Twenty-One Books On...

Not many authors are lucky enough to have a series last to twenty-one books. A first contract is hard to win and I’m on my eighth.

It doesn’t seem twelve years since I started. When I embarked on my first novel in 1994, I’d had thirteen jobs in thirteen years.

At the time, all I knew was that I enjoyed writing. And I was hugely enthusiastic about the medieval period. It was a fascinating time. Christians predicted famine, war, plague and the end of the world, because Palestine had been lost to heathens – and within fifty years the predictions came true. It is hard to imagine the catastrophe that was the early fourteenth century, with a third of the population dying from famine or disease, but fortunately there are many contemporary records on which I can draw. It’s this solid basis in historical fact that makes my series so popular, I think. The stories are grounded in actual events: genuine robberies, murders, persecutions and political machinations. When I write about the Bishop and his Dean hiring gangs to commit murder in the middle of the night, it’s not my over-inflated imagination – it happened.

But stories or no, if it wasn’t for the superb team at Headline, I wouldn’t be a writer today. I’ve been fortunate to work with the best editors, sales people, marketing and PR specialists and, yes, even copy-editors.

So thanks, Headline. You’ve helped grow me into a real writer. It’s been fun, and I look forward to the next twenty-one books. Anyone got another eight contracts?

Postscript – since writing this piece, the weight of all the books stored in my attic has caused my ceiling to drop by two inches! I am seeking insurance quotes…

 
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