QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS WITH JOHN STONEHOUSE

John's book, An American Outlaw was read and enjoyed last month.

Set in the Texas desert the setting among other things was a big part of the story. John sent over some fantastic photographs below to help illustrate the tale.

John Stonehouse

John was kind enough to submit himself to my usual interrogation.


Is the writing full-time or a sideline-passion-hobby? What’s the day job?

I write full-time. I've been writing professionally for a long time – my first career was writing lyrics and songs – now I'm doing full-length fiction, which I love. But writing is writing – it's all related.  No idea why I do it. And I'd probably go crazy if I couldn't.

What’s been the most satisfying moment of your writing career so far?

Probably An American Outlaw coming out and picking up so many great reviews from both seasoned reviewers (like yourself) and also regular 'rank and file' readers – people who don't basically write reviews, but felt moved to. Then there's the unexpected things that happen out of the blue – like being singled out by CSI/Forensics organisation ForensicOutreach.com as one of the best crime writers to watch in 2014, alongside the likes of Michael Connelly, Dennis Lehane and James Ellroy (!)  I'm truly grateful for all of it.

From start to finish how long did An American Outlaw take from conception to completion?

I don't know, I stopped counting. When I started the book I was writing in between doing other things, the same way most people start out. So it took time. I did a lot of drafts before I got an agent. I signed to a big agency, and they asked me to do a major re-write. So I did that. Then we got the boss of one of the major publishing houses on board, and she wanted yet another major re-write. So I did that.  I was re-writing it forever. I honestly have no idea, but we're talking years rather than months.

I believe you self-published your book, was that your chosen route?

It wasn't, (see above answer) but while I was working on the book, the entire industry was changing, the big houses becoming more and more risk-averse, and agents having a hard time selling projects by new writers. In the end, the publisher pulled out, saying they weren't confident they could make it a big enough hit. A minor hit would've been good enough for me – I was just looking for a place to start, and a way to begin building a readership. But the up-side to all the changes going on in the industry was that I could still get the book out there, in the end. And maybe I'll sell it to another house one day...

Publishing traditionally is still a good option I'd look to for other books I do. But the landscape has changed, and I'll probably take the same 'hybrid' route most writers do these days – some books trade-published, some self-released.

How difficult is it getting people to pay some attention and getting your book noticed, without the support of a publisher?

It's difficult. But it's difficult for trade-published writers, too. Unless you're a front-list writer with a major house (a Lee Child or a Harlan Coben) you don't really get very much in the way of promotion. The vast majority of writers are all in the same boat when it comes to marketing and selling; they have to hustle. You've got to work it. You've got to do whatever you can.

How do you edit your book? Do you have a support network that can provide constructive feedback for you?

I had my agent, plus the rest of the staff at the agency, plus the director of publishing at said major. Editorial support is probably the main benefit of being trade-published right now - unless you're being offered a fat advance!  I love to work with editors.  I also have people I trust for feedback. And I'm pretty ruthless, too. I'm always cutting.

 

What’s your typical writing schedule?

I write full-time, five days a week, try to take weekends off if the schedule allows.

Are there any subjects off limits as far as your writing is concerned?

Not really any subjects off-limits, but I'm wary of using subjects in an expoitative way. There's so much pressure to grab attention in the world of arts and entertainment, the market's so saturated that shock-tactics are seen as an easy sell. But you have a responsibility to the culture you're helping to create. And in addition, great power often comes from the very smallest moments in a story – a look, an image, a single word that sends shivers down your spine – that can be the moment you always retain. You don't need fourteen car chases in a movie to keep it interesting, you don't need a dozen graphic murders in a book.  I'm not saying you can't have them. But power and meaning don't come from that.

What are the last five books you’ve read?

The Black Box by Michael Connelly, The Son by Philipp Meyer,  A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway,

Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith and Gravesend by William Boyle

Favourite activity when not working?

I like to get outside and move. Love the great outdoors, travel, the sea.

What’s the current project in progress? How’s it going?

Always multiple projects fighting for attention – but right now I'm concentrating on the follow-up to An American Outlaw.

If I check back in a couple of year’s time, where do you hope to be with the writing?

I'd love to say selling a ton of books, and selling the rights to TV and Film – a lot of people have told me they think An American Outlaw has a natural cinematic quality. Realistically, I hope I'll be building a bigger and bigger readership, and producing good work that entertains people and ends up meaning something to them. A storyteller can ask for no more...

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An American Outlaw can be found at Amazon UK here and on Amazon.com here.

You can find John on Facebook and on Twitter @JohnStonehouse2 

 

10 BOOKS THAT HELPED HOOK ME ON CRIME

I don’t think I have assembled any book lists on my blog to date, but after a bit of encouragement from Moira over at Clothes in Books, I have put together a list of 10 crime novels that are important to me on a personal level.

Important insofar as each one went some way towards firmly entrenching my reading habits within the crime fiction genre, sometime late 80’s or very early 90’s. My reading then was typically Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Clive Barker, a bit of Frederick Forsyth. A King blurb on an Elmore Leonard Penguin paperback changed all that.  

I have read more by each and every author on this list. 

Three of the authors are sadly deceased; Willeford, Leonard and Izzi - the last in fairly bizarre-suspicious circumstances. 

Eugene Izzi

Two of them have had new books out in August and September, 2014 which I will be reading - Kakonis (already done) and Koenig. 

A couple of the authors, I have consciously decided to stop reading, even though they attract fairly universal acclaim - Burke and Ellroy. 

Charles Willeford

A couple of them I haven’t picked up a book by in years.

All of the authors are American.

None of them have been reviewed on the blog. 

8 of them are still lurking in the shelves somewhere, ready for a re-read. 

4 of them, kicked off the start of some enduring series characters with Dave Robicheaux - though I always preferred Clete Purcell myself, Burke, Thorn PI and Timothy Waverley.

From the dates of publication, I obviously love the 80's (apart from the music and the fashion)! 

Andrew Vachss

1987 was a particularly good year, though 1988 was better - I got married!

In no particular order, with links to the books on the Fantastic Fiction website where you can find out a bit more if you choose.

Carl Hiaasen – Tourist Season (1986)

Joseph Koenig – Floater (1986)

Charles Willeford – Kiss Your Ass Goodbye (1987)

Andrew Vacchs – Flood (1985)

James Ellroy – The Black Dahlia (1987)

Elmore Leonard – The Switch (1978)

James W. Hall – Under Cover of Daylight (1987)

Tom Kakonis – Michigan Roll (1988)

Eugene Izzi – The Take (1987)

James Lee Burke – The Neon Rain (1987)

Carl Hiaasen

James W. Hall

MARTIN CLARK - THE MANY ASPECTS OF MOBILE HOME LIVING

Synopsis/blurb……

In this masterful debut, Martin Clark proves to be the heir apparent of great Southern raconteurs and the envy of more seasoned novelists as he takes us on a frantic tour of the modern south.

Hung over, beaten by the unforgiving sun, bitter at his estranged wife, and dreading the day’s docket of petty criminal cases, Judge Evers Wheeling is in need of something on the morning he's accosted by Ruth Esther English. Ruth Esther's strange story certainly is something, and Judge Wheeling finds himself in uncharted territory. Reluctantly agreeing to help Ruth Esther retrieve some stolen money, he recruits his pot-addled brother and a band of merry hangers-on for the big adventure. Raucous road trips, infidelity, suspected killers, winning Lotto tickets, drunken philosophical rants, and at least one naked woman tied to a road sign ensue in The Many Aspects of Mobile Home Living, one part legal thriller, one part murder mystery, and all parts all wild.

THE MANY ASPECTS OF MOBILE HOME LIVING is a remarkable creation, combining Southern gothic, black comedy, courtroom drama and explorations of faith and redemption in a first novel that will be long remembered for its astounding writing and brilliant, unexpected conclusion.

Made me laugh so hard I fell off the sofa – Newsweek.

This book whilst sitting on the TBR pile admittedly was an unintentional read in August. My wife took this one on holiday drawn in undoubtedly by a fantastic description on the back of the book. Upon opening it, the miniscule text – 42 lines to each page - proved too difficult to follow especially reading in the evening; after 5 pages we swapped. My kindle was confiscated and I read a couple of paperbacks until this was the only thing left available.

Originally published in 2000, 14 years on some of the cultural references in the book passed me right on by, which as I’m in the UK and the book is US and setting may well have done anyway, even if it had only been written last week. Most times, I have a tolerance for a slow burner that an author takes time to build; I’m in favour of a writer’s setting the scene but in this instance I think we read about 110 pages before anything of any substance happened. I think the small print did my wife a favour and hazard a guess that text issues aside the book would have lasted no more than 20 pages maximum in her hands, before being tossed aside. I read it, Hobson’s choice really, kind of enjoyed it in the end, but didn’t really like it.

Anyone seen my telescope!

Going back to the text for a minute, scanning the typeface on a couple of other books on the shelves, the line count typically is 30 to each full page of prose. On the basis of 42 here versus 30 elsewhere; this book is probably in the region of 40% longer than the page count would indicate. On that basis the 352 pages here, would roughly translate to 490 plus normally printed pages – I doubt I would have bought the book had it weighed in at around 500. I’m not totally averse to longer books, but I prefer shorter.   

We had a rambling story that took absolutely ages to get where it was going. Populated throughout by characters, including our judge who were either feckless wasters or drunks or just totally unlikeable. I didn’t like the judge, his brother or his friends. I liked his estranged wife even less. There were moments of humour, but in truth if the Newsweek reviewer fell off his sofa, it could only have been because someone chain-sawed a leg from it, when he had been momentarily anaesthetised by a passage of spectacularly dull prose that led nowhere.

Second half of the book improved and in the end the story was ok and it was far from the worst book I have ever read in my life. I think my expectations were higher though. I might be in a minority though. Amazon.com has close to 90 reviews of this, with 60 plus scoring it top marks and another 10 giving it 4 from 5. I did enjoy the courtroom scenes, but these were fleeting moments only - unfortunately.

Several passages of writing, gave me pause for thought when reading. These went some small way to redeeming the book in my eyes…..

Page 125….the brothers had developed a rapturous affection for each other. Never a fight, a sulk, a lie or a hard word, never a hint of envy, anger or resentment – good companions, Evers and Pascal. They would go days without talking, and Evers didn’t know his brother’s birthday….but the two men had their own sequences, their own rituals, their own way of getting along.

Page 200…….“I’ve often thought that there are really just two sentiments in the world: envy and pity. The world’s divided into people and places below you and above you.”

Page 300……. “The world spins around on small kind gestures.”

Martin Clark

Overall a 3 from 5.

Martin Clark has written two other books – Plain Heathen Mischief (2004) and The Legal Limit (2008). I hope I like them better than this one. The author’s website is here.

Bought second hand earlier this year on Amazon UK site.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS WITH ALLEN ESKENS

One of last month's 5 star read authors, Allen Eskens was kind enough to answer a few questions.

My review of The Life We Bury is here.

Is the writing a full-time or a sideline-passion-hobby? What’s the day job?

A:     Right now, writing is a sideline. With my debut novel coming out in October, I have yet to see any proceeds. The good news is that with the growing buzz surrounding THE LIFE WE BURY, and the strength of my second manuscript, I’ve just signed contracts for three more novels. With any luck, writing will be my primary occupation by the time that fourth book comes out. In the meantime, I continue making my living as a criminal defense attorney in Minnesota.

What’s been the most satisfying moment of your writing career so far?

A:     The most satisfying moment has to be when I got an offer for representation from my agent, Amy Cloughley. I knew that there were countless doors that could be opened by having an agent. I also trusted that she would be best suited to find a publishing home for my work. Amy has been invaluable to me in this process.

From start to finish how long did The Life We Bury take from conception to completion?

A:     I had the idea for THE LIFE WE BURY bouncing around in my head for a few years as I was working on another manuscript. I decided to put my other project away and focus on THE LIFE WE BURY and it took about a year to get a viable draft. I like to outline my work. So, that process lasted a few months in and of itself. Then writing the first draft took the rest of the year. As I queried agents, I would pick at it with revisions, but the meat of the book was on paper in about a year.

What’s your typical writing schedule?

A:     I try to write at least a chapter a week. I shoot for two. I always leave a full weekend day to revise what I wrote that week. I think it’s important to thoroughly edit each chapter before moving on. I feel that when I’m editing the entire manuscript, I tend to pay less attention to the smaller details because I am distracted by the gestalt of the larger work.

Are there any subjects off limits as far as your writing is concerned?

A:     I don’t think that there are any subjects off limits as long as the author deals with the subject in a thoughtful and serious manner. As a criminal defense attorney, I’ve seen things that I will probably never write about because people won’t believe me. But evil happens all the time. If it’s an honest portrayal, it should be a proper subject for a writer.

What are the last five books you’ve read?

A:     The Distant Echo, by Val McDermid

Fear of Beauty, by Susan Froetschel

The Black Hour, by Lori Rader-Day

Dante’s Poison, by Lynne Raimondo

        The Crypt Thief, by Mark Pryor

Who do you read and enjoy?

A:     My favourite author is Dennis Lehane. I admire the way he blends great plots with a literary writing style.

Is there any one book you wish you had written? 

A:     To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee.

Favourite activity when not working?

A:     I like hanging out with my wife and pets at home. I will take in the occasional concert or poker game with my buddies.

  

What’s the current project in progress? How’s it going?

A:     My sophomore novel is in the hand of my publisher and will be published in October of 2015. I am currently working on my third novel. I have it outlined and have a few chapters written. I prefer to write in the fall and winter, as there are fewer distractions.

If I check back in a couple of year’s time, where do you hope to be with the writing?

A:     I hope to be riding the tide of four novels. I have more novels in mind, but I’ll keep my focus on these first four as they have a particular character arch. The protagonists in those novels will be Detective Max Rupert and Professor Boady Sanden, ancillary characters from THE LIFE WE BURY.

Thanks very much to Allen for his time. You can find out more about him on his website which is here.

ALLEN ESKENS - THE LIFE WE BURY

Synopsis/blurb…….

College student Joe Talbert has the modest goal of completing a writing assignment for an English class. His task is to interview a stranger and write a brief biography of the person. With deadlines looming, Joe heads to a nearby nursing home to find a willing subject. There he meets Carl Iverson, and soon nothing in Joe's life is ever the same.

Iverson is a dying Vietnam veteran--and a convicted murderer. With only a few months to live, he has been medically paroled to a nursing home, after spending thirty years in prison for the crimes of rape and murder.

As Joe writes about Carl's life, especially Carl's valor in Vietnam, he cannot reconcile the heroism of the soldier with the despicable acts of the convict. Joe, along with his skeptical female neighbor, throws himself into uncovering the truth, but he is hamstrung in his efforts by having to deal with his dangerously dysfunctional mother, the guilt of leaving his autistic brother vulnerable, and a haunting childhood memory.

Thread by thread, Joe unravels the tapestry of Carl’s conviction. But as he and Lila dig deeper into the circumstances of the crime, the stakes grow higher. Will Joe discover the truth before it’s too late to escape the fallout?

It’s not particularly often that my wife reads and enjoys any of the books that cross my path. Whilst I endeavour to read what she reads (eventually) she doesn’t feel the same need to reciprocate, nor should she. Our last shared and loved book in common was Jess Walter’s Beautiful Ruins last year, until Eskens debut The Life We Bury fell into her hands after mine.

Fair to say we both loved it and it was fun checking in on her progress as she devoured it knowing what was in store.

A college assignment morphs into an investigation into a 30 year old murder mystery, that touches on a lot of things…..family, relationships, affection, abuse, parenting, autism, communication, guilt, loyalty, friendships, Vietnam, war, death, alcohol abuse, cancer……….and a whole lot of other things besides.

Great story line, superb characters that you care about, especially Joe and his neighbour Lila. I think the family dynamics and the evolving relationship between Joe and Lila and the part Jeremy unwittingly played was one of the most satisfying parts of the book. A close second to that would be the developing friendship between our murdering, cancer-stricken, veteran Carl and Joe.

I do like the odd book where the investigation into the mystery is conducted by a non-professional sleuth. It makes for a refreshing change from the police or more usually PI books, I read. Eskens arranged an interesting puzzle, which I was keen to see resolved, which it was.    

Allen Eskens

Intriguing, entertaining, gripping and totally satisfying.

Definitely recommended if you like your mysteries, on the whole fairly straightforward, but with a lot of character and heart.

Debut author Eskens has two new fans in the UK!

5 from 5

Allen Eskens hails from the US. His website is here.

The Life We Bury is on sale from October 14^th, 2014. Many thanks to Seventh Street Books for my copy. Their website is here.

               

ITALIAN HOLIDAY - TUSCANY

Back end of August, we de-camped to Tuscany for a week. A bit of a last hurrah family holiday as a unit of 5, as at the end of this week our eldest de-camps to University and has intimated that he is unlikely to want to come with us again, which is fair enough. Good news is he still wants to tag along for our annual weekend pilgrimage to Lowestoft every July when we celebrate our wedding anniversary. A dual cause for celebration was my wife’s xxth birthday – it’s rude to advertise a lady’s age so don’t even ask!

When's the re-make of Baywatch? Call my agent!

Our itinery was fairly loose and free, as we were newbies to Italy; apart from me back in 1975 as an 11 year old on a church trip in Holy Year (I think I can safely lay claim to having been inside every Catholic church in Rome and the surrounding district, or maybe false memory just makes it seem like that!) and my son having a trip to Venice last year.

We flew Luton to Pisa on a Friday. Picked up a hire car and drove northwards for an hour or so to the village Piano di Coreglia where we had rented a villa. Late arrival in the evening meant we just dumped luggage and crashed.

Our week went thus:

Saturday  - Barga and Lucca

Sunday – lazy

Monday – Viareggio by the sea

Tuesday – lazy

Wednesday – Florence

Thursday - lazy

Friday - Pisa and home

Thoughts……..

Accommodation - great, hosts – fantastic, pool – a bit cold but great fun, weather - fabulous – hot, but not too hot, food – fantastic. (The day before we travelled, I hit my target weight of 12 stone – 4 stone off in 25 weeks! That meant I could release the hunger monster inside me!) Plenty of pizza, not too much pasta for me – not a big fan, a few beers, a few glasses of wine – happy days.

Driving – hmm, no hiccups, but it takes a while getting used to travelling on the “wrong” side of the road, a few impatient drivers encountered – but no road rage, no cat’s eyes in Italy, so it was a bit hairy at times travelling back in the evenings when it got dark. Our village was in the sticks and whilst not isolated it was a bit of a trip traversing through the mountains and hills, either through tunnels cut through, or winding roads criss-crossing back and forth. Top prize to my son for his navigational skills as I would have taken a lot more wrong turns without him.

Barga – ok for lunch and a drink. Perhaps we were in the wrong part of town, but there wasn’t a lot going on.

Lucca – loved it. Great shops and cafes. Visited the Museum of Torture – I’ve obviously led a sheltered life and I couldn’t imagine some of the punishments thought up and on display.  Nice evening meal in the square.

Viareggio – about an hour or so drive for us. Beach was ok, but the sea and waves were fantastic. A bit too hot for me, mostly reading in the shade when not in the water. Fantastic meal in the evening.

Florence – we had a drive of about an hour and a half to get here. Took on board a bit of culture. Climbed the tower to the top of the cathedral and saw the view over Florence – not too spectacular in my opinion, there’s a uniformity about the rooftops unlike London’s skyline which I viewed from St. Paul’s. Went and saw “David” by Michaelangelo – really impressive, plus a host of other religious pictures and sculptures by a lot of people I’ve never ever heard of.  Had a stroll around the city, saw all the gold merchants on the bridge over the river – strictly window-shopping.  Fantastic day and definitely a place I’d like to re-visit as we barely scratched the surface.

Pisa – amazing seeing the Leaning Tower up close. Didn’t climb it, none of us really felt the need to. Lunched here and had a stroll around doing some shopping before heading to the airport and home.

Other bits and bobs viewed – some underground caves at Grotto del Vento and the Devil’s Bridge – Ponte della Maddalena.

One of the most memorable holidays ever with the family!

A few pictures below

Team Keane

Lucca - I think!

Missed my pizzas!

Head football with competitive daughter!

On the bridge!

Devils' Bridge

Too hot  - time to wear a cap!

Florence

Florence

Leaning tower

"David" - I'm the one wearing clothes just to avoid confusion! 

With the birthday girl!

BRIAN FREEMANTLE - CHARLIE M

Synopsis/blurb………

A cagey British spy fights enemies from without and within

Charlie Muffin is an anachronism. He came into the intelligence service in the early 1950s, when the government, desperate for foot soldiers in the impending Cold War, dipped into the middle class for the first time.

Despite a lack of upper-class bearing, Charlie survived twenty-five years on the espionage battle's front line: Berlin. But times have changed: The boys from Oxford and Cambridge are running the shop again, and they want to get rid of the middle-class spy who's a thorn in their side. They have decided that it's time for Charlie to be sacrificed.

But Charlie Muffin didn't survive two decades in Berlin by being a pushover. He intends to go on protecting the realm, and won't let anyone from his own organization get in his way.

Originally published in 1977, Charlie M (aka Charlie Muffin) is Freemantle’s first in his long running 16 book series featuring the British agent. Book 16, Red Star Falling was published in 2013.

Brian Freemantle

After a recent reminder about the book by blog friend Vicki, I decided to take it on my recent holiday and immerse myself in the intriguing world of duplicity, deceit and chicanery between the British, the Americans and those pesky Russians during the height of the Cold War.

184 pages long, a quick read, action and humour in abundance, fascinating portrayal of the murky dealings of the various intelligence services and the blatant disregard those in authority have for the underlings in their operations.

Our main man, Muffin has a lot of endearing and positive characteristics……..he’s loyal, capable, shrewd and intelligent to mention a few; all traits which serve him well in his chosen profession. I never found him truly likeable though. He cheats regularly on his wife and he seems to have hang-ups about money. His current boss and his cronies treat him fairly appallingly and want rid. All of these issues, keep the story bubbling along and make for a fast compelling read.

Imperfect characters often make for more interesting reading and Charlie is never less than interesting and entertaining. Freemantle moves the action around Europe as our story unfolds….Berlin, London, Czechoslavakia (pre-split obviously) and Austria. We cross the Atlantic as well, when the US in the guise of the CIA take an interest in developments.

With some reluctant inter-agency cooperation, we reach a climax between the interested parties.

Initially I felt kind of let down and disappointed about the resolution. A day later, I felt conflicted. A day after that, I think I shifted again and accepted it as perfect and loved it. Two days after that, I think I moved back to conflicted.

A fantastic read overall; any book that has you thinking about it a couple of weeks past finishing time has plenty of plus points. Perhaps reading book 2 in the series, will finally decide me on this one.

Highly recommended if you are a lover of espionage, the Cold War and well-written spy shenanigans.

5 from 5

I bought my copy second hand a year or two ago.