Writing
Looking back on 2012 from an author’s perspective
I know we’re not quite at the end of the year yet, but the next two weeks are going to be very busy so I thought I would write a reflective post while I have the chance! I will also take this opportunity to bring readers up to speed
Crowley’s Rival will be available from the 19th of December
Crowley’s Rival, my new short story (or novella, depending on your definition), will be released as a Kindle exclusive on the 19th of December. That’s one week away! This story is aimed at fans of The Only Genuine Jones, although it also works as a standalone piece and
Autumn: my most productive time of year
Autumn walks always focus the mind. The Butley River, November 2004. Although The Only Genuine Jones is the first book I’ve made a serious attempt at publishing, I have been writing for many years and have come to understand my habits very well. I started in the late ’90s
Blurb and pitching woes
Work on The Only Genuine Jones is progressing very well. Today I made another read-through of the manuscript–very much a loose-ends edit–and picked up a couple of errors that have filtered down through the years of drafting, rewriting, and editing. Apart from these very minor points I can
Editing, writing, and writing about editing and writing
OK perhaps not truly “END” just yet, but it is the end of the beginning. I’ve had a very busy and productive week working on both of my current projects. To break up my series of character profiles a little (which I’m pleased to see many readers are
Work begins on ‘Alpine Dawn’
Somerset House, Strand, in the 1840s. The action begins in the street near this spot on Christmas Eve, 1847. After months of very hard work, on Saturday I realised I had run out of things that needed doing before I could start writing my new novel. The realisation was a
Some thoughts on constructing a plot
The trusty m500 doing what it does best As I write this I am sitting in a cafe in Skegness (thanks to the marvel that is mobile broadband) and trying to make sense of the tangle of notes in my ‘plot ideas’ folder. These files have accumulated over several months
I am making progress
Since making the decision to ‘go indie’ last week I have been firing on all cylinders. Progress made so far: 1. Most obviously, this website is now in a far more presentable condition and ready to host whatever content I need to showcase. 2. I’ve been putting effort into
One decade later …
The 1st of July, 2002, is the earliest electronic record of my writing activities. I had been writing for years before that date on a casual basis, inspired by fantasy artwork and role-playing games to create a fantasy world of my imagination, but that was the point when I finally
The boundary between research and prewriting
I’m gradually coming to the end of the research I originally planned for my new book. Since this project is set in a period of time that was until recently unfamiliar to me, the reading list was huge and the list of things to research even longer. I’m