JUGGLING - AGAIN

JUGGLING - AGAIN

If I'd had a normal job, i.e. one with a pension, I probably would have retired several years ago. But as, apart from a a couple of short periods, I've always been self-employed, I've carried on long after normal retirement age. Also, as a nonagenarian friend said, you either use it or lose it, so I'm very happy to carry on, albeit slightly less intensely than in the past.

I've been lucky enough to have had a very varied working life and that continues. For a long time I was a professional modelmaker, often working to a deadline and a price. Nowadays I make and exhibit model railway layouts and they are usually well received and appreciated and I do it just for entertainment. That's me above with my Egyptian themed layout, Caravanserai at a recent exhibition in Hastings. Also above is a model of a signal box I made for another project

But, there are still bills to be paid so I do have to earn something of a living. After designing, building and exhibiting three medal winning gardens at the Chelsea Flower Show, I now concentrate on designing gardens for private clients. I do fewer than I used to but still enjoy working on several every year. In the last few months I've successfully designed and planted gardens in Cooden and Camber and there are a couple more in the pipeline.

Also, I have a cottage in Northiam I've owned for 40 years that I now use for holiday lets. My wife and I look after it, doing the cleaning and maintenance, something we both enjoy. It means we can make sure it's up to the standard we'd expect if we were renting it, plus it's good exercise! 

Another string to my bow is giving talks. I travel all over Kent and Sussex speaking to various groups: U3A, WI and gardening clubs, about Chelsea, garden design and one talk called 'From Pottery to Potting Shed, or how I became a gardener' which is mainly autobiographical and goes down well.

Then, out of the blue, I got a call from a pottery, asking if I'd be interested in doing some mouldmaking. Now, I trained as a mouldmaker and spent many years making moulds for potteries across the south-east but hadn't put my hand in a bucket of plaster for 18 years. But I agreed, made the moulds for an exclusive piece, and enjoyed the process, finding that it all came flooding back.

Finally, back to writing. I doubt I'll ever make it as a top flight writer, or earn a living at it. Although I know my books aren't bad, there's too much competition - but I do enjoy writing. I'm currently nearly a quarter of the way through book eight, in the DI Sonny Russell series of crime mysteries, provisionally titled Pikes Tale. The story revolves around a poisoning and a séance and will have the same mix of intrigue and information I like to include in my books.

So, you can see, life is far from dull and, I suppose I must enjoy juggling!

 

7th PAST THE POST!

 7th PAST THE POST!

Phew! I've done it! I know it should be first past the post but this is my seventh DI Sonny Russell crime mystery and I'm rather proud of it. Although it's taken a lot longer than the others - two years as opposed to 12 months, I think  - well I hope - it's my best one yet.

Some of the themes in it are much darker than before and I've been able to explore and develop my characters further than I have in the past. It's just as interesting for me to discover their back stories as it is for the readers. I never plan my books, just run with an idea and see where it takes me. In that way it's a voyage of discovery and always remains fresh.

I do hope you enjoy reading BLOOD ON THE ROCKS as much as I enjoyed writing it. I'm always happy to hear from my readers - whether praising or correcting - so please do let me know what you think. 

THE FINISHING LINE!

 

THE FINISHING LINE!

I'm almost there. "At last!" I hear you cry. That's how I feel too. After more than two years working on this book it's almost ready to go to the printer. I've no idea why it's taken so long - I have usually managed to produce a book a year. All I can say is, I think it's going to be worth the wait.

This isn't the final cover, just my rough idea of how it could look. I will reveal the brilliant cover that my designer has produced as soon as it's confirmed.

Be ready to immerse yourself in a tale that encompasses questionable dealings in a sanatorium and even dodgier artefacts being palmed off by a dubious Egyptian. All of which taxes DI Sonny Russell to the hilt.

Talking of whom... This is my late uncle - Sonny Russell - who is the inspiration for the detective in my books. He was a lovely man and most aptly named.

A WAITING GAME

 

A WAITING GAME

Shabti in the British Museum

After a long time - two years as against my normal 12 months - Blood on the Rocks is finished. I've no idea why it took so long to write - I haven't even got the excuse of lock-down. I knew where the narrative was going early on; I didn't suffer from writer's block; nothing took precedence, it just took a long time. 

Winged scarab

The editing process was smooth - my wife, Greer, expertly edited, spotting gaffes I'd made and making valuable suggestions and contributions to the story. My beta reader, John Nutting, picked up on grammatical and technical errors we'd missed and I went over once more tweaking and finessing.

Trial cover

The next stage is the cover. This is probably the most important part of getting the book noticed. Readers see the cover before reading a single word so it has to stand out. I usually mock up a cover to show to Paul, the designer, giving him an idea of what I think it should look like. He also has a synopsis of the book and will create his own interpretation. This is always far better than my own, amateurish effort but, it takes time. Not only does he have to assemble the images but lay them out in such a way that the printer can easily use them to produce the finished book - not a process that can be rushed. So now, it's a waiting game.

The Grange, Iden

The working title of the book had been 'Blood on the Nile'. This was because one of the main threads revolved around Egyptian artefacts that had been stolen by someone trying to sell them on. But, the title didn't sit comfortably with the other books in the series so a decision was made to use another thread. Spoiler alert! Early on a accident occurs where a body is found below the cliffs, hence the new title. 

Hopefully, you loyal readers won't have to wait too long now, to read the continuing stories of DI Sonny Russell, and his faithful companion, Aggie.

EDITOR, EDITOR!

 EDITOR, EDITOR!

As previously announced, I finished book seven in the DI Sonny Russell series of crime mysteries at the end of last year. Now comes necessary but the arduous task of re-reading, editing and generally improving the manuscript.  

I am exceedingly fortunate in having an inhouse editor. My wife, Greer, was a journalist and reporter from when she left college then spent 25 years as a sub-editor on the prestigious Daily Telegraph. She has been going through my book with a fine-tooth comb, picking up on all the mistakes and omissions I've made and making valuable suggestions to further enhance the narrative.

My current job is to input all her hard, detailed work so the story not only flows, but makes sense.

In addition, we've been discussing the final title of the book. While I've been writing it the working title has been BLOOD ON THE NILE, as some of the narrative revolves around stolen Egyptian treasures. However, as much of the book, in line with the previous titles, revolves around Rye and Rye Harbour, we thought it more appropriate to reflect this and it seems probable that it's going to be changed to BLOOD ON THE RIVER BANK, or something similar. Hopefully we will have decided by the end of the editing process. 

 LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL

    My poor readers. You've been eagerly awaiting the next book in the DI Sonny Russell series of crime mysteries and I've kept you hanging around for much longer than I usually do between books. I don't know why this one has taken so long - almost two years already. 

    It started well, with a good strong thread revolving around dubious goings on in a sanatorium, then a second thread dealing with Egyptian artefacts someone was trying to sell, which might have been stolen and might or might not be genuine. Somewhere along the line writing slowed to a crawl as I was struggling to find a way forward. It wasn't writers block, as such, but I couldn't even see the tunnel, let alone the light at the end of it. But, at last, the writing has gathered pace.

    In my usual way, I write as a reader - keen to discover what's coming next. Interesting ideas came out of the blue, including a new character, an Assistant Chief Constable, who has requested Russell's help in a sensitive case. This only happened about twenty pages ago and has helped the narrative immensely. 

    I have just passed the magical 75,000 word mark so feel I'm on the home straight. So saying, I'd better get on with writing it!

Puttin' on the Style

PUTTIN' ON THE STYLE

Although 'style' does relate to the way I, and others, write, this may be a slightly misleading title as it's more about accents. 

Dick Strawbridge/Inspecteur Guillaume Bruissement

In my series of crime novels set in the 1950s my detective, DI Sonny Russell, has an opposite number based in Boulogne called Inspecteur Guillaume Bruissement. Throughout the books they becoem firm friends and Bruissment often helps with tricky international cases. Although not slavishly based on him, I have a picture in my mind of the tv personality, Dick Strawbridge, when I portray him. I guess there's a little of Poirot too and I like to mix French with English when I write his dialogue, as if he's thinking in both languages. This brings up its own set of challenges as he frequently drops his aitches and mixes his languages and parts of speech. But he is fun to write him and try to make him sound real.

One of the things I try to get right is the necessary accents when inserting French words. I do hope I succeed and I'm sure my readers will let me know if I get it wrong!