New Mangel and FREE Graven

Loyal followers of Royston Blake will be relieved when March 2013 comes. That is when the big guy comes back into our lives, via the fifth Mangel book MADE OF STONE. To whet your appetites, here is the cover:

That insect is the Hurk Moth, a new species they discovered in the wooded area north of Mangel. This moth explains a few things about the way people behave around there... but you'll have to read the book to find out how. And it's not just about moths - there's a lot of other insane shit too that all seems to hang together in the usual Royston Blake kind of way. I'll say more about the background to this book nearer the time, but if you happened to be reading this blog last year and caught some of an episodic story that was playing out in real-time on these pages, you will recognise some of the early parts - the novel came from that. And I'm glad it did. Check it out (and maybe pre-order) here in the UK and here in the US.

Kindle owners who have not read my novella GRAVEN IMAGE should check out Amazon (UK, US) for the next couple of days - it will be going FOR FREE for a limited period. Do it! It's about Leon, a brothel bouncer with problems. I don't know why I keep writing about bouncers. In the pissed-up, amplified social world that a lot of us live in, they are the gatekeepers.

No more presents in the sack

Well over 1000 Kindlers took the opportunity to download GRAVEN IMAGE for free. If it's about getting the work out there, it was a success. What would be good now is if as many as possible of those Kindlers did a little review of the novella on Amazon, or posted about it somewhere if they liked it. Obviously they'd have to read it to do that, and downloading ain't the same as reading. Either way, I'm pretty chuffed that so many of you took up the offer. I'm proud of the work.

Anyone who missed it, it's not free any more but it's only a few pence/cents.

Happy New Kindle

I mean New Year. But if you have a Kindle, here I am reminding you that you have until Jan 3rd to download my bitter (but funny in places) little pill GRAVEN IMAGE for the sum total of Jack Shit (£0.00/$0.00). Check out Josh Stallings' 5-star review on Amazon, then get it here in the UK, here in the US. You won't regret it. OK, if you regret it, you won't be out of pocket.

H.N.Y.!

FREE Graven Image...

Kindle people, I have a seasonal gift for you. for the next five days, my novella GRAVEN IMAGE is going for $0.00 at Amazon UK. I believe it is also $0.00 at Amazon US.

Please download it at no cost to you and help push it up the charts. This is the one that starts with the line "I was in the abbey when I realised I'd have to burn for my sins."

Remember, this is an offer ends on Jan 3rd.

Just sayin'

GRAVEN IMAGE is now available to buy as an ebook from Goodreads, so you can get it for Kobo, Nook and the other readers as well as the Kindle. These ebook readers are pretty crazy, aren't they? But sexy.

GRAVEN IMAGE for Kindle

Hey Kindle bods, you can now get my noir novella GRAVEN IMAGE for your device. Not only that, but it is FILTHY CHEAP. We are talking 86p in the UK and something similar in the US. Of course, the book is still available from Five Leaves Press as a beautiful paperback.

This is the one of which the Nerd of Noir declared:

"The Nerd urges you, dear reader, to get your hands on some Graven Image toot-fucking-sweet, to let Leon take you on a journey through both the dark alleys of his hometown and those of his diseased brain. Granted, Leon's gonna give you a laugh now and then, but mostly he's just making sure this intense crazy train never slows for a fucking second lest he get a horrifying moment to reflect."

Also, I'd be mighty grateful if those who have read it could consider doing some sort of Amazon review. Good or bad, so long as the thing looks like it is being read! And hey, you know I love you.

California Graven'

V.nice review of my GRAVEN IMAGE and Raymond "gaming chair" Banks' CALIFORNIA in Big Issue Scotland, courtesy of Doug "Smokeheads" Johnstone. Check it out here. Many thanks to Doug.

Give it away y'all

The prize draw for DEADFOLK has been closed and five lucky winners have a copy winging its way across the pond towards them. That's right - I made it open to readers in US, Can and UK but Goodreads selects the winners, and they all came up in the colonies. Interestingly, four were Canada and only one US, perhaps reflecting the weighting of the entrants. A big cheer for Canada - you're either getting behind Royston Blake big time or you really, really like getting stuff without paying. Either way is cool.

1032 people entered to win a copy of Deadfolk, so I'm putting up a copy of GRAVEN IMAGE too. If I can get as many people aware of that book, that's a good return. And it's lighter than Deadfolk, so hopefully I won't be bankrupted when someone from North America inevitably wins.

(UK people, don't let it happen! You're 5-0 down at the moment but you can pull one back. all you have to do is enter.)

This one runs all through April, so if you're not planning on buying a copy of Graven Image, you might as well enter. The winner gets to read the story of brothel bouncer Leon, who takes you, as the Nerd of Noir put it, "on a journey through both the dark alleys of his hometown and those of his diseased brain. Granted, Leon’s gonna give you a laugh now and then, but mostly he’s just making sure this intense crazy train never slows for a fucking second lest he get a horrifying moment to reflect"

Everything going Jackanory

Do you like books? Do you have ears? Are you interested in brothel bouncers who cannot control their temper, and find themselves maiming sadistic VIP punters who batter the girls and then having to pay the price for that misplaced chivalry? Me too.

And boy, are we in for a treat!

GRAVEN IMAGE is going to be an audiobook, narrated by Ben Onwukwe and stretching to 3 CDs. Read it and weep. Or listen to it and weep, rather.

Watch out for it in libraries and the above website from April. Or listen out for it, rather.

Stained Image

I first got the idea for Graven Image when I was looking at this stained glass in nearby Worcester Cathedral. It depicts some luckless bishop getting burned at the stake and looking pretty damn dignified about it. Looking back at notes and drafts, it seems the first line came to me first: "I was in the abbey when I realised I'd have to burn for my sins." From that, it seemed obvious that the guy saying it was a black brothel bouncer named Leon, and that he was stood right here in the cloisters, waiting for some sort of punishment to befall him so the natural order of things can be restored to the local underworld.

GRAVEN IMAGE PRIZE DRAW THING

Impartiality was maintained at all times. An independant adjudicator (Toby the Labrador) stood by and ensured that the integrity of the process was not compromised. Then, and only then, did I select five totally random punters to receive a freebie of GRAVEN IMAGE. The lucky ones are:

Duncan S
Sam S
Kathy W S
Dan V
Someone from my mailing list whose email address starts "Baz".

Congrats one and all. And thanks to everyone who joined my fan page in an ultimately fruitless attempt to win. Trust me, with four other books coming out this year, there will be more opportunities.

Graven Depository

It has come to my attention that non-UK readers can pick up a copy of GRAVEN IMAGE cheap AND POSTAGE FREE at Bookdepository.co.uk. When I pretended I was in the USA, it said $6.02 USD. As our American brethren say - pretty neat, huh?

One drawback: it's not available yet. But the book is not published until April 1st, so we should wait, right? And pre-ordering is all the rage at the moment.

The Ying and the Yang of it

GRAVEN IMAGE isn't officially published for another five weeks but we've seen two early and conflicting reviews. The ying and the yang, if you will. First this one from David Paine of local organ the Worcester News, which starts out:

In author Charlie Williams’ attempt to write gritty dialogue there is great emphasis on bad language.

This doesn't bode well, does it ? Let's pull that teflon cloak on...

While I don’t particularly have a problem with that and accept it is used in everyday life, particularly a stressful situation like Leon finds himself in, other authors like Simon Kernick, who for me is the master of this genre right now, manage to create pace, tension and fear without overdoing it with the profanities.

Let's just say it doesn't get much better than that. But hey, I defend to the death every man's right to express his own onion. I mean opinion. Let's move onto the yang, shall we? The Nerd of Noir starts out:

Leon has fucked up something terrible.

This is already my kind of review!

Though much is often made of voice and madness when discussing his work, I think short shrift is too often given to the fucking delightfully gritty worlds Williams creates, from dingy bars packed with shiftless professional drinkers to the lonely streets where only half-retarded wannabe thugs dare to tread, fritting away the night posing like their favorite crime flick characters to impress their easily amused friends.

Long live the Nerd. And David Paine. Just to show there's no hard feelings, here is a special tribute to you:

Graven Freebies

Do you want a chance of winning a copy of my forthcoming novella GRAVEN IMAGE? I am giving away five next week. All you have to do to be in with a shout is "like" my fan page on Facebook. Not on Facebook? Fret not - there are other great ways to be in with a shout. You could join my mailing list. Or do an Amazon (UK or US) review of any of my books and then email me. In fact, I'll give you THREE TIMES the weighting if you do that because I could do with some more Amazon reviews. Does that sound fair? Sure it does.

I spit on your Graven

As already pointed out by the fabulous Ray Banks, anyone wanting to get ahead of the Crime Express game can now do so. GRAVEN IMAGE and the other three books can be snagged here right now, free postage in the UK and everything. That's more than 1.5 months early! Yes, it's blatant CHEATING, but I won't tell.

Let's pick a random blurb to paste here.... Ooh, it's GRAVEN IMAGE by Charlie Williams... what an embarrassing coincidence!

It knocks the wind out of you, reality does

Brothel bouncer Leon shouldn’t be here. A week ago he stepped over the line, maiming a slap-happy VIP punter. But he can’t stay away. Not with his daughter Kelly being so young and vulnerable. If he can sort it out with Graven, take the kicking he knows he’ll get, maybe they can call it a debt paid. But when Kelly goes missing Leon realises what kind of debt is due.

Check that out!

Matlock, 12th March

Matlock: I've always thought that's a great name for a town. Tough and no nonsense. Matt Lock, private eye. He'd be somewhere between Mike Hammer and Matt Scudder, pissed up on whisky but still asking tough questions or blowing heads off. The right heads.

I will be in Matlock on Saturday 12th March as part of the Derbyshire Readers' Day (which seems to be two days, starting on the 11th, but never mind). Find me on a panel alongside Danuta Reah, hosted by Stephen Booth, which goes by the title "Keeping it Short", or something. Either way, it almost coincides with all three of us (along with the legendary Ray Banks) having Crime Express books coming out on April 1st, and those babies are certainly short. And to the point. But probably not very sweet. Check them out here. And dig those covers. Then, *ahem*, think about pre-ordering.

So, can you make it to Matlock? Check out here for details. Scudder and Hammer will probably not be in attendance, but Reah, Booth and Williams surely will. And maybe Matt Lock himself.

NB: Matlock was also a main location for the amazing Shane Meadows film DEAD MAN'S SHOES. If you haven't seen it, find it.

Papa's got a brand new pigbag

Been a bit slack here of late. But you know that means I've been busy, right? Or just drunk. You decide.

Next spring sees the publication of my novella GRAVEN IMAGE by Five Leaves Press. It's crime but it's also a bit out there, as all my stuff probably is. It also has a great cover. To mark the occasion I will be taking part in an event to do with Derbyshire Readers' Day. Details TBC.

The re-launch of Royston Blake (Deadfolk, Booze and Burn*, King of the Road plus the new one - ONE DEAD HEN) is coming along nicely, with a new set of covers being worked on as we speak by the world's top artists and designers. Hopefully I'll be able to unveil those some time soon, but until then you could bookmark the pages and maybe think about pre-ordering. Either way, they're coming out one month after the other starting next May. It's gonna be a summer-long carnival of Royston Blake.

I've done a piece about getting Deadfolk published for You're Booked, the writing-related website from the good people at the Harrogate Crime Writing Festival. Make sure you check out the other stuff on there too by folks such as Lee Child, John Harvey and Colin Bateman. But only after reading my one.

Other than that, let's just keep on rocking and rolling. And writing.

*Fags and Lager

Crime Express

I'm going to post more about the exciting new Royston Blake situation this week, but in the meantime check out this top cover for GRAVEN IMAGE, my contribution to the Crime Express series of short books from Five Leaves Press. It is slated for April 1st 2011 along with three others by Ray Banks, Danuta Reah and Stephen Booth - all of whose covers are also ace. Check those mothers out!


I'll post more info about GRAVEN IMAGE nearer the time. Until then, let it bask in an aura of mystery.