CRIME AUTHORS SPILL THEIR GUTS ABOUT WRITING. Every Thursday top-notch authors of psychological thrillers and crime fiction share their writing secrets – and the secrets to their success – with you and me.
‘I’ve read a lot of books recently that have far too much padding and repetition. Surely every word should earn its place.
This week: MAUREEN CARTER author of two Birmingham-based crime series
Tell us about yourself…
I was born in Stafford and after a career in the media I turned to writing fiction rather than reporting fact. I’m now the author of two crime series set in my adopted city, Birmingham.
Having worked on newspapers, radio and for BBC TV, I’m still a news junkie and this is reflected in my books which often explore the media’s impact on high-profile police investigations.
My first novel Working Girls was published in 2001. I’m currently writing my fourteenth which is called Dead Time, and is due out in the autumn.
When I’m not writing, I’ll either be reading or catching up with friends. I love coffee, crosswords, a cat called Whisky and the occasional carafe of rosé.
How do you pick character names?
With great difficulty. It can take an age and I frequently use search and replace to change names halfway through writing a book. I think choosing the right names for every character is crucial. They help me – and hopefully the reader – conjure mental pictures of people. They also go some way to signposting a person’s age, class and where they come from. Of course they can also be used occasionally to point the reader in the wrong direction… TO READ IN FULL, CLICK HERE
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