I’ve had a wonderful time meeting readers at fairs and markets this month. Writing can be a solitary business, so it’s great fun getting out and talking to people about my books.
It gives me the chance to thank people in person when they buy a book – something I can’t do when you buy online. But I’d like to take this chance to say a big, heart-felt ‘thank you’ to all of you – everyone who has read, bought, borrowed or recommended one of my books this year. It’s been my best ever year as an author, and you made it possible.
I’m doing one more Christmas fair this year, at St George’s Hall in my home town of Deal in Kent, on Saturday 7 December. If you’re in the area, do drop in and say hello!
Now it’s December, I’m planning a jolly Christmas by the sea, with a big Christmas tree, delicious food and my family visiting. Will I manage the traditional dip in the sea on Christmas day?
But before the festive fun, I’ve booked myself a special treat – a week on an Arvon Foundation writing retreat in Devon. I’ll be surrounded by other writers, with helpful tutors and plenty of time to write, walk, chat and think, surrounded be glorious countryside. It’ll be a great way to unwind and contemplate editing the first draft of Death On Fleet Street.
Read on for more writing news and festive recommendations.
Writing news
Death On Fleet Street, the next Marjorie Swallow mystery, is on its way to the editor! I’ve finished the first draft and my designer Donna has come up with another brilliant cover. You can pre-order now – you won’t be charged until it’s ready to deliver in February or March.
Marjorie and Mrs Jameson are called in when the Daily Post newspaper receives a death notice for Lord Ravensbourne. Not unusual, you might think – but Lord Ravensbourne is the owner of the Post, and he’s still very much alive… for now!
Marjorie gets to work uncovering which of Lord R’s many enemies might have sent it – and wondering if someone plans to make the threat a reality.
Pre-order here.
A trio of festive recommendations
Tis the season to curl up with a Christmas mystery! Agatha Christie, one of my favourite authors, was known for publishing ‘a Christie for Christmas’, so more or less inventing the seasonal Christmas book frenzy.
I have three festive historical mysteries to recommend:
Verity Bright’s A Midwinter Murder. Amazingly enough, this is the 20th Lady Eleanor Swift book! Lady Eleanor is hoping for a cozy Christmas by the fire with her new fiance – but the house party is interrupted by murder, just as Audwyke Hall on the Yorkshire Moors is cut off in a blizzard…
Benedict Brown’s The Christmas Candle Murders, the latest in his much-loved Chrissie and Lord Edgington series. Benedict says this is his favourite Christmas book so far, “set in a snowy English village with a thousand secrets, bad Christmas presents, far too many decorations and a string of inexplicable murders…”
The Emerald Threads, the latest Regency mystery from Lynn Morrison and Anne Radcliffe. It’s set at Alnwick Castle, a real and spectacular castle in Northumberland, where mysteries abound for Lady Grace and Lord Roland on a Christmas visit.
If you can squeeze a few more mysteries in your stocking after those, I’m taking part in the December Free Cozy Mysteries promotion on Bookfunnel, where you can find dozens of mysteries to download.
The Big Give
In the frenzy of present-buying and food preparations, it’s easy to forget about the wider world. A charity I always like to support at Christmas is Book Trust, which sends books to vulnerable children.
No matter what’s happening in a child’s life, a good book is can be a comfort and refuge. Help BookTrust give the gift of reading this Christmas and share the enchanting world of books with families.