuments and grand boulevards to the other Washington which can sometimes be dangerous and ugly and I wanted to recreate this Washington as a backdrop to an exciting story.

How did you use your life experience or professional background to enrich your story?
I spent my career coordinating the work of many government agencies—civilian, military and intelligence—and I have drawn on this background and these experiences.

Anything autobiographical in your novel?
None

Are any characters based on people you know?
No, except in the broadest, most generic, sense.

What part of writing your book did you find the most challenging?
Developing a main character who is both engaging and believable.

What writers have inspired you?
I admire classic mystery writers such as Graham Green, W. Somerset Maugham, Eric Ambler, John Le Carré.

What is the writing process like for you?
I try to stick to a consistent schedule of 5-6 hours a day and work at the same hours each day, normally from 12 Noon to six (I’m not a morning person). I find I do a lot of re-writing and revision as new plot points occur to me in the writing process.

What’s next for you?
I am working on further novels featuring the same protagonist, Marko Zorn, and some of the same characters.

Any final words?
I hope you enjoy reading The Reflecting Pool as much as I enjoyed writing it.

“The Reflecting Pool is one of the best debut thrillers I have ever read, and I’ve read a lot of them. Eskin is a master craftsman weaving his characters through different story lines to the point you feel your head is spinning. That’s the kind of novel I love to read, and The Reflecting Pool does not disappoint. Marko Zorn rivals Harry Bosch in his ability to get past the rules, and rivals Amos Decker in his determination to get justice. Marko knows how to walk a fine line between legal and not-so-legal and still get the job done. This is the first of the Marko Zorn series and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for him next. I read this book in two evenings (well into the night) and had I not gone to sleep in the middle of a paragraph on night one, I just may well have finished it in one sitting. This is a worthy read for anyone who likes thriller suspense with cops and bad guys.”
—Linda Thompson, host of The Authors Show

“Rough and ragged as the world it so vividly creates, The Reflecting Pool crackles with twists and turns, making for a fun and heady combination of suspense and intrigue.”
—Steve Berry, New York Times bestselling author

“The Reflecting Pool by Otho Eskin is the best crime thriller I’ve read in years, and homicide Detective Marko Zorn is a character I’d like to have a beer with—so long as he’s on my side. Bravo!”
—John Gilstrap, author of the Jonathan Grave thriller series

Email me at otho@othoeskin.com or use the contact form below.

Representation

Judith Ehrlich
Principal of Judith Ehrlich Literary Management LLC
Jehrlich@JudithEhrlichLiterary.com

Media

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