Dan Howarth

I went to Harrogate Crime Writing Festival in July. For those of you that haven’t been – wow. It’s a big deal. I genuinely had no idea about just how big it is until I went last year. You’re at the bar with Lee Child or Richard Osman or CJ Tudor. Some real BIG names of writing. There are agents, editors, publishers, PR people, influencers… You name it and they descend on the beautiful town of Harrogate for the weekend.

And that’s great… Mostly…

Last year, I really threw myself into the festival. I took proofs of Last Night of Freedom (more on that VERY soon) and got into some interesting chats with other writers. I ended the weekend with 3 agents taking the full manuscript and I left with a feeling that anything could be possible. Sadly, those 3 agents passed on the book. Ultimately, it came to nothing, but I put myself in the shop window and gave it a go.

This year, the festival was fun. Some great chats, some superb panels, but something was off – missing. I took some ARC copies of Lionhearts with me and some press packs and some stickers, I fully intended to chase down a load of agents and publishers and pitch to them. Yet when I got there I just… didn’t…

The thing about Harrogate and writing in general is that it can make you feel small. It can discourage you. But it wasn’t that which took hold of me in the famous tent.

It was a general feeling of “what in the name of fuck am I doing?” Not just in terms of being at Harrogate but in terms of my writing career.

I’m a prolific writer, yet I didn’t release a book last year because I spent the whole of 2023 madly chasing an agent, like a deranged dog chasing a seagull across the beach. I was unfocused and I wasn’t disciplined. I could’ve done the whole submissions process dance AND released a book. I SHOULD’VE done that, because now I have nothing to show for a whole year.

Also, and this won’t surprise you as much as it surprised me… I am NOT a crime writer. I may love the work of SA Cosby or Will Carver (probably not a crime writer) and Ian Rankin and Joanna Wallace and whoever else, but I am not writing in the same space as them.

I have not been true to myself for a long time. I’ve been lying (strong term) to agents about what my books are – painting them as things they aren’t in an attempt to shoehorn myself through the door of trad publishing. In doing that I’ve shortchanged myself AND my books.

No more.

Harrogate was a strange weekend in that regard. This realisation hit me like a tonne of bricks and I spent some of the weekend in a daze (some of that was also induced by beer). But I drove home in a position of absolute clarity for the first time in a long time.

No more chasing submissions or publishers I don’t fit. No more trying to bend what I’m writing to the whims of the market or the wish list of a particular agent. No more chasing. It’s tiring and bears little fruit.

Now, it’s just about me. What kind of writer am I? What I want from my career? What kind of books do I want to put out into the world?

I’m working on The Beacons currently but I’ve got a couple of novels I owe my time in 2025, as well as a novella and a feature film in pre-production. Funnily enough, none of these things are crime…

Time to stop kidding myself and embrace the stories that matter to me. Onwards.

I feel like I start every post on this website by lamenting how long it’s been since I last posted here. In truth, it is always too long. For those of you hankering for more updates, they tend to come more frequently from my mailing list. You can subscribe here (and get a free ebook).

But with that said, you’re here now and it’s time to talk.

I didn’t bring a book out in 2023. This is a statement that wounds me to write down. Territory came out in 2022 and I was flying. I still am flying – writing-wise. So no book in 2023? Maybe it was an admin error? Maybe I took my eye off the ball?

In truth I dedicated a lot of energy last year into getting an agent. I came up short. I came close a couple of times but ultimately, Last Night of Freedom will not be the book that gets me repped. Ah well, onto the next.

The Good News

Despite the setbacks with agents (I must have close to 300 agent rejections in various forms now), one thing I do know about myself is that I’m prolific. 1,000 words a day. I have written 9 novels and am working on my 10th. I can do this. Day in, day out. That’s reassuring for me, getting the work done is the bedrock I can lean on when the rejections come in.

Which brings us on to 2024.

It’s already May and still… Nothing. But do you know what? Here’s some news for you. I’ll be releasing two books this year. Not one, but TWO. One way or another you will be getting Last Night of Freedom AND Lionhearts in 2024.

There – I said it. No going back now.

Both books are edited and ready to go. The magnificent Paul Stephenson of Hollow Stone has made some incredible covers and created (dare I even say it) an author brand for me which I absolutely love. I need to gather some amazing blurbs – but that aside – we aren’t far away.

I won’t commit to the release dates yet but you’ll be able to get one of them SOON. I promise.

Oh, and I also have a novella out on submission….

So what else is going on?

Well, firstly, I’m working on a fully funded feature film (and my alliteration skills). I’ve been working with the magnificent Stewart Hamilton from Hartmann Films and we are developing our film Newstone. We went out to crowdfunding around Easter and were delighted to raise over £3,300 to fund the film.

Newstone is a creepy, retro, 90s-vibe horror/sci-fi film in the vein of British weirdness from Possum and John Wyndham et al. We’re not ready to shoot yet -not even close – but it’s so good to have the means to complete this film now. It’s going to be brilliant.

Elsewhere, I’ve also expanded my press Northern Republic to bring out a few books from other authors. Firstly, I re-released the excellent Society Place by my good buddy Andrew David Barker. You can grab a copy here.

And also, in July you can grab your copy of The Children’s Horror by Patrick Barb. The book is a warped reimagining of a whole host of children’s TV shows. You will never turn on Disney+ without feeling nervous ever again! More details on this one soon!

I think that’s enough news for now. I think… I hope… Check back soon for me. There is so much more to tell.

Dan