He went on to create and produce several television series and mini-series. At the same time, he started a music management company launching million seller artist Neneh Cherry.
In 2004 he arranged the US $250 million buy-out of the Hallmark Channel International which was then successfully sold to NBC. He returned to producing a number of movies and mini-series.
He has recently morphed into a serial entrepreneur and is now a co-founder of seed to shelf CBD producer Dragonfly Biosciences (www.dragonflybiosciences.com) and a founder in two separate digital companies.
In addition to his love of cooking, an unhealthy amount of time and money is lavished on a collection of classic cars that he has raced all over the world. He enjoys risk and has parachuted in New Zealand, scuba-dived in the Pacific, hang-glided in the Himalayas and even tobogganed down the Cresta Run. In nearly every case chasing after his wife who is utterly fearless!
He is now writing the follow up to Fall Out, entitled The Bastion. In addition, he writes a humorous blog with subscribers in more than 40 countries. www.andanotherthing.com
He has two grown sons, two daughters’-in-law, three grandchildren and lives in Malta with his wife and two French bulldogs.
Mark’s latest book is the thriller, Fall Out.
You can visit his website at www.MNGrenside.com and his blog at www.AndAnotherThing.com or connect with him on Twitter, Facebook and Goodreads.
Can you tell us what your new book is about?
An LA screenwriter is killed shortly after completing his latest script, FALL OUT - a thriller destined to
be a blockbuster but written with a secret double purpose.
Echoing events from the past the screenplay is sent to a very specific group of people and will change their lives forever. All are connected to a movie that had abruptly stopped shooting in the jungles of the Philippines years before. FALL OUT exposes the truth about a conspiracy and murder that led to a half-a-billion-dollar fortune for a select few.
Follow the story of Producer Marcus Riley, who sets out on an increasingly dangerous quest to get FALL OUT made. From a powerful Agent's office in Hollywood, hidden treasures in Belgravia and a remote chalet in the Swiss Alps to murder at the Cannes Film Festival, Marcus teams up with designer Melinda (Mako) de Turris as they and the other recipients of the screenplay are pursued by an assassin from the past.
With clues cleverly concealed in the screenplay, Marcus and Mako unravel a lethal puzzle that for some will bring death, others the truth and ends in a cave with a shocking secret...
Can you tell us a little about your main and supporting characters?
There are two main protagonists who make up the franchise and are recurring characters.
Marcus Riley. Mid 40’s. Prolific UK Producer who never quite cracked Hollywood. An easy-going charm, he has enjoyed success and failure in equal measures. A loner.
Melinda ‘Mako’ De Turris. Chinese-Swiss beauty who has made a fortune designing stands and arranging parties for all the festivals held in Cannes. A fractured family background has caused her to believe life is to be lived for the moment with no real regard to the consequences.
She brings out the deep-down quality of strength of character in Marcus whilst he brings her around to see the value of the longer-term view of life. Their journey takes place whilst locked together in a fight for their lives and unravelling a puzzle that opens both their eyes to the past.
Your book is set in many locations around the world. Can you tell us why you chose these locations in particular?
It is set in several locations I know well. Having travelled to over 120 countries I have a wide-ranging list of experiences to draw on. The main locations in Fall Out are Venice Beach and Hollywood in L.A., Belgravia in London, Cannes South of France, Interlaken in Switzerland, and the jungles of the Philippines.
How long did it take you to write your book?
Three years off and on.
What has been the most pivotal point of your writing life?
Finishing the first and last line.
What kind of advice would you give other thriller authors?
Write what you know, character is action, enter a scene as late as possible, and if you are making it up be as accurate of the surrounding details as possible. Finally, if writing a thriller, keep asking yourself what would most shock or surprise the reader at any given moment.
