Pauline Rowson's Blog, page 74

Finished checking proofs for A Killing Coast, no. 7 in the DI Horton series, publication 26 January 2012

Last week I finished reading the proofs for A Killing Coast, the seventh in the DI Andy Horton crime series due for publication in the UK in hardcover on 26 January and in the USA in May 2012.

I'm looking forward to seeing the finished product and receiving my author copies. It's always a thrill to see the fruits of your labour in print.

A Killing Coast is available for pre-order on Amazon and The Book Depository at a specially reduced price. It will also be available in UK Libraries from January and in libraries in the USA from May onwards.

Like the others in the Horton series it is set on the South Coast of England in Portsmouth, the Solent and the Isle of Wight. Horton has a new crime mystery to solve and in A Killing Coast he also delves further into the disappearance of his mother over thirty years ago.


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.

A Killing Coast

Third revision of DI Andy Horton marine mystery crime novel no. 8 finished, started on fourth revision

I have finished the third revisions of the DI Andy Horton marine mystery crime novel number eight in the series and have now started on the fourth revision.

The third revision consisted of firming up the ending and making sure I had the right killer? in the right place at the right time and for the right reason! The fourth revision will now consist of ensuring that all the clues are in the correct place, all the questions are answered and everything ties in. Following this it will be the fifth and hopefully final revisions to check that each phrase and word used is the right one before I send it to my editor. My deadline is January.

I started work on this DI Andy Horton police procedural crime novel on 13 April 2011 and it took me four months to write the first draft. The second revision took me two months and the third six weeks. I have nine weeks until the end of January, so plenty of time, and fingers crossed and a fair wind I will complete it (and be happy with it) before then. So on with the revisions.

The new DI Horton, A Killing Coast, by Pauline Rowson to be published in January

The seventh in the DI Horton series of Marine Mystery crime novels set in the Solent area on the South Coast of England, A Killing Coast by Pauline Rowson is to be published in hardcover by Severn House in the UK on 26 January 2012 and in the USA in May 2012.

I've now written seven novels in the DI Horton series and two stand alone thrillers one of which, In Cold Daylight was voted the third most popular novel in an on line poll for World Book Day.

I'm currently writing the eighth in the DI Horton series.

My crime and thriller novels are available in hardcover, paperback, as e books on Kindle and Nook and some are available in Large Print and as Audio Books.

A Killing Coast

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.

It is available to pre-order on Amazon, The Book Depository and in UK bookshops. Also available on loan from libraries in the UK and the USA.

You can see more details on my web site at http://www.rowmark.co.uk

Pauline Rowson to speak at U3A meeting about her crime novels

I'm looking forward to giving a talk this week on 16 November at the U3A group at Sarum, near Salisbury on how I write my crime novels and thrillers and about my DI Andy Horton marine mystery series of crime novels.

I've given quite a few talks to U3A groups around the country and really enjoy them. They are always such a delightful and receptive audience and I am looking forward to entertaining the U3A Sarum members on Wednesday. I've also got a couple more U3As lined up for next year. You can find out more about U3A on their web site, but briefly U3A stands for the University of the Third Age. It is a self-help organisation for people no longer in full time employment, providing educational, creative and leisure opportunities in a friendly environment. There are local U3As all over the UK.

While many fear public speaking I really thrive on it, guess it comes from my background in marketing and as a trainer and professional conference speaker.

I am always keen to speak to groups including retirement associations, charities, and at libraries, Women's Institutes, to Reading Groups, professional organisations and at conferences and literary and book festivals so if you have an event and would like a speaker please do get in touch. You can also find out more about my public speaking engagements on my web site at http://www.rowmark.co.uk

Footsteps on the Shore

CSI Portsmouth 2011 was voted a great day's entertainment

CSI Portsmouth 2011 held on Saturday 5 November at the John Pounds Centre, Portsmouth, England was voted a great day's entertainment by the people who attended it. Over a hundred people attended the packed morning programme of talks and a hundred and fifteen the afternoon panel debate.

The morning programme consisted of talks from former Detective Superintendent and crime writer Bob Bridgestock, fingerprint expert Jane Aston from Hampshire Police Fingerprint Bureau, Lucy Wainwright, forensic psychologist from the University of Portsmouth International Centre for Research in Forensic Psychology and crime author Pauline Rowson on Writing A Crime Novel.

Also at CSI Portsmouth for the day, the girls from the Fingerprint Bureau, Emma and Kerrie.

More about the afternoon panel debate on tomorrow's blog.

CSI Portsmouth was launched in 2010 and is part of Portsmouth BookFest, a festival of popular literature. It is organised by Pauline Rowson in conjunction with The Hayling Island Bookshop and Portsmouth City Libraries.

Make a diary note for CSI Portsmouth 2012, which will take place on Saturday 3 November for a great line up of crime authors and crime experts for an even bigger event.

Footsteps on the Shore

With Murder in Mind - Research for crime novels

Us crime writers are a gruesome bunch, we're always looking for new and often subtle ways to kill someone. I'm frequently asked how I research my crime novels for this sort of information. Well, in addition to talking to the experts I also use an excellent and very handy little book called "The Crime Writer's Handbook- 65 ways to kill your victim - in print" written by Douglas Wynn.

And I refer to a very excellent blog called The Writers Forensic Blog. On this blog I came across an interesting and highly informative article that actually coincided with the DI Andy Horton Marine Mystery Police Procedural crime novel I am currently writing, number eight in the Horton series, which is how to kill someone by inducing an extreme allergic reaction.

The blog answers the question - Will Ingestion of Bee Venom Kill Someone Who Is Allergic To It? I'll let you read the answer on the Writers Forensic Blog for yourself. And I'm not going to give away any of the plot in my DI Horton crime novel only to say it does not concern Bee venom. You'll have to wait to read it when it is published. I'm not sure yet when that will be but meanwhile DI Andy Horton number seven in the series called A Killing Coast will be published by Severn House on 26 January 2012.

If you want to know more about Writing A Crime Novel, then I am giving two talks at CSI Portsmouth 2011 event on Saturday 5 November at John Pounds Centre, Portsea. on the subject

Join CSI Portsmouth 2011 for a packed programme of crime at:

John Pounds Community Centre, Portsmouth
23 Queen Street, Portsea, Portsmouth, Hants, PO1 3HN
Telephone Number: 023 9289 2010
http://www.johnpoundscentre.co.uk/how...

Saturday 5th November 2011 10am – 5pm.

CSI Portsmouth tickets on sale from the Box Office + 44 (0)23 9268 8685.

Tickets cost £5 for the morning and £7 for the afternoon with a discounted ticket of £10 for the whole day and includes £3 off the price of a book bought at the event.

More information on my web site at http://www.rowmark.co.uk

Express FM Interview was great fun, next up is BBC Radio Solent on 2 November

Had a great time on the radio yesterday talking to Adrian Knight of Express FM on his breakfast show. It was a lovely interview with lots of laughs and a bit of a chat in between, talking about my DI Horton crime novels set in Portsmouth and the Solent area and the forthcoming CSI Portsmouth event on Saturday 5 November at John Pounds Centre, Portsmouth.

Next up is the Julian Clegg Breakfast Show on BBC Radio Solent 2 November at 6.45am. It is always a great pleasure and delight talking to Julian. I'm looking forward to it.

Dead Man's Wharf

I'm on the Pompey Bus on Express FM 25 Oct.in Havant, talking about my crime novels

This week The Breakfast Show at Express FM is on the road on the Pompey Bus turning up at different locations around the area, and on Tuesday 25 October it will be at Havant town centre where I will be climbing on board to join presenter Adrian Knight on his show.

The Pompey Bus will be turning up at different locations everyday during this week and the presenters will be giving out clues during the show to a secret password. The first person to knock on the door of the bus and give them the secret password for that day will receive a pair of tickets to a Portsmouth FC home game as a minimum.

I will be on the show some time between 8.30am and 9am and I'm looking forward to it and chatting to Adrian Knight. I'll be talking about my DI Horton Marine Mystery crime novels, set in the Solent area; my forthcoming talk at CSI Portsmouth on Writing a Crime Novel and my appearance at CSI Portsmouth on the panel debate in the afternoon with fellow crime writers Mark Billingham, John Harvey and Michael Ridpath when we join the police, crime scene experts and forensic psychologists to debate crime fiction versus crime fact.

More information on CSI Portsmouth here or on my official web site at http://www.rowmark.co.uk

Hope some of you can tune into The Breakfast Show on Express FM. or on 97.3 FM

Writing a Crime Novel - new talk at CSI Portsmouth by Pauline Rowson

Unfortunately owing to personal circumstances Dr Neil McCaw whose talk was to be on Victorian Crime Fiction at CSI Portsmouth on Saturday 5 November has had to withdraw from the programme. I will be stepping in to take his place in addition to being on the panel event in the afternoon. I won't be talking about Victorian Crime Fiction though but about writing a crime novel. My talk will take place in the morning of Saturday 5 November between 10.00am - 11.00 am and again between 11.30am - 12.30pm. Sorry to disappoint all those who were looking forward to Dr McCaw's talk but hopefully I can make up for it in some small way.

Here are the details:

Writing A Crime Novel - plotting, researching and writing the crime novel

If you've ever wondered where crime writers get their ideas from, how they turn those ideas into complex plots and sub plots, how they research for their novels and how the fiction compares with the fact now is your chance to find out.

Pauline Rowson is the author of the DI Andy Horton Marine Mystery Crime Novels set in the Solent area. She is an accomplished and entertaining speaker and draws the inspiration for her popular crime novels from the Solent area where she lives. Her crime novels have been highly acclaimed both in the UK and the USA and have been translated into several languages. She is also the author of two thrillers one of which the award winning In Cold Daylight was voted by the public as the third best read for World Book Day 2008


CSI Portsmouth Morning Programme 10.00 - 12.30 am - choose two sessions to attend, one between 10am- 11am and another between 11.30am - 12.30pm

Forensic psychology – How realistic is the forensic psychologist portrayed on television detective programmes and in crime novels? Lucy Wainwright will discuss this and many aspects of her fascinating work

Fingerprinting – Fact versus Fiction – Jane Aston from the Fingerprint bureau at Police Support Headquarters, Hampshire, gives an intriguing insight into how it really works.

True Crime – In Charge Of Murder – How a real murder case is worked, former Detective Superintendent Bob Bridgestock tells it like it is.


Writing A Crime Novel - plotting, researching and writing the crime novel, using the Solent area for setting and inspiration - Pauline Rowson author of the DI Andy Horton Marine Mystery Crime Novels


CSI Portsmouth Afternoon Programme 2pm - 5pm

Join International best selling crime authors, Mark Billingham, John Harvey, Michael Ridpath and Pauline Rowson, and police and forensic experts: Dr Claire Nee, Dr Paul Smith, an expert in crime scenes; Hampshire Police – Major Crime Team Senior Investigator and Scene of Crime Officer for this lively panel debate where crime fiction meets crime fact.

4pm Book Signing and a chance to talk with the crime authors on an individual basis

CSI Portsmouth Tickets

Tickets on sale from the Box Office + 44 (0)23 9268 8685.

Tickets cost £5 for the morning and £7 for the afternoon with a discounted ticket of £10 for the whole day and includes £3 off the price of a book bought at the event.

Great to see DI Horton novel Footsteps on the Shore on London Underground Poster

I was thrilled to see my DI Andy Horton crime novel Footsteps on the Shore advertised on the London Underground and at major London Railway Stations alongside my fellow crime writer, Mark Billingham's book Good as Dead. This is to promote Portsmouth BookFest during which Mark and I are appearing at CSI Portsmouth on 5 November at John Pounds Centre, Portsmouth along with crime authors, John Harvey, Michael Ridpath, Bob and Carol Bridgestock and with the police, fingerprint team, forensic psychologists and crime scene experts. It promises to be a great day and tickets are selling fast.

I'm also now giving a talk at CSI Portsmouth on Writing the Crime Novel. Looking forward to it.

Full programme and booking details can be found on my website at http://www.rowmark.co.uk CSI Portsmouth 2011.

Footsteps on the Shore