Photo Diary

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DSC_0007.JPG, originally uploaded by michael_jecks.

There is a great delight in receiving the first production copies of a new book, but this one’s a special one for me. This is going to be book 25 in the series, available from May.

There is no way I would have thought that my series would pass beyond maybe ten books when I started out. The excitement of my first novel was good – but I didn’t dream wildly enough to think that I’d still be sitting at a desk today and banging on the keys to produce yet another book.

But not only have I been enormously lucky from that point of view, I’ve also seen my series win some acclaim. 2007 saw Deathship of Dartmouth chosen as one of the top crime books of the year. At the same time Peter Guttridge of the Observer newspaper chose my short story “A Case Of Identity” from ID – Crimes of Identity, a CWA anthology published by Comma Press, for special mention.

In the last years I have made a number of friends in publishing. I’ve been elected Chair of the Crime Writers’ Association, I’ve been sent to America and other countries to meet readers, and I’ve generally had a great time.

So this note is not just a self-congratulatory puff. It’s also a short note to say to all my readers: thanks! You’ve kept me in my house and paid my mortgage for the last fourteen years. I only hope you continue to enjoy the stories!

But it’s not just readers. I would like to thank here all the brilliant salespeople who’ve put my books in front of their clients. Without them, the books wouldn’t be sold.

So to all of you – thanks. All best for 2008, and keep your eyes on my events page, because there’s going to be a certain amount of travelling for me this year. With any luck I may be visiting a store near you!

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