OBSTFELD, Raymond 1952-

(Pike Bishop, Jason Frost, Don Pendleton, Carl Stevens, pseudonyms)

PERSONAL: Born January 22, 1952, in Williamsport, PA; son of Ludwig (a restaurant owner) and Ilse (a restaurant owner) Obstfeld. Education: Attended Lycoming College; University of Redlands, B.A.; University of California—Davis, M.A. Politics: Democrat.

ADDRESSES: Home—2936 Ballesteros Ln., Tustin, CA 92680. Office—Department of English, Orange Coast College, 2701 Fairview, Costa Mesa, CA 92626. Agent—Sandra Watt, 7551 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, CA.

CAREER: Orange Coast College, Costa Mesa, CA, assistant professor of English, 1976—, and head of writing program.

MEMBER: Mystery Writers of America.

WRITINGS:

The Cat with Half a Face (poetry), Advantage Press, 1978.

The Goulden Fleece (mystery novel), Ace Books (New York, NY), 1979.

Dead-End Option (mystery novel), Ace Books (New York, NY), 1980.

Dead Heat (mystery novel), Ace Books (New York, NY), 1981.

Dead Bolt (mystery novel), Ace Books (New York, NY), 1982.

The Remington Factor (suspense novel), Jove (New York, NY), 1985.

The Joker and the Thief (young adult novel), Delacorte (New York, NY), 1993.

Earth Angel, Warner Books (New York, NY), 1995.

(With Patricia Fitzgerald) Jabberrock! The Ultimate Book of Rock 'n' Roll Quotations, Holt (New York, NY), 1997.

Kinky Cats, Immortal Amoebas, and Nine-Armed Octopuses: Weird, Wild, and Wonderful Behaviors in the Animal World, HarperPerennial (New York, NY), 1997.

(With Sheila Burgener) Twang! The Ultimate Book of Country Music Quotations, Holt (New York, NY), 1997.

Novelist's Essential Guide to Crafting Scenes, Writer's Digest (Cincinnati, OH), 2000.

(With Loretta Obstfeld) Napoleon Bonaparte, Green-haven Press (San Diego, CA), 2001.

Fiction First Aid: Instant Remedies for Novels, Stories, and Scripts, Writer's Digest (Cincinnati, OH), 2001.

(With Loretta Obstfeld) The Renaissance, Greenhaven Press (San Diego, CA), 2002.

(With Franz Neumann) Careers for Your Characters: A Writer's Guide to 101 Professions from Architect to Zoologist, Writer's Digest (Cincinnati, OH), 2002.

UNDER PSEUDONYM PIKE BISHOP

Diamondback (western novel), Pinnacle Books (New York, NY), 1983.

Judgement at Poison Well (western novel), Pinnacle Books (New York, NY), 1983.

UNDER PSEUDONYM JASON FROST

Warlord (action/suspense novel), Zebra Books (New York, NY), 1983.

Warlord Number Two: Cutthroat (action/suspense novel), Zebra Books (New York, NY), 1984.

Warlord Number Three: Badlands (action/suspense novel), Zebra Books (New York, NY), 1984.

Warlord Number Four: Prisonland (action/suspense novel), Zebra Books (New York, NY), 1985.

UNDER PSEUDONYM DON PENDLETON

Bloodsport (action/adventure novel), Gold Eagle (New York, NY), 1982.

Flesh Wounds (action/adventure novel), Gold Eagle (New York, NY), 1983.

Savannah Swingsaw (action/adventure novel), Gold Eagle (New York, NY), 1985.

Fire Eaters (action/adventure novel), Gold Eagle (New York, NY), 1985.

Copp for Hire (novel), Fine (New York), 1987.

Copp on Fire (novel), Fine (New York, NY), 1988.

Copp in Deep (novel), Fine (New York, NY), 1989.

Copp in the Dark (novel), Fine (New York, NY), 1990.

Copp on Ice (novel), Fine (New York, NY), 1991.

Copp in Shock (novel), Fine (New York, NY), 1992.

UNDER PSEUDONYM CARL STEVENS

The Centaur Conspiracy (action/suspense novel), Gold Eagle (New York, NY), 1983.

The Ride of the Razorback (action/suspense novel), Gold Eagle (New York, NY), 1984.

Author of "The Pilgrim Shadow" (one-act play), first produced in Redlands, CA, at University of Redlands, 1972; "Warlord" (screenplay); "Congregation of the Blue Sonata" (film treatment). Author of "Paper Crimes," a column in Armchair Detective. Contributor of stories, articles, and reviews to magazines, including Fiction, Dogsoldier, Not-So-Private Eye, Journal of Popular Culture, Mystery, and Crook's.

SIDELIGHTS: Raymond Obstfeld writes fiction, and writes about writing fiction. His detective novels, some published under pseudonyms, includes Earth Angel, about a woman who goes undercover to make amends to the families of victims murdered by her fiance. Obstfeld also produced a novel for young adults in The Joker and the Thief. In this story, two teenagers—affluent Eric and street-smart Griffin—find themselves facing the same conflicts after Eric discovers Griffin hiding out in Eric's family cabin. A Publishers Weekly critic deemed this novel "alternately poignant, suspenseful and wryly humorous." In a nonfiction vein, Obstfeld has published two books—Twang! The Ultimate Book of Country Music Quotations and Jabberrock! The Ultimate Book of Rock 'n' Roll Quotations—that "offer much for browsers but a little less for those in search of a particular quotation," according to Library Journal's Carolyn Mulac.

As head of the writing program of Orange Coast College, Obstfeld set his lessons into text with several books that help writers overcome problems. His Fiction First Aid: Instant Remedies for Novels, Stories, and Scripts uses a medical theme to illustrate the causes and cures for several writing problems. Continuing the "first aid" theme, "Physical therapy sections give short writing exercises," as Lisa Cihlar of Library Journal put it.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, June 1, 1993, review of The Joker and the Thief, p. 1816.

Book Report, May, 1993, review of The Joker and the Thief, p. 43.

Children's Book Review Service, March, 1993, review of The Joker and the Thief, p. 95.

Children's Bookwatch, January, 1995, review of The Joker and the Thief, p. 6.

Horn Book Guide, fall, 1993, review of The Joker and the Thief, p. 311.

Kirkus Reviews, January 1, 1993, review of The Joker and the Thief, p. 66; April 15, 1995, review of Earth Angel, p. 502.

Library Journal, November 1, 1997, Carolyn Mulac, review of Jabberrock! The Ultimate Book of Rock 'n' Roll Quotations and Twang! The Ultimate Bookof Country Music Quotations, p. 70; January, 2002, Lisa Cihlar, review of Fiction First Aid: Instant Remedies for Novels, Stories, and Scripts, p. 118.

Los Angeles Times Book Review, April 14, 1985, review of The Remington Factor, p. 11.

Publishers Weekly, December 28, 1992, review of The Joker and the Thief, p. 74; May 8, 1995, review of Earth Angel, p. 289; August 4, 1997, review of Jabberrock! and Twang!, p. 61.

Rapport, number 4, 1996, review of Earth Angel, p. 33.

School Library Journal, March, 1993, review of The Joker and the Thief, p. 222.

Voice of Youth Advocates, April, 1993, review of The Joker and the Thief, p. 28.*