Simon Fox
About Author
We hear from Simon Fox about his new thriller, Avalanche, and he shares his top writing tips for creating tension.
Running out of Time was Simon Fox's first novel after 20 years trapped in the dungeon of accountancy. He is determined to never go back. He lives in Sussex with his extraordinarily patient wife and two teenage children who never tidy their rooms but would take on the world for each other.
Interview
October 2025
Simon Fox introduces his fast-paced thriller, Avalanche! (Nosy Crow)
Tom is looking forward to spending some quality time with his mum in a chalet half way up a mountain - but really it's a work trip, and his mum is busy keeping a reclusive scientist safe. Just as Tom starts to enjoy himself, a helicopter lands with gunmen on board - and then there's the avalanche . . .
ReadingZone talked to Simon Fox about what inspired his new thriller, Avalanche, and the author shares his top writing tips for creating tension in stories.
Read a Chapter from Avalanche "Fans of Alex Rider and Artemis Fowl will find a lot to love here: action, intrigue, and courageous young heroes who rise to the challenge." Avalanche review.
Q&A with Simon Fox: Introducing Avalanche - plus his top tips for creating tension in writing
1. Avalanche, like your earlier books Deadlock and Running Out of Time, are all tightly-plotted action thrillers. What draws you to writing this kind of book - do you enjoy action adventure books and films, like James Bond?
These are the stories I love, either as book or films. I love the sense that you have to have to keep turning the pages to find out what happens; that there might be danger around every corner that only your hero can get out of. I love James Bond, Marvel films, Alex Ryder. Everything like that. There are lots of books which help young people think about the world and help them work out who they are, but I'm not so good at that kind of thing. I like simple things like fighting and chasing and exploding things!
2. What happens in your new book, Avalanche? What inspired this novel about deception, kidnapping - and an avalanche or two?
Avalanche is about a boy called Tom who is supposed to be enjoying a ski holiday with his mum but finds himself abandoned because a security alert at the bio tech firm where she is head of security means she has to work. And when the threat turns real and kidnappers turn up at the remote ski chalet they are staying in, there's a fight, Mum and her boss are taken hostage, and a gunshot triggers an avalanche that cuts off the building from the rest of the town. The kidnappers are armed, well trained and determined to steal secrets that could be turned into a deadly weapon.
Tom is thirteen, failed his Kung Fu black belt and the only person who can help him is the clever but spoiled daughter of Mum's boss. What was supposed to be a dream holiday, has very quickly turned into a nightmare.
3. It's quite a short, action-packed novel - do you write with a particular reader in mind? Did you enjoy writing it?
I loved writing it because I never knew how Tom was going to get out of things until he did! I made it almost impossible for him to succeed then waited to see if he would. So I got a similar experience to the reader!
I don't really write with a reader in mind as I hope it could be enjoyed by anyone. I don't even consider it to be a book just for young people, the same as films like the Avengers or James Bond are not only for young people but appeal to the whole family. I do think there are only a limited number of stories out there that really appeal directly to boys, and I think it's really important for there to be books that boys will enjoy which is why I try and have a strong male protagonist. But I hope there's something for everyone in it.
Simon Fox shares his top tips on writing tension, with an example from Avalanche:
4. Can you tell us about your main characters, Tom and Emily, and how they developed? Did you need to give them particular strengths for the action scenes in this novel?
I wanted to have two main characters that were different. Tom is incredibly brave and rushes into things, sometimes without thinking. Whereas Emily likes to make plans which means she sometimes misses opportunities. They both have skills that are useful in the story, but it also means they clash and the reader must consider which way is best for any problem. They also both have issues with their parents, and I really wanted to show that no matter what your background or situation, these things are normal and its really difficult to get things right all the time.
5. Although they come from privileged backgrounds, Tom and Emily feel they come second place to their parents' work. Is this something you feel a lot of teenagers will identify with, or was it a plot device to get the parents out the way?
Emily comes from a privileged background which spills over to Tom because he's staying with them. I think a lot of parents have to work hard and it always feels that they prioritise other things. As a dad, I always felt guilty about this but in the story, I try and show both sides. Sometimes parents work hard because they have to, and sacrifices are needed on both sides.
6. Avalanche has, as you'd expect, a very frosty setting. Why did you decide on snow for this book, and how did you develop the setting? Are you a skier? And do you have a place in mind for the setting?
I'm not really a skier, but I loved the idea of trapping Tom up a mountain with no escape and a clock ticking down. I figured an avalanche was a great way of doing this. I also figured the setting was somewhere in the Alps, perhaps in Switzerland as there are a number of biotech firms based there, but it isn't really important. The remote setting is what's key.
7. How authentic do you aim to be with your action scenes, for example the timings with tunnelling through snow, and descriptions of avalanches and helicopter crashes, all of which feature in Avalanche? Where do you go to find out these things?
This is something that's really important to me. Although some of the action is incredible, I always want it to seem like it could happen and the reader might be able to do it too. I do think about timing quite carefully and I always try to imagine what things might be like in a really detailed way before I describe them. I get inspiration from other books and films and also just by thinking - what's the worst thing that could happen to my hero right now. Then I try and think of a way out of it!
8. Your characters get into a lot of 'holes' - was it difficult to always dig them out? What was the toughest section to write? And what did you have the most fun with?
It's always difficult to get them out of trouble because otherwise it wouldn't be exciting. Some writers think of a solution then create the problem to fit, but I don't. I think of the biggest problems I can, they desperately try and think of a way out. Luckily, they've always managed it so far!
I always find the toughest section is the beginning when you're trying to set up the characters. Once the actions gets going, I just go along with it and can often lose hours without noticing.
9. Are you enjoying the life of a writer or do you do other kinds of work, too? What are your writing currently?
I love being a writer. I trained as an accountant and I still do some financial work for a local charity, but I prefer writing. At the moment, I am mapping out another adventure for Tom - maybe at sea, as well as writing a story for older readers about a character who the rich and famous go to when they want to buy something unusual. Both are adventures. Anything else would be a lot less fun.
10. Where do you most enjoy going for adventures of your own, to inspire new stories?
To be honest, I get my inspiration from going to the cinema and the library. If I read a book or watch a film that I enjoy, I try and think about what it was I liked then apply it to one of my characters. My kids also like challenging me with adventure ideas and we will often sit around making up ideas which is great fun.
School Visits: Do you offer school events? What will your event for Avalanche include, and how can schools get in touch to arrange a visit from you? I do offer school visits and love meeting readers. I can do workshops and assemblies and especially like to share some of the ways I write and encourage young people to come up with their own ideas. I promise not to steal them! The best way to get in touch is through nosy crow at [email protected]
Introducing Deadlock (Nosy Crow Books) (June 2023}
Deadlock is a fast-paced contemporary novel that pits a boy with superb lock-picking skills against a shadowy group of criminals. Are his skills enough to save his father's career - and his life? We asked author Simon Fox to tell us what inspired the story - and how good are his own lock-picking skills, as well as giving us tips on building tension in our writing.
Read a Chapter from Deadlock Review: A 'hard-to-put-down' adventure from the first chapter onwards!
Avalanche
Deadlock
Running Out of Time
