I’m absolutely delighted to welcome fellow Crooked Cat
author, Catriona King, to the blog today.
I don’t know very much about
Catriona, yet, so I’ve asked her some nice little questions. Stay tuned and
learn some fascinating things about this new author on the writing scene.
One lucky commenter can earn an e-copy of
her brand new crime novel- A Limited
Justice. Keep reading to find out how!
ps....I’m reading it just now. Watch out for a review to follow...if I get more reading done during the day. No spoilers given here, but I really want to learn more abut DC Craig!
Nancy,
thank you for asking me to be on your blog. It’s really great to be here!
What made you decide
to write crime novels?
I’ve always loved reading crime novels, especially series
where you can get to know the characters and the author’s style. My first real
love was the Edinburgh
–based Rebus series, by Ian Rankin. They are brilliant. I’ve read many other
series since, UK
and US based in particular, but I always come back to Rebus.
I also watch practically every crime series on TV. And then
of course my professional background as a doctor took me into the world of
police reports and forensic examiner work, and going to court with cases
testifying, so I have a certain amount of knowledge of the forensic and police
world.
I thought…Edinburgh has
Rebus, Glasgow has Taggart…shouldn’t Belfast have its own
series? So D.C.I. Marc Craig was born.
What bits of your
debut novel did you like doing best?
I love writing but I’m like a writing machine when I start, which
means that nothing else (in real life!) gets done …the dishes pile up, the
hoover stays in the cupboard etc. And it’s difficult to be that focused for too
long.
So I’d have to say that my favourite part is editing,
because it refines the characters and tightens the book. But also because I can
do it for a few hours and still keep a grip on real life!
Book Promotion I find difficult, principally because I’m
quite private and in some ways shy, so even having an on-line presence was
entirely new to me. I didn’t even have an active Facebook account before the
book. Never mind twitter!!
Laurence and Stephanie of Crooked Cat have had to be very
patient with me and they’ve been great. And as for press interviews and the
public side of writing…well let’s just say I know that I have to do it, but I’d
rather hide under the bed until it’s all over.
If you decided to try
to write a new genre or sub-genre what might you have a go at?
I think possibly romantic comedy as a complete departure, or
the fantasy world. But I’m not sure how good I’d be at either of them!
Where would you like
to set a new novel?
In court… or in New
York…or both!
You’ve an invitation
to a stay at an expensive - all expenses paid - retreat in the countryside.
Which of your characters, or a character in a novel you’ve recently read, would
you ask to accompany you?
Oh, definitely my lead detective. Detective Chief Inspector
Marc Craig. Mainly because I wrote him to be a very attractive man, and that inevitably means that he’s attractive
to me !!! We could have fun together. And, as I write murder novels, I could
always kill off any fictional opposition. Ha ha
Do you ever have days
when you think maybe I’ll not bother doing any more writing?
Yes, I think I do feel like that, when I’m tired or have
been editing or writing for days on end. But then…after a break of about a
week, I find myself listening to people’s expressions and phrases and scribbling
them down on post-it notes, thinking.
“Ooh, I like that
phrase, I must write a character who would say that.”
And then I’m off thinking about a new novel and I start
writing again !!!
In what ways has your
life changed since you’ve become a published author?
Goodness…that’s a challenging question. Well, in some ways
not at all. I still have to go to work and pay the bills. I still socialise,
eat too much chocolate and run my theatre group.
In other ways it has changed enormously. I think being
published finally gives you the confidence to believe in your writing. You
start to think. “Well actually, maybe I can
write. Maybe it wasn’t just a day-dream!”
It also gives you the help a professional editor like
Laurence from Crooked Cat who will look at your work honestly and critically,
and help it improve. I think being published gives you to confidence to keep
writing, to take risks and push yourself, and not to give up. It’s also
improved my spelling and grammar enormously!
Finally….I think that there were some people that I couldn’t mention my writing to
before I was published, in case they looked at me kindly but pityingly in a
way. As if I was a fantasist who was never, ever going to be published and was
just deluding myself. There were some people who I would have felt embarrassed
telling that I wanted to be a published writer. Now they don’t look at me like
that .
What’s your writing
goal for 2013?
I’d like to build up the D.C.I. Craig series and watch the
characters develop. I have two more books in the pipeline which will hopefully
come out next year. I try to do them in real time and use local events to
anchor them in a time of year, for instance. ‘A LIMITED JUSTICE’ is set in
October 2012 and published in October 2012. ‘THE GRASS TATTOO’ is set in
December 2012 and out in paperback and Kindle on 11th December 2012.
So next year should be busy!
BELFAST GETS A NEW CRIME FIGHTER
Belfast
has a new fictional crime hero – Detective Chief Inspector Marc Craig, who has
just made his debut in ‘A Limited Justice’, the first in a planned series of
books by local author Catriona King.
Catriona is a doctor who also trained as a forensic medical
examiner in London, and has brought that
experience to bear in her debut novel, in which Marc Craig and his team comb
well known Belfast
streets in the hunt for a triple murderer.
The novel is published by Crooked Cat Books; an Edinburgh based
publishing company is gaining five star reviews.
‘A Limited Justice’ is the first in the series and Catriona
hopes that her fictional detective Marc Craig might one day be Belfast’s
version of Edinburgh’s
Rebus character.
“I’ve always written for my own pleasure and, as I love
reading and watching detective series, I had often thought of writing one. I’m
delighted that the book is now out, and with the response it has received. In
fact, I’ve finished the second book in the series. The series is rooted very
firmly in Belfast and Northern Ireland as a whole and has
lots of local references. I hope that it appeals to readers of crime fiction
and especially with local readers.
“I wanted to write a series set in 2012 and beyond, with a
detective who reflects modern Northern
Ireland. So Marc Craig was born.”
‘A Limited Justice’ is
available in paperback and Kindle from www.amazon.co.uk , www.amazon.com and www.crookedcatbooks.com
‘The Grass Tattoo’, which will be available in paperback and
online on December 11th 2012.
More about Catriona King
She trained as a Doctor and Police Forensic Medical Examiner in London. She worked closely with the Metropolitan Police on many occasions. In recent years, she has returned to live in Belfast.
She has written since childhood: fiction, fact and news reporting. ‘A Limited Justice’ is her first novel and follows DCI Marc Craig and his team through the streets of Belfast in the hunt for the murderer of three people.
A second novel in the DCI Craig series is nearing completion.
My blog is catrionaking1@blogspot.co.uk
Twitter @catrionaking1
Facebook: Catriona King
**Giveaway**
What question would you like to ask Catriona about? Please add your question to the comment box to be entered into the draw for a giveaway copy of A Limited Justice.
Thank you for being here, today, Catriona. My very best wishes to you.
Slainthe!
