Stephen Booth

I was very touched to receive birthday greetings this weekend from my friends at The Book Club Forum. Thanks, everyone! Right now, my 6th Cooper & Fry novel THE DEAD PLACE is a finalist for the 2007 UK Crime Novel of the Year Award, sponsored by Theakston's Old Peculier. I love this award, because it's the only one of its kind in the UK where readers get a chance to vote for the winner. More power to readers, I say! If you feel like voting, you can do it by calling in at any Waterstone's bookstore (if you're in the UK), or online via the Waterstone's website: http://www.waterstones.com/theakstons The award will be presented at the Harrogate Crime Writing Festival on 19th July. Happy reading, Stephen Booth http://www.stephen-booth.com

Just realised that my month is already over, and I want to say a big 'thank you' to Michelle, Kell, and everyone else for inviting me to be the featured author in April. I've had a wonderful time on the forum - and I really appreciated all the interesting questions! Best regards, Stephen http://www.stephen-booth.com

At the moment, I can't imagine killing off either Ben Cooper or Diane Fry. It would be like murdering an old friend! Hope that pleases Maureen. However, I think there are other ways in which the series could come to a natural conclusion - for example, Ben might leave the police service, and Diane could decide she'd had enough of the Peak District and go back to Birmingham. (This is just off the top of my head, you understand! It's not a plan!). Of course, that assumes I'll actually know when I'm writing the last book in the series. From an author's point of view, it's much more satisfactory to be able to decide whether you want to end the series, or leave open the possibility of coming back to the characters later. But a fact of life in the publishing world is that it might not be my choice! Stephen

Hi, fireball. Well, I'm not quite sure what you're concerned about, so it's definitely hard for me to answer! Are you concerned about what's going to happen to the characters some time in the future? If so, then you probably have a reason for it... Both of the main series characters - i.e. Ben Cooper & Diane Fry - have lurking issues in their pasts which could come to the fore one day. If that happened, it would certainly knock the character's life off course, one way or another. This situation hasn't been spelled out in the books so far, but I think readers who become involved with Cooper & Fry will be aware of that shadow, without perhaps being able to put it into words. Do you think that might be the cause of your unease? You can see that I'm trying to answer your question without giving too much away. Anyway, if I find myself dealing with these issues some time (and I don't plan the series ahead, so I don't know when it will happen), that will certainly be the hardest book in relation to the characters. In fact, there could be two very hard books! They're challenging issues, and not to be tackled lightly. Hope that makes sense! Stephen

It's a funny question this one, Kell. Because, whatever book I name, I know perfectly well that it wouldn't have been as good if it had been written by me! Having said that, Reginald Hill's 'On Beulah Height' is a fantastic book. And not just one of the best crime novels I've read, but one of the most powerful novels of any kind. But Reg Hill is much more cultured and erudite than me, so I could never have written that one. One book I think I was trying to write for a long time is 'The Hitch-hiker's Guide to the Galaxy'. I still like to believe I could have written that, if I'd kept trying! I seemed to be so tuned in to Douglas Adams' sense of humour. In fact, there are a few copies of this book around that have been signed by me, after Adams died. Collector's items, surely... Stephen

Hope you enjoy it, Maureen! Stephen

Interesting! I don't usually think about friends and family when I'm naming characters. Having said that, if they have an unusual name I don't think I'd ever use it, since it would look like an obvious reference. Common names are different, though. I have no problem calling a character Jim or Tom (my father and father-in-law respectively!), if the name fits. Generally speaking, some characters seem to name themselves. A name pops into my head and I can immediately see the person who goes with it. Others can be quite difficult, and a name might change several times during the course of writing a novel, until it feels right. There are other factors involved, too - for example, I try to avoid similar sounding names, or too many that start with the same letter, so that the reader doesn't get confused. I also like my local characters to have local names, where possible. I even hang around in village churchyards looking for the names that occur most often on gravestones. This was how DC Gavin Murfin got his name. Murfin is quite unusual, and distinctively Derbyshire in origin. I've had emails from Murfins in other parts of the world, whose ancestors emigrated from Derbyshire, wondering how I hit on it! Stephen

Yes, I do enjoy research. What I really like is to discover a subject that's completely new to me. Sometimes aspiring writers are advised to "write about what you know". I think that's bad advice. I find it much more interesting to write about something I don't know! Research often turns up some intriguing angle that a whole story can turn on. A good example would be from the writing of BLOOD ON THE TONGUE. While walking in the Peak District, I stumbled across one of the many aircraft wrecks that lie around on the moors up there, a lot dating of them from the Second World War. My imagination was caught, and I began to research the wrecks, and the lives of the men who died in them. I discovered that many of the airmen weren't British, or even American, but all kinds of other nationalities, including many Poles, who came to Britain to continue fighting the Germans when their country was invaded. One day around this time, I was walking down a street in Chesterfield (a large town neighbouring the Peak District), when I noticed a sign on a doorway, and I had to go back to read it. It said 'Dom Kombatanta', which I knew from my research was the Polish ex-servicemen's club. It was only then I realised that many of the surviving Polish airmen and soldiers had remained in the area after the war was over, and were still living in Derbyshire with their families, second and third generation Polish migrants. When those two things connected in my mind, the story of BLOOD ON THE TONGUE was born. Second World War Lancaster bombers and the Polish community were two things I knew absolutely nothing about when I started writing that book - but I'd become an expert by the end of it! I even managed to get a ride (on the ground, I hasten to add!) on one of the last surviving Lancaster bombers, and I sat in all the crew positions that the men would have occupied at the time of the crash which the story of BLOOD ON THE TONGUE centres around. I had no idea until then how claustrophobic and frightening it must have been for those young men. The tail gunner's position was particularly scary and dangerous. Since he was facing backwards, he couldn't even see where the aircraft was going. I recall one reader writing to me to say that the tail gunner of my fictional Lancaster bomber was the character she most sympathised with - even though he's been dead nearly 60 years by the time the novel starts! As for police procedure, it changes all the time, and forensic science has become more and more important (DNA etc). So from that point of view, there's nothing like a few helpful police officers. And Derbyshire Constabulary have been very helpful to me. Stephen

If you're going to push me, Maureen, I'd settle for BLOOD ON THE TONGUE. Or maybe ONE LAST BREATH... This is really difficult! Stephen

I tend to think inspiration has to be worked for, Maureen. I can sit and stare out of the window and waste time as well as anyone else, but it wouldn't get a book written! Once I start exploring ideas and characters on the page, that's when inspiration comes. It might only be some small thing, perhaps a connection that I suddenly see between two ideas. It's a nice feeling when it happens. I do have a soft spot for BLACK DOG for the reason you mention. But writers like to think they improve over time, and I know I wouldn't write BLACK DOG the same way if I was approaching it now. None of my books is exactly perfect (I wish!). But I look back now and think there were some occasions when the things I was trying to achieve really did work, to some extent. BLOOD ON THE TONGUE I liked, and ONE LAST BREATH. I set myself a major challenge with book 6, THE DEAD PLACE, and I wasn't sure what reaction it would get. But I'm delighted to say that it's been my most successful book to date in the UK (in the USA, it's due to be published in May this year). So I'm chuffed with that one! I don't think I'm the best judge of my own books, anyway. It's up to the readers to decide which they like the best. People still write to me all the time to tell me how much they love BLACK DOG, so who am I to argue? Stephen

If I waited for inspiration to strike, nothing would ever get written. I learned from being a newspaper reporter that the only way I get anything done is to sit down at the keyboard and start typing. For me, that physical act seems to spark the creative process. I'm not a very disciplined writer, though. I do know some writers who get up at 6am, write for two hours before breakfast, then two more hours before lunch, and take the rest of the day off. Or writers who produce exactly a thousand words each day, then stop. At least, that's what they say in interviews! We're all different, but I've discovered that I'm not a 'morning person' when it comes to writing. I still write best in the evenings, as I did when I still had the day job. In fact, the later it gets, the more my mind is buzzing with ideas. The other advantage to writing in the evening is that there are fewer distractions - no phone calls from my agent, editor, etc. It's easier to concentrate. Also, there are different stages to writing a novel - at least, the way I do it. The early stages involve developing ideas and characters, doing research, and so on. That can seem very slow, and might not produce much in the way of actual paragraphs on the page. Later on, the writing speeds up and a large part of the book can be produced surprisingly quickly. I'm sure you'd get a completely different answer from every other writer you ask! Stephen

Aberdeen isn't on the schedule at the moment, Kell - sorry! I'd love to do more events in Scotland, but there's, erm... a bit of a hurdle for English authors to get over. I was thrilled when Ottakars bookstore in Oban offered to tour me around the West Coast and some of the islands last year, but the plan fell through with the takeover of Ottakars by Waterstones. This means I still haven't done any events further north than Glasgow, and Wigtown (Scotland's 'book town'). You do have your own home-grown crime writer in Aberdeen, though - Stuart MacBride. Do you know his books? Stephen

Maureen, I didn't say my wife doesn't criticise ME - just not the books! Stephen

Actually, Kell, I'd been thinking this year was pretty quiet so far. It will undoubtedly get very busy from September onwards, when I have a new book out in the UK. Touring and events are all part of the business these days. Yes, I do enjoy doing it - partly, I think, because the writing itself is so solitary that it's good to get out in the 'real world' now and then. The best part is meeting readers, and hearing their reactions to the books. Some events are also big social occasions for writers, who might only meet each other once or twice a year (for example, at Bouchercon in the USA, or at the Harrogate Crime Writing Festival in the UK). The worst part? Well, it's very strange sometimes to find yourself visiting a new city - or even a new country - and to see nothing of it, apart from an airport, a hotel, and a bookshop. Touring can mean arriving in a different place every day and never quite knowing where you are! Stephen

For me, it's a bit of a leap in the dark signing a three-book contract, because I don't normally see more than one book ahead. Yes, I have an idea for the next book (which will be number 9 in the Cooper & Fry series), but not for the one after that, which I'm already contracted for! Having said that, I can't envisage ever being completely out of ideas. They seem to be everywhere. In a file on my computer, there are lots of thoughts, snatches of dialogue, glimpses of characters and locations, subjects I'd like to research one day. I'm confident that something there will spark an idea for a new novel. I do know that the Cooper & Fry series will have to reach an end one day. It applies to any series - there comes a point when the author should stop, or at least do something different for a while. As a reader, I'm aware of it, and I just hope that I can tell when the time comes for me. When you have a successful series, there's a lot of pressure to keep on producing another book, and another (preferably one every year). And I don't just mean pressure from the publishers, but also from readers, who often write demanding to know when there'll be a new book! But one day there will be a new series, or a standalone at least. The decision might happen when this contract comes to an end, but it's too early to tell yet. A new genre? Crime fiction is such a vibrant, wide-ranging genre that it does everything I want as a writer. You can write about character, place, relationships, contemporary social issues - whatever you like - and still provide a great story as well. I'm always thrilled whan a reader says to me: "I don't read crime fiction, but I really enjoy your books". So I think I could create something quite different from Cooper & Fry, yet still come under that (very wide) umbrella. Over the years, I've written quite a lot of science fiction, then paranormal thrillers of various kinds. None of them was published, and I don't think any of them really worked as well for me as the crime novels do. Stephen

Well, Maureen, my wife always says she loves my books - but then, she has to! My parents are a different matter. Books had never really been part of their lives, and they tried to discourage me from writing when I was a child (they called it "scribbling"). They never thought journalism was a 'proper' job, either. When I gave it up to write novels full time, I discovered they were telling everyone I'd taken early retirement (well, I was just doing my hobby!). My parents do receive a specially personalised copy of each book as soon as it's published (in fact, SCARED TO LIVE was dedicated to them), but I don't have any evidence that they've ever read them. Friends sometimes suggest ideas for novels - and, of course, readers are very good at this! But I find it difficult to use other people's ideas. Somehow, they have to be my own if I'm really going to believe in them. That's not to say that family and friends don't inadvertently give me ideas for the next plot... Stephen

As a reader, I'm like you, Maureen - I love a series where I can follow the lives of the characters through several books. Some of my favourite crime series are by Peter Robinson (Inspector Banks series), Reginald Hill (Dalziel and Pascoe) and John Harvey (Charlie Resnick series). But as an unpublished writer, I wasn't really thinking beyond getting the first book published. Those unpublished novels I mentioned earlier were all 'one-offs' or standalones. And I didn't think BLACK DOG was going to be any different when I started writing it. What happened was that the two central characters, Ben Cooper and Diane Fry, seemed to take on a life of their own during the writing, and they became completely real to me. In a way, I sensed their whole lives unfolding in front of me. Before I'd finished BLACK DOG, I knew there was far more I wanted to say about those two than I could possibly fit into one book, or two. That was how I knew I had a potential series - it was entirely due to the characters. This was lucky, because when HarperCollins made an offer for BLACK DOG, they immediately asked for a second book, and I already had ideas for it. Yes, I know Ben and Diane very well now. I've 'lived' with them for eight or nine years, and they're like old friends I haven't actually met. Often the easiest part of a book to write is the dialogue between Cooper and Fry, because I know exactly what they would say. It's almost as if I'm listening in to a conversation and trying to write it down. It's very helpful to have these two - and some of the minor series characters. I can't imagine saying goodbye to all my characters at the end of each book, then having to create an entirely new set for the next one. But I know some authors do that, and they feel it gives them more freedom. There are a lot of readers who like to get their teeth into a series and become involved in the characters' lives over a period of years. I'm very happy about that! Right now, I feel as though I still haven't explored everything about Cooper and Fry, and I'm aiming for at least 10 books in this series before I think about doing something different. Stephen

Well, this is where I think I do everything wrong! No, I never have a plan for any of my books, Kell. When I start writing, I don't know what's going to happen, and I have no idea 'who did it'. For me, writing a novel is a discovery process. I know there are many authors who produce a detailed plan before they start writing, but it wouldn't work for me. That's because I start with the characters, not with a plot. I have to feel that the characters are real people I can believe in, then I turn them loose and watch what they do. So the story arises out of the characters, rather than the other way round. The only thing I do at the beginning is to create an opening situation or scenario for them to respond to. This is an exciting way of writing, but a bit scary too, because I don't have full control over what happens. Characters do things that surprise me, and the story takes unexpected turns. I sometimes think I'm lucky to be writing about police detectives. The way I see it, it's THEIR job to find out what happened, not mine! So far, Ben Cooper and Diane Fry have done that for me. Stephen

Thank you, Michelle. Kell is definitely doing a great job! I believe fireball is a member of the Stephen Booth Forum, though under a different name. I wasn't entirely sure at first, but the question about Angie clinches it. To explain: Angie Fry is the sister of one of my series characters, Detective Sergeant Diane Fry. Some readers (fireball among them) seem to have a theory that Angie is "up to something". Me, I couldn't possibly comment! On the general question of characters, I don't think I've ever based a character on a single real-life person - they're all amalgams, in various ways. Stephen

Ah, Detective Constable Gavin Murfin... there's a character who's taken on a life of his own! Yes, I suppose he does bear some resemblance to a certain type of journalist of the 'old school'. I've definitely met a few Gavins. But not only journalists. I've been told that of all the police characters in my books, DC Murfin is probably the most realistic. I'm not sure what that tells us about our police force here in the UK... Stephen

I have to confess straight away that although BLACK DOG was my first published novel, it was far from being the first novel I'd written. In fact, I wrote my first novel when I was 12 years old, so it must have been in the blood. When I seriously set about getting published, I was writing what I suppose would be called paranormal thrillers. I got my agent through one of these books, but she never managed to sell it to a publisher. I was told they didn't fit easily into a 'category'. Eventually, my agent suggested I should write a straight crime novel. I'd been a big crime fiction fan myself for many years, so it felt right. At that time, I still had the 'day job' and I was writing in the evenings, sometimes late into the night. But I was producing a novel every six months in that way. I was very determined to get published, and I knew I just had to keep writing until I found the right voice and produced the right piece of work. And that was BLACK DOG. By the time I finished it, I knew it was the book that would get me published. Within a few months, it had done more than - it had changed my life completely! Stephen

Thank you for that wonderful welcome, Kell. And hello, everybody! I