Telling Stories

Recently I've found myself in a fortunate yet terrifying position. I submitted a pitch to my editor at Solaris books: three interconnected novels set on a possessed northern sink estate called The Concrete Grove. All I had were three synopses and a headfull of ideas I'd been carrying around with me since I was sixteen.

The editor liked what he saw, and commissioned me to write the books. I was thrilled...but scared. I'd written nothing so far and the concept is very important to me on a personal level. These two things combined to create the Fear. But I got over it and started the first book. The first couple of chapters were a struggle, but now the whole thing is coming alive. The covers for the first two books (by the brilliant award-winning artist Vincent Chong) are complete and he's working on the third as I write this.

Sometimes life can be great: things happen, your dreams are realised, and you get to tell the stories that were always inside you, waiting to get out.

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