Ancaster woman makes literary debut with crime tale

The words of Cate Cullington, of Ancaster, about the release of her debut novel The Stones.

Cate is a former local government employee and currently works part-time for the NHS in roles such as secretary, receptionist, and switchboard operator; she says she never imagined she would one day become an author.

“When I initially contemplated whether or not I could actually write a book I had thought that in all probability that I could not,” the mum-of-two said. “I’m usually a practical kind of person and I imagined that I might actually get lost in the plot, or find it difficult to develop believable characters, or that I might simply become bored with my own writing. 

“To my relief none of these things happened and I found that once I had stopped putting obstacles in my way I actually enjoyed the process of writing The Stones. I also felt a huge sense of achievement that I had managed to accomplish this whilst holding down a stressful job and maintaining a very busy lifestyle (it was written pre-lockdown).”

The Stones, a suspense crime novel, has been entered into the 2021 Best Thrillers Awards (“The Besties”) Crime Thriller category.

Cate says there is nothing that she would rather be doing than writing.

“Writing gives you a freedom that allows you to be anybody you want to be. It gives you a purpose, a focus and an inexhaustible thirst for knowledge and understanding of situations that may once have been quite alien to you,” she said. “It allows your mind to do the things that modern life frowns upon – overthink, vacillate, flit from one subject to another, change your mind, be outspoken and opinionated. It’s a bit like having a new job every week or meeting a new best friend every day.”

‘The Stones, from Cranthorpe Millner Publishers, is available to order through Waterstones (https://bit.ly/37qa2Vq) and the publisher’s website (https://bit.ly/3dLxWM8).