Pauline Rowson's Blog, page 72
April 17, 2012
Great time at the London Book Fair - translation rights to DI Horton series sold to China
I was delighted to meet up with my publisher, Severn House at the London Book Fair and with my Chinese agent, Jessie Wang of Chengdu Rightol Media who represents my novels in China and I'm thrilled to announce a six book translation deal. Chinese publisher Nanhai Publishing Company of Haikou has bought translation rights to six novels in the DI Horton series . Nanhai will be publishing the Horton series in China over the next twelve months. Can't wait to see them.
The latest DI Horton, A Killing Coast, was published in the UK in January 2012 and will be published in the USA in May 2012.
Death Lies Beneath, the eighth in the Horton series to be published in the UK in July 2012.
The DI Horton series is set in Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight against the backdrop of the Solent.
A Killing Coast
The latest DI Horton, A Killing Coast, was published in the UK in January 2012 and will be published in the USA in May 2012.
Death Lies Beneath, the eighth in the Horton series to be published in the UK in July 2012.
The DI Horton series is set in Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight against the backdrop of the Solent.
A Killing Coast
April 11, 2012
My fictional police marine unit in the DI Horton novels to meet real police marine unit at CWA Conference
My fictional detective, DI Andy Horton, is based in the Solent area and my Horton marine mystery crime novels include members of a fictional Hampshire Police Marine Unit - Sergeant Dai Elkins and PC Ripley - but I will be introducing the real police officers of the Hampshire Constabulary Marine Unit at the Crime Writers' Association (CWA) Conference in Southampton on Saturday 21 April.
The Hampshire Police Marine Unit's area of responsibility stretches from Dorset to Sussex and out to 12 miles offshore.
The Solent is the busiest waterway in Europe and one of the busiest in the world with around one million commercial and Naval shipping movements per year and in excess of 10 million pleasure craft movements per year.
Members of the Marine Unit will talk about how they provide a specialist resource to the constabulary, as well as a service to the boating community and the Hampshire public as a whole.
Their role includes counter terrorism patrols, the reduction and detection of marine crime, investigation of marine incidents and fatalities, policing large events, supporting the UK Border Agency, Coastguard, and Harbour Authorities and responsibility for countering serious and organised crime and preventing child abduction. The unit consists of one Sergeant and nine PCs, policing with three semi displacement launches.
I'm very much looking forward to their talk and no doubt will pick up plenty of ideas for future crime novels.
A Killing Coast
The Hampshire Police Marine Unit's area of responsibility stretches from Dorset to Sussex and out to 12 miles offshore.
The Solent is the busiest waterway in Europe and one of the busiest in the world with around one million commercial and Naval shipping movements per year and in excess of 10 million pleasure craft movements per year.
Members of the Marine Unit will talk about how they provide a specialist resource to the constabulary, as well as a service to the boating community and the Hampshire public as a whole.
Their role includes counter terrorism patrols, the reduction and detection of marine crime, investigation of marine incidents and fatalities, policing large events, supporting the UK Border Agency, Coastguard, and Harbour Authorities and responsibility for countering serious and organised crime and preventing child abduction. The unit consists of one Sergeant and nine PCs, policing with three semi displacement launches.
I'm very much looking forward to their talk and no doubt will pick up plenty of ideas for future crime novels.
A Killing Coast
April 5, 2012
Book signing at the Isle of Wight Arts Festival 22 April
On 22 April I will be at the Isle of Wight Arts Festival Writers Fair, signing copies of my DI Andy Horton marine mystery crime novels and my thrillers.
The Isle of Wight Writers Fair event is for book lovers. It features books written on the Island and books about the Island, as long as there is an Isle of Wight connection the book will be there. As readers of my crime novels know many of them include locations on the Isle of Wight as well as Portsmouth (DI Andy Horton's patch) and the Solent.
In the DI Horton series Blood on the Sand is set primarily on the Isle of Wight.
Inspector Andy Horton’s holiday peace is shattered when stepping out across an abandoned golf course on the Isle of Wight on a cold, grey January, he finds himself facing a distraught young woman with a gun in her hand leaning over a corpse in one of the discarded bunkers. When she professes to be the dead man’s sister and psychic, Horton’s old adversary, DCI Birch, is convinced she is mentally disturbed and the killer, but Horton is not so sure. Soon he is uncovering a web of intrigue that ripples down the years, and which someone is determined should never be revealed
A Killing Coast is partially set on the Island.
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.
In addition, my thriller In For The Kill is set on the Island.
Alex Albury has it all: a successful business, a luxurious house, wife and two sons. Then one September morning the police burst into his home and arrest him. Now, three and a half years later, newly released from Camp Hill Prison on the Isle of Wight, Alex is intent on finding the man who framed him for fraud and embezzlement. All he knows is his name: James Andover. But who is he? Where is he? Alex embarks on his quest to track down Andover, but with the trail cold he is frustrated at every turn. Worse, he finds himself under suspicion by the police. The pressure is on and Alex has to unearth the answers and quick. But time is running out. For Alex the future looks bleak and soon he is left with the option - to kill or be killed.
The event takes place at Ventnor Masonic Hall, Grove Road, Ventnor, Isle of Wight. Free entry and refreshments available. I'll be there from 14.00 to 16.00.
For more information about the Isle of Wight Arts Festival visit www.artsisle.org
The Isle of Wight Writers Fair event is for book lovers. It features books written on the Island and books about the Island, as long as there is an Isle of Wight connection the book will be there. As readers of my crime novels know many of them include locations on the Isle of Wight as well as Portsmouth (DI Andy Horton's patch) and the Solent.
In the DI Horton series Blood on the Sand is set primarily on the Isle of Wight.
Inspector Andy Horton’s holiday peace is shattered when stepping out across an abandoned golf course on the Isle of Wight on a cold, grey January, he finds himself facing a distraught young woman with a gun in her hand leaning over a corpse in one of the discarded bunkers. When she professes to be the dead man’s sister and psychic, Horton’s old adversary, DCI Birch, is convinced she is mentally disturbed and the killer, but Horton is not so sure. Soon he is uncovering a web of intrigue that ripples down the years, and which someone is determined should never be revealed
A Killing Coast is partially set on the Island.
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.
In addition, my thriller In For The Kill is set on the Island.
Alex Albury has it all: a successful business, a luxurious house, wife and two sons. Then one September morning the police burst into his home and arrest him. Now, three and a half years later, newly released from Camp Hill Prison on the Isle of Wight, Alex is intent on finding the man who framed him for fraud and embezzlement. All he knows is his name: James Andover. But who is he? Where is he? Alex embarks on his quest to track down Andover, but with the trail cold he is frustrated at every turn. Worse, he finds himself under suspicion by the police. The pressure is on and Alex has to unearth the answers and quick. But time is running out. For Alex the future looks bleak and soon he is left with the option - to kill or be killed.
The event takes place at Ventnor Masonic Hall, Grove Road, Ventnor, Isle of Wight. Free entry and refreshments available. I'll be there from 14.00 to 16.00.
For more information about the Isle of Wight Arts Festival visit www.artsisle.org
April 2, 2012
April is looking to be a busy month
First up is a visit to the London Book Fair to meet my overseas agents, my editor and my publisher, Severn House. It's always great visiting the London Book Fair and catching up with all my friends and contacts in the publishing world.
Then there's the Crime Writers' Association (CWA) Conference which this year is taking place in Southampton. I'm delighted to have organised a visit by the Hampshire Police Marine Unit who will be talking about their real work in the Solent as opposed to the fictional marine unit in my DI Andy Horton marine mystery crime novels.
Then immediately afterwards there's the Isle of Wight Arts Festival at Ventnor where I will be meeting readers and signing copies of my crime and thrilller novels on Sunday 22 April.
Lots of photos to come from all these events, which will be posted here and on my web site at http://www.rowmark.co.uk
Details of all events are also on my website.
And in between I'll be cracking on with writing DI Andy Horton number nine.
A Killing Coast
Then there's the Crime Writers' Association (CWA) Conference which this year is taking place in Southampton. I'm delighted to have organised a visit by the Hampshire Police Marine Unit who will be talking about their real work in the Solent as opposed to the fictional marine unit in my DI Andy Horton marine mystery crime novels.
Then immediately afterwards there's the Isle of Wight Arts Festival at Ventnor where I will be meeting readers and signing copies of my crime and thrilller novels on Sunday 22 April.
Lots of photos to come from all these events, which will be posted here and on my web site at http://www.rowmark.co.uk
Details of all events are also on my website.
And in between I'll be cracking on with writing DI Andy Horton number nine.
A Killing Coast
March 15, 2012
Two new DI Horton novels by Pauline Rowson to be published in 2012
My publisher, Severn House, has brought forward the publication of the next DI Andy Horton crime fiction novel, number eight in the series, Death Lies Beneath.
Death Lies Beneath will be published in the UK in July 2012. A Killing Coast was published in the UK in January and will be published in the USA in May 2012 and Death Lies Beneath will be published in the USA in November 2012. So Horton fans have two new marine mystery crime fiction novels in the series this year to enjoy.
I'm currently over a third of the way through the next DI Horton, number nine in the series.
Here is a list of all the DI Horton novels in order, more details on all of them and my thrillers can be found on my website at http://www.rowmark.co.uk
Tide of Death
Deadly Waters
The Suffocating Sea
Dead Man's Wharf
Blood on the Sand
Footsteps on the Shore
A Killing Coast (pub. January 2012)
Death Lies Beneath (pub. July 2012)
Set in the Solent area on the South Coast of England
'Deserves mention in the same breath as American procedurals (those by Ed McBain or Joseph Wambaugh for example) and their British counterparts... Peter Robinson and John Harvey.' Booklist starred review (Footsteps on the Shore)
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.
Death Lies Beneath will be published in the UK in July 2012. A Killing Coast was published in the UK in January and will be published in the USA in May 2012 and Death Lies Beneath will be published in the USA in November 2012. So Horton fans have two new marine mystery crime fiction novels in the series this year to enjoy.
I'm currently over a third of the way through the next DI Horton, number nine in the series.
Here is a list of all the DI Horton novels in order, more details on all of them and my thrillers can be found on my website at http://www.rowmark.co.uk
Tide of Death
Deadly Waters
The Suffocating Sea
Dead Man's Wharf
Blood on the Sand
Footsteps on the Shore
A Killing Coast (pub. January 2012)
Death Lies Beneath (pub. July 2012)
Set in the Solent area on the South Coast of England
'Deserves mention in the same breath as American procedurals (those by Ed McBain or Joseph Wambaugh for example) and their British counterparts... Peter Robinson and John Harvey.' Booklist starred review (Footsteps on the Shore)
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.
March 13, 2012
A must for crime fiction and CSI fans, CSI Portsmouth 3 November 2012u
Make a note in your diary for this fantastic event on Saturday 3 November where you can meet and mingle with top selling crime authors and top forensic crime experts; hear how the authors write their popular crime novels, find out how much they draw on real life experiences and experts, learn about what really happens at a crime scene, and how an investigation is worked, discover what forensic experts do, see how the fingerprint bureau works, have your fingerprints taken, and much, much more.
This will be the third year of CSI Portsmouth and it promises to be an even more exciting and informative event than ever with new crime experts and best selling favourite crime authors.
Held in Portsmouth, England,the birthplace of the author Charles Dickens whose bicentenary Portsmouth is celebrating throughout 2012 and also home to H. G Wells and Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes. It's also home to my rugged and flawed detective, DI Andy Horton who currently features in seven marine mystery crime novels.
CSI Portsmouth is part of Portsmouth BookFest, a festival of popular literature organised by The Hayling Island Bookshop and Portsmouth City Library Service. It runs from 22 October 2012 to 3 November 2012.
Hope you can join us for CSI Portsmouth 2012 on Saturday 3 November 2012.
More on http://www.rowmark.co.uk
A Killing Coast
This will be the third year of CSI Portsmouth and it promises to be an even more exciting and informative event than ever with new crime experts and best selling favourite crime authors.
Held in Portsmouth, England,the birthplace of the author Charles Dickens whose bicentenary Portsmouth is celebrating throughout 2012 and also home to H. G Wells and Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes. It's also home to my rugged and flawed detective, DI Andy Horton who currently features in seven marine mystery crime novels.
CSI Portsmouth is part of Portsmouth BookFest, a festival of popular literature organised by The Hayling Island Bookshop and Portsmouth City Library Service. It runs from 22 October 2012 to 3 November 2012.
Hope you can join us for CSI Portsmouth 2012 on Saturday 3 November 2012.
More on http://www.rowmark.co.uk
A Killing Coast
February 27, 2012
Pleased to be able to help Witness Service and Victim Support in fundraising by donating signed copy of DI Horton crime novel
I was delighted to be able to help raise funds albeit in a small way for Victim Support and Witness Service in Portsmouth, England, by donating a signed copy of the latest DI Andy Horton crime novel A Killing Coast and two of my thrillers; In Cold Daylight and In For The Kill. These will be given as prizes in a fund raising pub quiz.
Victim Support is a national charity which provides free and confidential help to victims of crime, witnesses, their family, friends and anyone affected across England and Wales. They also speak out as a national voice for victims and witnesses and campaign for change. They are not a government agency or part of the police and you don't have to report a crime to the police to get their help. They are available to help any time after the crime has happened, whether it was yesterday, last week or several years ago. I know from personal experience in my family that the trauma of being a victim of violent crime never goes away. It can remain as painful in thirty, forty and over fifty years later.
Victim Support have offices throughout England and Wales and run the Witness Service in every criminal court. On Wednesday I was at the Witness Service office in Crown House, Portsmouth to meet two great people who run it there and in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, along with a band of volunteers. The charity is built on volunteers and needs to raise money in order to be able to operate.
I was pleased to be able to help even though it was in a small way and look forward to learning more about this excellent service in the future.
In for the Kill
In Cold Daylight. Pauline Rowson
Victim Support is a national charity which provides free and confidential help to victims of crime, witnesses, their family, friends and anyone affected across England and Wales. They also speak out as a national voice for victims and witnesses and campaign for change. They are not a government agency or part of the police and you don't have to report a crime to the police to get their help. They are available to help any time after the crime has happened, whether it was yesterday, last week or several years ago. I know from personal experience in my family that the trauma of being a victim of violent crime never goes away. It can remain as painful in thirty, forty and over fifty years later.
Victim Support have offices throughout England and Wales and run the Witness Service in every criminal court. On Wednesday I was at the Witness Service office in Crown House, Portsmouth to meet two great people who run it there and in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, along with a band of volunteers. The charity is built on volunteers and needs to raise money in order to be able to operate.
I was pleased to be able to help even though it was in a small way and look forward to learning more about this excellent service in the future.
In for the Kill
In Cold Daylight. Pauline Rowson
February 22, 2012
The stages in writing a novel - I'm at the 'excited' stage
Each stage of writing brings with it its joys and frustrations. I'm at the 'excited' stage at the moment where I've worked up several ideas for the next DI Andy Horton marine mystery crime novel, which will be number nine in the series and my eleventh crime novel. I've sketched out some key characters, and the theme is developing nicely. I have a body, and a location, which is, as usual, Portsmouth, England and the Solent area on the South Coast of England. There are other inicidents knocking around in Portsmouth CID; Andy Horton is on his Harley, still getting aggravation from his ex wife, and trying to put together pieces of his past and the mystery of his mother's disappearance, and Sergeant Cantelli is back from his holiday. It's the beginning of September.
The next stage is 'bashing it out' where I'm trying to get as much of the story written and as quickly as I can while the ideas are there and I'm keen to see how it all hangs togther. Many writers find this first draft frustrating and a bit of a pain and I've often wished I could brain dump straight on to computer, perhaps one day we will be able to do this! For now it's fingers to the keyboard, for me. I'm pleased to say that I now have the first three chapters written, just over twelve thousand words, and I'm starting on chapter four. In between writing the first draft I'll be doing some location research, some more plotting and further general research.
Once the first draft is written, I can relax a little and start to flesh out and shape the novel. This takes many revisions and often further research until finally I check that everything hangs together, all the unanswered questions have been answered and that the words and phrases used are the correct ones. All in all usually a nine month process for me.
Meanwhile DI Horton number eight is with my editor and DI Horton number seven, A Killing Coast has just been published in hardcover. You can check the order of novels in the DI Horton series and get more details on all my crime novels and other books on my web site at http://www.rowmark.co.uk
A Killing Coast
The next stage is 'bashing it out' where I'm trying to get as much of the story written and as quickly as I can while the ideas are there and I'm keen to see how it all hangs togther. Many writers find this first draft frustrating and a bit of a pain and I've often wished I could brain dump straight on to computer, perhaps one day we will be able to do this! For now it's fingers to the keyboard, for me. I'm pleased to say that I now have the first three chapters written, just over twelve thousand words, and I'm starting on chapter four. In between writing the first draft I'll be doing some location research, some more plotting and further general research.
Once the first draft is written, I can relax a little and start to flesh out and shape the novel. This takes many revisions and often further research until finally I check that everything hangs together, all the unanswered questions have been answered and that the words and phrases used are the correct ones. All in all usually a nine month process for me.
Meanwhile DI Horton number eight is with my editor and DI Horton number seven, A Killing Coast has just been published in hardcover. You can check the order of novels in the DI Horton series and get more details on all my crime novels and other books on my web site at http://www.rowmark.co.uk
A Killing Coast
February 20, 2012
Setting targets for the number of words to write in a day or weekend doesn't always work
I'm not usually one of those authors who set targets for the number of words written in a day or a week but over the weekend I wanted to hit the 10,000 mark of the DI Horton crime novel I'm currently writing, which is number nine in the series. I'm sorry to say I failed but only by about 600 words because other factors intruded on my weekend. I'm not worried though, in fact I'm pleased with how the novel is shaping up and that's more important than a word count, at least it is to me. I've left DI Horton in chapter three interviewing someone and I know where the chapter is heading, which is always helpful! So time to press on with it.
I'm witing the first draft and although I've done some research prior to starting the creative writing process I like to research as I write. This week I need to conduct some further location research, so it's a trip to Old Portsmouth, and the Historic Dockyard where the beginning of this novel is set, whether the location will remain there at the beginning of the novel by the time I come to do revisions who knows. For now I will stop counting words and return to my usual method of writing for at least a couple/few hours every day.
A Killing Coast, the seventh in the DI Andy Horton marine mystery crime series is now published in hardcover.
Footsteps on the Shore, the sixth DI Horton is now available in paperback and as an e book.
I'm witing the first draft and although I've done some research prior to starting the creative writing process I like to research as I write. This week I need to conduct some further location research, so it's a trip to Old Portsmouth, and the Historic Dockyard where the beginning of this novel is set, whether the location will remain there at the beginning of the novel by the time I come to do revisions who knows. For now I will stop counting words and return to my usual method of writing for at least a couple/few hours every day.
A Killing Coast, the seventh in the DI Andy Horton marine mystery crime series is now published in hardcover.
Footsteps on the Shore, the sixth DI Horton is now available in paperback and as an e book.
February 3, 2012
How much thinking and planning is done prior to writing a crime novel? Pauline Rowson discusses
I am always thinking about and collecting ideas for future DI Horton crime novels or for a thriller, even when I am writing one. I will jot these down, or cut out an article from a magazine or newspaper, or copy or bookmark something I have seen on the Internet that could be of use. I keep all the paper copies in A4 ring binders in alphabetical order and often flick through them if and when I get stuck while writing a novel because invariably it will spark an idea.
When starting a fresh crime novel I often have the basic idea in mind. I will start to flesh this out using spider grams to work up the basic plot lines and character outlines in pencil on recycled bits of A4 paper. This will be by no means the finished plot or all the characters who might eventually appear in the novel, and often I create some characters that won’t appear in the novel at all because when I start to write it they are no longer relevant. I don’t know how the novel will end or who ‘done it’ that becomes apparent as I write.
I like to start the creative writing process as soon as possible, knowing that the first couple of chapters will change drastically by the time I come to do revisions. But until I start writing and putting words into the character’s mouths and have them acting and reacting they don’t come alive. I then research further as I write. So on average I spend about month working on the outlines before I start writing.
Then it usually takes me another eight months before finishing the crime novel.
I have just completed number eight in the DI Horton series and have started working on the outlines and characters for the next DI Horton, number nine.
A Killing Coast,the seventh in the DI Horton marine mystery series was published in hardcover in January.
When starting a fresh crime novel I often have the basic idea in mind. I will start to flesh this out using spider grams to work up the basic plot lines and character outlines in pencil on recycled bits of A4 paper. This will be by no means the finished plot or all the characters who might eventually appear in the novel, and often I create some characters that won’t appear in the novel at all because when I start to write it they are no longer relevant. I don’t know how the novel will end or who ‘done it’ that becomes apparent as I write.
I like to start the creative writing process as soon as possible, knowing that the first couple of chapters will change drastically by the time I come to do revisions. But until I start writing and putting words into the character’s mouths and have them acting and reacting they don’t come alive. I then research further as I write. So on average I spend about month working on the outlines before I start writing.
Then it usually takes me another eight months before finishing the crime novel.
I have just completed number eight in the DI Horton series and have started working on the outlines and characters for the next DI Horton, number nine.
A Killing Coast,the seventh in the DI Horton marine mystery series was published in hardcover in January.
