Blog Archives

Q&A: Charlie Wade

30/11/2011

Charlie Wade is the author of many short stories and three novels, post credit-crunch dystopia The Bailout, comedy spy thriller The Spy With Eczema, and crime thriller Seven Daze. He is also currently publishing a series of short stories under the series title Bites of Grime.

Tell me about your books.

Das Slap is the gentle tale of a karate and occasional Zumba teacher who seeks revenge for a series of muggings. Trestle Press have released it as an e-book as part of my Bites of Grime series of short stories. I've also written three novels: a crime thriller, a comedy spy thriller and a post credit crunch dystopia.

What was your motivation for writing Das Slap?

I suppose Das Slap was originally inspired by Nikita (the proper, French version) and several old noir and pulp tales. It's the classic revenge tale but converted to small town Britain. I like the idea of a slightly unhinged woman investigating something the police won't.

How long did it take you to complete?

About a month while I was editing a different book. I tend to have four or five things on the go at the same time.

How much difference does an editor make?

It makes a lot of difference. I tend to use run on sentences a lot, I think they build up speed, keep the pace up. But that's just me. Everyone else who uses the English language has a different view on them. A good editor can complete a book.

How important is a good title?

Something memorable and catchy makes all the difference. I always find titles the hardest part, which seems weird. I can write 80,000 words easily, but picking three for a title becomes a problem.

How important is a good cover?

I think it's very important. You need to stand out from everyone else, whether it's on a real bookshelf or a virtual one, you need an edge.

What are your views on e-books?

I think the mainstream publishing industry have missed a trick by dragging their heels. E-books are here to stay and will grow each year, especially with Kindles now under ninety quid. I think it's exciting times for all of us. Small publishers are already starting to specialise in short stories or novellas, and in genres, which is something that wasn't practical or cost effective with paperback books. The pricing is awkward at the moment, 86p or 99c for a full length novel leaves so little for the author it hardly seems worth it. Unfortunately, unless you're well known, pricing it higher just means no one will buy it. I'm sure prices will eventually level out.

What aspects of marketing your book do you enjoy?

I'm a quiet person really, so I never feel overly comfortable putting myself out there. You have to, though, to get noticed. I enjoy following writers that share their work on blogs, websites and even Facebook. By sites such as The Flash Fiction Offensive and Shotgun Honey putting up my work, I've met loads of people and authors I wouldn't otherwise have met. God knows what writers did before the Internet. I suppose they spent more time in the pub.

How do you feel about interviews?

This is my first one. So far so good. You're less thorough than Customs were.

How do you feel about awards?

Don't like them. Then again, I haven't won any.

What are you reading now?

The Falls by Ian Rankin and Broken Dreams by Nick Quantrill. I tend to have a few on the go at once. I'm reading the Rebus series back to back this year, which is depressing for a writer as he's covered practically all possible plots. I'm enjoying Broken Dreams, Nick's created a great character in Joe Geraghty.

What makes you keep reading a book?

A character that's flawed enough to keep me interested. I've only given up on a handful of books in my life. I should probably give up on more, there's a lot of stuff I want to read but don't have the time.

What are you currently working on?

I'm editing Seven Daze, my third full length novel. It's a crime thriller about a rookie assassin whose first job goes very wrong. I wrote it in the early part of the year then edited a different book, The Bailout. Coming back to Seven Daze now, it feels like someone else has written it. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not.

How can we keep up to date with your news?

My blog, Spies Lies and Pies (which was named after the comedy spy novel) and I'm also on twitter @CharlWad, but I haven't really got the hang of tweeting.

Thanks for a great Q&A, Charlie.

There are links to many of the short stories Charlie has had published online on his blog. He has also recently published A Life in Rags, the second installment in the Bites of Grime series, and he appears in charity anthology Off The Record with the darkly humorous Sheila Take a Bow.

Charlie's books are available from Amazon in the UK and the US.

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Q&A: Alison Taft

26/11/2011

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Born and raised in Burnley, Alison Taft had dreamed of becoming a writer ever since reading Harriet the Spy by torchlight under the bedcovers, aged about eight. And since her debut novel was published by Caffeine Nights Publishing on September 5th this year, it's fair to say that dream came true. Described as 'chick noir at its funniest', Our father who art out there ... somewhere has been very well received and Alison has enjoyed a flurry of sell out book signings. So, with no further ado, over to you, Alison!

Tell me about your book

Our father who art out there … somewhere is the story of a nineteen year old student called Lily who goes searching for the father she’s never met. When she finds out he doesn’t want anything to do with her, Jo, her best friend, persuades her to take action. Together the two women track down Lily’s father and when they discover he has another daughter, they decide to teach him a lesson about how it feels to not know where your family is.

What was your motivation for writing it?

A few years ago I tried to contact my birth father and received the response that he had no wish to communicate with me. The story in the book is what would have happened had I had more courage (or perhaps less to lose).

It was very therapeutic to get my anger down on paper. I wanted to stick up for other people whose parents failed to show, to acknowledge that it really does matter.

What’s your favourite part of the creative process?

Those moments where you look up from the desk and realise you’ve completely lost track of time.

What aspects of marketing your book do you enjoy?

I like meeting other people with similar family backgrounds and hearing that my book has helped them (and made them laugh). I really enjoyed a radio interview I did recently. As a full time mother, the idea of someone asking me my opinion on anything is very seductive!

What makes you keep reading a book?

Great characters. If I become attached to a character, if I care about them like I care about my friends or family, then it’s a great book.

How can we keep up to date with your news?

I’ve a website (with a Facebook link).

Other than writing, do you have a claim to fame?

I was on Escape to the Country ... does that count?

What would your epitaph be?

Wait, I’m not finished yet ...

Thanks for a great Q&A, Alison.

You can buy Alison's book at Amazon in the UK and the US. It's also available from her publisher, Caffeine Nights, where you can both download sample chapters and listen to Alison on The John Gilmore Show on BBC Radio Lancashire.

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Q&A: Chris Rhatigan

23/11/2011

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Chris Rhatigan has been writing flash fiction and short stories for about three years now. He is the co-editor, along with Nigel Bird (who blogs here at Sea Minor), of Pulp Ink, an anthology of twenty-four short dark, twisted tales, each inspired by a song from the Pulp Fiction soundtrack and written by some of the best crime fiction writers around. (Here's my two penn'orth.) He stopped by recently for a natter - over to you, Chris.

Tell me about your book.

Pulp Ink is a mammoth collection of crime stories with a doctor-recommended dosage of swearing and violence. It's twenty-four stories from the likes of Allan Guthrie, Michael J. Solender, Reed Farrel Coleman, Sandra Seamans, Patti Abbott, and Chris F. Holm.

When co-editor Nigel Bird and I decided to put this together our goal was simple — put a bunch of great writers in the same book and make it cheap. Lovers of crime fiction should jump on this.

And if they don't ... I will personally make sure they regret that decision.

How much difference does an editor make?

It's hard to say. I think where Nigel and I made the biggest difference was simply getting all these folks on board. We did a good deal of proofreading, but didn't really mess with the stories we received that much — maybe a suggestion here or there, nothing major.

That said, there are editors out there who work with writers to make their stories really sing — maybe take a good story and make it outstanding. I hope to develop into one of those editors. I'm taking over the website All Due Respect in the spring, and I'm reading all new submissions for them. (Submissions are closed as of now but will be open soon.)

What are your views on e-books?

Love em. That's most of what I'm reading right now. Here are all these fantastic folks (Julie Morrigan is one of them!) who are publishing these splendid books and selling them for dirt cheap prices. Also, the e-book format provides an opportunity for authors who have a great idea that isn't right for the traditional publishing world, which has a very narrow focus. So if you have a killer short story collection or a novella, you can just release it now. Try pitching one of those to traditional publisher if you're not already a known quantity — you'd get laughed out of the room.

I also don't really understand these folks who bitch and moan about how much crap is published in e-book form. Here's my point: Head over to Barnes and Noble and pick up the first book you see. It's probably fucking garbage. Like Jewel's book of poetry or something by Nicholas Sparks.

So, yeah, there's a lot of shitty e-books out there, but it's fairly simple to separate the good from the bad. If I've read a few of the writer's stories online and the book has a good cover and an intriguing blurb, it's probably going to be something I like.

How do you feel about reviews?

I run a site (Death By Killing) that's mostly reviews of short stories. Although I use the term ‘review’ loosely — basically I'm a recommender, not a reviewer. (If I read something and don't like it, I just don't post about it.) All I can really do is say that I liked something and a little bit about why I liked it. I have fairly particular tastes. I tend toward the darker sides of genre fiction (crime, of course, but also horror and sci-fi) and I'm into the kind of subversive fiction on the internet.

To actually answer the question, reviews are helpful when I'm considering investing my time in a new writer. If R. Thomas Brown or Sabrina Ogden say that they dig a certain author, I probably will too.

What are you reading now?

Patti Abbott's Monkey Justice. It's an incredible collection. For me, there's no writer out there who does a better job with character development.

What's your favourite part of the creative process?

I love, love, love coming up with ideas. The initial spark and thinking about a story when I'm out for a walk or in the shower or going to sleep. Easily the best part of writing for me.

How can we keep up to date with your news?

My blog, Death by Killing. I've got a bunch of published stories up there, plus short reviews of short stories, links to joints I hang out in, all that kind of good stuff.

What would your epitaph be?

‘You're next.’

Thanks, Chris, for a great Q&A.

Pulp Ink is a cracking collection and is available from Amazon UK, Amazon US and Smashwords for just £2.12/$2.99.

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Q&A: Iain Rowan

19/11/2011

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Iain Rowan has had a lot of short stories published. Some have been reprinted in Year's Best anthologies, won a Derringer Award, been voted into readers' 'top ten of the year' lists, and one was the basis for a novel shortlisted for the UK Crime Writers' Association's Debut Dagger award. He's undoubtedly one of the best writers around, definitely one of my favourites, and he even walks the same beaches I do.

Over to you, Iain!

Tell me about your book.

I'm going to be greedy here, and tell you about two — my collections of short stories.

Nowhere To Go is eleven crime short stories that were first published in various places in print and on the web. Some of them won awards and stuff. We put one of the stories, One Step Closer, out as an individual free taster and much to our surprise it was downloaded some 10,000 times in a month and spent the whole month as the number one free short story on Amazon UK.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Nowhere-To-Go/dp/B004TNHGFG

Ice Age is a little different, eight stories of the strange and chilling. Just right for this time of year. It's full of stories about the dead and the living, and about cities at war where it is very hard to tell one from the other. Stories of lonely roads, and forest paths, and wrong turnings. Very wrong turnings.The fiery martyrdom of The New Way, distant voices that call from the sea, and the ice creeping in, ever in.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ice-Age-ebook/dp/B00596UPDM

What's your favourite part of the creative process?

When you add the lime to the mojito.

How much difference does an editor make?

I had the pleasure of working with an editor over a few months once, and she was brilliant - took a book that I thought was pretty good, showed me where it was flawed, and worked with me to turn it into a much better book than it had been. One of the most educational experiences in my whole writing uh ... don't like to use the word ‘career’ because that doesn't really fit. Experience. That's better.

What aspects of marketing your book do you enjoy?

None of it. And that's the truth. I hate marketing my books, because it makes me feel like the worst kind of in-your-face, pushy-pushy-pushy bore that we all try and avoid. I know that we all have to do it, and I know that we all do do it, and I know that there are ways of doing it that are relatively inoffensive, and I hope that my efforts fall into that category. But I still hate every minute of it.

And if you all buy my books, I won't need to do any more marketing so spare me the pain and — no, no good. Can't do it.

How do you feel about interviews?

I like them. But not the ones where they shine the bright light in your face and give you tea in polystyrene cups that you pick at nervously while the men shout things like: 'So where were you on the night of the 14th and why is your hifi tuned in to a Russian numbers station?'

The biggest challenge with interviews is finding something new and interesting to say, and not feel that you are recycling the same lines over and over again. Cue people googling to see if I have said that before.

What are you reading now?

I've just come off a massive William Gibson jag. After getting his latest, Zero History, I've actually read my way through his trilogy of trilogies. I started off with the recent three (yeah, I know that's not the best way to have done it), then read the Bridge Trilogy, then went back to Neuromancer and read through the Sprawl books. Lot of fun in the first books, but there's a perception and level of observation in the latter books that really works for me.

So, for a change of pace I'm read Tom Rob Smith's Child 44. I enjoyed the paranoia and horror of the setting in Stalinist USSR, but wasn't at all engaged by the characters and found the whole experience strangely flat. Got worse, when the massive coincidence engine fired up. I've not got a great track record with crime novels that get highly touted and achieve cross-over success — I really wasn't impressed by The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo and have never been tempted to read the next two.

In danger of sounding like a total not-like-anything-successful-poser here, I know. To be fair to me, my favourite book ever (The Secret History) was a highly-touted, cross-over success.

As an antidote I just finished the excellent Don Winslow's Savages. Not his best book (The Power Of The Dog is a fantastic novel), but great visceral, smart and mean fun. Has possibly the best opening chapter ever. It's only two words long.

What are you currently working on?

A new novel, about a policeman who lives long-term undercover with a protest group and starts to lose track of who he is, what he's meant to believe in, whose side he's on, and who he's meant to be sleeping with.

I know, unrealistic and could never happen here ...

How can we keep up to date with your news?

Crimestoppers. Or alternatively, and with less chance of a cash reward, my blog — blog.iainrowan.com

Other than writing/being published, do you have a claim to fame?

Björk once told me to fuck off.

What would your epitaph be?

GET OFF MY GRAVE OR I AM COMING FOR YOU.

Thanks for an enlightening Q&A, Iain. (Björk sends her love, by the way.)

You can buy Iain's books from Amazon in the UK and the US. Buy 'em all. Tell your friends to buy 'em. Not only are they great reads, but you can do your bit to save him from the torture of marketing!

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Q&A: Sheila Quigley

16/11/2011

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Bestselling north-east crime writer Sheila Quigley very kindly took the time to answer some questions recently. Sheila burst onto the scene in 2004 with her debut novel Run For Home, introducing the colourful characters of the Seahills Estate, and she hasn't looked back since. One of the hardest working writers out there, when Sheila isn't crafting new tales, she's meeting fans and signing books. And we're talking to Sheila at a very exciting time - Nowhere Man, the second in her new and hugely popular series featuring DI Mike Yorke, is published tomorrow. Over to you, Sheila.

Tell me about your book.

The latest, Nowhere Man, out on November 17, is the second in the Mike Yorke series. A mix of crime, conspiracy and thriller, where ordinary guys and gals off the street are your heroes instead of someone with a penthouse and a big flash car.

What was your motivation for writing it?

After doing five in the Seahills series I needed a break and these characters were roving around in my head screaming to be on paper. The Mike Yorke books are a trilogy; after them I will be back to the Seahills.

How long did it take you to complete?

Roughly six months.

What's your favourite part of the creative process?

The actual getting down to it, I don't know what’s going to happen until I finish the last page.

How much difference does an editor make?

A whole world of difference. A good editor will spot things that the writer missed, and always be there with advice if needed.

How important is a good title?

Very important. The title and the cover is the first thing your reader sees and must be good enough for them to want to pick the book up.

What are your views on e-books?

Whatever, they are here to stay. To ignore them is foolish. I don't agree with 99p for a novel that someone has spent a year writing. I also don't think they should be anywhere near the price of a hardback or even a paperback. Somewhere around the £3.99 mark is good. Remember, there are still three or more people to be paid out of the price: the publisher, the seller, the agent, and last, the author.

What aspects of marketing your book do you enjoy?

Siting in the bookshops and meeting my fans.

How do you feel about interviews?

Anything that gets the word out is good.

How do you feel about reviews?

If you bask in the praise from the good reviews, you just better be prepared to cringe with the bad ones.

What are you reading now?

Just finished the latest Matt Hilton, and starting one of James Rollins. If you haven't read him yet, you're in for a treat. Plus a lot of great shorts that are on the internet, Graham Smith, Darren Sant, Paul D Brazill, Col Bury, AJ Hayes, Charlie Wade, Luca Veste, Ian Ayris, Craig Douglas, yourself and a few others.

What makes you keep reading a book?

Action!

What are you currently working on?

Number three in the Mike Yorke series.

How can we keep up to date with your news?

I have a website. Also pretty active on Facebook.

Thank you, Sheila, for an interesting and informative Q&A.

Sheila's books are available from Amazon in the UK and the US, and from all good book stores. (And if you're in the UK, you'll probably find Sheila in the bookstore too, signing books and chatting to fans.)

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Noirvember treats - At The Bijou

14/11/2011

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I found out today that two of my favourite writers, Absolutely*Kate and AJ Hayes (AKA Dollface and Fedora Fella) are collaborating on a novel. Needless to say, I'm hugely excited by this and, even better, there's an excerpt showing now, At The Bijou. Curtain's rising and the popcorn's on the house. Go get 'em!

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Q&A: Paul D Brazill

12/11/2011

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Paul Brazill is very much a mainstay of the crime fiction community - a prolific writer and tireless promoter of other folks' work, you can find him anywhere there's something good going on. His writing has a very distinctive style - it's unflinching in its honesty and full of great dialogue and humour. Humour that's as black as midnight.

His stories can be found in many ezines and anthologies, he's a regular contributor to Byker Books' Radgepacket series, and he has recently published a collection of tales as an ebook (Brit Grit - see my two penn'orth here). Paul has also established the Drunk on the Moon series of short stories, featuring werewolf PI Roman Dalton. There's more, too. Much more. (Links below.) So, over to you, Paul.

Tell me about your book.

13 Shots Of Noir (published by Untreed Reads) is 13 short, sharp stories of booze, bullets & bodies. It starts with a Tut and ends with a Thump.

How long did it take you to complete?

It's a collection of some of the stories that I've written over the last three years. A veritable cornucopia of crimes!

What's your favourite part of the creative process?

Editing. It's when the day dreaming starts to seem more solid.

How much difference does an editor make?

Always a good thing, sometimes a great thing.

How important is a good title?

Very. Stairway To South Shields just doesn't have the same ring, does it?

How important is a good cover?

I like 'em!

What are your views on e-books?

I usually squint, after a bit.

How do you feel about reviews?

I only like good reviews and not just of my stuff.

It's like Oddball said in Kelly's Heroes: 'Why don't you knock it off with them negative waves? Why don't you dig how beautiful it is out here? Why don't you say something righteous and hopeful for a change?'

Where do you find out about new books?

The interweb

What are you reading now?

Allan Guthrie's Two-Way Split is almost done (brilliant) & I'm gagging to start Gerard Brennan's The Point

What are you currently working on?

An action film. In book form. And bits of stuff.

How can we keep up to date with your news?

My blog, You Would Say That, Wouldn't You?

Other than writing/being published, do you have a claim to fame?

I can't tell you that! I have a lawyer friend downtown ...

What would your epitaph be?

'Well, I finished something!'

Thanks, Paul! 13 Shots of Noir looks brilliant - I'm particularly looking forward to that one.

You can find Paul's books at Amazon in the UK and in the US.

2 Comments

Q&A: Darren Sant

9/11/2011

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Darren Sant is, as most of you will already know, an active member of the crime writing community. Darren's first publication was the short story A Good Day, the first in a series of extremely popular tales set in the Longcroft Estate. (Here's my two penn'orth. The others in the series so far are Community Spirit and the recently released Rowan's Folly.) He also has available a collection of short stories, Flashes of Revenge ( I said this about it), and he is collaborating on a series of zombie apocalypse tales. Add to that forthcoming appearances in Off The Record, Brit Grit Too and Radgepacket 6 (Darren is a regular Radgie gadgie) and you can see that the man is kept busy. How does he do it all? Over to you, Darren.

Tell me about your book.

I would describe my short stories series Tales From The Longcroft Estate as gritty urban tales. Housing estates, council estates or ‘schemes’ as the Scots refer to them are places where you can find a broad cross section of society. These are the salt of the earth folk. People who will cross the street to help a friend, a neighbour and even a stranger. These folk know the true meaning of the word community, to them it is not just a politician’s buzz word but a way of life. This is what happens when you have thousands of people living in close proximity. These are places where everyone knows everyone else’s business. However, in every barrel there are a few bad apples and the same applies to our estates. The Longcroft tales is a series of short stories that deals with those folk that live on the margins within these communities. The drug dealers, addicts, football hooligans, loan sharks, gangsters and the lost and misguided souls. Tales From The Longcroft Estate deals with the shades of grey rather than the black and white.

As the series progresses I hope to give a full colour high definition vision of the Longcroft Estate and its many and varied denizens. There will be laughter, tears, highs and lows.

The latest story just released is called Rowan’s Folly. This tells the tale of young electrician Andy Rowan and how a choice he makes lands him in some very hot water. Here is a link to the blurb for Rowan’s Folly on Amazon.

What's your favourite part of the creative process?

My favourite part is getting the words down. The magical process of turning a basic idea into a first draft. The self-editing is trickier. I’m always happy when it reaches the stage where I can turn it over to a professional editor to help me shape my idea into a polished story.

How much difference does an editor make?

In my case a massive difference. I am very aware of my shortcomings as a writer and it is very gratifying to see your story emerge from its dowdy cocoon as a sparkling butterfly. A good editor can never be appreciated enough.

How important is a good title?

Vital. It’s the first thing a reader will ever see, it must catch the attention. Finding the right title is a tricky process and I love that eureka moment when it pops into your head.

How important is a good cover?

As I write e-books, a striking cover is essential as the reader usually only sees a thumbnail. It has to stand out from the herd.

What aspects of marketing your book do you enjoy?

I don’t know if enjoy is the word I would use. Marketing is satisfying if you get an end result. If my marketing leads to me meeting new readers and networking with other writers, then that is what I enjoy the most. I’m a friendly guy and I like to get to know new people.

How do you feel about interviews?

I’m just happy that anyone is willing to listen to what I have to say!

How do you feel about reviews?

There are things to be learned from positive and negative critique. Most people will say that they like negative reviews IF the reader has obviously read the story or novel and if what they say is genuine and intelligent. I recently saw a one star Amazon review of somebody’s writing which simply said: Too short. That says everything about the reader and nothing about the writer.

I like positive reviews where it is clear that the reader has ‘got’ what I was trying to convey in the story. Sometimes I see things in reviews that I didn’t intend in the work, but someone had read it at another level entirely. I love that too, because reading is all about interpretation.

Where do you find out about new books?

These days word of mouth from writing friends or from blogs such as Allan Guthrie’s Criminal-E.

What are you reading now?

I’m just about to start McDroll’s short story collection Kick It and your own novel Heartbreaker.

What makes you keep reading a book?

I’m a tolerant reader and rarely give up on a book. However, an engaging story will always keep me reading. I appreciate believable dialogue, interesting characters and a fast moving plot. If a book has some of those elements I’ll keep reading.

What are you currently working on?

I am all over the place and hopelessly over committed, to be honest. Other than the Longcroft series, I have decided to concentrate my efforts on another flash fiction collection that will have an interesting twist to it which I’ll keep to myself for now.

How can we keep up to date with your news?

You can catch me on Twitter as @groovydaz39 and @Longcroft_tales.

My website, which I am updating regularly, is: http://darrensant-writer.yolasite.com/

I review everything I read here: http://santsrants.blogspot.com/

I am fairly well known as Old Seth on the excellent blog Close To The Bone:
http://www.craigrobertdouglas.com/

Thank you, Darren - I'm looking forward to seeing what the new collection is all about!

Readers will have gathered that as well as being a writer, Darren reads and reviews other people's work and also interviews other writers. In fact, he's very generous with his support and promotion of others and a stalwart of the crime writing community.

Darren's e-books may be found at Amazon in the UK and in the US.

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November goes noir - At The Bijou

6/11/2011

1 Comment

This month At The Bijou my very good friend Absolutely*Kate is hosting a noir extravaganza. A host of writers will be showcased along with their stories, and I'm delighted that today it was my turn.

Earlier in the year, I wrote a story for ATB's feature, The Rat Pack Revue, and a character called McGraw came into being. He was only ever intended to be in that one story, but he keeps chatting to me. Seems he has other tales to tell. And so McGraw is At The Bijou again for November Noir. Not only that, but I'm planning to write a third tale featuring the man. And I can't rule out the possibility that he'll be back again after that. He just won't go away!

So, if noir's your thing, pick up a tub of popcorn and head on over to the Bijou. Curtain's up already. Better hurry!

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Q&A: Nick Quantrill

5/11/2011

4 Comments

The second author in the Q&A series is Nick Quantrill, creator of Hull PI Joe Geraghty. His first novel Broken Dreams has been very well received (here’s my two penn’orth) and one of his stories is included in The Mammoth Book of Best British Crime (volume 9)which is due next February. Over to you, Nick!

Tell me about your book.

My second Joe Geraghty novel, The Late Greats, is due out in the spring through Caffeine Nights. It’s a slightly unusual job for a PI, but he’s asked to babysit a reforming Hull band on the brink of their comeback tour. When the lead singer goes missing, Geraghty’s asked to go far beyond the call of duty. Although it touches on my love of music, it’s really a story about friendship, family and what really constitutes success in life.

What's your favourite part of the creative process?

It’s definitely the time spent between the first draft and submission. I like having some raw material to work with and I like the act of shaping it and discovering all the little things that seem to happen in the manuscript organically. I tend to be a plotter and a thinker by nature, so it’s nice to be surprised a bit. I like the challenge of sorting out the good stuff from the bad.

What are your views on e-books?

The only thing I know with any certainty is that they’re here to stay. As a writer, I want my work to be available in whatever format readers choose. The convenience and ease of being able to reach out literally anywhere around the world has got to be a good thing. It levels the playing field a little. As a reader, I’ve not quite got the bug. It’s more my personal circumstances mean I don’t massively feel the need for a Kindle, but I was hardly at the front of the queue for a mobile phone. I don’t seem to have my finger on the pulse in that respect. If I was point to drawbacks, I’d look at pricing. I don’t think they’ve really found the right level yet, particularly in respect of the large publishers.

How important is a good cover?

It’s vital. It is a cliché, but it’s what readers notice first. They need to be visually arresting. I’m fortunate that Caffeine Nights work with a really talented guy who produces excellent work every time. Going back to e-books, it’s no less important. I’m sure people judge an e-book in exactly the same way, even though it’s not a physical product. Maybe the challenges are slightly different, as you initially see a thumbnail on Amazon, but you only have to look at the quality from a publisher like Blasted Heath to see how important it is.

What aspects of marketing your book do you enjoy?

It’s the face to face stuff. The Internet has brought a new dimension to marketing, but you can’t beat going out and talking to readers. I’ve found you have to make quite a mental shift to be able to do it, but it’s great to talk books with people. I suspect it’ll become even more important to me next year. From Christmas, I’m staying at home to look after my daughter, and write. I’ll be gagging for some adult conversation by February! I think the danger of Internet marketing is forgetting you’re talking to people. Nobody wants a continuous stream of adverts thrust at them. There’s nothing worse than over the top self-promotion.

What are you reading now?

I’m just about to start with Dead Money by Ray Banks. Ray’s one of my favourite writers, and for me, he just continues to improve. I’m a little surprised it’s a rewrite of his debut novel – I really don’t see the point – but if Ray writes them, I read them. Although he’s a ‘crime writer’, I suspect Ray might just have something like a Trainspotting in him. He’s got an eye for the small details which lift him beyond many other writers. The last book I finished was Made in Britain by Gavin James Bower. It’s about three sixteen-year-olds who are leaving school in northern England. It’s one of those novels filled with both hope and despair – sort of a state of the nation piece. I found some bits of it better than others, but well worth a read. I tend to read widely within crime fiction, so I’ve got new ones from Lee Child, JJ Connelly, Gerard Brennan and Craig Russell waiting to be read.

What are you currently working on?

The main focus is on the third Geraghty novel, which is about half done. It’s starting to take shape. After that, I’ve got a few ideas – some Geraghty, some not. Other than that, I’m working on a novella for Byker Books, provisionally entitled Bang Bang (You’re Dead). It’s a very different challenge to writing a novel, certainly harder than I first thought. It’s also very different in tone to a Geraghty novel, so a definitely a challenge. As ever, I’m working on short stories all the time for different anthologies and collections. It seems like 2011 has been fairly quiet, but there’s plenty to be going on with for 2012!

What would your epitaph be?

‘At least he didn’t just sit there watching the television …’

Thank you for an interesting and insightful Q&A, Nick.

As a fan of Nick’s work, I’m very much looking forward to the release of The Late Greats, and also interested to see where Joe Geraghty goes after that – he’s a great character. The Byker Books novella is one to watch for as well. There are two in the pipeline that I know of, and they both promise to be very good indeed.

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Julie Morrigan

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