Debbie Young
AUTHOR

Debbie Young

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Hello dear readers! I hope you will enjoy my warm, witty, feel-good contemporary fiction, full of English humour and heart, inspired by life in the Cotswold village which has been my home for over 30 years. On 26th March 2026, my seventeeth cosy mystery novel, "The Importance of Being Murdered", will be published by Boldwood Books. This is a new, standalone novel. The other sixteen are divided between three series (more on those in a moment). I also write short fiction, sometimes set in the same worlds as my novels, and I've written a couple of non-fiction books too. Read on to find out more about all my books, and my other writing-related activities... NOVELS "The Importance of Being Murdered" is a fun new novel set around the Bunbury Players, an amateur dramatics company, as their attempt to stage Oscar Wilde's classic play, "The Importance of Being Murdered" - only for a leading character to come to a sticky end before the curtain can rise for the first performance. My latest series of novels is the Cotswold Curiosity Shop series, which begins with "Death at the Old Curiosity Shop", followed by "Death at the Village Chess Club" and "Death at the Village Christmas Fair" - all of which have been Amazon bestsellers. In this series, when Alice Carroll (50) moves to the village of Little Pride, she discovers that nothing is quite what it seems in her new business enterprise. At the heart of each story is an intriguing item to be found in her bric-a-brac shop. A fourth installment will be published on 5th July 2026. My Sophie Sayers Village Mystery series begins with "Best Murder in Show". Originally envisaged as a seven-book series to run the course of a calendar year in the life of the idyllic English Cotswold village of Wendlebury Barrow, it continues to grow, with the most recent addition being Sophie Sayers' ninth outing, "Driven to Murder", My Gemma Lamb Cozy Mystery series is a mashup of romantic comedy, gentle mystery and nostalgia for classic children's school stories but aimed at adults. It focuses on the intrigues among the teachers and visitors to the school, rather than the children. "Dastardly Deeds at St Bride's" (previously published as "Secrets at St Bride's"), and is followed by "Sinister Secrets at St Bride's" (formerly "Secrets at St Bride's"), Wicked Whispers at St Bride's", and "Artful Antics at St Bride's". Two further books will follow to complete the series of six, running the course of the academic year at St Bride's Boarding School for Girls. All of my novels are now available in ebook, paperback, hardback, and audio in English. There are also German language editions of Sophie Sayers' adventures and Italian translations of Gemma Lamb's, and Russian versions of Gemma Lamb's adventures are in the offing. . SHORT FICTION My series of comedy mystery novelettes, Tales from Wendlebury Barrow, is set in the same world as the Sophie Sayers Cozy Mysteries. The first, "The Pride of Peacocks", is available exclusively to members of my Readers' Club (visit my author website to claim your copy). "The Natter of Knitters" and "The Clutch of Eggs" are available in ebook and paperback. There's also a festive collection, "Christmas with Sophie Sayers", featuring favourite characters from the Sophie Sayers series of novels. Three more Sophie Sayers short stories appear in the charity anthologies, "Fate", "Everyday Kindness" and "The Little Shop of Murders". My standalone novella, "Mrs Morris Changes Lanes", is 1uite a different kind of book, but it was a story I just had to write! It's a second-chance mid-life romantic comedy with a touch of magical realism, set in the Cotswolds in spring, Earlier in my career, I published three themed collections of short stories, "Stocking Fillers", "Marry in Haste", and "Quick Change". PLAYS I've also now started writing scripts for murder mystery events, My debut play, "The Importance of Being Murdered", was premiered by Hawkesbury Drama Group in April 2025. I'm planning to publish the original playscript in 2026 for use by amateur drama groups all over the world. Provided they buy a copy for each cast member, they will be welcome to stage the play without having to pay performance royalties. WHAT I'M WRITING NOW I'm just putting the finishing touches to the novelisation of "The Importance of Being Murdered". Transforming the play into a novel has been great fun, allowing me to add greater depth of characterisation and to elaborate on the setting beyond the confines of the stage dramatisation. This book will be published by Boldwood Books on 16th March 2026 and is already available for pre-order. AWARDS The first St Bride's novel was shortlisted for the 2020 Selfies Award given for the best independently-published fiction in the UK. The sixth Sophie Sayers novel was shortlisted for the same award in 2021. My short story "The Alchemy of Chocolate", from "Quick Change", was a winning entrant to the April 2015 Stroud Short Stories competition, and as a result I was later invited to read it at the Cheltenham Literature Festival. FREE EBOOK Receive a free ebook of my comedy novelette "The Pride of Peacocks" when you join my Readers' Club via my author website (just search for Author Debbie Young to find it). I'll also send you a monthly enewsletter to keep you up to date with news of my books and events and insights into my writing life. There is a free prize draw in every issue. PUBLISHER'S NEWSLETTER You are also warmly invited to join Boldwood Books' newsletter about my books and special offers - you'll find a joining link in the sidebar of my website. HELPING OTHER WRITERS When I'm not writing fiction, I'm helping other authors. I'm a course tutor for Jericho Writers, and I've written and co-written guidebooks and many articles and blog posts for authors. I frequently speak at events for readers and writers, and I judge writing competitions. MEMBERSHIPS & AGENT REPRESENTATION I'm a member of Jericho Writers, the Society of Authors and the Alliance of Independent Authors. I'm represented by Ethan Ellenberg at the Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency in New York. PUBLIC EVENTS Back in 2015, I founded the Hawkesbury Upton Literature Festival in my home village in the Cotswolds. The Festival now takes the form of a year-round series of talks on different themes and genres, each featuring at least three guest authors, with me in the chair. See festival website for more details. I am a frequent speaker at other litfests - if you'd like me to speak at your event, please don't hesitate to send a request via the contact form on my author website. I may be busy, but I am never too tired to curl up with a good book.
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  • Death at the Village Chess Club cover art

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  • Artful Antics at St Bride's cover art

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  • Death at the Village Christmas Fair cover art

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