Author Adam Croft Answers all our Questions

1. Latest Book: The Perfect Lie
2. First of all – Can you give us the ‘elevator pitch’ version of your latest book.
   ‘What if you were framed for a murder you didn’t commit?’
3. Tell us something about yourself that we likely don’t know! The more obscure the better!
   I once ruptured my Achilles tendon by taking off my shoes and was on crutches for six weeks. That wasn’t much fun.
4. Do you write in silence, or with music? If you write to music, give us the top three songs on your writers’ playlist this week.
   Either in absolute silence or occasionally with music but it has to either be classical or some weird Tibetan bowl music. I can’t have any music with words, as that distracts me.
5. Are you a Plotter or Pantser?
   Definitely a plotter. I’d never get 4-6 books a year out otherwise.
6. Have your characters ever ‘gone off script’ – hijacked your story and taken it in a direction you didn’t expect?
   Yes, a few times. I even had one character introduce himself in one of my series and become a major player. I wasn’t keen on that, so I killed him off in the third book.
7. If you could spend time with any character from any of your books, who would it be and what would you do?
   That’s a difficult question. Quite a lot of my characters are unlikable in many ways. They’re definitely flawed. I think Ellis Flint from my Kempston Hardwick mysteries would be fun to have a beer with.
8. Which of your characters can you say you would least get along with in real life?
   I think Kempston Hardwick and I would either be best friends and soul mates or we’d completely rub each other up the wrong way.
9. Do you read your reviews?
   No, I haven’t done for years.
10. What has been the toughest criticism you have been given since becoming a published author?
    I’m really not sure. There’s criticism coming from all angles when you’re a writer, so I don’t really notice it any more. Mostly it just spurs me on to prove people wrong anyway, so I’m fine with it.
11. What is the best compliment you have received?
    It’s always lovely when people get in touch to say I’ve reignited their love of reading, or that they hadn’t read a book since school but have just been out and bought five of mine. That’s pretty unbeatable.
12. Do you have a day job when you are not writing? If so, what do you do?
    No, I’ve been a full-time author for a few years now.
13. Can you name three authors who have inspired your writing?
    Peter James, Agatha Christie, Harold Pinter.
14. What was your favourite book as a child?
    That’s a very good question. I loved books when I was a child, but I also have a dreadful memory. I’ll have to ask my mum!
    The end of The Perfect Lie was difficult to write. It brought me to tears at one point.
15. What scene in your latest book was the hardest scene to write (without giving away too many spoilers!)
    The end of The Perfect Lie was difficult to write. It brought me to tears at one point. I had the same thing at the end of Jack Be Nimble and a few others. If it can affect me, I hope it does the same for readers!
16. Do you have any other author friends? If so, can you name a few and have any of them given you a piece of advice you would consider invaluable on your publishing journey?
    Oh crikey, yes. Far too many to name. I host a crime fiction podcast called Partners in Crime and we’ve interviewed most of the big names – Peter James, Mark Billingham, Lynda La Plante, Val McDermid, Tess Gerritsen… They’re all wonderful people and so friendly. Lots have been very supportive, including Dreda Say Mitchell, Stephen Booth, Simon Toyne, RC Bridgestock and dozens of others. It’s a very close community and I’m honoured to have a lot of friends in it.

For Bonus Brownie Reader Points – Answer our four fabulous frivolous questions:

1. What is your biggest fear?
   Death. A reader approached me at a literary festival recently and asked how I could write such grisly scenes when I seemed like such a nice chap. I had never really considered it before, but it struck me that it’s my way of dealing with my fear of death. By writing crime, I can control death in a way I can’t in real life.
2. If you could have any superhero power, what would it be?
   The power to invoke additional superpowers whenever required.
3. If you could write one line to be etched into your tombstone, what would it read?
   Who switched the light off?
4. If you could give your younger self ONE piece of advice, what would it be?
   Start writing sooner, and write more.

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   You can purchase Adam’s latest book: The Perfect Lie here on Amazon.