The Photographer.

 The Photographer is the second book in my crime novel series.

‘Suddenly he was there beside her.  She could sense him, his shadow a spirit come to claim her soul.  Blinking rapidly in an attempt to clear her vision she believed that if she could make eye contact with him she could appeal to his conscience – but she was mistaken.  He was no longer there…’

Drawn into an unimaginable nightmare professional photographer Matthew Cunningham is forced to make some very difficult decisions.

Would you sacrifice a friend for someone you love?

The Photographer is available from Amazon on Kindle for just £1.99 or $2.99

Alternatively I could send you a signed copy at just £10.00 inc postage (UK only).  

To organise delivery please message me.

Happy Reading!

First draft

Up at 6am on a wet and windy day working on the first draft of my new crime novel.

 All calm here in my study as my characters work hard to tell their story.

The trick is to listen to them.  I might think I know where the plot is going, but they often have other ideas!

The Cellist

 Haunted by a tragic childhood event Mia Ashton devotes her time and energy to music.

Mia Ashton, a hard working young cellist has always dreamt of playing to large audiences.  With a series of classical concerts designed to help boost her career and the support of an agent, her desire to become a top class musician is finally within her reach, but then tragedy strikes.

One of her colleagues is found dead soon after performing with Mia and this sets off a chain reaction that threatens to destroy everything that she has worked for.  Living in the shadow of a serial killer stirs memories from her past, pushing her ever closer to breaking point. 

Will Mia find the strength to carry on or will the killer put an end to her dreams?

Perhaps the price of fame is too great.

Available from Amazon on Kindle at just £1.99 or $2.99

Message me if you would like a signed copy for just £10.00 inc postage (UK only).

 Happy Reading.

The Royal Park Murders

Murder in the famous parks of London.

The Royal Parks of London are supposed to be safe recreational green spaces where people can enjoy exercise or relaxing in the fresh air.

Detective Inspector  Isobel Woods and her team are sent to Hyde Park where the body of a young female runner has been discovered, but what appears to be an isolated case of murder soon develops into something more complicated.

Woods is recovering from both physical and psychological wounds incurred during a previous case and now has a series of complicated personal problems to solve.

Can she cope with the building pressure as the developing case reminds her of her own vulnerability.   With the support of her team she must find and stop a serial killer from striking again.

The Royal Park Murders is still on special offer at Amazon at just 77p or 99c on Kindle.

Signed copies are available direct from me at just £10.00 inc postage (UK only).

Simply message me on kevinmarshnovels@gmail.com

Happy Reading.

New wheels

Shimano wheels fitted to my road bike

Specialized Allez road bike used only for fast training sessions and on the track

I had a pair of Mavik Aksium wheels that were rather worn out.  The braking surface or rim side wall was quite thin and in danger of splitting.

 

My old wheels were black in colour so matched the red of the bike and there were less spokes that were shaped for wind resistance.  These silver wheels don't look as good but should go just as well, so all sorted for the cycling season!

Editing

 Editing process

Editing starts at the very beginning.

I write my first and second draft by hand using a fountain pen.

This hand written draft then gets typed up on my computer with more fundamental corrections made at this point.  Once the complete manuscript is typed up, double line spaced, I then print it off, usually a ream of paper.  It then gets 'red penned' again by me then a proof reader.  Here spelling errors that have escaped my attention and many do! as well as grammar is corrected.  Continuity is also checked.  In my latest edit I found that a character called Alan had changed his name to Colin a couple of chapters later, how did that happen?Continuity is a key factor when editing.  Its common for characters to undergo an unwitting transformation of some kind so I always keep a list of characters including a brief profile so I know who thy are and what they look like.

This is my reference book, it contains character profiles, bits of dialogue that I might use, research notes and ideas, everything that I need when writing my novel.  Lots of things in here never make it into the novel but is a rich source of information for sequels or following novels in a series.

Once I have made the 'red pen' corrections from the printed draft to the typed version I then set about reading from the computer.

Errors that have been missed, and there usually are some, including paragraphs that seem awkward are changed at this point.

The editing process can take quite a long time especially if I choose to use several proof readers.  My publisher is a small operation who does not proof read my work.  I like it that way as there can be no arguments between us.  I'm not sure that I could work with an editor who insists on me changing paragraphs and dialogue or one who criticises my work too much.

From this

 to this

then this

finally this

Editing is a process that cannot be ignored, it's an integral part of the book writing process.  Unfortunately not all errors can be found, they may even exist in some of the best written books.

A Psychological thriller

 

                      The Witness                          

The day that changed her life

A beauty spot on Scotland’s east coast is where it started

The day begins innocently enough as Josie MacDonald, landscape artist, leaves her aunt’s house to walk the short distance to Spey Bay.  It’s early in the morning; the sun has just cleared the eastern horizon.  The light is perfect her surroundings peaceful so Josie finds the ideal spot and begins to paint.

Have you ever experienced a day so terrifying that it changed your life forever?

Josie had no idea what was waiting for her when she set out that morning or how the events of that fateful day would impact on her life and those of her friends.

The Witness, a psychological thriller guaranteed to excite you from the very first page.

Available on Kindle from Amazon.UK at just £1.99 or Amazon.com $2.99

Signed copies of all my books are available direct from me at just £10.00 per copy inc postage.  (UK only)

Simply message me:- kevinmarshnovels@gmail.com

Happy Reading.