All I can really say is it's bloodier than hell. In this one I'm going to be much more direct and honest in my description of the actual killings and the crime scene.
I am a struggling writer. A middle-aged man with two little kids and I'm just trying to earn a living. So buy this book - or my kids will have to go to foster care.
I am back in the courtroom as a defense attorney. In fact, my first court appearance in a felony case as a defense lawyer was in front of guess who?
I began writing in the 4th grade. As a matter of fact, I produced a play for the entire school. It was about Leif Ericson and the discovery of America.
I can't tell you how hard I worked the last year. In fact, I worked so hard that I know I can't maintain that same work level in 2001, so I've got to quit something.
I chose to go to law school because I thought that someday, somehow I'd make a difference.
I did not think that I was angry, but clearly anger was reflected in my writing. I did not think that I had been affected emotionally, but it was clear from my writing that I was still very emotional about the trial some six months after it ended.
I don't know how the editors are going to take it or how it may be received. But to some extent I'm hoping that with the next book, when people pick it up and read it, it will scare the pants off of them.
I gained great reviews and went on to produce and direct a number of plays throughout my elementary school years.
I just did something on a show on UPN called "Girlfriends" that will be on television in February. I am actually a much better actor today than I was in 1996, believe it or not.
I no longer teach law. But when I did I advised my students that they should never accept a case if it meant that by doing so you couldn't sleep at night.
I suppose that one of the reasons I wrote "In Contempt" was because of the money. After the trial I came to realize that there were things that I needed to do if I was to protect myself and my family, so there were some selfish reasons for it.
I think it hurt my performance because I stopped being me. That won't ever happen again.
I think that as I continue to write, my writing I hope will become more controversial and more provocative.
I think that the mere fact that I'm doing it ought to inspire someone. In junior high school the counselor suggested that I focus on wood shop and metal shop.
I think that's the best approach to take. Let the chips fall where they may. I don't even think about the camera.
I was very concerned about my image and what people said about me and how I looked on television during the Simpson case.
I'm real bent on dialogue. I'm just a little bit crazy and when you put that along with 20 years as a criminal lawyer, it's pretty easy to come up with some interesting plots.
If nothing else, I'm very proud of the overall quality of all three of my books.
In fact, some reviewers have said that as they got into the story they forgot that the protagonist is a black woman. They were moved by the story - by the people as a whole - and not by the little things.
In some ways I'm still recovering from the trial. My health is not as good as it ought to be. I've gone back to practicing law and it seems to have taken a toll for whatever reason.
It did not prepare me for writing or "Power of Attorney." However, what it did is that it forced me out of the DA's office. I stopped getting that county check.
It would have been easier to have a male protagonist, but I didn't want people to assume that Nikki Hill was me in her entirety because a lot of people just don't like me and I don't think they would be interested in reading about me, even in the fictional context.
It's much like writing a screenplay with someone else and that's how we view it, I think.
It's too late for that - trying to second guess it. It's over. I'm worried about how to get the kids through school and still write and practice law and take power of attorney.
My creative juices really don't stall. I like to write in a very straightforward, conversational way, but of course it has to be colorful as well.
My grandparents and parents urged me to go to school and do well in school so that at the end of the day I'd have options, choices.
My wife says she won't give me a divorce, so I can't quit her. So I will probably cut back on my law practice. As for relaxation, what's that?
One of the things I learned about in "In Contempt" is that one should be careful about discussing one's personal life publicly.
Something's going to happen that's going to make us all pay attention at the type of sentences some people are serving and the conditions in which they are served.
Sometimes I have trouble articulating some things or describing things in a way that I think is necessary. But I never run out of ideas.
That's an interesting question. I would say that in general Americans know very little about the law. It's one of those things that most of us take for granted.
That's the thing about us lawyers - if at all possible, we will consume each other.
The events of the day inspired me to become a lawyer.
The law has no compassion. And justice is administered without compassion.
The main thing is that you have a good editor - one that believes in you and who will give you the feedback that you need to produce a good book.
The next book will be entitled "Brother-in-Law." I won't go into the facts of the book except that it's going to have a much, much larger plot.
The pressure on the trial lawyers is tremendous, and some people don't handle the pressure well. They really shouldn't handle difficult cases.
We define and describe the characters - what they look like, how they talk, where they're from.
Writing is hard work, but a lot of fun, too. It allows me to live out some of my fantasies.
You can't be a writer without being very sensitive. And I think that many of us are overly sensitive when it comes to dealing with our publishers.
When asked about him making the transition from attorney to actor, "We're both liars for hire, so it wasn't such a stretch"
Christopher Darden was a prosecuting attorney in the O.J. Simpson murder trial.
Stopped practicing the law after the O.J. Simpson murder trial in which Simpson was found not guilty.
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