SOURCE: "Finding Intrigue Wherever He Goes," in U.S. News and World Report, Vol. 104, No. 12, March 28, 1988, p. 56.

Below, Sanoff presents Francis' remarks about his work and the research he does for his novels.

I write mysteries because I like reading them. I would pick them up at railway stations and airports—and one day said to my wife Mary: "I'm going to write a mystery someday. These Agatha Christie and Edgar Wallace books seem to be doing all right." At the time, I was writing about racing for the Sunday Express, but it wasn't quite so lucrative as my career as a successful jockey: There weren't so many dollars coming in. Still, the newspaper work taught me how to write—what words to leave out. After a few years, Mary said: "You always said you were going to write a novel. Now's the time. We don't want to...