Interview With Author Peter Zander-Howell
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I'm retired, living with my wife in Norfolk, England. We have three adult children – one living a mile from us, another in London, and the third in San Diego. We have four grandchildren.
I started writing during the first Covid lockdown, and have just published my seventh book. All are set in the 1940s, and feature the same Scotland Yard detective, Philip Bryce. (My favourite genre is crime, preferably the books written in the "Golden Age of Crime Fiction".)
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Suspicions Of A Parlourmaid and The Norfolk Railway Murders. Two novellas in one volume. One is set in an affluent suburb of London, the other in Norfolk. I'm not sure what triggered the first story – I don't think I've ever met a parlourmaid, and certainly employed one! The second is set in the west of my county, where numerous railway lines used to connect the little villages. My book goes back to a time before all those lines disappeared.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don't know any other authors, so I don't know if my writing habits are unusual. I just sit down when the spirit moves me, and write for an hour or so. Morning or afternoon, never in the evening or in the night. Never more than two or three hours in any one day. Sometimes I'm too busy with other matters – gardening, shopping, ferrying grandchildren – and I don't write at all for days. I may be elderly, but I don't use pen and paper to write the books! Sometimes I use an iPad with a Bluetooth keyboard; sometimes a desktop computer.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Crime genre authors from the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. Lorac, Christie, Sayers, Allingham, Marsh, Crofts, James. There are many others, of course. (Only one man among my top seven!)
What are you working on now?
I'm currently finishing off four more books featuring Philip Bryce. When they're published, the series will contain eleven books.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I use Amazon Ads mostly, with the occasional BookBub advert. I'd like to get a BookBub 'featured deal' in the US, but have so far failed to be selected!
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Assuming you are like me, and can't afford to hire a professional editor, get several literate friends/relations to proof read and edit your book BEFORE you hit 'publish'. My wife is my editor. Incidentally, we always print off hard copies for proof-reading – we both find it is FAR more effective to to do that from a printed page rather than on-screen.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Take no notice of an occasional poor review. The odd one- or two-star rating among a clutch of four- or five star ones will not harm your sales. Of course, if all the ratings/reviews are bad, then you have a problem!
What are you reading now?
I'm reading the latest Mick Herron book. Not my favourite genre, but I really enjoy his Slough House novels.
What’s next for you as a writer?
I don't really know. I think 11 Bryce books is sufficient, at least for now. The advice generally given to a would-be author seems to be "write in a genre that you yourself enjoy – and preferably one in which you have some knowledge".
Fair enough, although nobody starting out to write today could have personal knowledge of, for example, the 16th century, the period about which C J Sansom writes so well. Indeed, I was living in the 1940s (just), but have no memory of that decade.
However, I have no interest in romantic fiction, or science fiction (with the odd exception like John Wyndham's books), or 'young adult' fiction. So I really can't think about writing in another genre.
I've started a book which may develop into another series, the protagonist this time being Inspector Tommy Rees – a more humble detective than Bryce. This will be set in the 1930s.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Not the Bible, and not the works of Shakespeare! I'd probably choose lengthy tomes which I've always meant to read but never got around to. War and Peace; Don Quixote; In Search of Lost Time; Shogun.
Author Websites and Profiles
Peter Zander-Howell Amazon Profile
Author Interview Series
To discover a new author, check out our Featured Authors page. We have some of the best authors around. They are just waiting for you to discover them. If you enjoyed this writer’s interview feel free to share it using the buttons below. Sharing is caring!
If you are an author and want to be interviewed just fill out out Author Interview page. After submitting we will send it out in our newsletters and social media channels that are filled with readers looking to discover new books to read.
If you are looking for a new book to read check out our Featured Books Page.