Oh yeah – and I’m an adrenaline junkie.Īny advice for an aspiring writer who may want to go undercover for researching their project?

Taking on a role satisfies my acting bug while I get to do something that I truly believe in. I would go undercover again in a heartbeat. Would you consider going undercover again for another project? Kojima is almost larger than life and it doesn’t get better than that. What’s not to love? Lee Child kindly described him as the Hannibal Lecter of conservation. I had the most fun writing about Yoshi Kojima. Which character was the most fun to write about and why? He finally asked, “What else do you possibly want?” My answer? “Whatever you haven’t yet given me.” Aren’t the good guys always the hardest? I spent time with him and did my best to pick every part of his brain. Which character was the hardest to write and why?Įd Newcomer was the most difficult character to write.

In my case, I believe an acting background helped provide me with a good ear for dialogue and a way to immerse myself in a character. The move from acting to writing seems come naturally. There are a number of authors with show business/theatre backgrounds. Did this also help you with writing the book? If so, how? I imagine your acting background and training came in handy while going undercover. I stalled for as long as possible but finally ended our communication. ”He approached me about this during one of our Skype conversations. Apparently, Kojima thought I’d make the perfect “front man. His plan was that I contact the dealer and pretend to buy it for myself. He wanted one butterfly in particular that is considered to be vulnerable and a species of concern in the States. dealers no longer sold butterflies to him and Kojima asked for my help. I maintained contact with Yoshi Kojima, the butterfly smuggler, after I returned home. There is an interesting tidbit I didn’t write about. Are there any experiences you could share with us that didn’t make it into the book? WINGED OBSESSION is a fascinating read, especially knowing that you went undercover for the research. This expose reads like a thriller and proves once again that truth is stranger than fiction.” ~ Lee Child. “Meet the Hannibal Lecter of the conservation world. What she didn’t know was that this cagey smuggler was planning to turn the tables and use her as a patsy for continuing his illegal butterfly trade. While working undercover to research WINGED OBSESSION, Jessica Speart befriended a smuggler-a manipulation that plagued her with guilt. I had the pleasure of interviewing Jessica Speart to discuss her real-life thriller, WINGED OBSESSION, as she shares her personal experience-going under cover-to successfully tackle the intrigue, mystique and seedy world of illegal butterfly trading.

Winged Obsession by Jessica Speart