Today I set up my Goodreads Author Page! To make it feel properly complete I have answered a few of the suggested questions… I don’t plan to be replicating content on here, so if you wouldn’t mind popping over now and quickly following me, you’ll be updated when I answer questions. All done? Jolly good! I plan to do this once a week and have left it open so my readers can ask their own too. I’d love to hear from you.
Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?
It was a combination of factors really. I have always had an interest in myths and legends and had a general inkling of the story kicking around in my head for the last ten years. I was delighted to get a chance to study the Classics during my final year of studying for a BA (Hons) in History with the Open University, not least because it really fed that idea and helped me to develop a strong storyline.
Added to this is my growing obsession with Vikings which culminated in my joined a living history reenactment group in 2015. While I was doing my homework for Vikings, as well as studying for my degree, added to my existing interest in other pantheons I couldn’t help but notice the similarities and divergences between the myths so I just decided to snatch them and run with it. It was certainly great fun to write.
Readers won’t be mistaken when they notice the Neil Gaiman, Tom Holt and Terry Pratchett influences. These are some of my favorite authors and their work has given me hours of joy: I think I was actually channeling all of them during the writing process at certain points.
It turns out that I am a bit of a project squirrel so here’s the list!
I have the prequel to Charon Unguarded on the go at the moment, and books two and three in the outlining stages. I promise to make these a priority.
In memory of my late father I am writing down the stories, he would make up on the spot for me and my brother when we were children and plan to donate the proceeds to the British Heart Foundation. This project is going to take a while as the loss of my father was a very recent event and I am not yet emotionally ready to share these with the world.
Finally, I have a work of historical fiction in outline, and it will come as no surprise to many that this is Viking related. It’s going to be an Eddic type saga with a healthy body count.
I read, and I have reading time blocked into my daily schedule.
There is no point sitting in front of a blank screen waiting for inspiration to hit you. It will never happen and you will only frustrate yourself. As a writer you need to be proactive, you know your genre but above all, you, need to keep fuelling that creative fire. If you don’t feed it, it will simply go out. So go down those rabbit holes, take a short course in something, read outside your comfort zone as well as inside it, and keep abreast of current affairs. Inspiration is there but you will have to look for it
