Writing a complete story in 500 words sounds like a difficult task, there is so much that needs to be included. An introduction to set things up, the main body of the story and a finale – which in the case of a Halloween tale is bound to be a spooky twist. Yet, somehow, despite the restrictions, and despite it not being my typical genre, I managed to write two tales which I entered into my publisher’s annual Halloween Spooky Short Story competition. One of them is told in

Once again ,my publisher Cranthorpe Millner are running their annual spooky short story competition. This year they are asking for a spine-chilling, blood-curdling short story, not more than 500 words. See their Facebook or Instagram pages for details which, spookily, haven't materialised on their website yet. I decided to have a go, In fact I have put in two entries, though I think the one below is the better of the two. SPOOKY SHORT STORY FOR HALLOWEEN. ‘Graham! Graha

Imperfectly Innocent, the third instalment of the Tufton Street Saga was published on September 30 th . Did you notice? I suspect not,...

The story behind 'Imperfectly Innocent'. When I say ‘written backwards’ I don’t mean it in a literal sense, but ‘Imperfectly Innocent’,...

Although recently I read a cracking set of horror/fantasy short stories (Chris Coppel, Last Light), horror/fantasy is not my usual fare. ...

A couple of months ago, I found two new reviews of The Death of a Smoker; one on Amazon.co.uk and one on Amazon.com (US). The UK review...

As I stepped off the kerb, the words and tune just popped into my head, after all it is a well known and popular song. Call me sweetie...

As headlines go, it doesn’t exactly grab you does it? ‘Old Man Writes Another Book.’ That’s the problem with a second novel, how do you...

A blog incorporating 50 book titles from the Cranthorpe Millner catalogue. Congratulations Publication Day has finally arrived. You have...

Literary Agents! I doubt that anyone who has ever tried to publish a book has not come across literary agents. For those unfamiliar with...

Is Big Brother still watching me, or am I paranoid? Why should I think Big Brother was ever watching me? Those really dedicated readers...

There are no two ways about it. I am a pariah, a literary pariah. An outcast. For what sin have I been cast out? Well, I made a...

I have little doubt that the title of a book influences the decision to read or buy it, but how much time do we give consciously to...

When writing ‘The Death of a Smoker’ I was, more or less flying by the seat of my pants. The plot developed as I was writing rather than...

They say that we all have a book inside of us and perhaps that's true. We all have a life story but what is it that makes us get to work...