L.C. Tyler

LC Tyler grew up in Southend, where he dreamed of writing a novel one day. His time at Jesus College, Oxford gave him a degree in geography and an unbelievable punting technique.

On leaving university he worked briefly for the Department of the Environment before joining the British Council. Over the next few years he lived and worked in the Far East, Africa and Europe. He learned morris dancing in Hong Kong, rowed on crocodile infested waters in Brunei, ran through the Malaysian jungle with the Hash House Harriers and had tea with the King of Romania in Khartoum. Once back in England, he became chief executive of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health for about 12 years.

But he had not given up on his earlier ambitions. He had won an Ian St James Award for one of his short stories in 1996 (Kate Atkinson was another winner that year). His first novel, The Herring Seller’s Apprentice, did not appear, however, until 2007. This was followed by six others in the Herring series. He also now writes a historical series featuring John Grey, a 17th century lawyer.

He has twice won the Goldsboro Last Laugh award and was also the winner of the 2017 CWA Short Story Dagger.