Robert Parker is a new exciting
voice, a married father of two, who lives in a village close to Manchester, UK. He has both a law degree and a degree in film and media
production, and has worked in numerous employment positions, ranging from
solicitor’s agent (essentially a courtroom gun for hire), to a van driver, to a
warehouse order picker, to a commercial video director. He currently
writes full time, while also making time to encourage new young readers and
authors through readings and workshops at local schools and bookstores. In his
spare time he adores pretty much all sport, boxing regularly for charity, loves
fiction across all mediums, and his glass is always half full.
His latest book is the
crime/thriller, A WANTED MAN.
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About the Book:
Title:
A WANTED MAN
Author: Robert Parker
Publisher: Endeavour Press
Pages: 307
Genre: Crime Thriller
Author: Robert Parker
Publisher: Endeavour Press
Pages: 307
Genre: Crime Thriller
It’s down to
fathers and fatherhood.
Ben Bracken, ex-soldier, has just got out of Strangeways.
Not by the front door.
With him, he has his ‘insurance policy’ – a bag of evidence that will guarantee his freedom, provided he can keep it safe – and he has money, carefully looked after by a friend, Jack Brooker.
Rejected by the army, disowned by his father, and any hopes of parenthood long since shattered, Ben has no anchors in his life.
No one to keep him steady.
No one to stop his cause…
The plan: to wreak justice on the man who had put him in prison in the first place.
Terry ‘The Turn-Up’ Masters, a nasty piece of work, whose crime organisation is based in London.
But before Ben can get started on his mission, another matter is brought to his attention: Jack’s father has been murdered and he will not rest until the killers are found.
Suddenly, Ben finds himself drawn in to helping Jack in his quest for revenge.
In the process, he descends into the fold of Manchester’s most notorious crime organisation – the Berg – the very people he wants to bring down…
This action-packed and fast-paced story will keep you turning the pages. Manchester is vividly portrayed as Ben races around the city seeking vengeance.
Ben Bracken, ex-soldier, has just got out of Strangeways.
Not by the front door.
With him, he has his ‘insurance policy’ – a bag of evidence that will guarantee his freedom, provided he can keep it safe – and he has money, carefully looked after by a friend, Jack Brooker.
Rejected by the army, disowned by his father, and any hopes of parenthood long since shattered, Ben has no anchors in his life.
No one to keep him steady.
No one to stop his cause…
The plan: to wreak justice on the man who had put him in prison in the first place.
Terry ‘The Turn-Up’ Masters, a nasty piece of work, whose crime organisation is based in London.
But before Ben can get started on his mission, another matter is brought to his attention: Jack’s father has been murdered and he will not rest until the killers are found.
Suddenly, Ben finds himself drawn in to helping Jack in his quest for revenge.
In the process, he descends into the fold of Manchester’s most notorious crime organisation – the Berg – the very people he wants to bring down…
This action-packed and fast-paced story will keep you turning the pages. Manchester is vividly portrayed as Ben races around the city seeking vengeance.
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What’s inside the
mind of a crime author?
Too much, but I think that’s mainly because I live a fairly
hectic lifestyle with two young kids and a third due any minute now. So I’ve
got a mad ever-evolving checklist of things that need doing everyday,
interspersed with the darkness, murder and mayhem which I write about - it’s
fairly chaotic place in that skull of mine.
What is so great
about being an author?
The freedom to create is liberating and exciting always, and
when a story, moment or character just clicks, it can be immensely satisfying.
It also lets me spend a lot of time with my family, so I see myself as very
lucky indeed.
When do you hate it?
Never. Maybe one day I’ll feel the pressure to create, the
pressure to find that spark, but at the minute, I’ve noted down everything for
so long that I’ve got literally years with of books and stories in my notebooks
ready to go. It feels, at this point, I’ve always got something to write about
– and I’ll hold onto that for as long as I can.
What is a regular
writing day like for you?
Get up at 5.30/6am
with the kids, do the whole breakfast and cartoon stuff, then Mrs Parker takes
them off to school. I’ll have a coffee and get to it, breaking for lunch and
the gym, a few errands too if needed, before stopping at 5pm. When the kids are in bed, if there’s nothing going
on, more often than not I’ll get straight back to it. I try to do 2000 words a
day.
How do you handle
negative reviews?
I love them. Always have. It just drives me on, makes me
want to succeed even harder.
How do you handle
positive reviews?
With gratitude. If someone has said they like one of my
books, I’m totally over the moon, because giving people enjoyment was, is and
always will be the only thing I ever set out to do.
What is the usual
response when you tell a new acquaintance that you’re an author?
They ask what genre – then I say crime, and they have this
look on their face which betrays instantly that they are wondering if I’m a
closet sociopath.
What do you do on
those days you don’t feel like writing? Do you force it or take a break?
Make myself, if I need to. But if I’m wrestling with
something and I’m struggling to get my head around it, I’ll take a break –
ordinarily that sorts out a new perspective so you’re good to go again.
Any writing quirks?
Movie music, on a low to medium volume. Weird maybe, but it
never fails to work.
What would you do if
people around you didn’t take your writing seriously or see it as a hobby?
Wouldn’t care one bit. Anything negative just makes me go at
it with more grit.
Some authors seem to
have a love-hate relationship to writing. Can you relate?
Nope, I’m afraid not! I love it, and never thought I’d get
to do it full time, so I’ll never hate this thing.
Do you think success
as an author must be linked to money?
No, not at all. Obviously there is a purely economic factor
that has to be there if you want to do it full time, but everything is
relative. If your happiness is the size of your cheque from your publisher,
then that’s up to you. For me it will always be if someone enjoyed my work –
and if you think about it, if you are making something that people are
enjoying, more people will want to enjoy it too. And if more people are
enjoying it, the more money you’re likely to make, so one can lead to the other
in any case!
What has writing
taught you?
Giving up is not an option if you want to get somewhere.
Leave us with some
words of wisdom.
See my last answer! Don’t ever stop until you get there.
