I’m mixing it up a bit this week on my blog. I think I have spring fever!
Winter is officially about to draw to a close as the vernal equinox is reportedly starting at 7:02 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, March 20th. Like many of us, I always feel excited about the arrival of Spring. I love the herald it brings of new beginnings as the tips of bulbs and perennials poke through the soil and appear like dear friends arriving for a visit (I guess that’s the gardener in me …).
As something new here, yesterday I published a post from the blog Asymmetric Insights, which I like to follow for personal reasons. The topics covered are not those I speak about here because, quite frankly, I’m fairly illiterate when it comes to discussing money matters and the financial state of the world. However the young blogger hosting this site writes about those issues in an intelligent and clear manner that I find extremely relatable. For anyone interested, I thought you might appreciate what he has to say. There is a lot of talk today about what happened in Cyprus. Perhaps we all need to take notice!
Following on today’s “new” theme, I am pleased to introduce you to British author Harvey Black who writes military thrillers. His most recent gripping story, The Red Effect, the first of a trilogy set in the Cold War years, is due for release in April.
When you have read this interview, click here to go to his detailed website for complete information on all of his intriguing and suspenseful novels about this extraordinary time in history.
A qualified parachutist, Harvey served with British Army Intelligence for over ten years. His experience ranges from covert surveillance in Northern Ireland to operating in Communist East Berlin during the cold war, where he feared for his life after being dragged from his car and attacked by Russian KGB soldiers.
Since then he has lived a more sedate life in the private sector as a Director for an International Company, but now enjoys the pleasures of writing. Harvey is married with four children.
P.S. What started you writing?
H.B. I have wanted to write a novel since I was a teenager. Enthralled by Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, E.E. Doc Smith’s Lensmen series and Edgar Rice Burroughs, I felt sure my first would be of the SF genre. Joining the army changed all of that and my passion now is for military history. ‘Devils with Wings’, a military thriller, based around the adventures of two young Fallschirmjäger paratroopers during the early part of World War II, is a fictionalised adventure based on the famous assault on the impregnable Belgian fortress, Eben Emael.
P.S. What makes your books special?
H.B. I try to visit the locations in person. For Devils with Wings: Silk Drop, I walked the routes,
up to 18 miles, in Crete, during the hottest part of the day, where my characters would have marched. Most of the descriptions in the novel, of what they can see, was written in situ. I have just finished the first of my Cold War trilogy of novels, The Red Effect. Having spent a number of years in British Army Intelligence during the Cold War years, I have a deep insight into the undercurrents and flashpoints that occurred between the Soviet Union and the West.
P.S. What authors inspire you?
H.B. There are a number of authors I follow, ranging from Stephen Leather, Simon Scarrow, Bernard Corwall, Gerald Seymor to Ian Rankin. Since I have been writing my own novels, I have developed a close interest in newer authors, such as S.J.A.Turney and Stephen England. I am currently reading ‘Marias’ Mules’ IV.
P.S. What is your plan going forward?
H.B. There will be ten books in the ‘Devils with Wings’ series, Book 4, will be published towards the end of the year. With The Red Effect
now finished, I will focus on Book 2, The Black Effect, where the confrontation between East and West continues.
P.S. Will you do anything differently as the series progresses?
H.B. As I continue to write, a plan develops: more structure to my chapters in advance, greater focus on my characterisation and improving my dialogue, all key to keeping the story moving.
P.S. Lessons learned so far?
H.B. Edit, edit, edit! Even when you have your editing done professionally, you still need to check your manuscript again and again.
Out in April, 2012! The Red Effect – In this panoramic novel, readers travel from centres of power to the front lines. A war is brewing and events are happening at every angle. Is the Cold War about to turn hot? Can NATO forces endure a mass strike by thousands of Soviet tanks? Can the West survive?
Harvey is a fellow author in the UK-based group, LoveAHappyEnding.com Lifestyle. Once again, Harvey Black’s website can be found here with detailed links to his extensive library, photographs and fascinating stories.
Thanks for stopping by today, dear readers, and I hope you are as delighted about the arrival of spring as I am. What’s new in your world? Are you a history buff? I remember the Cold War years very clearly. Do you?
This is such a great interview! Love his advice about editing after having a novel professionally edited. I had wondered about that!
Happy almost spring!
Thank you Susie. There isn’t a book out there, I don’t think 🙂 , that has not got a minor editing glich somewhere. If even the top publishing houses make mistakes, then it drives me to ensure that my own novels are at their best. My publisher, SilverWood books, pushes me hard to get it right.
Thank you Susie. Also glad Spring is nearly with us. 🙂 Even the great publishing houses slip up, and I doubt there is a book out there that is absolutely perfect. With limited resources, it is even more important for Self-published authors to get it right. My publisher, SilverWood Books, is a hard task master and they keep me on the straight and narrow. HB
Nice to meet you, Harvey. Love thrillers, but military tends to overwhelm–so not my thing. But, a good story with strong characters and woven with skill can be set against any backdrop and still rivet my attention. (The movie, Courage Under Fire comes to mind.) I’ve learned to look past military and spy and race cars or any other backdrop I *think* won’t interest me. In the end, it’s all about story. Your story has my interest.
Thank you Sheryl. The first in the trilogy is, in part, the build up to the hypothetical invasion of the West by the Warsaw Pact. There are a number of vignettes that will give the reader a picture of what genuinely occured during those darker days of the Cold War and what may have well have been.
Great interview. Harvey’s novels sound facinating and he obviously goes the extra mile – or should that be 18 miles? – with the research and detail. Good luck with The Red Effect. Oh, and roll on Spring, it’s still snowing here in Scotland!
Thank you Janice. As authors, i think we all take pride in what we write and all my fellow writers at Loveahappyending set similar standards.
I simply can’t wait to read this. Congrats on a great cover, Harvey, and thanks to Patricia for hosting today. X
Thank you Nicky. I know that many of the vignettes in my novel will strike a chord with you. West Germany/Berlin were very much battle grounds of a hidden war.
Amazing reading and the research Harvey Black does is beyond belief! Great post Patricia and Harvey. Congrats on a cover that really ‘grabs’ the reader’s attention!
Thanks Linn. It’s great writers like yourself that set an example the rest of us mortals need to follow. 🙂
Patricia. Thankyou for revealing the cover of my latest novel on your Blog. Already writing The Black Effect, the sequal that will be as black as its cover. The early to mid eighties were dark days indeed, and few people realise how close we came to The Red Effect. HB
TEN books in the series! This is a BIG project. Great interview!
Love the cover, Harvey. Love your dedication to accurate research! Inspiring! 🙂 xx
Thank you Sheryl. Its the research and accuracy that seems to give my novels credibility. It is my USP i suppose. I will alsways sacrifice my speed of writing over the quality of the content. HB
I love spring and of course new beginnings, always:) Fascinating author and stories, thank you for introducing him to us. I like what Harvey says about as the series progresses and how he delves deeper, I can see that happening with my own upcoming series AND the editing advice too. Great interview and I’m looking forward to a great read!
I admire you for jumping out of airplanes and then living to write about it.
I think the cover is striking and the premise fascinating, so am really looking forward to reading The Red Effect. I have read Harvey’s previous books and although I’m not a huge military fan, I do love action and adventure which the Devils With Wings series had in bucket loads. (I’m not supposed to mention the little bit of romance in there too – oh damn, I just did 😉 )
And finally, Allez le printemps!
Congratulations to Harvey on your new book – and to a great interview by Patricia!
Terrific interview. I am more into his genre of book topic and might have to check out his writings. Very cool that he is so detailed and reseach oriented.
Also, Spring is tomorrow, and so it snowed last night and feels like winter here in NYC. Yuck!
Thank you all for your very nice comments. I am passionate about my novels, the era and area they are set in and research hard to ensure their accuracy. I have just been informed that ‘The Red Effect’ Kindle version will be out in a matter of days, the PB not long after. I can’t wait to see the cover on the front of a paperback version, I’m sure it will be even more stunning. The Cold War era was very real for me and I have woven some of my experiences into the novel. I hope you have a read and i promise you that you will be hooked. 🙂 HB