Where Ideas Grow

A blog for students of creative writing at York St John University

Writing a thriller, getting an agent, avoiding Goodreads: Russ Thomas tells us more

I had the chance to sit with Russ Thomas back in November and discuss his DS Adam Tyler series. As book and coffee lovers walked around the Waterstones café, Russ and I chatted about the experience of publishing and what it means to be an author – a very inspiring chat for anyone wanting to pursue a career within the publishing industry. 

Thomas started writing during his MA in Creative Writing at Sheffield Hallam University in 2008 and was then a bookseller for many years before publishing his debut novel Firewatching in 2020, followed by Nighthawking and Cold Reckoning the two consecutive years. The British police procedures series is led by gay detective DS Adam Tyler and set in the Steel City of Sheffield, creating a one-of-a-kind read. 

After facing setbacks and personal hardships that reflected in his later work, Thomas told me a bit more about the challenges of finding representation. After encouraging responses from agents but ultimately a few rejections, he had to rework his manuscript before finding an agent he really connected with Sarah Hornsley of Peters, Fraser + Dunlop. Thomas found it very important to be with an agent that was involved and interested in his project, who gave constructive feedback and added value to his book. 

Thomas signed a two book deal with Simon & Schuster in 2018. His first novel was prized Waterstones Thriller of the month in November 2020 and was a big success, even in the face of the second lockdown. 

When asked about his writing process, Thomas told me he only does research when he feels there’s ‘a gap in his knowledge’ as he doesn’t want to do too much research beforehand and have it get in the way of the story. Part of writing a thriller, he said, is about having a ticking clock, a bomb that’s about to blow up, which is exactly his common thread in all three of his books, making them gripping to the last page and work well as stand-alone titles if you don’t want to commit to a whole series! 

Though in favour of ‘writing as therapy’, it has always been Thomas’ intention to write to have his books on people’s shelves. Yet he tries not to read any reviews about him: ‘Reviews are not for me, they’re for other people,’ he confessed, “it’s a weird job that you spend so much time on your own, and it’s easy to second guess yourself and what you’re doing, and some of that is useful, but too much second guessing makes you freeze and stop you from writing.” 

Speaking about the publishing process and working with his agent, editors, design team and marketing team, Thomas said that as an author, ‘you have to be open to criticism.’ His agent too, before signing, made sure he was receptive to her criticism and able to take it on, but ultimately, Thomas said, every person working through the publishing process ‘knows what they’re doing.’

Thomas is active on Twitter and Instagram (@thevoiceofruss), as well as his website (https://russthomasauthor.com), though not as much as he thinks he should, he admitted. ‘I didn’t realise how much marketing you have to do yourself […] you don’t have to but it’s in your best interest’ Thomas said, a good reminder to any future writer. 

His new book Sleeping Dogs is coming out later this year, which gives you just enough time to jump on the Russ Thomas train, you can thank me later! 

Clara Juncker 

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