25th April 2021.
My thanks to Vince Stevenson for a fascinating interview about the creation of No Accident and what goes on in the mind of a crime writer.
Check out the interview below.
Tag: Writing
Networking for Writers by Lizzie Chantree
23rd February 2021.
While there are plenty of books out there that deal with all aspects of marketing a book and using social media as a writer, it’s great to find one that talks to me in my language. I’m neither an expert nor a novice, but I like to check out different angles and approaches as there’s always something to learn.
And this book gave me a fresh outlook in a number of key areas, such as how to engage on Twitter and use it as a writer. Email subscription lists are another area where the author gave me plenty to think about and try. Suddenly, it started to make more sense. I could see how I could improve what I do.
That’s the beauty of this excellent book – it’s filled with practical tips, mainly based on the author’s own experiences and knowledge. The book’s written in an engaging and encouraging style that left me feeling more confident and motivated to try harder.
You can’t ask for more than that.
Description
Are you swamped with book marketing and looking for a way to find new sales? Learn simple and effective networking techniques, to grow your readership and connect with other authors and book lovers, today!
Whether you are a new or an experienced writer, self-published or traditionally published, this book will show you how to grow your readership and author network, through some of the most powerful of all marketing tools – word of mouth and recommendation.
This book will show you:
How networking can help you sell more books.
Why author branding is important.
How networking hours work.
Specific Facebook groups for writers
How to utilise social media to grow your readership.
How not to waste valuable writing time.
How to make our marketing more effective.
No Sex Please We’re Crime Writers
19th February 2021.
Have you ever wondered why there’s so little sex in crime fiction?
Maybe there is and I’m reading the wrong books. Maybe sex and murder are not good bedfellows.
Some categories of crime fiction, such as cosy mysteries, exclude explicit sex, graphic violence and excessive swearing. In my book, literally and metaphorically, this doesn’t exclude romance, sexual tension and people sleeping together. It simply frowns on graphic description.
But sex scenes should only be in a story if they are essential to the plot or character development. This should be the case in any book in any category. If a killer, for instance, seduces his or her victims before killing them, does this need to be shown in detail?
You could argue the same for murder. Does it need to be shown in great detail?
It depends on the type of book and the writer, I guess. With so much emphasis on the collection of forensic and DNA evidence at crime scenes, detailed description that may lead investigators closer to the killer would be essential.
It’s up to writers to show the world as they see it.
Personally, I’m not a fan of torture scenes or any graphic descriptions that involve violence or someone inflicting pain on another human being or animal.
That’s not to say I live in a closeted world where everything’s rosy. I simply don’t need to read the details. I have an imagination. If someone is being tortured as part of the story, tell me. I need to know. But do I want to know every detail of what the killer’s doing?
Some writers like to get into the minds of killers, to show how they’ve become who they are. We’re all inquisitive and the subject’s fascinating, but that doesn’t mean it needs graphic descriptions.
It’s the same with sex. My readers can imagine a sex scene much better than I can write it. And let’s be honest here, each person will imagine it a little differently, making the story more personal to them.
Surely, that’s what we want as authors – readers to enjoy our books. Reading is an emotional experience. The imagination fills in the blanks. We see characters in a particular way, even when they are described in detail. It means readers are more likely to get something personal to them from what they read.
Of course there are times when you have to lay things out in detail, if only for accuracy or credibility, but I would suggest there’s always some room to allow the reader’s imagination to personalise what they’re reading.
If I want everything laid out for me, I’ll watch TV.
Then I can complain on social media that the main character is nothing like the one I pictured in the books.
Not that I really picture them. I’m more interested in who they are, not what they look like.
And that’s the point, ultimately. No two readers are alike. Every one of us has different tastes, values and attitudes. I prefer to read books that aren’t graphic or filled with profanities. I know people swear in the real world, but they also belch, fart, pick their noses, scratch their bums and so on.
If the story and characters are engaging, some swearing and violence won’t put me off a book.
If the swearing and violence feel excessive or unnecessary, I can stop reading – and often do.
I want people to enjoy my books. I want to entertain my readers. I want to tantalise them with complex plots and mysteries in a contemporary world that feels real.
I don’t need graphic sex, foul language and excessive violence to achieve that. It doesn’t make my books soft and fluffy or unrealistic.
I’m writing a murder mystery not a bonk buster.
How do you feel about swearing, sex and violence in crime novels?
Let’s Get Digital by David Gaughran
18th August 2020. 5 stars.
This is an excellent introduction and guide to independent publishing that’s perfect for a novice or seasoned indie author. It’s filled with practical tips and no-nonsense guidance that takes you to the heart of all the important issues so you can produce the best book possible and market it to as many readers as you can.
It’s well-written, everything is explained clearly and based on David’s extensive experience.
If you only read one book on publishing your own work, make it this one.
Description
Publish like a pro and start finding readers today with the most comprehensive and up-to-date self-publishing guide on the market. Packed with practical, actionable advice, the new fourth edition of Let’s Get Digital delivers the very latest best practices on publishing your work and building audience.
* Boost your writing career with marketing strategies that are proven to sell more books.
* Discover expert tips on platform building, blogging and social media.
* Learn which approaches are best for selling fiction vs. non-fiction.
* Implement powerful ways to make your ebooks more discoverable.
* Increase your visibility by optimizing keywords and categories.
* Weigh the pros and cons of Kindle Unlimited, and find out exactly how to tweak your promotional plans depending on whether you stay exclusive to Amazon or opt for wider distribution.
And that’s just for starters…
Become a Successful Indie Author by Craig Martelle
16th July 2020. 4 stars.
As the title suggests, this book is aimed at independent authors. It’s a positive, encouraging book that shows you what it’s possible to achieve with hard work, marketable ideas and an insight into the world of self-publishing. The author’s been there and calls on his experiences and learning mistakes to offer practical advice, inspiration and solutions.
I’m not a science fiction fan, so the author’s examples didn’t resonate with me and I skipped most of them. The rest of the book gave me some useful ideas on book descriptions and marketing on Amazon.
If you’re new to writing and self-publishing, this is an essential introduction into the world you are about to join.
Description
Demystifying the tangled web of self-publishing to put you on the road to success.
This is the 2nd Edition, updated in 2020. A motivational guide based on publishing over four million words (mostly with Amazon) to help you see past the hurdles that are keeping you from climbing the mountain of success. Nothing is overwhelming once it’s been explained. If you are smart enough to write a book, you are smart enough to do everything else needed to make your indie author business a success.
Following- A Marketing Guide to Author Platform
16th July 2020. 5 stars.
This free guide to building and developing an author platform is a must read for any independent author, trying to build their brand and improve visibility on a busy internet. Like all of David Gaughran’s work, it’s well-written and presented, filled with valuable advice, insights and guidance, which is always straight to the point.
If you like no-nonsense advice from someone who knows, grab a copy of this excellent guide.
Description
From the author of Let’s Get Digital and Amazon Decoded comes a fresh, new approach to platform-building.
This short, free guide breaks down what an author platform is, exactly, and what it should contain—and what you can safely skip, so you can focus on writing more books. Authors are told to “build a platform,” or “get their name out there”—advice which is vague as it is useless.
Following will show you precisely how to build your author platform, walking you through every step involved so that you can build a real platform, a proper, sustainable readership, and build a career as a writer.
An interview with author Ross Greenwood
I’m delighted to welcome crime fiction author Ross Greenwood to my Robservations blog. Having recently read and enjoyed The Snow Killer, I offered Ross the chance to tell me a little more about himself and his writing.
Please tell me a little about yourself and your writing.
Hi, I’m 46 and from Peterborough. I’ve been writing since 2015 and my eighth book is out in November.
When did you first realise you wanted to be an author?
I’ve always wanted to write a book, but suspected it would just be one. It’s snowballed since then, along a rather long, gentle slope with many hillocks as opposed to down a mountain!
Describe the first piece you wrote and what it meant to you?
Lazy Blood was my first and as with most people, it bubbled away in my mind for years, five in my case, before I wrote it. It was a joy to eventually hold.
What do you most enjoy about being an author?
The screaming groupies, fast cars and pots of cash.
What do you least enjoy about being an author?
I find it hard to turn off, especially mid book. My wife says i go ‘absent’, sometimes for weeks!
What type of characters do you love and hate to write? Why?
I like writing them all! If they don’t interest you, probably won’t interest the reader either!
I understand you worked as a prison officer for a number of years. How has this influenced your writing and novels?
Hugely. I was very wrong about what prison is really like. It’s a great place to set stories!
What’s been the biggest influence on your writing so far?
Definitely the prison. I met thousands of people over the four years, both men and women as Peterborough is a dual prison. Lot of writing fodder there! Lot of madness and a lot of sadness.
What inspired you to write the DI Barton series?
I just had (what I thought to be 🙂 ) a great idea to write a book about someone who killed when it snowed. A detective novel seemed the best way to exploit it!
How would you describe your books to someone who has never read one before?
Serious with a sense of humour. A friend calls my Dark Lives books The Prison Misery series.
What’s the best compliment you’ve received about your books?
An eighty year old got in touch after reading Fifty Years of Fear and said he never expected to be surprised at his age, and thanked me for opening his eyes.
Do you have any favourite authors? What is it about them or their work that appeals to you?
I’m a huge reader, but i really like variety, so I flitter between authors like a horny butterfly! I read quite a few of Bloodhound Book’s authors, both current and past for my crime fix, and I buy loads of books in the top 100 on kindle when they’re 99p.
If you could invite four guests (fictional or real, alive or dead) for dinner, who would you choose and why?
Kelly Brook, JFK, MLK, and Nelson Mandela. Last three are sadly dead, but I’m sure me and Kelly will get on.
Please tell me about your latest project/plans for the future.
The Ice Killer is out in November. I always planned it to be a trilogy, but Barton has proven popular, so I will probably do at least one more if the demand is there, but I’m going to do a prison one next, with elements that have never been written about before… Duh Duh Durrrrr…
The latest release from Ross is the second in the DI Barton series.
‘Repent in this life, rejoice in the next…’
A murder made to look like suicide. Another that appears an accident. DI Barton investigates the tragedies that have shattered a family’s lives, but without obvious leads the case goes nowhere. Then, when the remains of a body are found, everything points to one suspect.
Barton and his team move quickly, and once the killer is behind bars, they can all breathe a sigh of relief. But death still lurks in the shadows, and no one’s soul is safe. Not even those of the detectives…
How do you stop a killer that believes life is a rehearsal for eternity, and their future is worth more than your own…?
You can find Ross Greenwood at
Twitter – @greenwoodross
Would you believe it?
Not so long ago, a reader asked me a question I couldn’t answer. We’re not talking University Challenge type questions that require a degree in quantum mechanics, if that exists of course.
I don’t know.
That’s the answer I gave to the reader’s question. What I should have said was, ‘I’ve never really given it any thought.’ At least that was true. ‘Let me think about it for a moment,’ I said.
My expression worked its way through several thoughtful grimaces. ‘How do I write a novel?’ I asked, repeating the question to buy more time. ‘I get an idea, make some notes and then open a Word document. I type Chapter One, and start writing.’
The questioner didn’t seem too enamoured with the response. Maybe it sounded glib, condensing a journey that can take months, years or even decades to complete. Many people never complete the journey from idea to finished novel.
My answer was an honest attempt to explain something I’d never given much thought to. I have ideas, I turn them into stories. Or the ideas sit in a file on my PC for future consideration. They’re insurance for the day when no ideas clamour to be heard.
Most questions readers ask me cause a temporary mental block.
I’m a writer so I write. I don’t generally think about being a writer. I still hesitate to call myself an author because I wonder if it sounds pretentious to others. It’s crazy, I know. It’s what I do, what I am.
I’m not ashamed of writing novels – quite the opposite. I had a long apprenticeship and decades of disappointment and rejection, like many authors. When finally I found my author voice, by accident, I would add, my confidence grew. I believed in myself. There was still a way to go, along with help from those who had made it already, but I made it.
Yes, you’ve guessed it – I didn’t believe it.
Not at first anyway. A publisher wanted my first novel.
Okay, it was not my first novel. It was about my tenth, I think. It was the first Kent Fisher novel in a series. Being the maverick I am in my imagination, I wrote the second Kent Fisher novel first. Then I wrote a prequel to explain a lot of what happens in the second story.
See, that’s how much I knew about novel writing.
So, I had a publisher who wanted my novel. Would you believe me if I said it was nowhere near ready, being too long, ponderous and unfinished? When I say unfinished, the story had a climax and a resolution. An exciting climax, if I say so myself. That I knew.
Unfortunately, as a classic whodunit, it lacked one small key feature – my hero, Kent Fisher, couldn’t solve the murder.
Can you believe it?
I couldn’t. I knew who the murderer was and why. I wrote the story, after all.
I couldn’t work out how he could unearth the clues that would allow him to solve the murder. In many ways, it was the perfect murder. That’s what I set out to write. I never expected it to defeat me.
So, what did I do?
Did I own up to the publisher? Of course not. He’d offered me a contract.
I asked for six months to ‘knock the story into shape’, hoping he wouldn’t lose interest. He didn’t and I managed to find the clues to solve the murder.
It’s surprising how the lure of a publishing contract can sharpen the mind.
When it was finally published on Amazon, I still struggled to believe it. I knew it was my book, yet it seemed to belong to someone else.
It was the same with my first talk to promote the book. I was sitting in front of a reasonable gathering, all waiting to hear about my journey. My journey was one of struggle, lack of self-belief and more failures than I wanted to think about.
I never thought anyone would be interested. I was surprised to find people were. Worse than that, they proceeded to ask me questions I’d never considered before.
How do you create your characters?
Where do you get your ideas?
Did you always want to write crime fiction?
Honestly, I’d never considered any of these questions before. I didn’t think anyone would be interested in such details, even though I’d asked similar questions to authors at events. The trouble is, when you’re an aspiring author talking to a successful one, you’re hoping for the magic bullet that will transform you into the next Stephen King. In my case I wanted to be a modern Agatha Christie, but you know what I mean.
I quickly learned that you can’t answer, ‘I don’t know’ to every question until someone asks you something you can answer. Equally, you can spend too long thinking about an answer. Readers believe you’re an expert now you’re published.
Sorry to disappoint you, but some days I struggle to believe I’ve written five Kent Fisher murder mysteries. I’m better at answering questions, having been interviewed a few times. I’ve had the time to work out the answers.
Of course, there’s a whole raft of new questions to replace those I can answer.
‘How do I get more people to buy and read my books?’
How can I convince them I’m a modern Agatha Christie when no one’s heard of me?
If you know the answers, please let me know.
Friday Feedback- 29th November 2019
There’s not much to report as I’ve spent this week fitting new doors inside the house. However, Wednesday turned out to be interesting.
Carol finished reading No Mercy on Wednesday morning. “Loved it,” she said. “Even better than the last one.”
Around lunchtime, my editor, Liz, emailed me her report on the novel. “It’s a cracker!” she said. “Not much to adjust.”
Not bad, I thought, before picking up the mallet and chisel. I can move on with the final edit and proof reading this coming week and get the book ready for pre-order and publication. I’m hoping the cover should be available soon, so it’s all coming together.
I’m also looking to relaunch my Robservations blog soon, prompted by Agatha Christie, no less. I’m currently reading and loving The 4.50 from Paddington, one of Miss Marple’s adventures. It’s interesting to see how the BBC and ITV have tinkered with the story for television. I’m not sure why they did as the story’s excellent. I also began to realise what I’d learned from her over the years.
Friday Feedback – 22nd November 2019
This is the updated Saturday version, delayed in the spirit of Brexit.
Like most the weeks this month, it’s been non-stop editing to ensure No Mercy, the fifth Kent Fisher murder mystery, is as good as I can make it. It’s now in the hands of my editor, Liz, for an objective evaluation. I’m working with my cover designer at the moment and hope to bring you a preview of the finished result before too long.
The story starts at the point No More Lies finished and will take readers deeper into the lives of Kent and some of those close to him, with some surprising revelations. Alongside the murders, the plot has a strong environmental health thread to it, which includes the restaurateur from hell.
No Mercy will be available on Amazon from Thursday, 16th January 2020, and it should be available for preorder before Christmas.