Today I’m pleased to present Lynn Hesse, author of “Another Kind of Hero” and “Well of Rage.” As you’ll see Lynn knows the police world and brings her distinctive voice to her stories.
Name:
Lynn Hesse
Where are you from? Tell us a little about yourself:
I am originally from Webb City, Missouri, a former mining town in Southwestern Missouri. Most people have heard of Joplin, Missouri, 7 miles away from Webb City.
I am a small-town girl who moved to Toledo Ohio, then Atlanta when my dad worked for Toledo Scales. My roots are blue collar. I married a preacher’s son, and my son was born in Indianapolis, Indiana. When I became a single parent, I moved back to Atlanta. I attended Georgia State University, GSU, as a student and worked as a GSU state police officer for two years, then DeKalb County Police Department, DKPD, for 23 years. I graduated from the DeKalb County Police Academy in 1980 with academic honors. I was one of the first female police officers on the streets in DeKalb County. I received my Bachelor of Science degree from GSU, Magna Cum Laude in 1996. I taught sacred dance in the United Methodist Church for over 20 years.
Five women placed within the first fifteen highest scores for the sergeants’ test in the early 80s, but they were passed over by the administration. I and another female officer joined these deserving women and sued for discrimination. The suit was settled in 1986. I retired with the rank of lieutenant in 2003. DKPD had 1 female captain when I left.
In 1984 my husband, a retired firefighter and professional photographer, and I were married. We raised his daughter, Nicole, and my son, Aaron, together in Stone Mountain, Georgia. We have several grandchildren and 4 feral cats. Besides my day job, writing, I perform with local theatre and dance troupes.
Do you have a blog/website? If so, what is it?
My web site and blog posts: lynnhesse.com, Scribblersweb@earthlink.net. Discount Code:10SCWG or https://www.amazon.com/Lynn-Hesse/e/B01LKPRAZQ
Do you see writing as a career?
What is the biggest challenge of your current work?
Do you remember the first book you read?
If you were not a writer what else would you like to have done?
I would pick a Broadway career as a professional dancer in my next life.
What do you want written on your headstone and why?
Lynn won the 2015 First Place Winner, Oak Tree Press, Cop Tales, for her mystery, Well of Rage. Her novel Another Kind of Hero was a finalist for the 2018 Silver Falchion Award. Her short story “Jewel’s Hell” was published September 3, 2019 in Me Too Short Stories: An Anthology by Level Best Books and edited by Elizabeth Zelvin.
Her short story about a domestic homicide, “Murder: Food For Thought”, published in the anthology Double Lives, Reinvention & Those We Leave Behind, 2009 by Wising Up Press was adapted in the play, We Hunt Our Young, produced at Emory University Field Showcase and Core Studio Luncheon Time Series, 2011. Excerpts from the play “Unacceptable Truths” was performed on the Atlanta BeltLine in 2013.
An interview concerning Lynn’s role as a police officer, as exemplified in the dance video, “Blue Steel,” is in The Women’s Studies Archives, The Second Feminist Movement, Georgia State University. She performs for social justice in several dance and theatrical troupes in Atlanta, Georgia. One of her personas is “The Dandelion”.
One reply on “Spotlight on Lynn Hesse”
Thank you, Marlene. Coming from a woman whose father was a police officer, high praise indeed.