It was sheer coincidence. A few weeks ago, I sat down at my pc one evening and opened up Facebook to see what was happening in the world according to my FB friends. First thing I saw was a post by writer Alison Morgan – she was bubbling over with enthusiasm about being signed by Hobeck Books. I wasn’t aware of Hobeck Books, so I turned to Twitter, my usual go-to place for info about anything bookish. And there they were – “Hobeck Books. Trad Values, Indie Spirit. Family-run independent publisher of thrillers, crime, and suspense.”

Ooh. That looked good. Hobeck Books is run by Rebecca Collins and Adrian Hobart, who between them have very interesting and different book backgrounds and publishing skills – and you could tell by the tweets how enthusiastic they are. (And they have a very cute real-life cat, too.) Should I…?

Long story short, we signed the contracts last week, so here I am – the newest Hobeck Books writer. Cue a nice bottle of something fizzy in N.E. Switzerland. The new book will be out next spring/summer, and I can’t wait to get stuck into the next round of edits!

Why was it fate? Well, as most of you will know, Facebook doesn’t show you everything your Facebook friends post. They provide a selection they think you might find interesting. And while Alison Morgan and I are perfectly friendly – we’re both in a couple of FB groups – I don’t ever remember seeing any of her posts on my newsfeed. Until that night, and that post.

One of my first tasks as a Hobeck writer was to make a video of me answering some questions. At least, I provided the footage (you live and learn; I had no idea my laptop could do things like this) and they put it all together.

There’s also an introductory post on the Hobeck website which you can read HERE. (They’ve included a lovely pic of Arbon harbour with Austria in the background, too.)

So that’s my fateful book news – apologies for squeezing it in when I really should be posting about the ‘R’ books. We’ll have them next week.

I’ll finish off with a photo of the city where the new book’s set…