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number of unsolved serial murders finally look as if they would find resolution, if it weren’t for his boss, the unsympathetic chief superintendent, who is keen on team spirit and ‘the way the police have always worked’. The hero of the book, the chief inspector who is now a normal weight, sets off a grass-roots revolution and a radical organisational transformation begins. It is a development story of great proportions. Criminal elements will be cowering.
    Astra listens to Titus with growing interest. She has never seen Titus so enthusiastic before.
    ‘Do you get it?’ Titus croaks on. ‘Are you on board? With this framework I can fill in with wisdom, recipes and DIY tips at length. I can write any amount!’
    ‘I believe you,’ answers Astra slowly. ‘I really do.’
    ‘So what do you think? Shall I get going?’
    You can hear Astra think. On the one hand she thinks it a good idea. A really good idea. Brilliant, quite simply. She knows that Titus writes superbly, and presumably a change of genre would be just the thing his writing needs. On the other hand, it is a crazy project. To let loose a more-or-less alcoholic author on the task of writing a bestseller can never end well. It is impossible to know in advance which books will sell, that much she does know. To give Titus false hopes might douse his flame for good.And how should she present the project at Winchester’s? If she says she is intending to turn Titus into a worldwide success, everybody is going to laugh at her. There is no way she is going to take that risk. But sometimes you’ve got to chance it, haven’t you? What the hell should she do?
    She must give this more thought. At the same time, Titus deserves a response. Support and encouragement are a publisher’s most important contributions. Except for the advance on royalties, of course.
    ‘It’s a brilliant idea, Titus. It really is. The best I’ve heard for years, in fact. Besides, I think the book could be extremely well received if you are the person behind the project. You’ve got no “tainted record”, quite simply.’
    ‘Tainted record?’
    ‘You would be able to get good reviews. Nobody is going to believe that you are doing this just to be commercial. If you were a crime writer then they would make mincemeat of you. Or even worse a dietician, chef, cleric or management guru. But you are Titus Jensen, the heavyweight novelist.’
    ‘Umm… could I have another beer?’
    ‘Weren’t you going to drive me to the Winchester Villa afterwards?’
    ‘But it’s only medium-strong, damn it!’
    ‘Okay, okay…’ says Astra resignedly, and gets a beer out of the fridge.
    ‘So what do you think?’
    ‘I will be totally honest, Titus. The idea is superb. At the same time I do see a whole lot of risks involved. For you, for me and for Winchester’s. I’ll talk to Evita this evening, I promise. I’ll ask for a mandate to do this as a secret project that only you, me and she will know about. If she says yes, then the advance is in the post. If she says no, then I don’t know… What do you say, shall we let her make the decision? I promise to present the idea as positively as possible.’
    ‘Should I wait outside in the car, or what? Can’t I present the idea to Evita myself? I’ve written books for Winchester’s for years. You must have earned… well, a bit from me, at any rate.’
    ‘Trust me, Titus. And now I’m being totally honest again. Evita is a tough bird, you know that. You don’t exactly inspire confidence with the way you look now. And your breath is not the sweetest I have come across. I promise you, you don’t want to meet her today. I’ll phone you tomorrow. Is that okay?’
    ‘Okay…’
    Titus is satisfied with that for now. What else could he do?
    They talk a bit more about the book and which elements it can be filled with. The more they go into the plot, the better it feels.
    They are happy and buoyant when Titus drives Astra to Evita Winchester.