This writer is still writing.
News from the coalface.
Following on from my recent scribble about what I am up to, in response to somebody pointing out that Substack (supposedly full of writers and creators) has surprisingly little about what any of us actually do.
My last ramblings on the subject were on Day Two of my new novel project, and that was 14th December. We are now at the 30th December, so how is it going?
Well, as you see, it now has a name, The Gamekeeper’s House. I even stopped to make a cover for it (see above) because I needed a break and it was a bit of fun. I usually use a cover designer, because my knowledge about such things is pretty rubbish, and this is only supposed to be something rough to slap on it when I need a printed proof (because you can’t leave the poor thing naked) but I actually quite like it.
As of today, I have eighteen chapters written onto paper, and all of them are now typed up, because that is the way I work. Pencil onto paper, then tweak and tidy as I then stuff it into the keyboard. So far, two A4 pads have made the ultimate sacrifice in pursuit of this artistic outpouring, and because everybody loves to know the word count, it is 45,678. Because we are all different, there will be some writers on here who will look at that and think, only 45k in over two weeks, that isn’t even making an effort. Others will already be making voodoo figures of me and sticking pins in with jealousy. When I have a story in my head it has to come out at a rate of knots, I get a bit obsessive, so yes, I was writing on Christmas Day.
The story, as it says on the tin, is a proper ghost story, and that is something I have wanted to write for ages, and I am loving it. I will probably hate it when I have to start revising the first draft (does it still count as a first draft if I have revised it while typing into the keyboard?) but for now I am loving it. My main character is Kevin, and now I am at the stage where I can be evil and start utterly destroying his life, which is nice.
I am still finding inspiration by making my daily three-mile walk in all weathers to feed bread to my now very loyal following of crows. Indeed, you can plot my progress along the seafront by watching the black cloud that surrounds me. It really does work. I like to start the day with a fresh chapter, get it roughed out, start writing, then I reach the point where I can feel some sort of mental obstacle ahead. Before I reach that point, I stick the big coat and scarf on, and the hat, put some sliced wholemeal in my pocket, and refresh the batteries with some exercise and sea air. By the time I have terrified half the dog walkers and joggers along the promenade with my gang of black-feathered assassins, so far I have always sorted my head as to how the next part of the chapter will pan out. It works for me anyway.
So that is a brief note about what this writer is up to as we try to sneak out of 2025 and into 2026 without anybody noticing. If you are somebody who writes, paints, draws, whatever, why not take a break from scrolling through notes, and let your adoring followers have a peek behind the scenes to see how you do your thing.
If you like reading this sort of thing, or ghost stories, or just my potty ramblings, feel free to subscribe, and it is free, because I like it that way.
Thank you for reading.