Again the absences come and there are many reasons/excuses for this which include the following in summary……I am being assessed for Autism Spectrum Condition (formerly Aspergers), my oldest son has a low-end muscle issue where they are affecting his joints and showing raised levels of enzymes indicating they are degrading slightly, my youngest son is also in the process of being assessed for ASC Aspergers, home has been turbulent and my wife has breast cancer. So you’ll have to excuse the up and down nature of my writing, posts and interactions.

Back to the lighter side of things.

I am aware my advertising attempts have been shocking and while all this has been happening most of you will have missed the fact I have released a new book in my MAGDON SERIES and also the fact I have started writing a new addition to the world I created in BLACKOUT.

Onto that project, it is tentatively entitled COLLAPSE and brings back the same characters (plus new ones of course) and can be seen as an addition but read aside of BLACKOUT if needed. I expect a late 2019/early 2020 release all being well. I’ve had to shelve REAPER’S JOURNEY as it felt a little macabre writing about Death and the Grim Reaper considering my wife’s diagnosis and fight ahead of her. The second in that series is 40,000+ words in so it’s over halfway but it’s just not right at the moment hence the shift to COLLAPSE.

Well, with the whole world created for BLACKOUT being based on the local landmark of the Kimberley Water Tower it felt fitting to keep the local feel for the continuation. Instead of subversively using the influence of something local I have actually based a section of the book at a site that I discovered on one of my “escape from life” bike rides last summer. It is simply the remains of a castle in the middle of a field surrounded by an abandoned farmhouse and farm. The perfect setting it would seem to fit into one of my stories. As a result, I have explicitly used and named the site and aim to bring it alive in COLLAPSE.

So I introduce to you the setting for the opening (at least) of Collapse in the form of Codnor Castle, a place that has stolen my imagination on my rides and I often find myself just having a timeout there. I am hoping to bring the heritage trust on-board as and when the project is finished. But you can find out more on their website link below and also see my pictures and how/why it has stolen my imagination so much.

CODNOR CASTLE OFFICIAL WEBSITE

BLACKOUT AMAZON LINKS

UK AMAZON

INTERNATIONAL AMAZON

My (c) photographs of my inspiration: