This year brings a change in my writing.
With the publishing of my third Memoir (Gone Diving: My Adventures Above and Below the Waves) at the start of January, The Memoir Series is complete (for now...).
My next challenge - to use the experiences and knowledge gained in my past careers to delve into the world of Fiction Writing.
Having travelled extensively around the world, that would be one avenue to explore (maybe in time), but for my first novel, I have chosen to enter the world of crime writing. How it will turn out, only time will tell.
I have discovered that there is a marked difference between writing about my personal experiences and those of a fictional character. The actual physical process of "writing" is not all that different from what I have done before, however, I am the sort of person who likes to follow a detailed "script." I need to plan my storylines in intricate detail, placing each scene, cut-scene, and back-story in sequence, in note-form, so that I simply need to follow the route-map that I have created.
To that effect, the past month and a bit have been a case of developing characters, imagining locations, devising plots and sub-plots, and basically putting together the pieces of my jigsaw puzzle.
The good news - it is coming together nicely. I have a story, a body-count of 4 and a bit (so far), locations collated from various places that I have visited (and merged into a fictional world that has evolved as a result), and a structured outline from which to write. It seems that a logical mind is a great help. When faced with a blank page, no idea of a story, and no people to populate the world; it becomes a daunting prospect. Where do you start? BUT, by breaking the task into smaller sections - getting a simple plot-line from which to develop a more complex story, giving birth to characters (and then creating their entire life stories - whether they get incorporated into the final book, or not), and arranging the scenes such they flow from one to another smoothly - the working schedule has evolved.
Now there is just the minor task of actually writing the book, bringing life to my notes, and putting the story down on a computer screen. Is the story any good? I think so - but the proof of the pudding will be in the eating (as they say). For now, its content is under wraps - even my wife remains in the dark about it (unless she has been peeking at my notes).
Watch this space for further updates as things progress...……
For those who have still not read The Memoir Series, it is available from ALL Amazon outlets in Paperback and Kindle E-Book formats. It is also available from my website
If you are a member of Amazon Prime or Kindle Unlimited, the books are FREE to read/borrow.
If you want to "sample" what each book is like, there is a "view" facility on each book's Amazon page, and a facility to download a sample few chapters.
Enjoy the books, share my adventures, look forward to my forthcoming fiction books.
