What inspired you to transition from a career in chemistry and the oil industry to becoming an author? Was there a specific moment when you knew you wanted to write?
I had always wanted to write but I didn’t know how to get started. I tried a course with twenty-four modules where only one was novel writing which didn’t get me very far. Then I joined an online authors’ program where you could submit work to be evaluated by other writers. There were obviously some professionals in the group; agents and publishers but it all took too long. Eventually I came across Stephen King’s book On Writing and that was the impulse which took me over the starting line. The message was just do it. Time in a busy professional life was obviously a limiting factor but in 2008 I had a health problem which served as a shot across the bows. Something which clearly said ‘Don’t waste your time. It could end any day.’
Your Border terrier, Henry, played a big role in inspiring Henry’s Tale. Can you tell us more about how Henry’s personality influenced the story and characters?
When I came out of hospital I walked the pilgrim’s path, The Camino de Santiago from St. Jean-Pied-du-Port near Biarritz in France to Santiago de Compostella. To spare my blistered feet I had to take the bus once but walked 550 of the 700km. Since my wife was not working in Hamburg at the time, when I got back, we decided to get a Henry. Henry had to go out, had to be trained, needed to play, so he got me out and about and introduced me to a new circle of friends. He was gentle, the Buddha under the Border terriers. When he was five he showed signs of a serious neurological illness and so it was my turn to look after him and we developed a very close relationship.
How does living in Hamburg and your experiences in England, South Africa, and Germany influence the themes and settings of your books?
Travel, especially if you have the opportunity to live in another country and experience different cultures, is one of the finest ways of understanding the important differences in cultures and developing tolerance. Apart from where I have lived we have travelled widely. Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Asia, India, Nepal, Mexico, Costa Rica and all over Europe. We were very often in Sri Lanka and following the tsunami where many people lost their lives and livelihood we started supporting children of families who lost almost everything. The first child was five when we started. He’s nineteen now and we have an extended family of seven ‘godchildren.’
Many authors have a “writing routine” or “creative process.” Can you describe yours? Do you follow a strict schedule or let inspiration strike naturally?
I have trouble getting started. I start late and am a terrible procrastinator. I try to write something every day but don’t always manage it, which is a self-inflicted frustration. James Joyce took ten years to write Ulysses, which is an average of 90 words a day. So, I’m in good company!
Your books span different genres. How do you approach writing across genres, and do you have a favorite genre to explore?
I don’t write a particular genre. I use Stephen King’s method in that I say; What would happen if? Then I put a character on a page and watch what he or she does. I just write down what they do.
The idea for Sacrificing Starlight came when I was doing a cycling tour in England. I got bed and Breakfast at an isolated farm. When I arrived my hostess offered me tea and poured out her painful life story which culminated in her twenty-year-old son committing suicide. She was very, very scary. So, I said: What would happen if this lady took young cyclists prisoner at her isolated farm as a replacement for her lost son. And I had a story. I located the story in Cornwall where I had lived and wrote down what happened to Danny when he was imprisoned by his hostess. The rest is available on Amazon or Barnes and Noble.
In Sacrificing Starlight and Henry’s Tale, are there any characters that you feel most connected to? If so, why?
Sacrificing Starlight was difficult to write. I had to go deep into my own soul and ask myself if I could really do some of the brutal things I was asking Ben Trevelyan to do to rescue his child. I’d identify with Trevelyan. Henry’s Tale is in part autobiographical, so I’d clearly identify with Henry’s papa, Alan.
Henry’s passing in 2023 was clearly a poignant moment for you. Did it inspire you to explore any new themes or ideas in your writing?
Henry was almost fifteen when he passed. Apart from his neurological problem he’d had a short but serious illness and the kindest thing for him was to let him go. His passing was a terrible loss. He had helped me get back onto my feet and I had cared for him during his illness. We had him cremated. His urn is still under my desk in the original box.
Can you share any behind-the-scenes moments or anecdotes from the process of writing your book, Henry’s Tale that readers might find surprising or humorous?
I had to ask myself how a dog would react to different situations. I had to put myself in the position of being left alone with strangers for the first time. How would a dog feel travelling on the train alone? What would a dog do in a strange town when he was hungry? How would a dog find his way on the London Underground alone? Some people say that giving an animal human traits doesn’t work but it’s a paradox. The writer has to become the dog. So I became the frightened little dog who travelled back from Southend took the tube from Liverpool Street Station, met a lovely young lady who accompanied him back to his papa in Watford.
What do you hope readers take away from your books, especially Sacrificing Starlight?
There is no greater crime than destroying a child, no punishment too hard for the perpetrators of these crimes.
Your career path is quite diverse. Do you find that your background in science influences your storytelling, and if so, how?
It doesn’t influence the storytelling but the ability to organise a lot of information is a great help. Being sensitive to different cultural mores is a greater help.
If you could give one piece of advice to your younger self just starting out as an author, what would it be?
There comes a time when you know what you want to do. Don’t miss this point, otherwise it might be too late. I wouldn’t change the way I did it. I needed the security I obtained in different professional areas to confidently go into an ethically and emotionally challenging area without worrying about what people might think of what I’m writing.
Can you give us any hints about what you’re currently working on? Will we be seeing more animal-inspired stories, perhaps with Blix as the muse?
It starts as a classic crime novel and moves into a parallel world where a quest for political dominance triggers an international crisis in which the operatives are disentangled qubits developed in a quantum computer and dispatched via electromagnetic waves. And the bodies keep piling up.
Are there any new genres, themes, or ideas you’re excited to explore in your future writing projects?
The most fascinating aspect of writing the way I do it is not knowing what’s going to happen next. As Stephen King says; If I don’t know what’s going to happen on the next page then the reader will never know. I have another project developing but that has to remain a secret for the moment; and yes it would be another genre, but the genre is not the key. The story is the key. If you have a story then writing it, whatever the genre, is exciting.
What do you love most about being an author, and what is the most challenging aspect of it?
The freedom to go anywhere, do anything, think and say anything and not have to worry about what people think. The most challenging aspect is sitting down at the computer and doing it.
How did you first come across the AllAuthor website? What do you like or dislike about the site?
I started seeing a lot of Tweets and GIFS from authors I was following on Twitter with the AllAuthor byline at the bottom then I checked the website myself. I use other marketing/promotion options and in total they all take an inordinate amount of my time and cost more.
I don’t think I’m making as much use of the AllAuthor options as I could or should. I think I could be using AllAuthor much more effectively, but I don’t know how. I’m hesitant to spend more time on AllAuthor trying to find better options as this would take even more of my time. Recommendations would be very helpful, or a training tutorial as a video; maybe a few model promotion systems which show how I could make the best use of the possibilities available. How many GIFS? How many Tweets/Posts? How often should they be posted? How often should they be changed? My presence on AllAuthor hasn’t yet had a significant effect on my book sales so I’m obviously not doing it well enough. And recommendations by email, anytime.
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