Warner, Jack 1937-

PERSONAL:

Born October 20, 1937, in Kirksville, MO; married, 1957; wife's name Donna; children: four. Education: Graduated from El Reno High School, El Reno, OK, 1955. Hobbies and other interests: Cowboy Action Shooting.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Silver City, NM. Agent— Richard Curtis, Richard Curtis Associates, 171 E. 74th St., 2nd Fl., New York, NY 10021.

CAREER:

United Press International, 1956-86, began as correspondent in Dallas, TX, became bureau manager, New Orleans, LA, transferred to Washington, DC, bureau, 1961, and Atlanta, GA, bureau, 1963, national editor, 1986-87; Atlanta Journal and Constitution, Atlanta, GA, journalist, 1987-2001; writer, 2001—. Also worked as sports reporter for El Reno Daily Tribune, El Reno, OK; Courier Times, Tyler, TX; and Wichita Falls Record News, Wichita Falls, TX.

WRITINGS:

Shikar (novel), Forge (New York, NY), 2003.

SIDELIGHTS:

The same week that he retired from a long career as a journalist for United Press International and the Atlanta Journal and Constitution, Jack Warner learned that his first novel, Shikar, would be published. On his Web site, Warner said that he doubted he would ever write a novel, since his many years in journalism conditioned him to write with brevity. Nevertheless, encouraged by his wife, he decided to try working on fiction, "one scene at a time." Using that method he was able to craft a first draft of Shikar in just six weeks. The re-writing and refining of the text took another year.

Shikar is an action-adventure thriller set in rural Georgia. A circus tiger escapes from its cage and—out of the necessity of survival—begins to prey upon humans. The local sheriff, Grady Brickhouse, is uncertain how to handle the menace, but a compassionate former game-hunter from England, Jim Graham, and a mountain boy with an affinity for wild animals team together to stop the killer. A Publishers Weekly reviewer praised Shikar for its "fascinating tiger lore" and added that the novel "will please all who enjoy swift tales of courage and derring-do."