A couple from Cumbria have been ‘fined’ £100 after leaving a one-star review on Tripadvisor for a hotel they stayed in during the summer. Their review doesn’t sit on the fence: entitled ‘FILTHY, DIRTY ROTTEN STINKING HOVEL RUN BY MUPPETS’, it contains such choice critiques as ‘weak tea and coffee. YUMMY!!’ and advises prospective guests, […]
How readers can help authors
It’s a curious switch, from reader to writer. Not that you suddenly stop reading yourself – all authors I know read voraciously – but simply that you become more aware of how readers matter. I’ve been overwhelmed by the support I’ve had from friends, family and followers, on the e-publication of I Let You Go, and it made […]
Ten things to do instead of NaNoWriMo
For thousands of writers around the world, November is all about NaNoWriMo: the online challenge to write a book in a month. It’s a great way to get the creative blood pumping, connect with other writers, and get those words – all 50,000 of them – down on the page. But what if NaNoWriMo isn’t […]
Book review: Good Girls Don't Die
“Accused of grassing up a fellow police officer and driven out of her home and her job, Grace fisher is thankful to make a new start with the Major Investigation Team in Essex. A female student is missing, last seen at a popular bar in Colchester. When a second student, also out drinking, is murdered […]
Research matters
Research is one of my favourite things about being a writer. I hate the idea that my books might be inaccurate, and whilst I don’t believe facts should necessarily get in the way of a good story, I do think it’s important to make an informed decision about whether artistic licence should be employed. I didn’t […]
Book review: Dear Daughter, by Elizabeth Little
I picked up a copy of Dear Daughter at the Harrogate Crime Writing Festival, but didn’t have a chance to read it until a month later. I finished it twenty-four hours later, having completely neglected the family, the house, and the dog. Janie Jenkins has just been released from prison, after her conviction for the murder of […]