Evening gang.
Easy answer to the question above. Of course you do! As promised in recent posts here is the opening segment of my new novel FEAR. It's a first person confessional, pretty dark subject - the murder of a young girl - but also pretty humorous in places because I can't help it.
Anyway, click the link, that'll take you to Wattpad where you can read the story. It's also available via my Facebook author page and my Twitter account. Any feedback welcomed as this is a work in progress. As such there will be more segments to follow. All very exciting.
Enjoy.
http://www.wattpad.com/story/9438431-fear
Monday, 28 October 2013
Sunday, 20 October 2013
Ladies and gentleman...the Rolling Stones!
Evening gang,
For fifty years the world's greatest rock and roll band has been announced using the title of this post. I was watching a bit of their latest effort, the concerts they did in Hyde Park in the summer, following their triumph at Glastonbury, and after all the build up, the music, the lights, everything stops. And then...Ladies and gentleman...
Then Keith Richards appears, batters a riff and away they go.
In essence what I'm talking about here is legacy. Theirs is set. Millions of albums sold, some of the most famous songs ever written, still touring even though they should be well past being able. People will know their name a lifetime from now. People will still listen to their songs. As they will with The Beatles, Elvis etc. Just as people will still read Shakespeare, Bronte and, maybe, JK Rowling.
I'd quite like that to happen to me. That's one of the reasons I write books. I want to leave evidence that I existed. When I'm dead I like the idea that around the world people (the number yet to be determined) will have read my books and my name will be on their book shelf whether that be digital or wooden.
With that in mind I've become somewhat energised these last couple of days. I think rationalising my job issues has helped. I get paid a lot at the moment, it allows me freedom to do certain things. I even quite enjoy the job. But it's a false position, and it won't last. I've been thinking too much about what might happen afterwards and it's been getting in the way of the important stuff. Writing!
As such, with 11 short weeks to go on my contract I've decided it simply doesn't matter. My wife is in a similar position. A job has come up which, if she applies, she will likely get. The pay is pretty vast. I would only need to work part time at best and we'd still be well off. But she's not applying. Doesn't fancy the job, or the hassle and we don't need the money. So sod it! I'd rather be happy than fretting. If a job comes up in the next 11 weeks, great. If not, I'll go back to my old job, take a pay cut and spend my days writing books while keeping half an eye on the staff to make sure nothing's on fire.
So, editing on the final draft of the Jazz Café sequel is progressing well. But slowly. However, and here's the exciting bit, I have also started - last night in fact - reworking my third ever novel. I wrote it back in 2003. It's called Fear and was very, very nearly published by Transworld. Regular readers will know this because I've talked about my flirtations with big time publication before on this blog.
How did this happen? I started reading Doctor Sleep, the new Stephen King novel. On the first page he refers to FEAR in the following terms - Fuck Everything and Run. That made me think of my 2003 novel because every chapter was an acronym of the word fear, which was a challenge in itself.
So, I made a few notes last night (it may have been 3AM) and tonight I started to read the book. I've already added my notes from last night to the book and it's looking good. The plan is to edit a few pages then publish them right here on the blog, as well as to my Wattpad account which is sorely underused. Then, once complete, I'll publish the finished book in the usual way for purchase.
It's wildly exciting, to the point where I really could stay up all night doing this and happily not go to work tomorrow. Chances are I'll stay up anyway and drag myself through tomorrow. Ho hum.
In other news I've submitted my tax info to Amazon so they don't remove all my books from sale next week. I have also, finally, submitted my entry to the Telegraph Crime Competition. The website is crap so I've emailed it to them and asked them to confirm they've got it. Closing date is next month some time if you fancy it. I've submitted 5000 words of the Jazz Café. Each entry has to have an international element of some sort. Mine is the global Jazz music which forms the soundtrack to the book. Will I win? Unlikely. But one has to at least try.
The big, non work, non book news is that I transferred the money for my house fees tonight, in excess of 8 grand in the click of a button. The proposed date for completion is this Wednesday which means I will be an official property investor/speculator. Plans are already afoot for Easter when we are aiming to buy another. Surprising how motivated I become when there's the chance to make money without going to work every day.
And that's it. Dog's huge, Liverpool are doing well and I'm already planning the wife's Christmas presents. Right, I'm off, I've got books to write.
For fifty years the world's greatest rock and roll band has been announced using the title of this post. I was watching a bit of their latest effort, the concerts they did in Hyde Park in the summer, following their triumph at Glastonbury, and after all the build up, the music, the lights, everything stops. And then...Ladies and gentleman...
Then Keith Richards appears, batters a riff and away they go.
In essence what I'm talking about here is legacy. Theirs is set. Millions of albums sold, some of the most famous songs ever written, still touring even though they should be well past being able. People will know their name a lifetime from now. People will still listen to their songs. As they will with The Beatles, Elvis etc. Just as people will still read Shakespeare, Bronte and, maybe, JK Rowling.
I'd quite like that to happen to me. That's one of the reasons I write books. I want to leave evidence that I existed. When I'm dead I like the idea that around the world people (the number yet to be determined) will have read my books and my name will be on their book shelf whether that be digital or wooden.
With that in mind I've become somewhat energised these last couple of days. I think rationalising my job issues has helped. I get paid a lot at the moment, it allows me freedom to do certain things. I even quite enjoy the job. But it's a false position, and it won't last. I've been thinking too much about what might happen afterwards and it's been getting in the way of the important stuff. Writing!
As such, with 11 short weeks to go on my contract I've decided it simply doesn't matter. My wife is in a similar position. A job has come up which, if she applies, she will likely get. The pay is pretty vast. I would only need to work part time at best and we'd still be well off. But she's not applying. Doesn't fancy the job, or the hassle and we don't need the money. So sod it! I'd rather be happy than fretting. If a job comes up in the next 11 weeks, great. If not, I'll go back to my old job, take a pay cut and spend my days writing books while keeping half an eye on the staff to make sure nothing's on fire.
So, editing on the final draft of the Jazz Café sequel is progressing well. But slowly. However, and here's the exciting bit, I have also started - last night in fact - reworking my third ever novel. I wrote it back in 2003. It's called Fear and was very, very nearly published by Transworld. Regular readers will know this because I've talked about my flirtations with big time publication before on this blog.
How did this happen? I started reading Doctor Sleep, the new Stephen King novel. On the first page he refers to FEAR in the following terms - Fuck Everything and Run. That made me think of my 2003 novel because every chapter was an acronym of the word fear, which was a challenge in itself.
So, I made a few notes last night (it may have been 3AM) and tonight I started to read the book. I've already added my notes from last night to the book and it's looking good. The plan is to edit a few pages then publish them right here on the blog, as well as to my Wattpad account which is sorely underused. Then, once complete, I'll publish the finished book in the usual way for purchase.
It's wildly exciting, to the point where I really could stay up all night doing this and happily not go to work tomorrow. Chances are I'll stay up anyway and drag myself through tomorrow. Ho hum.
In other news I've submitted my tax info to Amazon so they don't remove all my books from sale next week. I have also, finally, submitted my entry to the Telegraph Crime Competition. The website is crap so I've emailed it to them and asked them to confirm they've got it. Closing date is next month some time if you fancy it. I've submitted 5000 words of the Jazz Café. Each entry has to have an international element of some sort. Mine is the global Jazz music which forms the soundtrack to the book. Will I win? Unlikely. But one has to at least try.
The big, non work, non book news is that I transferred the money for my house fees tonight, in excess of 8 grand in the click of a button. The proposed date for completion is this Wednesday which means I will be an official property investor/speculator. Plans are already afoot for Easter when we are aiming to buy another. Surprising how motivated I become when there's the chance to make money without going to work every day.
And that's it. Dog's huge, Liverpool are doing well and I'm already planning the wife's Christmas presents. Right, I'm off, I've got books to write.
Monday, 7 October 2013
Doubting my plot...
Hi everyone, How’s things?
Everything’s awesome at my end aside from the continued uncertainty over my job. It’s tedious now to be honest. I have a job waiting for me that I don’t really want but it requires no effort and, although the money is crap, it’s enough. However, because I’m apparently handy to have around the senior bods are trying to slot me in somewhere. The problem being there’s a lack of gaps and time is running out. From my point of view I don’t much care either way but not knowing is making it very hard to plan anything beyond the end of the year.
Finally signed the contract for my house investment. That’s taken forever but it’ll be worth it long term. We’re aiming to buy the next house around Easter next year but that depends on my income – see above about planning.
Regular readers will have noticed that my new book is still not out. I’m out of excuses to be honest. Bottom line is I’m not 100% convinced by it. It’s been a hard one to write, my first sequel and it’s been a busy year. New job for me and the wife, we bought the dog. All this has combined to leave me with a book that is finished but I have doubts about it. As such, I keep procrastinating. The plan, starting tonight, is to read it as a book on the wife’s tablet and see how it holds up plot wise. Then go from there. The cover is pretty much done so as soon as I’m happy with it it’ll be out. But not before. I might even not release it. Who knows?
But I am itching to start writing my next book, plenty of plot ideas and locations so fingers crossed. I suspect once my job future is resolved everything will start to flow again.
Now, other news. Sales are pretty good again. Indeed I’ve sold more in the US that the UK so far this month. Hurrah. I’m also considering approaching Independent publishers about my work. It’ something I’ve pondered for a while. I’m still not 100% what the benefit will be and I’m not mad keen on signing away my rights but we shall see.
Finally, for those that are interested Liverpool are still top of the table in the football which is amazing, and unexpected. But the real news is that the mighty Roger Federer is playing this week in Shanghai. I admit he’s past his best now, age is a real swine in sport, but on his day he’s still worth the price of a ticket. Be nice to see the old sod win something this year.
Right, to finish I’m going to paste in a couple of comments I received about The Trust over the weekend. The first was texted to my wife from a member of her staff: “…really enjoyed it. Sequel please – really want to know what happened to the euthanasia gang” And a tweet from up and coming fantasy author Frion Farrell who has just finished the Trust “Just had the pleasure of finishing Jamie Sinclair’s The Trust. Superior crime writing Jamie – am big fan."
Everything’s awesome at my end aside from the continued uncertainty over my job. It’s tedious now to be honest. I have a job waiting for me that I don’t really want but it requires no effort and, although the money is crap, it’s enough. However, because I’m apparently handy to have around the senior bods are trying to slot me in somewhere. The problem being there’s a lack of gaps and time is running out. From my point of view I don’t much care either way but not knowing is making it very hard to plan anything beyond the end of the year.
Finally signed the contract for my house investment. That’s taken forever but it’ll be worth it long term. We’re aiming to buy the next house around Easter next year but that depends on my income – see above about planning.
Regular readers will have noticed that my new book is still not out. I’m out of excuses to be honest. Bottom line is I’m not 100% convinced by it. It’s been a hard one to write, my first sequel and it’s been a busy year. New job for me and the wife, we bought the dog. All this has combined to leave me with a book that is finished but I have doubts about it. As such, I keep procrastinating. The plan, starting tonight, is to read it as a book on the wife’s tablet and see how it holds up plot wise. Then go from there. The cover is pretty much done so as soon as I’m happy with it it’ll be out. But not before. I might even not release it. Who knows?
But I am itching to start writing my next book, plenty of plot ideas and locations so fingers crossed. I suspect once my job future is resolved everything will start to flow again.
Now, other news. Sales are pretty good again. Indeed I’ve sold more in the US that the UK so far this month. Hurrah. I’m also considering approaching Independent publishers about my work. It’ something I’ve pondered for a while. I’m still not 100% what the benefit will be and I’m not mad keen on signing away my rights but we shall see.
Finally, for those that are interested Liverpool are still top of the table in the football which is amazing, and unexpected. But the real news is that the mighty Roger Federer is playing this week in Shanghai. I admit he’s past his best now, age is a real swine in sport, but on his day he’s still worth the price of a ticket. Be nice to see the old sod win something this year.
Right, to finish I’m going to paste in a couple of comments I received about The Trust over the weekend. The first was texted to my wife from a member of her staff: “…really enjoyed it. Sequel please – really want to know what happened to the euthanasia gang” And a tweet from up and coming fantasy author Frion Farrell who has just finished the Trust “Just had the pleasure of finishing Jamie Sinclair’s The Trust. Superior crime writing Jamie – am big fan."
Monday, 30 September 2013
What's your time management like?
Afternoon gang, Generally mine is ace. But lately, because of work, the dog etc, it's been bloody awful. Which got me to thinking about my fellow authors. Between work, kids, pets, family etc, how on earth does anyone find time to write? And how much time do you actually find? Because I might well have a spare hour tonight but it won't be productive because I'll be knackered from work and walking the dog etc. That said, things are progessing. The wife has finished the draft of the new book. Devoured it to be fair. Feedback was very positive. There's a few bits to work on which I'll attack ASAP depending on mood and then it'll be available to buy. Wooo! Apologies for the lack of paragraphs etc, I'm on a browser that doesn't support Blogger so I'm doing this via HTML which isnt one of my strengths. Other news? Final Breaking Bad tonight. Can't wait for that. Liverpool second in the league! Madness. Won't last. Sales a little slow this month after a flurry a couple of weeks ago so any last minute September sales much appreciated. Spread the word. Until next time...
Wednesday, 18 September 2013
There's a draft!
Afternoon gang, It's done! What's done? I hear you cry as one. An edited draft of my new book, the sequel to the 24 Hour Jazz Cafe. I know, it's all very exciting. And it's only taken 12 months. Perils of having a well paid full time job. Anyway, you're doubtless wonderign what this all means. Or not. Well, essntially I've been through the first draft i.e. the very rough but typed up version of the novel and I've tweaked, rewritten, deleted etc until I got to the end. What's left is a tighter, shinier version of the book. The plan now is to lob this on the wife's table so she can read it, hopefully she will highlight lots of areas for improvement (I'm by no means convinced by the book yet) and then I'll do another draft. Generally that will be it. I'll start work on the front cover and blurb any day now while the wife's reading. Then after the next draft I'll format it for release. Given the time of year I might well hang on and dive into the Christmas market with some advertising, heavy promo, press release etc. As ever the book will be available in all digital formats and paperback. I also suspect, as with all my other books, it'll sell quite well on Kindle and next to nothing everywhere else. I also haven't settled on a title yet! Other news? Nowt much. Dog's ace. Work's uncertain. House purchase is progressing slowly. Currently drinking a mug of tea. Oh yeah, upcoming new fantasy author Frion Farrell has just read The 24 Hour Jazz Cafe and loved it so much she's on with The Trust now. Her debut novel will be out shortly. Fingers crossed I manage to blag an advance freebie copy. Until next time.
Sunday, 15 September 2013
Man down! Man down!
Evening gang,
First off let me welcome a new member of the gang. Cora has added this blog to her Google circles so hopefully she'll be a reader of my books before long.
So, if we were in any doubt about the weather today has set things straight. Wild, windy, raining, grim. It was superb on the beach with the dog, he loved it. Until tragedy struck! He was hurtling along with a Border Collie when he fell over a rock and pulled up short, holding his paw up. Needless to say the wife pounced like a ninja, rushing to his aid. He seemed fine and we carried on and although he was limping slightly it didn't slow him down.
Anyway we got home and cleaned him up to find two cuts, one on a front leg, a deeper one at the back so the wife, being a nurse, swung into action with the first aid kit. The dog, ever one for a bit of theatre, began to tremble pathetically and sloped into his bed where he remains, fast asleep and wrapped in a towel. The wife steadfastly refuses to leave his side. And that pretty sums up our little team. Nobody gets left behind and we make sure everyone is okay. It works very well.
I'd like to think the world would be a better place if more folk were like this and I believe the majority are. Certainly all the folk I associate with online are all like minded and very supportive of each other, and me, when it comes to my writing. Which neatly brings me round to my latest novel. I've had the weekend off. I've literally done nothing except have a nice time. Lost a few quid (more than a few quid) on dodgy football bets, been out for tea, had the kids over to stay, played with the dog, watched films, eaten burritos, it's been super. So tomorrow I'll hit the novel hard. It's nearly there but this one has been a slog.
Other news? Regular readers will know I'm quite the home cinema buff. I've got a nifty 9 foot electric screen, full HD 3D projector and 7.1 surround. So it was with some sadness that I learned of the death of Ray Dolby. You might not know his first name, but everyone should know his surname. If you've ever owned a DVD, Blu Ray or been the cinema, you've heard his work in action. He's Mr Surround Sound, the guy who took away the hiss. A pioneer who quite literally impacted on the lives of millions. Not a bad legacy. I've chucked in a couple of links so you can read more about him.
I also not that JK Rowling is to pen a screenplay. Apparently an of shoot of the Potter world, no shock there, it should be out in 2015 or thereabouts. I've no doubt it will be a vast success, full marks to her. Again someone who has impacted on the lives of millions and will leave an impressive legacy.
So that's it. Ideally, in decades to come, my name will be talked about in the same way as those above. If not, I hope I've made enough cash to at least be able to do everything I wanted to do. Regrets don't suit me and I've got a long list of stuff I want to do. Tonight's thing is easy enough. Slump on the couch, watch Iron Man 3, drink ale and try not to think about work tomorrow.
So, if we were in any doubt about the weather today has set things straight. Wild, windy, raining, grim. It was superb on the beach with the dog, he loved it. Until tragedy struck! He was hurtling along with a Border Collie when he fell over a rock and pulled up short, holding his paw up. Needless to say the wife pounced like a ninja, rushing to his aid. He seemed fine and we carried on and although he was limping slightly it didn't slow him down.
Anyway we got home and cleaned him up to find two cuts, one on a front leg, a deeper one at the back so the wife, being a nurse, swung into action with the first aid kit. The dog, ever one for a bit of theatre, began to tremble pathetically and sloped into his bed where he remains, fast asleep and wrapped in a towel. The wife steadfastly refuses to leave his side. And that pretty sums up our little team. Nobody gets left behind and we make sure everyone is okay. It works very well.
I'd like to think the world would be a better place if more folk were like this and I believe the majority are. Certainly all the folk I associate with online are all like minded and very supportive of each other, and me, when it comes to my writing. Which neatly brings me round to my latest novel. I've had the weekend off. I've literally done nothing except have a nice time. Lost a few quid (more than a few quid) on dodgy football bets, been out for tea, had the kids over to stay, played with the dog, watched films, eaten burritos, it's been super. So tomorrow I'll hit the novel hard. It's nearly there but this one has been a slog.
Other news? Regular readers will know I'm quite the home cinema buff. I've got a nifty 9 foot electric screen, full HD 3D projector and 7.1 surround. So it was with some sadness that I learned of the death of Ray Dolby. You might not know his first name, but everyone should know his surname. If you've ever owned a DVD, Blu Ray or been the cinema, you've heard his work in action. He's Mr Surround Sound, the guy who took away the hiss. A pioneer who quite literally impacted on the lives of millions. Not a bad legacy. I've chucked in a couple of links so you can read more about him.
I also not that JK Rowling is to pen a screenplay. Apparently an of shoot of the Potter world, no shock there, it should be out in 2015 or thereabouts. I've no doubt it will be a vast success, full marks to her. Again someone who has impacted on the lives of millions and will leave an impressive legacy.
So that's it. Ideally, in decades to come, my name will be talked about in the same way as those above. If not, I hope I've made enough cash to at least be able to do everything I wanted to do. Regrets don't suit me and I've got a long list of stuff I want to do. Tonight's thing is easy enough. Slump on the couch, watch Iron Man 3, drink ale and try not to think about work tomorrow.
Wednesday, 11 September 2013
The benefits of positive thinking
Morning Gang, If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook you'll know in recent days - indeed most of last week - I've been moaning about slow sales this month while not actually doing anything about it. Typical me. But there's good news. Overnight I've shifted quite a few copies of my awesome fact based crime thriller The Trust. So much so that as of this morning I'm hovering on the edges of the top 10,000 on the Amazon ficton charts. While this doesn't make me the next Stephen King, it does mean that there are nearly a million people selling less than me who would gladly change places. All positive.
I've also had nearly 9000 views of this blog. It's pretty impressive given that I started it nearly 2 years ago as an experiment. I still enjoy writing on it, folk clearly keep checking back to see what rubbish I'm saying, so long may it continue.
I've also picked up pace with the editing again and will hopefully have a draft by the weekend. I know, I know, I've said this many times this year. But eventually it will be true. Promise.
In other news, my house investment sideline is progressing well and the house should be mine in the next week of so. I've also lined up an interested tenant so there's no downside at all.
Now if I could just find myself a permanent job...
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