Christoffer Petersen

Authentic Arctic Thrillers

Christoffer Petersen

Once in a while

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Once in a while a book takes me completely by surprise. The Mermaid of Black Conch by Monique Roffey is one of those books.

I’m listening to the audiobook, but I know I need the paperback too. The audio performance is brilliant, and lends a beauty to Roffey’s words, and her descriptions in particular, but I want to see the words.

I’m getting ahead of myself again. I haven’t finished listening to the book. I know there’s a twist coming, and I’m okay with that. I’m looking forward to it. But it’s like Alan Garner’s books Strandloper and Thursbitch, there’s a deeper mythical quality to the writing and the content and I want more.

Love it.

And nope, it’s not a crime book. But it is my kind of book.

Chris

Magic 101

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I’ve been going through my photos from Greenland. No small task. I have 325 gigabytes worth. 🙂 Fortunately, most of it is ordered in folders with the date I took the photo (or video).

Most of it.

There’s some curious stuff in there. The photo above is from January 5th in Uummannaq. The sea ice is forming and is pretty good in places, but with lots of open leads. I’m not sledging on that, but the hunters are.

And then, on January 5th in Qaanaaq, I recorded these videos.

I was a teacher, and I was teaching the younger kids, a couple of years older than Luui. I’m pretty sure I recorded these for a class. English? Yes, but I think I wanted the kids to record their own videos, and I’m also sure I wanted them to do magic. It’s possible I have an instructional video, but you don’t need to see that! 😉 In Qaanaaq, English is the fourth language they learn, and they have to go through three others to get there!

So, on this January 5th, I’ve decided to do magic.

I’m in our house in Qaanaaq, and beside the backpacks, just behind my head, you can see a fox pelt. I can’t quite remember how we came by it, but am pretty sure we bought it. Whether we wanted it or not is another matter.

Yeah, I know, but I think Luui would approve. 🙂

Chris

Proceeding South!

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Everyone needs a hero – or several. One of mine is the Norwegian polar explorer Roald Amundsen. Fans of Scott will protest, and I’ll ignore them. 😉 However, one of Amundsen’s classic quotes was in a telegram he sent to Scott: ‘Beg leave to inform you Fram proceeding Antarctic. Amundsen’. Thus kick-starting the race for the South Pole.

Love it!

And in that vein… Petra is heading south!

The Crocodile Beat is coming along, and I’m using concept art to develop it.*

I started using 3D art in the creative process last year. Before that I often used sketches to puzzle out one thing or another, but the 3D stuff has taken it to a new level. Like it or loathe it, I’m loving it! 🙂

Anyway, you’ll see in artwork above, I’m teasing out an idea of Petra in a desert area. She’s got a small pistol tucked into the small of her back, a water bottle, and the ubiquitous Land Rover.

She’s all set.

About that Land Rover, however. I’ve always loved them, always wanted one, and even more after a very short stint as an off-road instructor in a Land Rover Defender. But money and climate… you know. Owning a Land Rover is never going to happen.

But, if you’ve read some of my books, you’ll note that they turn up every now and again. 😉

Chris

*Edit (February 5, 2022): The Crocodile Beat will be a stand-alone novel. Sigh. 🙂

The Carpathian Connection

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And the first release of 2022 is The Carpathian Connection! Now, it is a short story, and unfortunately I can’t claim the words for my million word challenge as I wrote it in 2021. But it’s LIVE!

The Carpathian Connection is a short story, written as a reward for a Kickstarter campaign (I did change the name of one of the characters for this release). It’s around 8,000 words, or just over 25 paperback pages. The story features Constable David Maratse and reunites him with Constable Nujakina Uppik. She turned up for the first time in The Skin Drum, and I’m curious that she returned for this story. It’s one of those odd moments when needing a character for the story, they just arrive, as if waiting in the wings, holding up their hands, and saying, “I’ll take this one.”

I know. It’s weird. But that’s what happens.

The story starts with the discovery of a body, of course, and then Maratse does his thing. There is a chase, plenty of Greenland “stuff” – you know, boats, bergs, and bodies.

I think it’s a fun read. 🙂

I’ll be back with another post tomorrow. (Note to self: got to figure out how to get a girl out of a burning barn… working on it!)

Chris

And that was 2021!

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I think everyone has had a mixed, and most likely challenging 2021. I’m also certain that many people have had a really tough time. My 2021 has been up and down, but fortunately it has been mostly up, not least because of all the support I have received from readers of my books, and, dare I say, fans of Petra and Maratse. I honestly wasn’t sure what kind of year 2021 was going to be, but I am pleased to say it turned out all right in the end.

That end included a much needed Christmas break with my folks in Manchester. Again, touch and go if it was going to happen, and still uncertain regarding the outcome of the assorted tests required before and after our visit, but ultimately positive.

I tend to forget about family when I am so focused on my writing. And, as you know, I write a lot, so I tend to be rather focused – a lot. I’m going to work on a better balance of the two this year, i.e. family and work, but also friends. I may have played the covid card a few times, when what I really should have played was the working hard card instead. I don’t know. I’m still figuring it out.

What this means in practice, is a change of my working practice. I have relied heavily on pre-orders in the past and in 2021. While a pre-order deadline has been a positive motivational factor, I have also come unstuck a few times. So, in achieving a better balance, I will not be doing pre-orders in 2022.

Fortunately, that doesn’t mean fewer books.

Hell no! 🙂

There are plenty in the works, including more than a few Petra books. She and I have finally reached an understanding. She does what she does, and I just have to let her do it. So, there will be more Greenland Missing Persons books in 2022.

I have more Maratse stories on the way, too. But you know, he’s the quiet type, rarely shouts about anything at all, and although he insisted he get his own series after The Ice Star, he did so quietly. More on the way from him too.

But now I’ve mentioned The Ice Star, it seems only fair that Fenna and Mikael get more stories too. So you can expect news about a sequel to The Shaman’s House, which will be the fourth in that series, and, at long last, more books in the Sirius Sledge Patrol series with Mikael and Co.

That’s it for now, though.

All that remains is to thank you for your generous support in 2021. I hope you’ll find something of interest to keep you coming back in 2022.

Ukiortaami Pilluarit!

Happy New Year!

Chris

The Short Story Challenge

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If you’re reading this then I succeeded in a personal challenge I set myself this time last year. I signed up for the challenge to write one short story a week for fifty-two weeks, and I recently uploaded the last one.

For those of you following my blog, or curious/concerned about the variety of pen names, genres and other “stuff” I’ve been writing this year, the challenge goes some way to explaining that.

What I discovered was, I like short stories. I need to get better at them, but I enjoy writing them. Some are available to buy, some are in collections, and some are in a digital pile as I wonder what to do with them. But they are done.

What’s next?

Another challenge?

That’s the question I’m asking myself at the moment. And while I think I have an idea, I’m still mulling it over.

Chris