BEST OF CRIME with Fiona Erskine

Welcome to my latest BEST OF CRIME feature, looking at crime writers' top picks, from their favourite author and fictional detective to their best writing tip. 

Today I'm delighted to welcome 

FIONA ERSKINE

to share her BEST OF CRIME ...

... AUTHORS

When it comes to thrillers, I adore Robert Harris, John Le Carré and Lee Child, but my current favourite is Lionel Davidson. I devoured Kolymsky Heights, raced through Rose of Tibet and lingered onthe delicate and tragic Smith’s Gazelle.

... FILMS/MOVIES

An Oscar winning film, The Lives of Others, set in 1984 East Germany is a subtle but thrilling portrayal of good people betrayed by those who should protect them. Sebastian Koch is a joy to watch, but it is the internal journey of secret policeman Ulrich Mühe that captivates.

(2006 Das Leben der Anderen Florian Henckel von Dennersmark)

... TV DRAMAS

For its perfect combination of superb writing and faultless acting, I have to pick The Killing. The intricate plot, the honest exploration of bereavement, the charismatic politician, all arebrilliantly handled but it is Sofie Gräbøl’s gritty portrayal of Detective Sarah Lund that steals the show for me.

(2007 Forbrydelsen Birger Larsen)

... FICTIONAL KILLERS

It is very hard to think of a more chilling and compelling character than Dr Hannibal Lecter (in Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris). I like my antagonists cerebral, and my fava beans sautéed.

... FICTIONAL DETECTIVES 

I am more interested in reluctant detectives who operate outside the constraints of police procedure, which is why I warmed to the intrepid V.I. Warshawski (Sara Paretsky) and the naughty Nick Belsey (Oliver Harris). But I’ll make an exception for my current favourites Captain Sam Wyndham and Sergeant “Surrender Not” Banerjee of the Calcutta Police Force in the brilliant series by Abir Mukherjee set in 1920’s India.

... MURDER WEAPONS

An elephant (stomping in A Necessary Evil by Abir Mukherjee).

... DEATH SCENE

It’s a dead heat between the opening of Red Snow by Will Dean (man splats open in snow after falling from the tower of a salty liquorice factory) and the opening of Smoke and Ashes by Abir Mukherjee (man escapes police raid in opium den only to trip over enucleated corpse).

... BLOGS/WEBSITES

The sadly defunct WordCloud of the Writers’ Workshop kept me sane while I was starting to write. Now Emma Darwin’s wonderful this itch of writing helps me to improve.

https://emmadarwin.typepad.com/thisitchofwriting/resources.html

... WRITING TIPS

Read

Read outside your genre, fiction and non-fiction, poetry, drama and prose. Read inside your genre: the good – to push yourself; the bad – to avoid the same pitfalls; and the ugly - to work out why it doesn’t work for you as a reader. Act as a beta reader for others - not just so they return the favour, but to hone your surgical skills before you turn to murderous vivisection on your own manuscript.

Write

Write lots. Write every day. If you are stuck, write “I remember…” and just see what flows. If you’re stuck with the novel, write some flash fiction, poetry or short stories instead. Write for yourself. No writing is wasted. It’s a muscle that needs exercising.

... WRITING SNACKS

Prosecco.

About FIONA ERSKINE

Fiona Erskine is a professional engineer based in Teesside, although she travels often to Brazil, Russia, India and China. As a female engineer, she is often the lone representative of her gender in board meetings, cargo ships, night-time factories and offshore oil rigs, and her fiction offers an insight into this traditionally male world.

Find Fiona Erskine on her website and on Twitter - @erskine_fiona

About THE CHEMICAL DETECTIVE

Publisher's description

Dr Jaq Silver. Skier, scientist, international jet-setter, explosives expert. She blows things up to keep people safe. 

Working on avalanche control in Slovenia, Jaq stumbles across a problem with a consignment of explosives. After raising a complaint with the supplier, a multinational chemical company, her evidence disappears. Jaq is warned, threatened, accused of professional incompetence and suspended. Taking her complaint further, she narrowly escapes death only to be framed for murder. Escaping from police custody, she sets out to find the key to the mystery.

Racing between the snowy slopes of Slovenia and the ghostly ruins of Chernobyl, can she uncover the truth before her time runs out?

The Chemical Detective was published by Point Blank, an imprint of Oneworld, in hardback on 4 April 2019.

Look out for more BEST OF CRIME features coming soon.

Click here to read more BEST OF CRIME features.

Jean Levy's Writing Toolkit

WRITING TOOLKIT gives you an idea of an author's writing process through the tools they use. The tools can be anything (real or virtual) that they think is essential for their writing - serious, fun or even a fetish (that they're willing to own up to)! 

I am delighted to welcome 

JEAN LEVY

AUTHOR OF WHAT WAS LOST

TO SHARE HER WRITING TOOLKIT

FOR HER BLOG TOUR

What Was Lost was published on 13 September 2018 by The Dome Press.

Where I write

Mostly, I can write any place, any time. I have few requirements. I suppose it comes of years of leaving things to the last minute: homework on the school bus, research reports scribbled on the train, editorials dispatched as the deadline closes. That history of brinkmanship, of just scraping in under the wire, means that I’m not that fussy about chaos.

This is the dining table in my flat. It’s one of two places that I do my writing. Needless to say, we eat out a lot. The other place I write is the family barn. There’s a bigger table there, but there’s also a large bath and that’s probably one of my essentials. If I’m about to start a new sequence, introduce a new character or put the finishing touches to a critical conversation, I run a really hot bath, infused with a Seaweed and Arnica concoction that Father Christmas brings me every year (he gets it from Neal’s Yard). I think the combination of heat and fragrance helps me focus. Probably an increased blood supply to the brain, although I prefer not to think about that. Obviously, on these occasions I have to resort to traditional writing methods: sheets of A4 paper folded twice and an inky pen that writes upside down. (Do not attempt this bath-writing using electronic devices. Dunking iPads/mobiles into an infusion of seaweed and arnica never goes well.)

And those critical conversations … I rehearse them way before bath time, whilst weeding, whilst staring out the flat window at the Cathedral, whilst driving. The floor of my car is littered with quick notes scribbled on till receipts and parking tickets. Of course, silence is essential. I can’t expect my characters to have conversations with noise going on around them. In fact, I mostly can’t write surrounded by noise: the TV, seagulls, pneumatic drills, dripping taps, and definitely not music. Music imposes emotions and sometimes those emotions are not appropriate to what I’m writing.

Wine, food

Wine is not really essential, although I find a glass of prosecco always encourages creativity. Or a Pinotage when it’s cold outside. And I don’t really eat during the day, just cups of tea/coffee and the occasional bowl of pistachio ice cream.

Apps, books, software

Apart from the till receipts and the soggy bath notes, I write directly onto my laptop and back up on a flash drive (constantly), an external hard drive (occasionally) and by sending myself an email attachment (daily). I write in Word, the enemy that know. I search/check using Google and an online dictionary and thesaurus. As far as creative writing books are concerned, I had my fill of those during a Creative Writing degree. They are often a bit flaky, although some are good regarding plot, characters, dialogue. I’d recommend Stephen King’s ‘On Writing’. But I’ve found that the best sources for writing technique are books on basic narratology:

Cobley, P. (2001). Narrative: The New Critical Idiom. Routledge, Oxford.

Martin, W. (1986). Recent Theories of Narrative. Cornell University Press, Ithaca.

There are many others more recent than that. And there’s a good website I’ve used:

http://www2.anglistik.uni-freiburg.de/intranet/englishbasics/Discourse01.htm

The major considerations for any writer are plot, character, location, time and tense, sequence, description versus action, pace, use of dialogue, point of view, status of the narrator and narrative focus, but their expression rests upon good grammar and I’m a bit of a pedant when it comes to that. It’s a result of seven years of research into temporal linguistics … but that’s another story. David Crystal has written some very readable books on basic grammar. ‘The Elements of Style’ by Strunk, White and Kalman bridges the gap between creativity and serious grammar, and there’s always Lynne Truss’s  ‘Eats, Shoots and Leaves’.

By far the best way of realising writing techniques is to read good writers: Sebastian Faulks, Virginia Woolf, Ian McEwan and James Joyce for the beauty of their words, Margaret Atwood for her parallel and non-linear plots, Angela Carter for her imagery, Winterson for her experimental and challenging narratives, Philip Pullman for sheer imagination, Douglas Adams for his humour, and Jane Austen as the pioneer of the techniques of psychonarration.

Social media

I’m not a big fan of Twitter, although I’m going to try harder. I visit Facebook most days, but I find myself watching YouTube dog and cat and Trump videos. And that gets you nowhere.

Exercise and other alien activities

I don’t really do sport, gym, jogging, running. I haven’t got time. Although I know people who strongly recommend such things.

Characters

I’ve often been asked where my characters come from. Well, apart from the occasional evil antagonist, they are hybrids of people I have known. The arrogance, dithering, mendacity, the eccentricities and outrageous affectations, love and friendships I have portrayed in What Was Lost are all drawn from experience.

Time

I suppose the actual process of writing is the result of days, even weeks of mulling things around in my mind, and I find the best time to do that is in the dark, in bed, before I go to sleep. When you’ve given up on everything else and your time’s your own. However, I learned long ago that those perfect plot solutions can disappear overnight, so if I do think of something inspirational I grope for my phone and make a note of it. Just a word or two to jog my memory.

As far as time managing my writing is concerned, I have to admit that I would write all day long. And sometimes I do. Sometimes I reach a point in the plot which refuses to be paused. I have occasionally written through the night, stopping only to accept my morning cup of tea. My husband is very understanding. I can remember, a few years back, taking part in the NaNoWriMo Challenge … just writing all day, every day. I lost all sense of time. It was great, although I realised on one occasion that, for the first time in my adult life, I had started a day, ended a day and proceeded to the next day without having a shower in between. I suppose what I’m saying is I don’t not write. Only when something prevents me from doing so.

THANKS FOR TAKING PART, JEAN!

About Jean Levy

Jean spent several years in genetics research before abandoning the laboratory to pursue a career in academic publishing both in Holland and the UK. She has been a database trouble- shooter, an editor, and a writer for publishing houses, pharmaceutical companies and the EU. She has degrees in Botany, Pathology, Philosophy, English, Law and Creative Writing and is currently completing a doctorate in Linguistics. 

In her spare time she has campaigned for the environment and read a lot of books, the most memorable being Alice in Wonderland, Pride and Prejudice, everything by Margaret Atwood and Jeanette Winterson, and a few things by Sebastian Faulks, Calvino, Ian McEwan, David Mitchell and Shakespeare. 

She currently lives in a converted barn in the South Downs with her husband and a Heritage Plant Collection, accumulates Christmas tree decorations and aspires to writing multi-genre fiction, travelling on the Orient Express and seeing the Northern Lights. 

Find Jean Levy on Twitter - @JeanELevy

About What Was Lost

Published by The Dome Press (13 September 2018)

Publisher's description

How would you live if you had no memories? And what if you were suspected of a terrible crime?

Sarah has no memories. She just knows she was found, near death, on a beach miles from her London home. Now she is part of a medical experiment to see whether her past can be retrieved.

But bad things seemed to have happened before she disappeared. The police are interested in her hidden memories too. A nice man she meets in the supermarket appears to have her best interests at heart. He seems to understand her - almost as if he knows her...

As she fights to regain her memories and her sense of self, it is clear that people are hiding things from her. Who are they protecting? Does Sarah really want the truth?

Here's a snippet from my review: 'What Was Lost is a compelling literary read - an in-depth multilayered psychological thriller based on science that's designed to question, explore and entertain.'

Read my full review here. 

Follow the Blog Tour

Crime Fiction Coach - a new service from four leading crime authors!!

Writing fiction can be a daunting experience, and many writers (unpublished and published) often welcome a helping hand.

Thanks to four brilliant, experienced crime fiction authors -
Steph Broadribb, Susi Holliday, AK Benedict & Louise Voss -
there's a new coaching service focusing specifically on writing crime fiction. 

Crime Fiction Coach can help you through all stages of the writing process:

• gathering together your thoughts and ideas
• finding the writing process that works for you
• keeping you motivated
• writing a first draft
• wading through the editing process
• offering honest constructive critique
• creating a polished manuscript to submit to agents and publishers. 

I've been fortunate enough to gather these four authors together to find out more about Crime Fiction Coach and how it can provide advice, guidance and support.

Why did the four of you set up Crime Fiction Coach - and did anything in particular prompt this decision?
We set up Crime Fiction Coach because we know what it's like to be just starting out writing your first novel, or having written a novel not being sure what to do next, and we wanted to make a place for those people to come and get advice and support. We also wanted to create something that is flexible to individual needs - yes we do standard coaching programmes, critiques and writing packages, but we also recognise that everyone is different and so we can create a programme or package that's tailored for a person's needs if our standard services aren't hitting the spot.

Who is Crime Fiction Coach aimed at?
Crime Fiction Coach is aimed at people who want to write, whether they're at the very start of their writing project (or not sure how to start) all the way through to getting their final draft and submission package ready for agents and publishers. 

Do you think writing crime fiction requires additional or different skills to writing in other genres?
If we’re talking commercial genre fiction overall, then the elements are quite similar – bestselling books are generally hooky, well-paced and written in a way that makes you want to keep turning the pages. Crime fiction does have some additional elements – namely suspense, mystery and often psychological elements of both the good and the bad guys. If you’re writing commercial fiction of any sort, then your main aim has to be to keep the reader hooked throughout. In crime, it’s about that, plus leaving clues, red herrings and creating satisfying ways to murder people that serve as entertainment rather than purely exploitative gore. Also, there are so many sub-genres of crime fiction, that it’s often the case that you read a book that is not billed as crime, but still contains many similar elements. I think the four of us specialise in crime because we prefer the darker side of storytelling. 

Why are the four of you ideal for the job?! 

Steph Broadribb

"I write two series - one US set action thriller, and one UK police procedural - and have a background in coaching. I'm passionate about working with writers at all stages of their journey and use a range of coaching techniques to help you free your creative thinking and move forward to achieve your ambition. I love a fast-paced page turner and my strength is in supporting writers who are writing for the commercial fiction market."




Susi Holliday

"I’m still juggling a day job with writing and other commitments, so I know how hard it is to find the time to write and stay motivated when you feel under pressure – this is something that I think I can help others to work out in their own way, to make sure you stay on track with everything and don’t get totally overwhelmed."








AK Benedict

"I have over ten years' experience in coaching writers, guiding them from their tentative first drafts to finished, often published, novel or script."











Louise Voss

"We all have different strengths so whatever your writing issue, we have no doubts that one of us will be able to fix it. Personally, I love to help people bring their characters to life using great dialogue and vivid detail."









What are you offering that other critique services don’t?
There are lots of great companies offering manuscript critique services, agent submission package critique, feedback on partial and full novels – we do offer those things – but for us the focus is more about helping people along the way. The coaching element is our unique selling point. Whether you are a complete beginner and don’t know where to start, or you’ve written for a while but haven’t secured a deal yet, we can help you. Our aim is to guide you through the things that are holding you back, whether it’s time, ideas, being blocked, lacking in confidence – whatever it might be – these are the things that we are passionate about helping you with.

Thanks for the insight into Crime Fiction Coach, Steph, Susi, AK and Louise!! 

And good luck with what looks to be a fabulous service.

Visit the Crime Fiction Coach Website here to learn more and join the mailing list. 

You can also join the Crime Fiction Coach online writing group on Facebook (click here).