John Dean – Crime Writer

Writing is often about real-time reminders of some of the most basic of truths about the craft we know and love. One of those truths is that characters provide the heartbeat of stories and sometimes the best thing is to give them their head and see where they take you.

I mention this because I am working on the latest Jack Harris novel (my next book due out is a John Blizzard novel, which is with my publisher The Book Folks, a Joffe Books company, and is planned to appear sometime in 2026).

Back to the Jack Harris novel. It’s a plot that twists and turns and relies on a number of chapters that dramatically, and repeatedly, shift the reader’s focus.

I have been working on one of them which was flat and had stalled and the answer was to develop a conflict, which had only previously been hinted at, between Harris and one of his team, who normally work well together.

By allowing the two characters to explore the cause of the disagreement and letting them fall out with each other, the chapter was given fresh focus and momentum and started moving again.

An age-old lesson re-learned.