The last time that I posted anything about my new novel, The King of Pomerania, was in July 2022, so it would be reasonable to suppose that I have not done anything with it since; but that is not quite true. I have been very busy writing and the book was developing as well as I could hope; I had even drafted the conclusion towards which it is heading and it was something quite original in my own opinion. The problem was that I was attacked by inspiration! Suddenly, out of nowhere, an idea for a new novel forced its way into my imagination. The concept was so strong that I could not concentrate on Pomerania. I did not like the idea, but I decided to put Pomerania on the back burner and start the new novel.

This new book is in a genre that I have not written before; a supernatural thriller. I have read quite a few similar books, being an avid reader also, but this is the first time that I ever had an idea for one that actually felt complete. The basic plot came to me very quickly and I was able to capture it entirely in an outline and style-sheet. It is a very simple idea, like all the best ones; a woman awakens in a hospital to discover that she has miraculously survived being attacked by a vicious serial killer and, after she finds out how many other people he has killed, is left asking the question: ‘why me?’ The rest of the book is her search for the answer, which takes her down some very strange and very dark avenues.

Writing this book has been surprisingly easy, it has simply flowed from my imagination onto the page. Even the muddying of the waters to produce a real mystery has not been difficult. There has been plenty of research to do and I have had to decide on the style of the story. I am not a particular fan of detective dramas where the prime suspect is also a full character in the story as it gives the reader clues before the police discover them. For Why Me? the main story follows the attempts of the lead detective and his team to discover and arrest the killer, and of the protagonist to discover not only why she survived a murder attempt that actually left her clinically dead, but also why supernatural forces appear to be trying to influence her actions.

I am currently up to 88,000 words, which I estimate to be about 70% of the book written. There are some ancillary sub-plots to work in to flesh out some of the additional characters, as well the the odd red herring to throw in to obscure the truth a bit more, but it is all going very well. My wife observed that the protagonist is once again a confident and capable woman and suggested that I seem to have a preference for such characters. I do not think that she realises that every such female character that I write is in some respect a reflection of herself. Also, I find strong women far more interesting to write about than the kind of helpless female that relies solely upon the male to save her.

Due to recent changes in my life, I have not been able to find the time to blog as much as I used to, other than posting the adverts for my current stable of books. I hope to change this and get back to writing at least one blog post a week; not least because I do enjoy it. I plan to write a few more about ‘Why Me?’ as the project develops and then, after that, return to Pomerania because that is a story very close to my heart also.