My latest Australian Crime Fiction release, Grave Risk will be out very soon.
I've just ordered paperbacks for my website and various book tours, but while reviewing the files, I noticed something I've never really paid much attention to before...
When I write, I use real plane or chopper models, correct police issue guns, the right vintage vehicles for the setting, and before I publish, I ensure that I do my research on these things.
Why?
You might think one car is the same as the next, and can't Dawn just jump into a plane and go, or why does it really matter if a Glock pistol has a mechanical or auto safety?
Over the years, I've found it matters to some readers (alot). But more than that, knowing where the gear stick is, or what the seating configuration is in a chopper or plane or even if the cop has to click the safety off before firing, matters to me. To my imagination. To how I see the scene playing out in my head as I'm writing.
That brings me to the next odd thing of noted.
Many authors just write the book, chapter by chapter and fact check the details on edit. That's not me at all. I generally stop writing mid-sentence, do my research, find out exactly how Dawn would need to get into a Cessna 310 plane and where she might sit and will she be able to hear Detective Ryan talking when they are flying? Does she need earphones? Where do they plug in?
All these details form part of the scene, in my head, and on the page (or computer screen in my case).
So next time you're reading one of my crime/mystery books, I hope you can see the model plane or chopper and imagine the rusted doors on Jenny's vintage Dodge and understand why her finger rests on the side of the trigger guard, not on the trigger, when she's aiming her pistol at someone or entering a hostile environment.
Details matter. Research matters. To me more than anyone.
Just a reminder that I now ship paperbacks worldwide to most destinations through direct sales on my website and I've stocked up early for Grave Risk.
