Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a qualified aircraft engineer, a profession I have pursued for over forty years.
A lifelong interest in crime, in particular forensic psychology, led me to write my debut novel, Fishing for Stones.
I released my second novel, Harry, in August 2016. Harry is a tense thriller set in Kuwait and London.
I also write a weekly cookery column, for the Weekender magazine here in Bahrain and I am a contributor to Bahrain Confidential, a monthly glossy magazine.
When not writing, I can sometimes be found on two wheels, often using my motorcycle to raise money for charity.
My work has taken me to Bahrain, where I live with my wife, Jess.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Harry
This started as a short story exercise in character creation. I liked the character so much I had to write a full length story around him.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I usually start with the last chapter, I know where my story will end. I don’t necessarily know where it is going to start. I write as the ideas come to me for various parts of the book so I may write something in the middle and then maybe the second chapter. I don’t see the full story until after the first draft.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
So many. As a child I was a great fan of Jules Verne, I still am. More recent authors would be; Arthur C Clarke, Alistair MacLean, Isaac Asimov, Desmond Bagley (okay, none of them too recent), Tom Clancy and John Grisham who both build a story incredibly well. I am an immense fan of Terry Pratchett and I love the world he created. I wish I could write like that.
As for books, I can’t think of any particular one that had an influence except maybe ‘Around the World in Eighty Days’, the first ‘adult’ book I read as a child. This made me realise you could take a reader on a journey without them ever leaving home.
What are you working on now?
I’m working on two novels, Helene, the next in the series that Harry started and a detective fantasy novel. I am also attempting to write a screenplay for Harry which is incredibly challenging, but I love the discipline of having to tell a story almost entirely in dialogue.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I have yet to find the best method. Like many independent authors, I struggle to get my books in front of readers. I hope I will be able to edit this soon and say Awesomegang is the best.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t stop. Don’t give up on your dream and write for your own enjoyment. If you don’t like what you are doing then you can’t expect others to like it either.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Write, write, write and read, read, read. Only by writing can you improve, and reading other works will help with your own writing, besides, reading is enjoyable anyway.
What are you reading now?
I’ve just started Religion of the Heart, by DM Miller. Not my usual genre but sometimes we have to move outside our comfort zones.
What’s next for you as a writer?
After Helene there will be two more in the series started by Harry, then I think I will write no more of those. I would love to try my hand at sci-fi as well as more fantasy but I will continue in the crime genre too. Screenplays fascinate me so maybe I will attempt one from scratch rather than an adaptation.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The works of Shakespeare, corny I know, but there is a lot of reading matter there and I do like the humour in some of his works.
Journey to the Centre of the Earth, Jules Verne.
Guards Guards, Terry Pratchett.
To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee.
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