Why do you write the genre that you write?
Crime fiction has been part of my life since I picked up my first Encyclopedia Brown paperback in elementary school. Cop and spy shows on TV followed, then it was straight to Sherlock Holmes. I have since branched out to other genres now and then, but I am inevitably pulled back home to crime fiction. I know it’s impossible, but I’m still trying to understand how people can do the horrible things they do to each other. This is my way of investigating that.

Tell us how you got into writing?
My first writing was due to bad penmanship in the third grade. I had homework every night, this was in the 60’s when elementary schools didn’t have homework, but I had one of those tablets with the dotted line in the middle of wide lines that they used back then. I had to fill a page every night to improve my penmanship. Copying out of a book was drudgery. Then one night I wrote what was in my head and I was done in like five minutes. That was when I discovered there was magic in writing.

What’s next for you?
We’re just finishing up the third John Sand novel, and I find myself happily unemployed for the rest of the year. Having some free time means I can finish a western that I started some time ago. When we started doing Sand, I had to set that aside. Even though it’s a western set in 1870, it’s still crime.

What are you reading now?
I haven’t been reading fiction. I generally avoid fiction when I’m writing it to avoid any sort of bleed over. So, for now it’s Welcome To Your Brain by Sandra Aamodt, Ph.D. and Sam Wang, Ph.D. Because I am physically incapable of reading one thing at a time, I’m also reading The Bad Guys series by Aaron Blabey, as well as Bass Culture: When Reggae Ruled by Lloyd Bradley, and Yours Cruelly, Elvira by Cassandra Peterson.

Where can we find you?
The easy answer is matthewclemens.com. Also, most years I can be found at the Midwest Writers Workshop where I help out in one way or another.

Now to have some fun . . .

Vanilla or chocolate
This isn’t fun, this is hard. . .chocolate.

Pizza or burgers
Seriously, this is like torture. . .Yes? Can “Yes” be an answer? Wait! Pizza burgers!

Broccoli or squash
Neither. . .okay, squash in soup.

Breakfast, lunch, or dinner
Breakfast, all day every day.

Mountain or beach
Beach. Mountains are too high.

Introvert or Extrovert
Introvert with a side of extrovert after the third cup of coffee.

And even more fun . . .

You are stranded on a deserted island. What are your three must-haves?
My laptop – this allows me to work and play music.
Electricity – so I can work for more than the first day.
Bacon – Do you really have to ask? It’s BACON!

My Bio:
Matthew V. Clemens is a long-time co-conspirator with Max Allan Collins, the pair has collaborated on over twenty-five novels, nearly two dozen short stories, several comic books, four graphic novels, a computer game, and a dozen mystery jigsaw puzzles. Their second John Sand novel Live Fast, Spy Hard was published by Wolfpack in March 2021, and the third installment of the series To Live And Spy In Berlin will come out later in the year.

He lives in Davenport, Iowa with his wife, Pam, and a finicky feline named Roger who is actually in charge.