'The Missing Monsieur Max': Interview with the author
Q. What sparked the idea for this book? Was there a particular incident or memory that triggered the storyline?
A. During lockdown in Spring 2020 and the restrictions on movement, I wanted to go somewhere in my mind and, as we’d had a house in St Rémy de Provence some years ago, I thought about using that French link to give me an excuse to wander its pretty streets and boulevards again, at least in my head. I’ve always been a fan of the Maigret books, not least because of their Frenchness, and so I thought of writing one set in the recent past as an homage to Georges Simenon.
Q. From the amazing descriptions of the scenery it seems like you’ve spent a lot of time in Provence. How long did you spend there and was it for book research or holidays?
A. I had ten years of really enjoying France and its culture and developed a real love for St Rémy and its environs. I didn’t realise it at the time, but it turned into excellent background research including, for example, details involved in buying, doing up and selling a house or even going to the seaside in the Camargue.
Q. Your characters are very real, with real-life, believable events happening to them. Are they based on personal experiences or people you know or have met?
A. Inevitably I draw on personal experience and people I’ve encountered along the way but I then heavily embellish their personalities, plus, of course, a lot is pure fiction in terms of events and characters. Max, the subject of the mystery, is a secretive man and I have a saying that, invariably, such people usually have something to hide.
Q. How do you develop characters? Do you know from the start how their personalities will deal with the events in the story or do they develop as you write?
A. With me, they definitely develop as I write, as does the plot. Creative writing is just that – the creativity lies in the actual task of writing and seeing where you can go with it.
Q. What are you reading right now?
A. Craig Brown’s One Two Three Four : The Beatles in Time, which is a terrific new style of biography by a clever, witty and sensitive writer.
Q. When choosing a book to read, do you tend to stick to one genre or have favourite authors you always gravitate towards?
A. I suppose my favourite genre is spy/crime/thriller fiction, but I’ve got fairly catholic tastes. Having said that, if I find an author I like, I try and read everything they’ve written, for example authors from recent years such as Philip Kerr (and his Bernie Gunther books), Robert Harris or CJ Sansom and recently I’ve been reading all the non-fiction books of the wonderful Norman Lewis.
Q. When you read, do you always read one book at a time or might you have more than one book on the go at any one time?
A. Usually one for fun and, maybe, a non-fiction one for more serious reading during the same period, but I couldn’t have two novels on the go at the same time.
Q. Is there anything you’d like your readers to specifically know about your latest book, The Missing Monsieur Max?
A. It offers an immersion in small-town France and, overall, it was meant as an affectionate nod to Maigret and, more particularly, to his creator Georges Simenon. As with him, my focus is on the characters and not necessarily on the police procedural stuff. I like to say, with all modesty, that of course I know I’m no match for Simenon’s genius, but I’d like to think that perhaps I’ve relit Maigret’s pipe.
'The Missing Monsieur Max' is out now. To buy your copy, click on the link below:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Missing-Mons...
A. During lockdown in Spring 2020 and the restrictions on movement, I wanted to go somewhere in my mind and, as we’d had a house in St Rémy de Provence some years ago, I thought about using that French link to give me an excuse to wander its pretty streets and boulevards again, at least in my head. I’ve always been a fan of the Maigret books, not least because of their Frenchness, and so I thought of writing one set in the recent past as an homage to Georges Simenon.
Q. From the amazing descriptions of the scenery it seems like you’ve spent a lot of time in Provence. How long did you spend there and was it for book research or holidays?
A. I had ten years of really enjoying France and its culture and developed a real love for St Rémy and its environs. I didn’t realise it at the time, but it turned into excellent background research including, for example, details involved in buying, doing up and selling a house or even going to the seaside in the Camargue.
Q. Your characters are very real, with real-life, believable events happening to them. Are they based on personal experiences or people you know or have met?
A. Inevitably I draw on personal experience and people I’ve encountered along the way but I then heavily embellish their personalities, plus, of course, a lot is pure fiction in terms of events and characters. Max, the subject of the mystery, is a secretive man and I have a saying that, invariably, such people usually have something to hide.
Q. How do you develop characters? Do you know from the start how their personalities will deal with the events in the story or do they develop as you write?
A. With me, they definitely develop as I write, as does the plot. Creative writing is just that – the creativity lies in the actual task of writing and seeing where you can go with it.
Q. What are you reading right now?
A. Craig Brown’s One Two Three Four : The Beatles in Time, which is a terrific new style of biography by a clever, witty and sensitive writer.
Q. When choosing a book to read, do you tend to stick to one genre or have favourite authors you always gravitate towards?
A. I suppose my favourite genre is spy/crime/thriller fiction, but I’ve got fairly catholic tastes. Having said that, if I find an author I like, I try and read everything they’ve written, for example authors from recent years such as Philip Kerr (and his Bernie Gunther books), Robert Harris or CJ Sansom and recently I’ve been reading all the non-fiction books of the wonderful Norman Lewis.
Q. When you read, do you always read one book at a time or might you have more than one book on the go at any one time?
A. Usually one for fun and, maybe, a non-fiction one for more serious reading during the same period, but I couldn’t have two novels on the go at the same time.
Q. Is there anything you’d like your readers to specifically know about your latest book, The Missing Monsieur Max?
A. It offers an immersion in small-town France and, overall, it was meant as an affectionate nod to Maigret and, more particularly, to his creator Georges Simenon. As with him, my focus is on the characters and not necessarily on the police procedural stuff. I like to say, with all modesty, that of course I know I’m no match for Simenon’s genius, but I’d like to think that perhaps I’ve relit Maigret’s pipe.
'The Missing Monsieur Max' is out now. To buy your copy, click on the link below:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Missing-Mons...
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