Review of 2024

‘Tales of the Gothic’ - a horror anthology featuring my story ‘Her Last Text’.

It’s been too long since I’ve posted on here, and it’s remiss of me. Those of you who have read my work have been so, so supportive and as the writing gears up I owe you a little something to repay that faith!

Last year was a very busy year for me, both in writing and my family life - Mum had two strokes and my sister has been very ill, with my young niece battling through more stress than any young person should have to deal with.

So my writing has had to fit in the gaps.

I had one publishing success during the year, the publication of one of my stories - ‘Her Last Text’ in ‘Tales of the Gothic: An Anthology of British Horror’

I didn’t submit a huge number of other stories, but two of mine were near-misses with publications at the top of my target list, Space and Time and Grimdark Magazine.

Both magazines are currently considering new stories from me, but if I’ve learned anything from the submissions I’ve made so far, it’s that I’m up against a lot of competition, so I’m just keeping my fingers crossed.

Although I’ve previously published stuff in the Steampunk genre (‘Colossus of the Thames’ and ‘Inkerman’ (the latter is free to subscribers to this site)), the direction of my writing has changed.

Work In Progress

My main work in progress is my fantasy novel, which I’m keeping under tight wraps at the moment.

I started this back in late 2022, and had completed most of it by the end of 2023, but for some reason it just wasn’t feeling right.

Since joining Leicester Writers Club, of which I’m now vice-president, my writing has improved dramatically. My understanding of character, scenecraft and structure has come on in leaps and bounds.

As a result, the 90k or so I’d written on the novel felt like an old version of me.

So in August 2024 I decided to begin an entirely new draft, starting with a blank page.

It’s going reasonably well so far, and I’m hoping to get it fully finished by the end of the year if not before.

In addition, I’ve got a few short stories doing the rounds. They all have a dark feel to them. One is folk horror, one is steampunk, four are science fiction and one is dark fantasy. I’ve also submitted one I co-wrote with my best buddy, Andrew.

Co-writing is not new for me, but planning, writing and submitting a co-written story is a new one. So let’s see how that all goes!

I’m planning regular updates this year as things progress, and if I get any hits on my stories, you’ll be the first to know!

Thanks for taking the time to read this and for all your support. It is much appreciated.