psychological thriller

How characters move a story along in unexpected ways

Authors sometimes talk about how characters can come alive on the pages as they write. Sometimes these people we create take on a life all of their own and it can feel as if they, and not us as writers, are the ones putting words down on a page. In… Read More

Puzzles and Plots

Some intuitive writers sit down at their desks with no more than the wisp of an idea in their heads, and let the story unfold as they write. That’s never been me. I don’t write a word of my books until I have worked up a clear outline of the… Read More

Poison in life and literature

My fascination with poison began in the early nineteen eighties. Then, as a young woman fresh from university, I worked at the UK National Poison’s Information Service at Guy’s Hospital, London, as part of a team specially trained to provide information on the treatment of poisoning. A service for members… Read More

The Big Myth of Motherhood

When it comes to motherhood, women can be each other’s worst enemies. In fact, quite often, we can become our own worst enemies too as we launch ourselves into the world of procreation like a tribute in The Hunger Games. For there is nowhere in life where… Read More

The Darkest Fears Are Often Rooted in Realism

The Darkest Fears Are Often Rooted in Realism   What scares you the most? As a thriller writer, it’s a question I tackle in my writing daily. My goal is to uncover the scariest, creepiest things in life and put the reader at their mercy. These fears certainly… Read More

Unleash Your Dark Side

From the age of 14 I was obsessed with women’s fiction. I dreamed of writing books like my heroes – Maeve Binchy, Patricia Scanlan, Sheila O’Flanagan and then, as I grew a bit older, Marian Keyes. I wanted to tell stories… Read More

Ten Points About Guilt

  A brief summary. My psychological thriller Guilt begins with a stabbing, leaving one twin sister dead, and the other accused of her murder. After the opening scene, past and present story arcs are intermingled, gradually revealing the reason for the fight and, at the crescendo of the book, the… Read More