Guest Blogger - Shirley Wells

A warm welcome to my special guest - Shirley Wells!
Thank you, Nell, for inviting me to your lovely blog. It’s great to be here!

What gave you the inspiration for this book, Shirley?

I was lucky in that my publishers liked my novel PRESUMED DEAD and wanted a second book featuring my private investigator, Dylan Scott. Life’s so much easier when you can welcome back your main character. I had no idea what to do with Dylan though until, one day, I was taking a rest from a city centre shopping trip. I saw a young, bright, attractive girl with a small scruffy dog at her feet. She caught my attention for two reasons. One, she was full of life. Two, she was eating the most enormous cream cake I have ever seen. I looked away, looked back, and she’d vanished. I had an excellent view of roads in all directions, but it was as if she’d been plucked from the planet. People don’t vanish though, do they? They’re abducted, they’re murdered, they choose to go into hiding … the possibilities are endless. That girl became Samantha Hunt in DEAD SILENT. If you’re curious, this is from the back cover:

Ten months ago, Samantha Hunt set off for work...and was never seen again.
Despite the statistics of cold cases, Dylan Scott wants to believe the young woman's alive—and not just because her father, his client, is desperate to find his missing daughter before he dies of cancer. By all accounts Sam was a lovely girl, devoted to her younger stepsisters, well-liked at her work, in love with her boyfriend.
But as usual not everything is as it seems in sleepy Dawson's Clough. Sam's boyfriend has a violent past. She may have been having an affair with her boss. And Dylan can't shake the feeling that her stepfather is hiding something. Meanwhile, someone is trying to scare Dylan off the case.
Who wanted to silence Sam, and why? The truth turns out to be worse than anyone expected...

What are you working on now?

At the moment, I’m working on the fourth Dylan Scott mystery. PRESUMED DEAD was published in July 2010, DEAD SILENT has just released, and the third in the series, SILENT WITNESS, releases in March 2012.

Which authors do you enjoy reading?

I read anything and everything so there are far too many to list. Must-buy authors are Ruth Rendell, Jodi Picoult, Joanna Trollope and Ian Rankin, among others, but I love exploring and have recently enjoyed new-to-me author Gordon Ferris who writes beautiful crime novels. I was one of those people who vowed never, ever to read an e-book, but I got an iPad and became an e-book fan overnight. Since then, I’ve read far more widely. It’s much too easy to see a review of a book that sounds interesting and download it.

If you could choose some authors or fictional characters to invite to dinner who would you pick and why?

First, I’d need to buy a much bigger dining table. I’d love to see Columbo pit his wits against Sherlock Holmes. Two great fictional detectives, but completely different characters. While they were discussing the criminal mind, I’d introduce them to Miss Jane Marple and let her astound them with her insight. I love the wit of Mark Twain and would enjoy seeing him and Douglas Adams at the same table. I feel sure there would be many laughs to be had. Stephen King would have to be present so I could ask him about his writing. I don’t read many books on writing but I loved his On Writing and often read snippets for inspiration. Alan Bennett would entertain us with his humour. JK Rowling would tell us how Harry Potter changed her life. And you, Nell, would sit at the head of the table and tell us how much fun you have writing your own books.

Thank you for having me!

Having had several hundred short stories, ten serials and ten novels published, Shirley Wells is finally getting the hang of this writing lark. She’s lived in Orkney, Cyprus and the Cotswolds, and now lives in Lancashire, UK, where the Pennines, with their abundance of great places to hide bodies, provide the inspiration for her popular mystery novels. She shares her home with her husband, two dogs, two cats and any other stray animals that fancy being pampered. Connect with Shirley via her WEBSITE, follow her on Twitter or find her on Facebook.

Her latest Dylan Scott mystery, DEAD SILENT, is available from CARINA PRESS AMAZON Barnes & Noble and all good e-book retailers.