Off to London tomorrow to visit my publisher (See My Writing Life) but I shall be keeping an eye on the Test Match. Cricket is the sport I played and followed. I was brought up with it. My Father and brother played for Middlesbrough First team and I had just got into the Middlesbrough Second team when I was away to Teachers’ College (abbreviated course during the war) then into RAF aircrew. So my cricketing was interrupted. On demob I did not return to Middlesbrough but settled in Ampleforth and became involved with the village team and had over twenty years of happy cricket.

I don’t think we have the right team for this match against South Africa.

Tomorrow I go to London to visit my publisher at the request of the Commissioning Editor. Why? To discuss my present novel and my future plans, but just what that will mean and lead to I won’t know until I am there. All very interesting and exciting.

I have also had news from the Senior Editorial Editor that a deal has been struck for them to provide a reissue of five of my earlier novels in paperback:  Restless Heart, Long Way Home, Secrets of the Sea, Reach For Tomorrow, Yesterday’s Dreams, for a Jessica Blair Promotion.

The novel I am writing at the moment went exceedingly well yesterday.

In the last week I have received two emails appreciating my books; one from someone in this country, the other from Vancouver Island, Canada.

I have received many emails concerning my books since emails became a regular way of communication for many people. I have received them from all over the world, even one from a cruise ship sailing in the Carribean, another from a popular Country and Western singer in Australia who, in appreciation of the pleasure he found in my books, sent me a copy of one of his CDs which had a track on it called Duncan. Though the singer didn’t know it, I have a son called Duncan who happened to be at home when that CD arrived. There is no prize for guessing which was the first track we played!

I appreciate hearing from people and learning what they think of my books. Many relate them to their visits to the Yorkshire coast especially Whitby which nearly always figures in my novels.

 Although publishers have a publicity department to promote their authors it is not possible for them to give as much publicity to each author as they would like, so it does behove authors to promote some publicity for themselves. The author knows local outlets and local publicity  venues better than the publisher and can tap into these more readily. But author and publisher should work easily together. So, for my next paperback DANGEROUS SHORES which is due out on November 6th I decided to get some postcard-size publicity shots similar to the illustration here. The product looks good in its finished form, nicely coloured, gloss finished and with a substantial feel to it. Now it is a question of deciding how long before publication should they be distributed? And afterwards deciding if it was worthwhile

It is arguable which form of publicity has the most impact and it is not easy to define the impact of a book review, a broadcast, a television interview, signing sessions and so on. I have done them all, as well as giving talks and appearing on panels but I cannot say which had most influence, if any, on book sales. In some quarters it is generally accepted that word of mouth is the best publicity – that maybe so but the book has to be in people’s hands and read first.

Ah well, it is all part of the writing life and keeps it interesting.

I last week I read that Susan Hill has another book coming out on 9th October: THE MAN IN THE PICTURE.
I was delighted, especially as the comment stated that it is in the same vein as THE WOMAN IN BLACK. She is one of my favourite living writers and her THE WOMAN IN BLACK one of my favourite reads. She uses an economy of words but with such telling effect to create a chilling atmosphere and hold the reader’s attention so that it is impossible to put the book down. THE MAN IN THE PICTURE I believe is 160 pages (THE WOMAN IN BLACK was also short by many of today’s standards) so proving that length does not matter so long as the story is well told and well written. There is one other of her books of a similar vein THE MIST IN THE MIRROR which is not often mentioned – possibly because it is overshadowed by THE WOMAN IN BLACK – but is equally captivating.
Incidentally, I like all other writing by Susan Hill.