"The Lost Film" ebook

Pendragon Press has now published the ebook of "The Lost Film Novellas" by Stephen Bacon and me, following the successful launch of the limited edition paperback at FantasyCon in October 2015.

The ebook can be purchased for £2.99 from Amazon UK here

and for $4.26 from Amazon US here

"The Lost Film"

by Mark West

Gabriel Bird is a private detective. He’s been hired to track down Roger Sinclair, an exploitation film-maker who disappeared in 1976, having just completed his last film. Long since lost, “Terrafly” was reputed to have an adverse, often fatal effect on those who watched it. Sinclair’s producing partner, Sorrell Eve, is concerned that the film is about to appear online and wants to make sure it stays lost forever.

As Bird closes in on his target, strange incidents begin to happen to those around him and when he’s offered the chance to watch a clip of “Terrafly”, things turn very dark indeed.

A modern detective story, filled with rich detail of the low-budget heyday of British exploitation films, this will ‘pull you into a dark cinematic nightmare’.


“An impressive, imaginative flight of fancy. Mark West has cunningly woven the exploitation movie industry of the 70s that I experienced into a bizarre private eye yarn and thrown in sex, the supernatural and more besides. It hooked me from the first page to the final, mind-bending fade-out”
- David McGillivray,
screenwriter of "House of Whipcord", "Frightmare", "House Of Mortal Sin" and "Satan's Slave"

"Lights, camera, action...Mark's West's lost film novella will grab your soul by the sprocket holes, pull you into a dark cinematic nightmare, and then re-edit the way you look at the world. Experience it at your peril."
- Gary McMahon,
author of “Pretty Little Dead Things”

A Monochromatic in Central London, 1976

Steve & I have been working on the project since 2010 (I wrote a bit about the origins of it in a blog post at the time) and the paperback features a lengthy, exclusive afterword.  Steve & I also talked about the writing process at the launch and gave readings.

note: There were some formatting and typo issues with the text in the paperback edition, which have been rectified for the ebook.

My Creative Year 2015

Continuing a tradition (now in its third year), here's my annual look back at 2015 from a creative standpoint.

During the year I wrote 5 short stories, 1 novella, 1 novelette (only in first draft at the moment), a couple of novella pitches, a load of book reviews and a host of essays/articles for this blog (which topped 600 posts in the year!).

I had 3 short stories published:
* The Zabriskie Grimoire in The Grimorium Verum: Volume 3 (Tres Librorum Prohibitorum), edited by Dean M. Drinkel from Western Legends Publishing
* Time Waits in Darkest Minds, edited by Anthony Watson & Ross Warren from Dark Minds Press
* The Penthouse Incident in Demonology, edited by Dean M. Drinkel from Lycopolis Press

My novella The Lost Film - as part of "The Lost Film novellas", alongside "Lantern Rock" by Stephen Bacon - finally saw the light of day from Pendragon Press.  Launched at FantasyCon (an event that went really well, I'm pleased to say), the book is available as a limited edition paperback and the ebook will be released shortly.

My novella Drive, published last year, was nominated for a British Fantasy Society Award, which I was really chuffed about.  The Awards are presented at FantasyCon and the shortlist for Novella was a strong one (I was alongside Carole Johnstone, Ray Cluley and Stephen Volk - we're all friends and it was a very supportive list), with Stephen taking the honours.  Hey, if you're going to lose, you might as well do it to Steve Volk!

My Spectral Press chapbook, What Gets Left Behind, was released as an ebook via PenMan Press in April.

* * *
During the year I also curated the "King For A Year" project (which I wrote about in depth here) which featured 56 writers and fans reviewing 64 individual works by Stephen King.  I had a lot of fun doing it and the feedback has been excellent.

* * *
"The Lost Film" picked up an honorable mention from Anthony Watson at the Dark Musings 2015 review:  "I loved them both and think it’s one of the best things Mark in particular has written. His protagonists are often decent, honest and downright nice people so it was nice to see him have a “hero” who wasn’t quite as pure – and the concept underlying the story was brilliant."

"The Lost Film" also featured highly on Ben Jones' list - "I'd rate Mark's novella as probably the best I have read this year"

My short story "Mr Stix" made an appearance on James Everington's "Favourite Short Stories Of 2015"

* * *
I attended three great Cons in year.  The first was Edge-Lit 4, held at The Quad in Derby on 11th July (see my report here), followed by FantasyCon in Nottingham over the weekend of 23rd - 25th October (see my report here) and then it was the first Sledge-Lit event, also at The Quad in Derby, on 21st November (my report is here).

At Edge-Lit, with Alison Littlewood, James Everington, Richard Farren Barber, Wayne Parkin, Stephen Bacon

At FantasyCon, with Paul Woodward, Phil Sloman, Stephen Bacon, Alison Littlewood, Jim Mcleod, James Everington and Gavin Williams kneeling

From "The Lost Film" book launch at FantasyCon, photographs by Sue Moocroft

At Sledge-Lit, with Sue Moorcroft, James Everington, Steve Harris, Simon Bestwick, Peter Mark May and Dean M. Drinkel

In addition, The Crusty Exterior met up in London on 11th April for the first time (find the report here) and we had such a great time, there's a meet planned in Brum early next year.  I also did a reading and Q&A session at the inaugural KettFest Event on 5th June (which I wrote about here).

The Crusty Exterior at the Southbank Book Market, with James Everington, Phil Sloman and Steve Harris

KettFest official picture, by Liz Kearns

* * *
Creatively speaking, 2015 has been a pretty good year all in all.  Of the five short stories I wrote, four were asked for and subsequently accepted by the editors in question - the remaining one is still looking for a home.  The novella was also asked for and I accepted it for the challenge (I'd never written a wartime-set story before) but I liked the editor and publisher and had a good time with it. I'm excited about the novelette (which is still in draft) - I was approached by a publisher I liked who wanted to produce a paperback and audio-book version of a story.  It will be narrated by Carrie Buchanan, who I finally met at FCon and we got on like a house on fire - I've tailored the tale to her, set it in Paris and had a great time working on it.

I'm feeling optimistic for 2016 too, not least because I have seven stories scheduled to be published (including my first audio), but also because I've been asked to write two short stories (for different publishers) and a novella (for Hersham Horror Books) and I'm planning a new novel as well.  It's all go!

Thanks for all your support in 2015, dear readers of this blog, especially those who bought, read and liked my work - I really do appreciate it.

No Twerking Please (my FantasyCon schedule)

I love the FantasyCon experience (I've written reports for most of them) and my first was in September 2000 (FCon XXIV) in Birmingham, where Doug Bradley was one of the guests of honour.  I knew about three people before I went into the venue, but knew a load more by the time I left and most of those friendships are still going strong.  Last years Con, at York, was even more fun and I don't expect this one to be any different at all (especially with all the "Lost Film" goodness!).

Since all the cool kids are doing it (hey, I'm not above trying to claim coolness-by-association) - and because it's the first time I've ever been on a panel - here's my schedule for the weekend.

* * *

Friday 23rd - 5pm - Pendragon Press, launch of "The Lost Film Novellas" by Stephen Bacon & Mark West.
Oh yes, our novellas are finally unleashed.  Please come along, don't force me & Steve to sit in front of an empty room, twiddling our thumbs and smiling nervously at one another like we're on a first date...

* * *

Friday 23rd - 9pm (Conference Theatre) - The Atrocity Exhibition

A distinctive show betwixt Victorian parlour game, debauched freakshow and kitsch cabaret. Most wicked jollity with Mistress of Ceremonie Donna Scott.

Panellists: Kim Lakin-Smith, Emma Newman, Gareth L. Powell and Mark West

I'm not entirely sure what to expect with this, except that Donna is a guarantee of quality and look at my fellow panellists!

* * *

Saturday 24th - 6pm (suite 2) - "Weirdness, Darkness, Madness: the Psychology of Dark Fantasy"

The landscapes of the mind have always been fertile ground to explore in Gothic literature. How is that tradition now informing today's dark fantasy and weird fiction?

* morbid fascination: why are we drawn to what unsettles us?

* what techniques, tropes and tricks do writers and film-makers use to get in our heads?

* what disturbs you the most: fear for your life vs. fear for your sanity?

* what weird experiences have the panellists had and how have they informed their writing?

It's all in the mind. . .or is it?

Moderator: Terry Grimwood
Panellists: Timothy J Jarvis, Kim Lakin-Smith, Helen Marshall, Deborah Walker, Mark West

* * *

Sunday 25th - 3pm onwards - The Awards Ceremony.  note - I usually attend this anyway but this year sees my first solo nomination with "Drive" up for Best Novella (against a very strong field).  Fingers crossed!

* * *

York, September 2014 - Sue Moorcroft, Steven Chapman, Steve Bacon, me, Neil Williams

As FantasyCon sees the launch of "The Lost Film Novellas" (my most recent blog about the project is here), Steve & I - aside from the official 'do' mentioned above - will also be hanging around the Pendragon Press table in the dealers room, signing copies of the limited edition paperbacks and handing out any badges that are left!

In addition, there are plenty of panels and readings that I'm keen to get to, plus a lot of friends have book launches and then there's the epic curry outing, organised by Phil Sloman.  If you don't see me at any of those, I'll either be in the dealer room or in the bar.  Or at the disco, which is always great fun (plus Jim Mcleod - Mr Ginger Nuts Of Horror himself - and I are considering a dance routine together, though I promise not to twerk this year).

York, September 2014 - Fiona Ni Ealaighthe, Jim Mcleod, me, John Travis

FantasyCon, for me, is as much about the people as anything else and - like always - I'm looking forward to catching up with old friends I haven't seen for a year.  There's something positive in the air, that creates a real buzz, when you're surrounded by creative people who love the genre as much as you do and it's always good to meet new friends too.  So, if you see me wandering around, please do come over and say hello!

The Disco, Brighton 2012 - me, Peter Mark May, (wish I knew her name), Lee Harris, Paul Melhuish, Robert Spalding

I hope to see you there and, as ever, there will be a full report when I get back!

The Lost Film - Pre-orders open now!

It's finally here.  Pendragon Press have now opened pre-orders for "The Lost Film novellas", which contains "Lantern Rock" by Stephen Bacon and "The Lost Film" by me - two novellas, linked by theme.

"The Lost Film", available in a limited edition (100 copies) paperback and as an ebook, will be officially launched at FantasyCon in Nottingham, 23rd-25th October 2015.

The pre-order link is here and for a limited time, the paperback is available for £9.

"The Lost Film"

by Mark West

Gabriel Bird is a private detective. He’s been hired to track down Roger Sinclair, an exploitation film-maker who disappeared in 1976, having just completed his last film. Long since lost, “Terrafly” was reputed to have an adverse, often fatal effect on those who watched it. Sinclair’s producing partner, Sorrell Eve, is concerned that the film is about to appear online and wants to make sure it stays lost forever.

As Bird closes in on his target, strange incidents begin to happen to those around him and when he’s offered the chance to watch a clip of “Terrafly”, things turn very dark indeed.

A modern detective story, filled with rich detail of the low-budget heyday of British exploitation films, this will ‘pull you into a dark cinematic nightmare’.


“An impressive, imaginative flight of fancy. Mark West has cunningly woven the exploitation movie industry of the 70s that I experienced into a bizarre private eye yarn and thrown in sex, the supernatural and more besides. It hooked me from the first page to the final, mind-bending fade-out”
- David McGillivray,
screenwriter of "House of Whipcord", "Frightmare", "House Of Mortal Sin" and "Satan's Slave"


"Lights, camera, action...Mark's West's lost film novella will grab your soul by the sprocket holes, pull you into a dark cinematic nightmare, and then re-edit the way you look at the world. Experience it at your peril."
- Gary McMahon,
author of “Pretty Little Dead Things”

A Monochromatic in Central London, 1976

I wrote a little bit about the origins on the story and collection in a blog post (here), but the project has been around since 2010.  Steve & I had been corresponding for a couple of years (we finally met, in person, at FantasyCon in Nottingham in 2010) and enjoyed each others work.  Both of us were in a funk with our writing and joined Conrad Williams' online writing group Fiction Factory, where we also met Neil Williams, which led to the "ill at ease" projects.  I suggested Steve & I team up for a novella length project (he'd never written anything that long before and we both felt like we needed a kick up the arse) and at first we were going to go for a straight collaboration but then decided to try a story each.  As we were brainstorming ideas, he mentioned “lost film” and that was it.

I wrote my first draft from Tuesday 7th September through to Monday 29th November 2010 and it was 52,547 words long whilst the final revision, which I did earlier this year, ended up at 46,912 words.  I had great fun writing it and there was a lot of research involved - both the era and British exploitation films of the 60s and 70s - but I loved weaving true facts into the fictional ones I was littering the manuscript with.  Plus I got to read a lot of crime thrillers to get 'the voice'.

Although it's taken a long time to get here, I've had a great time working on this and I can't wait for it to make its own way into the world!

Don't forget to pre-order here

For more information, keep checking back here and at www.pendragonpress.net

The Lost Film Novellas are coming

"The Lost Film Novellas", a book of two linked novellas from Stephen Bacon & myself, now has an official launch agreed.

My story, "The Lost Film", features Gabriel Bird, a private detective who is hired to find Roger Sinclair, an exploitation film-maker from the 1970s.  It seems that the last film he made, 'Terrafly', has the power to drive people mad and clips from it are now appearing online.

Roger Sinclair began to see the Monochromatics in a London made fraught by the heatwave and realised that in them he had the basis for his magnum opus 'Terrafly'.

Now, as Bird delves deeper into the case, meeting Sinclair's old colleagues and finding out about the Monochromatics, he understands why 'Terrafly' might just be the most dangerous film ever made.

The Lost Film Novella - coming soon (woo hoo!)

Coming soon, from the award-winning Pendragon Press -

The Lost Film

A Novella by Mark West

Gabriel Bird is a private detective. He’s been hired to track down Roger Sinclair, an exploitation film-maker who disappeared in 1976, having just completed his last film. Long since lost, “Terrafly” was reputed to have an adverse, often fatal effect on those who watched it. Sinclair’s producing partner, Sorrell Eve, is concerned that the film is about to appear again and wants to make sure it stays lost forever.

As Bird closes in on his target, strange incidents begin to happen to those around him and when he’s offered the chance to watch a clip of “Terrafly”, things turn very dark indeed.

A modern detective story, filled with rich detail of the low-budget heyday of British exploitation films, this will ‘pull you into a dark cinematic nightmare’.

More details to come...

http://www.pendragonpress.net/

http://www.markwest.org.uk/

"Lights, camera, action...Mark's West's lost film novella will grab your soul by the sprocket holes, pull you into a dark cinematic nightmare, and then re-edit the way you look at the world. Experience it at your peril."

- Gary McMahon, author of “Pretty Little Dead Things”

Danger Dude!

Here's the Dude, throwing himself (literally) into space on a bouncy slide.  Thanks to David Roberts, for the pic.

On the writing front, I have some exciting news about The Lost Film novella and will reveal all soon! But suffice it to say, I'm very chuffed!

A trailer for "Terrafly" has surfaced!

Bloody hell!  Somebody's found - and uploaded - a trailer Walt Saxby made for Roger Sinclair's last film.  I thought this had been lost forever but here it is, in all it's glory.

(be warned, contains scenes of violence!)

Still not sure if I'd like to watch the whole thing though...

Agoraphobia, a Roger Sinclair film

Another old Roger Sinclair find - the copyright lists 1974, but it must be 73 or so (and perhaps explores themes he later used in 'Veronica'?).

Anyway, Lynne Frederick stars alongside Sinclair's regulars, Steve Bacon and Mick Curtis, with newcomers Tim Taylor and Paul Melhuish rounding out the cast.

An archive shot - fame in New York for Roger Sinclair

A blast from the archives. This recently discovered snap was taken by Walt Saxby, on a working visit to New York in the early 70s and shows Roger Sinclair's first major foray into the foreign film market.

Very chuffed!

"The Lost Film Novella" has been picking up some very good comments from my pre-readers, which is very re-assuring. Last week, in the midst of a conversation about something else, Gary McMahon offered to read it and I sent him over a copy. He read the first six chapters that day, emailing me and saying how good it was. Today, he finished it. And sent me a lovely message (calling it the best work of mine that he's read) and a blurb (should I want one). Here it is, in its entirety, followed by a mock-up cover with a bit of the blurb on it.

I'm chuffed.

"Lights, camera, action...Mark's West's lost film novella will grab your soul by the sprocket holes, pull you into a dark cinematic nightmare, and then re-edit the way you look at the world. Experience it at your peril."Gary McMahon, author of "Pretty Little Dead Things" (and many others too).

The Lost Film, more writing and some sleazy reading

"The Lost Film Novella" is picking up some excellent feedback from my pre-readers, much better than I could have hoped for, which I'm really pleased about. Especially since there were a couple of times where I thought "nah, this is stupid" - I'm so glad I carried on! I've yet to read back through it, though I'm looking forward to doing so.

And coincidentally enough, I've found another Roger Sinclair poster. This dates back to 1972 (it's got a really cool title) and stars the wonderful Martine Beswick - who'd made a big splash the previous year with "Dr Jekyll & Sister Hyde" - and the lovely Judy Matheson. Sinclair's 'usual suspects' round out the cast.

In other writing news, I've finally had the idea and inspiration for my Spectral Press chapbook. Whether it gets accepted, of course, is a different matter but I like what I'm now calling "Wonderland". Most of it is in my head now (the story needs to run for about 7,000 words) and I'm going to start work on it - all being well - tomorrow. As is my wont, I've done some cover art for it already - see what you think:

And finally, my reading has kicked off this year with "Scourge", by Nick Sharman. In my quest for some sleazy, Peter Raft style horror, I found this in a great 2nd hand bookshop in Leicester. And you know what, this isn't half bad!

More Lost Film stuff

More of my pre-readers have come back on “The Lost Film Novella” and, in general, the response has been heart-warmingly good. I’m thrilled and itching to get back into it for the third draft, but I want to get all the readers reports back first.

In the meantime, here’s another poster from a Roger Sinclair film. This dates back to 1974 and was, I assume, an attempt by him and Sorrell Eve to cash in on the “Last House On The…” market that was gripping the US at the time. As a bonus, however, they cast Caroline Munro in this and that gets extra marks from me!

"Curse Of The Witch"

This is the movie poster from one of Roger Sinclair's earlier films, made well before he destroyed his career and several lives with 'Terrafly', his magnum opus

(from The Lost Film novella)

The Lost Film Novella - early reports in and they're looking good!

I started to give out my pre-reader copies of “The Lost Film” novella on Friday, with the last couple going on Saturday. I didn’t expect to see anything back much before Christmas and was quite happy with that - it’s not far off being a short novel, I know that people are busy now, I couldn’t see it happening.

Andrew Murray, my Antipodean chum, came back on Sunday evening saying it was very good. Tonight, my old friend David Roberts came back saying, amongst many other lovely things, that “they get better each one I read”. To top that off, my brother-in-law started reading it yesterday and finished this evening. He liked it a lot too.

I already had a good feeling about this - it’s just getting better now!

Thanks lads - and here's a rare picture of Roger Sinclair, drinking to our health!

The Lost Film Novella

Yes, it’s done! The 2nd draft is now complete, at 47,219 words (yes, it went a little long on my proposed target of 35,000 - I hope Steve Bacon isn’t too annoyed with me!) and I’ve already sent out a couple of pre-reader copies. I’ll leave it to sit for a while (I was 47 days on the 1st draft and 10 on the second, so I can’t see the wood for the trees now) and then read it to Alison and collate all the notes before cracking on with draft 3.

Here’s a rough synopsis of the tale, that I included in the pre-readers letter:

Gabriel Bird is a private investigator from Gaffney who is hired to find an exploitation film-maker from the seventies called Roger Sinclair. There’s also a problem with the last film he made, his magnum opus, which seems to have a peculiar effect on those who watch it. The trail leads Bird to Oxford and Bedford, back to Gaffney and then to Heyton, an east coast seaside resort. Along the way, people tell lies and die and as Gabriel gets closer to the truth, it seems like everything he’s ever known and believed in is about to crumble around him.

I’m obviously thrilled to be at this point - the idea has been around for a little while, but it was talking with Steve Bacon that gave me the impetus to crack on with it and I’ve really enjoyed the process. There was quite a bit of research involved - both in terms of exploitation films and also the voice, which explains why I’ve read more crime thrillers this year than anything else - but it was all great fun and I loved weaving true facts into the fictional ones I was littering the manuscript with.

Next up, I’m going to read through the first Spectral Press chapbook (“What They Hear In The Dark”, by Gary McMahon) with a view to writing my entry to the series. That will take me, I imagine, over Christmas and perhaps into the New Year and then who knows? There’s still the Lost Film to complete, the proper collab with Steve Bacon, the top secret sleaze project and my “Shine” novel, which I’m determined to get going on.

It’s all go here and I love it!

“Parallel Lines”, by Gerry Balding
(from his photo-stream on Flickr here)

I’ve used this photograph because there’s a place in the fens, where the river Heyt runs close to the railway, that means an awful lot to the characters in this book - and nothing pleasant happens to any of them there!

Success!

Some writing news - I started the 2nd draft of “The Lost Film Novella” today and managed to cut about 1,000 words from 12,000. Not the best of starts, so I may have to do a draft 2a before I send it out to my pre-readers. I posted this up at Facebook, along with the fact that I didn’t have a title and no less a horror-writing-personage (and literary hero of mine) than Nicholas Royle commented, saying I should keep it as “The Lost Film Novella”. So I think I just might do that!

In short story news, “Come See My House In The Pretty Town” is out in submission, so I hope that goes well. Better news is that “Mr Huxton Goes Camping” has been accepted into Peter Mark May’s “Alt-Dead” anthology, where it’ll be sharing space with some great writers. I might also get to have a crack at the cover art too, which is always nice.

Onwards and ever upwards!

The Lost Film novella (1st draft completed!)

That’s it, I’ve done it! Today, I finished the first draft of “The Lost Film Novella” - 47 writing days (from 7th September through to 29th November, which includes the 36 days I took out in the middle to work on the ZoQuNo/Mr Foo pitch) for a grand total of 52,547 words. My original plan was for 30,000 words, but I do have a tendency to overwrite massively on the 1st draft (I’m a taker-outer, to quote Stephen King, rather than a putter-inner) and the writing break didn’t help with my memory.

The thing is though, it’s now complete and that’s cause for celebration (for me, at least). On the way, I’ve gone through the usual stages, but I’ve come out the other side and have a 52.5k word manuscript to show for it.

It’s not all good, of course - there are a few bits I know don’t work, you could drive a bus through some of the plot-holes and at least one character started out as important but could be excised - but I’m chuffed to bits. And the best thing? The ending as I wrote it today is pretty much as it was in the original synopsis, which I wrote over a year ago.

Onwards and ever upwards!

p.s. Just in case you were wondering, my definition of the five stages is this:

stage 1: “I’m loving this, it’s flowing and the words fit and it’s all beautiful - I’m onto a winner”
stage 2: “Bollocks, this is getting hard. I’m sure the idea is rubbish”
stage 3: “Yep, the idea is rubbish and so is my writing, I’m going to pack this stupid thing in”
stage 4: “Oh hang on, that bit worked a little better… Anyway, I’m nearly done now, I might as well get to the end”
stage 5: “Oh no, I’m almost at the end. That’s a shame, I was really enjoying writing this…”

Making progress!

The “Lost Film” novella is coming along swimmingly and I’m pretty much keeping up a 1,000 word-a-day output on it, which is brilliant for me. My original plan - certainly, it’s the one I told Stephen Bacon, when he mentioned that he’d never worked on anything novella-length - was for 30,000 words in first draft but I’m currently at 39k words and the ending is still a little way off.

But am I enjoying it? Absolutely. The draft is a mess (as all of my first drafts are), the timelines don’t work, some of the characters change direction halfway through and I know it’ll be a nightmare to make it all work but it’s there. That’s most of the battle with creative writing - getting the damned thing down in the first place.

Something’s working though - parts of the plot are dropping into place, just in time and characters are revealing hitherto unseen sides that make the story zip along - and I have a good feeling about the whole thing. I have the voice mostly right (and what I don’t, I can rework) and I think I’m going to be able to sell the climax (and trust me, it’s going to be a big sell!).

I reckon another week or two and the first draft’ll be sorted. Then I’ll let it breathe for a while (and will begin working on notes for the “80s/kids/gash in time” project, which is brewing nicely), before attacking the 2nd draft and getting it out to my pre-readers.

And in the meantime, here’s a picture (which I found on Flickr, though mcmorgan08’s photostream) of a cinema that one of Roger Sinclair’s films might have been shown at!

Hard Core Cine, Soho, London, 1979
Photograph by M C Morgan

What I Do, Sometimes

Okay, so ZoQuNo is definitely on the backburner for now - the synopsis (brief and indepth) is complete, the first three chapters are complete (and have been workshopped by the NSFWG, in addition to going through the rigours of my pre-readers), but a leading publisher has passed and so I’m going to concentrate on other projects for the moment.

First up, obviously, is the Lost Film novella. It’s been a good while since I did anything on it - perhaps three weeks - and it feels very distant at the moment, but I’m confident I can get back into it.

The weird thing is, I am currently reading “Shoes, Ships & Cadavers”, the NSFWG anthology that contains my story “What We Do Sometimes, Without Thinking”. I’d got to my story and thought “hey, what the hell” and started reading it. And you know what, I liked it a lot. And more, as I read it, I realised that the 80s part of it, the school-kids, was the ideal foundation for “Project Gash”. I’ve been thinking over that for the last couple of days and I reckon I can make it go, so that’s next up on the slate.

Still to fit in - the ‘proper collaboration’ with Steve Bacon, a top secret novella project (also with Mr Bacon and a leading small press publisher) and the 4-writer-project.

Cool, eh?