Avon Authors

Books that provide an escape by Sue Moorcroft

I love books that carry me away. Some provide armchair travel, which is something I’ve valued more than usual in the past couple of years, but others take me to a different time or headspace. Here are five that have stayed with me. Tempted by the Runes by Christina Courtney… Read More

Phillipa Ashley’s Christmas Playlist

When is it too soon to start playing festive tunes? After Bonfire Night? December 1st? Christmas Eve? What about June? For me, writing a Christmas novel begins on New Year’s Day and I’ll already have been thinking about the plot while the previous festive title is on the shelves. My… Read More

Charlie Gallagher and Police Procedural TV Shows

I can see why I was asked for my opinion on police themed TV shows. Firstly, I write police thrillers so it’s my business to know what is good and appealing to audiences. Secondly, I worked as a police officer for thirteen years, living the life… Read More

Going to the Flicks in 1941

Pam Lecky, author of Her Secret War, discusses film in 1941. Like most young people in the forties, my heroine, Sarah Gillespie, in Her Secret War, is obsessed with cinema and spends all of her hard-earned, but meagre wages, on film tickets and cinema… Read More

Exclusive extract of The Collector’s Daughter by Gill Paul

Chapter One London, July 1972 Eve opened her eyes a fraction and saw an old man sitting a couple of feet away. He had silver hair that receded on either side of his brow, leaving a widow’s peak in the center. She shut her eyes again and watched… Read More

The History behind Wartime with the Cornish Girls

CARELESS TALK COSTS LIVES I’ve lived and worked in Cornwall for well over a decade now. It’s a peaceful, largely rural area, so you can imagine my astonishment on discovering that the underwater transatlantic cables that keep Britain’s internet running come ashore on a beach near where I live. When… Read More

Exclusive Extract of The Lake by Louise Sharland

1 The small patch of sand and scrubland that borders the lake is nearly empty; just a woman and her young son skipping stones. A few metres out, a paddleboarder has paused his journey to take in the view. I try my best to appreciate the beauty, but everything about… Read More

Exclusive Extract from Love in Lockdown

Read an exclusive extract from Love in Lockdown by Chloe James ‘I’ve had an idea.’ This sounds ominous. ‘Mmm,’ I say noncommittally. Jess is fab and I adore her, but I can tell this is her I’m-about-to-start-trying-to-manage-your-life tone. ‘I happened to come across this app the other day that could… Read More

An interview with Louise Sharland

An interview with the Avon x Big Issue competition winner, Louise Sharland: How did you find out about the Avon x Big Issue writing competition? One of my previous roles was working for the homelessness charity Crisis UK as a Work and Learning Coach, so I have a deep connection… Read More

5 Books to Lift Your Spirits by Hayley Doyle

2021 has started with a bang. And not the bang we were all hoping for. Rather than the pop of a champagne cork or a splattering of fancy fireworks, sure, it’s exploded, but you don’t need me to harp on about how. You already know. Well! Thank goodness for books!… Read More

Where I Write with Kate White

I know this may sound crazy, but I owe a big part of my success as a suspense author to finally figuring out the best place for me to write. In a pinch I can crank out pages almost anywhere (even, if desperate, in a dentist’s office), but I’m the… Read More

What Inspires Me | Clare Marchant

Clare Marchant shares what inspired her to write The Secrets of Saffron Hall In sitting down to write this, and really thinking about what inspires what I write about, I’ve realised that the one thing that ties together all that I write about, is connections. We’re all connected in life, to other… Read More

Where I Write with Hannah Sunderland

The thing that is most essential to me getting words down on the page is comfort, ergo many, many scatter cushions and a footrest. I usually have a cafetiere of coffee on the go, which I forget about and let go cold more often than not, but even having the… Read More

Where I Write with Mel Sherratt

I moved home three years ago. I do love our new place, but my office is a lot smaller. Having said that, I live in a bungalow now and there is a larger spare bedroom that I could move into, but I don’t. So I guess I like this one. The… Read More

Working from home: Sue Moorcroft’s Top Tips

I’ve been working from home for years and know what suits me. I’ve had to adapt in view of the current lifestyle restrictions so here’s what I’m doing now.   My day in the office I get up at six-thirty and shower and dress as if… Read More

The Inspiration for One Italian Summer by Lori Nelson Spielman

Authors are often asked how they come up with ideas for their novels. My stories generally derive from some tiny kernel of truth, some piece of real life that I expand and shape and polish into its own unique story. The initial inspiration for One Italian… Read More