About the Book
The Big Con (Prospect Park Books, August 14, 2018) is the third book in the series. Each can be read as a stand-alone book. The Big Con makes fun of human resource (HR) heroes, leadership gurus, and motivational coaches. The plot involves a lesbian love affair, murder (of course!), a cast of interesting West Coast characters and the hot topic of stolen identity. The Big Con plays into some of the themes that run through all of Phillip's books including the absurdity of today's world and the smoke and mirrors.
Phillips says that The Big Con was also inspired by two things he read. The first was Bullshit Jobs, a book that talks about jobs that even the person doing the job can’t justify the existence of, but they have to pretend that there’s a reason for it to exist. The second was a recent article in Dissent on mindfulness in Corporate America. Phillips weaves these topical themes into a witty who-done-it that will appeal mystery readers and business people alike.
About the Author
Adam Walker Phillips is a 20-year veteran of Corporate America. As an executive in a Los Angeles financial services company he has seen it all. He has endured countless PowerPoint decks, offsite retreats and visioning sessions, synergies and synergistically-minded cross-functional teams. Phillips draws on his day job when writing his Chuck Restic mystery series. The books offer a humorous but subversive perspective into corporate life. They pay homage to the classic detective story, and at the same time they offer sharp observations of corporate nonsense. Think Chinatown meets The Office! The Big Con is the third book in the series. Each can be read as a stand-alone book.
See the Book Trailer. More on Adam Walker Phillips
Praise for the Series
“Darkly humorous... this atmospheric mystery vividly captures a diverse, contemporary Los Angeles that will still be recognizable to readers of Raymond Chandler.” -- Library Journal
“A crackling crime yarn.” -- Kirkus Reviews
“A clever blend of the absurd and the serious.” -- Publishers Weekly
“This one’s all about style.” -- Booklist
A Q&A with Adam Walker Phillips
What’s your take on Leadership Books?
One thing all Leadership Books have in common is pristine spines. That’s because they have never been read! They line the shelves of every office and cubicle in Corporate America but no one actually reads this nonsense. I have a sign on my desk that says, “Leaders Don’t Read Leadership Books." In a way, the self-help industry has crossed-over into the business world. There are tens of thousands of titles, with accompanying workshops and coaching clinics. And there’s an insatiable appetite for the next one – because they scratch an insecurity itch that will never go away.
Your character has his own LinkedIn profile! How so?
Yes, and he has three times as many connections as I do! He’s wildly more successful in his fake world than I am in the real one. I think it’s a riot that so many people will connect with a fictional character… and they all believe he’s real. Or, they don’t take the time to actually look at it. To me, that shows how silly a lot of this stuff is. People are just connecting for the sake of it. They amass a bunch of followers then they shout at each other. I like to go on and make fun of their “humble brag” posts and projections of wild success. My favorite past time is to read the posts to my wife and then laugh at my snarky comments. It annoys the hell out of her.
What’s your favorite (or worst) corporate jargon?
This interview isn’t long enough! I think we are in a period now where words are creeping in that hint at the jobs people wish they had. You hear a lot of “curation” going on. Curating content, curating an experience. We have all these Art History majors having to find a real job and so they’re bringing that world to Corporate America. You see that with military terminology – “commander’s intent”, “cleared hot”. Most men in Corporate America have an inferiority complex with our military brethren. You also have “agile” everywhere. I never knew there were that many gymnasts in this country but apparently that’s the case.
You seem to get annoyed a lot. Anything else bugging you?
One trend that is really driving me nuts goes beyond the corporate world. It’s the “AS A” trend. That’s when people qualify a statement with some pretense of expertise: “As a twenty-year vet of HR…” or “As someone who has lived through racial discrimination…” We’re then supposed to take whatever they say next as gospel. Just because someone has that experience doesn’t mean their opinion is worth more. A dope will always be a dope.
You present a pretty critical view of Consultants. Why?
This is a real problem. Management Consultants are a VERY expensive CYA (cover your ass) for executives. You pay them a couple of million, you have them come in and interview you, they parrot back what you said in a fancy PowerPoint, and they provide air cover if something goes wrong. “Well, McKinsey recommended we pursue it…” It’s a legitimatized con game – I make that crack in the book, The Big Con.
How do you balance a day job and a side job?
I write for a few hours in the early morning – that’s my “morning” job. Then go into the office. Evenings and weekends are for my family. It’s enough for me – the time constraint actually works to my advantage. With limited, finite time, I actually get more done. It’s like the old adage – if you have 2 hours you will do 2 hours of work; if you have 6 hours, you will do 2 hours of work.
Would you ever want to write full time?
I don’t think so. I’d just be putzing around all day. Also, being in another world gives me ideas. When you are full time writer, your world narrows a whole lot, hence, so many books where the main character is a novelist! It’s interesting, though, how work defines us now. You can’t just be someone who does some stuff. People want to know if you are making a lot of money at it and if not, then it’s not real. I don’t know where that came from.
Do you write in the office?
No, I keep those two worlds separate. I work in downtown Los Angeles and write in the lobby of a skyscraper across the street from me. They have a public space with tables outside of Starbucks. At 5 am it’s just me, the security guards and a few homeless. One crazy lady sometimes sits with me and rails on about the Central Bank manipulating markets. One day I saw her writing something in a notebook and realized she was working on a novel. I had this moment of – wait, am I the crazy one? Am I the homeless nut writing a novel?
Best film noir ever?
Best is Double Indemnity for its pure nastiness and crackling dialogue. Favorite is Out of the Past with Robert Mitchum. And I have to include Chinatown because it might just be the perfect movie.
Why does America love the private detective?
America will always love the underdog outsider “winning” in the end. And that’s what the private detective personifies – they are outside the official justice system (usually kicked off the force or disgraced in some fashion) but have “purer” motives than even those established institutions. I think we all have a healthy dose of skepticism – of our justice system, of big business, of the government – and this outsider, loner character seeking the truth despite the long odds really appeals to us.
” (2012 Eureka! Award finalist for best first mystery novel), 
,” 
” 
r.”
,” a group mystery written by 24 authors with Cozy Cat Press, and writes the Roots of Faith column for the Acorn Newspapers.
