Today I'm delighted to welcome
FERGUS McNEILL
to share his BEST OF CRIME ...
... AUTHORS
Erin Kelly is one of those authors who just always seems to deliver, and I’ve admired her books ever since her debut The Poison Tree. Some authors tell great stories, and some have a beautiful style of writing, but when you get both together then you have something special.
... FILMS/MOVIES
There are so many to choose from, but I’m going to pick the original Dirty Harry movie. For me, it’s almost perfect – a wonderfully bleak anti-hero, a crazy-creepy villain, and a story that just keeps on raising the stakes. It even has a classic 70s soundtrack. I think the only thing wrong with it is the BRIGHT RED fake blood that those old films used. It looks like someone spilled a bottle of ketchup…
... TV DRAMAS
I love The Bridge, Columbo, Morse/Endeavour, Jeremy Brett’s Sherlock Holmes and Joan Hickson’s Miss Marple… but my favourite TV drama must be Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy with Alec Guinness. Though not strictly crime, it’s very much a detective story, and I honestly can’t think of a better-made series.
... FICTIONAL KILLERS
A truly delicious villain from a darkly entertaining book is Mr Hemming from A Pleasure And A Calling. Mr Hemming is an estate agent who, over the years, has sold almost every house in the small town where he’s based… oh, and he’s kept a copy of EVERY key.
... FICTIONAL DETECTIVES
I think I have to go with Inspector Morse. Although there are obvious differences between the book and TV adaptations, he’s always a compelling character, absolutely certain of his hunches even though he’s prone to making mistakes. Despite the unlikable manner, there’s something very honest and very human about him.
... MURDER WEAPONS
One of the cleverest murder weapons I ever read about was the sniper rifle from Day Of The Jackal by Frederick Forsyth. What made it so special (spoiler alert) was the way the gun disassembled into a series of pieces which could be hidden inside a wounded war veteran’s crutches. This allowed the assassin to smuggle it through a tight security perimeter, and make his shot.
... DEATH SCENES
I wouldn’t say I have a “favourite” death scene, as I’m far too squeamish to enjoy the gruesome ones properly. But the death of Ratchett in Murder On The Orient Express has always been memorable – there’s something grimly satisfying about a wicked man meeting his end at the hands of those whose lives he ruined.
... BLOGS/WEBSITES
I like to know the places I’m writing about, so I often use Google Streetview. Parts of my most recent book are set in the Swiss city of Bern and I’d spent so much time walking the virtual streets that, when I finally went there for real, I had the most uncanny sense of déjà vu.
... WRITING TIPS
Getting started always seems the most difficult part of a day’s writing. To combat this, I’ve found that it helps to sketch out the action in a series of bullet points first, listing what each character will do and say. This is a quick and easy way to capture ideas and plan the rhythm of a scene. It also makes it less painful to discard things if they’re not working! Once I have my bullet points, I go through again, filling in any dialogue and noting any key bits of narrative. From there, it’s a lot easier to write up the draft text.
... WRITING SNACKS
Coffee, coffee, and more coffee. And, if I’m working in a nice café, a good cinnamon Danish always helps.
About FERGUS McNEILL
Fergus McNeill has been creating computer games since the early eighties, writing his first interactive fiction titles while still at school. Over the years he has designed, directed and illustrated games for all sorts of systems, from consoles to iPhones.
A keen photographer and digital artist, Fergus lives in Hampshire with his wife and their very large cat. He is the author of the Detective Harland series (EYE CONTACT, KNIFE EDGE and CUT OUT) and the new thriller ASHES OF AMERICA.
Find Fergus McNeill on his website, on his Facebook page and on Twitter - @fergusmcneill
About ASHES OF AMERICA
Publisher's description
‘What if the past came back to haunt you... but it wasn't the past you remembered?’
It’s 1953, and an optimistic America is shaking off the hurt of World War II. Russia is defeated and Germany is now an ally.
Former soldier Frank Rye is a small-town cop in rural Missouri, but the war has left him cynical and selfish. When his actions lead to the murder of a fellow officer, guilt drives him into a vengeful hunt for justice.
His search for the killer will drag him deep into his own past… to the wartime summer of 1944, when he was stationed in neutral Switzerland… to a clandestine world of love and lies.
To unmask the killer, he must uncover the truth about the war… and about himself.
Ashes of America is published on 19 February 2019.
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