A HELENSBURGH author is preparing to publish his debut novel after securing a three-book deal with one of the UK’s leading independent publishers.

Daniel Sellers’ novel is set to hit the shelves this autumn, with a launch date still to be confirmed by Joffe Books.

The writer, who moved to Helensburgh from Glasgow in 2016, is due to follow this up with a second book in spring 2023, and a third in 2024.

He said: “It’s been my lifetime ambition to publish crime fiction and I am over the moon to have signed with Joffe Books.

“I’ve been so impressed with Joffe’s energy and drive in marketing their authors. Joffe publish a number of my favourite writers already, and I am deeply honoured to be in such stellar company.”

The series will follow DCI Lola Harris, a former hairdresser turned detective.

Glasgow-born and bred, Lola learned how to build a rapport with people during her time in the salon.

The first book in the series, set predominantly in and around a modern art gallery in Glasgow, sees her investigate a case linked to a murder on an island off Harris 28 years prior.

Daniel added: “She’s not your usual detective figure.

“All the skills she uses as a detective she learned when she had people in the chair, when she found out about all their affairs and their secrets.

“She then trained in the police and she makes a really good detective, but she doesn’t take any nonsense.

“She’s surrounded by these horrible blokes, whose behaviour she doesn’t tolerate at all.”

Daniel attributes his love of crime fiction to esteemed writer Agatha Christie.

He first read her work as a teenager, and went on to study English at university where his love of the genre continued.

Since then, Daniel has worked in education and in a government role.

The author believes the wide-spread love for crime thrillers stems from their ability to provide readers with an answer despite the madness which ensues within the story.

He said: “If you go into any bookshop or go into Amazon and look at the top 100 books, they’re all crime novels. That’s what people want to read.

“Detective fiction is a pure puzzle a lot of the time; it’s a version of reality in which things can be sorted out by this figure.

“It’s this idea of someone who can sort out chaos, and life just feels so chaotic at the moment.

“The pandemic has been really traumatic and stressful for a lot of people.

“I’ve certainly been reading a lot more during the pandemic as an escape.

“I find it really reassuring that you can have this terrible situation that will get sorted out – and that’s the promise.

“The traditional crime novel promises you that everything will come right in the end. If only life were like that.”