My
'way-out' cover letter...
Hello,
I am a British writer seeking professional
representation/publication for my new (100k completed) police
crime novel, featuring a female lead - and for my future
works.
I write books I want to read – they are
different from the current crop of police thrillers. My stories
have a leisurely pace and focus on uncomfortable themes,
showing the dark side of human nature, irreverent
relationships, and obnoxious behaviour. My killers are evil,
with no redeeming features and, apart from my MC, most
characters are not upstanding members of the
community.
My latest novel, Darkness, is set in a
fictitious town near Bristol in 1986. The story follows DS
Jackie Steel, a sassy, hard-nosed, idealist with a keen sense
of natural justice – her kind.
Introduction
England, November 1986
Come into my
parlour,
said the spider to the fly – Mary Howitt
(adaptation)
The UK Government led by Margaret Thatcher
oversees a UK police force, some of which include police
officers seeking financial reward through supporting illegal
activities and engaging with major criminals. Bridleton Elite
Crimes Squad (BECS) is one of those.
In the summer of 1986 a series of complaints directed at some
Bridleton officers prompted an independent investigation. The
ensuing report, which was never made public,
criticised
the squad's interviewing techniques, failure to properly use
pocketbooks, and their cynical approach and lack of sympathy
towards crime victims.
Up until December 1986 members of the
20-strong squad would write out false confessions and coerce
the suspects to sign them. Officers were working "totally
unrealistic" hours, abusing the overtime system, with some
working 100 hours overtime a month, mostly for visits to
licensed premises to "meet contacts".
The report made no mention of the "veiled
threats" and other persecution techniques referred to by some
victims of the squad. Nor did it highlight the repeated
appearance in interview notes of key "confessional" phrases
such as "That bastard's set me up" and "You're spot
on".
By December 1986 there was also a shift in
the government’s awareness of the threat of AIDS, a disease
that has no cure. A few BECS officers took advantage of AIDS
victims to pervert the course of justice and to further their
careers, while nonchalantly hunting a murderer on their
patch…
…A repugnant, immoral killer who would reap
havoc across the region…
I have a fledgling web-site
(stephenterry.weebly.com). Before I retired, I was employed as
a Charity Auditor working in some forty countries over the last
ten years writing reports to a professional standard. I have a
sense of humour and I enjoy writing with a passion for the
unusual.
I do hope you will consider representing me
in publishing my novel.
Kind regards
Stephen Terry
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Good morning,
