I'm delighted to be hanging out with another lovely Indie Author today as part of #IndieApril. Do check out the hashtag next time you're on Twitter as there are some great Indie's out there who deserve some love!
So today I'm hanging out with Rachel Amphlett, but don't worry, we're adhering to social distancing guidelines!
Let's start with the introductions shall we?
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| Photo courtesy of Rachel Amphlett |
Before turning to writing, Rachel Amphlett played
guitar in bands, worked as a film extra and freelanced in radio as a presenter
and producer for the BBC.
She now wields a pen instead of a plectrum and is a
bestselling author of crime fiction and spy thrillers, many of which have been
translated worldwide.
Her novels are available in eBook, print, large print and
audiobook formats from libraries and worldwide retailers.
A keen traveller, Rachel has both EU and Australian citizenship.
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Now that the formalities are done, welcome to The Hippo Rachel, let's chat!
What book/books made you cry
and why?
Richard Adams’ Watership Down – my mum had a copy that I think I read when I was about 11 or 12 and ended up bawling my eyes out. I didn’t learn from the experience – I watched the film a few years later on TV and did the same thing!
Richard Adams’ Watership Down – my mum had a copy that I think I read when I was about 11 or 12 and ended up bawling my eyes out. I didn’t learn from the experience – I watched the film a few years later on TV and did the same thing!
I did exactly the same thing Rachel and trust me, it wasn't pretty!
Did you ever consider
writing under a pseudonym?
I haven’t ruled it out if I write something in future that belongs in a genre other than crime or thrillers. I think it’s strange when writers use pseudonyms in sub-genres of fiction (for example, a crime writer of police procedurals using a pseudonym to write a psychological thriller, etc). It dilutes their branding and makes it harder for readers to discover what else they might have up their sleeves but it seems to be a growing trend in traditional publishing these days.
I haven’t ruled it out if I write something in future that belongs in a genre other than crime or thrillers. I think it’s strange when writers use pseudonyms in sub-genres of fiction (for example, a crime writer of police procedurals using a pseudonym to write a psychological thriller, etc). It dilutes their branding and makes it harder for readers to discover what else they might have up their sleeves but it seems to be a growing trend in traditional publishing these days.
That's a good point and one that I hadn't even thought about until you mentioned it.
Where did your love of
books/storytelling/reading/writing etc come from?
My parents and my grandparents – I was reading before I started infant school and I remember weekly trips to the local library on Thursdays throughout my childhood to top up what I was reading at school. Trips to second-hand bookshops were an occasional treat, and I loved getting book tokens for my birthday and Christmas.
My parents and my grandparents – I was reading before I started infant school and I remember weekly trips to the local library on Thursdays throughout my childhood to top up what I was reading at school. Trips to second-hand bookshops were an occasional treat, and I loved getting book tokens for my birthday and Christmas.
What’s your favourite
under-appreciated writer/book?
The Dick Francis novels are a firm favourite and something of a comfort read to me – I grew up in the area where many were based (the Berkshire Downs) and devoured those. NERVE was a brilliant psychological thriller. I’ll never give up my collection of these as they remind me of browsing my grandparents’ and parents’ bookshelves and working my way through the Dick Francis back catalogue during the course of my early teens!
The Dick Francis novels are a firm favourite and something of a comfort read to me – I grew up in the area where many were based (the Berkshire Downs) and devoured those. NERVE was a brilliant psychological thriller. I’ll never give up my collection of these as they remind me of browsing my grandparents’ and parents’ bookshelves and working my way through the Dick Francis back catalogue during the course of my early teens!
Do you have any hidden or
uncommon talents?
I’m good at writing business plans and conducting risk assessments – that comes from years working as a project administrator in Australia on some enormous engineering projects and studying commerce and project management at post-graduate level. I’m just glad I can use those skills within my own publishing business these days!
I’m good at writing business plans and conducting risk assessments – that comes from years working as a project administrator in Australia on some enormous engineering projects and studying commerce and project management at post-graduate level. I’m just glad I can use those skills within my own publishing business these days!
Describe yourself in five
words.
Tenacious, loyal, hard-working, inquisitive, introverted.
Tenacious, loyal, hard-working, inquisitive, introverted.
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| Image found on clipart.email |
Do you have any bad habits?
I can procrastinate with the best of them on some days, despite what people think! I try to manage this by blocking out time in my calendar every day for writing so that I feel guilty if I don’t come up with at least a few hundred words before drifting off to do something else.
I can procrastinate with the best of them on some days, despite what people think! I try to manage this by blocking out time in my calendar every day for writing so that I feel guilty if I don’t come up with at least a few hundred words before drifting off to do something else.
What is your guilty
pleasure?
Cheese on toast – not that I feel very guilty about it. 😀
Cheese on toast – not that I feel very guilty about it. 😀
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| Image found on WizardRecipes.com |
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Rachel's latest release is None The Wiser, which is the first in a new series featuring Detective Mark Turpin.
What
if some secrets were never meant to stay buried?
When
a parish priest is brutally murdered in cold blood, a rural community is left
in shock – and fear.
New
to the Vale of the White Horse, Detective Sergeant Mark Turpin discovers the
murder bears the hallmark of a vicious killer who shows no remorse for his
victim, and leaves no trace behind.
After
a second priest is killed, his broken body bearing similar ritualistic abuse,
the police are confronted by a horrifying truth – there is a serial killer at
large with a disturbing vendetta.
As
fear grips the once tranquil countryside, Mark and his team race to uncover a
tangle of dark secrets and lies before the killer strikes again.
In
doing so, Mark finds out that the truth is more twisted than he could ever have
imagined…
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Rachel has an impressive catalogue of novels and if you head over to her website you can download a free reading guide and checklist which will give you the official reading order for her books.
You can also find out more about her, her books and connect with her using the links below:
Website
Amazon
I'd like to say a big thank you to Rachel for taking the time to hang out with me today. It's been great fun chatting and getting to know you and your books a little more. 😘
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