This might sound strange, but all through the process of writing Caught Inside’, I gave very little thought to my hero’s sexuality. At Seventeen, Luke is the kind of young man who takes most things in his stride and who isn’t generally prone to self-analysis. Looking back, I realise that I was far more interested in exploring his emotional journey than I was in putting a label on his feelings.
Category: Writing
Caught Inside: Where the Story Began
As I continue to immerse myself in the edits for Caught Inside, I thought I’d share a sneak preview with you all. This is the very first scene I ever came up with, and where the story started to take root . . .
Writing What You Know . . . Or Maybe Not
From the moment Luke Savage, the seventeen-year-old hero and narrator of Caught Inside, took form in my mind, I knew several things about him. I knew he was an only child, came from a single-parent family, and lived on the rough side of Brookminster, the fictional English city where many of my stories will be set. I knew he possessed a lazy charm, presenting him with his pick of girls, but that he had yet to lose his heart to anyone. Most of all, I knew he cherished a burning passion for surfing.
The Key to Writing a Great First Chapter
As I begin to sink up to my neck in editing what will be my debut novel, two things are becoming abundantly clear. Firstly, the process of whipping my manuscript into the sort of shape that won’t have me cringing in embarrassment at my ineptitude as a writer will be a painful one, and will doubtless see me committed to a psychiatric ward before I’m done. Secondly, no part of my story will test my patience or my sanity nearly so much as the opening chapter.