Interview with Robyn Gigl

Today I’m chatting with Robyn Gigl, the author of the award winning attorney Erin McCabe mystery series. 

Robyn, TIME Magazine named Survivor’s Guilt, the second book in your series, one of the top 100 mystery and thriller books of All Time. Quite an honor.

What inspired you to write mysteries?

I’ve always enjoyed reading mystery/thrillers—whether it’s Sue Grafton, Harlan Coben, or Scott Turow to name a few—so the genre was a good fit for me. When it came to writing, I followed the advice given to many new authors—write what you know. In my case, I have practiced law for decades. Over that time, I’ve been involved in a significant number of criminal cases, so I knew how the legal system works, in particular, the criminal justice system, and I’m also a transgender woman. So, I combined those elements and came up with Erin McCabe—a transgender, criminal defense attorney. 

Your protagonist, Erin McCabe, is a transgender criminal defense attorney. How is she similar and how does she differ from you?

Both Erin and I are transgender women and, over the course of my legal career, I’ve done a fair amount of criminal defense work, including being one of the lawyers in the longest federal criminal trial in NJ history — 21 months. So, we’re both transgender, criminal defense attorneys. That said, Erin is not me. She is a young, attractive, bisexual and a fearless woman—I’m not. However, she certainly does reflect many of my values and attitudes. It’s also not a secret that I drew on some of my own personal and professional experiences both as an attorney and as a transgender woman in developing her as a character, but I also took pains to make sure she’s not me. 

I just read Nothing But the Truth, the fourth book the series, and I loved it. How did you come up with the story line?

The genesis of Nothing But the Truth came from a question I was asked at a book event for my previous novel, Remain Silent, “Could Erin defend someone accused of murdering a trans individual?” The honest answer was I didn’t know. But I decided to flip the question a bit. Erin’s law partner, Duane Swisher, is a Black man, and with so many examples of Black people being killed by white law enforcement officers, I started with the question could Erin and Duane defend a white law enforcement officer accused of killing a Black man. The next piece came when I was having brunch with a friend who is in law enforcement and we were talking about my premise, and he suggested I Google “the Lords of Discipline.” That search revealed an alleged rogue group of NJ State Troopers notorious for enforcing their own code of harassing women, framing minorities, and going after any troopers who didn’t play along. The final piece involved continuing to develop Erin’s personal life and her relationship with her friends, family and boyfriend, Mark.

Putting all those pieces together, NBtT is the story of Erin and Duane representing NJ State Trooper Jon Mazer who’s been charged with killing Black investigative reporter, Russell Marshall, in a racially charged, headline-making murder. The evidence against Mazer is overwhelming. The murder weapon is Mazer’s off-duty weapon. Fingerprints and carpet fibers link him to the crime, and he was patrolling Marshall’s neighborhood shortly before the victim took three bullets to the chest. Mazer’s defense? He’s a gay officer being set up to take the fall because he was cooperating with Marshall on an expose on the Lords of Discipline. Mix in some shady state troopers, a prosecutor willing to break the rules, and a unique personal journey for Erin and you have the ingredients of an Erin McCabe legal thriller.

Were you influenced by any authors?

This is probably going to sound egotistical, and I don’t mean it that way, but I can’t think of a writer that influenced my writing style or that I’ve tried to emulate. That’s not to say there aren’t authors, or books that I love, because there are—far too numerous to name. And I’ve been an avid reader since I was about 10, so I’m sure I have picked things up by osmosis, but there’s no authors that I feel influenced me. Whether that a good thing or not, I guess the reader will decide.

What’s the best part about writing/publishing?

Obviously, there’s the sheer joy of seeing my books published. But the best part for me is being contacted by someone who has read one of my books and has reached out to let me know that my book has changed them in some way. For example, in the last month, I’ve received two emails from readers about my novels, but from two entirely different perspectives. The first was from a trans woman thanking me because in reading about Erin, her family and friends, it helped her navigate her own transition. The second was from a straight, cisgender man who grew up in the 1960s and said he tried to understand and accept the gay people in his life, but still struggled some times. He said he was “compelled” to write to me because Erin had “spoken” to him and I had given an insight into a trans person’s humanity. Knowing that I have impacted people’s lives in a positive way is the best reward I could ever receive.

What’s the worst or hardest part about writing/publishing?

For me the part that I dislike the most is the self-promotion. I understand it’s expected and necessary, but I just find it really hard to tell people that they should read my books. 

Given you are an attorney do you do much research for the books

My books are set in NJ, so I have a good working knowledge of how the court system works. I’ve also visited clients who were in custody, so again, I know what a jail environment is like. That said, the books take place between 2006—2010, so I had to research to make sure that the law and procedures were accurate for that time period. I also do a fair amount of research into the technical issues, mostly involving technology—cellphone tracking, hacking a Blackberry, DNA evidence and other forensic issues because I want to make sure that I have all the technical issues correct.

Plotter or pantser?

Yes

Okay, let me explain. My first novel, By Way of Sorrow, was a total pantser. I had the premise of the book, but that was it. So, as I wrote it things changed; characters I originally thought were going to die—lived, and vice versa. However, when Kensington acquired BWoS, it was a two book deal, which meant that before I wrote book two I had to submit a synopsis for them to approve—which was also the same process for books three and four. Meaning books two through four were more plotted out than BWoS. That said, I have a wonderful editor, John Scognamiglio, who always gave me a lot of leeway, and although I always stayed true (mostly) to my synopsis, I may have taken some detours from what I had originally submitted. I guess that makes me a planster.

How do you pronounce your last name?

Guy-gull. I know, so disappointing that it’s not giggle.

Is there any story you want to tell that you haven’t gotten to yet

Yes. Prior to writing By Way of Sorrow, which was my debut novel and first in the Erin McCabe series, I finished a manuscript that never sold. I’d like to go back and rewrite it, because I think it has a great premise, I just didn’t execute it very well. There’s also an unfinished manuscript I have that I started almost 45 years ago, which I’d like to dust off, update and finish. Finally, there’s a joint project that my son Colin, who’s also a published author (The Ferryman Institute) and I have fooled around with (think improv for authors) that I still hope we finish. 

What’s next for you?

I just sent a new manuscript to my agent. It’s not an Erin McCabe book. It’s more of a police procedural featuring a detective in a DA’s office who happens to be a transgender woman. It’s the first time I’ve written from a first person POV. So hopefully my agent will like it and we’ll see what happens from there.

Robyn Gigl is an author, attorney and advocate. Her first novel, BY WAY OF SORROW, was called “quietly groundbreaking” by the NY Times and named one of the best crime novels of 2021 by CrimeReads. In addition to being selected by TIME, SURVIVOR’S GUILT was named as one of the best crime novels of 2022 by the NY Times and won the Joseph Hansen Award for LGBTQ+ Crime Writing. Robyn’s third novel, REMAIN SILENT, was published in May 2023 and was also nominated for the Joseph Hansen Award. Her most recent novel, NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH, was published in June 2024 and was an Amazon Editor’s Pick for Best Mystery, Thriller & Suspense and the NYT called Erin McCabe “one of the best series characters around.”An attorney and advocate, Robyn has been honored by the ACLU-NJ and the NJ Pride Network for her work on behalf of the LGBTQ+ community. She is a partner at the law firm of Dilworth Paxson, LLP in Freehold, NJ. 

Catherine Maiorisi

Catherine Maiorisi is the author of the NYPD Detective Chiara Corelli Mystery series featuring Corelli and her partner Detective P.J. Parker–two tough women, fighting each other while solving high profile crimes. A Matter of Blood, The Blood Runs Cold, A Message in Blood, and Legacy in the Blood are all available as ebooks, paperbacks, and audiobooks narrated by Abby Craden.  

In addition to publishing multiple mystery and romance short stories in various anthologies, Catherine has authored four romances novels. Her latest book, The Disappearance of Lindy James, was awarded a GOLDIE for Best General Fiction.

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