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
NaNoWriMo Mid Term Report As I noted in part 16, I’m doing National Novel Writing Month in September. It’s now fifteen days in, halfway there, and 30,000 words written. It’s going well and I’m bang on target. It’s not been without its moments of drama and periods of self-doubt, but I’ve kept on top of … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 17
NaNoWriMo I’m doing NaNoWriMo this month. It stands for National Novel Writing Month and is an event run in November for those wanting to try their hand at drafting a novel in a month. It’s not for me. I find November to be a busy month and the timing is all wrong. So I’m doing … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 16
The Fiction Factory 