‘What happens when everything you have is not enough?’ I first penned The Butterfly Collector in 2007 in a couple of hardback notebooks. It started, as most of my novels do, with a single idea – in this case, a couple meeting for the first time in the kitchen at a party. Peter Calliet is a property developer who has all…
Tag: character
Novelists often complain that reading their earlier work leaves them with a distinct feeling of unease. The passage of time between one piece of work and another inevitably leads the author to a different place – greater maturity and depth of insight, perhaps, or simply an earnest desire to improve upon his previous attempt. Writing a novel requires a considerable…
I’ve often wondered where my fascination with the darker side of life comes from. My writing tends to reflect this taste and leads me into areas other writers might choose to leave alone. Although I’ve drawn on autobiographical material in the past, the old advice to write about what you know has never really appealed to me. As a writer,…
Delighted to have a feature article in the June edition of Dorset Life magazine! If you can’t get a copy, it will be available online in July by clicking http://www.dorsetlife.co.uk/articles-archive/ The article details the crimes of ex-RAF pilot Neville Heath, whose murderous exploits captured the imagination of post-war Britain and are the subject of my screenplay, Heart of a…
Starting a new screenplay can be a daunting prospect. You’ve had the idea in your head long enough, now’s the time to transfer it to paper. But what about the groundwork – the fleshing out of the bare bones before you begin? I used to think that writing an outline was a waste of energy. Why sit and write a…
Novelists can usually be divided into two camps: those that enjoy research, and those that loathe it. I belong to the former, and spend hours trawling through books and articles for subject-related matter. But how much detail should end up in a novel is open to debate. Too much and you risk the reader’s irritation. Yes, some readers enjoy textbook…
Every successful business venture starts with an idea. That idea then grows into a vision – a projected forecast of how the future will look when success is realised. That’s the blueprint. That’s what all the top business leaders and entrepreneurs do before they get out of the armchair they’ve been dreaming in. Success depends upon two things: the drive to make…
Of all the anti-heroes in modern literature, Keith Talent has to be the best. He plays darts, drinks beer and watches pornography, secure in the knowledge that life is too short to work and pay taxes. His criminal enterprises are dogged by failure and a sense of impending disaster that taints all the other aspects of his life, including his beloved darts. Martin…