Interview with A.G. Barnett, Author of the Brock and Poole Mysteries

The Indie Crime Scene is pleased to interview A.G Barnett, author of the Brock and Poole Mysteries and the Mary Blake Mysteries. This interview was conducted by Dennis Chekalov.

You describe your life as ‘Like a psychological thriller, but with more Play-Doh.’ What does it mean?
I am obviously being slightly tongue-in-cheek here (my daughter isn't that bad!), but she does have an alarming ability to wage psychological warfare on my wife and I by testing the limits of  what she is allowed to do. Wouldn't change her for the world though!

How did you start your journey as an author?

I have always loved losing myself in a good book and have read voraciously from a young age. Around five years ago I toyed with the idea of fulfilling a life-long ambition of writing a book and then spent the next few years learning all about the new revolution in e-books and the huge opportunities now out there for authors.I began to write more regularly an produced a number of books under pseudonyms before deciding I was confident enough to have a go at this seriously, releasing my first mystery series (The Brock & Poole Mysteries), in late January, 2018. 

You are often compared to Agatha Christie. What traditions of the mystery genre are especially important for you?

Readers comparing my books to Agatha Christie is pretty much the highest compliment I could get! I am huge fan of her work, and there's a reason she's the biggest selling author of all time. I only hope I am able to channel even a tiny fraction of her genius!

The mystery genre itself is one that I think speaks to our very nature as humans. The desire to solve puzzles, to discover answers to problems and to put together clues is something inherent in us as a species and so I think mystery fiction appeals to us at a very base level, which explains its enduring popularity.

Your Brock & Pool series is described as “traditional mysteries with a cosy flavor.” Please tell us more about these books.

I wanted to write the kind of series that I like to read. A classic murder mystery that you can curl up to read with a cup of tea in front of the fire. Every book contains a classic murder mystery that is wrapped up at the end, but there are ongoing story lines which run from book to book so they are best read in order.

DI Sam Brock and DS Guy Poole — who are they? How are they similar and different compared to their colleagues — Morse and Lewis, Dalziel and Pascoe, etc.?

Guy Poole is a newly qualified sergeant and resident of the town of Bexford. He is paired with the gruff and imposing character of Inspector Sam Brock, and their growing relationship is integral to the overall series. Poole is looking for a fresh start after a traumatic incident in his past, and Brock has his own baggage and family issues that play out over the series as they start racking up the murder cases! There's a kind of father/son relationship that develops, but that can also bring its own issues. 
I think the key to their characters is that they are both just normal, decent guys that have been in extraordinary situations (especially in the case of Poole). Life is a series of events, both good and bad, and how you react to them makes you who you are. Brock and Poole are no different. 
As Brock says in the third book of the series, (When The Party Died), "Everyone's got baggage. That's how you become an adult. You accumulate baggage, good and bad, until you're a fully formed human. It doesn't make you damaged, it makes you who you are, it makes you whole."

Tell us please about your new character, Mary Blake.

Mary was born into a wealthy family who have now hit hard times. She fell into a crime-solving acting role on a murder mystery tv show that turned into huge success and became the darling of the nation for twenty years. That is until she was replaced by a younger model! Dealing with the disappointment and faced with deciding what to do with the rest of her life, she is present when the woman chosen to replace her on screen is murdered. This and a family secret which may well be the answer to their money problems, lead her to slowly take on more of the role she played on tv, but with her own inimitable style (and frankly, more gin!)



What’s the sub-genre of your new series? “With a cosy flavor” or pure cozy? What do you like about this sub-genre?

I'd say that the Mary Blake Mysteries are slightly further towards the cosy end of the spectrum than Brock & Poole. She's an amateur sleuth who becomes involved in crime solving mostly through circumstance which is a clear trope of a cosy. 

Why did you decide to start a new series? Do you plan to continue your Brock & Pool series as well?

I always planned to write in multiple series and so this is the start of that. I foresee all of them running for a decent number of books though, certainly Brock & Poole have a lot more to go through yet before I'll let them walk off into the sunset!

What’s your usual writing process?

I'm very much a morning person, so I like to get up ridiculously early and write before the rest of the house wakes and the chaos of daily life begins!

I tend to write the whole book in linear fashion an then go back and move things around and fiddle afterwards. I like to throw in things that even I wasn't expecting, and then try to work out how to resolve them!

What would you say, what’s more important for a mystery novel — credibility or entertainment? Why?

Always entertainment for me. That's most important to me as a writer, that I give someone a few hours of pleasure and enjoyment. This requires a balance between what is plausible and what is entertaining, but I would always lean towards making it fun over realistic if given the straight choice!

In your opinion, what are the major trends in the modern mystery genre?

I feel like there is a bit of a trend in publishing at the moment to be at either end of the mystery scale, with thriller leaning darker mysteries at one end, and light-hearted Cosy's that revolve around hobbies like baking etc at the other. I am attempting to write in the middle ground and am still working on what that is! Hopefully my readers, will be along for the ride. 

 About A.G. Barnett:

A.G. Barnett is the author of traditional mysteries with a cosy flavour.

After playing the drums enthusiastically but erratically in a band, working to create digital resources for the visually impaired and joining a digital supply chain startup, he eventually fell into the charitable sector where he worked in online health information for over a decade.

He is currently writing two series, The Brock & Poole mysteries and The Mary Blake mysteries.

Originally from North Devon, A.G. moved to Oxfordshire many years ago where he now lives with his wife, daughter, and ridiculous spaniel.

He has been known to describe life with a toddler as ‘Like a psychological thriller, but with more Play-Doh’

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