About Christopher Hepworth:
Author Christopher Hepworth has been a professional negotiator for over thirty years, with some of the largest and best-known companies in the world. He has won numerous prestigious awards in his chosen profession of procurement and developed many of the strategies and techniques that are now widely used across the industry. He has spent half a lifetime working for an array of colourful captains of industry, some inspirational; others downright terrifying. He often wonders how these desk warriors would cope if they were confronted with real-life, world threatening global emergencies rather than plotting their own narrow-minded corporate agendas. With the magic of fiction, Christopher Hepworth has created a wonderful set of characters he hopes will put the fear of God into his readers, adding to the list of threats already facing humanity.
Born in the UK in 1961 and raised in Zambia in central Africa like his hero, Wilbur Smith, Christopher Hepworth now lives in Sydney, Australia with his wife, Anne and four children. Much of the spare time he finds for writing comes while watching his children play representative cricket. It’s amazing how many sentences can be written in between the fall of wickets.
The exotic characters in his books reflect his fascination with the charismatic and proud, but often maligned warrior nations around the world, whose stories are screaming to be told. In his books, Christopher Hepworth’s desk-bound corporate warriors come face to face with those proud peoples, who have suffered the misfortunes of fate and history but their dignity and aspirations remain intact.
Christopher Hepworth has created a new brand of hero for the twenty-first century. Like James Bond, or the lawyers of John Grisham’s thrillers, Sam Jardine must use his occupational skills to thwart the ambitions of ruthless villains who seek to subordinate the world with their depraved sense of moral values. Armed only with a sense of justice, respect for ancient warrior cultures and an extraordinary talent for negotiation, can he win the day or will he be engulfed in the cesspit of corporate politics? For the sake of world peace, let’s hope Sam Jardine is up to the task
What inspires you to write?
Four years ago I applied for my dream job which would have involved regular travel to the UK and US from Australia. Unfortunately, I missed out. But rather than feel sorry for myself I determined that I would do something life changing with the time I would have spent on planes and in hotels. I had always wanted to write books so I used this moment as the way to make it happen. Once I made the commitment, I loved the process of inventing characters, creating stories and weaving in conspiracies. I love the process of research and find much of my inspiration from real life current or historical events.
Tell us about your writing process.
I always start each book with a comprehensive plot mapped out. However, this inevitably changes during the writing process. Some ‘minor’ characters work so well that they become central to the book, while plots can change drastically as the research process draws out better storylines. I write between four to six drafts. Each draft focusses on a different aspect of the book. Plot continuity, pace, readability, grammar, character development and relationships. I usually add the twists and turns at the very end of the writing process
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
For a book to be successful an author must ‘fall in love’ or invest emotionally in a character. My characters are a compilation of real people who I admire and whose characters I have embellished and taken to the extreme. Sometimes I have met the people on which I have based my characters and sometimes they are people who I have researched. I try to make my villains realistic and plausible and even admirable
What advice would you give other writers?
To be a successful author you have to be obsessive about writing. Each book can take several thousands of hours and considerable emotional energy. You need to be a perfectionist and have a thick skin as you will have many critics and few opportunities on your journey.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
My books are published on-line on Amazon and other e-book self-publishing sites. I believe it is essential to have a successful track record on these sites before the traditional publishers take an interest in an author’s work.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
There is no doubt that Amazon and other online publishers have changed the publishing landscape forever. I believe that traditional book sales have now stabilised, but traditional publishers are working on tighter margins and are less likely to take risks with new authors. Aspiring writers must have a number of high quality works and be able to self-promote on social media to break through into the mainstream.
What do you use?: Professional Editor, Professional Cover Designer
What genres do you write?: My books are all conspiracy thrillers. (Financial, Political, Medical, Social etc) The central character Sam Jardine is a professional negotiator who works in ‘big business’ where he uncovers dangerous global conspiracies that threaten world peace. The books are set in exotic locations where Sam uses historical research and his relationships with the striking local people that he encounters to fight the perpetrators of the conspiracy.
What formats are your books in?: eBook
Website(s)
Christopher Hepworth Home Page Link
Link To Christopher Hepworth Page On Amazon
Link to Author Page on other site
Your Social Media Links
Goodreads
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
All information in this post is presented “as is” supplied by the author. We don’t edit to allow you the reader to hear the author in their own voice.
