As one of the authors with Writers Exchange I would like to provide you with a brief background of myself, and explain how and why I began writing.

I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and in 1969 I was drafted into the U.S. Army.  After completing basic training and military police school, I spent a year with the 557^th MP Company at Long Binh, South Vietnam, in 1970.  My time as a combat M.P. provided the basis for my first book, M.P., A Novel of Vietnam, a work of fiction based in part on my personal experiences during my tour of duty.  Upon completing my military service, I joined the Pleasant Hill Police Department.  I retired in 2001 as a Sergeant after 30 years of service.  Currently, I am the lead Emergency Vehicle Operations Course (EVOC) instructor for the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office.  I earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Administration of Justice through California State University, Sacramento, and a Master’s Degree in Public Administration through California State University, Hayward. In addition to M.P.,  I have had several articles published in law enforcement periodicals, including, Law and Order, Police Officer’s Quarterly, and The Backup.  I am also a contributing author in True Blue – Police Stories by Those Who Have Lived Them, a collection of short stories released by St. Martin’s Press.  My second novel, Retribution, a fictional story of the hunt for a serial killer in San Francisco, was published in the spring of 2007, and my third book, Diplomatic Immunity,  is currently at the publishers.  I live in Concord, CA. with Charlene, my wife of 38 years.  We have two children, Alexandria, 34, and Scott, 30, who both reside in the Sacramento area.

My writing career began when another Sergeant at the police department, a fellow Vietnam  veteran, and I would swap stories of our experiences in Vietnam.  The other members of the department would listen, and began to encourage me to write down my stories.  They said it would make a good book.  So, taking heed of their advice, I began my first novel.  After two years, I began shopping for a publisher, choosing to go the small press and electronic publisher route.  I was lucky enough to be accepted for publishing by Writers Exchange, and I have been extremely fortunate to be involved with, and published by, this fine organization.  I found the publisher, Sandy, to be very professional, efficient, and hard-working.

I continued my writing endeavors with my second book, using the same main character, Vince Torelli, only now he is 25 years older and a homicide inspector with the San Francisco Police Department, relying on my 30 years of police experience for authenticity.  My third novel is a continuation of the life and experiences of  Inspector Torelli, only this time he faces a professional sniper who is targeting consulates in San Francisco.  I am currently hard at work on my fourth book, hoping to complete it in the next few months.

All my life I have been an avid reader.  I remember my mother taking my brother and I to the local library every  two weeks so we could check out books.  Reading has always been one of my favorite pastimes and I have always admired authors who could spin such good tales.  As such, I get much more pleasure from hearing a reader say they really enjoyed one of my books than from the royalties from the sale.

So, should you buy one of my books, please take the time to review it for the Writers Exchange website, and drop me a note at my website guestbook at www.jschembra.com.  I would love to hear from you!  While you are there, please look around the site and check out my photos.

Please take the time to peruse the Writers Exchange bookstore.  You will find it full of some very good books of every genre.  You are bound to find something you will like.

Happy reading,  John Schembra

Check out John’s Author page for purchasing information for all his books (both direct from the WEE site or from Amazon):