Denise Brown

Awards

• Longlisted for the Diverse Book Awards 2022

Details

Hello I'm Denise Brown, a ghost writer and author of murder / mysteries and thrillers for young adults. 

I am Winter is set in a fictional Essex new town, and is about teenager Summer who suffers from survivor guilt when her best friend Cee dies while out on a joyride. This book covers such issues as grief, trauma, friendships, cyber bullying, and toxic relationship whilst also focusing on hope, strength, and determination.

It All Started with a Lie is a YA murder mystery about sixteen-year-old Pearl who finds out that her dad discovered an abandoned baby sixteen years earlier. Her family have kept this secret all her life, but like a typical teenager, rather than question her dad about the baby, she starts digging herself, and realises that everyone in her life has been keeping secrets.

Originally from East London, I now live in a harbour town in Scotland where there's a castle at the end of the street, and the town tug-of-war team is unbeaten in over 30 years. I believe that I was a witch in a previous life, and am ever-so-slightly obsessed with Jack Skellington from The Nightmare Before Christmas. And Lin-Manuel Miranda songs. And if I could invite anyone to dinner, it would be Tim Burton. 

In July 2023 I appeared in a panel at Camp YA Festival in Stratford East London, where I, and other YA mystery authors discussed our writing processes and the inspiration for our books. 

My interactive workshop is called 'The Plot Thickens'. 

The students will be split into groups and asked to describe a character of their choosing. They will then be given a scenario in which they will need to determine the murderer from their cast of characters based on the timeless 'means, motive, opportunity' method. 

I am willing to travel, but please bear in mind that my expenses travelling from Scotland to the South of England will be higher than authors based more locally. I am happy to take part in hourly or half-day sessions.

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