His only brother Rob Hiaasen , an editor and columnist at '' The Capital '' newspaper in Annapolis , Maryland , was killed in a mass shooting at the newspaper 's office on June 28 , 2018 . Carl Hiaasen 's 1991 novel '' Native Tongue '' bears the dedication " For My Brother Rob . " After becoming a reporter , Hiaasen began writing novels in his spare time . The first three were co-authored with his friend and fellow journalist William Montalbano : '' Powder Burn '' ( 1981 ) , '' Trap Line '' ( 1982 ) , and '' A Death in China '' ( 1984 ) . His first solo novel , '' Tourist Season '' ( 1986 ) , featured a group of ragged eco-warriors who kidnap the Orange Bowl Queen in Miami . The book 's main character was whimsically memorialized by Jimmy Buffett in a song called " The Ballad of Skip Wiley , " which appeared on his '' Barometer Soup '' album
mass shooting
Capital Gazette shooting
Carl Hiaasen