Other People’s Work

“Step Into the Fifth Dimension” is out!

Remember Twilight Zone™? It doesn’t matter whether they were the original series, the reruns, or the reboots. Were you freaked out by the strange things going on in those stories, too? Do you want to experience the same kind of thrill again? To let your imagination get even wilder? Step into the Fifth Dimension with me. Watch your step as you enter, or you won’t find your way out again. Available as a paperback here. The Kindle version is coming out later.Read more

Step Into the Fifth Dimension

Are you old enough to remember Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone™ series? Or maybe you watched the reruns and reboots. Weren’t they the weirdest experience? Either way, do you want to experience the same kind of thrill again? This time in the printed word, where your imagination can go even wilder? If you do, why don’t you step into the Fifth Dimension with me? Watch your step as you enter, or you may never find your way out again! Available on Amazon Kindle and as a paperback from mid-September.Read more

Christmas is coming…

It’s never too early to start shopping for Christmas presents. For those who love reading, here are a couple of new books from the Whittlesey Wordsmiths to consider for your stocking fillers. If you’re an adult and like dark stories, we have a collection of dark, Christmas-themed stories for you. https://www.amazon.com/dp/1916892620 On the other hand, if you want something lighter and uplifting, there’s a book for children of all ages. https://www.amazon.com/dp/1916892639 Kindle versions will be available shortly.Read more

Finding My Voice

This is just a quick post that has nothing to do with me. For all lovers of poetry out there, I’ve just purchased a copy of a book of poetry from a friend of mine. On occasion, when the Whittlesey Wordsmiths get together, we challenge ourselves. We select a theme and give ourselves twenty minutes to write something. I generally write the beginning of a short story of some kind. Tessa Thomson writes poetry. In those selfsame twenty minutes, she can create a finished poem, rhyming and scanning properly. My mind can’t do…Read more

Originality

This is not one of my posts but something I am cross-posting from Edgeverse with their permission. It says something I've long suspected and have been saying for some time. I remember reading an interview with Frank Zappa in NME years ago. Despite its claims to the contrary, he said, the music industry was not looking for "the next great thing". Instead, they wanted the previous great thing. When the Beatles hit the scene, every label wanted a band with multiple guitar players. Boy bands were a non-starter until the first one became…Read more

Killing Time in Cambridge

This is not part of my publishing career, but I would like to promote a novel written by a friend of mine, Philip Cumberland. It is a cross between a time-travel adventure and a police procedural, with intense descriptions of local colour. The premise is fascinating, and the execution extremely well done. The tale gripped me from the beginning because of the interesting, quirky characters, like Arnold, Sylvia... and, of course, Marvin. Their interactions were believable, and the character-building using dialogue was credible. The world-building, basing itself on the real Cambridge and the…Read more