Some Dad's play football with their sons. Some take them fishing. I write them stories.
'Matt's Dragon' was written for our second son, Matthew. And of course, after that they all wanted one....!
However, I was writing stories a long time before I had kids. 'Dry Murder' appeared in the first issue of 'Threads', a SF and fantasy short story magazine, now sadly long gone and all but forgotten! 'Shadowskin' and 'All the Dead of Morne' were published in later editions. 'Mariad's Island' has been published as part of a collection of my fantasy short stories ('Minutes of the Reality Escape Committee'), whilst I'm hoping that 'Out of Hadra' will form part of a similar Science Fiction collection.
SF and Fantasy are my favourite genres, but I've tried my hand at other things - humour, for example, with 'The Fish'.
'Up the Mountain' is a bit different. I wrote it to explore, and to try and better understand, an especially difficult passage of the Old Testament. I found it a helpful exercise - possibly it will be of value to others.
There's no telling where a story will come from. For example, the idea for 'A Man to Fear' came to me whilst I was sitting in a seaside cafe on a miserable wet day. If you read the story, you'll recognise the scene! It has been published in the on-line magazine 'Welcome to Wherever' (now sadly defunct).
'A Scene of Crimes' is a crime story, drawing on some of my background - though not personal experience! It's set in the same place as my crime novel, 'Can of Worms', though with different characters. 'The Art of Dying' is also crime - but with a bit of a twist: who's the criminal here?
'Interviews with a Magician' and 'The First Lesson of Magic' are Christmas specials - not about Christmas, but written for Christmas as a small gift for my readers. And, of course, to be enjoyed at any time of the year, along with all the others. The latest is 'Orlizon' - something a bit different.
'Matt's Dragon' was written for our second son, Matthew. And of course, after that they all wanted one....!
However, I was writing stories a long time before I had kids. 'Dry Murder' appeared in the first issue of 'Threads', a SF and fantasy short story magazine, now sadly long gone and all but forgotten! 'Shadowskin' and 'All the Dead of Morne' were published in later editions. 'Mariad's Island' has been published as part of a collection of my fantasy short stories ('Minutes of the Reality Escape Committee'), whilst I'm hoping that 'Out of Hadra' will form part of a similar Science Fiction collection.
SF and Fantasy are my favourite genres, but I've tried my hand at other things - humour, for example, with 'The Fish'.
'Up the Mountain' is a bit different. I wrote it to explore, and to try and better understand, an especially difficult passage of the Old Testament. I found it a helpful exercise - possibly it will be of value to others.
There's no telling where a story will come from. For example, the idea for 'A Man to Fear' came to me whilst I was sitting in a seaside cafe on a miserable wet day. If you read the story, you'll recognise the scene! It has been published in the on-line magazine 'Welcome to Wherever' (now sadly defunct).
'A Scene of Crimes' is a crime story, drawing on some of my background - though not personal experience! It's set in the same place as my crime novel, 'Can of Worms', though with different characters. 'The Art of Dying' is also crime - but with a bit of a twist: who's the criminal here?
'Interviews with a Magician' and 'The First Lesson of Magic' are Christmas specials - not about Christmas, but written for Christmas as a small gift for my readers. And, of course, to be enjoyed at any time of the year, along with all the others. The latest is 'Orlizon' - something a bit different.
