Hartmouth Horrors

This Monday morning, my mind is still on my current work in progress. There’s a fair way to go yet, but the wheels are well and truly in motion now. And it’s those wheels, or my drafting and editing process, that I want to talk about. Is it a unique approach? Will it suit every self-pub writer? I doubt it. But if it helps just one, I’ll consider this worthwhile. The first step, once I’ve designed the cover and roughed out the blurb, is to get started on draft one, and I’m happy with about 250 words a day, though I may write as many as 1,000 once in a while. Those words get a quick edit at the end of each session and again at the start of the next, and a couple of times a month I’ll go through the whole thing from the very first page. Next, when draft one is complete and I’ve edited one more time from start to finish, I’ll send a copy to alpha readers, incorporate their feedback as and when it comes in, then put that draft on ice. After about a month, I’ll start draft two, changing ...

This Monday morning, my mind is on Drudge , the third novella in my Hartmouth Horrors series, and I’m pleased to report that the opening draft is finished. Which means it’s now with alpha readers and is no doubt getting its ass beat. And that’s what I want to talk about today, the invaluable service that these lovely people provide. First, let me define my terms, as writers tend to have varying ideas on what these readers are. For me, an alpha reader is someone who gets a first draft then goes to town on it, not focusing on interior decor but on architecture. They tell you what they love and hate, what they feel is missing, what they ’ d like to see changed, and so on. Which leads me to the next point, and that’s the importance of sharing that early draft. Some writers hate the idea, and fair enough. It’s still raw and rough, not ready to be seen by the outside world. But it’s also supremely malleable, and any decent feedback is surely easier to put into effect before the thing has gro...

This Monday morning, my mind is on prologues, due in part to the latest drama in the indie space. Seriously, people are still hating on them. Weird. More than one way to skin a cat in storytelling. But I don’t intend to argue the toss, I just want to have a quick chat about the prologues you’ll find in my Hartmouth Horrors novellas. First and foremost, I see them as hooks rather than explainers. I’m not providing you with essential context, backstory, a potted history, or the foundations of a world. No, I’m showing you a page or two of something I hope is entertaining and showcases my writing style, as well as the type of content you can expect. Second, I’m presenting you with a little bit of mystery. A puzzle piece, so to speak. The prologue is a short scene cut from later in the story, and the more observant or engaged reader should have the pleasure of an aha moment, where it becomes clear exactly how the piece fits into the whole. And third, my prologues are non-essential, in the s...

This Monday morning, my mind is on the fictional town of Hartmouth (heart in mouth), venue of my Hartmouth Horrors series. And I just want to expand a little on how it came about. When I started writing Eyes Wide Open —which I had no idea was going to be part of a series—I wanted a setting that felt familiar to me. Somewhere I didn’t have to spend too much time and energy rendering and researching. So it made sense to stick to my roots and base it on the places I know from growing up in South West England. I have a feel for the lay of the land, the pace of life, the way the people act and speak. So I basically cherrypicked the things that would serve the story, a seafront, a harbourside, a train station, some older properties, a small town centre, a graveyard, a hospital, a university, and so on. Then, when I started writing The Devil in Mia and decided to use the same setting, I simply added to what I already had. Cliffs and coast to the south west, houses over by the rail embankment...