Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I was born in South Africa to British stock. My Grandparents emigrated from Scotland to South Africa after WWII. I have lived in 8 countries in total, and travelled to over 40. I spent almost a decade in the British Army and retired as a Captain. I have always wanted to be an author. My debut, an espionage-revenge thriller called Blood Feud is out now, I have three more in the same series currently in progress.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Blood Feud. It is the first book in the Stirling Hunt thriller series. While I was a Captain in the British Army, I had this image of a brutal murder on a ranch in Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe. It is an unfortunately all too common occurrence, and something that has even grabbed the attention of the office of the President in the United States. The idea flourished from there. The image of this child running out into the night, while his parents are murdered in the darkness behind him … What would he do if he grew up, and had the skills to investigate the murder; and do something about it?
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’ know! I don’t think so.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
I am fortunate that my mother was a very wide reader. We were always fortunate to have books in the house, I grew up reading fiction books about Africa mostly, Alan Paton’s Cry the Beloved Country, Wilbur Smith’s Courtney series, Christopher Sherlock’s Hyena Dawn, Jeffery Archer’s early novels, are the ones I remember from a young age. I started reading more non-fiction, like Andy McNab’s Bravo Two Zero and Immediate Action as a teenager. I also read Hunter S. Thompson as a teenager, The Rum Diary is a very underrated first novel. And I loved, and still love, reading Hemingway. The Sun Also Rises is by far my favourite novel, closely followed by his Nobel Prize winning; The Old Man and the Sea. Elmore Leonard is someone I have a newfound appreciation for as a new author. His novel Out of Sight is very funny. A man’s got to take a lot of punishment to write a really funny book.
What are you working on now?
I am working on a prequel to the events in Blood Feud called Dangerous Cargo, from when Stirling Hunt was still a still an ambitious Regimental Intelligence Officer in the Special Boat Service (SBS). The SBS are a bit like the US Navy SEALs. It is based on the true story about a nighttime raid on a suspected terrorist cargo ship in the English Channel.
I am also working on the second in the Stirling Hunt thriller series called Black Beach, about a rescue mission in a west African country. It is full of intrigue and danger, with lots of twists and turns.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I don’t really know yet! I am still learning all about trying to market myself and my stories. I am just enjoying writing book that people seem to enjoy right now. The feedback from people who have read Blood Feud has been very, very positive and it gives me encouragement to keep going. One man from America thanked me ‘for a great weekend’, and the thought of bringing someone that much joy makes me very happy.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Find your favourite author, and try to beat the best thing they have written.
Every writer has learned their craft the hard way, by chipping away at it, like a block of marble. So, chip away at it, but you must love what you are doing, because the process never ends, we are all just at different stages of the journey.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Be yourself, everyone else is taken.
What are you reading now?
I keep getting halfway through and then re-reading Thomas Harris’ Silence of the Lambs. A remarkably well written piece of genre fiction which transcends the boundary between ‘literary fiction’ and ‘thriller’ writing.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Onwards and upwards I hope. I aim to have four Stirling Hunt espionage thrillers published by Christmas time.
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?
I would bring The Sun Also Rises.
I would bring The Rum Diary.
I would bring Blood Feud (my own novel, to remember the ‘good times’).
And a wad of notebooks to capture my adventures on the island.
Author Websites and Profiles
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