At the Sharp End . . .
News from Zoë Sharp and Charlie Fox

Winter 2011

Just when we thought we were looking set for a white Christmas, along came torrential rain and washed it all away. Sigh. Still, it was pretty while it lasted and made me hanker for staying inside curled up with a good book!

---

My foray into ePublishing in the past three months has exceeded all my expectations. It’s generated worldwide sales of my eBooks − which author wouldn't be delighted with that? − created a lot of personal publicity and stimulated renewed interest in my printed books, too. It’s been wonderful to have the entire Charlie Fox series readily available again.

My first venture was FOX FIVE, an anthology (or should that be e-thology?) of five short stories, all featuring my ex-Special Forces turned self-defence expert and bodyguard, Charlie Fox. This became an instant Kindle success and attracted a raft of five-star reviews.

It has encouraged me to offer each of the stories as individual downloads, plus a new standalone story, ‘Across The Broken Line’, in which I’ve experimented with shuffling the timeline as the tale unfolds.

My Charlie Fox thriller series has had a rather chequered publishing history, with several publishers involved at various times in the UK and the US. As a result, some readers have found it hard to follow the sequence from Charlie’s modest beginnings from a small town in the north-west of England to a base in Manhattan and adventures across the States. FIRST DROP, for example, was understandably assumed by some new readers to be the first in the series (in fact, it’s book four). Now all nine books in the Charlie Fox series are available as Kindle downloads, so they can be enjoyed in the correct order.

FIFTH VICTIM: Charlie Fox book nine out in US in hardcover .   .   .

The latest Charlie Fox book, FIFTH VICTIM, set among the mega-rich on Long Island, has been very well received since its Allison & Busby launch earlier this year. It makes its US debut in mid-January from dynamic New York publishers Pegasus Books. Pegasus are simultaneously releasing the trade paperback edition of FOURTH DAY, which has done extremely well in hardcover sales over the past year.

FIFTH VICTIM continues to be in demand in libraries, and two new versions are available soon. In January, a large-print version from ISIS/Ulverscroft, and a CD audio version from AudioGo, again voiced by Clare Corbett. Also in January, the first US audio version of the Charlie Fox series − Dreamscape Audio are bringing out their own version of FIFTH VICTIM, voiced by Justine Eyre.

To coincide with the launch of my eBooks, I bit the bullet and joined both Facebook and Twitter. There is no doubt about their global reach and I have been fascinated by the wealth of new contacts they have generated. I am sure that they have played a big part in the success of my eBook publishing venture. If you haven’t visited my Facebook page, it would be great if you'd Like or Friend me, or Follow me on Twitter.

The eBook excitement and the stimulus of Facebook and Twitter have generated several speaking engagements, and in-depth interviews in print and online. Apart from my regular fortnightly blogs on Murderati, I have also featured in at least four major interviews recently, and I was particularly delighted by a well-crafted article in ‘@Lancaster’, a glossy monthly based in my old stamping ground of Lancaster on the edge of the English Lake District, the town where Charlie Fox first sprang from the printed page a decade ago.

The tenth book in the Charlie Fox series, DIE EASY − set in post-Katrina New Orleans − is scheduled for publication in 2012 and my deadline for completing the typescript is mid-January. I am cautiously on target. I may pause for a couple of days over the Christmas holiday but I’ll be keeping an eye on my word count even while opening my prezzies.

My short story 'Rules of Engagement' featuring paparazza photographer Angel, will be out in The Mammoth Book of Best British Crime 9, edited by Maxim Jakubowski, in February 2012.

The Russian translation of SECOND SHOT is now available from Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com. The Russian version of THIRD STRIKE will follow in the Spring

A brand new short story, 'Lost and Found', will appear in Mystery Writers of America anthology Vengeance, edited by Lee Child, in March 2012. Available on pre-order from Amazon.co.uk and from Amazon.com

For those last-minute Christmas gifts, why not contact Loads-A-Books for a signed and dedicated copy of any of my books?

I have no doubt that it's going to be a fascinating year ahead as the publishing world responds to the challenge of ePublishing. I'm sure, too, that it will be my most exciting year as a crime writer. Best wishes for an enjoyable holiday and a peaceful and productive New Year!

www.zoesharp.com