Rebecca Morris (author)

Morris grew up in Oregon and attended Corvallis High School.{{cite web|url=http://bookbin.com/2014/10/04/rebecca-morris-book-signing/|title=Rebecca Morris Book Signing – The Book Bin|author=|date=|publisher=}} Her parents were Lucille Morris (née Sterling) and James "Jimmie" Morris, a radio and broadcast pioneer{{cite web|url=http://www.gazettetimes.com/news/local/obituaries/lucille-sterling-morris/article_65423db3-4dcf-5d05-8830-4db0571f979f.html|title=Lucille Sterling Morris Obituary|author=|date=March 12, 2008|publisher=The Gazette Times}} who, from 1932 to 1973, headed the early radio station KOAC, which later became Oregon Public Broadcasting.{{cite web|url=http://scarc.library.oregonstate.edu/findingaids/?p=collections/findingaid&id=1892|title=Jimmie Morris Papers, 1920–2008|author=|date=|publisher=OSU Special Collections and Archives Research Center}} Morris studied broadcast media at Oregon State University and received a B.A. in journalism from Seattle University, and an M.F.A. in creative writing from Brown University.

She wrote about theater for The Oregonian, anchored and reported for New York Public Radio, Bloomberg Radio, New York Times Radio, CNN and Fox News, and she freelanced articles for People, Entertainment Weekly, New York Newsday, American Theatre, and The Seattle Times.{{cite web|url=http://www.seattletimes.com/life/lifestyle/female-sex-offenders-reveal-cultural-double-standard/ |title=Female sex offenders reveal cultural double standard |publisher=Seattle Times |date=2007-09-10}}

Her first book, Ted and Ann: The Mystery of a Missing Child and Her Neighbor Ted Bundy, was independently released in 2011 as a paperback by Dog Ear Publishing and re-released in 2013 as an ebook. In November 2014, "Washington's Most Wanted" featured Morris and her book on KCPQ TV in the Seattle-Tacoma area.{{cite web|url=http://q13fox.com/2014/11/25/little-girls-disapperance-in-1961-may-have-been-at-hands-of-infamous-serial-killer |title=Little girl's disappearance in 1961 may have been at hands of infamous serial killer |publisher=KCPQ |date=2014-11-25}}

In 2012, she wrote the book Bad Apples about teacher sex scandals.{{cite web|url=http://www.insideedition.com/headlines/9714-outpouring-of-support-for-teacher-accused-of-sex-with-student|title=Outpouring Of Support For Teacher Accused Of Sex With Student |publisher=InsideEdition.com |date=2015-02-13}}

Bodies of Evidence, the first in a book series titled Notorious USA, which Morris co-wrote with author Gregg Olsen, was released in September 2013. With the May 2014 release of Morris and Olsen's book If I Can't Have You about the disappearance of Susan Powell, Kirkus Reviews wrote that the authors "convincingly lay out the myriad of circumstantial evidence against (suspect) Josh."{{cite web|url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/gregg-olsen/if-i-cant-have-you/ |title=KIRKUS REVIEW: The tale of an entire family succumbing to a tragic string of crimes|publisher=Kirkus Reviews|date=2014-05-20}} The book broke news with witness accounts that revealed the Powell children might have been molested. Publishers Weekly, in its review, wrote that the authors did "a solid job depicting the heartbreaking case of Susan Powell."{{cite web|url=http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-250-02714-6|title=Nonfiction Book Review: If I Can't Have You: Susan Powell, Her Mysterious Disappearance, and the Murder of Her Children|author=|date= March 24, 2014|publisher=Publishers Weekly}}

A second book in the Notorious USA series, Overkill, written by Morris and Olsen, debuted at number 20 on The New York Times Best Seller list in e-book nonfiction the week of August 16, 2015.{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2015/08/16/e-book-nonfiction/|title=E-Book Nonfiction Books – Best Sellers – August 16, 2015 – The New York Times|author=|date=|publisher=}}

In 2016, Morris and Olsen co-wrote A Killing in Amish Country, released by St. Martin's Press. The book outlines one of just two reported murders among the Amish in America in more than 250 years. Also, the death of Barbara Weaver marked the third known Amish murder in hundreds of years.{{cite web|url=http://www.criminalelement.com/stories/2016/06/a-killing-in-amish-country-new-excerpt|title=A Killing in Amish Country: New Excerpt by Rebecca Morris, Gregg Olsen|first=Rebecca Morris, Gregg|last=Olsen|date=|publisher=}} The Philadelphia Inquirer in its review wrote that "Olsen and Morris work hard to invest the crime with jump and venality."{{cite web|url=http://www.philly.com/philly/entertainment/20161120__Killing_in_Amish_Country___Sex_and_murder__pathetic_and_obvious.html|title='Killing in Amish Country': Sex and murder, pathetic and obvious|author=Peter Lewis|date=November 18, 2016|website=The Philadelphia Inquirer}}

In 2017, Morris co-authored The Crime Book volume with American crime writers Shanna Hogan, Lee Mellor, Cathy Scott and British author Michael Kerrigan, with a foreword for the U.S. edition by Scott and the U.K. edition by author Peter James.{{cite web|url=http://www.readersdigest.co.uk/books/book-lists/best-new-books-you-should-read-april|title=Best new books you should read this April|author=|date=|website=Reader's Digest}} It was released in April 2017 in the U.K. and May 2017 in the U.S. by Dorling Kindersley (Penguin Random House) as part of its Big Ideas Simply Explained series.{{Cite web|url=https://www.dk.com/[object%20Object|title=Big Ideas Series|website=dkbooks}}

In 2018, Morris called in a tip to The Seattle Times about a possible Confederate flag in her neighborhood. But it was a Norwegian flag hung by a man whose parents emigrated from Norway, to mark the start of the 2018 Winter Olympic Games and Norway's participation.{{Cite web|url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/both-have-crosses-so-norwegian-flag-mistaken-for-confederate-flag/|title='Suddenly there is a Confederate flag flying' in Seattle's Greenwood area – well, not quite|date=February 22, 2018|website=The Seattle Times}} TIME magazine picked it up, writing, "Woman Mistakes a Norwegian Flag for a Confederate One." Morris pointed to the current political climate as a possible reason for mixing up the flags.{{Cite web|last=Lang|first=Cady|title=Woman Mistakes a Norwegian Flag for a Confederate One|url=https://time.com/5171239/woman-assumes-norwegian-flag-is-confederate/|access-date=2020-07-24|website=Time|language=en-us}}

A Killing in Amish Country was named Suspense Magazine's Best Books of 2016 in the true-crime category.{{cite web|url=http://suspensemagazine.com/blog2/2016/12/14/the-best-books-of-2016/|title=The Best Books of 2016 – Welcome To Suspense Magazine|author=|date=|publisher=}}

Overkill was a New York Times bestseller in August 2015.

Bodies of Evidence debuted the week of September 22, 2013 at number 16 on The New York Times Best Seller list in e-book nonfiction.{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/best-sellers-books/2014-01-22/e-book-nonfiction/list.html |title=Best Sellers (e-book nonfiction) – The New York Times |website=The New York Times |date=2014-01-22 |access-date=2017-02-13}}

• A Murder in My Hometown (October 2021) ({{ISBN|979-8499367650}})
• Boy Missing: The Search for Kyron Horman (May 2020) ({{ISBN|979-8645341213}})
• The Crime Book (co-author) (2017) ({{ISBN|978-1465462862}})
• The Girl and the Horrors of Howard Avenue: Oregon, Notorious USA (co-author) (March 2017) ({{ISBN|978-1544018713}})
• A Killing in Amish Country: A Killing in Amish Country: Sex, Betrayal, and a Cold-Blooded Murder (co-author) (July 2016) ({{ISBN|978-1250067234}})
• Overkill (True Crime Box Set, Notorious USA) (co-author) (August 2015) ({{ISBN|978-1505373684}})
• If I Can't Have You: Susan Powell, Her Mysterious Disappearance, and the Murder of Her Children (co-author) (May 2015) ({{ISBN|978-1250066688}})
• Ted and Ann: The Mystery of a Missing Child and Her Neighbor Ted Bundy (July 2013) ({{ISBN|978-1484925089}})
• Bodies of Evidence (True Crime Box Set, Notorious USA) (co-author) (December 2013) ({{ISBN|978-1494414962}})
• Bad Apples: Inside the Teacher/Student Sex Scandal Epidemic (co-author) (January 2012) ({{ASIN|B0073XXP4U}})

{{Reflist|30em}}

• [http://www.rebeccatmorris.com/ Author's official website]
• [http://us.macmillan.com/author/rebeccamorris/ Macmillan Publishing's author bio]

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Category:Living people

Category:Writers from Corvallis, Oregon

Category:Writers from Seattle

Category:American non-fiction crime writers

Category:American women journalists

Category:Women crime writers

Category:21st-century American women writers

Category:20th-century American women writers

Category:Corvallis High School (Oregon) alumni

Category:Oregon State University alumni

Category:Seattle University alumni

Category:Brown University alumni

Category:21st-century American non-fiction writers

Category:Year of birth missing (living people)