A belated Happy New Year to everyone. It's been a while since my last post but then not much has happened over the Christmas period, especially book-wise.

I've had a bit of a slow start to my writing year and this week has mostly been spent being creative with cover designs.

Yes, I'm still on the first draft of LONG SHADOWS so really, cover designs should be the last thing on my mind.

I originally designed the front covers for my first two novels using an online software that I was allowed to use for free for a short period of time. Now I don't want to sound like a skinflint and I would happily pay to use the service again (I've paid for the images on the cover and the right to use them) but this particular software requires users to pay a monthly fee. Seeing as I pretty much only need it once a year at most I wasn't prepared to pay out for a subscription. I know there are other software systems out there and I use a different one to create the full cover for my paperbacks, but this first one had the fonts that I like to use and I want all my books to have the same look to them.

Anyway, I found a way around my problem. Obviously I couldn't create a new account with my old e mail address, but now that I have a new one for people to contact me through my website I was able to use that and set up a new free account.

It seemed a good idea to not just create a front cover for LONG SHADOWS but to do a few more for those future novel ideas that I've developed past the initial thought stage, while I've still got the free access. And that's what I've been working on this week.

What really surprised me was that, aside from novel three that I'm currently writing, I also had five other works in progress! That's six new books to add to the two I've already written! I had no idea I had that many books planned. I must admit it's a great feeling and seeing six sparkling new covers staring back at me on my computer screen just makes me want to get on and get them written.

So, a slow start to the year has actually given my writing a real boost. I would like to have LONG SHADOWS out around June time and then a Christmas novella in November, but don't hold me to that. I might end up with LONG SHADOWS out in November and the Christmas novella out in Xmas 2019! Still, if I start to lose incentive, all I need to do now is look at the six new front covers and I'll be tapping away at the keyboard, faster than a fallen Mormon after his first espresso.