Zeekoevlei resident Laurianne Claase is a freelance writer, editor and author of ‘Caught Out – Cricket Match Fixing Investigated’. She has just written an ebook on the Oscar Pistorius shooting – the first one published since the tragic events in February.

Having researched the background to both Pistorius and his beautiful model girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, the author then pulls together all the known facts, provides a timeline of events of that fateful night, and sets out all those intriguing questions that remain unanswered. The result has been described as “A book you MUST read before the Pistorius case trial’. Laurie A Claase gave us this exclusive interview:

Q. Why did you write this book?

A. I wrote this book because, like many people around the world, I wanted to get to the bottom of what happened on that Valentine’s Day. I also wanted to highlight the worldwide trend of violence against women and justice systems, which are predominantly male, that fail especially to protect the ‘weaker sex’.

Q. How was the process of e-publishing different from conventional publishing?

A. Our team of three were able to publish this e-book in seven weeks from the day of the shooting. This would have been impossible in conventional publishing. The advantages of e-publishing include:

• Speed of publication
• Distribution: Instant delivery around the world
• U-to-date: Revisions of the book can be posted in less than 12 hours
• Affordability: Because of the low-cost of producing an e-book, writers can afford to sell their books for a much lower price than print, cutting out the publisher in the middle.
• Convenience: E-books can be bought online and read on your phone, your iPad, your computer or a kindle or similar e-reader.
• Interactivity: Readers can follow the hyperlinks to original sources and online photographs, broadening the experience of reading the e-book. Writers can interact directly through social media with readers and potential readers.

Q. How has the online community reacted to the book?

A. This book is encouraging people who have never read an e-book to do so and they are finding the experience rewarding.

KITTYCHI (Michigan)
‘I read a lot on iBooks, but this is the first book I’ve read on the Kindle app. It’s a little different. I would always rather read a “real” book, but this is sooooo convenient.’

MIKE GARNER (Leeds)
‘I put it on my kindle and enjoyed it a lot. It pulls together what we already felt we knew. One really good thing in the book is the photocopy of actual Affidavit as written with each page signed by OP … Another great thing is that the references are instantly referable to if you download onto a kindle fire HD or similar.’

SUZANNE DITTKE (South Africa)
‘I like the way the book unfolds with all the interactive links to information sources. It’s like you are the detective in the story’

CHRIS GIBBONS (South Africa)
‘I’ll guarantee that if you’re following this tragic case, you’ll need to take “Pieces of the Puzzle” with you wherever you go, just to settle arguments about who, what, why, where and when. And if you are a writer or journalist or historian, this is what tomorrow’s world looks like.’

Q. Will there be a sequel?

A. The intent is to publish Part Two: Judgement Day, after the trial.

Q. Where can the book be purchased and how much does it cost?

A. The e-book can be purchased online at Amazon.com – www.amazon.com/dp/B00C4VLWIC. It costs between US$4.99 and US$6.99 depending on territory.