Thriller writer, archaeologist and traveller
I'm currently working on both a heavyweight archaeology textbook and a new archaeology mystery series, so it felt like an apt moment to look back at my own career. This involved some crawling around the loft looking for old photographs from the age before digital photography. The earliest dig photographs include my laying in my... Continue Reading →
It's been a couple of rollercoaster months in the crime-writing world. First we had the Sykehouse Festival, quickly followed by the launch of Crime Reading Month in York. My contribution to the latter was to join a panel at Murder in the Rhubarb Triangle in Wakefield. Next it was off north for Shetland Noir. This... Continue Reading →
Britain's most northerly crime writing event took place for the third time in Lerwick this June. Organised by Shetland-based author Marsali Taylor and 'Shetland' author Ann Cleeves it ran under the auspices of Shetland Arts. Two dozen items over three days of programming is too much to cover, but here are some highlights. Stewart Bain... Continue Reading →
February is a grim month, so it was a logical idea to spend a fortnight on a cruise ship, using the long days to develop a new novel. Much to my surprise I'd enjoyed my first solo cruise so gave it another go. Marella Cruises were familiar and economic, and I carefully chose the dates... Continue Reading →
#sykehousefilmfest2026
Writing a book is hugely enjoyable, but a with anything worthwhile is also an immense challenge. I'm very close to the end of work on what's turned into a labour of love and the final stages require both patience and attention to detail. Our team of archaeological volunteers has worked on the island of Alderney... Continue Reading →
Long time, no blog, as the year has ended in a flurry of travelling. Just like most of 2025, in fact. I spent around 120 nights away from home, splitting the year more or less into equal thirds of writing, archaeology and travel. January was mostly spent recovering from the flu, but following the successful... Continue Reading →
Death in the Dales returned for a second year, ably organised by Jean Briggs and Sedbergh Book Town. Tucked away beneath the brooding Howgills and heavy grey skies, Sedbergh hosted a weekend of talks and thoughful entertainment with crime at its heart. Jean Briggs introduced the opening conversation between Martin Edwards and M W Craven.... Continue Reading →
In 1997 I wrote a crime novel in which villains exploited this thing called the Internet - it was science fiction, I was told, so was never published. In 2025 it would be old hat. I was an early user of the internet, having flirted with JANET at university in the 80s then using the... Continue Reading →
#17 in an occasional series on writing non-fiction If you are self-publishing or are with a small press who will play ball, you can employ a number of sophisticated strategies, particularly if promoting e-books outside your local region. You will need to study the various techniques on offer and apply them rigorously. These are in... Continue Reading →