Heather Burnside's Blog, page 9

Here’s a chance to win a copy of my latest novel ‘Danger by Association’. I’m giving away three signed copies in a Goodreads Giveaway.

The cover design for ‘Danger by Association’ is my favourite so far, and it looks even better in print. Big thanks once again to my fabulous cover desiger Chris Howard who you can contact at: [email protected].

For a chance of winning one of three signed print copies, just follow the link below. You will be prompted to sign into Goodreads and then be taken straight to the Goodreads Giveaway area for ‘Danger by Association’.

Giveaway ends July 29, 2016.

See the giveaway details

at Goodreads.

Enter Giveaway

Wishing you the best of luck.

I’m thrilled to have finally reached launch date for ‘Danger by Association’, book 3 in the Riverhill Trilogy. For some reason this one seems to have been a long time coming, but maybe that’s just because it’s the last book in a trilogy. If you would like to download a copy, here is that all important Amazon link: http://viewBook.at/DangerbyAssn.

Although we’ve only just reached publication day, ‘Danger by Association’ is already ranking well on Amazon UK as it has been available for pre-order since mid-May. I think its rank is attributable to the fact that the first two books in the trilogy had already found a readership, and this book appears on the list of books ‘also bought’ by purchasers of ‘Slur’ and ‘A Gangster’s Grip’.

If you have already purchased ‘Danger by Association’, I would appreciate it if you would consider leaving a review, once you have read the book, by following the above Amazon link.

I’ll be offering free copies of ‘Danger by Association’ in a Goodreads Giveaway to be announced in a later blog post so watch out for that. I’ll also be making an announcement regarding a local book signing event.

Bye for now, and thank you for all your support.

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To celebrate the launch of my concluding novel in the Riverhill Trilogy, ‘Danger by Association’, on 24th June, I will be holding a limited period free offer of ‘Slur’ – book 1.

‘Slur’ will be FREE to download to the Amazon Kindle from Friday 17th June until Sunday 19th June only. You can grab your copy by following the link: Slur Free Promo.

If you haven’t already read ‘Slur’, here is the book blurb to tempt you:

How would it feel to be accused of a murder you didn’t commit? To believe your friends, family and colleagues had turned against you. Would you reach breaking point or fight to prove your innocence?

Julie Quinley finds herself in this position following the events of one fateful night. She has to bear the slights and accusations of colleagues and acquaintances, and life becomes unbearable. Eventually, thinking that she has lost the respect of everyone around her, Julie plunges into a deep depression.

However, unknown to Julie, those closest to her are rallying support. She reaches a turning point when her friends reveal that they may have found the real killer. Realising she must act in order to clear her name, Julie joins them in trying to find evidence.

But proving a vicious murderer guilty is never going to be easy, especially when the police remain unconvinced. Will Julie and her friends succeed? And is their suspect really responsible for the crime?

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The latest book in the trilogy, ‘Danger by Association’ is already available for pre-order, and you can grab your copy here.

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As we’re drawing closer to the launch date of 24th June for ‘Danger by Association’, I thought I would share an excerpt with you. In this first chapter Rita has returned to Manchester to attend her brother’s wedding.

After the trauma of her previous visit (as shown in ‘A Gangster’s Grip’), Rita regarded her return with trepidation. This trip won’t be any better for her because her son is in danger. As you can see from this first chapter, there are already signs of trouble, which intensifies as the book progresses:

Chapter 1

Saturday 8th June 1996

Rita walked in front of her family and greeted them before taking her seat at the front of the church. Her mother, Joan, was seated to her left, resplendent in her new outfit from C & A. To the left of Joan was Rita’s father, Ged, looking uncomfortable in his one best suit. As Rita cast her eyes across the front pew she noticed him loosening his shirt collar and adjusting his tie.

Furthest away from Rita, and occupying the inside seat of the pew, was her brother, John, nervously awaiting his bride-to-be, with his best man Tony buoying him up. Rita smiled at John before switching her attention to her husband, Yansis.

Rita felt mixed emotions as she thought about the absent family member. It was five years since her sister, Jenny, had died but on days like today she missed her more than ever. This was the first time Rita had returned to Manchester since Jenny’s death. She lived in Greece, where she and Yansis ran a restaurant.

Her sister’s demise was such a traumatic event that Rita had taken a lot of persuading before she agreed to return to Manchester. But how could she miss her brother’s wedding? So here she was. But only on the condition that she went nowhere near the Riverhill Estate. The place where it had happened. The place where her parents still lived.

Although Rita no longer lived in Manchester, she thought of her sister daily. She always would. Every time she looked at her son’s face she was reminded of Jenny. Because, even though Rita and Yansis called Daniel their son, it was Jenny who had given birth to him. As Rita thought about Jenny, she gazed with affection at Daniel who was shuffling impatiently in his seat between her and Yansis.

“It won’t be long now till the bride gets here,” she whispered as she took in his familiar features and gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze.

As though in response to her words, the organist began to play the wedding march. Rita, along with almost everyone else, turned to see the bride walk up the aisle, which was lined with exquisite blossoms in a delicate pink and white colour scheme.

Rita had never met Paula in person; she had only seen her in photographs. She was a stunning girl, and Rita felt happy for John who gazed proudly at her as she approached. Paula looked radiant in her beautiful off-the-shoulder wedding gown with sweetheart neckline. The onlookers were captivated as she progressed down the aisle, the layers of tulle flowing from a tiny fitted waist against which she clutched a lovely bouquet. Yes, John had definitely done himself proud and, if her parents were to be believed, Paula was a lovely person too.

As the bride drew closer, Rita caught the eye of her best friend, Julie, sitting a few rows back with her husband, Vinny. A few seconds later, the bride joined John at the front of the church, and the wedding march died down. The congregation cleared their throats and hushed their children, and the vicar allowed them time to settle down before beginning the ceremony.

Joan had already broken out her tissues and sat sniffing throughout the entire service. Rita wondered whether it was through happiness for John or sorrow at her missing child. Maybe it was a combination of the two. Rita’s mind wandered again to the last time the family had been together, apart from John who had been stationed abroad in the army.

The hospital. The endless wait. Desperately hoping she’d pull through. The devastating news from the doctor. Rita stopped herself, determined not to succumb to tears. This was a happy occasion and she’d make damn sure she enjoyed it. She tried to ignore her mother’s whimpering as she focused on the ceremony.

Once outside, the emotional strain was forgotten amidst the excited chatter, words of congratulations and organising the photographs. Rita was too busy to think about emotions as she and Yansis had resolved to keep Daniel clean and tidy at least until the pictures were taken.

Although he was a good child, he was a typical five-year-old boy. Carried away by the novelty and excitement of the occasion, he was more intent on racing around the manicured church lawns than posing for photographs in a stuffy suit.

“Oh, it was lovely wasn’t it?” said Julie as she and Vinny joined them on the lawn after the photographs had been taken. “I was filling up when she walked down the aisle in that gorgeous dress.”

“Don’t be so bleedin’ soft, you daft sod,” said Rita. “You’re supposed to be happy, not crying your eyes out. You’re as bad as my mam. I think she went through a full packet of man-sized by the time it was over.”

“You’re bloody heartless you, Rita,” laughed Julie.

They circulated for a while, chatting to friends and relatives until it was time to go to the wedding reception. Then they crowded into a minibus, which John and Paula had laid on especially for the occasion. Within minutes they arrived at the venue, which was a hotel.

It wasn’t long before they were all seated ready for the wedding breakfast. But they had to go through the speeches first. This was the moment Rita was dreading. She knew it would be emotional. John was bound to mention Jenny. There was no way he would ignore her absence.

Unlike the church service though, where she had a front row seat, Rita was now surrounded by people on all sides. If she became overcome by emotion it would be difficult to hide. And she didn’t want to get upset. This was John and Paula’s big day, and despite Jenny no longer being with them, it should nevertheless be a happy one.

After dreading the speeches, she was surprised at how smoothly it went. John handled the matter well and she felt proud of him.

“I want to propose a toast to all our loved ones who sadly can’t be with us,” he said as he held up his glass. Everybody raised their glasses in respect and John quickly added, “I’m sure they’d want us all to enjoy this day so I don’t want to see any tears.”

Rita’s mother took a deep breath and shoved her tissues inside her handbag.

Daniel was fidgety during the meal and couldn’t wait to run around outside with his newfound friends. Fortunately, the wedding reception was in a hotel within its own grounds so he could play out safely. Once he had eaten enough, Rita and Yansis let him go. Then it was time for the adults to relax. While Daniel played outside, Rita and Julie chatted to some of Rita’s older relatives. They were all interested in Rita’s life in Greece and she enjoyed telling them all about it, as well as discussing her wider family.

When the meal was finished, Rita, Yansis, Julie and Vinny found somewhere else to sit while the hotel staff cleared the tables ready for the evening reception. Yansis and Vinny soon struck up a conversation while the girls chatted amongst themselves.

“That grand aunty of yours was a card, Rita,” remarked Julie. “She could hardly take her eyes off Yansis.”

“I know; did you hear what she said?” Rita asked, before answering her own question. “‘I’ve always liked the Mediterranean men myself. They’re really sexy.’ I had to wedge myself between her and Yansis to protect him. She might be in her seventies but there’s life in the old girl yet.”

Rita and Julie laughed heartily, and Rita soon felt as though she had been teleported back ten years. To the good times of her younger days. All the great nights out she had spent with Julie and the girls. That was before life got in the way, and a series of traumatic experiences had changed her and Julie irrevocably. But today she was going to be relaxed and carefree.

“There are some right eccentrics in our family, Julie,” Rita continued, “The bloody Addams family have got nothing on us.”

Then, spotting her Aunty Irene heading towards them, she added, “Talking of which, here’s one now, Aunty Irene, my dad’s sister, got a tongue on her like a viper.”

She whispered the last few words as her Aunty Irene came within earshot.

“Hello Rita, I thought it was you,” she announced once she reached them.

“Hello Aunty Irene,” sighed Rita.

“Well, aren’t you going to introduce me then? I’ve never met your husband; I wasn’t at your wedding. Is this him?”

Rita made the introductions, and Yansis, Vinny and Julie shook her aunty’s hand politely. Once Aunty Irene had the attention of everyone around the table, she asked Rita, “Was that Jenny’s son I saw earlier? Good-looking little lad, isn’t he? Takes after his mother.”

“No!” said Rita. “You saw Daniel, my son; mine and Yansis’s.”

Yansis, Julie and Vinny looked on, aware of Rita’s feelings about Daniel, as the aunty continued.

“Yes but, you know what I mean.”

“As far as Daniel is concerned, me and Yansis are his parents and I don’t want anyone telling him anything different.”

“But surely he’ll have to find out eventually?” Aunty Irene asked. “He’ll know there’s something amiss; even Yansis isn’t as dark as Daniel.”

“He’ll find out when he’s old enough and when we decide to tell him. But that won’t be for a long time. He’s only five years old, for God’s sake! It’s too much for him to take in.”

Rita could feel her temper rising but she tried to hold it in check. She didn’t want to spoil her brother’s wedding by having a set to with her Aunty Irene, but her aunty wasn’t finished yet.

“Alright, I can see you’re upset. I know you don’t want to be reminded about Jenny. It was a sad day when she died. Your mother and father were broken-hearted, and when you took that little boy away they were beside themselves …”

“What do you mean?” Rita cut in before she had a chance to carry on.

“Well, you weren’t here of course. You’d taken him all the way to Greece, but I was the one having to console them when they were missing him.”

“You could have bloody well fooled me!” Rita snapped, unable to put up with her aunty’s venom any longer. “My dad couldn’t get rid of him quick enough. He was too frightened of him cramping his style. So don’t you go telling me they were pining for him! And as for you; we only bloody see you at weddings and funerals.”

Her aunty was speechless following this outburst. Rita was about to continue but, before she could say any more, she felt a tug on her arm.

“Rita, didn’t you want to go and talk to John and his new wife?” asked Julie. “There’s nobody with them now. Come on while we’ve got a chance.”

Julie’s words brought Rita to her senses. She stood up, grabbed her handbag, slammed her chair underneath the table and walked away with Julie. As they were walking off, Rita could hear her aunty shouting after her, “That child should be here with his family; not miles away, living with a load of strangers. What you did was wicked!”

“Did you hear that?” Rita asked Julie, “The cheeky cow!” Rita turned, about to retaliate, but Julie kept a tight grip on her arm.

“Don’t rise to it, Rita. Don’t let her spoil your brother’s wedding. If you go back, you’ll be letting her win. Come on!”

For a few moments Rita hovered, indecisive, but Julie’s insistent tugging at her arm persuaded her to keep walking. Rita didn’t head straight for John and his bride though. She was too annoyed, and needed to calm down first. She and Julie made their way outside the room where they found some ladies’ toilets in a different part of the hotel. Rita wanted to vent her anger without being overheard.

Once they were inside, they checked the cubicles. While Julie tapped on each of the doors to make sure they weren’t occupied, Rita hammered and kicked at them. It was her way of letting go of her rage at the same time. She had just moved away from one cubicle and was attacking the next one when the door opened. A young woman emerged looking terrified. Without making eye contact, and not even stopping to wash her hands, she swiftly exited the ladies’ toilets.

“Bloody hell, Rita; you’ve frightened the life out of the poor sod!” said Julie.

This realisation caused a break in the tension and Rita stopped kicking at the doors, “I’m sorry, Julie. I didn’t mean to go off on one. But thanks for pulling me away; it’s a good job you did.”

“I know you, Rita. I could see she was annoying you.”

Rita fished inside her bag for her cigarettes and lighter while sounding off to Julie, “She’s a cheeky cow! What business is it of hers? I wouldn’t mind but when I was at home she hardly ever came to see my mam and dad, so what would she know?”

Julie gave her time to let off steam. They knew each other so well that Julie could predict exactly how she would react. After a few minutes of venting, she began to settle down, “Eh, I hope Yansis and Vinny were alright being left with her.”

“Don’t worry about them two; I’m sure they can handle her. She probably went off with her tail between her legs once you’d given her a piece of your mind.”

“I’m not so sure, Julie. She’s a nasty old bitch by all accounts.” Rita then apologised again, now she was feeling calmer. “I’m sorry Jules, I didn’t mean to go off on one.”

“It’s OK, Rita. It wasn’t your fault; I’d have felt the same.”

“Look, I’m not gonna let that evil old cow get to me. This is our John’s wedding and I’m gonna bloody well enjoy it.”

And she meant what she said. Once she had finished her cigarette and calmed herself down, they returned to the reception, passing her dad on the way. She couldn’t fail to miss him; he was so loud. But she wasn’t going to let that worry her.

She could have become irritable watching him make an arse of himself, boasting loudly about his latest scam, but she wouldn’t. She could have focused on her dead sister, but she wouldn’t. No, she was going to make the best of things. After all, that was what she had come back to Manchester for: to enjoy her brother’s wedding. With that in mind, she and Julie went off to chat to Rita’s brother and to introduce themselves properly to Paula.

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‘Danger by Association’ is already available in print from Amazon. The Kindle version will launch on 24th June, but you can pre-order your copy here.

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Strangeways prison, now known as HMP Manchester, is one of the places featured in my forthcoming novel, Danger by Association. It is a high-security category A prison.

In my latest novel, a rather unsavoury character called Maurice leaves the prison after serving a five year sentence. Maurice is then released back into a society, which isn’t very accepting of people like him.

For this article I thought I would give some background to the prison, which dates back to the nineteenth century and is a rather imposing building.

The building itself is Grade II listed, and its construction was completed in 1869. The original design was for the prison to house 1,000 inmates. It has walls which are 16 feet thick and were designed to be impenetrable. The ventilation tower, shown in the background of the picture, is a well-known landmark, which is often mistaken for a watchtower.

The design of the prison is based on a panopticon. This is a type of building designed by Jeremy Bentham, an English philosopher, in the 18th Century. A panopticon building is in the shape of a star. It has an inspection house or watchtower at its centre with wings branching off from the central area. The idea of this concept was for inmates to be observed without them always being aware of the fact that they are being watched.

Strangeways has ten wings, which branch out from two blocks. The diagram below shows the largest of the two blocks, which houses six wings.

Strangeways housed both male and female prisoners until 1963, but it is now a male only prison. It currently holds over 1200 hundred prisoners, and began taking remand prisoners in 1980. The name ‘Strangeways’ originates from the Anglo-Saxon word Strang gewoesc, which means, ‘a place by a stream with a strong current’.

Until 1964, executions were carried out at Strangeways. It had an execution room and a cell for the condemned prisoner as well as a permanent gallows. Between 1869 and 1964, 100 people were executed at Strangeways including the hanging of James Inglis. This was recorded as the world’s quickest hanging, and took just seven seconds.

The Strangeways Prison Riot – 1990

Prisoner protests about the conditions within the prison led to the riots of 1990. At that time, over 1600 prisoners were being held in a prison designed to house 1000 prisoners. The riot began in the prison chapel, but soon spread to other areas of the prison.

The riot lasted 25 days and prisoners were famously captured staging a rooftop protest. During the riot one prisoner was killed, and one prison officer died of a heart attack. Injuries were sustained by 147 prison officers and 47 prisoners. The total cost of repairing the damage to the prison was £90 million. Prisoners across the country responded by carrying out further disturbances in a number of other prisons.

Following the riots, the Government held a public enquiry. The outcome was for a major reform of the prison system. Strangeways was closed while substantial repairs and modernization took place. It re-opened in 1994 when it was renamed, HMP, Manchester. It now houses over 1200 male prisoners.

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I can now announce that my latest novel ‘Danger by Association’, book 3 in the Riverhill Trilogy, is available for pre-order on the Amazon Kindle. Here are the links:

UK: http:/www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01FE2A2BU.

US: http:/www.amazon.com/dp/B01FE2A2BU.

I am also thrilled to reveal the cover for ‘Danger by Association’. It is the work of talented book cover designer, Chris Howard, and I think it is his best one yet.

The image captures the exact mood I was looking for, and features our feisty heroine, Rita, complete with fiery red hair to match her temperament. Also, the colouring conveys the theme of danger, even in a thumbnail size. When you view the book cover in full size, you can see that bullets form a lot of the background image.

If you are interested in Chris’s work, he can be contacted at: [email protected].

Here is the cover image with the book blurb below:

Book Blurb

Rita has been avoiding Manchester; it brings back too many bad memories. She still has harrowing flashbacks of ruthless gangster, Leroy, and the death of a loved one. It takes the wedding of her brother, John, to persuade her to return. She agrees, on the condition that she steers clear of the Riverhill estate and Leroy’s family.

When her son, Daniel, is placed in danger, Rita is lured back to the Riverhill where she confronts those she believes responsible. She receives support from an unlikely source who promises information subject to terms. Realising that she needs help to act on that information, Rita turns to her brother, John.

But John works for the law. And he will have to go against everything he believes in if he agrees to embark on a maverick mission to help save his sister’s son.

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‘Danger by Association’ is scheduled for publication on 24th June. I will be making further announcements regarding promotions and other activities via this blog as we draw nearer to publication date.

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The two housing estates, which form the main settings for my Riverhill Trilogy, are what are often described as sink estates. These are the Riverhill Estate and the Buckthorn Estate. In the lead up to the release of the third book in the trilogy, ‘Danger by Association’, I thought I would give some background relating to sink estates and describe how they earned the label.

The name sink estate is usually given to British council housing estates in deprived, urban areas. This type of estate often has high levels of crime although this isn’t necessarily a characteristic of such estates.

There are various theories as to how the name sink estates originated, and it is believed that it was probably a label given by the media. It came into use in the 1980s although this type of estate existed before then. Tony Blair famously used the term sink estates in a 1998 speech when he referred to ‘so-called sink estates’.

One of the theories is that the tag relates to the term, ‘behavioural sink’, which was used by ethologist John B Calhoun to describe the breakdown in behaviour resulting from overcrowding. He used rats and mice to conduct experiments on overcrowding and published a report in the Scientific American weekly newspaper in 1962 based on his findings.

There is a belief that sink estates were created by the right to buy scheme that existed under Margaret’s Thatcher’s conservative government of the 1980s and 1990s. Residents on the more popular council estates were most likely to take advantage of the scheme, and also most likely to qualify for mortgages.

On the other hand, in areas with high levels of unemployment and high crime rates, residents were unlikely or unable to purchase their council properties. At that time, there were cutbacks on council spending for housing improvements. Therefore, the less popular areas became increasingly run-down, and their residents became more isolated from the rest of society.

On the worst estates, crime is a way of life. It happens openly and residents are often frightened of reporting it to the police because of reprisals. Many also turn to crime to boost their income as a result of a lack of employment opportunities.

The word ‘sink’ itself also has various other negative connotations:

It is often difficult for residents of these estates to break away as behaviour patterns pass from generation to generation. Moreover, residents may have difficulty finding work because of employer pre-conceptions relating to certain areas.

I am making good progress with ‘Danger by Association’ and should be on schedule for a June launch. More news will follow.

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It’s often said that writers find inspiration in the most unusual places. One example that sticks in my mind is that of song writer and famous singer Barry Gibb who tells the tale of how he came up with the idea for the song, ‘Chain Reaction’. Apparently he had been sitting on the lavatory and then pulled the chain to flush it (back in the days when lavatories had chains rather than a handle). This prompted the idea, ‘I’m in the middle of a chain reaction’, which is a line from the chorus of the song ‘Chain Reaction’, penned by Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees and sung by Diana Ross.

A few weeks ago I was writing a particular scene from my latest novel, which is the third book in the Riverhill Trilogy. During the scene I have an unsavoury character walking through the shopping precinct on the Riverhill estate. I wanted to capture how run-down the estate was and how this particular character fitted into his environment. I had written an initial draft of the scene, but wasn’t quite happy with it. It didn’t feel seedy enough.

I took a break and went for a walk, which often helps to clear my head and make me feel more relaxed. In fact, I often find that when I switch off for a while rather than toiling over a difficult scene, the ideas flow more easily.

Whilst I was out walking, to my dismay, I noticed an unusually large amount of dog dirt on the streets. After recoiling from the filthy mess, an idea hit me. That’s it, I thought – dog dirt. Yes, dog dirt, with flies buzzing round it. This triggered other thoughts and by the time I returned home I had the scene written in my head. I just needed to type it up on the computer. I’ve included the scene below, and hope that it now hits the right tone:

As he progressed through the precinct, Maurice encountered occasional globules of yellowy green mucus stuck to the ground. Its consistency was so thick and slimy that it usually took several downpours of rain to wash it away. Catarrh; a product of pollution, cheap cigarettes and poor diet.

Maurice trudged along, kicking up greasy paper wrappings that had spilt from the overflowing bin outside the fish and chip shop. The wind had blown litter against a small wall surrounding a bogus raised border. Its upper area was now a failed garden full of barren bushes, downtrodden weeds, cigarette butts and the occasional used condom. Among the litter, flies fed hungrily on dog faeces and discarded chips spilling from a carton.

He continued on past the last shop, a bookies. Curiosity made him glance inside; it was the busiest shop on the precinct, crowded, dark and fuggy with the haze of exhaled cigarette smoke and cannabis hanging in the air.

This was his sort of area; a place where the menacing and the vulnerable co-existed.

Book 3 in the gritty Riverhill Trilogy of crime thrillers is scheduled for publication in the summer. I’ll be including more excerpts and background information as we approach publication date.

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I’ve just been doing some rewrites for my latest novel, which is book three of the Riverhill Trilogy. Although (to me anyway) this novel screams out for a prologue, originally I didn’t include one. The book’s opening is a departure from the rest of the book as well as from the first two books in the trilogy. It takes place in a different year and setting from the rest of book three, and a different setting from the first two books. However, its relevance is revealed as the book progresses.

Feedback from my beta readers was mixed in relation to what was then chapter one. They commented on its detachment from the rest of the book but said that it was an effective device in terms of what follows later. This reaffirmed my belief that it should in fact be a prologue rather than a chapter.

So, why didn’t I go with my gut instinct and make it a prologue in the first place?

I’m embarrassed to say that I bowed to outside pressure. You see, prologues are on those lists of things to avoid, which the publishing industry are fond of producing. Although I’ve already sounded off about this topic in my previous blog post Breaking the Writing Rules, I still avoided having a prologue when it was clearly the right thing to do. Silly me.

In fact, the publishing industry are so emphatic when they set these rules that I was still hesitant. I therefore carried out some research about prologues. Apparently, the reason they fell out of favour was because many authors weren’t using them to good effect. One of the cited examples of poor use of prologues includes using an excerpt from a later part of the book to stimulate reader interest. Publishers and agents have now dubbed prologues as ‘overused’.

During my research I read several articles about how and when to use a prologue. These all agreed that prologues can still be effective if used in the right way. And the good news is that my prologue fits in with many of the stated guidelines for effective prologues. It is set in a different time and place and it carries additional information which is relevant later in the book.

Once I had established all this, I felt more confident about using a prologue. But really, I should never have doubted it. After all, I’m an independent author and therefore don’t necessarily have to bend to the will of traditional agents and publishers. Isn’t that part of what being an independent is all about? My prime considerations should be my readers and what works best for the book.

In terms of readers, those who have read the first two books in the trilogy are used to reading books about feisty females from council estates battling against the extreme challenges life throws at them. Therefore, they will expect similar from the third book.

My readers aren’t necessarily into reading about all action heroes in war zones. So I don’t want to put them off by giving them the impression that the whole book is about a group of soldiers in Iraq. Therefore, the way to achieve this is to use a prologue. That way, it will be more evident to readers that the opening of the book is additional background information rather than part of the main setting. It comes into play later in the book as it helps to explain the motivations of one of the main characters.

I’d love to hear views from other authors and readers regarding prologues. Do you like prologues? If not, why not? Have you used a prologue in a book? If so, what made you use one?

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For independent authors, beta readers play a key role in getting a book ready for publication. If you become traditionally published, you will have an editor (or sometimes a team of editors) assigned whose job it is to help bring your book up to market standards. However, if you’re an independent author you won’t have this advantage. So it’s great to know that there is a willing bunch of volunteers out there who will act as beta readers.

Essentially this means that they will read through your book before it goes to market and give you valuable feedback. This enables you to make any necessary adjustments and bring your book up to as high a standard as possible before publication.

What they do – Some of the tasks that beta readers will carry out are to check for inconsistencies (plot holes) and errors, and problems with character development, continuity or feasibility. They could also make suggestions on ways in which to improve the story, for example, if there are areas of the novel in which you need to show more of the action rather than just telling the tale.

When you’ve been working on a book for several months it’s sometimes difficult to be objective. It’s therefore invaluable to get the opinion of an unbiased third party who will notice things that you may have overlooked.

Sometimes beta readers will also highlight proofreading errors, but this depends on the beta reader. On most occasions, proofreading is undertaken as a separate task and it doesn’t generally fall under the remit of the beta reader.

How to get them – There are various ways of getting the message out that you are looking for beta readers. You could try putting a request on your blog, or put a message up on social media to let people know. Goodreads is another good way to make people aware and there are Indie author threads in many of the Goodreads groups, which will allow you to put up messages about your books. If you have a mailing list, you could also try adding a request for beta readers to your newsletter.

Who they are – Sometimes fellow authors may offer to beta read for you, and it’s often useful to have a reciprocal arrangement whereby you help each other. You may also find enthusiastic readers, book reviewers, people who are interested in your work, or others who want to improve the quality of published books on the market.

It’s great to have a good balance of beta readers to offer different perspectives. My current beta reading team includes male and female, authors and readers, and people from both the UK and the US.

It’s probably not a good idea to ask family and friends to be beta readers. It’s difficult for somebody to be totally honest when they share a close relationship with you. They may hold back or, on the other hand, if they give you some unwelcome criticism it may cause ill feeling between the two of you.

How many? – As each beta reader will concentrate on the aspects of a book that are important to them, it’s useful to have several beta readers. I would aim for at least four, but more if possible. I personally think that five or six is an ideal number but other authors may disagree.

Dealing with feedback – It can be difficult when you realise that your book isn’t at quite as high a standard as you thought it was. Bear in mind though that it’s best to have it brought to your attention at this stage rather than have reviewers point out any failings.

Each beta reader will have their own preferences and their own point of view, and because you will write your book in your own particular style, you won’t necessarily want to act on every single one of their comments. It’s up to you as the author to decide which changes you want to make to enhance your book. It’s also worth bearing in mind, though, that if more than one person brings something to your attention, then it’s probably something you need to address.

I want to take this opportunity to thank my wonderful team of beta readers for the excellent job they do. I value their input and appreciate all their helpful suggestions.

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