In this interview we sit down with the mind behind the Natalie McMasters Mysteries series, Thomas A. Burns Jr. With his latest release, Shooters!, Burns once again proves himself a master of the crime thriller genre. Through the lens of his adorable protagonist, Natalie McMasters, Burns explores the darker side of contemporary society, shedding light on issues that demand our attention. From the adrenaline-fueled action sequences to the nuanced character development, Shooters! promises to deliver an unforgettable reading experience. Throughout our conversation here we’ll solve the mysteries behind this compelling novel and gain insight into Burns’ creative vision.
Tell us about your book.
Shooters! is the eighth book in the Natalie McMasters Mysteries. Nattie is twentysomething, bisexual and has a polyamorous composed of her wife Lupe, her (unofficial) husband Danny, Lupe’s eleven-year old son Eduardo and an adopted daughter Shannie. She works for her Uncle Amos Murdoch’s 3M Detective Agency as a private detective trainee. The fam, Amos, his new wife Maribeth (aka M.B.) and Nattie’s mom Judy all live at Hyacinth House, an estate on the outskirts of Capital City, in an east coast southern state.
Shooters! is a complex tale about mass shootings, exploring some of the reasons they happen as well as their effects on the people involved and society at large. The story also considers other contemporary topics such as incels, the manosphere, and transgenderism vs. feminism. These are adult topics, so Shooters! is recommended for 18+ readers with open minds.
Shooters! is also a taut, intense, exciting and suspenseful crime story. The primary reason that I write is to entertain my readers. It’s a plus if I can make them see the world in a new way.
Did your environment or upbringing play a major role in your writing and did you use it to your advantage?
I’ve wanted to write fiction ever since I could read. I cut my teeth on the Hardy Boys, Rick Brant, Tarzan and Doc Savage. All of the authors of these works were primarily great storytellers, and that’s what I try to be. I am very widely read and I try to draw all of that into my writing today.
Tell us your most rewarding experience since publishing your work.
I am self-published. It was quite a leap of faith to do that—many people told me it would destroy my chances of ever getting on with a mainstream publisher and relegate me to the trash heap of failed writers. I guess I proved them wrong when I won the prestigious Silver Falchion award in the action/adventure category for Killers!, the sixth book of the Natalie McMasters Mysteries, at the Killer Nashville International Writing Conference in 2022.
How would you describe your writing style?
It depends on what I’m writing. The Natalie McMasters mysteries are contemporary, suspenseful thrillers, so the writing is intense and edgy. I tell multiple stories in each book, so the POV changes depending on whose story I’m telling. Nattie’s chapters are in her voice, 1 st person. She has a potty mouth as do many that age (if you don’t believe me, go into a cafeteria on a college campus and listen) and she uses a lot of Gen Z slang that I don’t always define, so it can be a challenge to read. I’m also a big fan of writing dialects even though it isn’t done so much anymore.
However, I’ve also published a book of Sherlock Holmes stories called Ten Steps from Baker Street. In those stories, I try to come as close to Dr. Watson’s voice as written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle as I can. Another book I’ve published is The Legacy of the Unborn, an H.P. Lovecraft pastiche. One of the characters in that book speaks in the parlance of the 1930s, much as you’d hear in a movie made during that time.
Are your characters pure fiction, or did you draw from people you know?
I decline to answer on the grounds that my answer may tend to incriminate me.
Are you more of a character artist or a plot-driven writer?
In my opinion, character is the heart and soul of fiction. So my stories are always character driven first. However, an exciting plot is essential to maintain a reader’s interest. The trick is to make sure that the plot is true to the characters.
What do you hope to accomplish with your book other than selling it?
If I can give a reader a few hours of enjoyment away from the trials and tribulations of life, that’s all I need to do.
Where can our readers purchase your book?
Shooters! is exclusive to Amazon. This link will take you to the series page.
Find the Author
Shooters!: The Natalie McMasters Mysteries Book 8
Award-winning author Thomas A. Burns Jr. spins another mind-blowing tale about twentysomething detective Natalie McMasters and her unlikely family that’s torn from today’s headlines This time Nattie 
is preggers (?!) and unsure of the father. The candidates? Her husband Danny, the love of her life, or her biological father, who cruelly had his way with her. Complicating the situation, her Uncle Amos’s 3M Detective Agency is hemorrhaging money, and even the estate that houses Nattie, the agency and the fam is at risk.
Her quakeworthy solution? An infamous social media influencer and unapologetic misogynist is bringing his totally unwoke nude beauty pageant to Capital City and wants to hire 3M to provide security for its million-dollar prize. Her hormones raging, Nattie gets it that a cool mil would make all her money troubles vanish. But she doesn’t know that a malevolent enemy from her past is back and gunning for her…
Meanwhile, her foster son Eduardo has his own problems. Humiliated at school, he falls under a deadly influence that sends him racing toward an unimaginable act of violence that will change his young life forever. The astonishing ending is like nothing you’ve ever seen in contemporary crime fiction and will totally leave you reeling.
You’ll truly get why Natalie McMasters is “a detective for the new millennium”.
