I think readers' imaginations are far more powerful than anything you can put on a page and, therefore, can conjure up graphic images for themselves, which I think you just have to nudge them towards. Mark Billingham conjuregraphicimage Change image and share on social
Like my fictional protagonist Tom Thorne, I love country. My tastes go back a bit further than his do, and I still listen to stuff from the late '70s and early '80s. Mark Billingham 70s80sback Change image and share on social
I read 'Jaws' and 'The Godfather' back to back one summer when I was 14 and was suddenly aware of how powerful fiction could be. Mark Billingham awarebackfiction Change image and share on social
When I began to write, I was surprised at how little London had been used in crime fiction. Places such as Edinburgh or Oxford or L.A. seemed to have stronger identities. Mark Billingham begincrimeedinburgh Change image and share on social
I write slowly and get distracted a lot. Mark Billingham distractlotslowly Change image and share on social
Having worked as both comedian and crime writer, the one thing I know is that both involve the delivery of a performance. Mark Billingham comediancrimedelivery Change image and share on social
I could never gamble on stocks and shares because I saw my father get hurt that way - he lost quite a lot of money when the stock market collapsed in 2001. Mark Billingham collapsefathergamble Change image and share on social
All you can hope for when you get a book adapted for TV is that you get a good actor and not some muppet off 'EastEnders.' Mark Billingham actoradaptbook Change image and share on social
I bought an insurance policy covering the inheritance tax my kids will have to pay when we die, which I thought was a good bit of forward thinking. And I always know I'm going to have enough for tax because I make sure I keep it back in my business account. Mark Billingham accountbackbite share on social
I admire writers such as Elmore Leonard who can nail a character in three or four lines of dialogue, so he doesn't need pages of back story or clumsy exposition. Mark Billingham admirebackcharacter Change image and share on social