Pauline Rowson's Blog - Posts Tagged "police-procedurals"
Writing first drafts of novels - exciting, tense and frustrating
Authors differ on their approach to writing first drafts, some love it, some hate it and many are somewhere in between. Me? Well, I find writing first drafts exciting, tense and very often frustrating. Exciting because it is fresh unchartered waters and although I have a basic plot outline and character sketches I'm still not sure where the tide will take me and which shore my novel will wash up on. Tense because I am in a hurry to write it as fast as I can while my head is full of ideas. And frustrating because I can't write quickly enough.
I try to resist editing too much as I write the first draft because editing slows down the creative process and it is very easy to get hooked on editing and therefore postpone finishing the novel. However, because I research as I go along and the characters and plot grow, some editing is inevitable. I resist the temptation though to revise every paragraph, sentence and word, that can come later.
The aim is to write the first draft as quickly as possible. So a good rule, which I therefore try to follow (although not always successfully) is to begin each day from the last sentence I wrote the preceding day. So far I am up to chapter four of the new Inspector Andy Horton marine mystery crime novel, another police procedural, and just over 10,000 words. There's a long way to go yet, but at this stage I am pleased with the how it is progressing.
I try to resist editing too much as I write the first draft because editing slows down the creative process and it is very easy to get hooked on editing and therefore postpone finishing the novel. However, because I research as I go along and the characters and plot grow, some editing is inevitable. I resist the temptation though to revise every paragraph, sentence and word, that can come later.
The aim is to write the first draft as quickly as possible. So a good rule, which I therefore try to follow (although not always successfully) is to begin each day from the last sentence I wrote the preceding day. So far I am up to chapter four of the new Inspector Andy Horton marine mystery crime novel, another police procedural, and just over 10,000 words. There's a long way to go yet, but at this stage I am pleased with the how it is progressing.
Delighted to be helping to celebrate National Libraries Day on Saturday 4 February when I will be at Portsmouth Central Library between 10.30am to 12.30pm.
I'm delighted to be involved in helping to celebrate National Libraries Day on Saturday 4 February when I will be at Portsmouth Central Library between 10.30am to 12.30pm.
I'll be talking about my marine mystery crime novels and thrillers which are set in the Solent area, Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight, and there will be the opportunity to win signed copies of my books with a murder mystery quiz hunt for clues around the library, and the chance to be named as a character in one of my forthcoming DI Horton crime novels.
National Libraries Day is a celebration of libraries across the UK. Events and activities will take place in a variety of libraries including in schools, colleges, universities and public libraries in the UK in the week leading up to and on National Libraries Day on Saturday 4 February.
I'm a great supporter of libraries. I owe them a debt of gratitude because if it hadn't been for my local library in Portsmouth as a child I doubt I would ever have discovered a life long passion for reading and for writing. I’m looking forward to meeting lots of people and helping the library service to celebrate on 4 February.
Tickets can be purchased at any library in Portsmouth or by contacting libraries@portsmouthcc.gov.uk
Tickets cost £3.00.
Pauline Rowson is the author of the popular marine mystery police procedural crime series featuring DI Andy Horton, set on the South Coast of England in the Portsmouth, Isle of Wight and Solent area.
A Killing Coast, the seventh in the DI Horton series is published by Severn House in hardcover in the UK on 26 January 2012 and in the USA on 1 May 2012.
“Deserves mention in the same breath as the work of Peter Robinson and John Harvey.” Booklist Starred Review of Footsteps on the Shore
Pauline Rowson's website: http://www.rowmark.co.uk
I'll be talking about my marine mystery crime novels and thrillers which are set in the Solent area, Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight, and there will be the opportunity to win signed copies of my books with a murder mystery quiz hunt for clues around the library, and the chance to be named as a character in one of my forthcoming DI Horton crime novels.
National Libraries Day is a celebration of libraries across the UK. Events and activities will take place in a variety of libraries including in schools, colleges, universities and public libraries in the UK in the week leading up to and on National Libraries Day on Saturday 4 February.
I'm a great supporter of libraries. I owe them a debt of gratitude because if it hadn't been for my local library in Portsmouth as a child I doubt I would ever have discovered a life long passion for reading and for writing. I’m looking forward to meeting lots of people and helping the library service to celebrate on 4 February.
Tickets can be purchased at any library in Portsmouth or by contacting libraries@portsmouthcc.gov.uk
Tickets cost £3.00.
Pauline Rowson is the author of the popular marine mystery police procedural crime series featuring DI Andy Horton, set on the South Coast of England in the Portsmouth, Isle of Wight and Solent area.
A Killing Coast, the seventh in the DI Horton series is published by Severn House in hardcover in the UK on 26 January 2012 and in the USA on 1 May 2012.
“Deserves mention in the same breath as the work of Peter Robinson and John Harvey.” Booklist Starred Review of Footsteps on the Shore
Pauline Rowson's website: http://www.rowmark.co.uk
Fantastic time at CSI Portsmouth, great audience, experts and crime authors
Here is the report (below) from the CSI Portsmouth event held on Saturday 3 November. It was very enjoyable and thanks to everyone for making it so successful. Already looking forward to CSI Portsmouth 2013.
Crime authors Stephen Booth, Ann Cleeves, Matt Hilton and Pauline Rowson, and crime experts from Hampshire Police, the University of Portsmouth and the University of Surrey kept a packed audience enthralled at CSI Portsmouth on Saturday 3 November when they were grilled by Cheryl Buggy, Station Director of Express FM radio, in two lively panel debates of crime fiction versus crime fact.
Over a hundred and sixty people attended the one day event held at the John Pounds Centre, Portsmouth to hear what police and crime experts had to say about their work and to listen to the crime authors talking about their novels.
The audience also had the chance to put their questions to the panel and to talk to the team from the fingerprint bureau and students from the Forensic Science course from South Downs College who provided a crime scene.
CSI Portsmouth 2012 is in its third year, the brainchild of Pauline Rowson who organises it with Portsmouth City Council Library Service and the Hayling Island Bookshop. Part of Portsmouth BookFest it is fast becoming a major fixture in the crime fiction festival calendar.
Joining authors Ann Cleeves, Stephen Booth, Matt Hilton and Pauline Rowson were Carolyn Lovell, Crime Scene Manager/Coordinator for Hampshire Police, DC Terry Fitzjohn, Fire Investigation Officer for Hampshire Police, Watch Manager Andy Earl from Hampshire Fire and Rescue Services, Adrian Fretter, from the Hi-Tech Crime Unit of Hampshire Police, fraud expert Dr Mark Button from the University of Portsmouth, Institute of Criminal Justice Studies and Professor Bran Nicol an expert on crime culture and stalking.
Both panel sessions ended with a book signing by the authors and there was the chance for the audience to talk individually to the authors and experts.
CSI Portsmouth 2013 will take place on Staurday 2 November. More details to follow.
Death Lies Beneath
Crime authors Stephen Booth, Ann Cleeves, Matt Hilton and Pauline Rowson, and crime experts from Hampshire Police, the University of Portsmouth and the University of Surrey kept a packed audience enthralled at CSI Portsmouth on Saturday 3 November when they were grilled by Cheryl Buggy, Station Director of Express FM radio, in two lively panel debates of crime fiction versus crime fact.
Over a hundred and sixty people attended the one day event held at the John Pounds Centre, Portsmouth to hear what police and crime experts had to say about their work and to listen to the crime authors talking about their novels.
The audience also had the chance to put their questions to the panel and to talk to the team from the fingerprint bureau and students from the Forensic Science course from South Downs College who provided a crime scene.
CSI Portsmouth 2012 is in its third year, the brainchild of Pauline Rowson who organises it with Portsmouth City Council Library Service and the Hayling Island Bookshop. Part of Portsmouth BookFest it is fast becoming a major fixture in the crime fiction festival calendar.
Joining authors Ann Cleeves, Stephen Booth, Matt Hilton and Pauline Rowson were Carolyn Lovell, Crime Scene Manager/Coordinator for Hampshire Police, DC Terry Fitzjohn, Fire Investigation Officer for Hampshire Police, Watch Manager Andy Earl from Hampshire Fire and Rescue Services, Adrian Fretter, from the Hi-Tech Crime Unit of Hampshire Police, fraud expert Dr Mark Button from the University of Portsmouth, Institute of Criminal Justice Studies and Professor Bran Nicol an expert on crime culture and stalking.
Both panel sessions ended with a book signing by the authors and there was the chance for the audience to talk individually to the authors and experts.
CSI Portsmouth 2013 will take place on Staurday 2 November. More details to follow.
Death Lies Beneath
Writing a crime novel - creating memorable characters
Creating a likeable, interesting and complex main character, one the reader can have empathy with, one they want to trust, feel his/her pain and disappointments, root for throughout the story is the key to creating a successful and riveting crime novel.
But it's not just the main character it's also the supporting cast, the villains and the walk-on parts who all need characteristics that are believable even if they are eccentric. The cast must be real to the writer and therefore real to the reader.
Read the full article on my website
But it's not just the main character it's also the supporting cast, the villains and the walk-on parts who all need characteristics that are believable even if they are eccentric. The cast must be real to the writer and therefore real to the reader.
Read the full article on my website
A Killing Coast (DI Andy Horton 7) now available in paperback
A Killing Coast, the seventh marine mystery crime novel featuring DI Andy Horton has now been published in paperback. It has also recently been released as an unabridged audio book, published by Isis.
Publishers Weekly says, " Meticulous police work leads Horton to a particularly callous and ruthless killer as well as theft and blackmail…includes a few unexpected twists.” While US reviewer, Booklist claims it is "'Multilayered, twisted, and complex...with a surprising conclusion. A satisfying read."
When a body is found floating in the sea off Portsmouth harbour, Detective Inspector Horton initially judges it to be an accidental death. Soon though, to his dismay, he discovers he’s got it very wrong. Accused of being incompetent by his boss, and with the head of the Major Crime Team coming down heavily on him, Horton wonders if he’s allowed his ongoing investigation into the disappearance of his mother over thirty years ago to cloud his judgement. With no clear motive for the murder, Horton is sucked into a baffling investigation that he is determined to resolve despite the odds. Not only does he need to find a brutal killer, but Horton now has to prove to himself, and others, that he is still up to the job.
"If you like police procedurals with a twist, plenty of red herrings, and a strong sense of location, you'll like these." Mysteries in Paradise (Australia).
A Killing Coast is available from all good bookshops and on line.
A Killing Coast
Publishers Weekly says, " Meticulous police work leads Horton to a particularly callous and ruthless killer as well as theft and blackmail…includes a few unexpected twists.” While US reviewer, Booklist claims it is "'Multilayered, twisted, and complex...with a surprising conclusion. A satisfying read."
When a body is found floating in the sea off Portsmouth harbour, Detective Inspector Horton initially judges it to be an accidental death. Soon though, to his dismay, he discovers he’s got it very wrong. Accused of being incompetent by his boss, and with the head of the Major Crime Team coming down heavily on him, Horton wonders if he’s allowed his ongoing investigation into the disappearance of his mother over thirty years ago to cloud his judgement. With no clear motive for the murder, Horton is sucked into a baffling investigation that he is determined to resolve despite the odds. Not only does he need to find a brutal killer, but Horton now has to prove to himself, and others, that he is still up to the job.
"If you like police procedurals with a twist, plenty of red herrings, and a strong sense of location, you'll like these." Mysteries in Paradise (Australia).
A Killing Coast is available from all good bookshops and on line.
A Killing Coast
