Author’s Log: My Silly Little Confessions; Part 1

CHAPTERS WRITTEN: 5

BODY COUNT: 0

I get asked quite a lot what inspires a new story. The simple answer is everything. It can come from the events in my life, something profoundly innocent that my nieces or nephews have said to me right down to watching how people interact with each other. Something as simple as becoming frustrated in the supermarket can make way for an intricate plot where war is being waged. Arriving in the beautiful but grey city of Aberdeen as a young, naive, seventeen year old student was the inspiration for Helena’s arrival in Navaria (Red Snow). My imagination has always been vivid and it has allowed me to see the world in a unique way.

As far as ‘My Silly Little Confessions’ is concerned, it comes primarily from the short story, ‘Confessions of an Anatomist’ which featured in ‘Myths and Tales’ Volume 1. The inspiration for this is my days as an anatomy student. (A great exaggeration of this of course!).

So far the first five chapters have been drafted. They are still to go through a lot of the creative process to get them in the best form they can be but for the most part the story is coming together. So begins the real uphill climb to publication. I have spent a lot of the past few years writing short stories (Rogue Battalion, Dust and Devotion, Myths and Tales, The Grip) but it always a delight to work on a full novel because that is when you really get the chance to delve into characters, what makes them tick and how this effects the plot.

Each author has their own style and way of adapting but for me the early stages are spent taking notes on the characters, their interactions and bringing the skeleton of the story together. That’s when the body count tends start mounting up!

To all the aspiring authors out there, just remember that there are no set rules for these things (grammar, punctuation etc. aside). Readers feed on your own enthusiasm so write the book you would want to read. In the meantime, the January launch date will soon be upon me so time to start working on chapters 1 – 10. Wish me luck…