With "The Crime Collection" series of books having recently doubled in size due to the addition of "The Rubicon," I thought that it might be the ideal time to give readers (and prospective readers) an insight into where the ideas for these novels came from.
Inspiration for new storylines can come from a variety of different sources, but in my case, both were born out of experience (either my own, or others that I know of), added to which there was a healthy dose of "what if..." and imagination.
As many of you will know, I spent a number of years working as a police officer and, as such, I encountered many different aspects of the criminal underworld. However, "real-life" tends not to be as exciting as it is portrayed on TV or in books. There is a vast majority of monotonous, routine, daily tasks interspaced with brief moments of excitement and danger. For those of you who have explored my previously published works, you may well have encountered my memoir, "Single-Crewed: My Life as a Police Officer." In it, I give a taste of what police life was like as seen through my eyes. It covers every aspect of the job from day-to-day traffic duties through to suspicious deaths (and beyond), however, many of the more "unique" jobs had to be edited out due to privacy issues relating to victims or suspects involved. It is important to know that each police force has its own regulations regarding how (or even if) former officers can write about their experiences. Mine was extremely positive and encouraging, but insisted that anything that might identify the people involved should be altered or removed.
For those who have not yet read this book, it can be found by clicking this link. HERE.
This brings me on to "The Crime Collection." One way to introduce some of the "edited" subjects into book-form was to enter the world of fiction writing. By taking a starting point from a real-life incident, I could then develop and expand the story, incorporating some other aspects of police life whilst not actually mentioning actual people or incidents. (adding a lot of imagination and changes of circumstances in order to blur the lines between reality and fiction, of course).
So let's start with, "Reflex Action: A Thrilling Crime Novel."
Those who have read "Single-Crewed" might remember an incident where I stop/searched a strange vehicle on a cold, dark night. Subsequent events indicated that the driver was a suspected terrorist (unbeknown to me)... BUT... what if that stop had been different? What if I had searched the vehicle's boot? What if the driver was not a terrorist, but some other type of criminal? What might happen? Where might the story lead?
And so was born the basic outline of the novel.....
"The Rubicon: A Gripping Crime Novel" was slightly different. It tackles the subject of victimization of a former police officer. Although I was subject to abuse (mainly verbally) as a police officer, both on and off duty, I was single - I had no family that might be affected by this victimization, at the time. However, I knew of other officers whose families were targeted - in the streets, outside schools, their vehicles were attacked - it was a relatively common, but under-reported occurrence.
So, "what if" this occurred to a former police officer? What if the incidents escalated in number and seriousness? What might that officer do in response? It might open a whole can of worms, but the only way to find out will be to read the book...
So, as you can see, The Crime Collection is a series of stories dredged from my imagination, but based on fact. The procedures and legalities are true, as are the thoughts and ideals of the characters involved.
If this little insight has sparked an interest to see how things develop, both books are available in #Kindle and #paperback formats from your regional #Amazon outlet, WORLDWIDE.
UK readers can click here - Amazon.co.uk: Andrew Heasman: Books, Biography, Blogs, Audiobooks, Kindle
US readers can click here - https://www.amazon.com/Andrew-Heasman/e/B0765WB3K7/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0
You can check my website at - https://ajheasman.wixsite.com/author
Details and links to "Single-Crewed" can also be found on the same links (above).
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