The world was a different place when my first novel, Hard Copy, was published back in 1998. The
internet was in its infancy, my laptop was the size of a sewing machine and
when I sent an email I had to follow dial-up instructions running to two sides
of A4 paper. Even then I rarely succeeded.
I began writing the book when I enrolled on Manchester University’s MA in novel writing. The course was the first to focus on novels rather than creative writing (as UEA did) and along
with future luminaries like Sophie Hannah and Sam Bain I was one of the very
first intake.
Once I’d completed my
degree I turned the 50,000 words I’d written into a full-length novel. I made photographer Anna Armitage the lead
character and changed the name of my cynical hack (who I’m secretly rather fond
of) from Sam Rutter to Sam Turner.
Hard Copy was published in hardback and paperback and did
reasonably well at the time, but there’s never been an ebook version. Until now,
that is. The novel has been given a stylish new cover and published this week by Piatkus Entice.
So what is it about? Well,
it’s the story of Anna, a 20-something who’s determined to reach the
top as a Fleet Street photographer. But when she teams up with former
high-flying reporter Sam Turner they miss the big story and a rival newspaper
gets the scoop instead. They’re determined to save their careers though and
together they battle against megalomaniac proprietors and ruthless news editors
to prove themselves once more.
The Daily Mirror called it
“fast and furious,” while the Belfast Telegraph declared that “if you enjoy
pace, dialogue and a glimpse of life behind the headlines, you’ll love this.” I
just hope new readers agree.
Hard Copy by Emma Lee-Potter (Piatkus, £3.99)
