Review – Sex and law In The Matter of Isabel – Paul A Mendelson
What is it about sex and law that gets our pulses racing? A famously dry and dusty profession, somehow the law can be remarkably sexy when on page or screen – whether it’s a John…
Review – Detective Stories – Peter Washington (ed)
This is a nice little book, full of enjoyable bite-sized detective stories. There are many good stories, recent and older, including pieces by Ruth Rendell, Ian Rankin and Sara Paretsky. And there are some absolute…
Review: As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning
As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning by Laurie LeeMy rating: 5 of 5 stars I don’t know anyone who’s opened this book who hasn’t been immediately enchanted by it. Much less famous than Cider…
The Breaking of Liam Glass – tabloid truth in fiction
I’ve just added a special new gift to go with the launch of my new novel The Breaking of Liam Glass – which sets out tabloid truth in a crime-satire fiction. I’ve not said much about…
Could a strong local press have prevented the Grenfell Tower fire?
On the week that my novel The Breaking of Liam Glass comes out – a crime satire about the role of the press – here’s a very topical and thoughtful piece from Emily Bell in the Guardian asking…
Secret Library – Lee, Vonnegut, Niven
I’m delighted and honoured to be invited to make my contribution to Richard Fernandez’ remarkable Secret Library on his blog Cafe Thinking. Secret Library is a lovely idea – authors are invited to recommend three…
Review: Dead Writers in Rehab
Dead Writers in Rehab by Paul Bassett DaviesMy rating: 5 of 5 stars At the start of Paul Bassett Davies new novel, Dead Writers in Rehab, Foster James wakes up to find himself indeed in…
Review: Two O’Clock Boy – Mark Hill
From Line of Duty to Jack Reacher… …crime is the thing nowadays – but the challenge is to find a new way to tease and entertain the myriad crime fans. One well-travelled path is to…
The Genre That Dare Not Speak Its Name – Review: Capital
Capital by John LanchesterMy rating: 5 of 5 stars Satire is the genre that dare not speak its name in British publishing right now, but it could hardly be more needed than it is today.…
Historical drama on screen – to write or not to write?
Historical drama is big in TV and film at the moment,but is it a good idea to write one? David Oman sent this question: Hello Charles I’m still enjoying your excellent books, and prefer studying…
How to avoid the crime fiction trap
Crime is the post popular genre in fiction and on screen today, but many writers fall into the crime fiction trap. Understanding the crime fiction trap The big trap in crime movies and novels is that the…
Review: Rivers of London
Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch My rating: 5 of 5 stars Just came across this lovely off-beat fantasy crime novel, thanks to a friend of my wife’s. It starts with a bang one freezing…
How not to write a dark story – The Judge
The new Robert Downey Jnr, Robert Duvall movie The Judge brilliantly shows how to write a dark story of bitter relationships. Unfortunately, that’s not all it shows. Someone decided at some point in the script’s development to…
Review: Killers in mascara
Killers in mascara by Huw Collingbourne My rating: 3 of 5 stars I’m in the middle of this unusually entertaining crime novel and really enjoying myself. Collingbourne has created a great off-beat detective, with a…
Writing a gripping thriller
I’m delighted to be talking about Writing a Gripping Thriller for Hayley McKenzie’s blog ScriptAngel. You can read the full article below. Hayley is a great person and script consultant, who’s based in the Midlands. So…
Amber ending: How they could have broken the rules and succeeded
Were you made red with range over the ending of the often excellent mini-series Amber – or did you feel it was fresh and realistic? Is it possible to break the rules as much as they did?…
Automatic screenplay query letter generator for screenwriters
Developed by a secret army of specialist software designers, the automatic screenplay query letter generator guarantees you’ll never have to struggle over your screenplay query letter again. Free to use, time and time again.
There can’t be a storm, where’s Michael Fish?
Since last night they’ve been warning us about a storm that’s coming, but I don’t believe them. I’ve not yet seen Michael Fish deny it. Don’t tell me you haven’t looked. Has there been a…