NEWSLETTER #4
Greetings! Summer is nearly over in England, and we're all
breathing a sigh of relief. They told us global warming
would change our climate, but they didn't tell us we'd get
a monsoon season!
August has been the wettest on record, about 15 times the
monthly average rainfall in this area. Some of the deluges
lasted for 36 hours non-stop. With perfect timing, we
chose the month of August to have part of our house
re-roofed, thinking it would be reasonably dry (ha!).
The result was that one corner of my office on the top
floor of the house flooded three times. During the third
deluge, we were also hit by lightning (this is the highest
house around for some distance, and scaffold poles make
great lightning conductors). So we were without power too.
Despite the concerted efforts of nature to stop me, I've
just finished the first draft of the sixth Cooper &
Fry novel, which is due for publication in the UK in June
next year (closely followed by Canada, Australia and other
countries).
I hope you enjoy this newsletter. Previous issues have
been posted on the website so you can catch up. Follow
these direct links or paste them into your browser:
http://www.stephen-booth.com/NewsletterApril04.htm
http://www.stephen-booth.com/NewsletterFeb04.htm
http://www.stephen-booth.com/NewsletterJune04.htm
Scores of new subscribers have been signing up since the
last issue of the newsletter, so a big welcome to you all.
And don't forget, if you have any suggestions for what
you'd like to see in future issues, please don't hesitate
to let me know. Send your ideas to:
newsletter@stephen-booth.com
All the best
Stephen Booth
NEWS
ACROSS THE ATLANTIC
I know that many readers in the USA have been wondering
what's happening to the Cooper & Fry series across the
pond. Well, the reason for the unaccustomed silence in the
States for the past few months is that I've been in the
middle of changing US publishers.
The experience of moving from one publisher to another is
a bit like getting divorced or moving house - you leave a
part of your past behind you when you go. I was
particularly fond of my old editor at Scribner, Susanne
Kirk, who gave me a start in the USA by buying the
American rights to BLACK DOG very early in my published
career. But Susanne retired at the end of June, so the
time was right to make the move.
Anyway, I'm delighted to be able to tell you that I've now
signed with another major US publisher, Bantam Dell, who
will publish the next three books in the Cooper & Fry
series, starting with ONE LAST BREATH.
Because of the timing, this does mean that there'll be a
bit of a delay before the US edition of OLB. I'll post
publication dates on the website as soon as I have them.
Meanwhile, if you just can't wait, don't forget ONE LAST
BREATH is already available from booksellers in the UK and
Canada!
ONE LAST BREATH
The latest novel - number 5 in the Ben Cooper and Diane
Fry series - was published in the UK in early July and
reached number 18 on the Sunday Times bestseller list in
the first week of publication. I was pretty chuffed with
that, as it was the best performance so far by one of my
hardbacks.
OLB has also brought some recognition from the more
respectable end of the UK's national press - rare in
itself for crime fiction, or indeed any other kind of
'popular' fiction.
In 'The Independent' newspaper it was chosen as the
Wednesday Book and described by reviewer Jane Jakeman as
"The traditional crime story, endowed with literary
strength".
In the same week, a 'Sunday Telegraph' review said that
ONE LAST BREATH "underlines Stephen Booth's status as
one of our best story-tellers".
This is balm to the ears of any writer, as we're all
pretty neurotic and insecure as a species!
For a taster of OLB, the first chapter has been posted on
the website:
http://www.stephen-booth.com/breathchapter.htm
Meanwhile, one of my favourite UK crime fiction magazines,
SHERLOCK, published a profile of me in its latest issue,
written by columnist Calum McCleod:
http://www.sherlockholmes.com/
DOWN UNDER
ONE LAST BREATH was published by HarperCollins in
Australia on 25th August.
Don't ask me why the books always take a month or two
longer to reach Australia than Canada or the UK. I wonder
if they have to go into quarantine or something...
A BURST INTO VERSE
It's always fascinating to hear readers' reactions to the
books, especially as they often reveal how very different
readers are from one another. But here's a response I
heard of recently that I was quite touched by.
A reader in the USA says she was so affected by the ending
of BLACK DOG that she couldn't stop crying. Not only that,
but she was inspired to write a poem expressing the
emotions she felt. If you'd like to read it, you can find
the poem on her blog site:
http://www.livejournal.com/users/33shadow/77386.html
WARNING: if you haven't read BLACK DOG yet, some aspects
of the ending are revealed in the blog article.
And, anyway, why the heck haven't you read it?
EVENTS
BOUCHERCON 2004
Just over a month to go now until this year's Bouchercon
(the World Mystery Convention), and I'm really looking
forward to returning to Toronto for the event, which takes
place from 7th to 10th October.
For some reason, I often seem to end up providing the
light relief at these conventions. At last year's
Bouchercon, I was chosen for a panel called 'I Must Be
Twisted' and found myself talking mostly about goats, with
a few well-chosen words about artificial, er...
representations of the female reproductive system, while
the moderator demonstrated her handcuffs and another panel
member described his on-the-spot research into the brothel
business. I'm not sure how all that happened.
But now I think I must have been promoted. This year, I'm
in highly intellectual company. On Thursday 7th October
I'll be taking part in a discussion on the subject:
'Should Crime Writing Be Held to the Same Standards as
Literary Fiction?'.
My fellow panel members will be Michael Collins,
Christopher Rice and Kim Moritsugu. And those names mean,
of course, that I'll still be the light relief!
There's further punishment in store for some unfortunate
Bouchercon attendee. The convention organisers have
persuaded me to let myself be an auction item during the
charity auction on the opening night. Whoever makes the
highest bid will get the chance to have lunch with me
(there'll be a choice of other favourite authors too, so
it's not quite so bad as it sounds!).
Proceeds from the auction will go to a literacy charity
for young people who are at risk or homeless in Toronto.
If you've never attended a Bouchercon, it's the biggest
gathering of mystery fans, authors and publishers in the
world. For more information, go to:
http://bouchercon2004.com
LOVE IS MURDER
Just a reminder that I'll be International Guest of Honour
at the LOVE IS MURDER mystery convention in Chicago next
February (2005). Why not check out the most recent LOVE IS
MURDER event on their website:
http://www.loveismurder.org/
FORTHCOMING UK DATES:
Tuesday 30th November (time to be arranged)
Crime evening with Danuta Reah and Simon Kernick,
Cheltenham Library, Clarence Street, Cheltenham.
Tuesday 7th December, 7pm
Talk to readers, Waterlooville Library, Hampshire.
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PARANOID CORNER
STAY AT HOME!
I normally do an unfeasibly large number of events in the
UK each year - talks, signings, panels, bookshops,
libraries, literary festivals, crime conventions, you name
it.
I've always thought that writing the book was only half
the job of a writer, and the promotion and contact with
readers and booksellers were just as important. Also, I
really enjoy doing it!
This year, however, I needed to catch up on the writing
and get ahead with the next novel. For once, I decided not
to spend quite so much time on events, apart from two or
three signings for my favourite independent bookshops when
ONE LAST BREATH was published in July.
So I haven't attended any of the UK's major crime fiction
festivals this year. And instead of travelling around
bookstores to do signings, I visited the HarperCollins
warehouse in Glasgow and signed a thousand copies on
publication day, for distribution later on.
Ironically, the result of all this was that sales of my
books increased. So readers obviously prefer me to stay at
home and stop bothering them. I'm trying very hard not to
be hurt.
SNIPPETS
JD's PICKS
Many thanks to J.D. Singh, of Toronto bookstore Sleuth of
Baker Street, for giving ONE LAST BREATH a plug on the CBC
Radio One programme 'Sounds Like Canada'.
During a Crime Books Panel, J.D.'s picks were: 'The
Narrows' - Michael Connelly, 'One Last Breath' - Stephen
Booth, 'Briarpatch' - Ross Thomas, and 'Except the Dying'
- Maureen Jennings.
AUTHOR SQUAD
I recently joined the 'Author Squad', a panel of crime
writers who produce guest reviews for the UK's Mystery and
Thriller Book Club. The club are the current sponsors of
the Crime Writers Association's annual Dagger Awards.
I'm also going to be Guest Editor of the Mystery and
Thriller Club's magazine later this month, which is a
great honour. One thing I got the chance to do was pick
two books from the month's selections that I most wanted
to review.
My choices were Andrew Taylor's latest 1950s Lydmouth
mystery CALL THE DYING, and a wonderful collection of
supernatural short stories from John Connolly called
NOCTURNES. Keep your eye out for both of them!
UK readers might want to check out the club's website:
http://www.mysterythriller.co.uk
NEW LOOK
If you haven't visited the Stephen Booth website recently,
it has a new look. Do let me know what you think:
http://www.stephen-booth.com
COOPER & FRY COUNTRY
This is a new venture for me, but it should be a lot of
fun! On Saturday 2nd October I'll be giving a guided tour
of 'Cooper and Fry Country' to a party of readers, mostly
from Texas.
In the morning, we'll be visiting Castleton and the Hope
Valley, the setting for ONE LAST BREATH, and I'll be
pointing out the real locations used in the book, such as
Peak Cavern and the Cheshire Cheese Inn, and exploring the
history of the area.
After lunch, we'll be taking a coach tour of some of the
most beautiful parts of the Peak District. We might even
pass through Edendale and see Bridge End Farm, who knows?
I always love showing off the Peak District, so this is
something I'm really looking forward to.
These trips to England are organised on a regular basis by
Barbara Ford of Country Day Travel in Houston, Texas.
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Don't forget to send your comments or suggestions for the
newsletter to:
newsletter@stephen-booth.com
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