Stranger Child - Rachel Abbott - Guest Post

I'm very pleased to welcome author Rachel Abbott to the blog today! 

Rachel is the author of four novels, her new book is called Stranger Child, and she is here to tell us about the kind of research that goes into her writing. 

I've read and reviewed two of Rachel's novels so far, Only the Innocent and The Back Road, and enjoyed them both very much (click the titles to read my reviews).

A thrilling line of research

by Rachel Abbott

One of the aspects of writing that I have always thoroughly enjoyed is the research. My husband has said frequently that a police raid must be imminent as I scour the Internet to discover methods of killing people, and learn about money laundering, drug distribution and people trafficking. Fortunately I can prove – through my books – that it really has all been in the line of research.

I don’t know how writers managed before the Internet came along. I know there is much you can do in libraries, but when you are researching a thriller it’s hard to know where in any respectable library you might find out how to manufacture liquid nicotine, and where best to inject it to cause death.

When I sit down with an idea for a book, I usually start with a ‘what if?’ question. ‘What if a woman had no choice but to murder a man?’; ‘What if a man is so obsessed with his wife that he has to…’ (I’m not going to finish that sentence – it gives the game away in one of my books.)

From that initial question, I start to develop the plot. What has happened to these people to bring them to where they are now? As the ideas develop, I start to build character profiles and a timeline of events.

Even these first steps, which I believe are crucial to forming a picture in readers’ minds, require research. When I develop a character profile, I have an idea of what a character might look like. But that’s not enough. I want an actual picture so I don’t lose sight of them. I scour web images, looking for anybody – a star, a model or just somebody’s mum – that fits the bill. That image is pasted into the character profile, and I find other items to add to their portfolio – where they live, what clothes they wear, what they like to drink, and so on.

The timeline creates its own research list. In Stranger Child, Tom – the main detective in all my books – is reminiscing about his youth with older brother, Jack. I check the timeline to confirm when they were both born. What music would they have been listening to in their teens? I trawl through the charts for that year, and decide which brother would have liked which tracks.

All of this is valuable research, but for Stranger Child I had to go one step further – although I actually bottled it when it came to one part of the investigation. But I’ll come to that shortly.

In Stranger Child one character has to go into a safe deposit vault buried deep under the streets of Manchester in the middle of the night – with no light other than a head torch. For me, this would be a terrifying experience, but to make it as realistic as possible I needed to know how it might feel. So I phoned up a company (they wish to remain anonymous) and asked if I could have a tour.

Of course, I went during the day when the lights were on and it was full of people. But I stood in the centre of the room and tried to imagine I was there on my own, and it was pitch black. As it’s underground, there would be no ambient light, and the sounds from outside would be muffled.

There’s a viewing room where people take their boxes to add or remove items, and I imagined how it would feel to know that somebody might be hiding in there, waiting for me. I had to make others feel how I knew I would have felt, with an authenticity that couldn’t have been achieved without a site visit.

And now for the bit where I have to admit to being a wimp! Stranger Child references the Dark Web. For those who may not know much about the Dark Web it’s part of the Deep Web (an area of the internet that cannot be found through search engines). There are several reasons why websites and other content might legitimately not want to be accessed via search engines, but the Dark Web is the part of the Deep Web associated with the buying and selling of anything from guns and drugs to credit card details. Some use the terms Deep and Dark interchangeably, but my research suggests that there is a subtle difference. Neither, though, is readily accessible.

This was a vital part of my story, so I researched how to penetrate the Dark Web. It must be possible, or there would be no market for the illegal goods sold there! And I managed it. I actually know how to get into the Dark Web. But the truth is, I didn’t have the guts to try it.

Given the amount of attention being given to cyber crime by Europol and other agencies, for the first time since I started writing I was actually afraid of completing my research by visiting any of the sites. What if I stumbled across some seriously illegal activities? What if, entirely by mistake, I bought a gun, or found I had inadvertently bought a stack of bitcoin?

So unlike my quest for creating the realism of the vault, I relied on the fact that I knew a lot about the dark web without, thankfully, ever having visited it. And I assumed most of my readers would know no more than me.

Research for Stranger Child was fascinating, but with each book, I seem to have to delve deeper into dark worlds. So if you hear I’ve been arrested, it was all in the interests of authentic research.

About 'Stranger Child'

One Dark Secret. One act of revenge. 

When Emma Joseph met her husband David, he was a man shattered by grief. His first wife had been killed outright when her car veered off the road. Just as tragically, their six-year-old daughter mysteriously vanished from the scene of the accident. 

Now, six years later, Emma believes the painful years are behind them. She and David have built a new life together and have a beautiful baby son, Ollie. 

Then a stranger walks into their lives, and their world tilts on its axis. 

Emma’s life no longer feels secure. Does she know what really happened all those years ago? And why does she feel so frightened for herself and for her baby? 

When a desperate Emma reaches out to her old friend DCI Tom Douglas for help, she puts all their lives in jeopardy. Before long, a web of deceit is revealed that shocks both Emma and Tom to the core. 

They say you should never trust a stranger. Maybe they’re right. 

About Rachel

Rachel Abbott was born just outside Manchester, England. She spent most of her working life as the Managing Director of an interactive media company, developing software and websites for the education market. The sale of that business enabled her to take early retirement and fulfil one of her lifelong ambitions - to buy and restore a property in Italy. 

But even in Italy the winters can be cold and wet, and so Rachel decided to fill those dismal days by fulfilling another ambition - writing a psychological thriller! ONLY THE INNOCENT, her first novel, was more successful than she could ever have imagined, and it enabled her to change her life yet again, and become a full time writer. Her third novel, SLEEP TIGHT, was released on 24th February 2014 and was her third number one. Stranger Child, Rachel's latest book, was released on 24th February 2015.

Links

Web :         rachel-abbott.com

Blog:          rachelabbottwriter.com 

Twitter:     @Rachel__Abbott

Facebook: RachelAbbott1Writer

The Kraals of Ulundi - David Ebsworth - Author Interview

Today I am very pleased to welcome author David Ebsworth to the blog, with an interview as part of his blog tour. David's new novel is The Kraals of Ulundi: A Novel of the Zulu War.

Welcome to the blog David!

Hello Lindsay, and thanks for hosting this stop on the tour. It’s great to be here.

Please could you tell us a bit about your new book The Kraals of Ulundi: A Novel of the Zulu War?

Yes, of course. It’s set in 1879 and tells the story of the unprovoked invasion of Zululand in a South African land-grab that British history likes to call the Anglo-Zulu War. Kraals picks up the story from the perspective of three main characters – the Zulu warrior, Shaba; the English Lieutenant, Jahleel Brenton Carey; and the renegade trader, William McTeague.

How do you decide what you want to write about next - do you look to periods in history or places that particularly interest you and build a story from there?

Well, basically, I like to write stories that, really, I wish somebody else had written for me to read but which, for one reason or another, don’t yet exist. So yes, they’re usually “little known” periods that intrigue me.

What was the inspiration for this new novel?

In the middle of the Zulu War, the British forces were joined by an unusual observer, the French Prince Imperial, Louis Napoleon. He fell into an ambush and tragically died there. It was a story that I’d known for a long time but hadn’t been covered, so far as I could tell, in any work of fiction. So I decided to use this incident as the catalyst around which my three main characters are linked. In addition, I knew that the 50^th anniversary of the iconic movie, Zulu, was coming up and I realized, in addition, that there are no novels covering the six months of the conflict that took place after the incidents depicted in the film – the defence of Rorke’s Drift. So I like to say that Kraals picks up the story of the Zulu War where Michael Caine left off.

Do you plan extensively in advance when you write, in terms of plot and character, or do you have just an outline/main idea and then see where the words take you?

No, I don’t plan the plot itself very extensively at all. I normally lay out the bones of the actual historical events, then work a fair bit on outlines for my main characters, with lots of personal detail and background behaviour drivers. Then I really just let them loose and see where their personalities (rather than the words) take them.

How long do you spend writing a novel from start to finish, and does it vary depending on the subject matter?

Last week I finished the first full draft of my fourth novel (about the Battle of waterloo, but from the perspective of two French women) which I started last October. That’s pretty standard for me. 8-9 months for the working draft. Then it will stand for a month before I begin re-writing. During that month, I normally visit the locations to check them out and get the feeling or colour of the settings, and allow my “ideal reader” (my wife, Ann) to have a sneak preview and give me her always critically constructive opinion of the plot. Then I edit, rewrite and polish, until I’m happy with the finished version. The whole process, start to finish, takes me a year.

Do you find the novel-writing process addictive - is it hard to stop once you get going, and how do you find editing and revising your work?

Very addictive indeed! After I retired, I was looking for something that would challenge me and retain my work ethic, producing something useful but without all the stresses and strains. Novel-writing has given me exactly that, though I still write almost every day of the year. I think you have to write every day just to keep the plot flowing and get to the end – even if you’ve got limited daily free time to play with. The same applies to editing and revising. I always follow Stephen King’s advice and cut at least 10% of my first draft. That way, you keep your work tight.

Can you recommend some of your own favourite authors and/or novels please?

That’s a tough one. Without thinking about it too much, one of my earliest historical fiction influences (fifty years ago) was Rosemary Sutcliff, and particularly her brilliant Sword at Sunset. Then Dickens, I think, and Great Expectations. But my two all-time favourites must have been, first, Patrick O’Brian (with his Master and Commander, Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin series), and then Patricia Highsmith (The Talented Mister Ripley, Ripley’s Game, etc). I’m somewhat ashamed to say that I identify closely with Tom Ripley and I simply adore anti-heroes.

Would you recommend the self-published route having done this yourself?

I’d recommend self-publishing with a few health warnings, I think.  My first novel, The Jacobites’ Apprentice, was critically acclaimed by lots of lovely folk, including the Historical Novel Society, but was never going to be commercially viable enough for a traditional publisher to pick it up. So self-publishing was the obvious option. The intelligent thing would have been to simply self-publish as an eBook but, sadly, vanity kicked in and I decided to go for a print version also. There’s nothing quite like holding a ‘real’ copy of your book for the first time – but that costs money. Especially if you want it to look good. And you’re not likely to make enough sales to get your money back from the publication of one book alone. That’s true. Just look at the statistics for how many copies are sold by most first-time authors. A few hundred, if you’re lucky. So I wrote a second (The Assassin’s Mark, a Spanish Civil War thriller). More investment but better returns. Because guess what? The people who liked Assassins went off and bought Jacobites too. So then I found myself running a small business. As an authorpreneur. Spending almost as much time marketing as writing. The third book (The Kraals of Ulundi) has almost helped me to break even. And the fourth one, due to publish later this year as The Last Campaign of Marianne Tambour, will see me making a small profit. Successful friends in the business tell me that, after book number five, it’s all plain sailing. Well, we’ll see! But at least I’m in control of the whole process rather than being at the whim of an agent/publisher. Because your excellent question has another side to it. What happens if you’re phenomenally lucky to be offered a traditional deal? The vast majority of first-timers get paid pathetically small advances by publishers. Most first-timers make buttons in royalties. And most publishers will do little or nothing by way of marketing to help you get your work on bookstore shelves. So self-publishing? Yes, go for it! And if you want to test the water, be sensible and produce an eBook first. You can always go for the print version once you’ve tested the market.

But hey, thanks for the interview, Lindsay. And if any of your readers want to know more, I’m happy to pick up any questions or comments.

Author Links ~ find David on twitter @EbsworthDavid

About the novel ~

1879 – the British army has suffered one of the worst defeats in its history at the hands of the Zulu King Cetshwayo. Now the British seek revenge and a second invasion of Zululand is about to take place.

Within the Zulu regiments charged with repelling the assault is Shaba kaNdabuko − driven by ambition to share the glory of battle, to bring honour and cattle to his family.

Meanwhile, new British soldiers are shipped out to replace those lost in the military disasters, and among them is Lieutenant Jahleel Carey, likewise also hoping that adventure will bring him a change of fortune.

But there are also always those on the sidelines of conflict, profiteers like renegade trader William McTeague.

Three men, three women, will be brought together by one of the Zulu War’s strangest episodes, and their destinies will be changed forever.