Wednesday, 23 August 2017
5 reasons I wrote Killing Rumer
Oh my, look! We've hit 50%! We're HALFWAY THERE. I really can't thank everybody who's supported this campaign enough. You've been kind, patient and unbelievably generous in helping this struggling writer edge closer to his dream – which is having Rumer's story out there in the world, ready to thrill and scare in equal measure.
While I've got you, why not chuck this link at a friend who loves gritty crime thrillers? http://unbound.com/books/killing-rumer Studies (conducted by somebody, somewhere, at some time) have shown that personal emails work better than blanket posts, so if you've got a friend (or even an enemy) who'd like Rumer, chuck them a "hello!" with this link. THANK YOU x a million.
Right, now for something a little less pimp-y. Because you might be wondering why I chose to write a book about a messed-up teenage girl when I, clearly, am not that (or at least not a teenage girl), I thought I'd pull the curtain back a bit on why I wrote Killing Rumer. So here goes...
- Because I'm an outsider. Sure, I'm white, I'm male, I'm relatively tall (or something) in a ridiculous society that values those things, but I'm also a nerdy gay guy who grew up feeling, for the most part, misunderstood and a little bit weird. That's why Rumer is so important to me. She's an extreme version of me – my dark twin; the twisted sister I never had. (I actually do have a sister, and she's nothing like Rumer.)
- Because I wanted to write about mothers and daughters. In Killing Rumer, Rumer's mother is dead, but that didn't mean I couldn't write about their relationship. In fact, the fact that her mother is dead only complicates Rumer's relationship with her even more. How do you argue with a dead person? Or figure out who you are?
- Because I had an idea that terrified me. That idea was: what if you could transfer all of your bad karma into your unborn child? That's what Rumer believes happened to her, and it's a pretty horrific thing to believe about yourself. I wanted to explore how that belief shaped her and influenced every decision Rumer's ever made.
- Because I wanted to write something with no easy answers. Is Rumer cursed? Why does a gangster want her dead? Is it possible to change who you are? Is something true just because you believe it? They're all questions I chucked around while writing Killing Rumer. There may be answers, there may not, but that's sort of up to you to decide.
- Because it was fun! There's tons of dark stuff going on in Killing Rumer, but it's also a gleefully lean thriller with loads of twists, funny characters and crazy set-pieces. It was an absolute blast to write (I scribbled the first draft over a feverish eight months) and, hopefully, that also makes it a blast to read.
So there you go. Thanks again to everybody who's pre-ordered a copy of Killing Rumer, and please do continue to spread the word. We've hit 50%! Hopefully it'll all be downhill from here...
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