Mersey Murder Mysteries Collection

Chapter 4

So many people were instrumental in various ways in helping to ensure A Mersey Killing came to final fruition, it would take too long to mention them all, but hopefully those whose names are not mentioned here will know who you are, and how grateful I am to each and every one of you. Some, however, I felt I must include by name, so here goes.

A Mersey KillingThanks must go to my publisher, Miika Hannila at Next Chapter Publishing, who had such faith in the book that he issued a contract for it before the first chapter was completed, and likewise to Mario Domina, CEO of ThunderBall Films, who optioned the book for movie adaptation at around the same time. Such confidence in one"s work is truly rewarding for an author.

On a more personal level, sincere and loving thanks go to all the members of my extended family in the great city of Liverpool. Mostly my father"s cousins and their descendants, my thoughts and recollections of you all helped mould most of the characters in the following story. The wonderful, typical Liverpudlian personalities of "Aunty Ada" and "Aunty Alice" combined to become Connie Doyle, and cousin George appears as George Thompson. Ron and Iris, with whom we stayed often in my early teens, helped me to form some of the personalities that make up many of the background characters.

A word of gratitude goes to my cousin, Rachael Tiffen, who graciously allowed me to use the names of her children, Ethan and Clemency as characters, and to Ethan and Clemmy personally for giving me their personal approval for me to do so. I hope you enjoy reading the book. As an author, I find it so much easier to develop a character who is based on the reality of a personal acquaintance. It enables me to add substance to the character that might otherwise be difficult to incorporate effectively.

I owe a debt of thanks also to my fellow author and dog lover, Carole Gill, the successful author of a number of bestselling horror novels. Read her vampire books if you dare! During a period of technical difficulty towards the end of the book, when it looked as if the final completion of A Mersey Killing might be delayed by many weeks, her help and support proved invaluable. A million thanks, Carole.

A Mersey KillingSimilar thanks go to the aforementioned Mario Domina, who also helped immensely during this period.

To all the people of the wonderful city of Liverpool, thank you for being there, and for providing me with the inspiration for A Mersey Killing.

A Mersey KillingAs always, I save my final thanks for my dear wife, Juliet, my fiercest critic during the writing of all my books. If she doesn"t like it, it doesn"t go into the final manuscript. Her patience, (often worn thin), and unerring support have been as always, a tower of strength time during the entire writing process.