Well, this is spooky! My new novel is practically writing itself! I knew that I had a good idea back in autumn last year when it first came to me, but it is only now that I understand just how strong it is. Every time that I sit down to write the words pour out of my fingers and onto the screen in front of me. This is not work; it is a thrilling creative process. Ideas for the plot are coming to me all the time and the majority of them are working out fine. There are very few that I have had to abandon. I wish all my books would write themselves in this way!

I have the conclusion for the book mapped out and it effectively brings the rational and the supernatural elements together. It also reconciles some of the themes, but not all of them. As a reader I do not need everything explained to me or every thread neatly woven into a final fabric; life itself is not like that and I see no reason as to why stories should be as well. As long as the big questions are answered, the little ones I can answer for myself.

Having raised the subject of questions there was indeed one that I had to answer for myself; where does this story take place? As I began writing the book with such intensity I chose not to be specific. Some of the place names are from where I live, but I do not make any direct references to an actual geographical location; it might be Britain, or America, or somewhere else. I am not sure why but at the moment I like the vagueness of the setting, perhaps because I do not think that it actually matters. I have this notion that readers can fill in the gaps for themselves and make the location wherever they want it to be. One advantage of this approach is that I do not have to be overly descriptive in setting scenes, or even accurate for that matter. I have done some research, there has to be a thread of logic running through the book to maintain its integrity as a police thriller, but I have been more lax than I perhaps would have been if I set it in a real city.

I am now at 135,000 words and aiming for 150,000. The concluding episodes are in the process of being written and then I will go back to the start and work my way through the whole manuscript looking to improve it where possible and, if I think it necessary, flesh out particular characters more. I am aware that in my haste to write I have not developed every idea as fully as I could, which is one of the consequences of working so fast. That is something that I will be looking at, obviously. This has been one of the most exciting projects that I have ever worked on as an author, the funny thing is that I am now looking forward to going back and finishing The King of Pomerania and then starting on my next project after that for which I also have a good idea. I love being creative!