What's Next for DJ Slaughter?

I am currently in creation mode for DJ Slaughter: Book 5. If I had to project, I would guess I'm looking at a release date in late fall. But I'm already getting asked, what's next? Will I continue the series? The short answer is: yes. I don't anticipate him dying in Book 5. But don't hold me to that. I do think that he needs to take a break for a variety of reasons, but primarily because I want to flex my writing muscles in other directions.

For instance, there is so much untapped potential in the Slaughter Universe that begs to be explored. As an example, what is the back story with Agent Brett Foster and his boss, Tim Neville? How did they become friends? What was the life or death event referenced in the books that caused them to bond? I'm sure there's a good story in there.

Could we see a spin-off book solely using Abbi? Imagine her, for example, taking a personal trip to visit the gravesides of her mother and father. Maybe something happens along the way where she has to exclusively rescue herself. No DJ to swoop in with guns ablazin'. Could be loads of fun.

Or, I would love to do a spin-off series where the main protagonist was a female, but on the wrong side of the law. I was thinking we could go back in time and tell some Skyla Dawn stories. How did she get her start in the murder-for-hire business? Maybe she's not as evil as we first saw her. Surely she has some sort of ethical code to live by that helps guide her motives. That would be fun to explore! Really leaning hard on this one and curious as to what you think.

Of course, if you follow me on Facebook, you know that I am secretly working on an entirely different story while I pen Slaughter 5. That's right, I'm writing two books at once. This new series allows me to explore those influences I've had over the course of my life that lie outside the world of action/adventure/thrillers. For instance, I was a big fan of Stephen King and Dean Koontz growing up. Imagine Harry Bosch being written by King or Koontz instead of Michael Connelly. Who knows what monster might crawl out of the sewers of my mind to offer you a balloon of a book to read. Well, you'll find out soon enough on that front.

Maybe, after all of that, we will revisit Slaughterville again. Maybe, I will just write Slaughter books while I experiment with other things. But, this hopefully answers some of your questions. I have a long list of things to do sitting in front of me. It should keep me busy writing, and you busy reading, for quite some time.