Today’s guest blog is by author Anna Jaquiery.
She is the author of the Commandant Serge Morel series set in Paris. She
talks to Shotsblog about research and
origami.
One of my favourite things about writing a novel is
the research that goes into the story. This can be research into a detail or a
major aspect of the book that I’m working on – anything from a type of
architecture or wine to a particular religion or culture. I love the way a
subject I initially know nothing about can gradually consume me. Over the past
weeks and months, as part of my research for a new crime novel, I’ve been
reading about North African migration to France. The more I learn, the more I
want to know.
A couple of years ago, I found myself unexpectedly
invested in another topic when I wrote my first book The Lying-Down Room. In it, I introduced my detective, Commandant
Serge Morel. As I was developing the character, it came to me that he would
have a passion and a gift for origami. It wasn’t something I’d planned, but
once I thought about it, it made absolute sense. Since the book’s publication,
several people have asked whether origami is a hobby of mine. The truth is, I
can barely fold a paper airplane. But the art of paper folding suits Morel
perfectly. He is a solitary man; alive to his emotions, but restrained; he has
a logical way of thinking, and is also a romantic. Origami is both precise and
poetic. It requires scientific rigor, and the ability to let your imagination
take flight. I discovered exciting origami artists such as the late Eric
Joisel, and Robert J. Lang. Based in California, Lang is an American physicist
and also one of the foremost origami artists in the world. He gave me some
insight into his craft. With all the time I’ve spent researching this
particular aspect of Morel’s life, I’ve grown to really admire this art form.
I’m still useless at it, but I’ve become a fan.
You can follow
her on Twitter @AnnaJaquiery
Death in the Rainy Season
Phnom Penh, Cambodia; the rainy season. When a
French man, Hugo Quercy, is found brutally murdered, Commandant Serge Morel
finds his holiday drawn to an abrupt halt. Quercy - dynamic, well-connected -
was the magnetic head of a humanitarian organisation which looked after the
area's neglected youth. Opening his investigation, the Parisian detective soon
finds himself buried in one of his most challenging cases yet. Morel must
navigate this complex and politically sensitive crime in a country with few
forensic resources, and armed with little more than a series of perplexing
questions: what was Quercy doing in a hotel room under a false name? What is
the significance of his recent investigations into land grabs in the area? And
who could have broken into his home the night of the murder? Becoming
increasingly drawn into Quercy's circle of family and friends - his adoring
widow, his devoted friends and bereft colleagues - Commandant Morel will soon
discover that in this lush land of great beauty and immense darkness, nothing
is quite as it seems.
Death in the Rainy Season is by Anna Jaquiery and is published on 9 April 2015 (Pan Macmillian, £16.99
Interested in a copy of Death in the
Rainy Season? There is a copy of Death in the Rainy Season up
for grabs! To get your hands on a copy please send your name, email
address and postal address to shotscomp@yahoo.co.uk.
Don’t forget to put Death in the Rainy Season Competition in the
subject line! Closing date is Monday 13th April 2015
)
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