coming august 4

On Saturday, October 16, 1965, Tipton, Indiana, my 17-year-old high school classmate, Olene Emberton, dropped off a friend after a movie and headed for home, a journey of just six blocks. Inexplicably, she never arrived. Two days later, a farmer in northern Tipton County found her body discarded alongside a remote gravel road. How she died and who abandoned her was never known. Throughout the intervening 53 years, many people in Tipton County thought they had the answers, but only one person truly knew, and that person isn’t telling.

Part true crime, part oral history, and part memoir, “TOO GOOD A GIRL” tells the story of Olene’s mysterious death and how it affected all  who knew her.
                         
To request your copy, click here to send me an email.
​PLEASE JOIN ME AT THE BOOK LAUNCH ...
2:00 p.m. Saturday, August 4 • Tipton County Public Library
Call 765-675-8761 to RSVP or click [HERE] Thanks!

NEW!

BOOK 2 in the ELMWOOD CONFIDENTIAL series
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Who killed Horace Q. Ogilvie, owner of the local radio station and most reviled man in Elmwood? The fun starts when Horace turns up dead, minutes before he is supposed to broadcast his next malicious editorial, designed to destroy yet another Elmwood luminary. As suspects abound, Crystal Cropper, the Elmwood Gazette's editor, dives in to nab the killer. Problem is, she's one of the suspects!

​“I love Small Town America, and nobody writes about the heart and soul of Small Town America any better than Janis Thornton.”
                                                                                       > CALEB PIRTLE III
Award-winning author of more than 30 books and recipient of a Texas Associated Press Award, Small Press Book Award, and a Discover America Award.

​“Janis Thornton has created a well-crafted and exciting mystery, with a wonderful cast of characters . . . or better yet suspects. Thornton kept me interested and guessing till the end. Five stars for the finale and the results.”
                                                                      > NADA ADEL SOBHI
Poet, writer, book reviewer, and administrator of the blog Nadaness in Motion
Available in ebook and print from Amazon.com
and BarnesandNoble.com
> CLICK FOR A PREVIEW
​“Dust Bunnies & Dead Bodies 
is, without a doubt, one of the funniest and most endearing debut novels I’ve read in a very long time. If intrepid small-town newspaper editor Crystal Cropper doesn’t win you over, you’ve either got no heart or your sense of humor has flat-lined. Give this book a try. I guarantee you, it's a hoot.” 
     > WILLIAM KENT KRUEGER 
New York Times Best-selling author of the Cork O'Conner Mystery Series and winner of the 2014 Edgar Award for 'Ordinary Grace'

                                              *  *  *
“First-time author Janis Thornton is a skillful guide to small-town crime and corruption, and her protagonist, newspaper editor Crystal Cropper, is one intrepid investigator.”
     > TERENCE FAHERTY
Edgar Allan Poe Award finalist (Owen Keane mystery series), and two-time winner of the Shamus Award (Scott Elliott P.I. series)

> CLICK FOR PREVIEW

 Undeniably Indiana


An Indiana Bicentennial Project from Indiana University Press

In this first crowd-sourced book about Indiana, ordinary Hoosiers from all corners of the state share the eclectic, wonderful, and sometimes wacky stories that are undeniably Indiana. These true tales highlight the variety of Hoosier life—fond recollections of hometowns, legendary anecdotes of the past, Indiana’s unpredictable weather, favorite foods (there’s more than corn!), and chance encounters with unforgettable and infamous people. Written for anyone who has ever called this great state home, Undeniably Indiana provides the answer to the widespread question, “What is a Hoosier?”

This Bicentennial Legacy Project contains two of my essays. The first is about the legendary "mummified Indian princess" that held a place of honor for 30 years at the Tipton County Courthouse—until the curators discovered they'd been duped. The second essay tells the story of Frankfort's Adrian Marks, the World War II pilot who pulled 56 of the 316 survivors of the USS Indianapolis disaster aboard his seaplane.

Click to purchase from Amazon.
The two following books are part of Arcadia Publishing's 'Images of America' series. Each book sells for $25, which includes shipping and handling. If you wish your copy signed, please email your request via the CONTACT page. Thanks!

Images of America: Frankfort

“Images of America: Frankfort,” about Frankfort, Indiana’s long history, was published in late 2013. A foreword by Frankfort’s Mayor Chris McBarnes opens the exploration of the city’s history told through more than 200 photographs I assembled in association with Nancy Hart, director of the Clinton County Historical Society.

Four months after the Indiana General Assembly established Clinton County, long-time resident John Pence donated 60 acres of his centrally located farmland upon which the county seat would be built. Thanks to Pence, the city of Frankfort, named in honor of his ancestral German home, was born May 9, 1830. Dense forests, cold winters and wild animals challenged those who populated Frankfort in its earliest days. Yet, as a close-knit community, tightly bound by mutual dependence and pride, they grew a beautiful city, abundant in businesses, churches, schools and culture. Railroads opened new opportunities for growth, and for the next 100 years, Frankfort was a major train town, served by four railroad companies. The spirit of the early settlers still prevails, revealed abundantly in their sons and daughters, who have included war heroes, well-known entertainers, athletes, entrepreneurs, doctors, and more.

Images of America: tipton county

“Images of America: Tipton County,”  published in late 2012, features more than 200 vintage photographs depicting Tipton County life from the late 1800s through the present, most contributed by members of the Tipton County community and never before published. The book’s narrative begins with the county’s founding in 1844 and progresses to more recent years, highlighting several of the influential people and pivotal events that shaped the county.

On every page, readers with ties to Tipton County will find nostalgic reminders of their shared heritage — the frequent rumblings of steam locomotives passing through, public gatherings on the courthouse square, balloon ascensions, war bond rallies, the awe-inspiring staircase to the Carnegie library’s main floor, live performances at the Martz Theatre, 10 cent-a-week newspapers, baked beans and brain sandwiches, Blue Devil sundaes, pin boys, county basketball tourneys, double features, and packed churches.

Chicken Soup for the mothers' Soul 2

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(Contributor)
      My Mother's Face in the Mirror

"You look just like your mommy.

I couldn't have been more than three or four years old the first time I heard someone say it. I'll never forget the feeling of pride as it welled up inside my tiny chest at the mere notion that someone thought I resembled my mommy.

After that, for a while, I stood a little taller.

Gentle. Soft. Kind. Loving. Beautiful. These are my earliest recollections of my mother. Yet as I grew older, I grew less elated about looking like her.

                                              More . . .


                             Available for purchase from