Tell us about yourself.
I’m from the UK but I have lived in Greece most of my life. I’m an award-winning author with 14 fiction titles. I write in most genres. I’m also an award-winning filmmaker, my documentary and short films have won several awards at international film festivals. I’m a podcaster, radio host, I have a YouTubeShow and I’m a booktuber.
Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?
I grew up in the midlands in the UK. It wasn’t a very pleasant place to grow up. It was a rough area and I would be beaten up and picked on at school. Yeah, not a great childhood, but writing helped take me away from that unsettling reality and to step into someone else’s shoes for a while. I used writing, as a way for me to escape.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don't plot. When I start writing a book, the full story ( well the first draft) is all in my head, world-building, names, plot. There are certain places where I need to make notes so I have a record that will then stop any inconsistencies. Oh, and I'm old-fashioned I use a pad and pen, before typing anything up onto the computer.
What is the best advice you have ever been given?
"You'll never make it as an author." from my English teacher in my high school. So I proved to her and all the doubters that they were wrong!
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don't rush into publishing your book. To do it correctly to give the book the best chance of it selling, you have to spend money. Writing the book is the easy part. But it costs money to hire a professional editor, formatted and cover designer and if you haven't got the money then wait. Don't ask your neightbour or sister to look through your MS to find mistakes. Make sure your book is polished and ready before even thinking about publishing it. And also make sure you have a marketing plan put in place at least 2 months before you publish.
What has inspired you and your writing style?
S.E.Hinton was the reason I became an author. I fell in love with her rebel/gang books and her easy-to-read style of writing. Rock music always inspires me no matter what genre of fiction I'm working on. It could be a fantasy, thriller, or even erotica, and rock music will inspire me while I write. Over the years my writing has definitely changed style. I'm writing more dark fiction, but that doesn't mean say I couldn't write a lighthearted YA again.
What are you working on now?
I have a new imprint for my OUTLAW collection which is 4 books to do with outlaw motorcycle clubs, my last release, Broken Chains, which is a mafia thriller is also under the new imprint. Dirty Streets Press. All the OUTLAW series have new coves and I'm currently working on book one In Times of Violence, as when I first wrote and published the book I did as a YA MC gang/romance. The other three books are 18+. So In Times of Violence adult edition, should have been written and out years ago. As well as getting those books ready. I'm working with another author on a sci-fi dystopian trilogy called Toxic. We've just signed a contract for all six books as she is keeping her editions nice, whereas mine are naughty. So we give the reader the choice of which book they want to read. Book one is ready but will now be picked apart by the publisher's editors and we have 1st draft of book 2 completed as well. They are completely the same book, plot storyline but mine is erotica and my writing partner has her door shut.
What is your favorite method for promoting your work?
Cross promotions through the newsletters I send out. I always get sales from them. How it works is I promote someone else's book who writes in the same genre as me, and as I write in most genres, I can have my newsletter with one to two genres featuring that month. So the author's book I'm promoting goes into my newsletter and my book goes into her newsletter. Say share had 4000 subscribers and I have the same. That's a possible 4000 people to learn about me, see my book cover, blurb, and hopefully click that link. It works the same way for the other author's book in my newsletter. Now imagine if I did that with 5 books. That's a lot of new readers, seeing my book for the first time.
What's next for you as a writer?
I have so much to currently work on and more ideas for new books keep filling my mind, so I'm going to keep going for a while yet. I hope the publisher can find the readers for Toxic as the trilogy need to go viral as it's a unique niche.
How well do you work under pressure?
I have so much to currently work on and more ideas for new books keep filling my mind, so I'm going to keep going for a while yet. I hope the publisher can find the readers for Toxic as the trilogy need to go viral as it's a unique niche.