Brockenhurst author Daniel Cole describes American broadcast of his Ragdoll book a 'dream'
A BESTSELLING Brockenhurst author has described it is a “dream” that a TV detective series based on his books has been shown in the UK and the US.
Daniel Cole told the A&T it was “surreal” to see actors appearing on popular US late night chatshows to promote Ragdoll, a grisly, fast-paced detective thriller broadcast on the AMC network.
Made by the same production firm that brought Killing Eve to the small screen, it also aired on the BBC-owned Alibi channel, and stars Lucy Hale, Henry Lloyd Hughes and Michael Smiley.
Daniel (39) said: “I enjoyed the whole experience, it was amazing for it to be made.
“The whole thing has been very surreal, it being broadcast on AMC, where there have been lots of brilliant shows, and seeing the actors on Jimmy Fallon’s the Tonight Show and talking about it has been quite cool.”
It was the success of that book, the first in a trilogy Daniel developed while working late night shifts as a paramedic in Christchurch, that has enabled him to write full-time.
His latest, Mimic, has now been released in paperback.
A fast-paced detective narrative, Mimic is set across two separate timeframes 20 years apart.
It tells the story of the hunt for a serial killer who gruesomely arranges the bodies of his victims into famous sculptures, such as Venus de Milo and Pieta.
Daniel said: “I’m always trying to make my books cinematic and Mimic includes pictures of the artworks and there are details in the pictures – without giving too much away – which reveal things.”
A long-time aspiring screenwriter, Daniel wrote in his spare time during his 20s.
But after sending a number of scripts to agents and publishers he found he was constantly getting replies turning him down – but with notes that he had promise.
Ragdoll was Daniel’s last go at making it and was picked up by an agent who told him to rewrite it as a novel – which landed him a three-book deal sold in 34 countries before the TV series.
Post-lockdown Daniel, who loves the films of David Fincher and cited Seven as an inspirational movie, moved to Brockenhurst with his partner and her child.
He did not rule out exploring the New Forest in a future novel, while he has a number of projects – including a children’s book – on the go.
“So far I’ve written about London a lot, which is a place I’ve never lived, yet I love London as a tourist and I think that I try to capture that in my books,” he said.
“But I am excited now about trying to shake all that down and write it from the perspective of living in the Forest.”
Copies of Mimic, personalised and signed by Daniel, are available through Waterstones in Lymington.
