Alan Orloff’s debut mystery, Diamonds for the Dead was published in 2010 with Midnight Ink, and went on to be nominated for an Agatha Award for Best First Novel. He published two more novels with Midnight Ink, Killer Routine in 2011 and Deadly Campaign in 2012, a duology in his Last Laff Mystery Series.
His suspense novel, Running From the Past (2015), an Amazon Kindle Scout selection, and his thriller, Pray for the Innocent (2018), were both published by Amazon Publishing’s imprint, Kindle Press.
His P.I. thriller, I Know Where You Sleep (2020), and his YA thriller, I Play One On TV (2021), are both from Down & Out Books.
Alan has also self-published a number of horror and darker thrillers, including The Taste (2011), First Time Killer (2012), and Ride-Along (2013).
More about Alan’s books HERE.
His short fiction has appeared in numerous anthologies and journals of noir and crime fiction, including Needle: A Magazine of Noir, Shotgun Honey Presents: Locked & Loaded, Jewish Noir, Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Mystery Weekly, Chesapeake Crimes: Storm Warning, Noir at the Salad Bar, 50 Shades of Cabernet, Chesapeake Crimes: Fur, Feathers, and Felonies, Black Cat Mystery Magazine, The Night of the Flood, The Swamp Killers, Mystery Most Geographical, five volumes of the Best New England Crime Stories series, and This Time for Sure.
His story, “Rule Number One” (originally published in Snowbound, from Level Best Books), was selected for the 2018 edition of The Best American Mystery Stories anthology, edited by Louise Penny.
His story, “Happy Birthday” (published on Shotgun Honey), was a 2018 Derringer Award Finalist in the Flash Fiction category.
His story, “Dying in Dokesville” (published in Mystery Most Geographical), won the 2019 Derringer Award in the Short Story category.
His novel, Pray for the Innocent (Kindle Press / Amazon Publishing), won the 2019 ITW Thriller Award in the Best E-Book Original category.
His story, “Rent Due” (published in Mickey Finn: 21st Century Noir), won the 2021 ITW Thriller Award in the Short Story category.
His novel, I Know Where You Sleep (Down & Out Books), was a 2021 Shamus Award Finalist in the Best First P.I. Novel category.
He’s been a guest editor for SmokeLong Quarterly, and has served on the editorial selection panel for Chesapeake Crimes’ collection, Homicidal Holidays. He’s also been a judge for several other anthologies and writing awards. His recipe, KILLER TOFU, was included in The Mystery Writers of America Cookbook (ed. Kate White), published by Quirk Books.
More about Alan’s short fiction HERE.
Background
Alan Orloff is one of a rare breed—a native Washingtonian. Born in D.C. and raised in the Maryland suburbs, he received a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Maryland (GO TERPS!) before hitting the road to work for General Electric.
After a few years touring the country (Syracuse, NY; Tewksbury, MA; Richmond, VA; Newport News, VA; Louisville, KY:), he decided engineering wasn’t his thing and attended business school, earning an MBA at MIT/Sloan (GO BEAVERS!). Upon graduation, he returned to the Washington area and made the arduous trek across the Potomac River into the Virginia suburbs, where he’s been living ever since.
Throughout his eclectic career, Alan has worked on nuclear submarines, supervised assembly workers in factories, and stacked washing machines three high in a warehouse with a forklift. He worked at a newspaper company (The Washington Post), for a marketing research firm (Arbitron), and at a hardware/software systems developer (Odin). He even started his own newsletter business, educating the public about the benefits of recycling and waste reduction (GO EARTH!).
Years later, though, he decided business wasn’t really his thing either. Buoyed by the support of his wife, he started writing fiction. Miraculously, he didn’t get bored; in fact, he actually enjoyed writing. This would have made his late father, a former English teacher, very proud.
Alan is a member of Mystery Writers of America (MWA), International Thriller Writers, Sisters in Crime, and he has completed the Herndon (VA) Police Department’s Citizen’s Police Academy.
He recently moved to Florida and is currently the president of the Florida Chapter of Mystery Writers of America.
He is happily married, with two boys, and enjoys a host of hobbies, not least of which is bragging about his adult children. He likes to play poker and read a lot, too. He also runs and swims, but he doesn’t much like doing either.
(Alan is the one on the right.)