Mason Cross's Blog, page 10
June 12, 2017
Bute Noir and Bloody Scotland
I'm going to be appearing at a couple of festivals later this summer; one old, one new and I can't wait.
First up, Bute Noir , now in its second year, and running 4th - 6th August. I'll be appearing on two panels: Americana with Steve Cavanagh and SJI Holliday, and State of Emergency with Steph Broadbribb. Apart from that, I'll be hanging around all weekend and checking out some of the other great events with Alex Gray, Denise Mina, Craig Robertson, Luca Veste, Caro Ramsay and many more.
The lineup is excellent and ticket prices are a steal - check out the Bute Noir website for more.
After a signing at Waterstones Oban on Saturday 19 August, I'm delighted to be appearing at Bloody Scotland for my fourth year running, this time with US bestseller Chris Carter. Our panel is called From Tinseltown to Sin City, it's on Saturday 9 September, and you can book tickets here.
As always, Bloody Scotland has a fantastic lineup including Ian Rankin, Simon Kernick, Lynda LaPlante, Val McDermid and Denise Mina, so if you're thinking about going, you definitely shouldn't hesitate - download the full brochure here.
I'll also be at Harrogate in July, details to follow of what should be a very fun event on Friday, and will add be adding new events to my website as they're confirmed/
See you on the road!
June 1, 2017
After the storm...
So it all began when I attended parents night last week.
While you're waiting to speak to the teacher, the school encourages you to look through your kid's folder to see their work over the past year. While browsing through my older daughter Ava's portfolio, I found an amusing example of feedback about the school that was entirely typical of Ava. I took a picture, tweeted it the next morning, and then things went a little nuts.
I thought I would blog about it, because it's been one of the weirdest things I've been involved in, having something your daughter wrote becoming a brief internet sensation.
I sent the tweet before heading into a meeting, thinking fellow parents would find it amusing. During the meeting, my phone was buzzing regularly, so I put it on silent. I'd forgotten that I had turned off all notifications except new followers, so that wasn't even the retweets.
When I got out, it had been retweeted over 3,000 times. Considering my previous most popular tweet probably got 60 RTs, this was a little surprising. My wife had texted saying journalists wanted to get in touch. I tried to find some of them in the replies and got lost. The Glasgow Evening Times did a story on it, then the Huffington Post and the Independent. I decided to cap it off by buying Ava some ice cream and tweeting a pic, thinking it would die down now the story had a beginning, middle and end. It didn't stop. By the evening, she had made Teen Vogue.
The next day it got even wilder. The Daily Mail and the BBC wanted to talk to me. The Sun and the Mirror and TES ran stories on it. Ava's note got a mention in Time. I was interviewed by the New York Daily News. Patricia Arquette and George Takei weighed in. We were offered a slot on Australian breakfast TV (unfortunately it clashed with going to see KISS, sorry). For a while it was the number one most read story on the BBC website.
By midnight Friday, it had been retweeted over a hundred thousand times, and liked by over half a million people. Most of the reaction was great, but as you'd expect from something seen by millions of people, there was a little negative stuff too.
A surprising number of people were utterly outraged that I would even consider grounding a bright young girl for speaking her mind. I had thought that the words 'ice cream' appearing in a musing about punishment would signal that I wasn't entirely displeased, but I would probably have given it more thought if I'd known hundreds of thousands of people were going to be reading it. Then there were the Truthers, who posited that I had invented the whole thing to get RTs. One hilarious pundit went so far as to carry out amateur graphology to highlight small inconsistencies in Ava's handwriting, which proved... I don't know... that there was a second eleven-year-old on the grassy knoll? Or maybe just that she sharpened her pencil.
As someone else pointed out, it was interesting that almost everyone doubting the note's veracity was a male of a certain age. I think that's telling. It's the same unlovely part of the male psyche that spawns Birthers and 9/11 Truthers and Moon Landing Deniers: the need to be the one to see through the big illusion, to be more clued-in than the sheeple. Some of them seemed really angry at the suggestion an eleven-year-old girl could be smart, articulate and funny all by herself.
But the overwhelming majority of the replies were very positive. Most people ordered me to buy her ice cream, and maybe a car, and definitely enroll her for law school. Depending on their location, people suggested she run for UK prime minister, or president of the United States, or secretary general of the UN.
It was hard to keep up, since the notifications, to put it mildly, were a little more frequent than I'm used to.
So why did it blow up so big?
I think a big reason is that it struck a universal chord. Whoever you are, wherever you live, it's likely that at some point in your educational career, you were punished as part of a group for something you didn't do. It's also funny that a young girl was so outraged she went and looked up human rights law and applied it to her complaint.
It helps that anyone who has, or knows, or can remember being, a smart eleven-year-old can identify with this. I was like this at that age, bashing out polemics on the injustice of having to wear school uniform, or not being allowed to see Terminator 2 in the cinema, and I didn't have access to Google.
But mainly, Ava had a solid point, albeit expressed in an amusingly over-the-top way. The Twitter storm prompted a really good academic piece on collective punishment in school by international childrens' rights expert Professor Laura Lundy, which is worth a read.
Ava's teacher, to his immense credit, was very amused by her feedback, and the way it's gone viral. Ava herself was kind of bemused by the reaction. Excited at first, mildly disappointed when I broke it to her that internet fame doesn't bring riches, and now she's pretty much over it. But she says it was worth it for the ice cream.
While you're waiting to speak to the teacher, the school encourages you to look through your kid's folder to see their work over the past year. While browsing through my older daughter Ava's portfolio, I found an amusing example of feedback about the school that was entirely typical of Ava. I took a picture, tweeted it the next morning, and then things went a little nuts.
My daughter actually submitted this feedback at school. Not sure if I should ground her or buy her ice cream... pic.twitter.com/4v8Gjb9riv— Mason Cross (@MasonCrossBooks) May 25, 2017
I thought I would blog about it, because it's been one of the weirdest things I've been involved in, having something your daughter wrote becoming a brief internet sensation.
I sent the tweet before heading into a meeting, thinking fellow parents would find it amusing. During the meeting, my phone was buzzing regularly, so I put it on silent. I'd forgotten that I had turned off all notifications except new followers, so that wasn't even the retweets.
When I got out, it had been retweeted over 3,000 times. Considering my previous most popular tweet probably got 60 RTs, this was a little surprising. My wife had texted saying journalists wanted to get in touch. I tried to find some of them in the replies and got lost. The Glasgow Evening Times did a story on it, then the Huffington Post and the Independent. I decided to cap it off by buying Ava some ice cream and tweeting a pic, thinking it would die down now the story had a beginning, middle and end. It didn't stop. By the evening, she had made Teen Vogue.
The next day it got even wilder. The Daily Mail and the BBC wanted to talk to me. The Sun and the Mirror and TES ran stories on it. Ava's note got a mention in Time. I was interviewed by the New York Daily News. Patricia Arquette and George Takei weighed in. We were offered a slot on Australian breakfast TV (unfortunately it clashed with going to see KISS, sorry). For a while it was the number one most read story on the BBC website.
By midnight Friday, it had been retweeted over a hundred thousand times, and liked by over half a million people. Most of the reaction was great, but as you'd expect from something seen by millions of people, there was a little negative stuff too.
A surprising number of people were utterly outraged that I would even consider grounding a bright young girl for speaking her mind. I had thought that the words 'ice cream' appearing in a musing about punishment would signal that I wasn't entirely displeased, but I would probably have given it more thought if I'd known hundreds of thousands of people were going to be reading it. Then there were the Truthers, who posited that I had invented the whole thing to get RTs. One hilarious pundit went so far as to carry out amateur graphology to highlight small inconsistencies in Ava's handwriting, which proved... I don't know... that there was a second eleven-year-old on the grassy knoll? Or maybe just that she sharpened her pencil.
As someone else pointed out, it was interesting that almost everyone doubting the note's veracity was a male of a certain age. I think that's telling. It's the same unlovely part of the male psyche that spawns Birthers and 9/11 Truthers and Moon Landing Deniers: the need to be the one to see through the big illusion, to be more clued-in than the sheeple. Some of them seemed really angry at the suggestion an eleven-year-old girl could be smart, articulate and funny all by herself.
But the overwhelming majority of the replies were very positive. Most people ordered me to buy her ice cream, and maybe a car, and definitely enroll her for law school. Depending on their location, people suggested she run for UK prime minister, or president of the United States, or secretary general of the UN.
It was hard to keep up, since the notifications, to put it mildly, were a little more frequent than I'm used to.
So why did it blow up so big?
I think a big reason is that it struck a universal chord. Whoever you are, wherever you live, it's likely that at some point in your educational career, you were punished as part of a group for something you didn't do. It's also funny that a young girl was so outraged she went and looked up human rights law and applied it to her complaint.
It helps that anyone who has, or knows, or can remember being, a smart eleven-year-old can identify with this. I was like this at that age, bashing out polemics on the injustice of having to wear school uniform, or not being allowed to see Terminator 2 in the cinema, and I didn't have access to Google.
But mainly, Ava had a solid point, albeit expressed in an amusingly over-the-top way. The Twitter storm prompted a really good academic piece on collective punishment in school by international childrens' rights expert Professor Laura Lundy, which is worth a read.
Ava's teacher, to his immense credit, was very amused by her feedback, and the way it's gone viral. Ava herself was kind of bemused by the reaction. Excited at first, mildly disappointed when I broke it to her that internet fame doesn't bring riches, and now she's pretty much over it. But she says it was worth it for the ice cream.
May 17, 2017
The Killing Season - 99p UK Kindle deal
Just a quick update to say that the first Carter Blake novel, The Killing Season has been selected for the Start a Great Series 99p promotion on Amazon in the UK, so if you don't have it yet, now's the time to remedy that situation!
Lee Child said it was "My kind of book", Lisa Gardner warns "Prepare to read all night", and even a certain former President of the United States said it "looks terrific". Still don't know if he got around to reading it.
Get it on Kindle here for 99p
As usual, the deal is being price matched at the other ebook retailers, so you can also get The Killing Season is 99p on your preferred platform:
KoboGoogle PlayiBooks
If you want me to let you know when there's a deal like this, or just get occasional updates when something happens, sign up for my Readers Club and you'll get a heads up.
Happy reading!
May 13, 2017
Don't Look For Me launch, and some reviews
Belatedly posting some pics from the Don't Look For Me launch evening at Waterstones.
It was a really good night, with a great turnout even though there was competition elsewhere in town from Stuart MacBride and Chris Brookmyre. Neil Broadfoot did a fantastic job on the questions.
The new book has picked up some nice reviews so far:
"Another gripping release from Mason Cross in what was already an excellent series."
- Keith Nixon, Crime Fiction Lover
"This fourth Carter Blake book is a well-plotted and tension-filled tale, delivering more twists and turns than the Hampton Court maze and is packed with memorably drawn characters"
- Irish Independent
"If you're a thriller fan who packs a summer blockbuster as a holiday read then don't leave home without this."
- Peterborough Telegraph
"Mason Cross has succeeded yet again in delivering that pace and drive and character and story all in one neat package that sweeps you up and carries you along for the duration, never allowing you back down until you are sated by the ending and wishing you could go back and start all over again. A five star read."- Tony J Forder
Next up... Crimefest, where I'm looking forward to appearing on a couple of panels and particularly doing a drinks reception with two of my very favourite Steves: Mosby and Cavanagh.
May 3, 2017
UK Giveway - Don't Look For Me
In the UK? Want to win a signed copy of Don't Look For Me ?
Click to register for the Goodreads giveaway on the handy button below!
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Goodreads Book Giveaway
Don't Look For Me by Mason Cross Giveaway ends May 06, 2017. See the giveaway details at Goodreads. Enter Giveaway
April 27, 2017
The Time to Kill - UK Kindle deal
Just a quick update to say that The Time to Kill has been selected for the Mayday weekend 99p promotion in the UK, so if you don't have it yet, now's the time to remedy that situation!
Get it on Kindle here for 99p - offer ends Monday.
*edit to say eagle-eyed reader Sue got in touch to report that the deal is being price matched at the other ebook retailers, so you can now buy The Time to Kill for 99p on whatever device you prefer:
KoboGoogle PlayiBooks
April 20, 2017
Don't Look For Me - publication day
The fourth Carter Blake book: Don't Look For Me is published today in the UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. You can get it in all formats from the usual places - links below for your preferred online book emporium.
The advance reviews have been fantastic, and Simon Kernick says it's " A fast-paced, high octane thriller ".
I hope you like it too - if you do, I'd love it if you could take a couple of minutes to leave a review on Amazon or Goodreads.
You can also let me know on Twitter or Facebook what you thought of it, and since it's being released at this time of year, you can let me know if you find the hidden Easter egg...
Trade paperback (large format)Waterstones
Amazon
WHSmithHive
ebookKindleKoboiBookGoogle Play
AudioAudible
Don't look for me.
It was a simple instruction. And for six long years Carter Blake kept his word and didn't search for the woman he once loved. But now someone else is looking for her.
He'll come for you.
Trenton Gage is a hitman with a talent for finding people - dead or alive. His next job is to track down a woman who's on the run, who is harbouring a secret many will kill for.
Both men are hunting the same person. The question is, who will find her first?
April 18, 2017
Giveaway winners
The Goodreads giveaways to win signed copies of The Time to Kill and The Samaritan have closed, and they got a really amazing response.
The winners are Kristen from Staten Island, NY and Marion from Courtenay, British Columbia. Congratulations Kristen and Marion, and thanks to everyone who entered.
If you want to find out about future giveaways and exclusives, keep an eye on the blog or sign up to my Readers Club for occasional, non-spammy updates.
The winners are Kristen from Staten Island, NY and Marion from Courtenay, British Columbia. Congratulations Kristen and Marion, and thanks to everyone who entered.
If you want to find out about future giveaways and exclusives, keep an eye on the blog or sign up to my Readers Club for occasional, non-spammy updates.
April 13, 2017
Ett Långt Spår Av Blod (The Killing Season - Sweden)
I love seeing translated versions of my books and this Swedish edition of The Killing Season (or A Long Trail of Blood) from Modernista is a particularly beautiful hardback edition.
If you're in Sweden, you can pick up a copy when it's published on 22 April.
Trevlig läsning!
April 8, 2017
Book giveaway time
There are a pair of Goodreads giveaways running at the moment to win signed UK paperbacks of The Time to Kill (aka Winterlong in America) and (The Samaritan).
These giveaways are open worldwide, and it only takes a second to register to win by clicking on the handy links below, so what's stopping you?
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Goodreads Book Giveaway
The Time to Kill by Mason Cross Giveaway ends April 16, 2017. See the giveaway details at Goodreads. Enter Giveaway
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Goodreads Book Giveaway
The Samaritan by Mason Cross Giveaway ends April 16, 2017. See the giveaway details at Goodreads. Enter Giveaway
For more news, competitions and exclusives, you can sign up to my Readers Club with a couple of clicks. No spam, scout's honour.
