Mar Preston was a political insider during Santa Monica's rent control and living wage wars. An avid student of the city's changing urban landscape, which does not include a casino, Preston is a careful gambler. She is a student of the dance between politics, money, real estate and the old-fashioned land grab.A second novel featuring Detective Dave Mason of the Santa Monica Police Departmentwill be released in 2011.She has completed a third murder mystery set in a California mountain village where she lives and hikes the mountain paths with her dog Lily. Mar Preston works as an editor, teaches creative writing and memoir workshops,and offers a Daily Writing Prompt to help writers get… started each morning. Sign up for her Daily Writing Prompt at marpreston.com.