May Queen Killers and a game of WordPress tag

Image taken from Wikepedia

I was tagged in a game of WordPress tag by the fabulous Lorna Lee of the very colourful Lorna’s Voice. I have yet to meet a Lorna who wasn’t fabulous. If anyone knows a rotten Lorna, please don’t tell me. It will break my heart. The game is simple. I have to answer a set of questions about my writing, then tag three more writers to continue the game. Here are my answers:

What are you currently working on?

I am currently working on my 2^nd thriller, May Queen Killers, which is set on the English/Welsh border. Here’s a little teaser:

Where have all the May Queens gone?

At 34 years old, Sapphire Butterworth is a little old to be crowned May Queen, but she has her heart set on the title and no one is going to stand in her way. But then Sapphire disappears in the middle of the May Day celebrations and someone throws a brick through the window of her tea shop. Soon, there are scenes of May Day carnage throughout the village; lambs mauled by vicious dogs and may poles ripped apart. 

Mystery writer, Jock Skone is one of the last to see Sapphire and determined to use his detective skills to find her. But Jock quickly discovers that Sapphire’s friends do not know her as well as they thought they did. And Sapphire is not the first May Queen to go missing. Is there a deeper reason why Sapphire wanted the title so badly? Does she know more about the May Queen Killers than she’s been letting on?

How does your work differ from others in the same genre?

I write very British psychological thrillers. My books are fast-paced, five hour reads that are hard to put down. I use a combination of action and dialogue with a splat of dark humour. My mysteries are hard to solve, but I write in a simple and accessible way. I don’t like too much gore, and don’t do a lot of swearing. I leave out the parts I would skip as a reader, so you won’t find any long-winded descriptions in my books. And although the police may make an appearance, they are never the ones to solve the mystery!

Why do you write what you do?

I write what I love, but I do try to stick to psychological thrillers because I have created an audience for those. If I write anything outside of that genre, I keep it short and just for fun. If my mystery readers like my side projects, then that’s a bonus.

How does your writing process work?

I usually get the idea for the next book while I’m working on the one before, so I have to write everything down before I forget it. I am chaotic at heart, but I am slowly moving towards a more planned style of writing. I still end up taking twists and turns that I had never intended, but I no longer spend time polishing my first draft until I have to. I like my work big and messy and covered in scorch marks until I am absolutely sure of the story.

 And now I have to tag three more writers

Pete Denton, is currently working on a couple of crime novels. You can download a free sample of his work here.

Rami Ungar is the author of the Reborn City series available on Amazon, Createspace, and Smashwords. 

Roberta’s Dreamworld – Roberta is the author of Hugged by an Angel, The Melody in our hearts and A Christmas Melody.

As always, thanks for reading!