C.S. Alleyne's Blog
October 7, 2020
Interview with Discover Hertfordshire
MY HERTS LIFE
This month I’m in the October edition of Discover Hertfordshire – the county where I live. I talk about the release of Belle Vue as well as my inspiration for the book and the local places I enjoy most.
The image above is of St. Alban’s Cathedral which is also in Belle Vue.
My Page - Discover Herts - MHL Oct20
Featured image – Photo © Chris Reynolds
The post Interview with Discover Hertfordshire appeared first on C S Alleyne.
August 25, 2020
Launch Day Interview on Radio Verulam
I am thrilled to be interviewed by Steve Simpson of Radio Verulam on the launch day of Belle Vue, my debut novel. Belle Vue is set in St. Albans – the home of Radio Verulam – and the inspiration came from several of the local asylums that had been converted into luxury apartments (but didn’t discover any satanic cults in the area lol!)
I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed chatting with Steve…
http://csalleyne.com/stuff/uploads/C-S-Alleyne.mp3
BELLE VUE LAUNCH DAY!! Tuesday 25th August, 2020
I am thrilled BELLE VUE, my paranormal horror novel, is now for sale!
It’s been a long journey and I couldn’t have got there without my agent, Italia Gandolfo of Gandolfo, Helin & Fountain Literary Management and my publisher, Joe Mynhardt of Crystal Lake Publishing. They have given me outstanding guidance and support and I hope their faith in me proves to be justified.
And a huge thank you too to all my friends, family and writing colleagues who have shared my journey (whether they wanted to or...
BELLE VUE LAUNCH DAY!!
Today is the big day and thrilled BELLE VUE, my paranormal horror novel, is now for sale!
It’s been a long journey and I couldn’t have got there without my agent, Italia Gandolfo of Gandolfo, Helin & Fountain Literary Management and my publisher, Joe Mynhardt of Crystal Lake Publishing. They have given me outstanding guidance and support and I hope their faith in me proves to be justified.
And a huge thank you too to all my friends, family and writing colleagues who have shared my journey (wheth...
August 15, 2020
TRY THIS FOR SIZE!
With the launch of Belle Vue on Tuesday 25th August, I am thrilled to let you try some of it out for size! Here are the Prologue and first two chapters in the link below to whet your appetite.
I am also taking part in a number of events around the launch which include podcasts, radio shows, interviews and guest posts.
To see what’s on please click on this EVENTS link.
The post TRY THIS FOR SIZE! appeared first on C S Alleyne.
August 10, 2020
My First Podcast!
My first podcast – with Max Bowen of Citywide Blackout – a great interviewer and a lot of fun! Have to admit to being very nervous about this and not my comfort factor at all! I wanted to become a writer, not a marketer and am sure Agatha Christie et al from previous times never had to worry about such things lol! However, having an experienced interviewer certainly helped so thank you very much Max!
The podcast covers my journey to getting published, my inspiration for writing the book, the i...
July 15, 2020
Free Entrance to the Lunatic Asylum…
At the turn of the nineteenth century, England and France combined had only a few hundred individuals in asylums, but by 1900 this number had risen to the hundreds of thousands. The United States housed 150,000 patients in mental hospitals by 1904 with the average number of patients jumping by 927%. Germany housed more than 400 public and private sector asylums.
So did an epidemic of madness suddenly grip Europe and the US? Records of reasons for admission to an asylum make for fascinating read...
July 1, 2020
Inspiration for Belle Vue – 3: Satanic Orgies
Any mention of satanic orgies makes most people’s ears prick up. And so it was with mine.
I heard about the Hellfire Caves in West Wycombe where such practices had taken place and duly paid a visit. The caves, excavated between 1748 and 1752 for Sir Francis Dashwood, were used as a meeting place for his notorious Hellfire Club.
Members included various politically and socially important 18th century figures such as William Hogarth, John Wilkes, Thomas Potter and John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwic...
June 13, 2020
Inspiration for Belle Vue – 2: Murder at the Asylum
Intrigued by the nearby apartments that had been converted from the old Leavesden Asylum, I researched to find out about its history. What I hadn’t expected was that a murder had taken place there in 1899 and reading about it gave me an idea…
Mary Ansell was found guilty of poisoning her sister Caroline who was an inmate in the asylum. She was hanged at St. Alban’s Jail (though in this case there was considerable public pressure for a reprieve as she too was believed to lack ‘mental capacity’)....
May 14, 2020
Inspiration for Belle Vue – 1: the Asylum
Writers are often advised write what you know but given Belle Vue is about murder, satanic orgies and mistreatment in Victorian lunatic asylums I am not putting my hand up to any of these! However I was inspired to write about each aspect from visiting and reading about the three, the connections between them and from there my imagination took over
I live near a block of luxury apartments which was converted from the original Leavesden Asylum for Idiots and Imbeciles a name not to be...
