MEET THE AUTHOR

An interview of Douglas Stewart by Isabella Chartris

Question:

When did you start writing and why?

Answer:

It was over Christmas in the mid 1970s when the TV schedules were so bad that I felt I had to escape. I dreamed up the plot for Case for Compensation on Boxing Day and got started at once.

Question:

Do you have a favourite book?

Answer:

I suppose that every author harbours special thoughts about the first book – that amazing moment when a publisher says yes but the one I am most excited about is Late Bet, my new novel.

Question:

Tell me about Case for Compensation – where it all started.

Answer:

That book was born from my experience as a litigation solicitor in England before I moved to the USA. It was about a fight to assist a driver with a spinal injury and was set in France and the West of England, not far from where I then lived. Though I was excited to be published, the book was very much shortened by the publishers to fit their list and I felt that a great deal of characterisation was lost as a result.

Question:

So what do you feel about editors and editing?

Answer:

I was privileged to be edited by Barbara Walters at Collins (now Harper Collins) when I moved publishers and she told me that every book was improved was pruning. I took the advice to heart. A good editor and agent can be invaluable.

Question:

How important has it been that you are a trained lawyer?

Answer:

Invaluable in a number of ways! Lawyers, especially those dealing with disputes and the courts, see human nature and emotions at their worst – dishonesty, ruthlessness, grief and triumph – they all feature. These facets are helpful but additionally, my work gave me ideas for plots and opportunities for travel. Nearly every book has involved international fraud set in exotic and interesting locations.

Question:

You have two books coming out in 2007. Tell me about them.

Answer:

Additionally, the book deals with the frightening ease with which terrorists have and still can exploit weaknesses in maritime security to destroy law-abiding countries like the USA and Britain. Dirty bombs, nuclear devices and using ships as weapons are a real risk to values decent-minded people hold dear.

Question:

How come you wrote about shipping? Were you a shipping lawyer?

Answer:

No, not at all. I had read about the disappearing ships and the role of Mr Bigs in the criminal fraternity. I decided to write what was eventually published as my novel, Undercurrent. During my research, I was helped by Eric Ellen who was then Chief Constable of the Port of London Police. He was trying to fight the mass of shipping crimes that had some UK involvement. It was an impossible task! So, to take the battle to the Triads and others, he got backing to create a non-Government agency called the ICC-International Maritime Bureau. Undercurrent was set in the Bureau as a work of fiction but when Marebuch wanted an author for an important book on shipping crime, Eric kindly recommended me. The result was Piraten, now The Brutal Seas – a book that has been hailed by Eric as the benchmark on crime at sea.

Question:

And Late Bet?

Answer:

My books are not whodunnits. They are correctly classified as mystery-thrillers. Late Bet was born from my interest in roulette and started with the typical premise – just suppose or what if. The plot concerns Dex, a roulette player who is cheated and bankrupted by the casino. He vows to destroy the owners of Space City on the Vegas Strip and Dukes, a discreet gaming club in London’s Mayfair. The story is of his determined attempt to bring a multi-billion corporation to its knees. The ingenious way he sets about it with a diverse coterie of individuals is the theme. One person he relies on is a Formula One Grand Prix racing legend.

Question:

So this is a world you know well then?

Answer:

Yes. I’ve lived in both London and Las Vegas. I have also written a non-fiction book about roulette called Roulette, Playing to Win as well as many articles about gaming and Las Vegas. These have appeared under a pen-name of Brett Morton.

As for motor-racing, I have been an avid fan for many years. I’m more interested in the wars of words and political intrigues than the number of revs an engine produces. I love the races of course, especially in the wet on a circuit like Interlagos in Brazil or Spa in Belgium! Late Bet sweeps in Monaco, Spa, Silverstone and the famous Brickyard Circuit at Indianapolis.

Question:

Are you still working as a lawyer?

Answer:

Yes. As the coffee mug my wife gave to me says – Old Lawyers never Die. They just lose their Appeal! I gave up my role as Senior Partner of Stewarts in London’s Lincoln’s Inn Fields over ten years ago to devote more time to writing but the law is in my blood. I just love it. I’m often asked whether I prefer writing to the law and my answer is always the same – I love 100% whichever I am doing at the time.

Since I first started in the law, I have always relished the heat of the chase of litigation and the mind-games involved in any aspect of legal problems. I still write regular legal articles and look after a number of valued clients where I fill a role of consiglieri on problems where I can assist.

Question:

Is there anything else in the book pipe-line?

Answer:

I’m working on an important new non-fiction book and also have the seeds of a new novel in mind that might be finished in 2008.

Question:

Some authors are not keen on interviews like this and even more worried about meeting the public. Do you enjoy all this?

Answer:

Being a lawyer and used to speaking for clients in court or in meetings has helped me in this respect. I have done several book tours and promoted books on TV and radio in the USA, Germany and the UK. So long as the books have reached the local stores, I enjoy the tours and meeting the public. I have done any number of Writers’ Circle meetings. I love meeting other writers and learning from them, whether famous like Lee Child, or simply housewives struggling for the big break.

The most enjoyable promotions have been when I was guest speaker on three different cruises – once from Rio de Janeiro and others from Africa and across the Indian Ocean. Now that didn’t seem like hard work at all!

Question:

Any amusing incidents while touring?

Answer:

The best one was when I took the wrong turning around Spaghetti Junction outside Birmingham, England and got hopelessly late for an interview of the radio. I was listening to the interviewer who told everybody that I had just arrived at the studio! Actually I was several miles away and heading in the wrong direction!

Question:

Besides motor-sport, what other interests do you have?

Answer:

Besides my family and friends, my greatest interest is in cricket, a game I long ago tried to stop explaining to my American friends! I enjoy most sports and follow tennis, golf and soccer.  I find the American games hard to understand but I am sure I would love the atmosphere of a big baseball game and I enjoyed watching the Dallas Cowboys play the Chicago Bears. But above everything, watching England cricketers beating Australia at Lord’s or a tough match against the West Indies in Antigua is my biggest fix. My wife and I enjoy the theatre, movies and international travel – just as well as I do around 120,000 miles every year!

Question:

What family do you have?

Answer:

I have two adult sons from my first marriage. Duncan lives near London and has three children and Fraser has recently married and lives quite near him. I also have a young daughter, Lara from my second marriage. My wife, Bridget comes from the West of England but we left the UK in 2001 and it is unlikely that we shall ever live there again, though we love to get back often to see family and friends. We both hate cloudy skies and I do find I am more prolific if the skies are blue and the air warm!