Behind the keyboard: A little glimpse into the summer of 2026

One of the oddest things about being an author is that, from the outside, it can look as though nothing's happening, especially if you are like me who struggles with social media updates and, dare I use the words, content creation.

Months and even years go by without a book appearing on a shelf, yet behind the scenes entire worlds are being created. Characters are arguing with me (believe me they do), plot twists are refusing to behave (I think I’m going to coin the phrase plot-haemorrhage), and countless cups of coffee (and water cos I’m a good boy) are disappearing while I wrestle with a sentence that looked perfectly fine yesterday.

The last four months or so have been busy, and if you are in the UK, very hot. I've completed another manuscript, which is always a strange mix of relief, pride and the sudden realisation that finishing a draft is really just the beginning. Editing, refining and polishing a novel often takes as much creativity and time as writing the first version.

Of course, finishing one story never means there's time to relax. Like many writers, I seem incapable of having just one idea at a time. Before I'd even finished celebrating this latest manuscript, more have already demanded my attention. I’ve currently got, hold on while I count, I need my fingers…another six works in progress at various stages.

Away from the keyboard, I had to withdraw from a potential day-job as they changed the role between interview and offer, and ’ve been crocheting away making another blanket.

I've also been busy querying literary agents for other projects. It's probably the least glamorous part of being an author, and I have to say the most stressful and demotivating part too. Every email or form sent is another opportunity to find someone who believes in these stories as much as I do, but the volume of rejections does sting. But maybe that’s why gin was created.

Publishing is definitely an ultra-marathon not a sprint, but every step moves things forward. I’ve currently got an eco-thriller and a middle-grade mystery adventure querying, both at the full request stage, one for each. I’m keeping everything crossed, which makes typing a challenge.

People often ask where ideas come from. The honest answer is that they arrive at the most inconvenient moments. A walk through the woods or a conversation overheard in a cafe. It usually comes down to a what-if question which I then get a burning need to answer. That's what makes this such an exciting time. The Awakening is steadily making its way towards publication in April 2027 (have done first edits with my publisher Rowan Prose Publishing which was a great learning moment, more of that on a future blog post) and it looks like early progress maybe beginning on my second novel with Rowan Prose, The Other Story.

Thank you for following this journey with me. Whether you've been here from the beginning or have only recently discovered my work, your encouragement means more than you probably realise.

The next chapter of this adventure is getting closer. April 2027 suddenly doesn't feel quite so far away.