EDNA BUCHANAN

Edna Buchanan was born in New Jersey in 1939. She is alive and well and lives in Miami, Florida.

She is one of the many Florida authors who have been with the Miami Herald, including Al Burt, Dave Barry and Carl Hiaasen.

Edna Buchanan

Even the famous actor Joseph Cotten did a stint at the Herald as drama critic. Must be the water they drink down there in their building on Biscayne Bay, soon to be moved to an inland location.

According to Ms. Buchanan, she knew she wanted to be a writer since she was 4 years old. Even though she had no college training, she was apparently a natural in the news business. 

She moved to Florida where she got a job at the Miami Beach Daily Sun in the late 1960s.

In 1970, she was hired as a general assignment and police-beat reporter at the Miami Herald. In 1973, she became a full-time police beat reporter.

This was just about the time that Miami started becoming the center of the international drug trade. This was the era of the "cocaine cowboys".

It was unusual in those days for a woman to be assigned a police beat. She won a Pulitzer Prize in 1986 for general reporting, and became one of the best-known crime reporters in America. 

All told, as a reporter she covered over 3,000 murders in her career.

One of her books, "Miami, It's Murder" was nominated for an Edgar Award in 1995.

She discussed some of her assignments in the non-fiction books, "The Corpse Had A Familiar Face" (1991) and "Never Let Them See You Cry" (1993).

She is retired now from reporting, and writes very successful mystery novels. She is on most people's list of favorite Florida authors.

The main character in her crime mystery series is Britt Montero, a tough and appealing female Cuban-American reporter. The kind of gal I'd like to know.

Ms. Buchanan denies that Britt is her alter-ego.

Here is a listing of her fiction books:

* Written by Edna and 12 other Florida authors. Naked Came The Manatee is a must read for fans of Florida fun and mystery.

Her non-fiction is equally entertaining, usually very chilling, and includes: