‘He strode onto the tiny stage in the poky, smoky barn of a room, met with a smattering of applause rather than full-throated cheers.’

Dave Masters’ experience at the very beginning of chapter 1 of Dead Man Singing was strangely similar, yet hugely different to mine on Sunday 1^st O...

C is for Cover versions. Early on in writing Dead Man Singing I decided that my main character, Dave Masters, would include cover versions on his records and in his live set, alongside his self-written material. That was partly self-indulgence and partly for the benefit of a certain type of reader. ...

People talk about books being like babies, and I suppose I can see the parallels. I have stayed up all night with a book before now, though I’ve never had one throw up down my back as I was winding it. The email from the Book Guild offering to publish Dead Man Singing arrived in my inbox on Fr...

B is for The Beatles, but that’s too obvious; B is also for The Band.

Dead Man Singing is the story of faded rock star Dave Masters. The Band, like the Beatles, are a vital part of Dave Masters’ musical identity. If they aren’t the most influential band in music history (and they&r...