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It's tempting to approach every new year with refreshed focus and aspirations, and we're no different here at The Hobcast Book Show. But let's be realistic. 2023 was a year of major upheaval in the creative industries with the growing impact of generative AI, combined with a cost of living crisis, and rising production costs. So can we look forward to a year of positive changes in 2024? Our guest this week is Derek Thompson, prolific author of the Thomas Bladen thriller series and the DS Wild Crime Mysteries for Joffe Books. He's also written comedy material for radio. As he tells us, it's challenging to predict where publishing is heading, and how authors will survive as changes sweep the industry.

Also this week, Adrian and Rebecca discuss their plans for the year ahead for the show, and for their plans for their publishing company, Hobeck Books.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/COMPLETE-THOMAS-THRILLERS-gripping-thrillers-ebook/dp/B089KSMTF8

https://www.amazon.co.uk/COMPLETE-DETECTIVE-MYSTERIES-heart-pounding-mysteries-ebook/dp/B0CBKYV3WV

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Happy New Year from The Hobcast Book Show team. This week we pool the collective talents of three Hobeck Books authors to look in depth at police procedurals. Why do they remain enduringly popular? What are the challenges of remaining on top of the latest investigatory techniques and science? How do you ensure your writing remains credible but also engaging for the reader? To answer those questions we're joined by three brilliant Hobeck authors, Rachel Sargeant, Brian Price and Harry Fisher, who share their experience and insight into creating compelling police procedural fiction.

Also this week, Adrian and Rebecca ask what 2024 holds for independent publishing, and how new developments and technology will impact on their business at Hobeck Books.

Home - Harry Fisher Writer

Home | Brian Price Author

Welcome to the official website of author Rachel Sargeant

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To mark Christmas, we've brought together three wonderful Hobeck authors for a special festive edition of The Hobcast Book Show to discuss how humour and crime fiction can work together. Joining us are A B Morgan, Sue Shepherd, and Jennie Ensor, who've all wrestled with the conundrum of how to marry humour and murder together. What line do you have to dance as an author? Are there subjects that are taboo? How do you avoid upsetting your readers? Sit back and enjoy a mince pie, a tot of mulled wine and three great authors discussing their craft in this Christmas special.

Jennie Ensor's Author Website – Daring fiction – from crime to satire and everything in between

https://www.facebook.com/SueShepherdWrites

https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/AB-Morgan/author/B075LJ66WM

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Among all the noise in the media and politics about the impact of mass migration, it's perhaps easy to lose sight of the human aspects of the situation. Our guest this week, Helen Matthews, writes psychological suspense novels which deal with the darker side of human nature. Her first novel, recently republished as Girl Out of Sight, explores the issues and themes of modern slavery and exploitation. As Helen explains, she supports the work of anti-slavery charity Unseen UK by giving talks about the issue based around the book. Her novel, The Girl in the Van, was the 2022 Pageturner Book Award winner for the suspense and thriller genre. It's a fascinating and thought-provoking interview.

Also this week, Adrian and Rebecca discuss the continuing march of AI generated narration for audiobooks, and note Queen Camilla's plans to enter the world of literary podcasting.

Home (helenmatthewswriter.com)

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On this week's show, we meet Natalie Chandler, the author of two bestselling psychological thrillers, Believe Me Not and What We Did for Headline Accent. Natalie shares with us her author journey, from re-writing Roald Dahl stories as a child through to using the opportunity of lockdown to finally finish and polish her first novel. Natalie credits the input of her tutors on a Curtis Brown creative writing course for helping her to hone her style and craft, and explains how much she's learned from her agent and editors and how they've helped her improve her work.

Also this week, Adrian and Rebecca discuss how publishers in the U.S are fighting back against the march of the big A.I companies, and is there trouble ahead of Spotify?

Natalie Chandler - author | Facebook

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Believe-unputdownable-edge-your-seat-psychological-ebook/dp/B09BF2QPRK

https://www.amazon.co.uk/What-We-Did-chilling-unpredictable-ebook/dp/B0BNDHZL34

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Last week, Hobeck Books had the honour of publishing the fifth novel in the George Zammit series, The Last Bird of Paradise by A J Aberford. Set in Malta and the wider Mediterranean area, the books have built a strong following for the adventures of the humble Maltese police officer who finds himself at the centre of epic adventures and intrigue through little fault of his own. We felt it was a good opportunity to speak to author Tony Gartland about the development of the series, and the challenges of creating new installments in the series with its complex cast of characters and explosive set piece action scenes.

Also this week, Adrian and Rebecca review the new 'auto-narration' feature from Google Books, and ask, is AI really ready to replace human performers?

The: Last Bird of Paradise: 5 (The Inspector George Zammit Series): Amazon.co.uk: Aberford, AJ: 9781915817280: Books

Home | AJ Aberford

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It's fair to say that the COVID crisis and the attendant lock downs had one unexpected silver lining for many people - the space and opportunity to finally fulfil a life-long dream to write a book. That's certainly the case for our guest this week, Stephen Ronson, whose debut novel The Last Line was recently published by Hodder and Stoughton. Set in 1940, Stephen's novel is set in his native Sussex, a county that witnessed the daily dog fights of the Battle of Britain, and the real expectation that at any moment, German troops would land on English shores. It's that sense of peril, claustrophobia and distrust that Stephen taps into as his protagonist John Cook discovers a dark conspiracy. As Stephen reveals, the key to finishing the project was committing himself to writing for twenty minutes a day.

Also this week, Adrian and Rebecca are surprised by German copyright laws that cover book titles, and look forward to the latest Hobeck release from bestseller A J Aberford and the latest adventure in the George Zammit series.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Last-Line-gripping-thriller-Robert-ebook/dp/B0C3XG5VQC

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It's fair to say that as presenters of The Hobcast Book Show we often hark back to our childhood experiences of reading adventure fiction and being inspired by those books to seek adventures of our own. That's certainly the spirit that our guest this week, Jacqueline King, evokes in her children's book, Cake for the Gestapo. Set in occupied Jersey during the Second World War, Jackie draws on both her own childhood memories of the island from her post-war holiday visits to her grandparents, but also from the many stories she researched from the islanders themselves of living under German occupation and the challenges and privations they faced.

But wait, we have two interviews this week! We also speak to new Hobeck author, Hilly Barmby about her latest novel, Best Served Cold which was published last week to great reviews.

Jacqueline King | Author

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Cake-Gestapo-Jacqueline-King/dp/1916204201

hillybarmbyauthor

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Best-Served-Cold-Hilly-Barmby-ebook/dp/B0CK4J2LV

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What is it about The Hobcast Book Show and Brighton? Or more accurately, what is it about Brighton that lends itself as a setting for murder mysteries? Our guest this week, Jamie West, transports his readers back to the Palace Pier Theatre in 1933 and introduces them to his hero, playwright-come-amateur-sleuth Bertie Caroll. Jamie's debut novel, Death on the Pier is a love-letter to golden age crime fiction and for a long-lost theatre - only a few fragments of the original structure remain. As a sought-after automation expert in London's West End Theatreland, Jamie draws on his love of these historic venues to recreate the pre-war heyday of British theatre.

Also this week, Adrian and Rebecca discuss one leading independent publisher's move to exclusively printing hard copies on demand, and they examine the shrinking world of book reviews in the traditional media and the implications for the wider publishing industry.

https://www.jamiewest.co.uk/

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Death-Pier-Jamie-West-ebook/dp/B09RXZXNXJ

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