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SamHayes

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About SamHayes

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    Warwickshire UK

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    http://www.samanthahayes.co.uk

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  1. And thanks for having me along, Michelle, and to everyone on the forum. It's been great! Happy readying, everyone
  2. Next up for me is the publication of Before You Die on April 24th. It's the second in the DIs Lorraine Fisher and Adam Scott series. Meantime, I'm beginning an exciting new story for them, due next year!
  3. As long as it's not too ludicrous and unlikely, I quite like screaming 'Don't do that!' at characters. Handled well, it makes me want to read on to discover the consequences and how they get out of the mess. Too many coincidences make me groan more, but in real life, there are occasional coincidences too... so I guess less is more in that respect.
  4. Defiinitely! Not sure I'd be able to keep the crimes out whatever I wrote! It's finding the time that's the problem...
  5. Loved Apple Tree Yard. And The Cry is on my TBR. I read the sample and it had me gripped, so can't wait to get to it. Also, I thought The Silent Wife was brilliant... excruciating at times (just wanted to shake her!) but loved it. Great ending.
  6. What would I write if it wasn't crime? Hmm, I also have thought about YA... probably having three kids inspired that somewhere along the way. I'd really like to give it a go someday. Years ago, when I was a kid then through my teens, twenties and part of my thirties, I used to write a lot of (pretty bad) horror. Would love to give that another go seriously. I remember freaking myself out writing it. And like Julia, I occasionally have desires to write some kind of romance, but fear I may also make despicable and very unromantic things happen to my characters. Crime is perfect for me! Ian, I don't find I'm really influenced by what I'm reading when I'm writing. I know some writers do steer away from reading when they're in writing mode for fear of falling into another style, but like Cath, I find it pretty easy to keep the two separate. When I read, I read for enjoyment, not to compare or copy in any way. Of course, when you pick up a really good book, it's hard not to think 'Wow, I wish I'd written that', but that's aspirational really, which is healthy I reckon. I've not had any pressure to change what I'm writing because of a new genre-fad. I think that may be more a case of publishers on the look out for 'more of the same' by new writers if a genre is doing particularly well, or even re-branding existing authors in that area with covers and new marketing etc.
  7. I'm loving Frieda Klein from the Nicci French series! She's a psychotherapist working on cases with the police - a very independent yet somehow vulnerable woman with lots going on in her personal life as well as professional. I'd recommend.
  8. I mainly stick to crime and thrillers, Michelle. Mainly, but not always - probably an 80/20 split. It's partly a time thing as I like to keep up with what's out there in my genre, and also because that's what I love reading. Sometimes I feel frustrated that there aren't enough hours in the day for everything. Plus I'm a painfully slow reader. I wonder if that comes from the editing process!
  9. I always think that crime novels and mysteries are more about unravelling and solving crimes that have happened, and thrillers are more about facing crimes that are about to happen and dealing with impending danger. Of course, many novels have both going on at the same time.
  10. I'd like to ask readers what value they place on book covers? (Obviously crime and thriller covers in this case.) What draws you to pick up a book in a shop (if it's not by a favourite author)? Would you be put off buying a book because it has a hideous cover? Do you judge a book by its cover before you've even read a word - and by that, I mean do you size up if the book is your kind of thing before you read the blurb on the back?
  11. I agree with 'less is more'. When writing, I like to trust in my readers' imagination. Showing a little gore is fine, but I don't feel the need to write pages and pages about it. I think the readers' own thoughts carried off on the back of my words are going to be far scarier than setting it all out in black and white. Everyone is calibrated to fear differenty. And impending fear or danger is often much more frightening than seeing a graphically-described body. Not that I don't have a bit of blood here and there!
  12. For me, it's the thought of 'What if it happened to me...' even though it's most likely not going to. I really like to put myself in that position of danger, but in a 'safe' way behind the pages of a book. And also, 'What if I did that...' is a big draw for me, too. How to commit murder without actually going to prison. Or maybe that last thought is a writer's take on it, not a reader's!
  13. Hi Athena, I definitely have a kind of schedule... like any job really. If I'm actually in 'writing a book mode' I'll be at my desk by 9am and will write through until lunch. Depending on how well that goes, I'll either get on with other admin tasks etc for a couple of hours in the afternoon, or carry on with the words if they didn't flow earlier. I usually finish around 5pm and if I've written 2000 good (ish) words, I'll be very happy. There's lots of time for editing later. But if I have a pressing deadline, I'll certainly put in the extra hours to get the job done and go late into the evening. It's great working from home, although you do have to be disciplined, and it's amazing how the 'non writing' work piles up too. I always seem to be very busy and complaining there aren't enough hours in the day! I now use Scrivener to keep all my chapters in order as it's so easy to flip and switch the 'index cards' around (my son bought it for me as a present). I have loads of character information and research notes and links all within this program, though I actually write in Word still. (You can write and compile in Scrivener too). It's great for keeping everything in order and easily accessible. I also have quite a few notebooks with bits and pieces jotted down, as well as other files on my ipad and phone. I try to be organised about it!
  14. Hi Chrissy, Those 'dark corners' definitely have an impact on me when I'm writing. I think it's vital that they do, too. If I can make myself emotional, then my readers (hopefully!) will be moved also. Some of the research can be very harrowing at times (I'd hate anyone to look in my internet history!). The book I have coming out in April concerns teen suicides, which was particularly upsetting to delve into now my kids are older. But my belief is that these tough and dark issues need exploring, and crime fiction is the perfect medium. We're faced with terrible stories on the news every day, and I think storytelling is a way to make sense of this. So what do I do after an emotional stint at the computer? I'll go for a run with very loud music, perhaps. Or do some cooking, or sewing... anything to switch off really. But like Cath, I don't find it too hard to leave behind once I'm away from my desk.
  15. Hi everyone. Thanks for asking me over to the forum, Michelle. I write psychological thrillers, and my latest book Until You're Mine is out now in paperback. It's the first book in a series of novels featuring my married detectives - Detective Inspectors Lorraine Fisher and Adam Scott. They live in Birmingham with their two daughters and, as well as solving crimes in the city, they have a few domestic issues to sort out too! The second in this series is called Before You Die and is out on April 24th, so not long to wait if you enjoyed the first (although they can be read in any order). I wrote four books before this, again all psychological thrillers. I'll be popping into the forum regularly this month, so do fire any questions and I'll do my best to answer! Sam x
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