Inside the Fiction Factory
Publication Day My novel The Kill Chain was published on July 16th 2022 by Darkstroke, and it effectively marked the closing of one chapter and the start of another. I’ve blogged earlier about my writing journey and the books I’ve written here and reading back, I’m astonished I have managed to write what I have, … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 14
The Cabaret of Dangerous Ideas I’m taking part again this year at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe with the Cabaret of Dangerous Ideas (CODI) which is believed to be the oldest and most successful academic public engagement forum in the world. There is nothing else quite like it. Now in its tenth year, academics from The … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 13
Dark Venice I’m excited to announce that the short story I was working on last month has been accepted for the anthology, Dark Venice and I’ve signed another contract to that effect. It was an interesting brief and a challenge to come up with something within the timescale. I didn’t want to write a story … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 12
Works in Progress I write novels and short stories, science fiction and near future cyber thrillers for want of a genre. The Kill Chain (Due to be published by Darkstroke Publishing in summer 2022)Security expert Jacob Anderson lands his dream job with a cyber defence firm just as a government contract is signed. Then film … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 11
Short stories I’ve written a few short stories and self-published them on Amazon. I’ve many more in draft, still waiting to be finished up. My focus has been on novels and with my goal of writing at least one novel a year, the short stories tend to take a backseat. On two occasions, a short … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 10
William Gibson next to Dan Brown I’ve presented around a hundred lectures on cyber security throughout the last year, while attending a variety of security conferences, roundtables and fireside chats. I like to use my bookcases as my background when doing remote sessions and these have proved popular with delegates. I always take audience questions … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 9
Spelling Garry When I was preparing my debut novel, The Copernicus Coercion for publication, the decision over whether to use GJ Scobie or Garry J Scobie came up for debate. I settled on GJ Scobie and still wonder whether I made the right decision. Working on-line all day, I often see my name spelt incorrectly … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 8
The NASA approach to writing I love a good pun and make no apology for it. One of my favourites is, I’m going to use the NASA approach to writing this novel and plan it. I have written in freefall (another space reference) and each morning just carried on writing without a plan, in the … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 7
Drafts I was thinking the other day about how many drafts I have written per novel. It seems there is no set number, but I have worked myself into a routine. The first draft is all about determining if I actually have a story. This draft is only ever read by me and the scenes … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 6
Writing in the company of strangers Pre-pandemic I did most of my writing on trains and in cafes. I have a study, and I do use it, but the majority of my work was done while commuting to and from work. Journey time one way was around fifty minutes and I would arrive a bit … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 5
The Fiction Factory 