INSPIRATIONS (PAGE 1 OF 2)

'I am not the new Ian Rankin — a phrase endlessly applied to new Scottish crime writers. Ian Rankin is a great (plot and character) writer and he writes primarily about Rebus and Edinburgh.

Lance Black books are not focused on a single character, although Superintendent Ross is a central figure; rather they explore a variety of characters, plot themes and subjects.

Ian Rankin explores his character and settings descriptively, taking time to savour the ambiance of Edinburgh and the dark complexity of Rebus. I don't. I prefer to move at a faster pace and race through the story.

I try and write a book that can be picked up and read straight through on a long haul plane journey or in a couple days.

One man is largely responsible for my departures from a normal salaried existence: Terence Rattigan! ‘Who?’ I hear you ask? Terence was a brilliant playwright.

I was deeply influenced by Robert Donat’s portrayal of Sir Robert Morton, as a QC, fighting for the fourteen year-old Ronald Arthur Winslow in the 1948 movie classic, The Winslow Boy. His tireless adoption of the maxim ‘let right be done’ stuck in my mind and caused me to study law.

Sadly, Sir Robert was correct when he said it was ‘easier to do justice than to do right’; real-life law is not like the silver screen. Terence got me again with Michael Redgrave’s fantastic performance as Crocker-Harris in The Browning Version — a film that led me into Latin and Greek. Both these movies had a seminal effect on me. It was not until recently that I realised both films were written by the brilliant Terence Rattigan. Latin is more useful and rewarding than Jurisprudence.

Lance Black books have none of the flowery language, or Victorian etiquette, of Rattigan’s masterpieces, but I like to think that the message is not dissimilar: Never prejudge people — what you see is seldom what you really get as far as individuals are concerned. The meanest character can turn out to be generous and supportive and the seemingly nicest, most charming person can be exposed as a mendax flagrante (as Sherlock Holmes proclaimed in Sherlock Holmes and the Spider Woman) — a back-stabbing liar. I should make some mention of Harry Mount because I thought it was just me who was extremely disappointed with the reality of a legal career. His excellent, My Brief Career describes the banality, dreariness and pointlessness of the trainee Brief. His equally well-crafted, Amo, Amat, Amas and all that! is a first class beginner’s guide to Latin. I might not agree with Harry’s politics, but I loved his books.

Terence Rattigan
Robert Donat
Michael Redgrave

Aberdeen has many great loci:

Rusbislaw Quarry
Seaton Park
River Dee
Dunnottar Castle
Drum Castle
and Balmoral
and these are used in DIRECT ACTION and TERROR as atmospheric settings to advance or conclude the action!

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