QUICK BIO: Bryn Peterson is a novelist, poet and blogger originating from Leeds, England. She is an independently published writer who first came to my attention via social media. I am very pleased to be able to introduce her to new readers and to highlight her work.
She studied Law LLB at Leeds Metropolitan University before embarking on her first crime novel, “Another Arbor“, a gritty procedural crime thriller that follows Detective Inspector Hunter as he battles to untangle a mess of evidence that sets him on a journey to solve a series of crimes dating back decades. The result is a story that ranges from the privations of post-war Britain, through to the present day, and paints a shockingly gritty portrait of working class England.
Beyond this, she has published a collection of poetry under the title, “Shattered“, an anthology dealing with controversial, harrowing or taboo subjects.
You can find out more about the author and her work (including how to purchase her books) here: https://brynpetersen.co.uk/books/
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Here she is in her own words:
I’m a self-published author. I write under my author name of Bryn Petersen. Bryn (by the way) is short for Bryony.
I started writing around four years ago, and currently have two published books for sale. The first is my debut psychological crime fiction novel, “Another Arbor“. The second publication is a poetry collection. I am currently working on a sequel to my first novel, called Beach Bombs, and I hope to publish it around August or September 2023.
A quick check of my author website (https://brynpetersen.co.uk) reveals I have a number of planned projects, enough to keep me going (or out of trouble, depending how you look at it) for at least a couple of years.
When I began writing creatively, it was almost accidentally. I was having a bad year, and I was beginning to despair things would ever pick up. One day, I decided I could either sit around feeling sorry for myself (never my style) or instead of looking at what was going wrong, I could try thinking of things I COULD do to try to change it.
One of the things I knew I was good at was English and typing – I’ve been touch typing since my teens. With a deep breath, I sat at my laptop and began to type. My first attempts were frankly awful! I almost gave up, but then I came across a book (Stephen King on Writing), and I read it eagerly. I looked online for free courses, free writing resources; any free avenue I could access to help me develop and grow as a creative writer.
I found a couple of suggestions (writing a daily journal or diary and avid reading) were things I already did, and had been doing for some years. I found another book (“Save the Cat! Writes a Novel” by Jessica Brody) and read it. Another suggestion was to obtain a copy of the Writers and Artists Yearbook, produced annually with updated information, tips and input from all areas of the book/art and publishing world.
My debut novel has received five-star reviews and everyone who has read it has given positive feedback. Am I satisfied with my first effort – kind of! Writers tend to be super self-critical and rabid perfectionists, so I’m not sure you would get a different answer from any other writer. After four years of relatively constant writing (I write an average of 1000 words daily whenever I am writing a book; poetry is a different proposition), does that make me an expert? Absolutely not! I still consider myself a novice, and I learn something new every day.
What about my future writing? I have several projects I want to finish. One is a short story anthology I’ve called “Kill Plan“. Some (not all) of the stories have appeared on social media or in the online magazine I edit for my author website (called Bryn and Friends).
Currently, it needs more short stories and the ones included need ‘tightening’ to make them more reader-friendly. Thereafter, I want to complete another poetry collection I have tentatively called “Love Is“, with lighter, less dramatic verse to my first offering, Shattered.
My final planned project is currently a completed novel-length story I called “Cross of Anjou“, which is something of a passion project and the one I most want to get absolutely right. The story is set during World War 2, around an RAF Bomber Command airfield in rural Yorkshire. The basis for the story is the real-life anecdotes of Bomber Command veterans who survived the War. It was my very great honour and privilege to know these very brave men and women. Sadly, all have now passed on, and I want to honour their memory by getting this project completely perfect. I plan to split the story into three sections and present the action through the eyes of a single character.
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about how I became a creative writer. Thank you for taking the time to read my story.
Bryn Petersen
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“Another Arbor” opens with the suicide of London counsellor Malcolm Horner. Chris Hunter, the new Sergeant at the Met takes the call.
Five years later, one of Malcolm’s former patients confronts his abuser to exercise the demons that haunt him. The meeting is not the cathartic encounter he imagined; to his horror, it turns deadly.
DI Hunter finds there are many twists in the tangled mass of evidence before he and his team get to the truth behind a series of unsolved crimes dating back decades.
The story ranges from the privations of post-war Britain, through to the present day and paints a shockingly gritty portrait of working class England.
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“Shattered” is a volume of collected original modern poems by self-published author Bryn Petersen.
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You can find out more about the author and her work (including how to purchase her books) here: https://brynpetersen.co.uk/books/
Interesting. I’ll have to look Bryn’s books up!