An Interview with Joel Shulkin, MD

Joel Shulkin, MD, is the author of the psychiatric thriller series The Memory Thieves and the military medical thriller series Death Benefits. He has also penned award-winning short stories and poetry. A developmental-behavioral pediatrician and United States Air Force veteran with a master’s in public health, Joel lives in Florida with his wife and two daughters.

Who/what made you want to write? Was there a particular person, or particular writers/works/art forms that influenced you?

I’ve loved writing since early elementary school and took creative writing courses in college, but I set it aside during medical school and residency. It wasn’t until I was stationed in Germany and traveling through Europe that I came up with an idea for a children’s book based on the “sleeping giants” of Norway (which I wrote and illustrated but never published) that I got back into writing. During my year between military discharge and fellowship, I wrote two books for an urban fantasy thriller series inspired by Piers Anthony books I read growing up. I didn’t get anywhere with those, but then I met Michael Palmer, who inspired me to start writing medical thrillers.

What other professions have you worked in? What’s something about you that your readers wouldn’t know?

Most of my readers know that I’m a practicing developmental-behavioral pediatrician, meaning I work with neurodivergent children and those with developmental delays and learning disabilities, as well as international adoptees. And they probably know that I served six years active duty in the United States Air Force in the Medical Corps. What they may not know is that I dabbled in music writing and recorded a demo CD that I sent to several music publishers, and one of my songs was even a finalist in Billboard’s songwriting awards. But then I refocused on writing novels. Since my daughters are learning flute and ukulele, I have the chance to play now and then, and I am considering writing a music-themed thriller at some point.

Tell us the story of your book’s title. Was it easy to find, or did it take forever?

It came fairly quickly, and long before I started writing the book. I knew the book would be a military medical thriller and so I wanted a title that reflected both themes. In this case, since the inciting moment involves a cadaver, the idea of using heroic measures to save him has a morbidly sardonic tinge. I was able to not only insert the title into the book itself, but used the idea of heroism to guide the main character throughout the story.

How did it feel when you first saw your book cover? Or when you first held your book in your hands?

I originally tried designing my own cover for Heroic Measures, initially just a set of military dog tags with some blood dripping (since my first two books had simple covers with one key item like that), but feedback suggested it looked too much like a military history book. So then I tried making one with a body waking on the autopsy table, which was better, but then I hired a designer who came up with a much more effective idea of the cadaver running away with the sheet blowing off the autopsy table. When I saw the finished product I felt an incredible amount of achievement, especially as I had formatted and produced the book myself.

If your book had a soundtrack, what are some songs that would be on it?

Definitely some hard-hitting tunes for the military scenes: Måneskin’s “Beggin” and Imagine Dragons’s “Whatever It Takes”. But there are several flashback scenes to the 80s so it would also have some hits like “Parents Don’t Understand” by Fresh Prince & DJ Jazzy Jeff, Prince’s “Batman” and the Danny Elfman Batman theme.

What is one thing you hope readers take away from reading your book? How do you envision your perfect reader?

I sprinkled in a lot of comic book Easter eggs and references throughout the book so I’m hoping sharp-eyed readers will spot them. The perfect reader will appreciate the blending of different genres and hopefully be left with some questions afterward that will spur them to read the sequel.

What was the most rewarding/meaningful part of publishing your book?

This is my first indie-published book following two prior books with a good-sized publisher. It was a bit scary and a steep learning curve, but I liked having total control over when and where ARCs went out, being able to track them, and controlling the price. Although indie publishing has its own challenges, I feel a greater sense of accomplishment even than when I signed my book deal, and greater satisfaction seeing the strongly positive reviews and winning the distinction of Best Military Thriller of 2024 from BestThrillers.com for this book.

What new writing projects are you currently working on? Or, other projects that are not writing?

My next medical thriller, Spontaneous Remission, releases in May 2025, about a woman dying of terminal scleroderma. Suddenly, she starts recovering, and no one can figure out why. Except a hired killer seems to have figured it out, and he’s on his way to find her. And as her body heals, her identity is slipping away. It’s either a miracle, or a nightmare.

I also have a tropical medical thriller titled Pele’s Curse coming out in 2025 or 2026. Meanwhile, I’m working on the sequel to Heroic Measures (entitled Extraordinary Measures) and a revenge thriller entitled Perfect Strangers, with a couple of books in completely different genres that are still on the forge.

Are you a writer, too? Submit your manuscript to Atmosphere Press.