1. Hello and welcome to my blog! To start off, what made you decide to take the plunge into the world of publishing?
Hello
and many thanks for the opportunity to answer some questions on your
blog. After many years of almost finishing novels and shorter works I
finally finished one thanks to the inspiration of my muse (my wife).
This was then sent off to many places in the hopes of getting an agent
or a publisher, it didn't so it instead spent the next 18 months in a
drawer. I then entered a competition where you submit the first chapter
of a novel only to realise it would work better as a novella which I
then wrote. With two completed works languishing in drawers I discovered
Amazon's KDP
programme and had a revelation - I could actually publish them myself! I
had never really been aware of self-publishing before and suddenly
there it was, just what I'd been looking for without realising I was
looking for it.
2. Tell me about your book.
Sovereign
Nation is a thriller featuring politics, archaeology, espionage and the
surprisingly happy marriage of it's heroes, Bel and Emily Carter.
Here's the blurb:
"Searching
for the tomb of the legendary First King of Britain shouldn't lead to
anything but more professional ridicule for archaeology professor
Belinus Carter. Instead he and his wife Emily, a secret agent for
the Royal British Protectorate, are drawn into a political conspiracy
that leads all the way to the top of British society. Fighting for their
lives and hunted by the government of the country they are sworn to
protect, the Carters and the Royal British Protectorate must go on the
offensive.
Using the
secrets of the tomb of King Brutus they will battle to restore the
country they love and defeat it's darkest foe - an enemy from within
that threatens the very fabric of Britain and everything it stands for.
Politics, archaeology, mythology and espionage crash together in Sovereign Nation."
Admit it, that sounds exciting, right?
3. What has
been the biggest challenge you've had to face in publishing so far?
Getting
published. Largely due to my own lack of knowledge about the joys of
self-publishing and my attempts to join the world of 'traditional
publishing'. Had I never bothered with that I'd have been published 18
months earlier and probably be another book or two ahead. Other than
that my biggest challenge has probably been the same as most writers,
fighting procrastination!
4. Do you have a favorite author?
I always come back to Douglas Adams and William Shakespeare,
completely different bodies of work but both really understood people and that is the key to good writing.
5. If you could achieve one goal with your writing, what would it be?
Become
a multi-billionaire and live a life of offensively outrageous luxury.
Either that or just to share my stories with anyone who wants to read
them. Depending on my mood I am either ludicrously ambitious or not
remotely ambitious at all.
6. What do you do when you're not writing?
Work, eat, sleep, take too many photographs and wonder when I will be able to fit in some archery.
7. Can we expect more books from you?
Oh
yes, there is already a novella follow up to Sovereign Nation and the
crime novella Second Time Lucky. Soon there will be another one too, I
just have to actually finish writing it instead of thinking about what I
want to write after that.
Off-beat questions
1. I see you write thrillers. What is the most thrilling thing you have done?
My characters do the thrilling things, I drink tea and try to avoid doing anything too dangerous.
2. "Sovereign Nation" takes place in Britain. Ever been there? If so, what's your best experience you've had there?
Not only have I been to Britain, I am from Britain. Born here and lived here all my life. My best
experience here? Getting married to my muse!
*
Author bio:
I
am an independent author, amateur archer and enthusiastic photographer.
I've worked in Customer Services, Logistics, Reporting, Analysis and
for many years as a Data Monkey in the Telecommunications, Insurance,
Online Auction and Cycle Hire industries - leaving me qualified for
nothing but with lots of experience of pretending to understand what
others are talking about.
My
books are written from my extensive lack of experience of the worlds of
international espionage, archaeology, politics and murder investigation
- I have heard you should 'write what you know' but choose to ignore
it.
I
have been very happily married to my muse since 2010 and I use the word
'muse' because without her I would never have completed my first novel,
she gave me the confidence to do it and the inspiration to keep
writing.
Blog:
Buy "Sovereign Nation:"
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