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...

1. 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.)
2. 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?
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. 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...