Gayle Lynds (born 1945) is an American former journalist, editor and author. Lynds is known as the Queen of Espionage Fiction for her

spy fiction Spy fiction is a genre of literature involving espionage as an important context or plot device. It emerged in the early twentieth century, inspired by rivalries and intrigues between the major powers, and the establishment of modern intellig ...

spy Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering, as a subfield of the intelligence field, is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence). A person who commits espionage on a mission-specific contract is called an ''e ...

thrillers Thriller is a genre of fiction with numerous, often overlapping, subgenres, including crime, horror, and detective fiction. Thrillers are characterized and defined by the moods they elicit, giving their audiences heightened feelings of suspe ...

novels. Lynds is the co-founder of

International Thriller Writers International Thriller Writers (ITW), was founded October 9, 2004, at Bouchercon XXXV, the "World Mystery and Suspense Conference", in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Six months later, some 150 authors with more than one billion books sold worldwide h ...

Early life

In 1945, Lynds was born in

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...

. Lynds' father was an artist who worked on woods. Lynds grew up in

Council Bluffs, Iowa Council Bluffs is a city in and the county seat of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, Pottawattamie County, Iowa, United States. The population was 62,799 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the state's List of cities in Iowa, te ...

Education

Lynds earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism from the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

Iowa City, Iowa Iowa City is the largest city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. At the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the population was 74,828, making it the state's List of cities in Iowa, fifth-most populous c ...

Career

Lynds began her writing career as a newspaper journalist for the ''

Arizona Republic ''The Arizona Republic'' is an American daily newspaper published in Phoenix. Circulated throughout Arizona, it is the state's largest newspaper. Since 2000, it has been owned by the Gannett newspaper chain. History Early years The newspap ...

'' in Phoenix, Arizona. Lynds was an editor at a government

think tank A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governme ...

, where she also acquired a

Top Secret Classified information is confidential material that a government deems to be sensitive information which must be protected from unauthorized disclosure that requires special handling and dissemination controls. Access is restricted by law or ...

security clearance A security clearance is a status granted to individuals allowing them access to classified information (state or organizational secrets) or to restricted areas, after completion of a thorough background check. The term "security clearance" is ...

. Lynds' fiction career began with

literary Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially novels, plays, and poems. It includes both print and digital writing. In recent centuries, ...

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

published under her own name and several

pulp fiction ''Pulp Fiction'' is a 1994 American independent crime film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino from a story he conceived with Roger Avary.See, e.g., King (2002), pp. 185–7; ; It tells four intertwining tales of crime and violence ...

novels under male

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...

s such as G.H. Stone, Gayle Stone, Nick Carter, and Don Pendleton. In 1996, Lynds' first novel Masquerade was published. Lynds also wrote three novels in

The Three Investigators The Three Investigators is an American Children's literature, juvenile detective book series first published as "''Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators''". It was created by Robert Arthur Jr., who believed involving a famous person such a ...

, a YA

mystery novel Mystery is a fiction genre where the nature of an event, usually a murder or other crime, remains mysterious until the end of the story. Often within a closed circle of suspects, each suspect is usually provided with a credible motive and a re ...

series. With

Robert Ludlum Robert Ludlum (May 25, 1927 – March 12, 2001) was an American author of 27 Thriller (genre), thriller novels, best known as the creator of Jason Bourne from the original ''Bourne (novel series), The Bourne Trilogy'' series. The number of copi ...

, she created the Covert-One series and wrote three of the books. In 2004, Lynds and

David Morrell David Morrell (born April 24, 1943) is a Canadian-American author whose debut 1972 novel ''First Blood (novel), First Blood'', later adapted as the 1982 First Blood, film of the same name, went on to spawn the successful Rambo (franchise), ''Ra ...

co-founded

, Inc. and they became the first co-Presidents. Lynds is known as the Queen of Espionage Fiction. ''The Hades Factor'', which she co-wrote with Robert Ludlum, was a CBS television miniseries in April 2006.

Personal life

Lynds' husband was

Dennis Lynds Michael Collins is the best-known pseudonym of Dennis Lynds (January 15, 1924 – August 19, 2005), an American author who primarily wrote mystery fiction. Over four decades Lynds published some 80 novels and 200 short stories, in both myste ...

, also a novelist. Lynds and her family lived in Santa Barbara, California. In August 2005, Lynds' husband

died. In 2011 she married retired Maine district court judge John C. Sheldon. They lived near Portland. Lynds lives in Maine where she is a full-time novelist.

Works

This is a partial list of novels by Lynds.

Novels

* 1996 ''Masquerade'' - First spy novel written by a woman to become a bestseller. * 1998 ''Mosaic'' * 2001 ''Mesmerized'' * 2004 ''The Coil'' - Won Military Writers Society of America Best Novel. * 2006 ''The Last Spymaster'' - Won American Author's Association 2006 American Author Medal. * 2010 ''The Book of Spies (also printed as The Library of Gold)'' * 2015 ''The Assassins'' - Won Military Writers Society of America Founder’s Awards for Best Novel.

Covert-One series

This is a list of novels from the Covert-One series. Lynds co-wrote these novel with Robert Ludlum. * 2000 '' The Hades Factor'' - Won American Author's Association 2008 Golden Quill Awards. * 2002 '' The Paris Option'' * 2003 '' The Altman Code''

Filmography

* ''Covert One: The Hades Factor'' (writer) (2006)

Awards

* 2002 Finalist of

Daphne du Maurier Dame Daphne du Maurier, Lady Browning, (; 13 May 1907 – 19 April 1989) was an English novelist, biographer and playwright. Her parents were actor-manager Gerald du Maurier, Sir Gerald du Maurier and his wife, actress Muriel Beaumont. Her gra ...

Award for ''Mesmerized''. * 2004 BookPage Notable Title for ''The Coil''. It also won the ''Affaire de Coeur'' reader poll for "Best Contemporary Novel." * 2006 American Author Medal for ''The Last Spymaster''. Presented by American Author's Association. * 2006 Novel of the Year prize for ''The Last Spymaster''. Presented by the Military Writers Society of America. * 2008 Golden Quill Awards for '' The Hades Factor''. Presented by American Author's Association. * ''Masquerade'' was listed by ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

'' as one of the ten top spy novels of all time. * ''Mosaic'' was named "Thriller of the Year" by ''Romantic Times'' magazine.

References

External links

GayleLynds.com

2010 Half-Hour TV Interview on The Creative Community

Gayle Lynds at goodreads.com

Gayle Lynds at mainwriters.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lynds, Gayle 1945 births Living people 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American spy fiction writers American women novelists Novelists from California Novelists from Iowa Novelists from Maine Women military writers 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers