Names During the edit stage of my novel The Kill Chain, I was asked to change the names of several of the characters. This was a surprise, even a bit of a shock. I tend to come up with a name and stick with it so being asked to change their names after having spent … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 27
Review of 2022 Although I have been writing for several years, looking back on 2022 I feel this has been the most productive and successful to date. The year started with working on the final touches to The Copernicus Coercion, Book One – Code Critical which I self-published in February. This is a science fiction … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 26
Optimism Having had two novels published this year, I’ve been thinking about my motivation to write. Why do I do this? What is it that makes me write? I have found writing has become easier over the years, as the more I practice, but there are of course days when it feels hard going. I … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 25
Second Draft – Completed The last third of the second draft of The Kill Switch has gone well. I’ve finished up in good time and I’m all set for draft three during December. Draft three is my favourite of the process. This is where I have the knowledge the plot is sound, the structure works … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 24
Second Draft – Part Two Eighteen days in and I can report I have completed two thirds of the second draft of The Kill Switch. I’m pleased with how it’s going, and so far the plot appears to be hanging together. It’s been a tough week with a funeral to attend and I’m now down … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 23
Second Draft As I noted earlier, I did NaNoWriMo in September to work up the sequel to The Kill Chain, which has a working title of The Kill Switch. I then left the draft to finish up a short story for a new anthology, while also relaunching my short story collections with some new additions. … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 22
Small Print I have finished working on my short story collections called Small Print. My plan was to reboot these by designing new covers and adding in some other stories I had lying around looking for a home. I’m pleased to announce I completed this project and I think the new look covers fit with … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 21
First Drafts As noted the other week, I spent September writing out the first draft of a sequel to The Kill Chain, called The Kill Switch. Since then I’ve sent taken a break and have been working on a new short story which I will submit for a new anthology by the end of this … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 20
Dark Venice I’m excited to announce that on the 1st October a short story of mine was published in the Dark Venice Anthology from Darkstroke Publishing. It’s called The Inference Engine. Here’s the blurb: While in Venice celebrating their twentieth wedding anniversary, Greg leaves Sally to spend an afternoon by herself in the Leonardo Da … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 19
NaNoWriMo Completed Having decided to do NaNoWriMo during September, I managed to finish the draft by the 27th. I’m very pleased with how it’s gone. Fatigue was setting in after three weeks, and a migraine at the weekend there put paid to my word count. However, I picked it back up the last two days, … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 18
The Fiction Factory 