About Me
I was born in Cornwall, a distant relative of the historian, A L Rowse. However, because of my father’s work, I lived in the Georgian City of Bath from the age of two. To some extent my love of books was fostered by a competent English teacher at my old secondary school. It was housed in a Georgian edifice called Weymouth House, a building that was a piece of history. I never understood why they pulled it down to build a Marks and Spencer store.
On the mortgage-paying work front, I spent forty years working as an air traffic controller in Northern Ireland, Scotland and England. The last twenty three years were spent at the College of ATC at Bournemouth Airport. I retired early in 2003 and began to the process of dedicating my life to writing.
Like all aspiring writers I made the usual approaches to agents and main-line publishers in an effort to gain recognition. Some were very friendly and immensely helpful, but didn’t take me on. Most replied with a bland, “Thanks, but no thanks.” Undeterred, I made a decision to approach any small presses who would cough up their own money to get my work into print. It was a good decision because I was eventually taken on by BeWrite Books in the UK, Lachesis Publishing in Canada and Whiskey Creek Press in the USA. When BeWrite closed down in 2012, I was immediately taken on by the Cloudberry imprint of Luscious Books.
My love of books, which began in school days, has never waned over the years. In particular, I have a keen interest in historical fiction, which is why I wrote three novels about the area of Cornwall in which my ancestors lived. They are published as Historical Adventures in Cornwall. I also wrote about the history of the relationship between England and Ireland in The Gallows on Warlock Hill (now reissued as The Legacy of Conflict). Having spent most of my working life in aviation, that subject crept into King’s Priory (now reissued as The Legacy of Secrets) and, to a much greater extent, Prestwick. The latter novel remains a consistent seller. Other novels followed as the years passed.
I chose not to self-publish my books on the grounds that if no publisher liked them, they were probably not good enough. One pleasing outcome was that I enjoyed a very good working relationship with each of my publishers. In each case I found the editors friendly and helpful, treating me more as a friend than a client.
I live with my wife, Fionnuala, in Dorset. We have three offspring. Our daughter and younger son work in air traffic control. Our elder son is a historian and a valuable source of reference material for my stories. We also have two wonderful little grandsons - Henry and Oliver - who brighten up our lives.
In my retirement, I am a keen walker and enjoy exploring the Dorset countryside with friends. In addition, my wife and I enjoy using our free time taking disabled people canoeing on the River Stour.
On the mortgage-paying work front, I spent forty years working as an air traffic controller in Northern Ireland, Scotland and England. The last twenty three years were spent at the College of ATC at Bournemouth Airport. I retired early in 2003 and began to the process of dedicating my life to writing.
Like all aspiring writers I made the usual approaches to agents and main-line publishers in an effort to gain recognition. Some were very friendly and immensely helpful, but didn’t take me on. Most replied with a bland, “Thanks, but no thanks.” Undeterred, I made a decision to approach any small presses who would cough up their own money to get my work into print. It was a good decision because I was eventually taken on by BeWrite Books in the UK, Lachesis Publishing in Canada and Whiskey Creek Press in the USA. When BeWrite closed down in 2012, I was immediately taken on by the Cloudberry imprint of Luscious Books.
My love of books, which began in school days, has never waned over the years. In particular, I have a keen interest in historical fiction, which is why I wrote three novels about the area of Cornwall in which my ancestors lived. They are published as Historical Adventures in Cornwall. I also wrote about the history of the relationship between England and Ireland in The Gallows on Warlock Hill (now reissued as The Legacy of Conflict). Having spent most of my working life in aviation, that subject crept into King’s Priory (now reissued as The Legacy of Secrets) and, to a much greater extent, Prestwick. The latter novel remains a consistent seller. Other novels followed as the years passed.
I chose not to self-publish my books on the grounds that if no publisher liked them, they were probably not good enough. One pleasing outcome was that I enjoyed a very good working relationship with each of my publishers. In each case I found the editors friendly and helpful, treating me more as a friend than a client.
I live with my wife, Fionnuala, in Dorset. We have three offspring. Our daughter and younger son work in air traffic control. Our elder son is a historian and a valuable source of reference material for my stories. We also have two wonderful little grandsons - Henry and Oliver - who brighten up our lives.
In my retirement, I am a keen walker and enjoy exploring the Dorset countryside with friends. In addition, my wife and I enjoy using our free time taking disabled people canoeing on the River Stour.
