Mystery novelist John Straley has worked as a secretary, horseshoer, wilderness guide, trail crew foreman, millworker, machinist and private investigator. He moved to Sitka in 1977 and has no plans of leaving. John's first book, "The Woman Who Married a Bear," was published in 1993 and won the Shamus Award for the Best First Mystery of that year.
His third book, "The Music of What Happens," won the 1997 Spotted Owl Award for Best Northwest Mystery. His work has been featured on National Public Radio’s "Fresh Air" and CBS Sunday Morning. In November of 2006 he was appointed as Alaska's 12th Writer Laureate. His latest book, "What is Time to a Pig?" was published in 2020.
John was honored by the Alaska Legislature in 2017 for more than three decades of public service to the state of Alaska in the fields of poetry, law, and literature.
Visit www.johnstraley.com to learn more about John and his work.