On this quiet Sunday morning why don't you put the kettle on, make your favourite breakfast and settle down for Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo
🍴I'm delighted to welcome, author, Malcolm Hollingdrake to our Sunday Brunch today🍴
🍴Good morning, Malcolm , What favourite food are you bringing to Sunday brunch?
Manx kippers or scrambled eggs and smoked salmon. Not everybody will be partial to kippers!
🍴Would you like a pot of English breakfast tea, a strong Americano, or a glass of Bucks Fizz?
A strong Americano, please.
🍴Where shall we eat brunch – around the kitchen table, in the formal dining room, or outside on the patio?
Outside on the patio would be lovely.
🍴Shall we have music playing in the background? And if so will you share with us a favourite song or piece of music that makes you happy?
Considering the time of day, I think ‘The Lark Ascending’ by Ralph Vaughan Williams might be suitable – there’s a strong link to DCI Bennett there too.
🍴Which of your literary heroes (dead or alive) are joining us for Sunday Brunch today?
Ranulph Fiennes, Angie Marsons, Robert Ryan, Alan Bennett.
🍴Which favourite book will you bring to Sunday Brunch?
‘The Feathermen’ by Ranulph Fiennes.
🍴When you are writing do you still find time to read for pleasure? And is there a book you would like to read but haven’t had time for …yet!
I find little time to read. To be truthful, I have never been a reader. The only full collection of an author’s work I have read has been that of Robert Ryan. I would eagerly await his next publication.
🍴What’s the oldest book on your book shelf?
‘Enemy Coast Ahead’ by Guy Gibson published in 1946.
🍴Where do you find the inspiration for your novels?
A chance conversation, a news article or something I see can spark an idea. For ‘Treble Clef’ it was the conversation with the owner of The Bay Tree B&B whilst attending the Harrogate Crime Festival. She now proudly displays the book in the breakfast room.
🍴Have you a favourite place to settle down to write and do you find it easier to write in winter or summer?
I find I can write at any time. Even when I’m on holiday I will try to commit to one thousand words a day. At home, it’s at the dining room table. One day I’ll get a desk!
🍴When writing to a deadline are you easily distracted and if so how do you bring back focus on your writing?
I refuse now to write to deadlines. When I was published with Bloodhound Books, I was asked to write one of the seven books to a date. I wrote the 70,000 words in a very short time which meant eight-hour days. I understood why it was necessary and I was asked and accepted the challenge. Fortunately, I knew the subject matter so well it required little in the way of research.
🍴Give us four essential items that a writer absolutely needs?
Patience, diligence, confidence and a pachydermic skin. A patient partner is probably the most vital key too!
🍴What can you tell us about your latest novel or your current work in progress?
My latest published novel is ‘Threadbare’. I am pleased to say that it has been very positively received. Again, this could be read as a standalone. However, it does include a major change to two main characters within the series. I was thrilled to receive these two reviews – reviews can make or break your day!
'I was drawn into this book almost immediately and completely immersed within the first chapter.'
'Wonderfully written, giving the reader everything they might expect in a crime novel.'
'Once again, the author shows his meticulous research and his amazing ability to keep the reader hooked to the end. Malcolm Hollingdrake weaves the seemingly unconnected strands of this story into one final brilliant tapestry. Highly recommended as are all his previous books.'
It's a tale of revenge, one where the most unusual weapons are used in the process … I’m saying no more.
I have also now finished two further books for a new series set in Merseyside but the action is predominantly set in the northern part – the Ainsdale to Southport area. The main DS lives in Roby Mill, just outside Wigan and is a catch as catch can wrestler in her spare time! Please meet DS Skeeter Warlock! It has been a change to write this new series but with Covid, I have had to wait to check the locations.
I’ll add an image of a location used in the first book entitled ‘Catch as Catch Can’. The second book is entitled ‘Syn’.
🍴Malcolm, where can we follow you on social media? 🍴
Twitter@MHollingdrake
You could say that the writing was clearly on the wall for someone born in a library that they might aspire to be an author, but to get to that point Malcolm Hollingdrake has travelled a circuitous route.
Malcolm worked in education for many years, even teaching for a period in Cairo before he started writing, a challenge he had longed to tackle for more years than he cares to remember.
He has written a number of successful short stories, has ten books now available and is presently writing the tenth crime novel set in Harrogate, North Yorkshire.
Born in Bradford and spending three years at Ripon College, Malcolm has never lost his love for his home county, a passion that is reflected in the settings for all the DCI Bennett novels However, as well as the Bennett series he is writing a new series set in Merseyside.
Malcolm has enjoyed many hobbies including collecting works by Northern artists; the art auctions offer a degree of excitement when both buying and certainly when selling. It is a hobby he has bestowed upon DCI Cyril Bennett, the main character in his successful Bennett series.
***
To help with the research for my latest novel I bought and learned how to fly a drone. Research is the key to ensuring the books are real as possible. I was then asked to film the gargoyles and the tower of my local church. I’ll include a link here. The music was composed by my good friend Ian Cleverdon of The Huers. We met by chance. He was a fan of my books and I of his music.
Thanks so much, Malcolm, for joining us for Sunday Brunch
It's been great fun
Thank you for the invitation and your warm hospitality. I have thoroughly enjoyed myself.
Follow us on Twitter @Jaffareadstoo
#SundayBrunchwithJaffareadstoo
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thanks for taking the time to comment - Jaffareadstoo appreciates your interest.