The Beginnings
Once upon a time I woke up and realised I did not want to be a lawyer for the rest of my life.
I first started writing legal text books in 1996 after my wife came home from a book fair. She had asked a publisher whether they had any books on arbitration law and was told that they were currently looking for an author - so she volunteered me! By 2004 I had written two books with my wife and wanted to do something different, so I started a novel writing course. At the time I had a vague idea about writing an anti-war novel as there was a lot of anger about what Bush and Blair had done in invading Iraq. There was also the 0911 atrocity and the invasion of Afghanistan. I then went down to Castle Drogo with some friends and the idea for a novel based on the design and the construction of the castle crystalized. The novel had at that time the working title of 'Castle Drogo' (or 'Drogo' around the dinner table). Over the next seven years I wrote and re-wrote and edited the text of the novel. I then put the manuscript away in a desk, as work was dominating my life. In 2021, I finally decided to retire as a lawyer and gave the manuscript to a developmental editor at Reedsy. It then went on to a copy editor and finally to a designer... and here we are.
The Blog
The blog is intended to fill in pieces of the story with anecdotes and vignettes.
What was Lutyens' reaction to being asked to design a castle?
What is the story about Death which is referred to but never told?
Did Krishnamurti become the World Teacher?
Why did I change the names of some characters?
As I continue to re-read the novel and work on the next one I will add to the blog.
Do you have Questions?
If you have any questions about the novel or my website email me. I will try and add a message in the blog to answer your questions.
I hope you enjoyed (or will enjoy) the novel and please feel free to recommend it to any friend or family member.