Planning a murder

People often ask me how I come up with the ideas for books. With my new novel, Murder All Inclusive, due to be published very soon, I thought you might be interested in knowing how and where the inspiration for this story hit. It all happened one sunny day, sitting by a pool in Tenerife.

I’ve heard other authors talk about how their characters stay with them, filling up their thoughts, as if they’re real people. And I think that’s true. I often find myself wondering what adventures George Thring has been having since the end of my first novel (who knows, maybe one day I’ll wonder so much that I’ll write a new adventure for him). I often ponder whether Dave Brookman is happier with his life now, since the ending of 46% Better Than Dave. But the character I find infiltrating my brain more than any other is good old Freddie Winters, the main character from Killing Dylan.

Every now and then I’ll wonder what he’s up to, what he’s getting angry about, and who he’s upsetting. I also wonder how he’d react to certain situations I find myself in. Would he be as even tempered as me, or would he be brave enough to speak his mind and tell people exactly what he’s thinking? And so, one day, I was lazing by the pool in an all-inclusive holiday resort in Tenerife, reading a book (sorry can’t remember which one, probably a Jack Reacher) and doing a bit of people watching.

Before long, I started wondering how Freddie Winters would behave in a similar surrounding. I had clear visions of him overfilling his plate at the buffet. I could see him holding court in the bar as he drank too many cocktails. And I could imagine him arguing with people over everything from sunbeds to noisy children and… well, just about anything, knowing Freddie. The idea of him behaving badly in a holiday resort tickled me so much, I knew I had to write it.

So, the setting was locked in. But why would Freddie be there in the first place? What sort of things would he get up to? And what would the big story be?

I knew it had to be a murder mystery of some kind. So, I set to work, plotting out the narrative, imagining new characters and setting up a mystery for Freddie to solve. And then I let him loose to behave badly, cause problems, upset people and investigate the case in his own inimitable fashion.

So, can Freddie catch the killer? Just how much will he eat and drink at the free buffet? And how many people will he annoy along the way?

Find out when Murder All Inclusive is published this December. Check back for further updates.