Today I'm delighted to welcome
HOLLY SEDDON
to share her BEST OF CRIME ...
... AUTHORS
Arthur Conan Doyle. I absolutely love our crop of modern crime
writers but I find reading Sherlock Holmes stories so comforting as well as
constantly surprising. My husband bought me a huge compendium of Arthur Conan
Doyle’s collected works and it’s as big as a bus. I’m working through it very
slowly and savouring the hell out of it.
... FILMS/MOVIES
Rear Window. Anyone who has read my second novel will
understand just how much of an influence this was. My middle son and I are
obsessed with Alfred Hitchcock. We love the films but also his ingenious TV
series Alfred Hitchcock Presents… which ran for about a million years and
featured a short twisty TV play each episode.
... TV DRAMAS
The Killing. There have been many other Scandi crime series
that I’ve loved, but this was the very first I experienced and it blew me away.
I think this was the first time in our ten-year marriage that my husband and I
watched a murder mystery together. It felt like an icy blast of refreshing air
and, looking back, I can now see what an effect Sarah Lund had on my
characters.
... FICTIONAL KILLERS
Silvio Dante from The Sopranos. If you’ve watched this iconic series
(and if you haven’t, I implore you to!) you’ll know which killing in particular
made me say this. Silvio was one of my favourite characters anyway, so dry and
blunt but always human. I wept watching this scene.
... FICTIONAL DETECTIVES
Hercules Poirot. I’m a sucker for a brilliant jerk, and Poirot
is the best of the best. Even though he can be a total arse, you forgive him
his pomposity because he’s always three steps ahead and because he’s such a
snappy dresser.
... MURDER WEAPONS
Spike of ice. I’m a big fan of weapons that don’t leave a
trace and love this classic idea of a weapon that simply melts away.
... DEATH SCENES
*spoiler alert*
*spoiler alert*
Han Solo. A collective gasp rang through the cinema when
I watched The Force Awakens, followed by sobbing (mostly mine). Although I lost
interest in Game of Thrones after series one, I also loved how it killed off
big characters early doors. It’s brave and thrilling when that happens.
... BLOGS/WEBSITES
The British Newspaper Archive. I recently treated myself to an
annual subscription and it’s an absolute treasure trove! All human life is there,
in its ugliness and its joy. It’s incredibly useful for historical research, a
wonderful way to see the concerns of the time as well as learn patterns of
popular words, terms and names. And of course it’s a rich vein of inspiration
for plots.
... WRITING TIPS
Take a break. If you’re getting bogged down in detail, if
you’re trying to write yourself out of a plot hole, if you don’t quite believe
in your characters, if you’re writing words just to hit a daily target and
you’re not really feeling any of them… take a break. Put it down, go for a
walk, take a few days off without thinking about the book. If you’re minted,
book a last minute holiday! I used to fall into the trap of over-writing and
losing all perspective. Now I’m precious about time away from my manuscripts
and (in terms of re-writing guff) it’s more efficient that way.
... WRITING SNACKS
Kaas blockjes (cheese blocks). I live in the Netherlands, which is
cheese mad and every supermarket plus plenty of corner grocery shops sell tubs
of cheese blocks. Dutch is a wonderfully literal language and you can generally
choose between ‘jong kaas blockjes’ (literally young cheese blocks – mild and deliciously rubbery) or ‘oud kaas
blockjes’ (you guessed it, old cheese
blocks – mature, crumbly and tangy). I dip them in mustard like a proper
Dutchie.
About HOLLY SEDDON
Holly Seddon is a full time
writer, living slap bang in the middle of Amsterdam with her husband James and
a house full of children and pets. Holly has written for newspapers, websites
and magazines since her early 20s after growing up in the English countryside,
obsessed with music and books.
Her first novel TRY NOT TO BREATHE was published worldwide in 2016 and became a national and international bestseller.
Her second novel DON'T CLOSE YOUR EYES was published in July 2017.
Her first novel TRY NOT TO BREATHE was published worldwide in 2016 and became a national and international bestseller.
Her second novel DON'T CLOSE YOUR EYES was published in July 2017.
Find Holly Seddon on her website, on her Facebook page and on Twitter - @hollyseddon
About DON'T CLOSE YOUR EYES
Publisher's description
Robin and Sarah weren't the closest of twins. They weren't
even that similar. But they loved each other dearly. Until, in the cruellest of
domestic twists, they were taken from one another.
Now, in her early 30s, Robin lives alone. Agoraphobic and
suffering from panic attacks, she spends her days pacing the rooms of her
house. The rest of the time she watches - watches the street, the houses, the
neighbours. Until one day, she sees something she shouldn't...
And Sarah? Sarah got what she wanted - the good-looking man,
the beautiful baby, the perfect home. But she's just been accused of the most
terrible thing of all. She can't be around her new family until she has come to
terms with something that happened a long time ago. And to do that, she needs
to track down her twin sister.
But Sarah isn't the only person looking for Robin. As their
paths intersect, something dangerous is set in motion, leading Robin and Sarah
to fight for much more than their relationship...
Don't Close Your Eyes was published by Corvus on 6 July 2017.
Look out for more BEST OF CRIME features coming soon.
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