Jim McGrath's Blog, page 3
October 7, 2017
A possible new management book
Hi Folks,
I know that most of you are far more interested in my fiction books than my management books. But I have a very real affection for both the education books and management books which I wrote as they were where I found my writers voice and discovered the confidence to write my novels.
I'm telling the following story as I think it shows how a writer's mind works and how new ideas are generated. Cheryl, my newest follower, made a suggestion for a possible management book. Now in the form she suggested I doubt I could write a really good book. However, as I thought about what she had written I realised that I could cover the information she wanted but in a different format.
That's what writers do they take ideas, stories, jokes, personnel tragedies and triumphs (not many of those in my life. Ah poor soul I hear you say) experiences dreams and a lot more and manipulate them. Sometimes they exaggerate what has happened, other times they shrink it down and combine it with another idea or event to produce what appears on the page. And the really wonderful thing about this is that about 80% of this process occurs in every writers subconscious. And most times you have no idea where the idea came from that that has just landed in your lap.
Take care
Jim
I know that most of you are far more interested in my fiction books than my management books. But I have a very real affection for both the education books and management books which I wrote as they were where I found my writers voice and discovered the confidence to write my novels.
I'm telling the following story as I think it shows how a writer's mind works and how new ideas are generated. Cheryl, my newest follower, made a suggestion for a possible management book. Now in the form she suggested I doubt I could write a really good book. However, as I thought about what she had written I realised that I could cover the information she wanted but in a different format.
That's what writers do they take ideas, stories, jokes, personnel tragedies and triumphs (not many of those in my life. Ah poor soul I hear you say) experiences dreams and a lot more and manipulate them. Sometimes they exaggerate what has happened, other times they shrink it down and combine it with another idea or event to produce what appears on the page. And the really wonderful thing about this is that about 80% of this process occurs in every writers subconscious. And most times you have no idea where the idea came from that that has just landed in your lap.
Take care
Jim
Removal of Collins and Clark Novels fromAmazon
Hi Folks,
I just wanted to let you know that the ebooks A Death in Winter: 1963 and A Death in Spring: 1968 will be removed temporarily from Amazon and other dealers in the near future as the transfer of my books from Troubadour to Inknbeans goes ahead. So if anyone hasn't read A Death in Spring this is your last chance to download it for a few months.
We are still on target to publish A Death in Winter: 1963 during the last week in November. The next two books in the series: A Death in Summer: 1965 and A Death in Spring: 1968, will follow in early 2018.
The fourth book in the series A Death in Autumn: 1968 is progressing well and I've completed a fairly detailed outline for the fifth book A Death in the Bullion Room.
Cheers,
Jim
I just wanted to let you know that the ebooks A Death in Winter: 1963 and A Death in Spring: 1968 will be removed temporarily from Amazon and other dealers in the near future as the transfer of my books from Troubadour to Inknbeans goes ahead. So if anyone hasn't read A Death in Spring this is your last chance to download it for a few months.
We are still on target to publish A Death in Winter: 1963 during the last week in November. The next two books in the series: A Death in Summer: 1965 and A Death in Spring: 1968, will follow in early 2018.
The fourth book in the series A Death in Autumn: 1968 is progressing well and I've completed a fairly detailed outline for the fifth book A Death in the Bullion Room.
Cheers,
Jim
September 13, 2017
The First Agnes Winter Book.
Just a quickie to say that A Death in Winter: 1963 is scheduled to be published as a paperback towards the end of November. The second book in the series A Death Summer: 1965 will follow shortly after.
I'm very hopeful that the Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn books will all be published by the end of 2018.
I'm currently writing A Death in Autumn. I've got 20,000 words done and I'll really get stuck into it in October.
Meanwhile I've starting to research the first Agnes Winter Book and to outline the plot. It will be set in 1941 and Agnes will be trying to infiltrate a Nazi spy ring operating in Birmingham. Some of the characters you have met in Winter and Spring will appear as their much younger selves.
As part of my research I'm already reading various books on Bletchley Park and I'm off there for a day on the 22 September. I'm looking forward to that.
It will be a challenge to write a book from a woman's perspective and to locate it in a time that I didn't live through. So I better get the facts right. No one will forgive me if I place the Lyon's Coffee House on the wrong side of New Street.
Take care,
Jim
I'm very hopeful that the Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn books will all be published by the end of 2018.
I'm currently writing A Death in Autumn. I've got 20,000 words done and I'll really get stuck into it in October.
Meanwhile I've starting to research the first Agnes Winter Book and to outline the plot. It will be set in 1941 and Agnes will be trying to infiltrate a Nazi spy ring operating in Birmingham. Some of the characters you have met in Winter and Spring will appear as their much younger selves.
As part of my research I'm already reading various books on Bletchley Park and I'm off there for a day on the 22 September. I'm looking forward to that.
It will be a challenge to write a book from a woman's perspective and to locate it in a time that I didn't live through. So I better get the facts right. No one will forgive me if I place the Lyon's Coffee House on the wrong side of New Street.
Take care,
Jim
September 11, 2017
A Bullet Dodged
Hi Folks,
It's strange how things happen. About four months ago I decided to see if I could write a private detective story. I decided that my hero would be an ex military police officer who had been dishonourably discharged from the army. When we first meet him he's just started his agency and is so broke that he's living in his office to save money.
To help create the impression of a professional agency he's advertised for an office junior (She would be little more than a filing clerk and would be paid peanuts). But she turns out to be a natural detective.
I wrote about 10-15,000 words of the story before deciding that it lacked life and I filed it away. And its a good job I did because two weeks ago I started watching The Cuckoo's Calling on the BBC by Ms Rowling's and there on the screen were all the ingredients I'd been thinking about with the exception that my detective had two legs.
No one would have believed that I hadn't copied Ms Rowling's work. Nor would they have believed that other than skim reading her first Harry Potter book I've never read anything that she's written.
Take care,
Jim
It's strange how things happen. About four months ago I decided to see if I could write a private detective story. I decided that my hero would be an ex military police officer who had been dishonourably discharged from the army. When we first meet him he's just started his agency and is so broke that he's living in his office to save money.
To help create the impression of a professional agency he's advertised for an office junior (She would be little more than a filing clerk and would be paid peanuts). But she turns out to be a natural detective.
I wrote about 10-15,000 words of the story before deciding that it lacked life and I filed it away. And its a good job I did because two weeks ago I started watching The Cuckoo's Calling on the BBC by Ms Rowling's and there on the screen were all the ingredients I'd been thinking about with the exception that my detective had two legs.
No one would have believed that I hadn't copied Ms Rowling's work. Nor would they have believed that other than skim reading her first Harry Potter book I've never read anything that she's written.
Take care,
Jim
July 8, 2017
Future books in the Collins and Clark Series
Hi,
I can now confirm the running order for the first six Collins and Clark Series. It will be:
A Death in Winter* (1963)
A Death in Summer. (1965)
A Death in Spring.* (1968)
A Death in Autumn. (1968)
A Death in the Bullion Room. (1969)
A Death in the Ghost Train. (1969) (Working title)
As you can see A Death in Summer has been slipped in between Winter 1963 and Spring 1968, which have already been published. There were two reasons why I decided to go back and fill the gap between 1963 and 1968. Firstly, I wanted to show the development of Collins as a police officer. Secondly, I wanted to set six stories in the 1960s.
Obviously, if the sales of the Collins and Clark Series is disappointing there is no guarantee that all of the above books will be published. But the people at Inknbeans Press are good people and they want the books to be successful just as much as I do.
Once we're out of the 1960s I have tentative plans for six novels which would take us up to 1976.
So I have a lot of writing to do, which makes me very happy. I've already written the first 22,000 words of A Death in Autumn. It's going well.
Cheers,
Jim
I can now confirm the running order for the first six Collins and Clark Series. It will be:
A Death in Winter* (1963)
A Death in Summer. (1965)
A Death in Spring.* (1968)
A Death in Autumn. (1968)
A Death in the Bullion Room. (1969)
A Death in the Ghost Train. (1969) (Working title)
As you can see A Death in Summer has been slipped in between Winter 1963 and Spring 1968, which have already been published. There were two reasons why I decided to go back and fill the gap between 1963 and 1968. Firstly, I wanted to show the development of Collins as a police officer. Secondly, I wanted to set six stories in the 1960s.
Obviously, if the sales of the Collins and Clark Series is disappointing there is no guarantee that all of the above books will be published. But the people at Inknbeans Press are good people and they want the books to be successful just as much as I do.
Once we're out of the 1960s I have tentative plans for six novels which would take us up to 1976.
So I have a lot of writing to do, which makes me very happy. I've already written the first 22,000 words of A Death in Autumn. It's going well.
Cheers,
Jim
June 24, 2017
Vote on Do you want to see Collins and Clark Series extended into the 1970s
Hi Folks,
Many thanks to Elaine for posting her comment. She would like to see the Collins and Clark series extended into the 70s. What do you think?
Please let me have your views. It will help me to decide on how the Collins and Clark series will develop.
Cheers,
Jim
Many thanks to Elaine for posting her comment. She would like to see the Collins and Clark series extended into the 70s. What do you think?
Please let me have your views. It will help me to decide on how the Collins and Clark series will develop.
Cheers,
Jim
June 22, 2017
A Death in Summer sent to publisher
Hi Folks,
I'm happy to say that I sent off A Death in Summer to my publisher today. I'm now lying down in a darkened room trying to relax.
The book is set in 1965. This means that, if it's accepted for publication, it will become the second book in the new Collins and Clark Series. It picks up the story of Collins' development as a police officer about 6 months after he has successfully completed his probationary period. I felt that this was worth doing as to jump from 1963 to 1968 meant that too much of Collins, Clark and Agnes' stories were being left out. It also meant that I could stay in that most interesting of decades the 1960s.
The story is about the same length as A Death in Winter and involves a cat and mouse game between Mr Tubbs, a psychotic arsonist and Collins, Clark and Hicks.
It also contains a sub-plot which sees Agnes taking centre stage.
I'm very poor at assessing how good or bad my work is. I'm nearly always my own worst critic. But I do hope that you will enjoy the book as/when/ and if it's published.
Inknbeans will publish A Death in Winter in November 2017 and hopefully A Death in Summer will then be published in 2018 (You can see that I really don't believe in tempting fate).
Finally, a bit of feedback from you would be welcome. Would you like more Collins and Clark books to be set in the 1960s or are you just as happy for the series to extend into the 1970s ? Please let me know.
Cheers,
jim.
I'm happy to say that I sent off A Death in Summer to my publisher today. I'm now lying down in a darkened room trying to relax.
The book is set in 1965. This means that, if it's accepted for publication, it will become the second book in the new Collins and Clark Series. It picks up the story of Collins' development as a police officer about 6 months after he has successfully completed his probationary period. I felt that this was worth doing as to jump from 1963 to 1968 meant that too much of Collins, Clark and Agnes' stories were being left out. It also meant that I could stay in that most interesting of decades the 1960s.
The story is about the same length as A Death in Winter and involves a cat and mouse game between Mr Tubbs, a psychotic arsonist and Collins, Clark and Hicks.
It also contains a sub-plot which sees Agnes taking centre stage.
I'm very poor at assessing how good or bad my work is. I'm nearly always my own worst critic. But I do hope that you will enjoy the book as/when/ and if it's published.
Inknbeans will publish A Death in Winter in November 2017 and hopefully A Death in Summer will then be published in 2018 (You can see that I really don't believe in tempting fate).
Finally, a bit of feedback from you would be welcome. Would you like more Collins and Clark books to be set in the 1960s or are you just as happy for the series to extend into the 1970s ? Please let me know.
Cheers,
jim.
June 14, 2017
The London Fire. Fiction and reality collide
Hi,
As I said in my last blog I've completed a good draft of A Death in Summer and will probably send it to the publisher in the next couple of weeks.
The story is about Mr Tubbs a particularly nasty arsonist. But nothing I could write will ever come close to the horror of the fire at Grenfell Tower in London today.
I've seen footage of many fires, but nothing prepared me for the pictures on the news this morning. It was like a scene out of Dante's Inferno. The only thing that compares to the horrendous pictures are the old news reel footage of the London Blitz. When whole areas of the capital was fire bombed by the Luftwaffe.
We don't yet know the death toll but it may well be in the hundreds. If you believe in a God please say a prayer for all those who have died or been injured and their family and friends. If you don't have a God please spend a few moments reflecting on the pain and suffering that the victims and their family have gone through and continue to go through.
As always, take care.
Jim
As I said in my last blog I've completed a good draft of A Death in Summer and will probably send it to the publisher in the next couple of weeks.
The story is about Mr Tubbs a particularly nasty arsonist. But nothing I could write will ever come close to the horror of the fire at Grenfell Tower in London today.
I've seen footage of many fires, but nothing prepared me for the pictures on the news this morning. It was like a scene out of Dante's Inferno. The only thing that compares to the horrendous pictures are the old news reel footage of the London Blitz. When whole areas of the capital was fire bombed by the Luftwaffe.
We don't yet know the death toll but it may well be in the hundreds. If you believe in a God please say a prayer for all those who have died or been injured and their family and friends. If you don't have a God please spend a few moments reflecting on the pain and suffering that the victims and their family have gone through and continue to go through.
As always, take care.
Jim
June 4, 2017
A Death in Summer Completed (Almost)
Hi Folks,
Just to let you know that I have completed a full good draft of A Death in Summer.
What that means is that I'll now take a complete break from the book for about a week or ten days. Then return to it with fresh eyes and go through it and make sure that there are no errors or contradictions in the plot, check all my facts and claims and polish the prose where need be. That will take another three weeks.
I can't say when it will be out as Winter is going to be re-published first as a paperback and ebook by Inknbeans Press. But it will be there waiting it's turn.
Best wishes,
Jim
Just to let you know that I have completed a full good draft of A Death in Summer.
What that means is that I'll now take a complete break from the book for about a week or ten days. Then return to it with fresh eyes and go through it and make sure that there are no errors or contradictions in the plot, check all my facts and claims and polish the prose where need be. That will take another three weeks.
I can't say when it will be out as Winter is going to be re-published first as a paperback and ebook by Inknbeans Press. But it will be there waiting it's turn.
Best wishes,
Jim
June 1, 2017
A New Start for Collins and Clark
Hi Folks,
It’s been a while since I wrote a blog. As many of you know my aim for this year was to get a commercial publishing deal for my Collins and Clark books. At times since January it seemed as if that would never happen. It wasn’t as if I was getting masses of rejections. It was that I didn’t even get an acknowledgement from any of the publishers I approached. I’ve got to admit I was pretty down hearted at times. So I really do want to thank several of my followers on Goodreads for their encouraging words and reviews during those dispiriting days.
My Big News Is:
That thanks to Hugh Ashton, a fellow member of the Lichfield Writers Group, his publisher Jo Lowe agreed to read the first two books in the Collins and Clark Series. Her feedback was so positive and encouraging that I had no hesitation in accepting her offer of a contract with Inknbeans Press, California.
Inknbeans is a boutique size publisher that has 33 writers, who between them have produced approximately 150 books. Jo made it clear that she couldn’t promise to make me a millionaire, but she did promise to try and create a genuine partnership between Inknbeans and myself. What more can a writer ask for?
So what does this all mean for Clark and Collins? Well, Inknbeans will reissue A Death in Winter in November 2017 as both a paperback and an ebook. The remaining three books, A Death in Spring/Summer/Autumn will then follow. After that the series will continue with A Death in the Bullion Room. A story about the theft of £2.5 million in gold bullion. In which Collins and Clark find themselves up to their necks in dead bodies as an epidemic of murders in the Birmingham underworld breaks out.
Finally, I really do wish to thank Hugh Ashton for his help and encouragement. Hugh has written a wide variety of books. I can truly recommend his thrillers. However, it’s probably his Sherlock Holmes stories that he is best known for. It seems that he was fortunate enough to come across a deeds box belonging to Dr John Watson which contained many unpublished tales of the great detective. With the full approval of Mr Conan Doyle’s Estate he has edited and published a number of these stories to widespread approval from many Sherlockian experts. I can particularly recommend Some Adventures of Mr Sherlock Holmes – 1894.
Take care.
Jim
It’s been a while since I wrote a blog. As many of you know my aim for this year was to get a commercial publishing deal for my Collins and Clark books. At times since January it seemed as if that would never happen. It wasn’t as if I was getting masses of rejections. It was that I didn’t even get an acknowledgement from any of the publishers I approached. I’ve got to admit I was pretty down hearted at times. So I really do want to thank several of my followers on Goodreads for their encouraging words and reviews during those dispiriting days.
My Big News Is:
That thanks to Hugh Ashton, a fellow member of the Lichfield Writers Group, his publisher Jo Lowe agreed to read the first two books in the Collins and Clark Series. Her feedback was so positive and encouraging that I had no hesitation in accepting her offer of a contract with Inknbeans Press, California.
Inknbeans is a boutique size publisher that has 33 writers, who between them have produced approximately 150 books. Jo made it clear that she couldn’t promise to make me a millionaire, but she did promise to try and create a genuine partnership between Inknbeans and myself. What more can a writer ask for?
So what does this all mean for Clark and Collins? Well, Inknbeans will reissue A Death in Winter in November 2017 as both a paperback and an ebook. The remaining three books, A Death in Spring/Summer/Autumn will then follow. After that the series will continue with A Death in the Bullion Room. A story about the theft of £2.5 million in gold bullion. In which Collins and Clark find themselves up to their necks in dead bodies as an epidemic of murders in the Birmingham underworld breaks out.
Finally, I really do wish to thank Hugh Ashton for his help and encouragement. Hugh has written a wide variety of books. I can truly recommend his thrillers. However, it’s probably his Sherlock Holmes stories that he is best known for. It seems that he was fortunate enough to come across a deeds box belonging to Dr John Watson which contained many unpublished tales of the great detective. With the full approval of Mr Conan Doyle’s Estate he has edited and published a number of these stories to widespread approval from many Sherlockian experts. I can particularly recommend Some Adventures of Mr Sherlock Holmes – 1894.
Take care.
Jim
