Tag: novel
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The Delights of the Not-Quite-So-Bad Second Draft
In a previous post, I shared the first part of my method for drafting and editing a novel. In short, the secret is to embrace the idea that your first draft will be rubbish and just concentrate on getting the ideas down. That’s what I’ve been doing with my new novel, Beach of Spies, and about two…
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The Pleasures of the Bad First Draft
I’m halfway through the first draft of my next novel, Beach of Spies, and I’m pleased to report that it’s not very good. The plot meanders, the jokes miss (yes, even more than usual), and one of the characters changes her name partway through, but I’m very happy with it. This is because I cut…
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Hear ye, hear ye!
After a flurry of activity around April and May around the launch of Six Steps, I’ve been a bit quiet. The truth is, I needed a break. The combined roles of writing, publishing and marketing a book are demanding, and that’s before taking into account my family responsibilities and, oh yes, my paid job! Besides,…
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Audiobook-tastic
The audiobook version of Six Steps to Salvation was released today on Audible UK, US, Amazon and Apple Books. You can listen to a sample here: ‘Better late than never!’ you might say, and I would agree with you. I had intended for the audiobook version to come out on the same day as the novel, but for various reasons too…
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The Indie Author Book Fair Odyssey
On 3rd May, I joined over 40 authors in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, for the annual Indie Author Book Fair. I had intended to take part in 2023, but left booking until too late. Places are competitive! Not living in the UK, attendance became an odyssey. But was it worth it? The Prep The first part…
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The Making of Six Steps to Salvation
Today marks the release of my fourth novel, Six Steps to Salvation, and already I’m preparing material for the limited Director’s Cut edition, with this ‘Making of’ article.* As a side note, did anyone ever watch those DVD extras that we paid extra for? I have a backlog of DVDs from at least ten years ago…
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Long time, no update!
Somehow, a few months have passed since my last update. Not sure how that happened. At least no one can accuse me of bombarding you with information! So, here’s an update of what I’ve been up to, following up on some threads from my last couple of posts. Six Steps to Save a Soul For…
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Status update
It is with a heavy heart that I reach the end of my work sabbatical, but it’s been productive, so it seems a good time for an update. I had four main objectives for my sabbatical: As this blog is supposed to be around writing, I’ll concentrate here on the last two points. You’ll need…
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Last transmission from nowhere
As I write this blog post, I’m procrastinating. I cannot deny it. These very words are evidence against me. I mentioned in an earlier post that I had a work break coming up this summer, which I was planning to use to concentrate on my writing. Well, it has finally arrived! In May, I started…
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