Mason Cross's Blog, page 7

Visuals

Visuals have always been a big part of my writing process.

Often, the visuals will come to me before almost anything else; like the full moon over rows of fields in Killing Season, or the ghost town in the desert in Don't Look For Me.

When I'm planning a new book, I like to gather images together that will help me get a handle on the place, characters and story I'm dreaming up.

It's really helpful for starting to visualise the locations and the world in which the book takes place. Also, it's a lot easier than writing, so yay for productive procrastination.

I've always done this, but it used to be with a mixture of old-fashioned clippings and pics saved in Word docs. For the last couple of books, I've created Pinterest boards as part of the brainstorming process. Quite often, I'll get an idea for a new story strand from an arresting image.

Here's my Pinterest board for Presumed Dead . I hope it gives you a flavour of the feel of the book.


(Yes, I have a board in progress for my 2019 book. No, I'm not showing anyone yet.)

Readers Club exclusive

A heads up that members of my Readers Club will be getting an exclusive sneak preview of Presumed Dead tomorrow.

You can read the original prologue (deleted from the final book), which introduces one of the main characters and sets up the story.

All you need to do is go here to sign up.

Presumed Dead is published in the UK, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand and Australia on April 19, and you can preorder right now. Watch this space for publication dates in other territories.

Some events...

I have a few bookshop and library events coming up around the release of Presumed Dead .

If you don't live near any of these, I'll also be lining up some more soon, including CrimeFest in Bristol and Bouchercon in sunny Florida.

Click on the links for full details:


Friday 13 April | 11:30amHalfway Library

Tuesday 17 April | 2:30pmCambuslang Library

Wednesday 18 April | 7:00pmWaterstones Argyle Street (official launch)

Monday 23 April | 7:00pmMotherwell Library (World Book Night)
Tuesday 24 April | 2:00pmCarluke Library
If you'd like me to visit your local bookshop or library, let them know. I'm on the Scottish Book Trust's Live Literature page for library events.

For more, keep an eye on masoncross.net/events for new dates.

Competition

This Sunday I'm going to pick a random member of my Readers Club to win a signed copy of Don't Look For Me .

This is open worldwide. Existing members and anyone who signs up before I make the draw on Sunday are eligible.

The Readers Club is completely free, you can unsubscribe at any time, and I promise not to spam you. I'll only email you when I have something to tell you about, like a new book, or a special members-only exclusive.

Of which there may be one in the next couple of weeks...

Join up here:

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The Killing Season - US ebook only $1.99!

I don't think I've had one of my ebooks on special offer in the USA yet, so I'm delighted to say American readers can get my first novel, The Killing Season for only $1.99, but not for long!

UK and elsewhere: sorry this is just in the USA, but you can get the ebook for a very reasonable price where you are too.

Available for $1.99 in all ebook formats:

Amazon
B&N
Apple
Google
KoboWhat authors say about The Killing Season

"My kind of book" - Lee Child

"Pulse pounding" - Lisa Gardner

What the press say about The Killing Season

"Not to be missed" - Daily Mail

"The suspense builds all the way to the breathtaking ending" - Publishers Weekly

What readers say about The Killing Season

“With a terrific supporting cast, the occasional moment that will have you hyperventilating and a magnificent final showdown – don’t you just love it when a book lives up to its initial promise and doesnt fall flat? – this was brilliantly done." - Liz Loves Books blog

"Top class thriller" - Fernacks (Amazon)

Presumed Dead launch - 18 April

Book launch for Presumed Dead
Wednesday 18 April, 7pmWaterstones Argyle Street, Glasgow


Join McIlvanney Prize longlisted author Douglas Skelton (Blood City, Tag - You're Dead) in conversation with Mason Cross for the official launch of his new novel Presumed Dead, published by Orion.

There will be a reading, a Q&A and a signing. More importantly, there will be free wine. The event is free and all are welcome.

You can register for free tickets at Eventbrite.

Presumed Dead - Netgalley

Just a quick heads up for UK bloggers / reviewers etc that Presumed Dead is available for request on Netgalley


Everyone else can preorder from Amazon, Waterstones, Hive etc.

If you're not signed up for my free Readers Club, now's a good time to remedy that, as I'll be sending out an exclusive sneak preview of the new book in the next few weeks. In the meantime, here's the blurb...


'What do you know about the Devil Mountain Killer?'

THEN

Adeline Connor was the Devil Mountain Killer's final victim. After she was gunned down, the murderer disappeared and the killing spree ended.

NOW

Carter Blake has been hired to do what he does best: to find someone. But this time he's hunting a dead girl - Adeline Connor's brother is convinced she's still alive.

But this town doesn't want an outsider digging up old business. And as Blake gets deeper into the case, it starts to become clear that the murders didn't just stop fifteen years ago.

The killer is on the hunt again.

***************

Praise for race against time thriller writer Mason Cross:

'Mason Cross is a thriller writer for the future who produces the kind of fast-paced, high octane thrillers that I love to read.' Simon Kernick

'Terrific stuff!' Ian Rankin

'So pacy I'm exhausted! Definitely one to read if you like your thrillers thrilling' Emma Kavanagh

Don't Look For Me is out in UK paperback today

The fourth Carter Blake book, Don't Look For Me, is published in paperback in the UK today. It's part of the series, but as always you can read it as a standalone.

Here's where to get it:


Paperback
Waterstones
Amazon
WHSmith
Hive

ebookKindle
Kobo
Google Play
iBookaudio
Audible(Not in the UK? Click here to see if it's available where you are.)DON'T LOOK FOR ME A nail-biting new thriller ― perfect for fans of Jack Reacher, Alex Cross, and Jason Bourne ― about the desperate hunt for a woman who has a secret to kill for...
Six years ago, the woman Carter Blake loved disappeared and told him not to ever look for her. For six long years, he kept that promise. She was a woman on the run ― a woman with a secret many would kill for. It was better that she stay hidden.

But now someone else is looking for her. Trenton Gage is a hitman with a talent for finding people ― dead or alive. And his next job is to track down the woman Carter Blake once loved, a woman on the run. With both men hunting the same person, the question is: Who will find her first?

What authors thought:
"Terrific stuff!" - Ian Rankin

"Mason Cross is a thriller writer for the future who produces the kind of fast-paced, high octane thrillers that I love to read." - Simon Kernick

"So pacy I'm exhausted! Definitely one to read if you like your thrillers thrilling." - Emma Kavanagh

What the press thought:
"With few pauses for reflection, and plenty of heart-pounding, visceral action, this one immediately calls to mind Lee Child." - Booklist

"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

What readers thought:
"Each one has been a pure joy to read and this one is no different in fact it is probably my favourite so far." - Liz Barnsley (LizLovesBooks)

"It's a fast-paced, page-turning, consumate thriller in which we learn much more about the mysterious Blake." - Keith Nixon (Goodreads)

"The plot is complex and confounding, the action fast and alarming, while the turns and surprises keep on coming. It’s a great read, I enjoyed the story, the landscape and the people inhabiting it. Mason Cross just keeps getting better and better." - FireflyScotland (Amazon)

Buy Don't Look For Me here

Soundtracks - Winterlong (The Time to Kill)

The book with two names.

I've written in another post about how Winterlong came to be retitled The Time to Kill for the UK market, so if you're interested in the background to that, you can
The third book ties up some of the loose ends about Carter Blake's past, and follows him on a breakneck journey from coast to coast, using planes trains and automobiles, as he tries to stay one step away of a team of military-trained killers.

Perhaps surprisingly, there are opportunities for musical interludes.




Winterlong | Pixies



I've waited for you, Winterlong
You seem to be where I belong

The Neil Young original is great too, of course, but I heard the Pixies cover first, and when I think of this song I always hear it in Kim Deal's voice.

When I was editing The Killing Season, I was trying to come up with a cool, evocative codename for the special ops unit of which Carter Blake was once a member. Something like Jason Bourne's Treadstone, or even shady real-world mercenary outfit Blackwater. Two-word concatenations seem to be popular in both the real life and fictional list of such names.

Winterlong seemed perfect when I thought of it. It evokes the Cold War, and also sparked the idea for the opening scene of Winterlong, which takes place in the depths of a Siberian winter.

Bring it on Home to Me | Sam Cooke




My favourite song by one of my favourite singers. From the first time I heard it I thought it would work great in a quiet moment in a movie, perhaps with two characters dancing in a motel room while it rains outside. I decided to put it in my own movie. Carol and Blake listen to this the last time they're together before he's called back to the war.

Fortunate Son | Creedence Clearwater Revival



No one actually listens to this song in the book, but Blake makes a throwaway reference to the title in one of the Afghanistan chapters. It's a standard in Vietnam movies, and it was a subtle way of drawing a parallel between the two conflicts, each intractable for different reasons.

Love Song from Apache | Coleman Hawkins




Credit to Ian Rankin for making me aware of Hawkins. Blake finds an old CD of his in the car given to him by Special Agent Banner for the final leg of his cross-country quest. It's a brilliantly atmospheric instrumental jazz piece, from the 1954 Burt Lancaster western.

Mark Billingham talks about how much he loves the moments in Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch books where there's a lull in the action and it's just Harry, on his balcony listening to jazz while looking out at the city. This scene was a nod to that. A quiet interlude before all hell breaks loose in a snowy corner of upstate New York...

Buy the book here

Buy 'Winterlong' by the PixiesBuy 'Bring it on Home to Me' by Sam CookeBuy 'Fortunate Son' by Creedence Clearwater RevivalBuy 'Love Song from Apache' by Coleman HawkinsNext time: Eagles, Skynyrd and Swift in Don't Look For Me

Soundtracks blogs:



The Killing Season The Samaritan Winterlong / The Time to Kill

Don't Look For Me - American publication day!

Don't Look For Me is published in hardcover, ebook and audio in the USA today by Pegasus Books!

Here's where you can get it:


HardcoverAmazonBarnes & NobleIndiebound
ebookKindleNookKoboiBooks
AudiobookAudible
Kobo Audio
(Brits, Canadians, Australians, Kiwis - it's available where you are already.)

DON'T LOOK FOR ME 
A nail-biting new thriller ― perfect for fans of Jack Reacher, Alex Cross, and Jason Bourne ― about the desperate hunt for a woman who has a secret to kill for...

Six years ago, the woman Carter Blake loved disappeared and told him not to ever look for her. For six long years, he kept that promise. She was a woman on the run ― a woman with a secret many would kill for. It was better that she stay hidden.

But now someone else is looking for her. Trenton Gage is a hitman with a talent for finding people ― dead or alive. And his next job is to track down the woman Carter Blake once loved, a woman on the run. With both men hunting the same person, the question is: Who will find her first?


"Terrific stuff!" - Ian Rankin
"Mason Cross is a thriller writer for the future who produces the kind of fast-paced, high octane thrillers that I love to read." - Simon Kernick
"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
"So pacy I'm exhausted! Definitely one to read if you like your thrillers thrilling." - Emma Kavanagh
"With few pauses for reflection, and plenty of heart-pounding, visceral action, this one immediately calls to mind Lee Child." - Booklist