Where have you spent most of your childhood?
In and around Durham City - never living more than 5ml distance until I reached early forties.
What hobby do you miss most from your childhood? Why?
I don't recall any 'hobbies' in childhood but I do miss the unfettered adventure playgrounds we made in mining colliery ruins and nearby woodlands.
Which of your childhood dreams was the first to die?
The dream that 'when you wish upon a star your dreams come true'. They didn't, and I lived in poverty until I became a technical salesman at the age of twenty-three.
Who is the most supportive person in your life when it comes to your writing?
Without a doubt, my wife of seventy-eight years, Pat.
When did you decide to become a published writer? How has the journey been?
I always read bedtime stories to my two boys because as a child no one read to me. I didn't become a storyteller until I had to make up stories on the spot to entertain my son and his newfound friends on a wet beach holiday at Great Yarmouth, between showers. Those stories were not recorded until many years later and Pat copy typed my written account. Thereafter came the pain of submissions to publishers and agencies, followed by the inevitable 'sorry but' responses. Although one response from a major children's books publisher suggested that the then three stories should be unified into a single offering. A few more years passed by, several more rewrites, a year or two in the cupboard, another rewrite, then more submissions. Eventually, I decided that if ever my stories were to be available in print it would be via Amazon/Kindle, self-publishing.
How long did it take you to write the novel, The Last Footsies?
The Last Footsies is one of my shorter stories at 2000 words. The concept came almost instantaneously; the actual writing not more than a day or two; the edits and rewrites a week or two, before I considered it good enough to publish.
How did you come up with the character of Zach in Romney Hole?
This very much a brother/sister story, and Zach is the sort of person I aspired to be. Reliable, protective, adventurous and 'good'.
Do you encounter writer's block often? If so, which book of yours did you get stuck on the most and what are some things you did to get your brain working again?
Writers' block thankfully doesn't happen very often, and it is very frustrating when it comes along. My solution is to leave that story alone for a few days (or more) and either play my Hammond organ or pick up one of the many other projects I am writing. Or, get lost in the mindlessness of trawling the internet for an hour or two.
What is your preferred leisure pastime?
Difficult to choose between the organ or painting fantasy scenes on china/porcelain and firing in my kiln.
In novel writing, do you write everything in chronological order?
Usually, I write chronologically except flashbacks in a story series.
What are the best things in the world that the coming generations will miss?
I doubt that coming generations will ever again enjoy the freedom that was granted to my generation of children to disappear for most of the day between breakfast and evening meal, perhaps five or six miles away, without causing any undue parental concern.
What is the most famous landmark in the North East of England?
The Angel of the North may be the primary recognised landmark of the North but there are so many more local landmarks, eg Penshaw Monument, a folly on a hill between Durham and Houghton le Spring; Durham's 12th-century cathedral built on a hill in the bend of the River Weir can be seen from many miles around.
How would you describe the human race to an alien?
A failure in co-operation between the many warring tribes that make up the diverse human race many of whom display extreme intolerance of anything different.
What is the next book you are looking forward to writing? What is it about?
I am several pages into the third Jimmy Crikey children's fantasy adventures after which I look forward to re-editing a memoir of my life up to the age of seventeen years, the year my father died and the year I met my future wife. After which, if life is kind, I might get around to completing a YA adventure story based around a Gothic world setting.
When did you join AllAuthor? What do you think of the experience so far?
It's a bit of a guess that I have been enjoying All Author for two to three years and highly rate the exposure that weekly tweets give my work.