Well, I thought I'd throw down a few personal thoughts that rattle around the dark recesses of my mind...

Happy Halloween, people!  I have just come across the most hilarious translation of the blurb for Sinema that I have EVER seen!!! I just had to share this...

A season's story with a flimflam. 

A magical author and picture burnish, researching a evildoing heroic tale close to a programme killer whale along a act in a removed Northumberland world organisation. There's a fledgeling to the elflike Northumberland community of Haydon.

392 unimpeachable men, women and children place in his position to achieving a sadistic stargaze.

As the nonfunctional season in to a higher degree than a period of time approaches, container ii investigation constabulary officers cornered with the terrorised residents stopover this monster?

This is a reminder of the ACTUAL blurb...

A winter's tale with a sting.

There's a newcomer to the small Northumberland village of Haydon...a charming novelist and film buff, researching a crime thriller about a serial killer on a rampage in a remote Northumberland community. The only trouble is, it's a work in progress and it's going to be non-fiction.

392 innocent men, women and children stand in his way to achieving a sadistic dream.

As the worst winter in more than a century approaches, can two investigating police officers trapped with the terrorised residents stop this monster?

My mate, Tony Wright is finally getting his debut novel published - The War of the Worlds: Aftermath.  It is a direct sequel to H G Wells' original classic and, having read it and assisted with the editing and proof reading, I can say it is a damn good read and faithful and respectful to the original. 

There have been many spin-off books written around the original novel, but this is the first true sequel.  I'm really chuffed and proud of Tony for his achievement and was happy to help with the publishing side.  I wish him loads of success with it which I'm sure he'll have.

I hadn't had a chance to pop any words down on here over the past couple of months.  As well as being busy with the business, I've been working on The Killing Moon and a couple of short stories.  The shorts have now been added into the 'Other Writing' section.  One is a bit of a ghost story with a distinctive northern flavour and the other is a story of jealousy and paranoia.  I hope you enjoy them.

I've also been working closely with Byker Books and those same two stories will be appearing on their website and in their forthcoming anthology. 

Well I was proud to do an interview for the Hexham Courant a couple of weeks ago and to see a story about me in print always fills me with a mixture a joy and embarrassment.  I'm not the most photogenic person around and this particular story went into quite a bit more about me personally than previous stories have.  I dunno, the interviewer god bless him made me sound a lot more interesting than I consider myself to be.  It's all good though! 

Although how does one react to being described as a hard version of Simon Pegg???  Simon is a bit of a hero of mine anyway as it happens - Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz are certainly in my list of all time favourite films.  So, I guess I consider it a bit of an honour.  Dunno what Simon would think though!!!

Here's the link to the online version of the newspaper... www.hexham-courant.co.uk/visitors_guide/arts_leisure/1.130704 

I haven't wrote for a while on here mainly because of a very busy schedule at the moment, but I just wanted to quickly say thank you to the staff and customers at Borders in Gateshead for their support at Saturday's book-signing.  It was another great event which also included some wonderful live music from local talent.

The service was exceptionally emotional, but Derek, Lu, Lara and Alex all made sure that it was the most perfect day for Tish.

Lara's tribute was especially touching and she showed tremendous courage in the face of deep anguish to get through it with such grace.

The horse and carriage was straight out of a fairytale and perfect for Tish who loved the Wizard of Oz. The music played at the end of the service reflected this and stretched emotions beyond breaking point once more - Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Judy Garland. And a little wink from Tish appeared later in the afternoon at the Roundhay Fox when rain and sunshine brought out a real rainbow.

I was honoured to help carry Tish into and back out of the service and will always cherish every moment of holding her in my hands for one final time.

I'd also like to thank Darren for being there for Lara at such a difficult time. He was a tower of strength.

All my love to the family and to Tish.

Tish's funeral is this Friday - it's going to be a bloody tough day for everyone.

For the Horse Rider…
For the Surfer…
For the Piano Player…
For the Comedienne…
For the Poet…
For the Artist…
For the Pirate…
For Shabbat…
For Regina…
For Drew…
For crying over the video of Cool by Gwen Stefani…
For the Playboy Bunny Mounted Police Woman…
For the hundreds of lives she touched…
For never being forgotten…

For Tish.

Love you always, Cuz.

I'd like to thank Simon, Jason and the rest of the staff at Borders Books Silverlink branch for their help and support at the book-signing today.  Together with my ever faithful helper, Tony, we had another successful day.

Words cannot express the utter devastation I feel at the loss of my much loved young cousin, Tish. I found out late last night that she had been found dead of a suspected suicide. Tish was an amazing person - so full of life, passion and dreams. She was intelligent and a great laugh to be around. I just cannot believe that she is gone at the age of 18. I just don't understand it.

I cannot even begin to comprehend what her parents, brother and sister are going through. My heart goes out to them and the rest of the family. Together we will get through this horrendous tragedy.

I have hundreds of wonderful memories, but the one that keeps returning is the time I held her for the first time at her Christening.

Tish I love you and will miss you always.

Drawn beautifully by Matt Mulvey                   The face of an angel

14th April 2008 - Gone but never forgotten.

4th March 2008 New Business

Well, after 18 months of planning, preparations and set backs, I've finally taken over a small IT company in Hexham (Northern Binary Systems - also known as The Computer Shop).  It's got a great reputation locally and has wonderful staff who have been really supportive throughout the transitional period. 

Owning my own business is a huge step and a big challenge - especially when I have staff that rely on my company for their livelihoods.  I have a responsibility to them.  But, once I settle in and find my natural routine, this will give me more flexibility for my writing and promotional activities that my previous employment couldn't offer.

Once I get settled in, I can get back to The Killing Moon.  I want to have the first draft finished within three months.

So, wish me luck!

I have managed to finalise the first two dates with WHSmith and the date has now been set for my interview with Smooth Radio on Paul Wappat's Six at Six Show.

Friday 7th March (EDIT - this is when it is getting recorded not going out on air - I'll let you know when it's going to be actually aired)

Smooth Radio (97.5 and 107.7) Six at Six Show (6pm-7pm)

Saturday 15th March

WHSmith, Northumberland Street, Newcastle city centre (12-2pm)

Saturday 5th April

WHSmith, Metro Centre, Gateshead (12-3pm)

Wish me luck with the interview and hope to see some of you at the events!
 

I'd first like to wish my son, Jason a happy birthday.  All the best, mate. 

Yesterday's book-signing in York was a wonderful success and I'd like to thank everyone at Borders for their help and support, in particular Lorraine for organising the event and making Vanessa and I most welcome.  I'd also like to thank fellow signer of the day, Pam Ainsley for her friendly companionship.  Pam was signing copies of her photographic album of images taken during the shooting of the Dunkirk scenes at Redcar for the award winning film, Atonement.  I'd like to wish Pam well with her album.  Details of the Atonement Album can be found on her website - www.pamainsley.co.uk.

I'd also like to thank Miles Salter, one of the organisers of the York Literary Festival for dropping by with some kind words and giving the signing a mention in the Festival newsletter.

Well this morning got off to a cracking start - I got a phone call from Metro Radio asking if it was ok for me to go straight on air live to talk to Tony Horne on the Breakfast Show. We had a great chat about Sinema and writing in general, including researching serial killers and the awkwardness of writing a sex scene! I had great fun in the interview and Tony Horne and his crew were all wonderful.

I have also had confirmation that an interview I did for the Blyth News Post Leader will be appearing in their 7th February issue, so anyone in their circulation area keep a look out for it.

The York book-signing is also getting a mention in the York Literary Festival newsletter.
 

Yesterday's book-signing in Stockton turned out to be the most successful so far.  I'd like to thank everyone who turned up and the fantastic staff at Borders for making Tony and I so welcome.  I'd also like to take the time to thank Borders for all their support in the book-signing tour so far.  Their staff at all the stores have been absolutely brilliant.

I just thought I'd wish everyone a happy and prosperous new year.  I'd especially like to thank my readers for supporting an unknown like myself and investing trust, time and hard earned cash in my writing.  So far Sinema is taking off well and has already out-sold The King of America.  My loyal readership is growing and I am very grateful to all of you.

I was deeply saddened to hear the news of Terry Pratchett being diagnosed with a rare form of early Alzheimer's disease.  Pratchett's wonderful works have been a constant inspiration to me since I first stumbled upon a battered copy of Mort some eighteen years ago.  And yet, in typical Pratchett fashion he has taken the news standing tall and with a little twinkle in his eye.  Making Money is on my Christmas list, so I hope to be reading that by Boxing Day.

You're a great bloke, Terry.  All the best.

Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version of The War of the Worlds
Along with a few friends I went along to see the live show of Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds at the Newcastle Metro Radio Arena. This is the second time I've seen it (saw the first tour last year too) and it just gets better and better. Far from just a repeat of last year's, it is evolving in many subtle ways with slight changes to the arrangements, additional special effects and CGI and fantastic touches from the musicians and performers.

In addition to seeing the show, my good friend, Tony who works on Jeff's website, got us back stage passes to the aftershow party. We met up with Jeff and right hand man, Damian Collier and most of the performers and musicians including top bloke John Payne who replaced Russell Watson as the Parson, the lovely Sinead Quinn who replaced Tara Blaise as Beth, the mad and brilliant Alexis James who played the Artilleryman, Chris Thompson who is the fantastic voice of humanity, guitar maestro Chris Spedding and amazing percussionist Julia Thornton.

We had an absolutely amazing night and I've posted a few photos too. I'd like to thank Jeff, Damian and all the performers and musicians for their wonderful hospitality. They made us welcome from the word go and were genuinely interested in our opinions of the show.

Cover artwork for the hardback and paperback of Sinema have been finalised, so it's all systems go and still looking good for a 1st or 2nd week of December release date.  Even my business investments are now slowly looking up after having an offer accepted on a business in Hexham (not far from the setting of Sinema coincidentally!). 

Happy Halloween, campers.  Watch out for Saucy Jack cuz he's out there somewhere.  He goes by many names, one of which is Han Whitman.  If you've got the stomach and backbone for it you can read Han's blog at www.myspace.com/hanwhitman. 

I just had to slam down a few words at how damn frustrated I'm getting with the business that I'm supposed to be investing in. It's been stuck with solicitors for about 7 months now and still more things keep popping up to delay the final signing of contracts. AHHHHHHHHHHH! Why does nothing ever go to plan? Bloody Hannibal Smith out of the A-Team never had these problems! Well, neither did Hannibal Whitman for that matter either!

At least I've got the Cranberries to help calm me down.

Well, good luck to England on Saturday - they're gonna need it!!!
 

The last few days have been a right royal pain in the butt.  Computer problems to try the patience of mother of four, infuriating delays and problems with my business venture, Vanessa stressed and doing twelve hour days at work...but at least we beat France in the rugby.  Life isn't all bad.  Next Saturday's game will be a bloody tough one though!

Been a little down the last couple of weeks actually.  A lot of things getting to me - this business that I've been going into (been stuck with solicitors for nearly six bloody months now) and worries about the imminent release of Sinema are the two main culprits.  But little things have been getting to me lately too - too stupid to put down here - best if I keep those in the dark recesses of my head instead.  Shouldn't really let the demons start spilling out too much - God knows what would happen!  Would end up like John Carpenter's Prince of Darkness.  But anyway, I just thought I'd spout off a bit here and actually it does seem to help a little. 

Anyway, tomorrow's another day...

I'm housesitting today for my brother, so while I'm checking emails and visiting some of the forums I frequent, I thought I'd drop a few lines down on here too of quiet contemplation.  I've finished all the chapter heading artwork for Sinema and the final proofing and editing is all finished.  The final hurdle is the cover art which my good friend, Rusti is sorting out.  I've seen the rough concept work and it looks great.  It's all coming together...

It's been a crazy few weeks what with the prep for the book, a separate business venture I'm embarking on, Vanessa's huge workload at the County Council, Steve's triumphs with Billiam, Mum breaking her ankle, Vanessa's brother living with us at the moment, Jamie and Shelly having their second bouncing baby boy (Joel - congrats!), Nicola and Liam's wedding at Seaham Hall (they really did pull out all the stops) and a myriad of other things.  I feel knackered just thinking about it!

Hey ho, tomorrow's another day...

Just to say a huge congratulations to my bro, Stee for getting to number 32 in the charts with his group's debut single, Beautiful Ones.  Well done!!!  The whole family are really proud of you.

I'd just like to say happy birthday to two big influences in my life - Stephen King, the big 60 - he's written some of my all time favourite books including The Dark Tower series, IT, The Stand, Needful Things and Salem's Lot.  And also Bill Murray, 57 - he's starred in some wonderful films including Lost in Translation, Scrooged, Groundhog Day and Stripes.

I also held a 40th birthday party for my good mate, Tony last night which was a damn good night, apart from Lyn who slipped and broke her ankle.  She didn't even have alcohol to blame for it!  Get well soon, hun. 

I recently came across a fellow north east writer by the name of Holly A Harvey, whose debut novel, Karma, won the regional final of Undiscovered Authors 2005.  After exchanging a few emails, Holly kindly agreed to review Sinema and her wonderful comments were pinged back in record time.  But that's not why I'm writing this entry.  Holly is a damn good writer - I've read extracts of Karma (I've also ordered a copy to read it in full) and I've read what several other readers have said about it, but Holly doesn't consider herself a writer and is a little embarrassed by the title.  So, just thought I'd mention on here - YOU ARE A WRITER! :) (and a talented one too!).  Keep writing - there's lots of people (me included) who are looking forward to a follow up.  Here's Holly's website which also has her blog which is both warm and funny - www.hollyaharvey.co.uk.

As a footnote to my 14th Sept entry, I'm glad to see Northern Rock are finally coming through the troubles some of their so called loyal customers have heaped upon them.

Preparations continue - Sinema is currently going through the final editing stages.  While that's happening I'm getting some pre-release reviews organised so that one or two of the comments can be printed on the cover for the first run.  I've also got a very talented artist friend working on some concepts for the cover.  So far everything is all on track for a December release still.

With regards to my third novel, The Killing Moon, work is progressing well with that too.  I'm 70,000 words in (at this rate that probably equates to about a third to a half of the finished count) and the story is unfolding in ways that I never imagined when I first sketched out the bare bones of the plot.  Working with Jamie has been great and we've been able to bounce ideas off each other to help enrich both the characters and the plot.  The world of a Great Britain twenty years after a complete collapse of civilisation has really come alive and is literally jumping off the page.  The characters too have evolved and grown into believable three dimensional people that the reader will really care about.  This epic journey of friendship amidst extreme hardship and terror will hopefully leave readers breathless and ultimately satisfied. 

I just want to express my disgust at the way so called loyal customers of the Northern Rock have rushed out in droves to contribute to the panic withdrawing of savings.  Northern Rock is a big employer in the North East, but more importantly gives 5% of its pre-tax profits to worthy causes across the North East and Cumbria through their Northern Rock Foundation (£175m so far!).  They deserved a bit of loyalty and breathing space in their time of need and tens of thousands of panicked, short sighted fools ignored reason.

Well, it looks like everything is finalised with the publisher for Sinema.  It's been a long and exhausting process with twists and turns, ups and downs (lots of downs I have to say!), but I've finally gotten there.  I thought Sinema would be a much easier sell to the publishers than The King of America, but seemingly because it is laced with some particularly gruesome scenes and violence towards animals and children, it would seem that most publishers don't have the brass sacks to take it on.  But I have now found the right guys (and gals) for the job - they're risk takers and willing to tread down eerie, darkened trails that mainstream publishers rarely dare step on.

So Sinema is COMING people.  Be afraid!  In Northumberland no one can hear you scream!