If you’ve never been to Berlin, you should. If you’ve already been to Berlin then you know what I’m talking about. Having tramped about the streets of the German capital taking in all the city has to offer, I can safely say it’s one of the nicest, friendliest and fun cities to go to. There are too many good things to say about Berlin so I’m not going to bore you with them. Just go if you haven’t been already.
Me pretending to be Jason Bourne pretending to be a tourist at Alexander Platz.
HEAR ME SPEAK! – NINE WORLDS CONFERENCE 7th-9th August
If you’re not into science fiction or fantasy then this isn’t going to interest you at all. If you are into sci-fi and fantasy then this is the conference for you. As a huge fan of science fiction and fantasy I was delighted to be invited to appear on the Star Trek panel. I don’t think I’ll be wearing my Spock ears but you never know. I’m speaking on the 9th but the conference is a lot of fun so if you want to book tickets for any day you can get them at www.nineworlds.co.uk. Tickets are now available for the whole weekend or just individual days.
Want to learn sword dancing with Syrio Forel? Or do you want to see me pontificating about Star Trek? I know it’s a hard choice.
VECTOR– SUMMER ISSUE 2015
My article ‘Vote Janeway in 2015! Can modern politicians learn from future lessons?’ appeared in the recent summer edition of the British Science Fiction Association’s official journal/magazine. Available to BSFA members, you can also get single issue editions available for sale at £4.00. I was pretty proud of this article/essay as it marked one of my first print publications. Whilst I’ve had a lot published online, as a writer there’s something about seeing your name in print that makes you think “I can’t be that shit if an editor somewhere has taken the trouble to spend money on publishing my work.” So yes, I’m proud and glad that there are people who like and hopefully enjoy what I write.
MY NOVELS
Following my attendance at both the London Book Fair and several other events over the past few months, I have been learning a lot about finishing your books and getting people interested enough to buy them so that when you publish you don’t disappear into the ether (as many do). The popularity of e-book and print-on-demand technology has meant that publication is now a lot easier to achieve then it was. This is great news! However it does not mean that authors should think that they can just click ‘publish’ and that’s the job done. You still need to get a professional editor to edit your work and you still need to have a good marketing strategy ready in order to give your book the best possible chance of selling well.
Good evening Mr Bond. I’ve been expecting you.
At the moment I’m deep into the second draft of my religious fantasy ‘Sister Agatha’ and am working through the tough middle section as I take time out to blog. I’m also tinkering about with the second draft of my crime fantasy ‘The Empress’. At the moment the goal and challenge for me is finishing these drafts ready to send off to an editor and have them taken apart before being put back together again and hopefully good enough to publish. What I’ve learnt about building an audience is to have not just one book in the bank, but several. If people like the first book you publish then the first question they’re going to ask is “When’s the next one out?” As the reader is God (thanks to CJ Lyons for letting me steal that quote), I’m trying hard to have as much material ready to publish before I start publishing and submitting to agents. Speaking of which when will they be ready? Well I set self-imposed deadlines as much as I can, so I have until mid August to finish the 2nd Draft of ‘Sister Agatha’ (regardless of condition). I have to give a copy of it to a beta reader when the deadline hits so I have no choice but to keep working away on it.
WANT TO NAME ONE OF MY CHARACTERS?
The book I’m writing at the moment is about a supernatural nun, her fellow nuns and their quest to stop a very nasty villain from murdering more people. They’ve failed in their previous attempts and this might be their last chance. Unfortunately at the moment my villain has no name. I’m looking for inspiration! If you’re interested in having a stab at naming my as-yet-unnamed villain drop me a line on Facebook or Twitter or email me at info@iwriteyouread.co.uk If I go with your name, I’ll email you and blog about it all over social media! I’ll also name one of my other characters after you. The best bit? You get to choose whether you want to be good or bad!
