Captor by Anita Waller @anitamayw #BlogBlitz #GuestPost
I am delighted to share a fabulous guest post by Anita Waller with you today on Captor blog blitz
The Book
Liz Chambers is a devoted mother who works for a successful law firm. She has two children, a husband and a blossoming career. But behind closed doors, Liz is harbouring a secret that could destroy her life.
Then the unthinkable happens, and in a frenzied attack her young son is snatched from the home of the nanny charged with looking after him.
As Liz’s life unfolds, it becomes clear that someone is out for revenge.
Desperate to get her baby boy back, Liz must work out who is responsible for his kidnap, and why.
But as the body count begins to mount, Liz’s concern grows for the safety of her child.
Who has taken her baby?
And why is Captor so determined on revenge?
Guest post Book number six, Captor
By Anita Waller
If someone had said to me back in July 2015, when my first book, Beautiful, was launched, that I would be waiting with frazzled nerves for my sixth book to be published in February 2018, I would have laughed at them.
This, after all, is what dreams are made of; six books, an unforgiving army of fans (they let me know if I make a mistake, believe me), and a change in lifestyle.
However, let’s get back to that awesome number, six. Six! It took me from 1992 to 2015 to bring Beautiful to the publication table, and then I had a whirlwind two years where I produced five more books.
Each book has been so different in its early life. Angel, the sequel to Beautiful, was written very fast; I began to write it 27 December 2015, and finished it 19 March 2016. I loved writing at that speed, but it was only possible because I already knew the back story and the characters so very well.
Prior to that supercharged missive, I had already started to write 34 Days, and had to temporarily abandon it because my small fan base wanted the sequel to Beautiful, so when I returned to 34 Days (at that time with a working title of Escape), I already had 35,000 words under my belt. Angel sold very well, and Beautiful was really beginning to motor, so when 34 Days finally reached publication day it soared.
Winterscroft (originally called Essence of Lavender) was already half written by the time 34 Days started flying, and this was the easiest of all to write because I had written it once, back in 1990 or thereabouts. I have, of course, saved the original manuscript print-out in a safe place, never to be seen again, but I could remember chunks of it. I had also forgotten chunks of it. This, of all my books, is my favourite, although a supernatural book will never achieve sales that psychological thrillers do.
Strategy was written because of 34 Days fans, all wanting to know what happened to Jenny. I have had more complaints of readers crying with this book than with any other. Sorry, my lovely readers.
And then came Captor. Throughout 34 Days, Winterscroft and Strategy, this book was under production in my head. It began with a chance, throwaway statement from my younger daughter, Kirsty, and if you have a warped, twisted mind, that sort of information is like manna from Heaven.
I mulled over it, made it a kind of love story with a couple of murders thrown in, added a kidnap theme, and in my head called it A Legal Issue, mainly because the main character worked in a law practice. It was still called A Legal Issue when I sent it off to Bloodhound Books, and it was still called that when we started to talk front covers.
I said I wanted one that reflected wintery conditions, a pushchair being pushed down the road, and a streetlamp casting its glow. I got all of that, and brilliantly done by Betsy at Bloodhound, but my title ‘A Legal Issue’ didn’t look right. It wouldn’t centre properly, because if it did, it covered up the streetlamp.
Back to the drawing board (quite happily, because the title had never really grabbed me) and it was changed to Captor. This is the name given by one of the victims to the person who is doing the kidnapping. As soon as I thought of it, I knew it was the right title. I’ve said many times that finding a title is harder than writing the book…
So, Captor will be launched on 13 February 2018. We have a little tradition of going out for lunch on publication day, so I’m looking forward to that. It helps with the nerves. It is such a scary time for any author; your baby is out in the horrible, nasty world, and it’s out of your control. No more changing the odd word or two (or chapter or two), what’s out there is out there.
And at the mercy of reviewers. If you think I’ll be on edge on publication day, wait till you hear me cry when I get my first one-star review. I had a pretty spectacular one for 34 Days that simply said, ‘No thank you’. Luckily, I had lots and lots of four and five-star reviews to stop the tears.
It’s fear of the unknown. I like Captor. I think it’s a good storyline, and at the end of the prologue, readers will think it’s all a bit romantic. Don’t be fooled. This is an Anita Waller novel… murder, necessary murder, is my tagline. It’s set in Winter, in Sheffield, and it’s proper Yorkshire cold.
The locations are real, and you can enjoy puffing up and down the hills of the hilliest city in the country, with me.
I hope you enjoy my latest offering; I enjoyed writing it.
Author Bio
Anita Waller was born in Sheffield, South Yorkshire in 1946. She married Dave in 1967 and they have three adult children.
She began writing when she was around 8 years of age, writing 'compositions' at junior school that became books with chapters.
In 1995 she sent Beautiful to a publisher and as they reached the contract stage the publisher went into liquidation.
As a result, the book was consigned to the attic in dejected disgust but in 2013 it was dragged out again for an enforced complete re-type. The original was written on an Amstrad 8256 and the only thing that remained was one hard copy.
Anita is not a typist and it was painfully reworked over two years, submitted to Bloodhound Books who, within three days of reading it, offered her a contract. 31 August 2015 saw its release into the wide world.
Following the outstanding success of Beautiful, she began a sequel on 27 December 2015, finishing it on 19 March 2016. The new novel, Angel, was launched on 7 May 2016.
34 Days followed, with its launch in October 2016. This was a huge success, particularly in the United States. While this, her third book in the psychological thriller genre, was flying out in all directions, she began work on her fourth book.
Winterscroft was a change in genre. It is a supernatural tale, set in Castleton, Derbyshire, and its release date was February 2017.
While she was writing Winterscroft, it became very clear from reading reviews that a sequel to 34 days was needed, and she began work on that. Bloodhound Books launched Strategy, on 10 August, 2017.
So where next? Her new book, launching February 2018 and titled Captor, is a psychological thriller.
In her life away from the computer in the corner of her kitchen, she is a Sheffield Wednesday supporter with blue blood in her veins! The club was particularly helpful during the writing of 34 Days, as a couple of matches feature in the novel, along with Ross Wallace. Information was needed and they provided it.
Her genre is murder - necessary murder.
Links:
Amazon page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/s/r
Facebook page: @anitawaller2015
Twitter: @anitamayw
Beautiful:
Angel:
34 Days:
Winterscroft:
Strategy:
I'm compelled to share your points on this subject . you've got done a really good job together with your attention to detail you set into this text . https://www.serviceisonline.com/
ReplyDelete