An Interview with Mary Martinez

The Write Way Café welcomes Mary Martinez, author of The Beckett Series. Mary shares how an idea for one book grew into a series.


Where did the idea for your story come from?
It came from a documentary called The Bridge. And if I say more there will be spoilers.

Why did you pick the setting you did?
I don’t think I picked it. Brooklyn is where the Beckett’s come from. I honestly believe the setting picked me.

Tell us a little about The Beckett Series.
The Beckett Series started as one book. I had an idea, it was going to be called The Bridge. But then Tyler Beckett had five siblings and his parents, who they all call The Elders. Tyler started telling his story and I knew before I was half way through I would be writing a series. Disappear is Tyler Beckett’s story. Innocent is Jessica Beckett’s Story, Quiet is Christine Beckett’s story, Illusion is Reagan Beckett’s Story, Profit (my newest release) is Matt Beckett’s Story. And coming soon Abandoned is Glenna’s story. Reagan and Glenna are twins. They're referred to as The California Twins.

Are your main characters completely imaginary or do they have some basis in real people? Do they reflect aspects of yourself?
My characters have careers that I would like to have, anyway some of them do. All have a few aspects of people. But I’ve walked the Beckett neighborhoods and know their favorite places; they’re more friends than anything.

Did you face any blocks while writing the book, and if so, how did you handle them? If not, what's your secret?
My day job. It’s my biggest hurdle. My only secret is to grab writing time whenever I can. My critique partner takes one full Saturday as often as we can to go to Barnes and Noble and write all day. And every April we have a three-day writing retreat with another writing friend. And that was last weekend, April 7, 8, 9th. Obviously, I write at home also.

What have been surprises you've encountered while writing the book and after?
The Beckett’s are a stubborn lot and they’re determined to have their own way. On the surface, they’re any American family. Underneath they’ve all had their challenges. I’ve had to dig deep to deal with their issues. Their insecurities and the resolution with family.

What did you learn? For instance, what did you learn about yourself, your process, the writing world; about banking, and Federal Special Task Forces?
I found out that banking isn’t just loans, mortgages, deposits and withdrawals. There really is A World Banking Association. It’s called The World Bank Group and it has five entities. I built my WBA and its entities from that. They’re fictional but loosely based on them. I had no idea about any of that. As for the Federal Special Task Forces, I have a friend who is a Federal Agent and he helped me a lot. When I needed to do a bomb in Innocent he gave me the name of the Bomb Squad commander and I talked to him for over two hours. The scene when they have to defuse the bombs in Jessica’s room - it all came from him.

If Profit was made into a movie, who would play your main characters, and why?
You know I never thought about that part. Yes, I do dream of my books being made into movies, but I never think who would play the parts. But if I have to, Matt Beckett would be Ryan Reynolds and Bryn Connelly would be Jessica Chastain.

Tell us about your writing space and how or why it works for you.
I have an office with a big L-shaped desk, with a new desktop (my last one died of old age). I’m still learning how to do all the new programs.  Like Adobe Photoshop elements it is supposed to be easy, just makes me feel dumb.

What are some of your favorite books and why?
Most of my current favorite books come from my book club. And I would never have picked them out, yet books like Lilac Girls and The Last Anniversary are awesome. On the romance side, I love a good Sandra Brown, Nora Roberts, or Brenda Novak book.

What are you working on now?
I am working on Abandoned, book 6 of The Beckett Series.

If you were not a writer, what would your dream job be?
Master Chef, or actually I think they’re just called head chef, at a five-star restaurant in Bali or somewhere like that.


Profit: Utopia the Conclusion
Book V The Beckett Series
Matt Beckett is the Chief Financial officer for World Banking Association (WBA). Over a year ago an agency known as the HEAD group tried to take over the WBA. Matt's sister, Reagan Beckett, a member of a Federal Special Task Force took out one of the key players, a serial killer known as the Headman. Now the founder of HEAD, Andrew Phillips, is back and ready to finish what he'd started with a new and dastardly key player from the Dark web.

Matt doesn’t have any desire to be involved in any cloak and dagger stuff. He’d rather leave that to the other law enforcement Beckett’s. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like he'll have a choice.

Bryn Connelly is the Chief Audit Executive also for the WBA. She had been one of the Headman's targets and thought her days of danger were over. However, she finds herself working with laid back Matt Beckett, much to her dismay.

Matt couldn’t be more delighted when Reagan informs him he'll be working the lovely Bryn. He’s been trying to catch her eye for five years, now. However, their sleuthing quickly lands them in a precarious position.

It’s up to Matt and Bryn to finish what Reagan and her team started, but can he win the lovely Bryn and save the day? Or will he lose her forever if the WBA falls into the wrong hands?

Amazon         Barnes and Noble       Books A Million        Indie Bound


Mary Martinez lives in Magna, a little town west of Salt Lake City, Utah. Together with her husband, she has six grown children, and six wonderful grandsons and five beautiful granddaughters. She loves to spend time with family and friends--she includes good books as friends!
     Mary and her husband love to travel, especially to the Caribbean for relaxing, and Italy for the wine. And most recently she discovered she was Irish and Scottish, of course they had to visit Ireland and Scotland. Mary fell in love with both, but the green hills of Ireland felt like home.  With the experience from the exotic places she has visited, she is able to fill her books with colorful descriptions of cities, painting a colorful backdrop for her characters. One of her favorite US destinations is New York/Brooklyn, where her beloved Beckett's live. When she visits, she can wander their neighborhoods, favorite parks, and visit their favorite pub, Putnum's.
     They are avid concert ‘Ho’s’! Yes, they pretty much want to do them all. They love outdoor amphitheaters the best and attend as many during the warmer months as possible.
     Mary writes mostly romantic suspense, romance, women's fiction, and she has just begun to dabble in young adult mystery. She is a member of Romance Writers of America (RWA). During her writing career she has been a conference coordinator, workshop presenter, and chapter president for the Utah Chapter of RWA. In 2007 she was presented with the Utah RWA service award in acknowledgment and appreciation for outstanding service. Mary has also participated in numerous library panels on writing and co-presented a workshop on writing a series at the League of Utah Writers conference.
     Mary and her husband are also enthusiastic college football fans. They have season tickets to the UTES, University of Utah Football and they tailgate every game. They love tailgating so much, that they were married at a tailgating in 1999. GO UTES!

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