August 2008 - download the Urban Angel sequel soon....
Did you ever read Urban Angel? This was the thriller that Authentic Media published in 2004. At the time a number of people asked me if there was going to be a sequel. Well I certainly wrote one! I approached the publishers with it and they weren't overly keen to publish - so I'm going to publsh it myself on the web. In the next few weeks the sequel to Urban Angel, which concludes the story, will be published as a downloadable document on the web.
If you read Urban Angel and you want to see the sequel drop me a line and tell me. If you've read the sequel and want to comment, again please drop me a line, I'm interested in hear everyones views.
June 2008
Alas, my fine intentions of keeping up with news and news letters were not matched by action. I'll be parking the whole 'newsletter' idea for a while until I've got something really worth saying, but I'll try to keep up with this news section. I'm adding a June entry even though June is nearly finished, and I'll try to add something for July soon as well.
Meantime, expect to see a 'Web copywriting' page on the site soon. I'm getting more involved in this area with my colleague Barry - see Motived link design below. It turns out there are a lot of websites out there that are desperate for a makeover, and if they need copy as well then I'll be there!
Goign to the Lakes in May was great, had a wonder time really and caught up with some old friends. God bless us writers, funny lot that we are....
April 2008
Spring is in the air! Well sort of, because the weather is very bizarre at the moment. Of course any unusual weather we have these days is attributed to climate change, and maybe that's what it is - snow at Easter!
Not to be distracted by snowmen etc. I've just started work on a new project for Authentic Media, not a biography this time, but definitely meeting a need in the market for good non fiction Christian books. I'll say more about that when I can. In the meantime, and rather by way of a break I am going to the London Book fair on Tueday to see what's happening in the market at the moment.
I'm also looking forward to a few days away in the Lake District in May, at a workshop for ghost writers. I'm sure I will learn a lot, but I'll also be there for a bit of a break and a to catch up on some of my own projects. I've started to work with my old friend Barry Cooper, of Motivated Design this website is his work (thanks Barry!) and I will be working with him on some copy writing projects in the coming months.
If you've been waiting for the newletter - bear with me please! I'm using the news section here at the moment, and when I et my act together I will send out a news letter. I just need time to write it up; maybe that's a job for my break in the Lake Distirct.
February 2008
Well January went past in a bit of a whirl, and I've got to nearly the beginning of Feb before I've added anything else. he big news is that my latest ghost writing project is nearly out! Exciting stuff and the publishers tell me that the presales figures are strong.
"Conquering the Dragon" is the story of Kim Goh, once a senior figure in a Triad gang now a Methodist minister. Kim's story is an example of seeming to have everything, and yet having nothing. Once he escapes from a life of gambling, drinking, sex and occult bondage he's used powerfully by God to touch the lives of the people he meets. Details of the book will appear soon in the 'Books, short stories, and articles' section of the website but you can get a copy from the publishers now by clicking on this link.
My next fiction work, a story for young people aged 10-12 is in the furnace that is the critical review of one of my editor friends; I'll be really pleased if I can find a publsiher for it - watch this space for more news in future!
December 2007
Christmas is upon us, and I know that people approach this season with a variety of different feelings. Part of the challenge of the festive season is to cut through all the stuff you don't much like and remember the birth of the baby who would die and live, that we might be reconciled to God. It's such a crazy and outrageous notion - this idea that Jesus is our resurrected saviour - that in the ordinariness of life, and the miasma of guilt that surrounds us most of the time, we are left with a mixture of unbelief (Did he really rise form the dead?) and unworthiness (even if he did I'm too much of a sinner to gain the benefit).
But of course he did rise from the dead, for just such unbelieving and miserable creatures as ourselves. There is a sense in which we need to believe ourselves redeemable, and to do that we need to retain some capacity to dream and wonder. To dream that behind all of the tinsel and turkey there is a tremendous and wonderful reality, a sense that things are all right, more 'all right' than we would normally dare to think.
This sense of wondering, akin to joy, is something the world tends to hammer out of us; but we long for it all the same. We catch glimpses of it in the arts, in a painting or a piece of music, a play or a film; something that awakens in us the ldea that there might be more to our lives than the confines of our responsibilities: or jobs, work, family, food, sleep, life, death.
And with such a state of wonder we can discover the substance of the season. It takes wonder, imagination, joy; after all Jesus wasn't even born in Decebmer! But he was born, in circumstances akin to those we read about in the gospels, and he did become the God/man who died and lived. And therein is our path to reconciliation with God. Can we learn to dream and wonder? Can we believe that God might take an interest in us - not for any achievement on our part - simply because he loves us?
Of course we can! Merry Chrsimas!
Andy
November 2007
My new website is now up! I wont bore you with the details about how long it took to get my domain name sorted out, suffice it to say that if you are going to get a domain name get your web host sorted out at the same time so you don't have to change - it's not worth the pain! Incidentally if you like the site check out other designs from my excellent web designer Barry Cooper. Barrys work is showcased at: www.motivateddesign.co.uk
The launch of the new site means that I will be able to communicate more effectively with the community of people who read my work. I want to be able to tell people what's happening generally- that's the function of the newsletter, and also give items of news as they come up - (the news page of the site) and give an opportunity for more general ramblings (the blog). I also want to hear from you! If you have read anything of mine and you want to write to me about it, please feel free to do that using the contact form. I'll get back to you when I can.
Thanks
Andy
October 2007
I’m looking forward to going on the Writing Skills Masterclass with the Lakes School of Writing. The School holds sessions in the Lake District at Eusemere House every few months, with this next one in November. The tutors on the course are all notable people in the field of Christian writing and publishing; I’m hoping to get some time to work on my Children’s story. I think we’ll have a great time.
September 2007
As well as finishing the final draft of Conquering the Dragon I am now beginning work on a manuscript for a book for children.
The “How to” books on children’s writing tell you that writing for kids is harder than writing for adults. It’s certainly not easier, and does require a particular awareness of the style, theme, and language, that will appeal to children and young people. I’ll let you know how I get on. I hope to have enough of the MSS written to be able to present it to a publisher or agent in a few weeks time. Kim’s book, Conquering the Dragon, should be out next spring published by Authentic Media.