TL Bartusch Indie Author of the Roth series

Indie writers get a lot of advice about how to be noticed, how to attract readers and how to keep them. One of the most consistent pieces of advice is to write a series.Three years ago I took the leap and started my own featuring a handsome, engaging Frenchman who I named Victor Roth. By the way, Victor has a liking for hot air balloons. More about that later. Der Luftballoon, Paul Klee, 1906 A series is a way of building a following. If readers like the first story and your characters they'll want more. That's why we write series. Changes of genre or style lose the most precious thing you have, readers. When the series began in 2014, Victor was 38, single, rich and a desk-bound analyst in the Paris office of Interpol. His specialty is counterfeting and forgery. He lives in Montmartre and is single by choice. He has his suits and shoes made and wears black tie when he dines with friends. He also carries a flick knife. I love him but he may not be to everyone's tast...

It's summer in Paris and time for some sun. Many Parisiens desert the city for the Riviera or Atlantic coast. Certainly that's the preoccupation of the Curator in Hubris . You don't think of Paris as a place for swimmers - those prickly, impatient exemplars of fashion donning their lycra trunks for a lazy dip just doesn't seem to fit and yet this summer a new swimming place on the canal at La Villette is having to turn away eager bathers. Temporary pontoons have been set up over the water and lifeguards are in place. Paris authorities are now confident the water at La Villette is clean enough to swim in and there are plans to open spots on the Seine to swimmers. Paris Plages Festival 2009 It's all part of an annual summer festival, Paris Plages (beaches) when Parisiens take their deck chairs and umbrellas down to the embankment beside the Seine and sunbathe. The city also trucks in some sand and creates narrow temporary beaches. Here in th...