Hey there everyone.

What an amazing start to the week we have in store for you yet again!

For tonight in the Author Interview Series, I am delighted to introduce you all to International Best Selling author John Nicholl, as he spills the beans on his trio of engaging crime thrillers, tells us more about himself and his creative processes.

Really looking forward to what he has to say, so sit back, relax and enjoy the show folks, thanks for reading.

 

Hi there John, wonderful to have you over here to chat further about your best-selling crime fiction and your writing inspirations.

Let’s start with your latest book “Portraits of the Dead”. Please tell us more about this gripping serial killer crime thriller, the twisted goals of your antagonist and what sort of story arc we can expect to find ourselves being thrust into as your novel unfolds.

Portraits of the Dead is a darkly psychological tale telling the story of a nineteen year old university student, who has the terrible misfortune to be abducted and imprisoned by a sadistic serial killer who has already tortured and killed at least five young woman. The book explores events from multiple perspectives, including that of the perpetrator, the girl and the police officers attempting to find her.

You also have published two other books – “White is the Coldest Colour (Dr David Galbraith Book 1)” and “When Evil Calls Your Name (Dr David Galbraith Book 2)”. Both of them are dark, psychological thrillers. What are the motivations behind your antagonists in these books and what is at stake for the lead protagonists who go up against them?

Both novels are entirely fictional, but draw heavily on my experiences as a police officer, child protection social worker, manager and trainer. During my career I was faced with case after case that left me incredulous as to the harm sexual predators chose to inflict on their victims. The books reflect that reality. The stories is set in a more naive time when many found it extremely difficult to believe that a significant number of adults posed a serious risk to children. Book One focuses primarily on the offender’s criminal behaviour and the investigation that follows, while Book Two tells the story from the perspective of his wife, a victim of psychological and physical domestic violence. The books contain content that some readers may find disturbing from the start. They are dedicated to survivors everywhere.

If your novels were to be made into films (or even a TV series), who would you cast in the lead roles?

I’d love a primarily Welsh cast, given that my stories are set in Wales where I spent the bulk of my career. Actors like Michael Sheen, Rhys Ifans, Ruth Jones and Emily Wilden spring to mind. Emily narrated the audiobook version of When Evil Calls Your Name, and did a terrific job. I guess we can all dream!

What do you find the most difficult thing about writing? And what do you find the easiest?

Finding the time and space to write can sometimes be demanding with busy family life going on all around you, but I wouldn’t change a thing. Rewriting can also be rather frustrating at times, but has to be done. I write dark psychological thrillers which are informed by my professional experiences. That makes writing them a lot easier than it otherwise would be. I’d find it a lot harder to write books of a different genre.

Who are some of the authors and historical figures that inspire you?

I love original writing that breaks the mold. Authors like Kurt Vonnegut and Paulo Coelho come to mind, but there are many others I admire, Stephen King and Dean Koontz among them. I’m inspired by historical characters who have made the world a better place, rather than purveyors of war and destruction

What sort of research do you do to write your books?

I spent over twenty years as a police officer, child protection social worker and manager. Given the focus of my books, that was all the research I needed.

Why do you write? What inspired you to become a writer?

I felt driven to write White is the Coldest Colour to raise awareness of the risks posed by criminal sexual predators. I found the creative process rewarding and chose to continue writing.

What keeps you motivated during creative slumps? How do you deal with Writers Block?

To be honest, I’ve never experienced writers block, although some might wish I had!

You have access to a time machine. What advice would you give to your younger self?

Do everything to the very best of your ability, but don’t get too hung up about what others think. Be true to yourself. Guess that sums it up.

How do you spend your free time when you are not writing?

Family, travel, cinema, swimming, and yoga.

Tell us more about your upcoming projects. Are you working on anything specific or have plans in the pipeline?

I’m writing another dark psychological thriller at the moment, which I hope to finish sometime in June.

Finally, are there any nuggets of wisdom that you can impart to other aspiring writers?

I’m not sure I’m the right person to ask, but here goes: let potential readers decide if your writing is worth reading. The publishing world is changing. If you demonstrate you can sell books in significant numbers publishers and agents will come in time.

And that’s a wrap! Thank you for your time John, we can’t wait to get stuck into your gripping books and let them take us on a rollercoaster ride 🙂

Bio:-

John Nicholl, an ex police officer, child protection social worker and lecturer, has written three dark psychological suspense thrillers, each of which have been Amazon international bestsellers, reaching # 1 in multiple categories in the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Australia, Canada and the USA. John is always happy to hear from readers, bloggers or the media, and can be contacted via his author website.

You can connect with John on the following Social Media platforms:-

Goodreads:- John Nicholl (Goodreads Author)
Twitter:- @nicholl06 (Twitter)
Website:- The Website of Author John Nicholl

You can buy his books here:-

Buy John Nicholl’s books in Canada

Buy John Nicholl’s books in the UK/Europe

Buy John Nicholl’s books in the US/Rest of the World

If you too would like to be interviewed on my blog at TooFullToWrite and you have a book or a series of books that you would like us to chat about then fill out the Contact Me form here with your details and we can arrange a future interview slot.

Still want more? Well, John’s book “Portraits of The Dead” deals with a kidnapping case and their is a prompt over at The Daily Post that seems relevant. For more articles on the theme of ‘Missing’ then check out the links below:-

1. Copper Cranes – The Glue Factory
2. KO Rural Mad As Hell Blog – Miss
3. LIFE – When in Batangas Part 3
4. blashes – come on, let’s go (home).
5. Writing of All Sorts – Missing
6. Missing – @HumbleBirdLove
7. Read and Write Here – Music is Missing
8. Missing – Leigha Robbins
9. It’s All in Finding the Right Words – Missing
10. Success Inspirers’ World – An Emptiness That Doesn’t Ever Go Away
11. simply.cindy – What’s the Hold Up?
12. Missing – Optimize Your WordPress Site!
13. Voiceless: Missing Vocal Ability – Chronicles of an Orange-Haired Woman!
14. Caboosemama Little Pleasures – “Missing” – What a surprise – I missed my sleep!
15. I Didn’t See That One Coming – MY ENDURING BONES
16. Fluffy Pool – Shocking Graphs
17. The Missing Children – Scattered Showers in a Clear Sky
18. 26 Letters Poetry Blog – Happiness Home-Grown
19. Exactly where you should be – Debbie Gravett
20. Genesis Of The Looking Glass – Chapter One: Missing Person – design.lifestyle.inspiration.
21. Chase’s Thoughts And Viewpoints – What’s Missing?
22. Harcourt 51 – Missing
23. Zombie Flamingos – A rainy day and a party
24. Positively Un-broken – The Things that are Missing…
25. logicaldreams – Drabble: Missing Time
26. I still wish … – Serendipitous Web Life
27. Lost – The Chaos Within
28. Grandmothers – gift from heaven – Let your words speak what your heart thinks.
29. Missing – Random Thoughts and Musings
30. Missing – Knut Arne Gjertsen
31. Frost At Midnite – RaVi
32. The other missing part – Oh, border!
33. A Touch of Brilliance – The humble board game
34. Samantha Linda – Eat, drink & be merry
35. Who moved it? – aspoonfulofsugar337
36. Unpeopled House – Melinda J. Irvine
37. I’m Not – writemebad
38. Missing – inkfooted
39. Eden of Knowledge – Missing My Treasure
40. bigmindtalks – Echo Challenge Day #10
41. The Photo Reel – Blink and You’ll Miss It!
42. It’s A Wonderful Life – KL Beats Boulevard
43. Be right here! – Reflections!!
44. Heirloom Ornaments – The Chicken Grandma
45. Mom guilt – ALPHA BUTLER CHARLIE
46. inspiration in progress – That Something
47. It’s The Little Things – You Will Never Miss… A Christmas Card From Me.
48. Miss Sing – Kim Orlowski
49. Copycat Cafe P10.6 weeks on – Rexine Rawhead
50. manvsloneliness – Day 154: The Man and the Home for the Holidays; ‘Missing’
51. Netdancer’s Musings and Photography – Daily Prompt-Missing
52. Flowers and Breezes – Missing
53. Lost Property Repository – I Miss My Lung
54. We Need a Little Christmas – Sascha Darlington’s Microcosm Explored
55. the missing ⋆ Obsolete Childhood
56. Unbound – Elegy for Her We Love
57. Is your cat missing? They may be off to Nekotopia – Mindflight
58. I TRUST ALL THOSE EYES I TRUSED ONCE – Rainbow
59. Wanted: The Missing – Life: As You Know It
60. Missing – Bits of Poems
61. Letter G – teenspirit
62. Unraveling Before Your Eyes – LiteYourSoul
63. The Nova’s Rays – Canadian Wolves Set to Enter Europe in 2017
64. Betcha Didn’t Know! – Happy Weekend! List of Meet and Greets! Always Check For Updates!
65. Uncomfortably Numb – themanbehindtheglass
66. My World With Words – The Threads of You
67. Missing a Cinquain – Micks Blog
68. (Ain’t) Missing you (Missing) – Green scrubs and blues jeans
69. Clif Haley – Puke Dogs and the Missing Toddler
70. simply.cindy – Ten Popular Must Have Christmas Singles
71. 83 Unsung Heroes – How Do You Miss?
72.  Missing – The Bag Lady
73. Barley’s book – Barley Writes: Dissecting what I seemed to have missed.
74. Missing – thehouseofbailey
75. Attuned Photography – Simply plain- Minimalist photography
76. The Missing Christmas Cookies! – kindergartenknowledge.com
77. Resting Heart Rate – Sneakers on Pavement
78. Ready or Not… – The Abject Muse, aka SusanWritesPrecise
79. 26 Letters Poetry Blog – Missing You Like Hell
80. transience – Missing
81. Missing the Moment – Pirate Butterfly
82. Purposive Writer – Architecture
83. Unraveling the Heart – Missing A Dream
84. Missing You – Threewheelergran
85. infinite – What does nelkumi think?­
86. jamichristopher – Missing
87. wordsareallihavesite – Missing
88. Life with Jess – Adulting: It is Overrated
89. Missing you – Just me musing
90. Learning to Cook – Onto My Next 40 Years
91. Writing of All Sorts – Missing – Heart of Education
92. I Miss Reading Aloud – Moments That Won’t Run Away
93. Laurel Grove loves… – Ms Ng our Writing teacher rocked and railed
94. Missing – Just a thinker
95. Writing.Cafe – Missing Out
96. sparksfromacombustiblemind – Absentia
97. Somewhere Beyond the Fields (#2) – If Moms Could Write
98. Top 10 Women Authors – English Lit Geek
99. SoMuchToTellYou – Will You Share in this Beautiful Silence with Me?
100. pennyforyourthotsblog – Missing
101. The Missing Keys: A love story – THE INKPOT
102. FOMO – A Millennial Epidemic – ELLA LOUISE
103. Longing Hearts – Sinner’s Prayer ~ Fallen Saint
104. Insach – Missi…
105. Missing (A Kimo) – Emotional Spaces
106. Writing Challenge Day #1 – thepathtocreativity
107. There Are More Poets than Stars in the Firmament – the discontent with the present
108. TOP 5 CONSPIRACY THEORIES OF 2016 – PROJECT ASTRAL
109. MISS(play)ING – Insidious Temptation
110. Jibber Jabber with Sue – Searching Everywhere
111. A Life That Is – Friday, December 9th 2016 – Help! I think I’ve lost the travel bug
112. Writing Natural – Grandparents
113. Case of the Missing Energy. – They Once Called Her Pumpkin…
114. Covert Novelist – Missing
115. Life Is Like That – From Joy to Sadness
116. Way2Heart – You don’t see the complete picture!
117. Charron’s Chatter – Maiden America
118. The Missing Pleasure.. – wisdom12blog
119. LadyLebz – IS ME TIME IMPORTANT IN A RELATIONSHIP?
120. SERENDIPITY – WHAT AM I MISSING?
121. Musings of a Random Mind – Look @ Her Picture! Then Ignore
122. He kept on missing his home – samanawrites
123. Zombie Flamingos – A weeny storm
124. HarlemATL Inner City Blues – The Choice Is Yours
125. A Thousand Deaths – Life Confusions
126. SHINE MAGAZINE – Missing-Where did she go?
127. The Gad About Town – Missing: Empathy
128. Missing the point about public eyesores – Your Nibbled News (c) 2016 YNN
129. Missing – Leaking Ink
130. MISSING THOUGHTS – rhymeagination
131. Missing – Animalistic Writing
132. Destiny: Finally I said it! – Ms Skyfall
133. Betcha Didn’t Know! – Betcha! Will I Loose Readers If I Monetize? Discover Why You Shouldn’t Care
134. Crossing Colorado – 9 Ways to Talk Yourself Into Being Healthy in the Morning
135. Sunlight – a moment teller’s
136. What’s Missing In You? – Erick Allas
137. bathing in light – Love it Now
138. I Must be a Damn Good Artist – Sumyanna Writes
139. Just another dream that vanished – Afterlife Love Story
140. An Upturned Soul – The 8th House – What is Theirs and What I Want to Make Mine
141. Missing – suzhalgal
142. For the Love of Fridays – Love Wed Life
143. Grammy Writes – Hunger
144. Exploring the World around us – Missing
145. Treasure – GRACE, FAVOR & FAITH
146. Relics : The Daily Prompt – Missing – thepissypoetpage
147. Insidious Cravings – Missing Your Beat
148. Celebrating Stupidity – Its PH
149. Missing? – emotionsoflife2016
150. juantetcts – Missing:Daily Post
151. An Emptiness That Doesn’t Ever Go Away – atrangizindagieksafar
152. thelonerose – Missing
153. To miss or not to miss, that is the question – Train Of Thoughts
154. Where has the water gone? – Dutch goes the Photo!
155. The Cat Chronicles – Daily Feline Prompt: Missing Feline
156. resarf poetry – paradiddles in yon greenhouse
157. Ellen Grace Olinger – Haiku Art Site – Missing
158. Christmas countdown – Elaine’s Bloggers Paradise
159. Perfectly Happy-A ShortStory – absurd.lucid
160. Full-Time – Quest
161. Missing You – The Inkwell
162. 25 Goals that Inspire – SUCCESS STRATEGIES
163. Missing My Car? Not Really. – I’m a Writer, Yes, I Am!
164. Quill & Parchment – A 24/7/365 Job !
165. I Will Always Miss Them: A Premature Empty-Nester – Lilly’s View
166. Advent Calendar, Day 9 – In my world
167. Missing Her – One Stone Away…
168. kStan(ly) kSays – contented, we sighed
169. A Vibrant Palette – My first #Tanka attempt
170. Chronicles of an Anglo Swiss – It isn’t there
171. What is your pill of choice?
172. Are you an optimist, a pessimist or something in between?
173. THE MISSING KEY – Rainbow
174. Stars and Promises – thethoughtskeeper
175. That missing part – Oh, border!
176. Missing – Wings Of Poetry
177. Missing in Action – thethoughtskeeper
178. Revive Revamp and Rejoice – The Infinite Journey
179. Today’s Tomorrow – When Two Becomes A Curse.
180. sonja benskin mesher – missing
181. debooWORKS – Then And Now
182. The Beauty of Lake George New York – WeDiscover USA
183. The Future in Our Past – The DADgum Blog
184. I need you! – Burshblog
185. The Girl with the Butterfly Tattoo – Dark Nights
186. And then there was one – Just when I thought you were gone
187. Christine’s Collection – Pancake
188. The happy Quitter! – Dear Diary, soon it will be 1976
189. On love and life – in her niche
190. Le Drake Noir – Destination unknown
191. La Tour Abolie – No good deed goes unpunished
192. kStan(ly) kSays – a day at the beach…
193. kStan(ly) kSays – little things were going missing
194. Missing in the city – Back On The Grid
195. Frost At Midnite – RaVi
196. Fight stress with…you guessed it, exercise! – art of being fabulous
197. I called the Police yesterday – susiesopinions
198. Missing…. – Emotions that matter.
199. Ups, Downs & Deviations – Missing
200. Missing Legs – charlesewaugh
201. Devil Doll Musings – I Miss You
202. MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO – Missing
203. People – Just Writing!
204. B_ up to date – Missing
205. Weird Experiment – The Curious People Blog
206. Miss Pelican’s Perch – In Mourning
207. Help me go ! – Killer With Kindness
208. lifelessons – a blog by Judy Dykstra-Brown – Missing
209. mylocalweb – I’m missing you
210. The only thing missing is me – escapingperfection
211. Confidence: A Fragile Commodity – HorseAddict
212. As high as I’ve gone – Don’t hold your breath
213. Hot White Snow – You Have More Shrimp Than Me
214. I wrote a book. Now what? – The secret’s out
215. confessions of an indian curry-eater – Taj Mahal, Oban (64%)
216. Southern By Design – Fear Anchors
217. A Three Line Short Horror Story- Chapter 7 (Daughter) – Jajabor, The Nomad
218. Gone…. – Poem – Thunder Poet
219. Lantern Words – Finding The Missing
220. The Poetic Syndrome – Love is Not enough
221. Lost Property Repository – It’s Rainin