Events page updated with dates and places for 2016
New events for 2016
Events page updated with dates and places for 2016
Xmas auctions for SAS port.
Auction now ended. Both bottles sold for £250 each.
Very grateful to the two winning bidders.
On Monday evening I announced the auction of the first of two bottles of SAS port. These are the real deal and come from the 22 Regt Benevolent Association.
The response has been overwhelming, with the top bid now at over £200. Today, I’m adding a second bottle, with the second highest bidder winning it. Yes, the top two bids both win.
This would make an ideal buy to impress your mates or, perhaps as a once-in-a-lifetime xmas present.
The first bottle auction bid is for the benefit of the Armed Forces Bikers Charity who were recently kind enough to make me one of their patrons. The second is now for the Shoeboxes for our Heroes fundraising group based in the north-east of England.
The auction will run until midday, sunday 13th December. The main auction will be administered using my facebook page . If you don’t have facebook, then enter a bid on here or through my twitter profile and I will put your bid onto the facebook auction listing.
Highest bid wins. Highest bid payment to be made to Amanda, the sec at AFB as soon as reasonably practicable. The second highest bidder will need to contact me for email details of SB4OH. Only once payment is received will the item be sent to you. Remember to add £10 to your bid to cover the courier and packaging. This is the charity, after all.
NB; now that bids are over £200, I will pay the p+p myself. Well done and thanks for your generosity.
Any questions, or hints on where to mention this auction, please let me know.
Revealed: the hidden Blackpool company presenting itself as charity Support The Heroes to recruit paid fundraisers
This scam of a charity needs to be exposed and stopped.
Important announcement
In writing terms, probably one of the most significant I will ever make.
Those of you who have been following my twitter and facebook pages will be aware that I have been in protracted negotiations with a new London-based publisher. I’m pleased to announce that I have agreed terms with Orenda Books.
And here is the result
The Press announcement from Orenda Books
and… the new cover for Wicked Game
Press Release
9 October 2015
Orenda Books signs ex-Met Police Officer’s debut thriller
Karen Sullivan is delighted to announce the acquisition of World Rights for debut author, Matt Johnson’s Wicked Game, in a deal negotiated with James Wills of Watson, Little Ltd.
Karen says, ‘Wicked Game was written by ex-Met Police Officer Matt Johnson as therapy for the PTSD he suffered after witnessing several horrific London bombings, and being present at the murder of his colleague Yvonne Fletcher. He subsequently self-published this book, and achieved extraordinary sales and reviews. We’ve worked with Matt to rewrite and polish this thriller for the trade, and the results are staggering. Not only is this a compelling, revealing and action-packed thriller, but the authentic dialogue and the inside knowledge that Matt invests in the highly orchestrated plot and well-drawn characters are simply spine-tingling. Telling the story of an ex-SAS man whose carefully concealed past comes back to haunt him, putting his family, his colleagues and his new life in jeopardy, this is a vividly written novel that has bestseller written all over it. As Peter James says, “Matt Johnson is going to be a big name”.’
Matt says, ‘When I was introduced to Karen Sullivan from Orenda, I realised that we had found a publisher with the experience, drive and editorial vision to help me develop my embryonic writing career. Orenda Books is an exciting new publisher. I am immensely fortunate and privileged to be joining them. I look forward to enjoying a long and rewarding future together.’
James Wills says, ‘As soon as I started reading WICKED GAME I knew it was going to be special. The authenticity of Matt Johnson’s writing jumps out from every fast-turned page. Orenda is a fine home for this thrilling debut and I can’t wait for more people to be immersed in Finlay’s world.’
Wicked Game is the first in the Robert Finlay series, and will be published in ebook on 24 December and print on 15th March 16. Matt will be appearing at a number of festivals and events in 2016.
For more information, please contact Karen@orendabooks.co.uk
And before I go any further, I want to say thanks, a big thanks, to all the people who have read my work and who have been kind enough to review it and to tell me how much you have enjoyed it. And I also want to say a special thanks to Antony Loveless, who on seeing a soldier in Afghanistan reading Wicked Game on his kindle, decided to buy the book and then, when he enjoyed it, was kind enough to introduce me to his agent. It’s that kind of luck and kindness that is the fine line between success and failure.
The self-published version of ‘Wicked Game‘ has now been withdrawn from sale. The newly worked version can be pre-ordered now. From 24th December, it will be available in e-book versions in all formats. You can also pre-order the paperback which will go on sale on 15 March 2016. It is available to order now through on-line retailers such as Amazon and through all regular book shops. I’ve included links below and will update as more become available.
I will also be doing a couple of book launches (details to follow) and some author events and literary festivals. I plan to set up an ‘events’ page on this site to tell you where I will be at the bar looking for a free beer and at what times.
And now… to answer a question that many of those who have read the self-published version of the book will ask, ‘Is it worth forking out for another copy?’
My answer is that I will have to leave that to you to decide. The new version of Wicked Game has benefited from the input of a bloody good editor. It is essentially, the same story but it is now told from the perspective of just three of the main characters, the main protagonist Finlay, Commander Grahamslaw of the Anti-terrorist squad and the lead terrorist, Declan Costello. The length of the book has increased by about 10K words and now includes more background on Finlay’s time in the SAS and his role at the Iranian Embassy siege in 1980. There is also more background with regards to Grahamslaw and the challenges he faces investigating the threat to Finlay’s family and friends.
I have no doubt that the new book is an improvement on the original. I hope you do too.
These are the Amazon links to pre-order the book. As other ways of purchasing the book go live, I will post them on the blog.
Australia, Canada, India, United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Japan, Brazil, Mexico
The Grey/Gray phenomenon
There won’t be many people who are unfamiliar with the incredible phenomenon that is the ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ trilogy.
Fifty Shades (E.L.James) is a book that has sold by the million in both e-book and paper versions. E L James has over 818K followers on twitter. Despite the well-publicised criticism that has been levelled at both the content and the author, the books continue to sell well and have proved extremely popular.
So, why do I refer to this as a ‘Grey/Grey’ phenomenon? That is because of the success of a lesser known series of books that follow the adventures of a character called Tom Gray, an ex-soldier who is the central character in a fictional world created by author, Alan McDermott.
The first book penned by McDermott is called Gray Justice. As with Fifty Shades, this book has attracted large numbers of reviews with a very mixed reception from readers, some hating it but many, and the majority, loving it.
Critics of both series of books make similar comments. They do not like the standard of writing, they don’t like the style, they criticise the grammar and the punctuation, even if most enjoy the story.
The potential of McDermott’s writing was recognised by the Amazon publisher, Thomas and Mercer, and since then his books have sold in very large numbers, just as the Fifty Shades books do.
And yet, both series of books come in for the same kind of criticisms. The experienced readers may well ask, how can this happen? How can it be that books that do not mirror the accepted norms of writing are so popular?
I have a theory, not proven, and with little other than anecdotal evidence to support it.
My theory is this. E L James and Alan McDermott have both displayed the kind of original thinking and style that the reading public have been crying out for. In some ways, both writers have shown genius in their skill at creating work that appeals to people looking for books that are exciting, easy to read and give great value. Those readers are not interested in classical works or in writing that appeals to ‘literary experts’ or academics, what they want is entertainment.
Both E L James and Alan McDermott have identified a reader market and written to meet that market and, in many ways, they have done all authors and publishers a huge favour as they have encouraged a lot of people to read books who might otherwise have stuck to other forms of entertainment.
So, when I see a critical review appear for one of these books, I do think to myself that the reviewer is, possibly, not understanding the phenomenon that these works represent.
A new audience and a market trend for other authors to follow suit.
E L James and Alan McDermott, I salute you.
Good Grief
More from ‘Police Commander’ to make us think
Little Big Stories
Many, many thanks to ‘police commander’ for these short stories. It tells it how it is. I know, I’ve been there.
Deadly Game
Nice article here from Roddy Llewllyn, ex Human Traffiking team, Met Police
Greetings from The Slave Detective,
I recently received a request from Matt Johnson, a retired Police Officer turned author, to assist him with his latest book, Deadly Game.
I’d never served with Matt or met him but he was writing a novel with Human Trafficking as the thread to his piece.
After reading his first novel ‘Wicked Games’ I was happy to assist as he has an engaging style.
Matt retired from The Police and wrote ‘Wicked Games’ from notes made during his treatment for Post Traumatic Stress (PTSD).
I have read a draft of his latest book and offered my opinion (I’m cheap!) and Matt kindly let me read his revised edit. I have to say Matt has in my opinion, grasped the plight of the victim and the novel ( a work of fiction) has plot lines that I recognise as real life issues when I…
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Five Powerful Ways Abusive Narcissists Get Inside Your Head
Having escaped from just such a ‘relationship’, I was absolutely astounded at how accurately this article described the stages in the relationship with someone who has this personality disorder
In popular culture, the term “narcissistic” is thrown about quite loosely, usually referring to vanity and self-absorption. This reduces narcissism to a common quality that everyone possesses and downplays the symptoms demonstrated by people with the actual disorder. While narcissism does exist on a spectrum, narcissism as a full-fledged personality disorder is quite different.
People who meet the criteria for Narcissistic Personality Disorder or those who have traits of Antisocial Personality Disorder can operate in extremely manipulative ways within the context of intimate relationships due to their deceitfulness, lack of empathy and their tendency to be interpersonally exploitative. Although I will be focusing on narcissistic abusers in this post, due to the overlap of symptoms in these two disorders, this post can potentially apply to interactions with those who have ASPD to an extent.
It’s important in any kind of relationship that we learn to identify the red flags when interacting with people who display malignant narcissism and/or…
View original post 1,849 more words
Peter James’ ‘The Perfect Murder’
Having a break from the word processor can pay real dividends. Sometimes a trip to the theatre is called for, and sometimes I am fortunate enough to experience a real gem of a play.
The Perfect Murder is one such play.
Peter James got the idea for the novel when he popped a simple enough question to Chief Constable Martin Richards at a charity dinner. I know this as, at the end of the play, Peter and the cast were kind enough to sit with interested members of the audience to answer questions. Peter apparently asked the Chief, “Is there any such thing as the perfect murder?”
The answer became the inspiration for this excellent work.
Shaun McKenna adapted the novel for the stage, and a very good job he made of it.
The play opens with unhappy husband, Victor Smiley (played by Robert Daws) as he discusses his poor marriage with prostitute lover Kamila (Simona Armstrong). We are soon introduced to Victor’s wife, Joan (Dawn Steele) where we learn that theirs is a marriage soon to come to a grisly end.
The action is set in the present day, in a small house in Saltdean, outside Brighton, and in Kamila’s room at The Kitten Parlour, a local brothel.
The entire set is shown on stage in a very clever way so that the action never ends as scenes switch between the venues. Full credit must go to Simon Bannister and Chris Lambert for their work on the stage design.
‘Perfect Murder’ the cast
Gray O’Brien is really excellent as Joan’s lover, Don Kirk and, it was fun, as Roy Grace fans, to be introduced to a young Detective Constable Grace, ably portrayed by Thomas Howes. Thomas captured the character perfectly and reminded me of many young detectives, recently transferred from uniform duty, even down the the style of his beat-duty shoes.
I wonder how many followers of Coronation Street, who saw Gray playing Toni (the Glaswegian businessman), were convinced he was a scot. I was, but now, having listened to his entertaining and engaging ‘Don Kirk, I was left wondering if he was a cockney.
Dawn Steele has always been a favourite of mine. I loved her in ‘Wild at Heart; where she played Alice Collins. Her performance in ‘Perfect Murder’ is excellent and gave a real insight into her ability to play a wide variety of roles. ‘Joanie’ is very different from ‘Alice’.
My final, and most effusive praise must go to Robert Daws, who really makes the character of Victor Smiley his own. Victor is entertaining, amusing, threatening and believable. Robert Daws is an incredible talent. I wonder how he has found the time to also pen an excellent book, The Rock, which had been getting many excellent reviews.
Well done, Peter James. An excellent evening entertainment. I for one, plan to go and see the next one, Dead Simple, which opens in early 2015. I understand that Gray O’Brien will be playing an older Roy Grace. I cannot wait!
Matt Johnson 