Please tell us a bit about yourself:
I'm a professional scientist and
live in the south-west of England with my wife, our two horses, two dogs, and three
guinea pigs. We’d like to keep chickens, too, but it might be a bit tricky in a
small urban garden with two hyperactive terriers
My education was obviously
science-based. I've always been a keen reader - thrillers, science fiction,
fantasy, horror, a few classics, and even some romances. But I'll admit not
much of it was "literature".
I've written way too many
scientific papers and technical reports, and even a couple of dissertations. I
wanted to do something different and started writing general interest factual
articles and giving public talks, which are always interesting.
I put off writing fiction for
years, convinced I “couldn’t do dialogue”, but feedback from my critiquing
group convinced me I could. Having four short stories published in anthologies
was a confidence booster, and now I’ve written a whole book, all on my own!
Tell us about Knights Errant:
The story in
a nutshell is that Paul, still getting over his wife’s death, is approached by
two women looking for a jousting team to work on a TV show. The women are best
friends, and he’s attracted to both of them. And they’re both attracted to him.
He’s a nice guy and doesn’t want to damage their friendship, but he’d like to
have a relationship with one of them. The women don’t make things easy for him,
and lead him well beyond his comfort zone.
In terms of
the usual genres, it’s a romance with some erotic scenes. I hope my readers
will just think of it as an entertaining story.
What inspired you to write this particular story?:
Knights
Errant developed from an idea I first wrote as a 200-word piece of flash
fiction and the characters stayed in my mind. A number of ideas merged in my
imagination and the story grew from these. I’ve seen a few jousting displays
and even spent a day being taught the basics, real-life experience which was
useful as well as fun.
Which comes first for you – a character's looks, personality or name?:
That’s a good question, and I
honestly don’t know. The characters seem to form themselves as the story
settles in my imagination and they tell me what they’re like. I typically
settle on their names quite quickly.
Any tips for aspiring authors?:
Find a constructive
critiquing group which works for you, participate as much as you can and pay
attention to their comments on your work. Or find a number of other aspiring
writers and form your own critiquing group.
By all means
attend creative writing workshops if you like the sound of them. I’ve been to a
few which were fun, but didn’t really help me.
When you find
a book you really enjoy, read it again to figure out how the author has written
it and try to adapt some of these things in your own work.
What super-power would you choose?:
Ability to read minds when I
chose to, and influence other’s thoughts and feelings
Which fictional spacecraft/mythical creature/mode of transport/unusual
pet (delete as applicable) would you like to own, and why?:
I’d love to
have a werewolf as a good friend, simply because it’d be totally amazing.
Your weapon/instrument/gadget of choice?:
An old-fashioned English longbow
or a traditional Mongol horsebow.
Pan-Galactic Gargle Blaster, Butterbeer or Romulan ale?:
Who needs neurons? Gargle me,
gargle me...
Coffee, tea or wine?:
Yes please. Black without sugar,
white with one sugar, and red.
What is your favourite book? (aside from one of your own!):
Tough one... Two really.
Dracula, for the great story and the fascinating way of telling it. Len
Deighton’s “The Ipcress File”, which combines a great story with a well-paced,
light-touch storytelling style.
Favourite genre and why?:
No specific genre. I find I
enjoy stories from different genres, and some which would be hard to describe
with any single label.
Upcoming news and plans for the future?:
Well on the way through book 2
in the series, which carries the story on. I’ve solid ideas for four more with
the same characters, and for a short spin-off series for two characters I’ll
introduce in the second book. And there are ideas for two other series rattling
around in my head and sketched out to some extent.
I’m very grateful for having a
hyperactive muse... If only I had the free time to work on all these ideas
Thank you so much for taking the
time to talk to us!
Blurb
Lonely widower Paul knows he's
ready to move on and start a new relationship, but doesn't expect to meet two
attractive and interesting women at the same time. They want to recruit his
jousting display team to feature in a TV show.
Becky and Hayley are best
friends, as different as chalk and cheese, and both clearly fancy Paul. A
decent guy at heart, he hopes to win one without harming their friendship. But
the women don't make it any easier when they turn up the heat and leave him
wondering what's going on.
A fantastic
prize is within his reach. He just has to overcome his deepest fears,
self-doubts, and fragile self-confidence. And be Hayley's leading man in the TV
show she hopes will make her name. So no pressure. Just take a deep breath and
let these two intriguing women lead him way outside his comfort zone.
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Social media
Twitter: @ians2005
Email: ians2005@gmail.com
