tag:harryheron.com,2005:/blogs/blog?p=19Blog2022-05-22T21:48:12+02:00Patrick G Cox falsetag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/66485692021-06-03T20:29:15+02:002021-06-03T20:29:15+02:00Captain James Heron: First Into The Fray<p>This book is the prequel to the Harry Heron Series, introducing Harry's twelve times great-nephew. Set in 2204 to 2206, the Captain has a new ship to complete and bring up to operational standard while dealing with a group of assassins, the loss of his wife and a worsening political situation. Fortunately he is not without support ...<br><br>A sample of the book can be read here ...<br>https://b2l.bz/DGRqAO</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/eed33942f690983b6f775bf1d8ebfb2b46f0e1d5/original/front-cover-captain-james-heron-first-into-the-fray.jpg/!!/meta:eyJzcmNCdWNrZXQiOiJiemdsZmlsZXMifQ==/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/65866762021-03-27T19:17:28+01:002021-03-27T19:17:28+01:00A great trailer to The Harry Heron Series ...<p><iframe class="justify_inline" data-video-type="youtube" data-video-id="lyIM75BcDGc" data-video-thumb-url="https://img.youtube.com/vi/lyIM75BcDGc/mqdefault.jpg" type="text/html" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lyIM75BcDGc?rel=0&wmode=transparent&enablejsapi=1" frameborder="0" height="180" width="320" allowfullscreen="true"></iframe></p>
<p>Amazing how a little CGI brings the story arc to life.</p>Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/65465662021-02-12T01:00:00+01:002021-02-12T13:39:12+01:00A Difficult Year<p>It is the year 2021. Hopefully an improvement on the year 2020, though it seems almost to have taken the attitude of 'hold my beer'. On a personal level, 2020 saw my books reaching an increasing audience and progress on two more and a couple of other projects. It has also been a year of near isolation, thanks to the Covid-19. Mind you, that has had its advantages as well. Reflecting on the isolation aspect, I have to acknowledge that it has, at times, been difficult, though with video calls now (BIG SciFi idea of the 1970s ...) it is much easier to interact with friends and family without being face to face.</p>
<p>The year saw the loss of some old friends and acquaintances thanks to the Covid, and the death of my only sibling -- not due to the Covid. In an age when we are used to being able to travel relatively freely at such times and for such events, it has been particularly hard to have not been able to do so.</p>
<p>So what does 2021 hold in store? A good question, and my crystal ball seems to be at least partially on the blink. The one area for which I don't need it is my new title to be launched around June or July. A spin-off from the Harry Heron Series, it follows Harry's distant relative as he prepares the new Starship NECS <em>Vanguard</em> for completion and commissioning. He has a lot to cope with including sabotage, an assassination team and plenty of action as he recovers from the death of his wife, and finds companionship and support from an undercover agent, part of the team trying to catch the saboteurs and agents working for the emerging enemy.</p>
<p><em><strong>Captain James Heron: First to the Fray</strong></em> is an exciting and fast moving story and will, I hope, fit into the Harry Heron universe to the satisfaction of my readers. Watch this space for more news!</p>Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/64634842020-10-26T19:15:09+01:002022-01-13T12:26:20+01:00The Boxed Set of the Harry Heron Series<p>The Harry Heron Series boxed set is finally complete and now on sale through Amazon Kindle wherever you are at a very reasonable price. Six books in one box.<br><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/9c05d358354928b2fce77d5ba6be33f94dd9eb66/original/3d-boxed-set-cover-the-harry-heron-series.jpg/!!/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/64331062020-09-14T15:52:47+02:002020-09-14T16:27:44+02:00The Harry Heron Series<p>With the publication of <em><strong>Harry Heron: Hope Transcends</strong></em>, the story arc is complete, though I have at least one spin-off book in the making. For now, though, I am focussed on ways to bring the six books together as a "Boxed Set" in both print and Kindle versions. First will be the Kindle set as, for the moment, a paper version will probably be rather expensive. Step one in the process has been to get Kindle Direct Publishing to group the books in their system as a series, so we now have The Harry Heron Series listed on Amazon and accessible through the links they have kindly provided ...</p>
<p>US: <a contents="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08HR67M15" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08HR67M15" target="_blank">https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08HR67M15</a></p>
<p>UK: <a contents="https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B08HR5NB96" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B08HR5NB96" target="_blank">https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B08HR5NB96</a></p>
<p>DE: <a contents="https://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B08HR5NB96" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B08HR5NB96">https://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B08HR5NB96</a></p>
<p>JP: <a contents="https://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/product/B08HR67M15" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/product/B08HR67M15" target="_blank">https://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/product/B08HR67M15</a></p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/2c0a86c2e1552a8c713dba1340c1d84c78ad36df/original/hhmj-front-cover-2017-2.jpg/!!/undefined/b:W1sic2l6ZSIsInNtYWxsIl1d.jpg" class="size_s justify_left border_none" alt="" /><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/fbc97fec9b98ef537d741281d9d4f8a898bffc58/original/hhitu-2019-front-cover-reduced.jpg/!!/undefined/b:W1sic2l6ZSIsInNtYWxsIl1d.jpg" class="size_s justify_left border_none" alt="" /><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/32c5fd5ae160fe6abad9cf0b05893727f1eeeb0a/original/20882380-1259132394216474-6747332192143926715-n1.jpg/!!/undefined/b:W1sic2l6ZSIsInNtYWxsIl1d.jpg" class="size_s justify_left border_none" alt="" /><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/48a3fb5fcda57303d44e7c184f04da3b4ce4a15b/original/hhsf-draft.jpg/!!/undefined/b:W1sic2l6ZSIsInNtYWxsIl1d.jpg" class="size_s justify_left border_none" alt="" /><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/bc3239f4c4d95fc61c9886725cc98f6999f6b877/original/hhat-front-cover.jpg/!!/undefined/b:W1sic2l6ZSIsInNtYWxsIl1d.jpg" class="size_s justify_left border_none" alt="" /><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/f1b94e857e8315da9d9a39feccb6fc537cf334e0/original/hope-transcends-front-cover-web.jpg/!!/undefined/b:W1sic2l6ZSIsInNtYWxsIl1d.jpg" class="size_s justify_left border_none" alt="" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"> </p>Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/63698792020-06-29T14:40:42+02:002020-10-26T19:15:33+01:00American Book Fest ...<p>Two of the <strong>Harry Heron</strong> titles are currently displayed on the <strong><a contents="American Book Fes" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://americanbookfest.com/generalfiction/fantasyscifi.html" target="_blank">American Book Fes</a>t</strong> site under the heading of Fantasy and Science Fiction. It is always a great feeling to see your books on display on another site, and I hope to see more there at some stage. For the moment however, my attention is all on getting ready for the publication of the final (for now!) book in the Harry Heron series -- <strong><em>Harry Heron; Hope Transcends. </em></strong>It is scheduled for publication in late July, and it will be the culmination of quite a journey with Harry and his friends.</p>
<p>Once again Harry finds himself at the centre of a complex web of intrigue involving political upheavals, corrupt individuals in league with pirates and an alien race looking for a new host. His plans for his marriage to his long term girlfriend and fiancee, the professional concert pianist Mary Hopkins are unexpectedly derailed by his being the target of an assassination contract because he may have unwittingly exposed a major threat to the democracies. His disappearance triggers a major upheaval ...</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/a5bdfd39d940905eaf139907c1eb8ee9784ed8be/original/hope-transcends-front-cover.jpg/!!/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/63418682020-06-04T14:38:30+02:002020-06-04T14:38:30+02:00Keeping Busy<p>Funny how things seem to pile up when you're busy, and with Spring now Sprung and Summer upon us, the garden is making demands that keep me away from the keyboard, the woods and my Shelties insist on outings (strictly local and strictly within the 'lockdown' rules here!) ... All of which means that writing is currently something done in snatches when the muse is upon me, or an idea has taken shape for one of the books I'm working on. Plus there's always work needing doing on something around the house besides the process of checking the corrections and edits of the next book in the Harry Heron series, <em><strong>Harry Heron: Hope Transcends</strong></em>.</p>
<p>So the merry month of May has now departed and June is upon me and I somehow never quite got around to posting anything here last month. It wasn't a case of not wanting to, but rather one of having too many other little tasks to get organized. Looking back I had intended to write something about how the Covid 19 made me ponder the chances of humanity encountering a lethal virus on a distant planet -- when we eventually do start to travel. According to scientists it is extremely likely that we will, so it will pay us to learn a great deal more about how to prevent it before that happens. H G Wells had a point in his <strong>War of the Worlds</strong> when the Martian invaders are ultimately defeated and killed by what we call the Common Cold. This latest version of the coronaviral family, is perhaps, a timely reminder of our vulnerability.</p>
<p>This is one of the reasons I think that we will have to live inside a sort of biosphere, or biodome, once we do move onto a new world. It will serve two purposes, the first, obviously, being to provide a habitat to which WE are fully adjusted, and secondly, to protect the biosphere of the new host planet from us and our pathogens. I rather suspect that this may prove to be the toughest test in any move into space and new worlds. It is also a problem that will require a multi-disciplined solution involving a lot of expertise in ecological, biomedical and engineering fields just to mention a few.</p>
<p>For the moment, however, I plan to focus on getting <em><strong>Harry Heron: Hope Transcends</strong></em> onto the market, completing the revisions I want to make to another book in the same genre, and get the rough draft of another historical story completed. I think that ought to keep me busy until next year!</p>Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/62563182020-04-29T17:39:57+02:002020-04-30T14:00:42+02:00The Problem with 'Alien' Environments<p>I guess one thing the Coronavirus (Corvid-19) is teaching us is that the more we get around, the more likely we are to encounter something we have no natural resistance to. This has been a major theme for science fiction writers for years. A quick glance at Wikipedia's list of disaster and "end of the world" fiction in books, television and film gives a good overview. I think the first such story I read must have been War of the Worlds by H G Wells, the twist there being that the technologically superior Martians were killed off by what, for us, is "The Common Cold". I think it was the Andromeda Strain that first really got me thinking about it, and this pandemic moves the whole thing back into focus.</p>
<p>Like it or not, until someone comes up with a way to treat it, or to prevent anyone getting it, we have all got to be super careful. Social distancing can only work to a point, and isolation of entire communities is not only difficult, but can produce a whole new raft of problems. As I've suggested already, this is a scenario many SciFi writers have addressed, H G Wells being among the first to do so. In his War of the Worlds, the invading Martians are defeated, not by superior human weapons or technology, but by the Common Cold. Ironic, because the "Common" Cold is a coronavirus ...</p>
<p>In my stories this is something I have tried to deal with by assuming that the spacefaring humans have discovered medical ways to render themselves immune, or at least less likely to be attacked by an alien bug. A bit of a leap of faith, but I touch on it (and the whole of this problem) in <em><strong>Harry Heron: Into the Unknown</strong></em> when Harry and his friends first find themselves aboard the NECS Vanguard. The ship's Surgeon Commander remarks that the trio have anti-bodies in their bloodstreams for diseases humanity has long left behind. The suggestion is made that these, coupled with their 'ancient' DNA may be useful in protecting humans from anything they may encounter on a new world. We can but hope this will be so when we do venture forth "into the unknown."</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/523afb9f7b7c3dba5c2489376100731119da2218/original/2019-hhitu-3d-cover-image.png/!!/b:W10=.png" class="size_l justify_center border_" />The current threat to humanity is, however, not from some future world, but from this one. I suppose we could argue that the lockdown is good in one respect in that there is less pollution in the air at present, but there is also the frustration of being confined. The perfect opportunity then for some reading while we wait for someone to come up with the medical means to render this Corvid 19 less of a threat to us all. Dare I commend Harry Heron: Awakening Threat to those who have not read it? Or the whole series to those have haven't encountered Harry and his friends before this?<br><br>Stay safe, and above all, stay well.</p>Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/62058472020-02-06T17:47:40+01:002020-02-06T17:47:40+01:00Do Stories Shape Our Outlook?<p>There are a range of opinions on that question! in the years I was growing up a great deal of science fiction was in the dystopian field (a lot still is!), and it certainly influenced some of us. Like the 'western' genre it often promoted the lone hero who triumphs through determination, ability and courage. It certainly has a huge influence on those who still follow that idealised view. There is certainly some evidence to suggest that certain types of story do colour our view of the world, though perhaps not quite as heavily as Sir Terry Pratchett's concept in his book "Witches Abroad." Certainly the so called fairy tales we are told as children shape our view of the world to some extent, probably as they were meant to. The stories of the Brother's Grimm, Hans Christian Andersen, Lewis Carroll and others all have moralistic and cautionary aspects, and that is true of other tales as we expand our literary horizons. Writers like Enid Blyton left many of us with a certain 'vision' of Britain, as did some of our less cerebral reading matter, like the Beano, the Lion, the Tiger and later more weighty weeklies like Look and Learn. Some of us will remember the more anarchic magazines like Mad ... They all played a part in framing some of our early views of the world, and how it functioned.</p>
<p>As I wrote in an earlier post, writers like Asimov, Heinlein, Clark and other scifi giants toyed with ideas for a future world, sometimes a rather dark and dystopian vision. It struck me recently that in several of those authors' portfolios there were some visions of future political developments which could be seen as being predicative of our present. In those stories the course of history is altered by the triumph of ideologies or 'players' the founders of the particular society in the story had failed to anticipate, or had anticipated, but believed could be constrained. Certainly the course of our societies is currently apparently taking a path I suspect very few would have predicted ten or fifteen years ago -- or, if they did, kept it quiet. It is certainly true that any writer wishing to create a fictional world or society has to look at the political philosophy prevailing and try to see where it might lead, what could change it, or possibly overthrow it.</p>
<p>Which brings me back to the question in the title. How much do 'stories' shape our outlook? In one sense it appears to be quite a large influence on us, but it depends on our choice of reading matter. A person who reads exclusively horror genre is not necessarily going to turn into a monster, nor will someone who reads extensively in the crime genre become either a career criminal or a policeman. It is much more subtle than that. The essence of the impact is in the subtle background of the story -- as one writer put it, it's the texture of the wall the painting hangs upon that enhances the idea it conveys. Consider Dickens as an example. Many of his stories are rather bleak, but they all contain an element of hope and of courage in difficulty. Dickens managed to convey a sense of injustice, and a desire to see justice done without hitting his reader between the eyes with it. He let the circumstances and the characters convey it all through their actions. This is also true to the original versions of the fairy tales we heard as children (and the element Pratchett plays with so masterfully in his discworld fantasies). Many, in their original versions, were seriously looking at major political and societal issues of their time, some, if not all, of that has been lost in the 20th Century 'sanitising' the Grimm's tales (and the rest) have undergone.</p>
<p>The bottom line really is that any writer must inevitably paint a backdrop of the sort of society his story is set in. If the writing has an historic setting, one has to be careful not to introduce 'modern' ideas or philosophies, whereas in a 'future world' scenario one has the liberty to explore alternative concepts or to extrapolate current political or ideological ideas to see where they lead. Orwell's 1984 fits that category -- and there is a book that has certainly focused some minds on a really dreadful possible society!</p>
<p>Ideas have power, but unless they are put into words, they remain 'just an idea'. Once given expression in a story, those ideas can become an inspiration, a force to be reckoned with if you like. Writers like Orwell were aware of that, and used it to good effect. I would certainly not put myself in anything like the company of authors like him, Tolkein, Dickens, Asimov or King, but I would hope that at least my worlds in my books at least appear plausible, perhaps recognisable. If perchance they also make one think about our real world I would be delighted.</p>Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383962019-11-21T01:00:00+01:002020-02-06T16:47:07+01:00The fun of writing SciFi
<p>Science fiction is a curious genre in many ways. Thinking back to some of the books and authors that introduced me to the science fiction field, it often strikes me how much of what they wrote was impractical or simply outside the realms of physics. Among those is one story which centred around a ship propelled by light, and others that envisaged rocket propulsion systems. Others, notably Asimov, Heinlein, Vonnegut, built on the science then available. Unsurprisingly many of the things they wrote about are now "science fact", though some, like Heinlein's Thorsten Tubes - his concept for AI programming memory storage - haven't come up, we do have AI now becoming ever more prevalent and ever closer to something akin to C3PO of Star Wars. Who knows where quantum computing will take us?</p>
<p>I think we are still some way off things like artificial gravity or the giant space stations some of us dream of, but I suspect there are already people working on such concepts. Already there are concepts being developed for building human habitats on places like Mars and the Moon, and once again, some of the ideas for such spaces draw on concepts first mooted by science fiction writers. A lot of the work in that field is already following the concept of domed, fully enclosed 'environments' which would also employ modified plants. We already know that those depend on a number of other insects, animals and even bacteria to thrive, so all of that will need to be thought through. Alongside of that there will need to be ways to produce food and, if water is not available, to recover and recycle what can be transported there. And then there is oxygen ...</p>
<p>Asimov envisaged miniaturised atomic power plants and what we now call ion engines. Heinlein wrote about time travel, space travel and a range of related topics, with his concept of huge ships that converted water into fuel for engines capable of accelerating the ship to close to the speed of light. An interesting concept for these, was to push a ship sized lump of ice ahead of these ships as a 'shield' in case of stray asteroids, comets and other stray objects. In theory such ships are possible, but, once again, a lot of development is still needed - and the incentive to build them.</p>
<p>One of the problems any spacefaring vessel needs to deal with is radiation. The Earth has a magnetic field around it which traps or deflects the ionising particles that make up things like Gamma radiation. Any long term space habitat, be it a space ship or a station permanently manned needs some form of shield that will reduce exposure to radiation, and which will not have any adverse impact on the people it is protecting. There are ways this can be achieved, some may even tie in with finding ways to generate a form of gravitation without having to use a rotational section of any hull. As a writer of science fiction stories these are all matters one has to keep in mind as one writes a story. With what we now know and understand about gravity - thanks to Mr Einstein - the kind of scenarios created by some of the early SciFi authors like Jules Verne and Edgar Rice Burrows simply won't be accepted by most readers today. Perhaps that is why the genre is often lumped together with "Fantasy", but that is another article ...</p>
<p>So what about ships that travel in that scifi concept of 'hyper space'? There are a lot of arguments both for and against it being possible (assuming such a space as hyper space exists) and which you hear depends on whether you are talking to a quantum physicist, an astrophysicist or a physicist. The last two will probably argue against it, the first will more likely enthuse about 'string theory' or 'M-theory' and the possibility of parallel universes, multiple universes and even holographic universes. At which point science fiction starts to sound like reality. One of the latest theories from Quantum Physics, is the concept of everything we regard as 'solid' and 'physical reality' is, in fact, a holographic projection, a la The Matrix. The proponents of this theory have used mathematical modelling to 'test' the idea and conclude that their model shows that our reality is a 3D projection from a 4 or 5 dimensional reality. Re-enter the realms of "String Theory" and "M-Theory". Maybe I'm just weird, but I find all of this fascinating.</p>
<p>What makes a good scifi story? Tastes differ, obviously, but the mix is fairly wide. Asimov and Heinlein managed to include a fair bit of 'social commentary' alongside the obvious story element. Several authors in the 1950s and early 1960s even managed to explore such sensitive issues as gender switching and the whole issue of sexuality. There are large elements of political discussion, wrapped up as plot elements, which explore political ideas and directions in the 'safe' field of fictional worlds and places, and all of them contain some dystopian elements. Those who followed Star Trek, Babylon 5, Farscape and Star Trek will recognise the political discourses even though they are set in an 'other world' context. In the best SciFi there is a mix of humour, adventure, believable characters, human frailty, political commentary ... and, of course, the 'science'.</p>
<p>It's a great genre, and very under rated. It can be no surprise to learn that the heyday of science fiction writing coincided with the period of tremendous advances in scientific progress. The period in which we moved from sails and horses, to steam powered transport, from small under powered fabric covered 'flying machines' to supersonic flight and men on the moon. I firmly believe we are standing on the brink of the next great leap forward. I'm not sure where it will take us, but I'm pretty sure it will be one hell of a ride!</p>
<p>See you on the launch pad I hope!</p>
<div class="_5ybo _1q_o _2zfm _5yhh">
<div class="_fk3">
<div class="_fk4">
<div class="_6shg" id="u_jsonp_18_a">
<div class="_6shg _3-91">
<table class="uiGrid _51mz" style="width: 100%;" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
<tbody>
<tr class="_51mx">
<td class="_51m- vMid hLeft"> </td>
<td class="_51mw _51m- vMid hLeft"> </td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
</div>
<div class="_1rzm rfloat"><span id="u_jsonp_18_9"> </span></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383952019-10-08T02:00:00+02:002020-02-06T16:46:22+01:00Future Human Habitat
<p>With climate change so much in everyone's mind it seems appropriate to examine a few ideas on how humanity might end up having to think about our future habitations on our world. As you would expect, writing Science Fiction a writer needs to give the way humans might need to live on a different world a lot of thought. Personally I think we are a very long way from being able to "terraform" another world to fit our rather specialised needs, so, how would we adapt? What would we be realistically able to do to live on a planet like, say, Mars?</p>
<p>NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA) and others are already applying their minds to this, and coming up with some interesting answers. One of the biggest questions is what would such future settlements be able to find and use that is already there, and what would they have to get from Earth? Obviously, the more they need to get from 'home' the more difficult, and the more expensive the whole exercise becomes. So, ideally, we would initially send the absolute basics, and then develop and adapt what is available there. That's where it starts to get tricky, since extracting metals from ore is an energy intense operation. Mars being geologically all but inert, means there will be nothing like the transfer of minerals that occurs in our own soils (which is also hugely dependent on soil bacteria, insect activity, and so on ...). Then there are small problems like water, food production, atmosphere regeneration and so on, all things we often (or most of us) fail to give much attention to unless compelled by something like the climate change protests, or the impact of changing climate itself.</p>
<p>Once one starts to look at all these things you very quickly realise that our "environment" is a lot more complex than we think. Simply building a habitat on Mars is the easy bit. In order to get plants to grow there is going to require a great deal of effort. Even assuming we can get a soil 'culture' going with the right bacteria, and all the things that control them, we then run into the questions of pollinators, things that control them, and so on and so on. Then we need plants that will grow there in sufficient quantity to feed us. It is encouraging to note that there are scientists working on that one, and not just for future space colonies. Without getting into an argument about it, the climate is changing. That has huge implications for us (and everything else) as a species. Which brings me back to my starting point.</p>
<p>If humanity is going to survive what appears to have the potential to bring about a mass extinction and completely change the Earth as we know it, we need to do one of two things. Adapt very quickly, or change the way we currently live and use the planet in order to "buy time" to adapt or find some solutions. I would suggest that our first step is going to be changing the way we build towns, houses, commercial and industrial centres. I think we may need to look at creating "Habitation Centres" which provide an enclosed environment that concentrate commercial and industrial activities with housing and recreation and community areas. Think of a very large sports stadium, with the tiers seating replaced by tiers of 'housing units' atop commercial premises, atop industrial operators. the centre remains a park, perhaps with swimming and other recreational spaces, and the whole interior is a controlled atmosphere space.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/8d50bf99db940df2dfd27de18c7978d77064903c/original/green-point.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NjAweDMzOCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="338" width="600" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em>An example of the type of structure I suggest could become a closed habitat</em></p>
<p>Recycling water, heat capture and reuse, waste recycling would all play a part. "Wind Towers" would be used to ensure the air circulation is good, and they can also be used to generate electric power to supplement solar accumulators. The general idea would be to create, rather in the manner of the Eden Project in Cornwall, an enclosed habitat dedicated to providing an "Ark" for as wide a bio-diversity as possible alongside humans. Transport would have to be by centrally managed autonomous 'trains', monorail systems and, of course, direct linking transport to other such habitat 'domes'.<br><br> By making each of these domed towns as self-sufficient as possible it should be possible to reduce the human impact on the surrounding countryside. That would allow better land usage (assuming the climate allows it), and reduce the problem emissions. Hopefully it would also permit the currently worst affected land and forests to recover.</p>
<p>Well, it's a long shot, so I guess it just becomes a question of when (and if) someone will make a start at trying to change our thinking on it all. Oh, and just to get people thinking, I suspect that when we do get to Mars, a lot of human activities and accommodation will have to be located below ground ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383942019-09-17T02:00:00+02:002019-09-17T08:51:41+02:00The writing challenge ...
<p>Being an author is an interesting, and sometimes challenging, mix. You're constantly having to juggle ideas for your next book(s), identify the research, market your existing catalogue and find space to actually write something. This is true whether you're published by a 'traditional' publisher, or an 'independent'. It is up to the author to make sure the story hangs together, that the background research is sound, and, of course, the written word is going to hold your reader's attention. I find that once I have the first draft finished, I have to go over it several times, tracking down anything I might have messed up - such as changing a character's name, or introducing a plot device that just serves to derail a reader.</p>
<p>Naturally, in this process you also see places where the story needs more development, or can perhaps do with an additional scene. Typically I find myself 're-writing' parts, adding sections and generally 'polishing' the story. Sometimes a character needs to be developed, or even taken out altogether when doing these revisions. And in between, there is always the checking of facts in the background, managing your various online efforts to sell your books, and, naturally, have time for your family and the business of actually living in the real world.</p>
<p>Some time ago I was asked where I drew some inspiration for my plots from. The answer is that I take much of it from life. If one studies history, you soon realise that there is a pattern to human activity, and certain elements repeat, sometimes taking a new turn, or adapting to fit new technology or cultural changes. Even in the most stable civilisations, rogue elements can derail what everyone assumes is the natural progression. That is the underlying premise to Asimov's "Foundation" series of stories, and it is an element I have woven into my Harry Heron series.</p>
<p>So, while it seems to take forever between books, there is actually a lot happening. For now, <em><strong>Harry Heron: Awakening Threat</strong></em> is the task, and the focus. That, and the Frankfurt Buchmesse next month!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383932019-08-15T02:00:00+02:002020-02-06T16:45:41+01:00Exploring the universe
<p>Part of the fun of writing science fiction is imagining what other life forms might look like, how and why they may have evolved that way, and what impact space travel would have on humans. Homo Sapiens Sapiens has evolved to suit the conditions of our environment on this particular planet. We breath an atmosphere that is mostly Nitrogen, with around 20% Oxygen. We can't survive in an atmosphere where the Oxygen level is below around 12%, and if it goes much higher than around 23% we're in trouble as well. We've evolved to deal with the gravitational force exerted on our bodies by the Earth, and a lot of our physiognomy depends on our being in an environment where "up" is away from the direction of gravitational attraction. Our metabolism requires a certain amount of exposure to sunlight daily, we need water (60 to 80% of our bodies is water) to survive and we are adapted to a fairly narrow range of temperatures in which we can survive and live.</p>
<p>Once we leave the surface of our planet though, all of these essentials to our survival become scarcer and scarcer. In some senses space is like moving ourselves to an underwater habitation. We can't breath water, so, we need to create an air environment in which to live, work and eat. In space there is no atmosphere, so we would rapidly "decompress" if we stepped out of our capsule or space suit. As with being below the surface of the ocean, it is an environment we are not built for, but human ingenuity has provided us with the ability to create ways of dealing with these problems.</p>
<p>In many ways it seems logical to me that any space travel (and I firmly believe that humanity WILL one day venture beyond the solar system) will be somewhat similar to life in a submarine. In both cases you can't simply "go outside", because "outside" is an extremely hostile (to us) environment. Our ships, like a submarine, will need to be entirely self contained, self-sufficient and capable of carrying a crew and everything they may need for the journey. In all humanities earlier migrations, we could live off the land, one we venture into the space between planets, stars and out of our solar system, that will not be possible. So any long distance ship carrying humans is going to need a few features we are not yet able to provide.</p>
<p>Among these is some form of artificial gravity, necessary to keep our bones healthy and prevent muscle wastage. Then we also need some form of radiation screen, something to renew and refresh the atmosphere and some means of producing a supply of food. Some of these are easier than others to cope with. Gravitational effects can be created by creating a cylinder and spinning it at a suitable speed. One about 800 metres in diameter rotating at 50km/h would produce on it's inner surface the same effect as 1 G (Earths gravitational "pull" at the Equator) on Earth. You'd need to overcome the effect of the rotational torque on the lineal direction, probably by having two counter rotating cylinders. The biggest challenge in my view is going to be building these ships, since it will require a lot of effort to lift even small prefabricated sections in to orbit. But now we are into the realms of engineering.</p>
<p>As I said at the start of this, the fun for an author is to try to imagine what a future in which these major feats of engineering are "everyday". A hundred years ago, mankind had just started to learn to fly, and the century since then has seen enormous leaps in knowledge and technology. I remain confident that in the not very distant future mankind will find a way to venture beyond our planet and its satellite. It is just a question of how rapidly the means to do so are developed. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383922019-07-29T02:00:00+02:002019-07-29T14:22:20+02:00Harry Heron: Into the Unknown now in Audiobooks
<p>It really is a great pleasure to announce that <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Harry-Heron-Into-the-Unknown/dp/B07VDTY2F9/ref=sr_1_1?crid=Q4CB09MBM2ES&keywords=harry+heron+into+the+unknown&qid=1564423689&s=books&sprefix=Harry+Heron%3B+%2Caps%2C221&sr=1-1" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron: Into the Unknown</strong></em></a> is now released as an Audiobook by Findaway Voices. It is now onsale through Amazon's Audible, Apple and many more. Lee Beddow of <a href="https://www.abbeysound.org" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Abbeysound</a> did the narration and recording, and it has turned into a stunner. Click on the image below for a sample ...</p>
<p><a href="/files/498732/hhitu-audiobook-sample.mp3" data-imported="1"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/0d3a0d10a639ca506df56aabda5fd66f3c9a5202/original/hhitu-2019-audiobook-jpeg-image.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzAweDMwMCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="300" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="300" /></a></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383912019-07-12T02:00:00+02:002019-07-12T08:31:47+02:00Great News
<p>The Audiobook version of <em><strong>Harry Heron: Into the Unknown</strong></em> is now complete. It is being distributed by Findaway Voices, and will be available from some twenty-four different outlets including Audible, Apple, AudiobooksNZ, Beek, Chirp and many more. I will endeavor to post links to them as an when they go 'live'. In the meantime here is a small 'sample' clip ...</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="/files/498732/hhitu-audiobook-sample.mp3" data-imported="1"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/0d3a0d10a639ca506df56aabda5fd66f3c9a5202/original/hhitu-2019-audiobook-jpeg-image.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzAweDMwMCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="300" width="300" /></a></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383902019-06-26T02:00:00+02:002019-06-26T07:53:02+02:00Some Serious Rebuilding Underway
<p>I'm doing some serious rebuilding of this website at present, so I hope you will bear with me if things don't work quite as smoothly as they should. Part of the process is to reorient this website so that it is entirely focused on the Harry Heron Series. To this end I have set up a separate site as <a href="http://www.patrickgcox.com/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Saints, Sinners and Survivors</a> to showcase my other books, which are not in the genre of Science Fiction. Do take a look, and let me know what you think of the new layout and look.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/55f5244f9c0b749ce050a74bd5f1efc8dc15849e/original/2019-hhitu-3d-cover-web-image.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6ODAweDQ2MCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="460" width="800" /></p>
<p>As with all things, it takes time and thought to get things right with setting up a webpage, and this is, for me, a steep learning curve into the bargain. I'm certainly NO expert when it comes to layouts, marketing ideas and definitely no expert when it comes to the programs that make all the pretty stuff you see happen. So, over the next few days I hope to give each of the Harry Heron books its own page, and I may include pages for the currently planned future books - though obviously I won't be putting up any "spoilers"!</p>
<p>The series started to take shape way back in 2004, and when I look back I can see how much it has been refined, trimmed, expanded and changed since that first draft effort. The plotline of the story hasn't changed, but the way it is presented, and how it is now told has. The early drafts were (now I look back at them) written in the same manner I used to write technical treatises, and Harry and his friends needed to tell the story in a very different style. So here we are, in 2019, with the story now unfolding and finding appreciative readers.</p>
<p>And now I better get back to work on sorting out the website! Thanks for visiting, thanks for reading, and I hope you'll continue the journey with Harry, Ferghal and Danny ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383892019-06-22T02:00:00+02:002022-04-08T08:23:10+02:00Work in Progress ...
<p>Working on getting my websites sorted out reminds me how little I know about programming, marketing, and the clever things like key words, search engines, etc., etc. The general idea is to have two, one for my <em><strong>Harry Heron Adventure Series</strong></em> (this one) and the other for my books that are set in historical or contemporary settings. So, after a lot of running into odd little tricks and problems, I think I now have a reasonably presentable website set up titled <a href="http://patrickgcox.com.hostbaby.com/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Saints, Sinners and Survivors</a>. There's a fair bit still to do, both on that, and here, where I plan to revamp the whole layout.</p>
<p>Did I mention I'm working on a couple of book ideas at the same time? Well, in between family, dogs, current world events (sometimes I think someone is stealing my plotlines for villains) and the other demands of living.</p>
<p>Do visit my new website and let me know what you think. Watch this space as well, there'll be some changes here and some announcements in the not to distant future.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383882019-06-16T02:00:00+02:002019-06-16T11:18:44+02:00Life versus Art
<p>There are definitely times I think I should demand that politicians "cease and desist" trying to turn some of my villains and plotlines into reality. Recent weeks have provided plenty of instances in which I have had the feeling either I'm not being imaginative enough, or someone is borrowing my ideas. I suspect George Orwell would have a similar feeling about some of the latest twists and turns in political development. I guess it could be flattering ...</p>
<p>That aside I'm getting really excited about the imminent 'publication' of the Audiobook version of <a href="https://www.harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/harry_heron_into_the_unknown/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron: Into the Unknown</strong></em></a>. As part of that project, the paperback, hardback and Kindle versions have been given a new cover, in itself an exciting exercise. Listening to someone else read your work aloud is an interesting experience, and a great feeling. As you write, of course, you have certain images and impressions of each character in your head, so hearing someone else's interpretation of how they sound is exciting.</p>
<p>The new cover is a great image, bringing together Harry, Ferghal and his twelve times great-nephew, the commander of the starship Vanguard in one picture. </p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/2559530de8f958cf8a6f86fb441a3f45868946fb/original/hhitu-2019-front-cover.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDAweDU5MyJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="593" width="400" /></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383872019-05-31T02:00:00+02:002019-05-31T14:35:42+02:00"Live Editing"
<p>Is the term I used to describe a process used by unscrupulous televised "live" broadcasts in which the producers edit the panelists words during the broadcast so that the speaker appears to be saying something damning or damaging to their presentation. At the time I started drafting the book, this wasn't possible, and to a limited extent it still isn't. However, as a recent video that went viral on certain social media sites have shown, any video can now be 'doctored' by someone with the right skills, to present a completely false picture of any personality and situation.<br><br>Imagine my surprise to have someone demonstrate this to camera on a television programme discussing just this issue. The demonstration was given by a representative of a Forensic Institute, and the audience was able to watch as he modified a video clip, quite literally putting words into the target's mouth, and removing other parts that didn't fit the desired narrative. Naturally he didn't reveal all the features, and beyond saying that they do have ways to check for modification (as has been done in the video I mentioned above) that will reveal the manipulations -- but these are generally NOT something the average viewer would even know how to carry out even if they did suspect the fraud.</p>
<p>Why would anyone wish to do this? Why indeed, however, in this digital age, there are definite advantages for those with the desire to present a damaging view of an opponent. How can one reach (potentially) millions of people easily? Set up a video on an appropriate platform with the message you want to promote and the big search engines and aggregators will do the rest provided you have the right 'key words' entered for searchers- The advantage is obvious -- by presenting an opponent in the worst possible light, or perhaps twisting or corrupting their message, you undermine their campaign and potentially, their credibility. The worst of it is, of course, that by the time it is 'taken down', the false message has taken root.</p>
<p>So, how did I envisage this in my story? Strange as it may seem the idea had its roots in a complaint that an interview on a television show had been edited and the resulting broadcast gave a false impression of the interviewees motives and views. It struck me at the time that where a show is 'recorded' this is quite easily done, and is, in fact often done for news bulletins where a short clip is used. There is always the danger that the clip -- chosen because it grabs the attention -- can quite easuily be the only part of any longer discussion a majority hear of it. And that, taken out of any context, can leave a completely false impression in the mind of the viewer. Which brings me back to my starting point.</p>
<p>What would happen if an organisation wished to discredit an individual or another organisation, and had the ability to modify a live broadcast to do so? It could be extremely damaging to individuals and to organisations -- just look at how publicity can be used and people manipulated by it. <br><br>I don't want to spoil my plot or my story, but suffice it to say that such individuals and organisations do exist that do make use of these techniques. In the story (still in development), <em><strong>Harry Heron, Hope Transcends</strong></em>, Harry finds himself the target of just such an attempt.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383862019-05-15T02:00:00+02:002020-02-17T19:38:37+01:00Tempus Fugit!
<p>Wow, time flies when you’re having fun ... April sort of vanished in a welter of other demands (like Easter ...) and a week in the UK visiting family, and now half of May is gone as well. So what have I been doing? Actually quite a lot, and it has meant neglecting things like blogging. Looking back though I am astonished at just how much time has elapsed since I first set out to write a SciFi story based on the concept of someone from the 18th Century flung forward in time. That was the original concept behind Harry Heron, and its taken on a life of its own.<br><br>Harry Heron is building a nice following, and I’ve been pleased to see the books are selling steadily, and now picking up some good reviews. I’ve been busy on several projects, not least polishing the MS for the next in the series. It sometimes amazes me that I started writing this story in 2004 (the story is now the book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Harry-Heron-Into-Patrick-Cox-ebook/dp/B01HQLGRDO/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1491904001&sr=1-1&keywords=harry+heron+into+the+unknown" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron: Into the Unknown</strong></em>)</a>. As with the Harry Potter story, the first drafts underwent many revisions, much <span class="text_exposed_show">development and a lot of reworking. But, as I looked for a publisher for the first, I was also writing the second story (now <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Harry-Heron-Quarter-Patrick-Cox-ebook/dp/B077K5WJW4/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1515426016&sr=1-1&keywords=Harry+Heron%3B+No+Quarter" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron: No Quarter</strong></em></a>) which joined the search for a publisher, and also needed (thanks to getting an editorial appraisal and critique) a lot of revision and rewriting. That was followed by <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Harry-Heron-Fugitive-Patrick-Cox-ebook/dp/B07HP7JCYP/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1538222747&sr=1-1&keywords=harry+heron+savage+fugitive" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron: Savage Fugitive</strong></em></a>, by now with the characters well established, it had become fun, with many new ideas to explore. </span></p>
<div class="text_exposed_show">
<p>My “notes” for the “backstory” of the protagonists (you can’t write characters convincingly in my view unless you know their life story) became the basis of <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Harry-Heron-Midshipmans-Patrick-Cox-ebook/dp/B01HQL2V98/ref=pd_sim_351_2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=2P2RAB4KD8CCM9XS3DC3" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron: Midshipman’s Journey</strong></em></a>, and so the story has developed since finding a publisher. Writing the story is only half the task, the other half is promoting it, but that is another story entirely. Right now I would just like to thank all of you reading this who have bought one or more of my books. I hope you have enjoyed the story, and I hope you will buy the next when it is released in a few months time. Look out for <em><strong>Harry Heron: Awakening Threat</strong></em>.</p>
<p style="text-align: right;"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/2c0a86c2e1552a8c713dba1340c1d84c78ad36df/original/hhmj-front-cover-2017-2.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzAweDQ1NCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_left border_" alt="" height="454" width="300" /></p>
<p style="text-align: right;"> </p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://www.harryheron.com/img/Harry_Heron_Into_the_Unknown_-_CS_new_cover_2017.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="492" width="300" /></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/ee6e975fe95e307b95dd7510bac7439d6746b374/original/20882380-1259132394216474-6747332192143926715-n.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzAweDQ1MCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="450" width="300" /> <img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/48a3fb5fcda57303d44e7c184f04da3b4ce4a15b/original/hhsf-draft.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzAweDQ0OSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="449" width="300" /></p>
</div>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383852019-03-26T01:00:00+01:002019-03-26T08:28:21+01:00Keeping up with events
<p>The old Chinese curse "May you live in interesting times" seems to have landed on us all at the moment. Since my last post here in February, the world seems to have done several backflips, a somersault or two, and lord alone knows what its doing in the political sphere at the moment. In all of this I've been busy trying to get a couple of stories written. Now that, you might think, is simple. Produce an outline and synopsis, and then knuckle down and write!</p>
<p>Nope. Just as you think you have it going nicely, you discover a "little" flaw in the plot. And to fix it means rearranging or rewriting a big chunk of it. It gets more complicated when "life" intrudes seriously demanding attention which keeps you away from what you really want to be doing. I could argue that it at least gives you lots of time to work out plot wriggles, character development and so on, but it seldom does. Then, when you do sit down to get things moving again ... Let's just say that it sometimes means that all those brilliant ideas you were going to put in, won't work.</p>
<p>Inspiration comes in funny ways and at odd times. One of my routines for the day is to take my two Shelties for a walk. They insist, in fact I'm convinced the elder of the two, has a watch hidden somewhere in his fur. He knows the schedule, and he makes sure to remind me if I forget. Our walk takes us into farmland and the edges of a forest reserve, and we often encounter deer, squirrels (oh boy!), foxes (who are never sure whether the Shelties are foxes or not ...) and many more small, medium and large critters. Sometimes I'll be wrestling with a plotline or character as I walk, and often I will see something that triggers a new line of thought, and the solution I am looking for.</p>
<p>When I'm not walking, writing or dealing with household matters at the moment I'm researching the historical background to a couple of stories I want to develop. The trouble is that the historical period is a fascinating one (Mid to late Victorian Britain and the Coionisation of Southern Africa ...). I've filled several notebooks so far, and I haven't done more than create a story outline yet. The problem is that if I'm not strict about it, I tend to get sucked into the history, even when it isn't especially relevant to what I'm looking for. History is so much more than "names, dates and places" when you really get into it. As the book, Ecclesiaticus (Sirach) says, "Let us now praise famous men ..." and a little further in it changes and says, "... And some there be that have no memorial ..." continuing to explain that these "little people" are every bit as important in the history of any nation, people or event as those "big names" remembered with statues and memorials, and perhaps more so. Those are the people who interest me.</p>
<p>I fully agree with the late great Sir Terry Pratchett, that writing is the most fun you can have on your own. But perhaps, more important is how much you learn in the process.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383842019-02-11T01:00:00+01:002019-12-21T20:55:25+01:00Life imitates art?
<p>Around fourteen years ago I began developing my ideas for the Harry Heron adventures. The idea arouse out of my reading an article which suggested that with our modern lifestyles, we were rapidly losing old skills, some of them key to survival should we find ourselves deprived of some of our modern 'conveniences'. That started me wondering what would happen if someone from the past was projected into the future. Okay, there would be a huge knowledge gap, and there'd be other problems for the character as well, but the key question is what would he or she bring to the future that might have been lost, or perhaps was simply no longer the way people responded?</p>
<p>That, in part, proved to be the easy part. A story needs at least three elements, one a 'hero', two a 'villain' and the third is a reason why 'one' and 'two' are in conflict. At first glance it seems easy to create a reason for a conflict, after all, human history is riddled with them.The problem is to invent something that is plausible, and, in SciFi, preferably not just a rehashing of something that has either happened already, or tied to a particular moment in time. So, after quite a bit of thought, a lot of research and reading, I decided the perfect future villain and 'enemy of freedom/democracy' would be a consortium of super rich individuals, families and corporations using their wealth and influence through a single co-ordinating body to control and direct elected governments. </p>
<p>It seemed like the perfect 'villain' at the time, and, of course, provided lots of opportunities for all manner of rogue individuals and organisations to get up to some pretty nefarious activity. All fine and dandy, except recent events in the international sphere suggest it wasn't just a 'plausible' idea, but pretty close to a reality in some aspects. Maybe I should demand royalties.</p>
<p>At the time I started developing the stories, Artificial Intelligence was very much in its infancy. That is no longer the case. It sometimes seems that the sort of AI I envisaged will be with us sooner than I thought. Something similar is also happening with the concept of android servants, and I am definitely looking forward to the day someone comes up with the means to create artificial gravity that doesn't involve rotating sections of the ship's hull, and, of course, the sort of drive that would make possible realistic interstellar travel. as an engineer I knew some years ago used to tell his students, "don't tell me 'it's impossible'. Prove it." His point was that almost all major strides in engineering have come about through efforts to prove something couldn't be done.</p>
<p>Writing in the SciFi genre certainly gives an author's mind plenty of exercise. Your plot, your characters, your engineering and your science have to be within the bounds of possible - and you want it to be readable as well. A tall order? Not necessarily, and I'd like to think the Harry Heron adventures achieve it.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383832019-01-12T01:00:00+01:002019-01-12T10:50:16+01:00Evolution At Work
<p>It is interesting (at least I find it interesting) to speculate on how humans might adapt to a new, or very different, environment to the one that has produced us. As I wrote a few months ago, this is one of the challenges when creating believable aliens for science fiction, even if you don't want them to be able to talk to or work with human protagonists. I know I'm not the first author to deal with this as it is a very tricky area. If you think of some of the Star Wars aliens as an example, many would really be hard pressed to communicate with their human counterparts, and some are, quite frankly, not really believable. The aliens in Farscape were much more realistic, and the solution to the communication problem creative (I do enjoy the Babble Fish idea in Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy ...), but one problem with any kind of translation/translator is that a large part of communication is neither verbal nor even oral.</p>
<p>So, back to my original thought, how might humans evolve in a different environment?</p>
<p>Genetics play a huge role, and recent studies of the remains of Neanderthals and Denisovan DNA, suggest that modern humans did not just interact with these vanished human species, but mated with them, and the hybridisation is a large part of how modern Homo Sapiens Sapiens developed. We know too, that mass migrations in Europe, Asia and elsewhere, have brought an exchange of genes that have also played a large part in our evolution, a fact borne out by the fate of some isolated representatives of our species which include regression and even a stalling of further evolution. Scientists suggest that there are just seven definitive Haplotypes outside of Africa, and some forty-five in that continent. That suggests the future evolutionary path may well begin with a broadening of our genetic pool by the introduction of new genes from African groups. Where will that lead us? A good question, perhaps to a more heat tolerant, less water dependent human? It might be useful if the climate changes as dramatically as most scientists suggest.</p>
<p>And that's just if we stay on the planet.</p>
<p>We know that astronauts suffer a loss of bone density during a prolonged stay in space. They are also subject to exposure to some dangerous radiation. The latter can be at least partially screened, but the changes in our bones is more difficult if one is contemplating a lengthy stay in space. Then there is the fact that we need exposure to sunlight to remain healthy - some authorities say we need a minimum of twenty minutes a day - as sunlight triggers a process in our skin that results in the production of Vitamin D. This is essential to our mental health, and is believed to be related to a number of disabling genetic disorders such as Multiple Schlerosis, Muscular Dystrophy and one or two others. It can be addressed by including it as a supplement into our diet, but that is not the most efficient way to do so.</p>
<p>Exercise in a zero gravity environment helps maintain muscle strength, and slows the loss of bone density (Don't forget the bones are essential as our red blood cells are produced in the marrow), but doesn't entirely eliminate it. What all of this suggests is this; if we colonise space, and we do so without some form of artificial gravity or the simulation of it, we will very likely begin to evolve into something very different to what we are, and how we appear, now. If you think of the creatures that live in the oceans, their shapes, skeletal structures and even the distribution of their organs have been dictated by their environment. They are perfectly adapted to it. They swim rather than walk, they get their essential elements from it, along with their food. They don't need ears, so they sense movement and sound in ways we don't experience. Their eye structure differs from ours as well (though our eyes have evolved from a water dwelling creature originally) and living in an environment and medium which produces a form of zero gravity, limbs tend to be unnecessary.</p>
<p>Which raises several interesting possibility for future generations of humans living in a zero-gravity environment. Could we adapt? I think the jury is still arguing that one, my feeling is probably not, and certainly not rapidly enough for a viable population to develop. The alternative is for humanity to start genetically modifying selected people to develop a strain of Homo Sapiens adapted to live entirely in space. Many years ago a now forgotten SciFi author explored it in a series of YA books which postulated a future society in which children born on space stations were raised in a different atmospheric mix, and in the reduced gravity of the stations. This made them taller, increased thoracic volume and produced several other physiological changes. It also meant that if any of these space raised humans returned to Earth, they needed to wear a space suit as Earth's atmosphere contained too much oxygen for them, and the gravity was high enough to cause strain on their bones. Certainly the most recent studies I've read regarding prolonged space flight, suggest that concept may not be far from the mark.</p>
<p>So, assuming we do find a way to undertake prolonged journeys in space, and to reach very distant worlds, these are all considerations we will need to take into account when colonising them. It won't be as simple as the founding of colonies in the 15th to 20th Centuries, that is certain. The humans who settle them will begin to adapt and change. It won't be obvious for the first four or five generations I suspect, but then the differences between them and those "at home" will start to mount up. How great the divergence will become will be dictated by the adaptation necessary to their new environment and exposure to new viral and bacterial agents. On the one hand it will be an exciting and interesting experience. On the other it will take humanity into completely uncharted waters.</p>
<p>And what of those who remain on Earth? That will, I think, be most of us and our descendants. As I wrote earlier, we will also be adapting and changing as this planet continues on its own evolution of change. The continents will change, the oceans will change, we, along with all the other species on it, will need to adapt to whatever climactic changes come with those changes. Hopefully, our replacements will learn to work with the rest of nature and the environment to limit our own footprint while we become whatever we need to be in a future world. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383822019-01-01T01:00:00+01:002019-01-01T07:24:56+01:00New Year; New Stories
<p>Time to start a new year with a wish for all my readers that you have a great year to look forward to. From where I sit it is looking exciting. <em><strong>Harry Heron; Into the Unknown</strong></em> will be turned into an <a href="/files/498731/harry-heron-voice-demo.mp3" data-imported="1">audio book</a> later this year, and the next in the Harry Heron series, <em><strong>Harry Heron: Awakening Threat</strong></em>, will be published. It is going to be a busy year, and an exciting one. There's plenty to do, and lots more writing to be done an, as Sir Terry Pratchett once remarked, writing is the most fun you can have on your own.</p>
<p>I've been asked by readers where I get my ideas from, what is the inspiration? The answer isn't as easy as you might think. The ideas and the inspiration often come from different sources. I might read something in one of the science journals I enjoy, or something in a newspaper sets off a train of thought. Sometimes even a new insight inspired by an old children's story. Characters are often inspired by people I have known, or encountered along life's journey. No one is ever simple, no one is ever two dimensional, we are all extremely complex, a mix of all we have done, seen, encountered and had done to us. Often in creating a character for a story you gain a sudden insight into why someone you knew did what they did and behaved as they did.</p>
<p>Every book begins with an outline and some research (yes, even science fiction), and every bit of research turns up some new facet about people or events. That's what I find fascinating, and, if I'm not careful, can get drawn off into something that isn't going to help whatever I'm working on. Often I find a story simply will not work the way I envisaged at the outset, either because some character in it refuses to develop as I intended, or because it simply wants to go in a different direction. It can be frustrating, but it is also fun.</p>
<p>So, my friends, here's to a bright and productive 2019!</p>
<p> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383812018-12-09T01:00:00+01:002018-12-09T12:40:11+01:00Future Food
<p>Ever wonder what we could do to replace our present rather cruel provision for supplying meat for our ever growing populations? In order to produce 'cheap' meat for the supermarkets, we currently use industrial style farming in which pigs, chickens and other animals are born in pens, grow up in pens, and are taken from those pens to the slaughterhouse. Given what we now know about animal intelligence, how they experience pain, emotions - all the things we experience - there is a growing awareness that we have to find ways to do this more humanely.</p>
<p>Some readers may recall a television series "V for Visitors" or just "Visitors" in which a Saurian race arrives on Earth disguised as 'human'. They make all manner of friendly promises, eagerly accepted by the governments of various nations (super technology, offers to 'train' people, etc.) and lots of people are sent to their ships. It takes a while before people start to realise that no one stays in contact, and no one returns. Of course, in the meantime some human/alien relationships develop ... so it comes, eventually, as a shock, to discover that the aliens, these apparently benevolent "Visitors" are here for one purpose only- To harvest us as "food" for their home world. As you've probably now gathered, it made quite an impression on me back in the 1980s.It also made me think about how we see other species.</p>
<p>And before you ask, no, I am not a vegan or a vegetarian ...</p>
<p>More recently there has been a lot in the news about the loss of natural habitat as we expand our agricultural activity in pursuit of food and, of course, profit for the major food producers. Add to that the fact that meat production - or more scientifically, animal husbandry - produces enormous amounts of greenhouse gases, and very dependent on the production of food, much of which must be processed, increasing both the demand for more industry and for more agricultural land. In effect it becomes a bit of an environmental nightmare. There are, however, alternatives, and this is where I think he future lays. </p>
<p>I first started thinking about it when I started writing my SciFi series, the Harry Heron adventures. In the age of sail into which Harry and his friends were born, ships carried livestock at the start of a long voyage, otherwise they were dependent on what is probably best described as 'pickled' food in casks, with most of that being barely edible at best. Now, of course, refrigeration allows freezing and chilling, so fresh and healthy food is much more readily available. But, once we venture into space - especially once we begin to venture further afield than Earth orbit or the Moon, we need to start thinking about a different approach. Coincidentally at least one solution to both the quest for a supply of meat is already under development. It may well, in the not too distant future replace the current system of intensive animal farming, and it provides the means to supply fresh meat to spacefarers without having to resort to shipping animals into space for slaughter, or to carrying large quantities of tinned, frozen or otherwise preserved food.</p>
<p>New technology is being developed that allows the harvesting of stem cells from the muscle tissue of an animal, which can then be developed into a replica of the tissue it was taken from. At present it is possible to produce beefsteak mince, pork mince or chicken this way. The technology still has a way to go, but it is improving and the product is, so I read, very close in taste and texture to anything from your local butcher. Nor is this the only research underway.</p>
<p>When writing my stories I had in mind this kind of process (3D printers were then in their infancy ...) for producing meals. In my researching the problem, I came across another idea, employing genetically modified fungi. The problem with that process was the taste, but that, in its turn, could be (and now is) being addressed by, you've guessed it, introducing some genetic modifications, to make the fungi meat-like. </p>
<p>Once again, the problem for a SciFi writer who prefers to keep things "possible" and not get into the realms of "magic", is that technology is now moving so fast that you no sooner think of an idea for the future, than you discover someone is already working on it ...</p>
<p>Now if someone can just come up with an artificial gravity system, and a radiation screen to protect the occupants of a long range space craft ... </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383802018-11-22T01:00:00+01:002018-11-22T08:48:37+01:00Creating Aliens ...
<p>I expect it is a challenge every Science Fiction author faces. Let's face it, if you are writing about interstellar travel, you are, at some point, going to have to meet alien life forms. It is extremely unlikely they/it will look anything like we do. Why? Put simply, because "life" tends to adapt to a range of things such as the environment it inhabits, the available food sources, the kind of atmosphere it lives in (and water is an atmosphere ...), the gravitational field of the planet, and even the radiation it must live with emitted by the local sun. If you think about it, you rapidly realise that this raises a number of challenges when you expect humans to interact with it.</p>
<p>Okay, as an author, you are essentially "creating" the kind of lifeforms your story demands, so most authors in this genre tend to create hominid types, and for convenience, we give them "languages" that can be translated into "human speak". Well, if we didn't, we'd have a pretty tricky situation in the storyline, but that, in itself creates a small difficulty. Language tends to be need/environment specific, thus idiomatic expressions often don't translate between languages from different cultures - and sometimes even lose meaning in the same language as used in different parts of the world. It is famously said that the Inuit peoples have something like forty words for "snow" and I am told that if you ask someone from the tropics what word they have for it, you will get a blank stare - they simply don't have a word for something that doesn't happen in their environment.</p>
<p>Researchers have now established that many animals communicate very effectively, and can convey quite complex messages by combinations of sounds, expressions or gestures, so language is not unique, and is not confined to words as we know it. Dolphins, Orcas and Whales all convey complex information by means of whistles and other sounds, some of which are too high or too low for us to hear. Bees can also communicate exact directions to sources of food by means of complex movements and perhaps scents we can't detect. The list goes on and on, and that is just communication!</p>
<p>Body shape and structure is another complex issue. On Earth life has tended to develop as either land dwelling or marine, but there are branches of both best described as amphibious. Fish with lungs and fins adapted allow movement on land, and air breathing animals adapted to live in water but capable of coming ashore and living there. Where humanity evolved in the niche between water and mountain peak, other species evolved to live in rather specific habitats everywhere in between that range, and so it may be with any aliens we encounter when we eventually do begin to explore the vastness of space.</p>
<p>Gravity on Earth being what it is, we (and many other species) have evolved a bone skeletal structure to support or organs and which shapes us. We are adapted exactly to function in an upright stance, on land, within the gravitational forces of our planet and with an oxygen content in the atmosphere of between 18 and 22% Below that level we need life support systems, and above that will result in oxygen poisoning and death if sustained. Others may have developed in atmospheres with less oxygen (If you go above 25% oxygen the planet is likely to be extremely combustible!), or even to breath something else. It is fairly certain that prolonged voyages into space (and here I'm assuming we would do so with some form of artificial gravity) will certainly cause evolutionary changes to the travellers over a prolonged period. Some argue that these would be obvious by the third or fourth generations and I can certainly see the rational there. After all, our current environment on our home planet both shapes and restricts us, so someone removed from it, and placed in an environment that has, perhaps, a lower gravitational pull, lower oxygen levels and a different source of food, may begin adapting to that. </p>
<p>They would probably grow taller, their bones become lighter and possibly less rigid. Hair might not be retained, longer, more flexible fingers could be an advantage ... The list is endless, and, of course, pure speculation at this point in time. </p>
<p>So, as an author, how do I want my aliens? As part of the story they need to be, for me, within the bounds of the realistic. They generally need to be air breathers otherwise the story gets into all manner of complications as you end up with half the "cast" in environment suits of some kind and the need to keep changing through airlocks. I choose to make them hominid if they are going to talk/work with humans. It could get tricky again if your alien is a squid-like creature since they are perfectly adapted for a completely different environment to that for humans. If you don't want that interaction of course, you can get a lot more creative. That is how, in <em><strong>Harry Heron: No Quarter,</strong></em> I set part of the story on a warm and damp planet with the top predator a sort of walking tree, and other creatures that were giant versions of things like the insect eating plants one finds in parts of the tropics. Other creatures resemble large insects and even outsized creatures normally only visible through a microscope. You certainly don't have to look far for inspiration among the plants, animals, aquatic creatures and birds.</p>
<p>So, returning to my starting point, in my Harry Heron series, I've tried to create believable 'aliens' who are able to interact with humans, and others who give a strange planet the sort of diversity you would expect. Have I got it right? You be the judge. You can explore my alien creations in my books.<br><br><em><strong>Harry Heron: Into the Unknown </strong></em><br><em><strong>Harry Heron: No Quarter</strong></em><br><em><strong>Harry Heron: Savage Fugitive</strong></em><br><br>and to find out where Harry and his friends come from, read <em><strong>Harry Heron: Midshipman's Journey</strong></em> to learn why Harry, Ferghal and Danny think and act as they do when confronted by the Lacertains, the Canids and others ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383792018-11-13T01:00:00+01:002022-03-14T11:37:12+01:00Exploring Audio
<p>Very excited to be exploring creating Audio Book versions of the Harry Heron series. This is a project I have wanted to explore for some time now, and think I have finally got something that will make it possible. I am very pleased with this sample clip from <em><strong>Harry Heron: Into the Unknown</strong></em> is produced by <a href="https://abbeysound.org/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Abbey Sound</a> in the UK, and voiced by Lee Beddow, the owner and producer. I am looking forward now to getting this project started and working with Lee and my Publisher, IndieGo Publishing to get it done.</p>
<p>You just need FlashPlayer to listen to this clip, a demo of Lee reading Chapter 1. Please click on the image below ...</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="/files/498731/harry-heron-voice-demo.mp3" data-imported="1"><img src="https://www.harryheron.com/img/Harry_Heron_Into_the_Unknown_-_CS_new_cover_2017.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="614" width="375" /></a></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383782018-10-15T02:00:00+02:002018-10-21T13:51:18+02:00Fiction Driving Innovation?
<p>I read some time ago an article which suggested that science fiction was an essential driver in moving science forward in practical ways. The writer of that pointed to the "communicators" envisioned in Star Trek as a prime example, suggesting that the original concept provided the kernel of the idea that grew into mobile phones. I suspect that can be argued several ways, but it is certainly true that as one looks back at some of the classic scifi, there is a lot to suggest there is something in the idea. I can think of several references in the writing of Heinlein or Asimov that have real examples in everyday use today. Some, of course, like Heilein's "Thorsen Tubes" - programmable "tubes" which provided the memory for his automated machines - have their equivalent in today's solid state hard drives and USB Sticks. Artificial Intelligence, a dream twnety years ago, still very basic in application ten years ago, is now used in quite a large number of applications, though it still isn't quite up to the level of HAL 9000 in the classic scifi movie 2001: A Space Odessey.</p>
<p>While we may be a long way from achieving that sort of AI coomputer system, the advances in almost every field of computer science in the last ten years have been amazing. We tend to forget that in the last century we have gone from horse drawn traffic, to self propelled vehicles, from a motorized box kite to supersonic flight and the space station by way of men walking on the surface of the moon. Will we see men and women eventually set foot on the surface of Mars? I believe the answer is yes, though possibly not for a few years yet. Will we see human colonies on other planets? Again, possibly, though here we run into a number of interesting possibilities, not least being that our current form has evolved for living on THIS planet. We may have to evolve further to make the voyage to a new planet and live in space while we get there, and then we will have to readapt to the conditions on whichever planet we eventually wash up on.<br><br>These are exciting possibilities. Certainly they also present some huge challenges, but then our forefather's ventured out to sea in boats made around willow frames and covered with hides, followed by more rigid hulls, which only gradually got larger over centuries. During that time we were also evolving, changing and adapting to new climates, new diets and the new environments we moved invaded. I think we're a very adaptable species, and we probably haven't finished yet. As Stephen Hawking has written in a treatise shortly before his death, humanity, or Homo Sapiens Sapiens, is already evolving and may eventually divide to become a new branch, Homo Sapiens Superiorensis. In fact, that may already be well underway.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383772018-10-04T02:00:00+02:002018-10-04T08:51:39+02:00Very Encouraging
<p>A very nice response to the release of <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Harry-Heron-Fugitive-Patrick-Cox-ebook/dp/B07HP7JCYP/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1538659860&sr=1-1&keywords=Harry+Heron%3A+Savage+Fugitive" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron: Savage Fugitive</strong></em></a>!</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/08e6a87b4a4afbec6727c05a85967b201c7f89b9/original/harry-heron-savage-fugitive-front-cover.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzAweDQ1MiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="452" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="300" />Sales in the week since it was released have been very good, and best of all, I am starting to see revived sales in the earlier books thanks to readers who have enjoyed this one and gone looking for the others. As an author it is a really good feeling to know that people are reading and enjoying your books. For those that haven't encountered the Harry Heron series, they are:</p>
<p><em><strong>Harry Heron: Midshipman's Journey</strong></em>. Harry and Ferghal embark on a voyage to the Far East and a future unimaginable ...</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://harryheron.com/img/HHMJ_front_cover_2017.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="454" width="300" /></p>
<p><em><strong>Harry Heron: Into the Unknown</strong></em>. Catapulted into a new age, and a new kind of ship, Harry Ferghal and the Powder Monkey Danny must find their feet quickly ...</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://harryheron.com/img/Harry_Heron_Into_the_Unknown_-_CS_new_cover_2017.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="492" width="300" /></p>
<p><em><strong>Harry Heron: No Quarter</strong></em>. The Fleet College is a centre of learning and, it seems, some nasty intrigue ...</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/ee6e975fe95e307b95dd7510bac7439d6746b374/original/20882380-1259132394216474-6747332192143926715-n.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzAweDQ1MCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="450" width="300" /></p>
<p>I hope you will enjoy them all. Work proceeds on the next two books in the series, with the Fifth, <em><strong>Harry Heron: Awakening Threat</strong></em>, making an appearance early in 2019.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383762018-09-29T02:00:00+02:002018-10-07T05:54:37+02:00Harry Heron: Savage Fugitive Released!
<p>Book 4 of the Harry Heron Adventure series is now on sale. <a href="https://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/harry_heron:_savage_fugitive/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron: Savage Fugitive</strong></em></a> is available from Kindle and as a paperback through most bookstores via the Ingram/Bowker networks. As the author it is naturally exciting to see sales gathering pace and I think my readers will not be disappointed. Getting a book published is a complex, sometimes trying, project. As the author I produce what I hope is a good story and a reasonable manuscript, which then goes to the Publisher. In my case, <strong>INDIEGO PUBLISHING LLC,</strong> and the editor, <strong>Janet Angelo</strong>.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/08e6a87b4a4afbec6727c05a85967b201c7f89b9/original/harry-heron-savage-fugitive-front-cover.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NjAweDkwMyJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="903" width="600" /></p>
<p>Janet is meticulous, and she's best described as a "developmental" editor, one who looks at the story and spots the holes in the plot, the inconsistencies and the character flaws. From her I get a list of corrections, changes, additional writing needed to bridge gaps, or enhance scenes, and once that's been addressed, then it's time to invite Beta Readers to take a look at the story and give their criticisms. Once those have been addressed, it's back to the editor, and then the final layout, internal design and so on can be done.</p>
<p>Of course, running in the background of all that is the design of the cover. This one has been created by <strong><a href="http://www.judithsdesign.com/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">JudithS Designs and Creativity</a></strong> and really captures the characters and the tension of the story.</p>
<p>I hope you will enjoy the story, and, if you've not read the first three in the series, will enjoy them as well.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383752018-09-03T02:00:00+02:002019-12-21T20:55:22+01:00Good Feedback
<p>Authors need good feedback if they are to sharpen their storytelling skills. You can't do it if all you hear is your own voice, or that of someone close who will tell you what you want to hear. My latest book has proved this to me several times. As you would expect, when an author sends the finished manuscript of a book to the publisher, he/she thinks it is just about perfect. The story makes sense to you, you think you've covered all the plot holes, you think you've picked up and tied off all the loose threads. Then your editor gets hold of it ...</p>
<p>If you have a good editor, they will tell you in no uncertain terms where your story is weak, where characters lack credibility, where something is confusing, or illogical to a reader. And, believe me, that last word is all important. As an author, you may think the story flows, that the characters are all clear cut, that the dialogues are easy to follow and the 'speakers' are identifiable, but your 'readers' don't know the story as you do. They don't have the characters playing in their heads as you did, and now your writing needs to convey those voices in ways that make all this crystal clear. This is beyond mere 'line editing', this is 'developmental editing'. If you are writing a series - as I am with the Harry Heron books - this editing process can get fraught. Remember, the editor may also be editing several other stories in between your books, so it is up to you to address any anomalies the editor identifies.</p>
<p>It is tremendously encouraging to have feedback too from Beta Readers which confirms that the editor was right, and even more so when they confirm that the characters, and the universe, you have created is not just believable, but likeable. I've had some great feedback from the Beta Readers on this book, and here is a sample of what one wrote summing up her impressions -</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Favourite characters is a tough question. Obviously Harry Heron is the hero, but I liked most of the senior officers, even if they were basically there to explain what was happening in the big wide world. Why? They were real leaders. They weren’t just figureheads at a distance. They were integral to the plot, receiving intel and making decisions. The admirals and captains all worked with their teams instead of doing the old Captain Kirk thing of issuing orders with no thought of consequences. The Brigadier on the planet Peiho 4, despite being the enemy, was treated as a fully-rounded person and actually a decent leader, just on the wrong side from our point of view. That’s much closer to life than you usually get in fiction.<br><br>It was interesting to see so many female leaders, on an equal footing with the men in terms of their personal strengths and weaknesses. It went totally unremarked and was a fascinating hint at what equality could be like if it’s ever allowed!</p>
<p>So there you have it, a taster which I will hope encourages you to give it a try when it is released around the end of this month. Keep an eye out for <em><strong>Harry Heron; Savage Fugitive</strong></em>, Book 4 in the Harry Heron series, on Kindle and in Paperback, on sale soon.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383742018-08-17T02:00:00+02:002019-12-21T20:55:21+01:00Dystopian Stories - Self-fulfilling Prophecies?
<p>Reading an article on one of the several 'feeds' I follow for interesting news, ideas and so on, I came across one that certainly got me thinking. Entitled <a href="https://medium.com/@tessa_6155/what-teen-dystopian-novels-can-tell-us-about-the-future-4ca5c64a97af" target="_blank" data-imported="1">"What Teen Dystopian Novels Can Tell Us about the Future"</a> it discusses how the genre projects a very bleak image of any future society. It hit a number of points I regularly consider, and reminded me that in my early 'teens and twenties I was also an avid reader of some of the authors and novels she mentions. The scary thing is that, like Orwell's famous "<em><strong>1984</strong></em>" they project futures which are all too plausible. Worse, the ideas within them have slowly entered our lives and our societies.</p>
<p>The first example, "<em><strong>The Hunger Games</strong></em>" projects a society in which the rich have everything and more, and the rest of the populace struggle merely to survive. Worse, are debased to the point they have to take part in degrading conflicts and 'games' with the illusion of escaping their lot. While this is the classic, one could name many more with similar themes and the examples she gives all contain elements we already see in our societies, but which weren't so apparent when the books were written. Looking at the popular movie genre of 'Disaster' as well, one finds quite a number of stories built around possible future events, some more plausible than others. But one thing that did leap out at me as I considered this, was that there is a sub-theme to many of them, and it is that which I want to explore.</p>
<p>The sub-theme is a simple one; the plucky, rugged individual(s) who stand alone, survive whatever natural or man-made event triggers the dystopia, and then, through sheer raw individualism and self-reliance, succeed in overthrowing the 'oppressive rulers' and saving society. It is an appealing one, but it is also a rather unrealistic dream. Self-reliance is a good thing, but the idea that any wider interests than those of the individuals are necessarily bad is a pernicious one. If one looks carefully at some of the best selling books and movies you quickly realise that it is a very widely used and spread idea. Consider Star Wars as an example. The Empire is portrayed very simplistically as "bad" and "evil", all it's leaders are corrupt and arrogant, all the organs of 'state' aimed only at suppressing the individual. Enter then the ignorant 'apprentice', the cowboy drug runner, the rebel Princess ... and the Empire is defeated.</p>
<p>Only one problem, the world and reality don't work that way. Reality is like a domino tumble. A very complex one in which key dominos can be made to fall in a different direction, changing the next series of tumblers. All too often, in my view, we, as authors, forget this, and in presenting the simplistic vision (Good always wins over Evil and One plucky individual always beats the all powerful bad guy) to young readers we may well be setting in train a future in which elements of <strong><em>The Divinity Bureau</em></strong> or <em><strong>Delirium</strong></em> become "acceptable" - because it's how the reader thinks the world is. Both the books I have mentioned here have their origins in real attitudes and 'treatments' applied in the 1900s and even into the 1950s - and which are still practiced in different forms today. Mythologies which appeal to popular emotions and movements have a way of being turned into realities, often with terrible consequences.</p>
<p>No way, you may cry, it's fiction. Nobody thinks fiction is reality! One would hope so, but then you have those who read the novel "The Da Vinci Code" who went to the church named and described in the book to dig up the floor and break open the altar candle stands looking for the "hidden secrets" the book is about. Nor is this the only book that has sparked similar actions. And that brings me back to the article I started out with. If you have not read any of these books, you may find it informative to do so.</p>
<p>So what is my point, you ask? It is a simple one. We, as authors, have stories we want to tell. Obviously we also want people to hear them, read them, perhaps see them. But I think we also have a duty to ensure we depict things - especially real events and historical ones - accurately and completely. Yes, we entertain, but we need to do it in a manner that does not foster untruths, or promote dystopia for anyone. The written word is a powerful tool, let us use it wisely and well.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383732018-08-07T02:00:00+02:002018-10-08T05:07:00+02:00Step by Step ...
<p>I think that many readers have the impression that an author "writes" the book, the editor checks the grammar, typos and so on, and the publisher does the layouts, conversions (for eBooks) and so on, an artist perhaps creates the cover, and that's it, the book goes to the printing and ... I'm afraid it doesn't quite work like that. </p>
<p>For a start when the author sends the finished MS to the publisher, he (in my case) will have written it, gone back over it several times, and hopes he has sewn it up. Certainly you hope you've caught all the plot holes, gaps, characters who mysteriously change names, and other characters who appear out of nowhere and vanish again. And then the editor gets hold of it. What you may have fondly thought was a 'finished' project turns out to need a lot more work. This is one reason why publishing a new book can take anywhere from one to three years. If, like me, you are an Indie author using a Joint Venture system, it is usually six months to a year from first submission to final release, in the traditional publishing houses, anywhere from a year to three years is considered good.</p>
<p>Why should this be so? </p>
<p>The answer is quite simple. The "editor's" task is much more than simply catching typos and stray commas. It involves looking at the story as a whole. Is it "readable"? Does it grip your attention? Many people (including some of us authors) would like to think their work does meet those criteria, but then, we are stood far to close to the story, and the editor sometimes has to prick our egos and insist that we rewrite bits where we perhaps got lost in our own writing. This is called "developmental" editing, and believe me it does make a difference. By identifying where narrative and dialogue are either stifling the flow, or need to be enhanced to improve the story, the developmental editor isn't trying to "take over" the story or change it, but rather encouraging the author to do a bit of thinking, to see it as a "reader" will see it, and give the reader something to really enjoy or to grip their imagination.</p>
<p>Even the really big name authors go through this process, which explains why it can take a year or more to get their books from "first draft" to bookshelf in the bookstore with that all important "Best Selling Author" tag on the display as you enter the shop. Indies, like myself, may never see that big display, or that tag - partly because we are unlikely to have the big marketing budget behind us - but we can never hope to achieve it either unless our published work is every bit as professionally finished and presented as theirs. </p>
<p>My latest book, <strong><em>Harry Heron; Savage Fugitive</em></strong>, takes Harry and his friends to a harsh new world in enemy hands. It has take a lot of work between my editor and myself to get it smoothed out and almost to the point of publication. We are nearly there, just a little more work needed to finish it properly. As the fourth book in the series it needs to show what you would expect in the characters as they grow and develop, and it must be consistent with the worlds/universe I created in the first three. I think (and my editor is at last satisfied) that we have achieved that, so here is a little taster from the book ...</p>
<p class="Body" style="padding-left: 30px;">The launch dipped then steadied as Harry concentrated on coaxing it to bring them down in as normal a landing as possible. He knew that AI stood for artificial intelligence, but the brain of this little launch seemed to be losing intelligence. He had no idea why, but he didn’t have time to speculate. He could only persuade. </p>
<p class="Body" style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>“Come on, </em>Delta Two Four<em>, just a little farther now. There is a good landing place to the right. Swing five degrees right, please. There! Now, straight ahead and descend gently. Activate your landing systems, if you please.”</em></p>
<p class="Body" style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>“This is not normal,” </em>the launch complained.<em>“You should be operating my systems, not telling me to do it for you.”</em></p>
<p class="Body" style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>“I know it’s not as you prefer it, but these are not normal events, and I need you to help me.” </em>Harry hoped the launch would be able to keep its system operational until they were on the ground. He could feel it losing parts of itself, and he tried to estimate how much time he had before it failed.</p>
<p class="Body" style="padding-left: 30px;">The ground was coming up fast now. </p>
<p class="Body" style="padding-left: 30px;">“Brace yourselves,” Harry called over his EVA comlink. “I don’t think we’re going to land softly.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The series titles include:</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em><strong> <img src="http://harryheron.com/img/HHMJ_front_cover_2017.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="203" width="134" /> <img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/3047e612f8ba78a0e147390411979f31ac4e8f32/original/hh-into-the-unknown-front-cover-for-web.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MTM0eDIwMSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="201" width="134" /> <img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/ee6e975fe95e307b95dd7510bac7439d6746b374/original/20882380-1259132394216474-6747332192143926715-n.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MTM0eDIwMSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="201" width="134" /></strong></em></p>
<p>and will soon include ...</p>
<p><em><strong>Harry Heron; Savage Fugitive</strong></em> </p>
<p>I am very pleased to be able to say that my titles are now also available from Barnes and Noble, Apple Books, Google Play, and many more electronic and paper booksellers. I hope you will enjoy them.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383722018-07-16T02:00:00+02:002018-07-16T08:23:41+02:00Beta Readers and their feedback
<p>I have just received the feedback from some of my Beta Readers on <em><strong>Harry Heron; Savage Fugitive</strong></em> and I must say I am pleased with their responses. As you would expect there is some criticism, but there is a lot more that is positive, so now the book can move forward. I have to make a few small adjustments to the story to take on board the criticisms, but in the main, the consensus is they enjoyed it, and loved the characters. As an author you really can't ask for much more!</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Here are a couple of comments from the Beta Readers -<br><br><em>"I like Harry. He’s endearing and gung-ho, and doesn’t suffer fools gladly. He resonates with anyone who’s ever had an idiot for a boss. His affectionately negotiated relationship with the AI ships is also endearing. It reminds one a bit (but is not derivative) of Anne McCaffrey’s The ship who sang, which has a similar female ship. It’s nicely done.</em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>He is a little earnest for a 20 year old."</em></p>
<p>and ...</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>"The peripheral characters are pleasant. Ferghal’s rough diamond is a nice foil for the smoother Harry. Errol and Maddie also appeal. More of them, please. I like that the teamwork flavour of an old sailing ship is replicated in the spaceship scenario. It makes the SciFi aspect more familiar. Using Olde Worlde weapons, with Prof Rasmus is delightful, giving an appealing steampunk edge. I also like the way the various commanders strategise according to what they know of their opponents’ personalities and battle-styles. It’s nicely drawn."</em> </p>
<p>It is feedback like this that enables an author to pick up and improve a story. By sorting out the characters so that they are more believable, more likeable or make the reader experience annoyance or even anger when that character is involved, that makes the book. Now I can finish 'polishing' the story and the characters, and we can look forward to getting it published in August!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383712018-07-08T02:00:00+02:002018-07-08T09:12:37+02:00SciFi; A Challenging Genre
<p>Writers of science fiction face a number of challenges in the genre, not least because our scientific knowledge is expanding so rapidly. However, I think there are a number of other things a ScIFi author has to face as well. First is the possibly most basic aspect of the story; what sort of world is it set within? Here you have a wide range of possibles, from a completely alien world, through a fantasy one, into a 'future Earth', an 'Alternate Earth' and even a 'Past Earth' are all possibles. So are massive space station 'worlds' and even 'Space Ship Arks'. Having selected the type of world, one then faces the choice of what sort of society one is looking to build. A popular 'default' it seems is a sort of dystopia following a war, collapse of society due to a natural event or a pandemic. My choice is usually an extension (I'm an optimist!) of current political and cultural 'norms', often with an undercurrent of dissent and subversive activity.</p>
<p>An important aspect of creating a 'future' is understanding how the past forms and informs it. So you do need a certain grasp of current affairs, and certainly a reasonable depth of knowledge of the past history of the world and how that has shaped the present before attempting to work out how the future will be given the present. Will it be free-er, fairer, more just, and more inclusive? Or will it be a dystopia? Will it be a fragmented society in which 'everyman/woman for himself/herself' is the norm? That is perhaps much easier to imagine than one realises.Will 'democracy' as we know it survive? How will the future civic society work, be regulated, policed? </p>
<p>Then there is technology, and here we really face a challenge. Just in the last 30 or so years technology has taken off in ways unimaginable when most writers my age were just trying to get to grips with early desktop computers. I confess to arriving in a new job to be confronted by "your personal computer" ... It took me a couple of days to figure out how to turn it on, and then how to access any program I could actually figure out how to use, and now it ofetn seems that children arrive in this world clutching a mobile phone that has more computing power than that early desktop (Top of the range then with a whopping 16 kilobytes of memory!). The laptop I'm using to write this post boasts 16 Gigabytes, and someone else I know has just bought a desktop with several Terabytes ...</p>
<p>And then there is the advances being made in AI programming! </p>
<p>When I first started writing the Harry Heron series just over foruteen years ago most of the technology we are now using was not available. Artificial Intelligence was something still in the 'conceptula' stages of development. I remember having a conversation with a friend, a "systems architect" who designed the hardware to handle the sort of programs and functions you needed. Asked about how to create a "self aware" artifical mind for a starship, hos response was to the effect "you can't get there from here". Effectively he was saying that it needed something that would look entirely different to what we currently had as a "computational system", and proceeded to set out a concept of lots of small self-managing nodes each doing some part of a function which would all be networked, all exchanging information, and all managing some small part of a huge network. "Like your brain," he said.</p>
<p>That is how I have conceived my AI systems ever since.</p>
<p>Turning to the sort of societies we might live in at some hypothetical future, you need to ask yourself, will it face similar challenges, or will it have taken humanity down a new and totally different road? Here I tend to the view that human history has a habit of repeating itself. It may have new technology, it may look a little different, but the basic problem remains in that we tend to resist any changes that might be considered "too radical". So we have a tendency to "reinvent the wheel" at rather regular intervals. I find "apocalyptic" futures rather difficult to envisage, perhaps because I have lived through the collapse of one political system, and watched another die a long and lingering death. Far from resulting in the sort of "Wasted Earth; Survival of the fittest" scenarios, the vast majority of people just kept ploughing on and hoping it would all sort itself out in the end. Which, to some extent it has. This is what I mean by my "cyclical history" - new technology, more knowledge, better communication in the hands of humans whose collective "memory" is about 35 years. So we have a tendency to repeat the mistakes our grandparents made, and our grandchildren will most likely repeat them in their turn.</p>
<p>So, I tend to create a society similar to our own, but different in its concerns and the mix of its characters. Hopefully in the future race and "colour" will be less important than it is now. Unfortunately, I suspect we'll have found a new set of 'enemies' to worry about. As a species we tend to be afraid of anything "different". Instead of trying to understand the differences, we often submit to simply being repelled by them, and that is a downhill road to actual enmity. How we will react when we do finally meet "aliens" of similar intelligence and scietific development to our own is a very open question I think. I base my views on this from how we react toward the animals we share this planet with. Some of us seem to think most of the larger animals exist only to be 'hunted' as 'trophies' and a majority have difficulty with the idea that all animals and most fishes have 'feelings' such as fear, love, anger, etc., and certainly have the capacvity to 'think'. Scientists are slowing realising that the humble Octopus is probably at least as intelligent as we are - but has different needs so uses it differently.<br><br>What about robots, Androids and other artificial 'life', I hear you ask. Given the amount of effort currently being invested in that technology, I rather suspect that in the very near future Androids will be a part of daily life. Perhaps mechanical beings as sophisticated as C3PO are still a little way off, but I think they are a definite probability.<br><br>So, for Harry Hero and his friends and family, my 'future' world is an extrapolation of today's, with a Confederal union of nation states in Northern Europe, a North American Union, a World Treaty Organisation Assembly, a Sino-Asian Imperium and a Spacefaring Fleet that serves the signatory powers that fund and govern it. Society accepts a wider range of social 'norms' than we see at present, but has its problems as well, and those who believe they can change it or exploit it. For me the key is always to try to create a world, a society which my readers would feel is real. Yes, it has been challenging, sometimes even frustrating, but this is why I use a very good editor, and why I send the manuscript round to a range of Beta Readers to check and test what I have written before I publish the finished book.<br><br>And, in case you're wondering, yes, I do enjoy the challenge!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383702018-06-06T02:00:00+02:002018-06-06T11:46:02+02:00Inspiration!
<p>Inspiration is not always straightforward. Sometimes you get a really great idea, and .... it leads nowhere once you start developing it. At others, the idea simply takes on a life of its own and grows into a great story. There really is no way that I have been able to discover, which produces a winner each time. I'm not sure everyone has that problem, perhaps they do, and perhaps, they simply plough ahead and keep hammering at the idea until it does work.</p>
<p>In recent months I have found myself trying to develop several ideas, but, after a lot of research, and quite a bit of brainstorming, have put them aside. Perhaps the inspiration necessary to find the roadmap for those stories will come eventually, but I have never believed in flogging the proverbial unwilling horse. When the time is right, it will come together. I know some authors have a formula for this, and can generally work just about any background round a basic line of; "man meets girl, man overcomes difficulties, woman plays hard to get, both face complications in work/relationship, eventually man wins woman or vice versa. I haven't managed to find a formula of that sort that works for the kind of stories I want to write.</p>
<p>Inspired by Sir Terry Pratchett's wonderful use of well known legends and fairy stories, I have been looking at ways and means to do something with them. I'm not a big fan of "horror" as a genre, but I do love stories with a twist in the tail, and I love what might be termed "anti-horror". Hence my enjoyment of Pratchett and Gaiman's wonderful "Good Omens" and Pratchett's "The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents". It is a long way off yet, but, in between getting the Harry Heron series completed (<em><strong>Harry Heron; Savage Fugitive</strong></em> is nearing publication!), I have been playing around with a story idea that plays with the whole mix of horror characters and some children's fairy tales which aren't quite how the originals ran. Even if my publisher eventually says "no" to it, it will have been fun, and may be fun for my heirs and successors eventually.<br><br>As I said at the start, "inspiration" is a tricky thing. Even when writing a blog!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383692018-05-07T02:00:00+02:002018-10-08T05:11:56+02:00Widening Distribution
<p>I recently uploaded all my current titles to <strong><a href="https://publishdrive.com/?_ga=2.220695896.1300391255.1525701443-324935499.1517321377" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Publish Drive</a>,</strong> a new e-book publisher and distributor. This means that all the books are now available through a much wider range of outlets than just Amazon and Kindle. All things being equal, they should now be popping up on Barnes and Noble, through Google Play and Google Plus, with iBooks and a range of others. All the titles are available in paperback and e-book formats, with paper versions being printed by Lightning Source and distribution through Ingram. </p>
<p>Will this see an increase in sales -- and more importantly -- readership? I certainly hope so, especially as <em><strong>Harry Heron: Savage Fugitive</strong></em> is inching ever closer to publication in late June/early July. </p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/222f7c4ce2a47bce639656d5aff3a03fc4fa9a03/original/books-at-2018.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NjAweDYwOCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="608" width="600" /></p>
<p>And then there's this one, a book I got particular pleasure from writing and researching.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/06b1c4af1c6c064e4237344946739b387716c12f/original/magnus-patricius-smaller-new-front-cover-dec-2017.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NjAweDkwNiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="906" width="600" /></p>
<p>Publish Drive is a young company, started in Hungary within the EU initially, but now based in the US. As I wrote at the start, I have joined them to see how I can reach a wider market and readership. If all is as promoted, I hope for a good result. I can certainly commend their services to any authors reading this as they are helpful, prompt to respond to any query, and offer a good service. They have pages on FaceBook and other social media sites which their authors are encouraged to join and use.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383682018-04-23T02:00:00+02:002018-04-23T10:24:14+02:00Juggling ...
<p>This year seems to be racing for me. It is one of those years, when a lot of things have come together and need attention, so the things I enjoy doing, like sitting at my keyboard and writing, have suffered. This blog is one victim! Current tasks in hand include going over the edits for <em><strong>Harry Heron: Savage Fugitive</strong></em>, Book 4 in the Harry Heron series, which is now on track for publication end of June, early July. Thankfully it has not been a victim of the small disaster (I think every author's nightmare ...) of a laptop that refused to complete it's boot process for the last week. Thankfully, everything on it is regularly backed up, plus important files are stored on my "cloud" unit at home. However, it seems, thanks to a helpful chappie in Portugal on the helpline, it looks as if the laptop may be fully recovered in the next couple of hours. </p>
<p>I'm very pleased with the progress of <em><strong>Harry Heron:Savage Fugitive</strong></em>. My editor has found a few places to improve and some areas where the story needed tightening upon, and the new bits are, if I say so ma´myself, an improvement. I certainly hoe that readers will agree with me! The next phase once all the edits have been agreed and the internal design sorted, is to send the book to some "Beta Readers" who will, I hope, spot any inconsistencies or any flaws the editor and proof reader may have overlooked. Then it is publishing time.</p>
<p>A cover has yet to be designed, but this is generally one of the final stages. So far we have an image which looks suitable and will make a good cover, but first, the book needs to be polished. So, back to going through the edits ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383672018-03-01T01:00:00+01:002019-12-21T20:55:18+01:00The Challenges of writing SciFi ...
<p>Writing SciFi presents a number of challenges these days, not least the speed of technological advance! When I first started writing seriously in this genre (now almost eighteen years ago), personal computers, were only just established as everyone's indispensable aid, mobile phones were just that, a phone using wireless technology, and "palm pilots" were a novelty. Tablets were still in the future, and pocket sized CD Players were still the way to carry music about. Within a very short time of my starting to write about ships managed and run by AI computer systems, almost all of that had changed.</p>
<p>Today's mobile phone is essentially a fully fledged computer in its own right. In fact I'm pretty sure that the RAM, Processing capacity and storage memory on my current phone is around three times that of the laptop I was lugging around in 2000! So how to describe what you think the technology 200 years hence will look like? <br><br>Once upon a time you could read up all sorts of magazines on the latest technology (think Popular Mechanics, Popular Science on several more that were the sort of magazines I read back in the 1960s and 70s when various uncles, friends and others passed them on) and, using a bit of imagination, work out what something might look like in future. Assuming, of course, you chose the particular technology most likely to survive and evolve. Ah yes, anyone remember VCR Tapes? Or Betamax? How about those big television tubes? Or the computer terminals using the same technology? All of them gone in the last 18 years and replaced by flat screens using LED/LCD or Plasma ...</p>
<p>Right, so what will be using in 200 years time? Tricorders? Flip open communicators? I suspect that for some things, we will have to continue to use some form of screen, but, for others a 3D projection may replace a screen altogether. The real problem is us. It comes down to a question of what can WE adapt to using and how do we use it. Our eyes and ears are a part of the limitation, our brains can probably adapt to the sort of information processing a lot more readily than our "aural" and "visual" sensory equipment, so now a SciFi writer who likes to keep things realistic and possible is in really tricky territory.</p>
<p>Add in to this that we are already developing nano machines and experimenting with the development of computers and components based on quantum technology, and you see the challenge. I begin to think there is a PhD in this for me just trying to get my head round where the technologies are likely to be next year, never mind in 200!</p>
<p>So, there is the challenge. I hope that, in ten, twenty or a hundred years someone coming across one of my books will say (as I often do with Asimov and Clarke) "Hmm, I wonder how he got that worked out?" I suppose a crystal ball would help, but I don't have one, so -- back to researching and trying to pick a winner ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383662018-01-08T01:00:00+01:002020-02-17T19:42:06+01:00Harry Heron; Savage Fugitive
<p>Work on the final draft manuscript of<strong><em> Harry Heron; Savage Fugitive</em></strong> is taking shape. The story is now complete, and the manuscript is currently being overhauled to cut out the 'fat' and shake out any inconsistencies. My publisher plans to start work on the publisher's editing and internal design in March. All being well, we hope to see the book published in August or September.</p>
<p>When I created the fictional political union for this story, and the fictional adversary, a commercial/industrial conglomerate opposed to governmental restrictions and regulations, it seemed beyond the realms of today's realities. I first conceived this idea during the run up to the financial collapse in 2008, while attempting to understand what was happening in the global economy. Sometimes the saying "you couldn't make it up" comes back to bite. My concept took on the idea of a "Global/Interplanetary Group" which controls a wide range of industrial and commercial companies spanning not just the Globe, but a number of settled planets as well. Modelling parts of it on the Honourable East India Company, which had its own army and navy, and actually ran the governments of several countries, I developed the Consortium.</p>
<p>Reality, it appears, in the form of modern technology that allows companies to operate anywhere, and base its HQ on a coral atoll if it so desires, plus the mobility of wealth and the people who control it, actually make the Consortium all too real.</p>
<p>So, what does the story in <strong><em>Harry Heron; Savage Fugitive</em></strong> cover?</p>
<p><strong>Harry Heron; Savage Fugitive</strong></p>
<p>With her ship damaged and failing, Captain Maia takes the only option open to her. She orders the ship abandoned, instructing Sub-Lieutenant Harry Heron to plot in a collision course before he leaves. Escaping the ship with a ragtag group left behind when the last pods leave, Harry succeeds in keeping his group out of Consortium hands. In the process he encounters the Canid race and their “Provider” — a living planet wide intelligence. Learning that Ferghal is held in a laboratory run by the Johnstone Research organisation, Harry devises a plan to rescue his friend and there follows a guerrilla campaign against their enemy.</p>
<p>The series now includes:</p>
<p><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Harry-Heron-Midshipmans-Patrick-Cox-ebook/dp/B01HQL2V98/ref=pd_sim_351_2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=2P2RAB4KD8CCM9XS3DC3" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron; Midshipman's Journey</strong></em></a></p>
<p><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Harry-Heron-Into-Patrick-Cox-ebook/dp/B01HQLGRDO/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1491904001&sr=1-1&keywords=harry+heron+into+the+unknown" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron; Into the Unknown</strong></em></a></p>
<p><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Harry-Heron-Quarter-Patrick-Cox-ebook/dp/B077K5WJW4/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1515426016&sr=1-1&keywords=Harry+Heron%3B+No+Quarter" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron; No Quarter</strong></em></a></p>
<p>and soon ...<br></p>
<p><strong><em>Harry Heron; Savage Fugitive</em></strong></p>
<p> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383652017-11-17T01:00:00+01:002019-12-21T20:55:15+01:00Published at last!
<p><em><strong>Harry Heron: No Quarter</strong></em> is published at last! It has been a marathon haul, but I think the end product justifies the effort. What a job it has proved to be, and who would have thought a couple of hurricanes could have their own impact, but then the natural world has it's impact on everything. So, here we are, available at last, and just in time for Christmas, in paperback and on Kindle, Harry, Ferghal and their friends embark on a new set of adventures and sow not a little mayhem in their wakes.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/ee6e975fe95e307b95dd7510bac7439d6746b374/original/20882380-1259132394216474-6747332192143926715-n.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NTQweDgxMCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="810" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="540" /></p>
<p>From the back cover ...</p>
<p> </p>
<p style="text-align: center;">In <em>Harry Heron: No Quarter</em>, Harry Heron and his best friend Ferghal O’Connor are cadets at Fleet College, eager to master their skills in preparation for commissioning to a ship. They’ve barely stepped foot on campus when they realize they’re targeted and sabotaged at every turn, but this doesn’t stop them from exuberant participation in the Sailing Regatta, the Gun Run, and the usual flirtations and hijinks of college life. Meanwhile, the Consortium, supporting the Johnstone Group, does everything in its power to keep them from testifying at an enquiry to expose Johnstone’s questionable research practices that nearly killed Harry in their secret laboratory on the planet Pangaea. No quarter given, none asked, Harry and Ferghal overcome every obstacle with youthful vigor and optimism, intelligence and training, and prove valuable to the Fleet as junior officers of the NECS <em>Leander </em>in the ongoing struggle against the Consortium.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383642017-04-11T02:00:00+02:002017-09-19T15:54:25+02:00The next Harry Heron
<p>The next book in the Harry Heron series is now being given the editing, checking and correcting treatment. Harry Heron; No Quarter is scheduled for publication in July 2017 and I, as author, am looking forward to seeing it "out there" and on sale. There is a lot still to do, and no doubt some rewrites and changes will emerge from the editing process, but, as a taster, here is the cover ready for the Ingram catalogue ...</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/ee6e975fe95e307b95dd7510bac7439d6746b374/original/20882380-1259132394216474-6747332192143926715-n.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDQweDY2MCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="660" width="440" /></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383632017-03-18T01:00:00+01:002017-03-18T14:47:43+01:00Reviews and Reviewers
<p>Sometimes you run across a reviewer who really hates the story you've woven around a character. Fine, that is their prerogative, but when they then attack you personally, and go one step further and post their review on a number of websites to make sure they complete the trashing of your work, it does get under the skin. This is what has happened with my lates book, <strong><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/magnus_patricius:_the_remarkable_life_of_st_patrick_the_man/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Magnus Patricius: The remarkable life of Saint Patrick, the man</a>. </strong>It is particularly frustrating as, in creating this story, I went to considerable lengths to research the background and St Patrick himself. It is writing as a fictional biography, in which I have used in the first person with the saint himself telling the story. One of the early Beta Readers was a Bishop, himself Irish and an expert on Patrick, and he loved the story. So, to be attacked by someone living in Texas, for daring to challenge her received 'expert' knowledge came as a surprise. So, perhaps, it is worth setting out how the book came into being.</p>
<p>I began writing this book almost 11 years ago. The research for it has taken me on a fascinating journey into the the 5th Century. Magnus (also Magonus or Maewyn) Sucatus Patricius left us two (and quite possibly more now lost) written documents, his 'Confessio' or<em> Declaration</em>, and a letter titled <em>Letter to the Soldiers of Coroticus</em>. In these he tells us a great deal, and leaves perhps more unsaid. The earliest 'biography' we have of him was written by a monk in Armagh some 600 years after the saints death, and, unfortunately, contains some rather fanciful embellishments. Muirchan's purpose in writing it was to 'prove' the superiority of the claim of his monastery over all others as the 'prime' establishment. It had the secondary purpose of establishing the monastic life as superior to the system of diocesan bishoprics then existing in parallel.</p>
<p>To get beyond all the accumulated mythology, claims and counter claims about him, I needed to understand the sort of society that existed in Ireland and in Britain during his lifetime, and that took me on a fascinating journey. While Roman authority collapsed progressively in Britain and western Europe, the society they left behind underwent changes, in some places radical, in others, more a simple transition to a new set of rulers. Interestingly, in southern Europe, one of the important manifestations of this change was the manner in which tradesmen and workers found themselves progressively reduced to what would become serfdom or peasantry. Large and powerful landowners consolidated their wealth and power, swallowing smaller estates and turning their owners into vassals, thus laying the foundation for what would become the feudal system. Many of these families were able to lay claim to bishoprics, and to the right to decide who would be appointed, usually a younger son, thus guaranteeing their control of parts of the Church. By the time of Gregory the Great, this situation was well established.</p>
<p>A key event in 407 AD was a particularly severe winter during which the Rhine froze along most of it's length. That paralysed the Roman naval patrol, and allowed the mass movement of the Goths, Franks, Saxons and others across this natural barrier, and brought a period of upheaval and conflict to an already disturbed region. The Goths seized their opportunity and colonised south western Gaul and North and Eastern Spain, the Franks seized what is today Normandy and Northern France and others moved into Italy, the Alpine areas and Belgium. Interestingly, they did not destroy the Roman cities, they simply moved into them and adapted themselves. The exception was Britain. First the tribal leaders reasserted themselves. Some hired Saxon and Angle mercenaries, who then brought their families, and eventually realised their employers were powerless to stop them simply taking control.</p>
<p>London ceased to be a major centre of occupation around 430 AD, and other cities in the east had largely been abandoned by then as well. Neither the tribal Britons, nor the invading Saxons wanted to live in cities, so these were progressively abandoned, and many quarried for the stone and materials of use to a less sophisticated people. London lay in ruins until revived by King Alfred in 829 AD, other cities simply vanished. The turning point in Britain was 409 AD when the last Legions were withdrawn. In 410 AD when the Emperor sent his tax officials, they were sent packing without the money. In fact, no 'new' coins appear to have been sent to Britannia after 401 AD, and by 410 AD most people were using barter for trade.</p>
<p>Even more interesting was the situation in Ireland. The Irish (Scotti) had no central authority except in war. The 'High King' was simply a war leader elected by the various tribal 'kings' who all exercised their own rights and laws in their territories. Overall the 'Law of the Brehon' formed the basis of all activity, and the interesting part of this is that this legal system made no provision for the release of a slave, for 'manumission' or for a slave to buy freedom. Female slaves had a higher value than males. A male slave without desirable skills, was valued below that of a good wolf hound. Escape was almost impossible without assistance, yet some managed it, St Patrick being, perhaps, the most obvious example. </p>
<p>Woven into all this history is a wealth of legend and 'local stories' about the saint. Some of these began to make sense once one understood the life, lifestyle and the impact that would have on health and development of a sixteen year old subjected to abuse and poor diet. Behind many of these 'stories' lays a gem of fact, and a great deal of that emerges when reading the learned studies of such Patrician luminaries as Archbishop George Simms and Msgr Liam de Paor. To really get to grips with st Patrick, the person, and to understand the purpose behind his Letter and the Declaration, one needs to have studied the development of Christianity at this period as well. Patrick left a church that was more in the 'Orthodox' tradition, than the 'Roman' one, and that is the church that was then reinstated across the North and West of England as people like Columba (real name Crimthann 'Red Fox', though he adopted the name Columcille 'the Dove'). Thus, when Augustine arrived in Kent in in the 600s, he found himself in conflict with a well established Church based on Patrick's system of 'Bishops in communities', rather than the Roman deveopment of the Bishop as a 'lord' of the Church. Bede's Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is, in part, a propaganda effort to paint Augustine and the Roman vision of the Church as superior and 'true' and all others as 'false'. To a large extent he has succeeded, few today realise the whole is a great deal more complex.<br><br>As I wrote at the outset, the research for this book has been fascinating, and has taken me into aspects of the history I suggest most folk do not even know exists. So, in the end, as an author, I must simply accept that this one reviewer holds to a strong belief that her version of the story alone is the only true one. I wonder if she has encountered the lates treatise on Patrick by a student in Cambridge University who concludes that Patrick, far from being a slave, was in fact a slave trader trying to make himself look better, or another book I encountered in my search, that paints the saint as a super Druid. <br><br>All I can really hope, in all truth, is that Magnus Sucatus Patricius regards my effort with kindness. Perhaps, at some future point in the next life, he'll tell me.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383622017-01-06T01:00:00+01:002018-10-08T05:18:15+02:00Published - Magnus Patricius
<p>Today is the day. <em><strong><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/magnus_patricius:_the_remarkable_life_of_st_patrick_the_man/" data-imported="1">Magnus Patricius - The remarkable life of St Patrick, the man</a>,</strong></em> has been uploaded to Lightning Source by my publisher, <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">IndieGo Publishing LLC</a>. It should appear on Amazon's site within the next few days, and when it does I will put links to it here. This has been a long, long haul. I began to write this book in 2006. Since then it has had two 'developmental' assessments, and three complete rewrites. I wanted this book to be as good as I could make it, and now it is through the final edits. It has been typeset, the files converted to the print and eBook formats, and it is ready to go.</p>
<p><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/magnus_patricius:_the_remarkable_life_of_st_patrick_the_man/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><img src="http://harryheron.com/img/front_cover_Magnus_Patricius.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="781" width="523" /></a></p>
<p>The cover is to a design developed between the publisher, Pratima, an artist in India, me and <a href="http://kuracarpenterdesign.blogspot.de/p/about-me.html" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Kura Carpenter.</a> It shows how I envisage the Saint. Not dressed in the medieval splendour of a 'prince' of the church, but as a man of the people and for the people. A shepherd with his flock. As the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin, the late George Otto Simms wrote, Magnus Sucatus Patricius was the first 'missionary' Bishop to anywhere since St Paul. In Patrick's time the church sent bishops to existing communities once they had reached a certain size, but Patrick was different. He went to a country in which Christians were largely slaves, and the rulers of the land and it's native population were pagan.</p>
<p>It was a society ruled by harsh laws, and harsher gods. A society where strength of arms was admired, and this unarmed man wandered into the lion's den. He refused to be intimidated, he refused to be cowed by threats, and he prevailed. I hope I have done his story justice.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383612016-09-13T02:00:00+02:002016-09-14T01:38:36+02:00An Interview with an artist
<p><a href="http://kuracarpenterdesign.blogspot.de/p/about-me.html" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Kura Carpenter</a>, the artist who has done the art work and design for several of my book covers, recently invited me to be interviewed for a piece on her blog. The interview has been published and can be found on her website - <a href="http://kuracarpenterdesign.blogspot.de/2016/09/AuthorPatrickGCox.html" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><strong>Kura Carpenter - Love Books Blog</strong></a>. It is always fun to be challenged to explain why you came up with a particular plot concept, or why a story developed as it did, and I certainly enjoyed explaining my concept for <a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/harry_heron:_into_the_unknown/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron: Into the Unknown</strong></em></a> to her.</p>
<p>The<a href="http://harryheron.com/blog/harry_herons_birthday/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><strong> Harry Heron</strong></a> series is developing nicely with the next book in the series well advanced. I hope to have it published early next year, and it will be followed by the fourth in the series shortly thereafter if all goes well. A curious thing with this series is that some of the stories have developed in parallel, and some of the 'science' is already appearing in the real world. Let's not even think about how the political situations are developing down roads I once thought they couldn't ...</p>
<p>A big thanks to Kura for her support!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383602016-06-05T02:00:00+02:002016-06-16T13:31:06+02:00Accepted!
<p>I'm delighted. My book based on the life of St Patrick has been accepted by my publisher <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">IndieGo Publishing</a>. It will, I hope, be available in print and as an ebook later this year, but it will, at last, appear in print. To be titled <em><strong>Magnus Patricius</strong></em>, I have based it on his own biographic account contained in his 'Confessio' - one of the two documents we can authenticate as being written by him. Forget the legends, the man hiding behind them is far, far more interesting and, dare I say it, even more remarkable than any legend could possibly make him. </p>
<p>His real name is Magnus Succatus Patricius, in the Roman fashion, his 'surname' was Succatus and his 'given' name Magnus or Magonus. Patricius is a nickname - a 'cognomen' - usually implying the opposite of the word's usual meaning. An example is Caesar, which meant 'hairy' and Gaius Julius (Caesar) was rather famously bald from an early age. So Magnus Succatus probably earned his 'Patricius' by being everything a Patrician wasn't. Thanks to the survival of his Letter to the Soldiers of Coroticus ( a 'king' celebrated in the song "The Court of King Caracticus"), a Pictish 'King' based in North Wales, Cheshire and Cumbria in the fifth Century we have a firtst hand account -- a window -- into what was happening in Post Roman Britain. From other sources we also know that Coroticus was hiring Angle and Saxon mercenaries in his efforts to conquer the North East and Midlands of Britain, and that he was a champion of the Pelagian heretics. This particular heresy (the root of modern Humanism) suited him rather well, since it enabled him to promote the use of rape, murder and war on the grounds that it was 'sanctioned' by the teachings of the clergy who promoted it. In essence, Pelagianism promoted the idea that humanity was sinless, and as long as you did 'God's work' you remained so ...</p>
<p>Patrick's letter, essentially excommunicating the 'king' and his followers provoked a response in the form of accusations that Patrick was not a bishop, stole money and used 'gifts' for his own self aggrandisement. Patrick's response was his 'Confessio' or Declaration in which he sets out his life and refutes the charges point for point. The accusations have long since vanished and even those who made them have disappeared from the records, but Patrick's words survive. To fully understand what he wrote you have to study the period, the events he was living through and the society he entered both as a captive slave as a boy, and later returned to as a man. What emerges when you do, as a truly remarkable man</p>
<p style="text-align: center;">.<img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/fb45dc4100c131d145bce5601b67ad3ee9cde045/original/bishop-patricius-small.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MjU3eDQ3MCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="470" width="257" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em>My sketch of Magnus Patricius as a bishop in Ireland.</em> </p>
<p>I hope I have captured some of that in my work. I first read of him as a teenager, at roughly the age he was carried off into slavery. That this pampered and irresponsible youth, son of Romano-British nobility, survived at all is remarkable. That he took on the task of going back to bring the Irish the Gospel is inspiring. The legends do not even tell the half of the story, but they do tell us just how large an impact this man made on the Irish. Writing this book has been a remarkable experience, not least because it was, at times, almost like taking dictation. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383592016-05-05T02:00:00+02:002018-10-08T05:19:15+02:00A New Review on Historical Novel Society's Page
<p>I'm delighted to see <a href="https://historicalnovelsociety.org/reviews/limehouse-boys/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">a great review of <em><strong>Limehouse Boys</strong></em></a> on the <a href="https://historicalnovelsociety.org/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Historical Novel Society</a> page. It is always a boost for an author to see a positive review of their work, especially when it is from someone who knows and enjoys history. Equally pleasing is the fact that my publisher, <a href="https://indiegopublishing.com/portfolio/limehouse-boys-by-patrick-g-cox/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">IndieGo Publishing</a>, is running promotions on all my books on <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Limehouse-Boys-Patrick-G-Cox-ebook/dp/B012ESK816?ie=UTF8&*Version*=1&*entries*=0" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Amazon's UK</a> Kindle Unlimited site and the sales figures show a very good response.</p>
<p>Limehouse Boys has been one of my favourite books to write to date. Researching it challenged many of the comfortable notions I had harboured about the life of ordinary people in London -- and by extension the rest of the UK -- in the early 19th Century. Hopefully readers will find I have managed to bring to life for them the sounds, smells and struggles of those not born to the proverbial silver spoon. </p>
<p>I have just returned from a two week holiday on the Baltic Coast near Kiel, feeling very refreshed (the wind, the sea temperature and the odd snow shower saw to the 'refreshing' bits ...) and with several new ideas to explore for books. We were treated to the site of several 'tall ships' entering and leaving the Kiel bay, the most magnificent being the huge Russian training ship, <em>Kruzenshtern</em>, which arrived the day before we left. She made a fabulous sight passing majestically under almost full sail. Originally the sv <em>Padua</em> launched in 1926 for the German P-Line as one of the 'flying Ps' (<em>Padua, Passat, Pommern, Peking</em> and the ill fated <em>Pamir,</em> lost in 1957 in a hurricane, among their many ships named after places beginning with 'P'), she is the only one still in service. <em>Passat</em> is preserved at Travemunde near Lübeck, <em>Pommern</em> is a museum ship in Finland, and <em>Peking</em> is preserved in South Street Sea Port, New York.<br><br><em>Padua/Kruzenshtern</em> was surrendered to Russia in 1946 as part of war reparations, and became a sail training ship in the 1960s after a spell as a hydrographic survey ship for the Soviet Navy.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/de8fb9d1fcabfc93264b51b7e3da74fd4360a4bf/original/800px-10.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzAweDQwMCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="400" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="300" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em>The STS Kruzenshtern. Picture courtesy Wikipedia</em></p>
<p>So, here we are, back at the keyboard, with lots of notes, plenty of images and some new ideas to explore. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383582016-03-25T01:00:00+01:002016-03-25T13:51:34+01:00Great Review
<p>One of the best things about using Beta Readers is that you get some straight talking and honest reviews from them which help immensely in fixing some of the holes you may, inadvertently, have left in your story. They will also tell you whether or not the story is interesting and held their interest. The key thing in selecting Beta Readers is to get a wide spread of folk, some of whom would not usually read the genre the story follows. So, when I set out to find a group willing to read and give me feedback on <a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/harry_heron:_into_the_unknown/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><strong><em>Harry Heron; Into the Unkown</em></strong></a>, I approached a number of friends I knew did not normally read fiction, or did not read science fiction.</p>
<p>One was a very good friend and former colleague who normally reads only technical and factual literature - not fiction. Here is the review he wrote -</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><strong>HARRY HERON - INTO THE UNKNOWN</strong> a review by Donald C Sparks, author of A History of the Port Elizabeth Fire and Emergency Service to be published 2016<br> <br>Harry Heron and his two compatriots, Ferghal and Danny, are manning a thirty-two pounder gun on board the <em>HMS Spartan</em> during a sea battle with the French Navy off the coast of Île de France. The year is 1804. Suddenly, strange objects strike the <em>Spartan</em> and the French vessel, completely destroying the latter. Harry, Ferghal and Danny together with their gun disappear without a trace, only to reappear on board the spacecraft <em>NECS Vanguard</em> some four-hundred years in the future.<br> <br>Assimilated into the crew of the <em>Vanguard</em>, the three become part of a force on its way to the distant planet of Pangaea to re-establish the friendly Confederate's control over the planetary colony which has fallen under the control of the Consortium. On becoming aware of the presence of Harry, Ferghal and Danny on board the <em>Vanguard</em>, Dr Johnstone seeks to get his hands on them in order to conduct medical experiments on these four-hundred year old, living specimens.<br> <br>A galactic battle ensues between the forces of good and evil above Pangaea. Harry and his shipmates form part of a group sent to retake the settlements on the planet for the Confederation. Faced by setbacks and challenges they are finally confronted by major failure of the technology available to them in this alien world. Can long forgotten skills save them?<br> <br>What of Harry's grief-stricken family, back home in Ireland, when they hear of the disappearance of their son? Harry's father, Major Heron, sets off on a quest to locate his lost son and Ferghal O'Connor, son of his head groom. Meanwhile, a strange recurring dream troubles the Major -- one that runs in his family and has always signified danger to a family member. Could it be warning him about Harry?</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383572016-03-18T01:00:00+01:002018-10-08T05:21:27+02:00Now on sale ...
<p>It's been an exciting week, and a bit of a rollercoaster ride. <strong><em><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Harry-Heron-Patrick-G-Cox-ebook/dp/B01CXJDBC4/ref=pd_rhf_dp_p_img_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=1QTRG5NEWFQ5SW40Y9PA" data-imported="1">Harry Heron; Into the Unknown</a></em></strong> is on sale on Amazon Kindle. Released on St Patrick's day, it is, I'm delighted to say, already selling steadily.After a lot of soul searching, the publisher and I decided to go with Kindle exclusively, though it does have both Lightning Source and Create Space paperback versions. The reason for this is purely commercial. Amazon offers a slightly better royalty payment and is the primary sales outlet. The rival sites and companies combined sell so few of my books, it is worth doing and makes for a less complicated system.</p>
<p>So, here it is, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Harry-Heron-Patrick-G-Cox-ebook/dp/B01CXJDBC4/ref=pd_rhf_dp_p_img_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=1QTRG5NEWFQ5SW40Y9PA" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron; Into the Unknown</strong></em></a> -- I look forward to hearing your comments ...<br><br></p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/3047e612f8ba78a0e147390411979f31ac4e8f32/original/hh-into-the-unknown-front-cover-for-web.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzAweDQ1MCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="450" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="300" /></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383552016-03-13T01:00:00+01:002016-03-13T11:50:00+01:00Coming soon - the NEW Harry Heron adventure ...
<p>After quite a haul the second book in the Harry Heron series is to be released on Kindle on March 17th, appropriately on St Patrick's Day. <strong><em>Harry Heron; Into the</em> <em>Unknown</em></strong> picks up the story of Harry, Ferghal and Danny where <a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/harry_heron_midshipman39s_journey/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron; Midshipman's Journey</strong></em> </a>left off. Now the trio face an enormous challenge. They must learn almost everything from scratch, and adjust to a new age, new social conventions and a new type of ship, service and fleet. And they must do it all while being hunted by unscrupulous humans in the midst of a new type of war. In Harry's own words - they must either learn and adapt, or forever be condemned to being curiosities to be studied and examined at the mercy of others.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/3047e612f8ba78a0e147390411979f31ac4e8f32/original/hh-into-the-unknown-front-cover-for-web.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NjAweDkwMCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="900" width="600" /></p>
<p>When I first wrote this story, all of eleven years ago, I was new to fiction and had a lot to learn. Now, after several revisions, two complete restructures, and a lot of changes, it is almost unrecognisable - apart from the storyline - from that first draft. It is quite exciting to see the transformation from my side, and I hope those who read it will enjoy it as much, if not more, than they enjoyed Harry in his first appearance on a voyage to the Far East and Australia in the first book.</p>
<p>Published by <a href="http://www.indiegopublishing.com" target="_blank" data-imported="1">IndieGo Publishing</a>, it has benefitted from the editing delivered by <a href="http://www.indiegopublishing.com" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Janet Angelo</a>, who has done a fullscale 'development' edit starting from the original manuscript. The result speaks for itself.</p>
<p>Available on Kindle from March 17th.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383562016-03-01T01:00:00+01:002016-03-01T05:38:36+01:00Positive feedback from the Beta Readers
<p>Here we are at the beginning of March, and getting ever closer to the publication of <em><strong>Harry Heron; Into The Unknown</strong></em> now in the final editing and proof reading processes. It has been with eight Beta Readers for the last couple of weeks, and we now have all their comments, all overwhelmingly positive. Some suggestions for clearer relationships, expansion or removal of descriptions or dialogue have been received and considered, and now we are in the final stages of publication.</p>
<p>So, it is hugely encouraging to receive this sort of response from a Beta Reader who is not a reader of fiction of any sort ...<br><br></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>· <span style="text-decoration:underline"></span>Did I enjoy reading “Into the Unknown”? I don’t often read fiction - as I mentioned on the telephone when you first ask me if I would give it a read. However, once I started reading, the story fascinated me. Would Harry return back home in 1804 – and if so – how? Would his father’s visit to the vessel in Portsmouth result in the Major being catapulted into the future? I read on seeking the answers and almost became part of the story. I thought the finding of his Father’s letter a very nice touch. Even with technology we cannot communicate with others back in time but with an old fashion letter we can communicate with others in the future. I also noted a number of references to lost knowledge.<span style="text-decoration:underline"></span><span style="text-decoration:underline"></span></em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em><span style="text-decoration:underline"></span>· <span style="text-decoration:underline"></span>Do I think that any changes should be made to the script? No, never change a winning formula.</em></p>
<p>So, watch this space. Tentatively we hope to launch the book on the 17th March - St Patrick's Day.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383542016-02-04T01:00:00+01:002016-02-04T10:59:24+01:00Progress
<p>One deadline has come and gone, and at least I met it. Just. <em><strong>Harry Heron; Into the Unknown</strong></em> is another step closer to publication, now it must go through another edit, then to Beta Readers, and once their comments and criticisms have been addressed, it will be ready to go. Kura Carpenter has produced the cover design, and that process can be finalised once we have the final page count. It's been a busy month one way or another, first with rewrites and new scene writing, second with a few 'non-writing' projects and dealing with the day to day things at home. Sometimes the day just runs out of hours before I run out of jobs, but at least it's all positive.</p>
<p>It's been quite a ride these last few months from another perspective. The world is, I think, a poorer place now Sir Terry Pratchett is gone, but just in the last month, we've also lost David Bowie and Alan Rickman among several others. When people born the same year as yourself start departing this life it makes one very conscious of your own mortality. I find myself reminded of the words of John Donne, poet, theologian and Dean of St Paul's Cathedral in the 1640s. He wrote; 'Send not to ask for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee.' The 'meditation' from which that comes, actually a 'homily' or short sermon, makes very interesting reading, pointing out that we are all, at some level, interconnected. Part of a greater whole than just ourselves or our immediate circles. It is from this text that the famous saying 'For whom the bell tolls' comes, and that arises from the practice, still kept in some places, of tolling a bell when there is a death in the Parish.</p>
<p>Tolling the bell is an ancient practice, and, in England, it was the practice to toll the 'Tenor' bell to a set pattern known as the Nine Tailors. First the bell is struck or 'tolled' nine times for a man, seven for a woman. There is then a pause, and the bell tolls out the number of years of the person's age. In the pre-industrial age anyone hearing the bell tolling would be able to work out who of his or her neighbours had died. For those who have never heard a bell 'tolled' it is a different pace to a ringing of the bell, with each stroke searated by a longer interval than is usual when the bell is rung to announce a service.</p>
<p>I shall hope that it will be a while before anyone 'tolls' for me!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383532016-01-06T01:00:00+01:002020-02-17T19:43:22+01:00New Year Resolution
<p>Now that 2015 is gone, I find myself in 2016 with several projects and one New Year resolution. The resolution is a simple one. Make sure I blog regularly! The projects are coming along nicely, largely because they have some deadlines, and the whizzing sound of their approach is keeping me on my toes! The first of these is the total revision -- perhaps rewrite -- of <em>Out of Time</em>. It is now in the final stages of preparation for publication and I have to admit that it is vastly different to my original.</p>
<p>On the projects front, I am co-authoring a work of historical fiction with my editor and publisher Janet Angelo, who developed the idea for a three-book family saga series set in the mid-Victorian period in England and South Africa, a sweeping work of historical fiction replete with romance, sea-going action, and drama. Yes, 2015 has been a productive year. My books are selling. Leading the pack is <a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/harry_heron_midshipman39s_journey/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron; Midshipman's Journey</strong></em></a>, with <a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/a_baltic_affair_paperback_and_ebook/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>A Baltic Affair</strong></em></a> also selling steadily. <a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/the_outer_edge/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em></a> has picked up a following, and <a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/limehouse_boys/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><strong><em>Limehouse Boys</em></strong> </a>is also moving slowly. All in all, I'm really pleased that readers are buying and enjoying all the effort that has gone into producing these books. It makes me even more hopeful that the 'new' title <em><strong>Harry Heron: Into the Unknown</strong></em>, which replaces <em>Out of Time</em>, will find favour among those who are already reading <strong><em>Midshipman's Journey</em></strong> and <strong><em>The Outer Edge</em></strong>. </p>
<p>In a continuing effort to bring my early books up to the same standard I have achieved with the guidance of my publisher and editor, <em>The Enemy is Within</em>, another of my withdrawn titles, is being completely rewritten and will now reappear as two novels. A separate project is the development of a Pocket Book for Fire Officers which I am developing as a simple guide for junior officers of the fire and rescue services. It is proving to be an interesting project, and one my former professional Institute has an interest in.</p>
<p>So, standing at the start of the year 2016, I seem to have quite a plateful of things to do - so I better get on with doing them.<br><br>Happy new year to all my readers. Watch this space for the announcement of the release date of <em><strong>Harry Heron: Into the Unknown</strong> </em>- coming soon to Kindle, Nook, Google Plus, iBooks and, of course, paperback.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383522015-11-10T01:00:00+01:002015-11-10T05:42:27+01:00Positive Reviews
<p>The days seem to scream past at the moment, with frantic efforts to keep up my writing, and do some marketting as well. It is therefore a very pleasant surprise to get a good review from a site that specialises in naval fiction. <a href="http://www.historicnavalfiction.com/" data-imported="1">Historical Naval Fiction</a> has just posted a review of <em><strong><a href="http://www.historicnavalfiction.com/general-hnf-info/book-reviews/review-harry-heron-midshipman-s-journey-by-patrick-g-cox" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Harry Heron; Midshipman's Journey</a></strong></em> which is very flattering indeed.</p>
<p>I am very pleased to see sales of all my books on Kindle, Nook, iBooks and of course Amazon, building up nicely. <a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/harry_heron_midshipman39s_journey/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron; Midshipman's Journey</strong></em></a> leads the pack by quite a margin, but <em><strong><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/a_baltic_affair_paperback_and_ebook/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">A Baltic Affair</a></strong></em> is selling steadily, and so is <a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/the_outer_edge/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em></a>. The 'new boy' in the collection, <em><strong><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/limehouse_boys/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Limehouse Boys</a></strong></em>, is building a following as well, something which I'm really pleased to see happening. <em><strong>Limehouse Boys</strong></em> is something of a tribute to all those who manage to rise above a disadvantaged start in life and do well.<br><br>I hope those reading this will give it, and my other books a try. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383512015-08-12T02:00:00+02:002015-08-13T01:25:45+02:00Getting your book noticed
<p>It is nice to see your book getting promoted on various websites. I follow <a href="http://newbookjournal.com/2015/08/limehouse-boys-by-patrick-g-cox/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>New Book Journal</strong></em></a>, a site where authors and publishers can announce new books, has now listed <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B012ESK816" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Limehouse Boys</strong></em></a>. As the site enjoys a very high 'traffic' rate, this serves a great purpose for those listed there as the 'hit' rate increases when you are listed on a high traffic site. </p>
<p>It is very encouraging to see that the book is also moving up the Amazon ranking slowly. While that doesn't necessarily indicate sales, it does mean people are looking for it and at it on their pages. As I learned many years ago from a marketing specialist, one can generally expect about 10% of any enquiries to become sales, so the more people look at it, the better the sales are likely to be. The biggest problem any author faces these days is actually getting noticed, so I take the view that every little hit counts, every time someone 'looks' helps.</p>
<p>Now I better get back to work. Several story ideas to develop, and some more editing to do so I can relaunch some of my 'out of print' titles ...</p>
<p> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383502015-08-03T02:00:00+02:002015-08-13T01:03:22+02:00Working with an editor
<p>Working with my editor, Janet Angelo of IndieGo Publishing, has been quite an experience, especially on my latest book. Her experience of the publishing industry has been invaluable in shaping both the book and the writing. An author often stands so close to the story that you literally can't see the gaps and the inconsistencies even after multiple overhauls. Of course, the other problem is that you often get 'carried away' with the subject and rush off in sometimes unnecessary directions which serve only to annoy a reader. This is where your editor pulls you up short and sticks a finger into the holes.</p>
<p>Of course you know your story. Of course you know the characters, but your editor knows what can be left to the reader to figure out, what needs to be 'said' and what is just a distraction. Of course you'll want to keep your 'voice' and a good editor knows that. So the first step for the editor is to point out where the gaps are, where the unnecessary bits are, and invite you, the author, to consider additions, or retractions as appropriate. It often surprises me that taking something out isn't always as simple as 'highlight; hit delete', simply because it may mean adjustments to the preceding passage(s) or changes 'down the line' in the book. Working with my editor, <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com/indiego-author-testimonials/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Janet Angelo</a> of <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com" target="_blank" data-imported="1">IndieGo Publishing LLC</a>, has taught me that you have to keep a dialogue going on all manner of things if the book is to end up being everything it can be. While the initial drafting of the story MS is a sometimes solitary effort, once you hand it to a publisher it becomes a 'team' effort, and, as with any team effort there will be a need to listen and consider all the criticisms and suggestions from all sides.</p>
<p><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Limehouse Boys</strong></em></a> has been just such an effort to produce. It touches on some sensitive issues, so it needed to do so in a manner that neither condoned, nor suggested any form of promotion. This is where an experienced editor is an enormous asset, able to suggest ways of dealing with issues in just the right 'neutral' tone so they are not 'lost' and yet do not become the central issue. </p>
<p>The experience of working with Janet on this book, and the previous three I have published through her company has been an education in itself. Now <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B012ESK816" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Limehouse Boys</strong></em></a> has been launched into the ether of the eBook and as a paperback, I can but hope that readers will agree that the book is a rivetting read!</p>
<p>Books published with IndieGo Publishing LLC:</p>
<p><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/limehouse_boys/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Limehouse Boys</strong></em></a></p>
<p><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/a_baltic_affair_paperback_and_ebook/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>A Baltic Affair</strong></em></a></p>
<p><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/harry_heron_midshipman39s_journey/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron; Midshipman's Journey</strong></em></a></p>
<p>and in the scifi genre ...</p>
<p><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/the_outer_edge/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em></a></p>
<p> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383492015-07-28T02:00:00+02:002015-07-28T07:08:30+02:00Limehouse Boys
<p>My latest, <em><strong><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Limehouse Boys</a></strong></em>, will be available from the 31st July. It can already be pre-ordered on Kindle from Amazon, and will soon be available in paperback as well from all the usual outlets. As I've remarked in previous posts leading up to this, it has been a fascinating journey. The research into the life of the working men and women of the 1830s in London, and of the manner in which children from the slums were treated, has been heartbreaking, at times infuriating, and at others appalling as a journey of discovery. I'm sorry to say that many of the attitudes and mindsets still persist among the moneyed and powerful.</p>
<p>The story has been described by some of the trial readers as 'Dickensian' and in a sense it is. I take that as a compliment, since Dickens was a keen observer of the social ills of his time. Some things change only on the surface it seems. They were a new face, dress more smartly, but still hold the same views of patronage, class and 'fitness' for any place in society. </p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/b58afd149f5025b8395961b3902a93deb67944bb/original/limehouse-boys-thumbnail.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzAweDQ1MyJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="Limehouse Boys Cover Thumbnail" height="453" style="vertical-align: middle; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="300" /></p>
<p><em><strong><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/" data-imported="1">Limehouse Boys</a></strong></em> is a tale woven round the fate of three orphans caught up in a corrupt system, the target of shadowy and immoral men. There are others involved, men with axes to grind, or who genuinely wish to bring improvement in the face of official obstruction, corruption and criminal gangs. All the ingredients for the adventure of a lifetime.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383482015-07-21T02:00:00+02:002015-07-22T01:24:01+02:00Almost There ...
<p>There is always a moment of excitement mixed with anxiety as your latest book finally leaves your hands and goes to print. My latest, <em><strong>Limehouse Boys</strong></em>, has just gone into that final phase. Set in the early 1830s, it is inspired by several things, among them the many children on whom Britain's industries, mines and wealth were built. Stories of exploitation, cruelty and widespread abuse abound in the history and records of the period. A part of the story comes from the real efforts of 'famillies', former shipmates, friends and sometimes strangers who reached out and did their best to help orphans and street waifs - most 'written off' by a society obsessed with 'crime' and the acquisition of wealth.</p>
<p>Sound familiar? It is a situation that still persists in many societies, and even in our own in some sections of the populace. </p>
<p style="text-align: center;">The book will be on sale very soon through Amazon's Kindle and in paperback. Naturally it will also be on sale through iBooks, Google Books, Barnes and Noble and all the other outlets for eBooks and print. Links will appear here as soon as it is. In the meantime, as a teaser, here is the front cover ...<br><br><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/5b1c94d1b575abfb4bb3d01183413b1bc62815b8/original/front-cover.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzM3eDUwOSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="509" width="337" /></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383472015-06-17T02:00:00+02:002015-06-17T07:54:41+02:00Changes to my catalogue ...
<p>The work to bring my latest story, <em><strong>Limehouse Boys</strong></em>, into publication has taken longer than any of us anticipated, but it will be worth the wait. The publisher identified several problems with the story structure which it has taken a little while to fix, but we are now almost there. The work we have done together in bringing this book, and the <strong><em>Harry Heron; Midshipman's Journey</em></strong> and <a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/the_outer_edge/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em></a> out has made me take a long, hard and very critical look at my earlier books, and that has meant taking a very, very tough decision about them. </p>
<p>Regular visitors here will note that <em><strong>Out of Time</strong></em> and <em><strong>The Enemy is Within!</strong> </em>are both now out of print. My publisher is keen to republish them, but before that can happen, both need overhauling and proper editing, something they didn't get when originally published. Looking at them now, in the light of what I have learned with Janet Angelo and IndieGo Publishing LLC, I feel I'm not doing myself (or my publisher) any favours by leaving them as they are. So, the next few months are going to be tough as I overhaul them from front to back and then go through the 'agony' of the editing, correcting and republishing.</p>
<p>But it will be worth the wait for those who have tried my newer books and like them. Your indulgence is appreciated ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383462015-04-23T02:00:00+02:002015-04-24T07:48:26+02:00A New 'Historic' Story
<p>My latest book is another historical setting, to be released under the title '<em><strong>Limehouse Boys'</strong></em>. It is set in the 1830s in the east end of London, and revolves round three orphan boys placed in an orphange attached to a Workhouse. Through the action of corrupt officials, criminal gangs and those who profited on the side, the trio are destined to be swept up in prostitution and abuse ...</p>
<p>But they have other plans, and so do a group of watermen who have themselves seen the robbery, the abuse and hardship - and work to help the boys escape, and to frustrate the plans of the criminals behind it. Thanks to the watermen the boys find they have different options, and in the process of growing away from their intended fate, they find escape into the life and work of the watermen. The story revolves round the Thames estuary and the seedier side of London in the 19th Century. In the east end, poverty was epidemic, families lived, worked and died in the cluttered lanes and streets.</p>
<p>The alternative was the Workhouse, and, for many, that was a place to go to die. Those who have read Charles Dickens Oliver Twist will know they were hardly welcoming, comfortable or pleasant. Add a staff abusing the inmates and making a profit from manipulating the food and other provisions for the inmates. The law required that orphans be placed as apprentices in 'suitable trades' - and a corrupt Beadle could earn a nice commission 'placing' boys and girls with those who ran the bordellos - of which, at this time in London, there were many. </p>
<p>I have found the research for the book a fascinating, and sometimes alarming, journey. If nothing else, it has brought hom,e to me just how hard life was in the age before modern medicine, and before 'law and order' became a real priority in civilised society. It has also made me acutely aware of just why we, as a society, have developed the way we have in the last century and a half.</p>
<p>Look for it in May, it will be published by <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com/published-books/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">IndieGo Publishing</a> and is currently being edited by Janet Angelo.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383452015-04-09T02:00:00+02:002015-04-10T11:17:02+02:00Paying Dividends
<p>It seems that the decision to completely restructure and rewrite the original story that has become <a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/harry_heron_midshipmans_journey/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron; Midshipman's Journey</strong></em></a>, is paying dividends. It proves to me, if proof was needed, that having a competent editor on board, one who understands publishing and what readers like, is an essential aid to successful writing. Sales have taken off in the two months since it was published, and I'm delighted. Obviously, having invested a lot of time in the book, it is a fantastic boost to know it is a genre and a story readers are enjoying.</p>
<p>The effort to rewrite a story is almost more demanding than crafting the original. For one thing you have to 'rethink' parts - see it from a different perspective - which, as you are wedded to the story you told originally, isn't always easy. It often requires cutting out huge chunks of text you originally crafted and replacing it with a completely new section, often to convey the same information, or the same essential part of the interaction between characters in a new, better, manner. This is where a good editor is a vital part of the effort, precisely because they can stand back and tell you exactly what is wrong with what you've written, and suggest ways to take it from 'good' to 'attention grabbing'. The difficulty is that, as the author, you have often invested so much of yourself into the story, it is difficult to 'cut' passages you have so carefully (as you see it) crafted. It is a challenge, but, if you really want your work to be the best it can be, it has to be done.</p>
<p><a href="http://indiegopublishing.com/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Janet Angelo</a>, of <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com/published-books/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Indiego Publishing</a>, has done a great job of guiding me through the process, and the sales reflect her marketing skill and her skill in helping me reshape, and polish the story. It has been a long, sometimes tough, journey, but I think a worthwhile one. </p>
<p> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383442015-04-08T02:00:00+02:002015-04-08T03:54:29+02:00Online Interview by Kura Carpenter
<p>This morning <a href="http://kuracarpenterdesign.blogspot.co.nz/2015/04/interview-with-author-patrick-g-cox.html" target="_blank" data-imported="1">an interview I did online with Kura Carpenter,</a> the designer of my latest book cover (and two others), has gone 'live' on her blog, <a href="http://kuracarpenterdesign.blogspot.co.nz/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Kura Carpenter Design</a>. I do hope you will visit it and enjoy some of what I have to say about the background to the work that went into producing <a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/harry_heron_midshipmans_journey/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron; Midshipman's Journey</strong></em></a>.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/ba7d50f301a2925b65cad848aa90947a79c89db5/original/harry-heron-midshipmans-journey-final-6in-by-9in-web-low-res.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NjAweDkwMCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="900" style="vertical-align: middle; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="600" /></p>
<p>I hope everyone reading this has had a very happy Easter. For those of Faith it is an incredibly important festival, perhaps the most important in the Christian cycle, and properly is associated with the Jewish Passover - not the Pagan 'Spring' festival Wikipedia and other 'atheist' and anti-Christian sources usually claim it is. </p>
<p> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383432015-03-31T02:00:00+02:002015-03-31T07:06:22+02:00Steady as she goes ...
<p>It's been a good month. The launch of <a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/harry_heron_midshipmans_journey/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><em><strong>Harry Heron; Midshipman's Journey</strong></em> </a>has gone well, and we're seeing regular sales, proving, I guess, that Janet Angelo of <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com/published-books/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">IndieGo Publishing</a>, is right - the market at present is for historical novels and settings. Which actually suits me, since I love history, and I love exploring real history. I also enjoy weaving that into the stories I write ...</p>
<p>One important thing about history is that it is NOT the 'Captains and the Kings' as Kipling put it, who are important. It is the ordinary men, women and children who strive, in spite of the machinations of the aforementioned Captains and Kings, to build their own lives, and to create futures for their children and grandchildren. This is why one of my favourite Bible passages comes from Ecclesiasticus 44: 1 - 14. It begins, "Let us now praise famous men ..." and goes through the whole thing about how these men (and women) have 'made a difference' - but then it goes on at Verse 7, to say "But some there be, that have no memorial. They are vanished away as if they had never been ..." and it then reveals that these are the folk who simply lived life, building things quietly and in hope. Though they are gone, it is their legacy that their children and grandchildren benefit from.</p>
<p>This was, in part the inspiration for the book now with <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com/published-books/" data-imported="1">IndieGo Publishing</a> for publication.</p>
<p>I have dedicated it to all those who, having started out from positions of adversity, have managed to rise above it. I have dedicated it as well, to those who, having overcome their own adversities, have helped others do so. Not because they were compelled to, or because 'society' took contributions from them and gave it to those 'society' deemed deserving, but because they gave of their own accord to those they found in need, and lifted from adversity.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383422015-03-05T01:00:00+01:002019-12-21T20:55:05+01:00New Title Released
<p>It has been a long haul. What started out as an exercise to republish one of my first self-published books has taken just over twelve months, a lot of rewriting, some major revisions and excisions of around half the chapters. The end result - essentially a 'new' book. It has been a very interesting exercise, not least because I have had the advice of a professional editor. Janet has analysed the book, identified what its shortcomings were, what its strengths were, and what was necessary to fix it. </p>
<p>So, my idea of simply republishing the original and getting it up on Kindle and as an e-book unravelled fairly rapidly. What we have now is around 50% a new book. That required a new title, a new cover, and lots of thought about what Janet was saying was needed. So the whole first half of the book is new and takes the reader back to Harry's childhood and through his growing ambition to go to sea. Working with Janet the book has been transformed. In the process I have learned a great deal about this art. The original story, while good, lacked completeness. Now it has that. </p>
<p>Janet's edits have improved the flow of the story, tidied up the text, improved the dialogues and sorted out several of the things that I, in my inexperience and coming from a 'technical writing' background had done, which are not done in fiction. It's been a big learning curve in how to revise a book. I think it has been a worthwhile one. I just wish I'd known a lot of these little things when I wrote it originally.</p>
<p>So, here it is, the rewritten, reworked, expanded <em><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=Harry+Heron%3B+Midshipman%27s+Journey" data-imported="1">Harry Heron; Midshipman's Journey</a>.</strong> </em>It is now available on <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=Harry+Heron%3B+Midshipman%27s+Journey" data-imported="1">Kindle</a>, in <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Harry-Heron-Midshipmans-Patrick-Cox/dp/0986095303/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1425578048&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=Harry+Heron%3B+Midshipman%27s+Journey" data-imported="1">paperback </a>and on all the other ebook formats. It can be ordered from bookstores like W H Smith or Waterstones - in fact, I hope you do.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/ba7d50f301a2925b65cad848aa90947a79c89db5/original/harry-heron-midshipmans-journey-final-6in-by-9in-web-low-res.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NjAweDkwMCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="900" width="600" /></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383412015-02-13T01:00:00+01:002015-02-13T23:46:24+01:00Home, Work, Life ...
<p>The last three months have been a classic case of work and life interfering with things like trying to keep a blog going. But, at last a break in the clouds, my totally rewritten book, Harry Heron; Midshipman's Journey is about to go into print. It has been a long time coming, largely because the publisher, <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com/published-books/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">IndieGo Publishing LLC</a>, wanted a major revision, then asked for some big rewrites, and finally some completely new chapters ...</p>
<p>Finally, we are there. We have the book edited, formatted, ISBN'd, and the cover designed. Now we have just a few small 'technical' problems with uploading the template for the cover to Lightning Source, and the book will be in print. I'm thrilled with the result, and wish I could have worked with a professional editor like Janet Angelo of IndieGo when I first ventured into writing fiction. There are a whole slew of pitfalls (pratfalls) I could have avoided had I been able to do so. No matter, we have finally got there. Here is a taster - the cover of the book.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/ba7d50f301a2925b65cad848aa90947a79c89db5/original/harry-heron-midshipmans-journey-final-6in-by-9in-web-low-res.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NjAweDkwMCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="900" width="600" /></p>
<p>The cover is designed by Kura Carpenter of <a href="http://kuracarpenterdesign.blogspot.co.nz" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Kura Carpenter Design</a>, who, as usual, has produced a fabulous cover.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383402014-12-02T01:00:00+01:002014-12-03T00:28:05+01:00Wthdrawn ...
<p>Some visitors may notice that I have withdrawn the title 'Their Lordships Request' from the site, and will soon have withdrawn it from sale anywhere else. There is a simple reason for this. The story is being 'republished' by IndieGo Publishing. At their behest, it has been heavily revised and a large chunk of it rewritten. So it will reappear under a new title, more in keeping with a 'new' story since it is now over 50% 'new' as a result of the overhaul.</p>
<p>For those who have read the other Harry Heron stories, it will still be the first book in that series, but, since it incorporates all the improvements to my writing ability, style and so on ... One of the hazards of self-publishing anything is the absence of any professional guidance in many instances. So, my style has changed dramatically since I began to work with a publisher and editor on my writing. What produced a 'good' story for a writing course, has now been polished, and is hopefully turning into a 'great' story. I know many other authors have experienced the same 'growth' in their style, in the structure of a story and in their expertise in creating dialogues and narrative balance. So my writing has - dare I admit it - improved.</p>
<p>IndieGo have indicated that they would like to republish all the Harry Heron stories, which I am quite excited about, as it will allow me to bring them all under one Publisher, and more readily available through Kindle and other formats. It is a big task, but one I am looking forward to. Watch this space for the new first in the series of the Harry Heron saga.</p>
<p>Please bear with me!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383392014-12-01T01:00:00+01:002014-12-01T06:59:08+01:00Another Year ...
<p>Here we go - again. Another year biting the dust, and me wondering where it went. It has been a busy and demanding year. I've done a lot of writing, rewriting and generally trying to get a quart into a pint pot as the saying is. That has mean not a lot of time for blogging, either here or at my 'other' blogsite. The compensation is that I have managed to write most of a new novel, completely rewrite an old one to meet the publisher's criticisms and suggestion and to do a whole lot of other things, including a visit to South Africa.</p>
<p>So what am I doing at the moment?</p>
<p>Finishing writing another historical novel, revising another completely (rewriting is the better term!), working with the editor (Janet Angelo of <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com/published-books/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">IndieGo Publishing)</a> on on soon to be published, and with Kura Carpenter of <a href="http://kuracarpenterdesign.blogspot.co.nz" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Kura Carpenter Design</a> to develop a cover for it. So, the real problem is, there simply aren't enough hours in the day any longer. Where are Sir Terry Pratchett's Time Monks and their Time Spinners when I need them?</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383382014-11-08T01:00:00+01:002014-11-08T10:43:59+01:00Guilty as Charged ...
<p>Yes, I have been neglecting this blog. As they say, the road to that very hot and unpleasant place so many of us are, according to some, destined for, is paved with good intentions. In mitigation I will plead that I have been rather busy working with Janet Angelo of IndieGo Publishing to get a book sorted out and published, writing another (which hasn't quite gone as planned), and arranging, and going on, a trip to South Africa to attend the fiftieth anniversary of my completing my schooling ...</p>
<p>If you throw in having to be companion, playmate and guardian of two very active Shelties, and, yes, I've had my hands full.</p>
<p>The good news is that with the colder weather arriving, 'the boys' are quite happy to take shorter walks, provided they can have more 'game time' in the afternoon. The rewriting of the book IndieGo are preparing for publication is complete, and the new book (as yet untitled) is starting to come together. The major distraction at the moment is trying to find photographs or artwork that will work as a cover for the book Janet's working on, and, of course, making the corrections and changes she is flagging up in the editing process.</p>
<p>So, in the meantime, here are some photos from my reunion trip to South Africa ...</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/3b287571069c9fbdd3c877c0fd12ab630c433062/original/p1000715.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NTQ4eDQxMSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="411" width="548" /></p>
<p>My first stop was in Johannesburg, to meet Jada Penn. We've corresponded for a number of years, helped each other refine our writing skills, and generally supported each other in the constant battle to sell our books. As ever, we could have spent a week talking about things, but had only a day and night in the end.</p>
<p>From Johannesburg, my son and I, drove to Bloemfontein (where he was born) to visit a very old friend, Bishop Tom. Bishop Tom is featured in a couple of my Harry Heron tales under his nickname of Plus Thomas, a reference to the small cross bishops place before their 'consecration name' when signing a document. The Free State had not yet had rain, so the grass (it is 'steppe country' and at roughly 1300 metres (4,000 feet) above sea level) was still dry and brown. The rich 'red' soil is maize and grazing country, but all we saw was 'dust devils' - mini tornadoes visible only because they suck up the dust and one sees these whirling columns marching across the veld.</p>
<p>The reunion was in East London, on the Eastern Cape coast, where I went to school and grew up. It was good to see so many of my old school friends, many of whom I have not seen since finishing school in 1964. It was good to see the boys maintaining the tradition of Changing the Guard on the War Memorial - in my day, Cadets was a compulsory activity, now it is entirely voluntary - and the passing of the ceremonial 'Key' to the Memorial from one year to the next. The ceremony began in the 1920s following the first World War when the South African volunteer forces joined the rest of the Empire in war. Some 300,000 South Africans fought, and the scale of the sacrifice can be gauged by the numbers of dead on the school memorial (the city Memorial is located barely a half mile away and has a shockingly long list) - a large number for a school that had only 270 pupils in 1914.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/2a3015c7396c34a3db78d7ba3452e9b53b591048/original/p1000782.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NTYweDMxNSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="315" width="560" /></p>
<p>Of course I had to visit some of my childhood haunts, and the next photo shows the rocky gullies in which my brother and I fished and swam under the watchful eye of our mother or our grandmother. When the tide is out, there are large safe pools exposed, deep enough to swim comfortably, and to sail or model boats in safety. The large tongue of rock in the centre foreground provided a sheltered sunny spot for the adults to sit while we played.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/7fe393cc67e9b6ccc2a5814c1df6c2841e4ff614/original/p1000789.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NTQ4eDQxMSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="411" width="548" /></p>
<p>And finally, what can one say about the view of Table Mountain from the Blaauberg Strand area? <br><br>It was a rushed trip, we drove a little over 4,500 kilometres (roughly 2,812 miles) in twelve days, saw a lot of people, spent valuable time with them all, and came home tired, but happy. As it is said, we pass this way but once, and the past is indisputably a 'foreign country' we cannot return to. Perhaps that is as well. Will I make this journey again? Perhaps, but many of those I saw this time, may not be there to greet me on the next visit.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/1692fddad666fd78a0eb46a08514af3755f65bc7/original/p1000886.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NTQ4eDQxMSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="411" width="548" /></p>
<p>Sir Francis Drake called it the fairest Cape in all the world. I think I agree with him. It still is.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383372014-09-29T02:00:00+02:002014-09-29T14:00:09+02:00Revision, revision, revision ...
<p>I wonder whether Sir Terry Pratchett, Tom King, Enid Blyton, Agatha Christie or any of the other 'big' names one could throw around have the same problem when they try to publish, or republish, something they write very early in their careers? I'm currently revising one of my early books for my publisher. It's been laying around after collecting lots of rejections, but, rereading it, I can see how badly I structured things back then, and worse, I can see all the errors, all the 'passive' voice, all the 'telling' in narrative voice, rather than 'showing' through dialogues ... </p>
<p>So, here I am at the end of another month, heavily revising the main body, and writing some new chapters to complete the story and fill the gaps I've managed to create taking bits out that don't fit. The result will, I think, be a much better book, especially once the editor has sorted out the typos, run on sentences and other little foibles I manage to construct. Thank the Lord for a good editor, one who can look at a piece of work and identify the weaknesses, suggest the means to fix them and spot the ways to make a good story climb out of the amateurish mess it was originally. I probably shouldn't admit that. As Hagrid always seemed to be saying - I should not have said that. No, I should not have said that ...</p>
<p>Or maybe I should have said it a while ago.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383362014-09-08T02:00:00+02:002014-09-09T08:59:13+02:00Designing a workable 'ship' ...
<p>I'm one of those people who likes to get a few 'technical' aspects about the ships I write about, straight in my head, even if I don't then actually describe them to my audience. It doesn't matter if it is something 'historical' or something in the 'future' - I need to have a clear idea of what is where and how it is accessed in order to write. So, when writing about Harry's adventures in futuristic space craft, I like to have in mind some sort of hull, deck plan and general layout to work from.</p>
<p>This is something my publisher raised a little while ago, when she asked why my space ships had 'wings'. In the illustration I used on the cover of Out of Time, the 'fins' actually do serve a purpose. First of all, in space, you need to have fixed points for 'jets' or 'rockets' to allow you to make changes to attitude or direction. So, in my mind, some of these are located at the tips of the fins. In addition, I gave a lot of thought to how you would 'launch' or 'retrieve' transports, fighters and so on aboard the 'mother ship' I considered simple lateral openings (as in the Star Wars ships) but rejected it, as the problems of matching velocities, closing trajectories and speeds and so on make those very tricky. Far better to place the landing and launching bays in the lateral 'fins' with landing on (like an aircraft carrier) coming in at the rear, and 'launching' using a catapult perhaps, from the leading edge.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/830151f20785e30a2872de8cf177223fe1fd3799/original/image-attempt-for-new-command-r.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDAweDI2MSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="261" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></p>
<p>The upper and lower fins provide mounting positions for heavy weapons and placing the propulsion units right aft - again on fins - allows both direction and attitude to be adjusted by moving the propuslion pods, plus it keeps any emission stream or field clear of the hull and the living areas.</p>
<p>Anyone studying the image will immediately - I think - recognise a certain resemblance to a modern nuclear powered submarine. That isn't accidental. I modelled my future star ship on exactly that, though, of course, several times larger in scale. For years I have looked at 'artists' images of spaceships and, although they look 'futuristic' and interesting, I've always been struck by how impractical they are. There have been exceptions. The Imperial Destroyers in Star Wars, the Battlestar in Battlestar Galactica, the various 'Enterprises' in Star Trek have all had a more authentic look than many others. One of the reasons for this, in my view, is that someone, somewhere in the concept design stages, must have done what I have - sat down and worked out where things would need to be, how they connect with other parts and functions, where you would put power generators, weapons, control centres and so on - and, of course, how to shield them, defend them and make sure they are accessible from one part to another, without having to go outside, and come back in via another entry point.</p>
<p>In many ways its a bit like drawing up a specification for an architect - you have to give him some idea where key functions and activities will be, who needs to have direct access and who can have indirect access. To me, a space ship that looks as if it has been put together from a whole collection of 'modules' so that you have bits tacked on all over the place, simply isn't going to be functional. It won't need 'windows' largely because they are 'weak points' in the hull, and they are also pretty pointless - you wouldn't be able to see out of them in reality, unless you happen to be close to a large reflective body capable of overcoming the reflections generated by your own internal lighting. So in my concept, external digital imaging equipment 'reads' the view and it is displayed on internal screens.</p>
<p>Next one has to consider things like machinery and storage spaces. Why not place these 'outside' the living/working spaces between them and the outer hull? Which spaces must have direct communication, which can be indirect and where should the control rooms, secondary controls and so on be? This may sound like 'too much detail' but it is necessary to consider it when thinking about someone moving from one space to another. Does he need to pass through a hatch? Or through a door? Do they have to ascend or descend a ladder or staircase?</p>
<p>An obvious one, perhaps, is where the Captain has his accomodation in relation to the Command Centres. In the old sail powered navy, the Captain's quarters occupied the space aft of the steering position, and were accessed directly from the 'Quarterdeck' which was the 'Command position' of the day. When things moved from sail to steam, the accomodation on British ships for the officers remained in the traditional position (coincidentally, this is why one 'salutes' the Quarterdeck on boarding), which meant, as ships grew in size, that the Captain and the Command Centre became rather distant from each other. To overcome this, for the Captain at least, a 'Day Cabin' was provided on larger ships adjacent to the Bridge. Other navies took a more pragmatic approach and simply moved everyone to the Bridge structure. </p>
<p>Which brings me back to submarines. If you think about them carefully, the design has some obvious similarities to what would be needed for interplanetary and interstellar travel. The essential living, control and power areas are all contained within a pressure hull - essentially a very large tank or tanks interconnected, and enclosed by a more streamlined outer hull, parts of which are 'free-flooding'. The same sort of arrangement would provide a basic structure for a very large space craft. The control centres can be located along a central 'main deck' with large machinery spaces located aft, accommodation on the decks below or above it and some services (as in a submarine, partly within and partly without the pressure hull, but within the outer hull.</p>
<p>Why did I envisage a 'hangar' area at the midships point on my 'concept'? Partly to keep the 'landing on' approach lines clear of the main propulsion units right aft, and partly because this allowed enough space to have some large volume spaces which could still be enclosed within their own pressure hull, and area that could, in emergency, be shut off and isolated without endangering the operation of the ship, or the integrity of the other spaces forward or aft of it. Next, of course, comes the question of 'lung spaces' in which the ship's atmosphere can be cleaned, refreshed and renewed. Of course, at present, submarines don't have a 'green space' but they do have specialist equipment which 'scrubs' out Carbon Dioxide, regenerates the Oxygen levels, dehumidifies and removes other impurities from the air. Taking such a ship to the outer edge of our own solar system would require something capable of 'renweing' the atmosphere for the crew to a much greater degree to keep the ship habitable. There are several ways it can be achieved, one being the cultivation in tanks of certain algae which 'consume carbon dioxide, and release Oxygen.</p>
<p>Recovered water from the air can also be 'recycled' to provide drinking water, as can all other 'waste' water, using hydropore filtering systems and the algae tanks. Which leaves only the fact that humans actually need a bit of 'green space' for psychological health. We need certain light bfrequencies to generate a number of vitamins in our bodies, without which we fall victim to some rather strange ailments. Of course we can get most of them in our food, but this is a lot less efficient than getting them the natural way. So, my concept includes some 'recreational' green spaces which serve the dual purpose of providing a 'green lung' and a space for crew relaxation. Yes, that does meean a rather large ship. But, again, not impossible to build.</p>
<p>Any takers? I read with interest that a NASA team have been working on a 'Warp-drive' computer model, and have worked out that mathematically it is possible. They've even come up with a design for the ship which follows the process I've outlined here. Their ship ends up looking rather like a Star Trek unit, but I think mine is a more viable concept.</p>
<p>What do you think? </p>
<p> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383352014-08-31T02:00:00+02:002014-09-01T01:53:17+02:00Alien Viability ...
<p>Ever wondered why dolphins don't build cities? Or why we only have two arms and two legs? Why our feet are the shape they are, and not more ape-like? I certainly have, and the more I read about the way we and every other living creature adapts to fit a niche, or to live within the constraints of its environment, the more I wonder at the way certain basic 'design criteria' crop up again and again.</p>
<p>Take a look at an x-ray photo of a cat's or a dog's fore paw, and you could be looking at a baby's hand. It really is that striking. Certain other features also repeat. the spinal structure, rib cages, even pelvic structures. Looking at bird skeletons soon idetifies that while they also share certain structural similarities, their bones are lighter and possibly stronger than ours, but the wing structures are essentially similar to a 'hand' with 'fingers' and all the bones you'd find in one. Obviously, they are different in size, but the shapes are similar. </p>
<p>When writing scifi, this is something you have to consider - if you 'create' an alien species, you want them to be able to interact with your human characters, so certain similarities are essential. Such as being roughly hominid in shape, perhaps being abole to speak in a way we can interpret. Certainly they need to be able to use tools, perhaps operate complex machines. Now come the constraints. Ever consider why we don't have four arms? The biggest problem is how they would be attached in an operable manner. You would need four shoulder joints, with four shoulder blades for starters. Unless we had the sort of carapace of a spider or a beetle - in which case we'd have a completely different appearance. A human with wings doesn't work either, even with a bird-like bone structure, largely because you need a different shape to the rib cage and a massive 'keel' bone at the sternum to attach the muscles to. </p>
<p>Dolphins and the other members of the whale family are very intelligent, and may well be at least as 'sentient' as we are. There is a lot of evidence to suggest they have a highly developed 'language', impressive cognitive abilities and excellent memories and learning ability. We also know they were once land dwelling - and their skeletons still have the bones structres of 'hands' and vestigial 'feet'. But they are also perfectly adapted to their marine lifestyle and - as far as we know - don't use tools. Besides, bringing them back on land, 'anthropomorphisng' them and making the into spacefarers - or not, depending on the story - doesn't really produce a creature that is believable.</p>
<p>Maybe it's just 'me', but I have wrestled with this problem for years. Even before I started writing seriously, I had trouble with some of the 'alien' creatures created in scifi stories. Tentacles work as limbs in a limited environment. Sure a creature with tentacles can and do move about on dry land, but not terribly efficiently. Add to this the problem of interaction between species, and humans don't function too well under water, or under great pressure even in a 'gas' world. </p>
<p>So I tend to envisage my characters interacting with 'hominid' type creatures - four limbed, with hands, feet designed for upright walking and bodies adapted to the environment that created them. Sure, one can get a bit exotic, like my 'Canids' essentially ape-like creatures more dog-like in their physiognomy, behaviours and appearance - but upright. Or my Lacertians, upright Saurians. Or perhaps even more 'way out' with the Sidhiche, creatures who exist as a form of pure energy, and the Niburu and their symbiotic 'servant' species. Sometimes this is where the 'Laws of Physics' get in the way, since the bigger the creature one envisages, the greater the forces it will be subjected to in any realistic universe. I note this is a problem many scifi authors struggle with, though some simply stick to 'humans in space' or on any other world they create.</p>
<p>Perhaps the answer is to suspend 'science', but I find that difficult ... </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383342014-08-07T02:00:00+02:002019-12-21T20:55:01+01:00Keeping up the tempo ...
<p>Is proving quite tricky at the moment. June and July have been extremely busy months, most of it enjoyable, most of it nothing whatever to do with writing, keeping blogs, or anything in any way connected with developing the next story. June was mainly taken up with dealing with enquiries, and then a request to develop an idea, for turning Out of Time into a movie or television series. As ever with these things, there was pressure to provide the outline idea by a deadline - and now everything has gone very quiet. Primarily this is because the executives who have to make the decisions aren't around or are focussed on other projects at the moment ...</p>
<p>July has seen a major 'family' event. My eldest daughter Graduated from Manchester University with a Bachelor of Science with Honours. The degree is in Trust and Estate Management and you can be sure I am very, very proud of her. Holding down a fulltime job and doing a degree of this sort part-time is a tough task. So mid-July was taken upü with attending that celebration. </p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/d9c847467866b5f0dfad0aa6e33f3c27d9f9e2a4/original/img-2055-version-2.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDc4eDY4NyJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="687" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="478" /></p>
<p>This year marks the fifthieth anniversary of my finishing my school career and matriculation. So my 'Class' - those of us who have survived at any rate - are gathering to celebrate. That takes place in South Africa in October, in the city of East London. My old school, <a href="http://www.selborne.co.za" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Selborne College</a>, was founded in 1852 by a Lutheran Pastor, and renamed as Selborne Primary and College (collectively; 'The Selborne Schools') in 1907 after the then Earl of Selborne who had a major part in promoting education in the UK and in South Africa. The present Earl regularly attends major events in the life of the school and still takes an interest in it. I was very fortunate to have been able to attend this school, since my family were not that well-heeled. My paternal Grandfather had attended the school before it became Selborne, and my father and his brother attended it before WW2, so my brother and I became the third generation. I must confess that I was not one of the schools finest academioc or sporting scholars - but it did succeed in giving me a fantastic grounding from which to start my subsequent career.<br><br>Other distractions include my pair of Shelties, who are making the most of the summer in our surrounding forest and fields. Enthusiastic hunters of field mice, they are also convinced that the local deer are there to be rounded up and herded (they haven't yet succeeded in bringing them home, but they're trying!). Our neighbours have to be guarded, greeted, watched and enticed into providing treats, and, of course, I have to be reminded to take them for walks, to provide their meals at the correct times (I think they can read the clock!) and invited to regular games of football in the garden. </p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/8ecfc9a1523a628732655701542e05fa5bb1f9a4/original/img-20140728-153130.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDQ4eDU5NyJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="597" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="448" /><br><br>All in all, between the various summer activities, the Shelties and preparations for my trip to South Africa, writing is happening - slowly. </p>
<p>On the good side, the publisher of my books, <strong>A Baltic Affair</strong>, and <strong>The Outer Edge</strong>, <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com" target="_blank" data-imported="1">IndieGo Publishing</a>, is now preparing to release <strong>Their Lordships Request</strong> as an e-book and in paperback. I originally published this book myself, back in the days I was still learning the craft of novel writing, so it is benefitting from this overhaul and will soon be a fully professional piece of literature I can be proud of.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383332014-07-16T02:00:00+02:002014-07-17T01:08:13+02:00A Slight Hiatus ...
<p>OK, I'll confess, I haven't been busy writing, the hiatus is caused by the demands of our garden and our two Shelties in the main, but I have also had two excursions to the UK to fit in. The first was just for pleasure, a brief visit to Whitstable in Kent to catch up with my daughter, meet friends of hers and visit Chatham Historic Dockyard. It was made more interesting by virtue of my using the Eurostar from Brussels for the first time. The second visit was to Manchester and that was to attend my eldest daughter's graduation from Manchester University.</p>
<p>It was a very proud moment for me as a parent, to see my daughter receive her BSc (Hons) in Trust and Estate Management, a major milestone for anyone. That she has achieved it in a part-time learning environment is even more to her credit.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/d9c847467866b5f0dfad0aa6e33f3c27d9f9e2a4/original/img-2055-version-2.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NTAweDcxOCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="718" width="500" /></p>
<p>As a fan of Terry Pratchett's Unseen University stories, I can never attend an event like this without having what I call a "TP Moment" when the Faculty's Senior Staff aka 'the Wizards' take their seats...</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/4e4a88eea8a97b9792826523cb46a44e3e7165b9/original/img-2069.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NjAweDQ1MCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="450" width="600" /></p>
<p>I'm pretty sure I could identify the Chairs of Recent Runes, Cruel and Unusual Geography, Invisible Writings, High Energy Magic and, of course, The Dean ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383322014-05-29T02:00:00+02:002020-02-17T19:49:25+01:00An Interesting Proposition
<p>It has been an interesting month. A busy one to be sure. First I was scheduled to give a talk at a weekend retreat for the Old Catholic Deanery of the Rhine-Main area which required a bit of preparation, and then I got an enquiry from a film production company in the US concerning <em><strong>Out Of Time</strong></em>. That had barely been attended to when I got another enquiry, this time from a UK based television production company. In both cases I have responded with outlines of the story and how I think it could be made to translate into movie or television series.</p>
<p>As is always the way with these things, one has to respond quickly, and then wait. So now I'm waiting on responses. </p>
<p>The presentation I did took place last weekend for the Old Catholics, and was well received. It was a fun and interesting weekend. The retreat took place in a 'Feriendorf' or Holiday Camp in Hubingen, in the Westerwald. It is a very hilly area in the Taunus region of Hessen, and very scenic, with plenty of options for walking. It is also not far from several historic and equally scenic towns. I have returned from the retreat refreshed, and hopeful.</p>
<p>So now the key is to wait patiently (I'm not the most patient person in the world) to see what develops next. Watch this space. I'd love to see the Harry Heron adventurres turned into movies or a television series. But, having been here before ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383312014-05-20T02:00:00+02:002020-02-17T19:48:27+01:00'Harry' Heron's Birthday
<p>Today is the original Henry Nelson Heron's birthday. Were he still with us, he would be 114 years of age. Sadly, he died in 1978, but his legacy remains, which is why the 'hero' of my stories bears his name. He was a remarkable man in many ways, leaving school at 15 to 'join up', almost killed n the first day of the Somme, reposted to the Royal Garrison Artillery, then caught up in the Irish Civil War 1920-22 and then emmigrated to South Africa.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/f9950769b962096b4947e0c7640b3ef3d0ab1210/original/scan.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzUyeDU2MiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="562" width="352" /> <img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/a8b05a905c0cd2f9ba3b16504531c49f7adcfc1f/original/hnh-and-gef-april-1977.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6Mjc1eDI1NiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="256" width="275" /></p>
<p><em>Two images of Henry Nelson Heron. In the first, aged around 47 shortly after I was born in Cape Town, and in the second, at my wedding in 1977 with my mother, Grace Eleanor Frances (Babs) Cox.</em> </p>
<p>He worked hard, founded three businesses and built these successfully, losing one to a crooked partner, the second to the exigencies of war when his suppliers could no longer supply the stock he needed, and finally creating a successful 'agency' business that saw my brother and I through school, took care of his wife's needs and medical expenses and built a small retirement nest egg. It was not an easy life. Starting out working in his uncle's fields when not in school and grabbing as much education as he could along the way. He taiught me the value of reading and learning, he taught me the value of having a good reputation, he taught me to go after my dreams and he taught me to survive.</p>
<p>He may be no longer physically with me, but I still feel his influence.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383302014-05-01T02:00:00+02:002014-05-02T01:07:58+02:00Encouraging Sales ...
<p>In a case of <em>'Who'd a thunk it?'</em> as a character out of Mark Twain's stories would have said, I find myself very encouraged by the continued sales of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Baltic-Affair-Patrick-G-Cox/dp/0984668594/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1357002342&sr=1-1&keywords=a+baltic+affair" data-imported="1"><em><strong>A Baltic Affair</strong> </em></a>and now the rising totals from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Outer-Edge-Patrick-G-Cox/dp/0988704889/ref=sr_1_2_title_0_main?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1393071919&sr=1-2&keywords=The+Outer+Edge+Patrick+G+Cox" data-imported="1"><strong><em>The Outer Edge</em></strong></a>. Especially as the latter is not yet advertised in the Ingram's Catalogue and the latest sales report I have is for January and February. As the book was published early February, the fact it is showing growing sales this early is great news.</p>
<p>Let's be honest, an author writes stories he or she enjoys, but they certainly aren't published just for their pleasure. The acid test of any such work is whether or not it gets read by someone else. That's when all the hard work, the writing, drafting, redraftling and revisions become worthwhile. Yes, getting some money for the effort is nice - great in fact - but I think authors really enjoy discovering that others have actually enjoyed their finished work. An artist friend used to enjoy displaying his latest painting (before he got well-known enough to be working to 'commissions') on the wall of the small coffee shop near his studio. Then he could sit near the work and listen to the comments it elicited from the patrons. Authors have to hope that someone will leave a 'review' somewhere it can be found and read.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/20be709ebd7b0cec4968df2ee2b7aa6fab1c2c50/original/a-baltic-affair-cover-d-playing-card-size-for-web.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MTcweDI1MiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="252" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="170" /> <img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/c961af6df47eee4b51355d9f38a4ca55c28349de/original/cover-ad-card-size.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MTczeDI1MSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="251" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="173" /></p>
<p>I'll admit that my writing has improved dramatically in the last eight years. It hasn't been easy, at first the criticisms were quite hard to fix, but gradually they got more and more minor and the compliments more regular. My problem has been twofold, first, coming from a 'technical' background, I have had to learn to rely less on detailed description, and more on inference conveyed in dialogue. My early books were perhaps over described and over-populated with characters, something I have learned to manage a lot better. The second thing has been developing dialogues that are understandable, readable and realistic. It has to 'read' as someone would actually 'say' it and it is surprising how much of what we 'say' is conveyed by expression, gesture, attitude and body language. We use 'cpntractions', we use colloquialisms and idioms - and seldom give a thought to how they will be received by someone unfamiliar with them. Even our humour can be a pitfall. Mine tends to be a bit 'dry' and sometimes self-deprecating, but I also enjoy those moments of pure bathos and slap-stick, and here again, humour doesn't always translate - especially the drier sort which often relies on subtlety or nuance. </p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/55605aea4a5b07643e39e010d04eac4d6d576dbb/original/harry-heron-bust-final-image.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MjQ4eDMxNCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="314" width="248" /></p>
<p>So, it has been a wild ride in some senses, and I'm a heck of a long way off the 'Best Seller' listings or the 'XYZ Literary Prize' - but each time I see even modest sales mounting up, it is its own reward. Thank you to everyone who has bought my books, and especially to those of you who have gone on to read the next. Your support and encouragement is deeply appreciated.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383292014-04-24T02:00:00+02:002014-04-24T07:32:35+02:00St George for England
<p>Or, as William Shakespeare wrote in Henry V - "Pray God for Harry, England and St George!" I'm sure 'Harry' Heron would approve, though he'd probably prefer St Patrick, since his home is in County Down at the head of Strangford Lough, and the real Henry Nelson Heron was really born in Downpatrick, less than four miles from where St Patrick established his first church and congregation at Saul.</p>
<p>Yesterday was St George's Day, and despite modern attempts to downgrade him to 'legendary' figure, he is very much revered in the Orthodox Churches of the Levant, Israel, Egypt and North Africa. Legendary 'dragon' or no, he was a real person, a soldier who prefered death to the recantation of his faith. According to the Orthodox, he lived in Smyrna. The dragon is an allegory for oppressive rulers, something 'pre-Enlightenment people understood well, and often the source of legends and myths about historical figures. </p>
<p>Ireland is a place rich in mythology and legend, the very soil seems to breathe it, and the area around Strangford is a particularly fertile place for it. The present landscape is very different from what St Patrick would have known, for one thing the lough extended its water over a larger area. Downpatrick (Dun Padraig in the original form) was an island surrounded by marsh and open water approached by a causeway. The land has risen in the last 1600 years and is still rising as the underlying geographic plate reforms now the weight of the last ice age has gone. Though it is a much weathered landscape one can still see the shape of the 'drumlins' that mark it, and Scrabo is the upthrust of lava from some violent volcanic upheaval some millions of years ago.</p>
<p>It was in the shadow of Scrabo that my grandfather, the original Harry Heron (his real name was Henry Nelson Heron) grew up. His father had been the Colour Sergeant of the Royal Irish Rifles, and they were part of the very large 'Heron' family which still populates this part of the Emerald Isle. Henry Nelson Heron grew up attending the local school in Newtownards, and sometimes working with other boys on relatives farms. He had many funny stories to tell of those days which kept my brother and I amused, sometimes scared, and always intrigued. One of his tales from his misspent youth I have included in one of my books, and both the fictional Ferghal and Harry make reference to it on occasion.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/8ff5343225a25e7f88a592a009a425b3e263b5aa/original/hnh-school-1906.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6Njk2eDQ5MCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="490" width="696" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><strong><em>A school photo from 1906. Henry Nelson Heron is fourth from the right in the front row.</em></strong></p>
<p>As I said earlier, Ireland is rich in legends and myths, one being the Banshee, said to perch on the roof tree of a house in whcih someone is about to die. The wail of the Banshee is - or was - much feared, as some stories have it that if she can seize the departing soul, that person is lost forever. So my grandfather used to recount the tale of an evening he and his companion - Ferghal in the stories - had been playing in the fields when they should have been making their way home and nightfall caught them seriously adrift when they should have been long at home. As they ran along the road in their hobnailed boots, they heard a rattling chain following them. Inspired to run all the harder, they were dismayed when the chains rattling not only kept up, but got louder and then - terror of terrors - the Banshee screamed at them from just the other side of the stone wall bounding the field. </p>
<p>They dived into the ditch and hid beneath a culvert, while the Banshee struck stones from the wall above them and screamed all the louder. To afraid to move (they were only around 12) and with the Banshee obviously not about to give up on such a prize, grandfather plucked up the courage to take a peek. </p>
<p>Their Banshee turned out to be a Donkey's colt that had pulled free of the anchor point to which he'd been attached and was looking for his mother. The poor beast had heard their boots on the road surface and followed them. In the end, instead of the hiding they'd expected, they were praised for finding the 'lost' colt ... Presumably the Banshee never did find them after that, both died peacefully in 1978 in South Africa having survived the First World War, the Irish Civil War and everything else life had to throw at them in their chosen new country.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383282014-04-09T02:00:00+02:002020-02-17T19:45:22+01:00That Reading Habit ...
<p>Sunday saw the passing of my father's birthday. Had he been here to celebrate it, he would now be turning 91. Sadly he died aged 57 of a long list of possible medical causes. in all honesty, our relationship was always a little strained. He had some serious 'issues' resulting from his wartime service, which led to alcoholism and eventually contributed to his death at 57, yet, in a different way, he is also one of the reasons I write what I do and why I read so widely.</p>
<p>For me, books offered an alternate world, a world filled with nice people, adventures and an escape from some of the unpleasant realities of life in a rather odd household. Both my parents read a lot, and my grandfather had a wide collection of books on natural history, history and some of the sciences. I suppose I'm a bit of a geek, because one of my favourite escapes was the Encyclopedia we owned - all twelve volumes of it. My father at one time must have had a subscription to a Penguin series of short stories and anthologies, because it was in these pages that I discovered Edgar Rice Burroughs, Arthur C Clark and Isaac Asimov among others. In the library I discovered books on the sea and on space travel and dived into all manner of fantastic fantasy worlds these books provided.</p>
<p>I dreamed of going to sea as an Apprentice on a Tramp Steamer, or of pacing the quarterdeck of a great battleship in the Royal Navy, or simply embarking on the sailing adventures of the boys that populated the pages of books by Blyton, Westerman and others. Gradually my horizons broadened. I found a whole world in books. I met exotic peoples, read of cultures unlike my own and learned that almost everyone, everywhere shares the same dreams and ambitions in one form or another. I have also learned, through reading histories, that nothing is ever 'black and white', there is always another facet to any event the histories don't always tell, or mention in passing, but don't expand.</p>
<p>The habit of reading has stood me in very good stead through my occupational career, and now serves me well as I try to create stories that are as readable and as informative as those that inspired me as a child and young adult. As I have said, imagination is a great thing, the grist of progress in society. I will confess it occasionally got me into some strange and sometimes dangerous scrapes - like trying to make my own deep-sea diving suit out of old inner tubes and a gold-fish bowl. Or to build a boat out of an old wardrobe (Using a piece of corrugated iron roofing, folded and nailed over a piece of wood at one end, with a spacer about a third of the distance back from that, and a flat board nailed across the open back end made a very successful 'canoe'). I had my successes as well, though now I look back, they were not as numerous, or as spectacular as I would have liked.</p>
<p>Books represent, to me, a treasury of all human knowledge and experience. They inspire, they annoy, they provoke - they are a resource that can take you to the outer reaches of space, or to the depths of the ocean trenches - all from the comfort of the armchair, and all within your own head. Come to think of it - a whole lot 'greener' than the television, the internet or the tablet ...<br><br>Writing is, according to those who have studied it, the single greatest invention of the human race. Through being able to make a record of what we know and think, we have been able to pass on knowledge far more efficiently than any other species. And it is all there in a book.</p>
<p>Anyone short of a good book to read? </p>
<p> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383272014-04-02T02:00:00+02:002014-04-02T06:06:42+02:00Imagination ...
<p>Imagination is, so I'm told, the key to successful story telling. I'm inclined to think it is about 10% imagination and inspiration and the rest is sweat and tears. I draw a lot of my inspiration for stories from either science discussions, or from reading history. Sometimes an idea just demands to be developed. Such weas the inspiration for the AI systems on the ships I have set in my Harry Heron tales. My idea of a sentient computer came from a conversation with a man who has made a career out of developing systems for computers.</p>
<p>Asked whether we were even close to developing a computer capable of 'Artificial Intelligence' or AI, he smiled and admitted that work was being done in that field - but then threw in the wobbly. "The computers won't look anything like the ones we're building now."</p>
<p>That makes sense, in a way, since the current crop of computers are limited by their processor capacity, their memory and the speed with which things can be retrieved, sorted and arranged. They certainly are capable of 'managing' simple tasks and overseeing a range of activities, but essentially, in their present form, they are limited to that. So, what would an AI computer look like? My friend wouldn't say exactly, but he did say it would be a 'Neural Network' with nodes, interfaces, feedback loops and super processors. </p>
<p>OK, so I tried to envisage something like that in my writing. Perhaps a computer that uses fibre-optics instead of electrons where it needs linkages between nodes, then many 'nodes' organised in a manner similar to the human brain with specific functions handled by specific sections, a huge 'subconscious' data store, and the ability to sort and identify responses to inputs. It makes sense in my head at least, and I'm told it is something being considered in the industry. In essence, at present, a computer can be programmed to 'manage' a wide range of tasks, using dedicated single task 'processors' which actually run a particular function. An example is a machine stamping out parts for a car, connected to another machine which perhaps drills holes and taps a thread into the holes, and a third machine which does an electronic check, then accepts or rejects the part.</p>
<p>Now add an ability to 'interface' directly with the computer and we are into the realms of science fiction. Or are we?</p>
<p>Cranial implants are already used to allow people to hear, see and to manage seizures in the brain. Micro-surgery is a fact, as is laser surgery, and the advances in neuro-surgery are simply staggering. I predict that within the next twenty years at most, someone will dicover the means to 'fix' a range of genetic diseases by gene therapy or manipulation. Both of these concepts I have used in my books and already I am finding that some of these things are 'already there' in prototype or development. It seems that 'imagination' is not the sole property of the story-teller. Perhaps it never was.</p>
<p>Somehow I find that encouraging. As long as someone is asking 'what if?' there will be a desire to find an answer. Some may lead nowhere, but many will lead us forward. As a history teacher told my class many years ago - "History is cyclic, civilisations rise and fall, but the ideas they brought to the world remain. Technology, once discovered, remains with us though it may be passed to another group for a time." He was, at the time, discussing how western Europe - Britain in particular - lost the technology for road building, drains and water supplies for around 500 years, then 'rediscovered' them when scholars fled the Muslim invasions from Byzantium. It is something I realise again and again as I read history or research something for a book.</p>
<p>Imagination: the essential stock in trade of both the story-teller and the inventor, and sometimes, I think, they overlap.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383262014-03-18T01:00:00+01:002019-12-21T20:54:54+01:00Inspiration
<p>Yesterday, as you'd expect with my first name, I remembered the saint. No I didn't quaff green beer, wear a green shirt, hat or other accoutrements, but I did say Matins in his memory. I'll say right here that his life story has inspired me from the moment I first found a way to get past all the fairy stories, fantasies and legends that have surrounded him in the 1600 years since his death. That is what we marked yesterday. The 17th March is the day he died in 461 AD or thereabouts, very quietly in the small community at Saul on the southern shores of Strangford Lough in County Down. The name 'Saul' is a corruption of the Irish word for 'Barn' and it was here, in about 429 that he was given a rundown barn as his first church and home in Ireland. </p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/fb45dc4100c131d145bce5601b67ad3ee9cde045/original/bishop-patricius-small.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6Mzg0eDcwMiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="702" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="384" /><em>My small sketch of how I think the real Magnus Sucatus Patricius may have dressed and looked</em>.</p>
<p>My grandfather, the original Henry Nelson Heron, and the inspiration for my 'hero' character in the Harry Heron adventures, was born in Downpatrick, 4 miles to the west of Saul, and baptised into the faith Patrick brought to Ireland in the church now standing where the saint was buried. Whenever I have visited that place I can feel both of their presence still. It is, for me, a place of both refreshment and inspiration.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/d3ba0c213bb997c54e5f466482b96d7f340c8dc2/original/hnh.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NTUweDc0MSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="741" width="550" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em>Henry Nelson Heron, aged 16 on the eve of the First Battle of the Somme. 1916</em></p>
<p>Inspiration is a funny thing, sometimes one encounters someone who leaves a strong impression, and that can find its way into a character in a book or story at some point. The same can arise with organisations, philosophies and even science. It is this last that always astonishes me and frequently inspires me to look more closely at something else, particularly my understanding of my faith, society and even our changing culture. Sometimes the impulse is quite subtle, and can be easily missed. An example of this is a conversation I had with the head of a national fire service a few years ago. I'd asked how much the organisation had changed in government since the fall of the communist regime. He smiled, and invited me to study a rather famous photograph of the communist parliament on the balcony of the 'Peoples Palace'. </p>
<p>"Do you see the people in the front row?" he asked.</p>
<p>"Yes," I replied, a little puzzled.</p>
<p>"They are gone," he replied. Then indicated the people in the back row of the photograph. "These ones are now standing in front."</p>
<p>Yes, I'm a little slow. It took a second or two for the light to dawn. Then it hit me, that his example is true of just about every state and government, communist or not. The faces change at the front, but in reality, for the majority of the 'governed' there is little change on any other level. It certainly made me think carefully about how we perceive many aspects of society, and many activities we take for granted.</p>
<p>Yes, that was a rather serious revelation delivered subtly, but when one looks at life with an open mind there are any number of other sources that inspire us on a daily, weekly or even less frequent basis. All of life is a learning journey, and while it is often said that the late 19th Century was really the last period in which any individual could really claim to have a grasp of all human knowledge, the tendency today is to focus intently on only one small aspect and exclude everything else. I find that disturbing and a little alarming. My grandfather believed in trying to understand something about everything he encountered. It is something he inspired me to do as well. Yes, I do sometimes grasp something imperfectly, and I do get the wrong end of the story, or leap to the wrong conclusion. But the advantage of trying to gain as broad an understanding as possible about the world, science, history and culture, is that when I do get it wrong, it is pretty soon corrected by exposure to some other aspect or learning.</p>
<p>Inspiration is all around us, we do ourselves no favours by shutting out things which we find hard to grasp, or perhaps instinctively don't like. Sometimes we have to explore things we really don't like in order to uncover the reason - or discover that we should embrace it. In that there lays a whole new crop of inspirational experience and that can often be life changing. So, I shall keep exploring, keep trying to grasp knowledge and concepts I find hard, and hope to keep finding new inspiration for my books.</p>
<p>Right now though, I have two yound Shelties telling me they need to go out for a walk in the forest. No doubt they are also seeking inspiration as they check their daily 'p-mail' posts, all the overnight scents, and explore their favourite places for games, for chasing one another or persuading me to join in. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383252014-03-06T01:00:00+01:002014-03-06T05:23:04+01:00A Great Review
<p>I have just picked up on the fact that a reviewer has posted a <a href="http://blogcritics.org/book-review-the-outer-edge-by-patrick-cox/" target="_parent" data-imported="1">review of <em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em> on Blogcritics</a>. It is always good to know that someone has enjoyed your book, and in this case the reviewer has obviously done that. It is even more flattering to read that he would like to see the whole series made into movies or a series for television. So would i!</p>
<p>This particular statement in the review I found particularly encouraging.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>As with his last few novels, Cox has created quite the page turner that is just ripe for reading in one or two sittings. It is, as are the rest of the series, the perfect airplane novel that you can’t yet get in the airport. I read it in ebook form, and it is just perfect in that format. This is no doubt partly due to the subject at hand.</em></p>
<p>Now there's a thought to conjure with. Why not a way top download e-books at the bookstore in the airport? Given the cost of rents at airports, and the need that creates to maximise turnover on shelf space (the main reason independent authors and small publishers struggle to get onto them), providing a way people can view, buy and download a book for their Kindle, iPad, Nook Reader or to their phone or laptop - with suitable protections of course to prevent piracy - should not be rocket science. I'm pretty sure my publisher, IndieGo Publishing, would be delighted as well.</p>
<p>As for his final plea at the end of the review - </p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>And, as with the last one of Heron’s adventures, I look forward to the next outing.<strong> Why, oh why, can’t some visionary director pick this series up for TV (or Netflix?). It is time we had a good original space romp and the Heron series fits the bill nicely.</strong></em> <em>While it might not be </em><em>Firefly, it is fine ole’ yarn that keeps me coming back for more.</em></p>
<p>All I can say is that I'd be delighted if someone did want to pick it up and make a TV series out of the series. Primarily because I'd love to watch it myself! Should anyone be interested in talking to me about it, please drop me an email.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383242014-02-22T01:00:00+01:002014-02-22T05:42:54+01:00Now available in paperback
<p><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/the_outer_edge/" target="_parent" data-imported="1"><em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em></a>, the fifth book in the Harry Heron adventures, is now available in paperback. It can be ordered through your prefered online supplier, or, if you prefer to deal with your local bookstore, through them. The publisher, <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com/published-books/" target="_parent" data-imported="1">IndieGo Publishing</a>, has gone to a lot of trouble to produce a good looking book and assures me that it is now a great publication. I'm pleased with the look of the cover, designed by the publisher, by the appearance of the inside and thrilled by the small sketch of a young Harry in the flyleaf.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/18198529f84acb6797387c04a2acabca2f1cef39/original/cover-ad.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MjQyeDM1MCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="350" style="vertical-align: middle;" width="242" /> <img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/55605aea4a5b07643e39e010d04eac4d6d576dbb/original/harry-heron-bust-final-image.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MjAweDI1MyJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_right border_" alt="" height="253" width="200" /></p>
<p>I can add that I'm delighted by the responses I've had from friends who read early drafts for me, and pointed out flaws and weaknesses in the text, and very encouraged by some of the responses I've had already from folk who've bought an e-book.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383232014-02-17T01:00:00+01:002014-02-17T02:15:42+01:00The OUTER EDGE on sale now ...
<p><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/the_outer_edge/" target="_parent" data-imported="1"><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></a> is now available on Amazon Kindle, Barnes and Noble Nook, KOBO and Google Play and will be out in paperback within a week. The fifth in the Harry Heron Adventure series it joins<a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/" target="_parent" data-imported="1"><strong> Their Lordships Request</strong> (currently only in paperback), <strong>Out of Time, The Enemy is Within!</strong> and <strong>On the Run</strong></a> as the latest adventure in the ongoing series. </p>
<p><strong><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/18198529f84acb6797387c04a2acabca2f1cef39/original/cover-ad.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NTQyeDc4MyJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="783" width="542" /></strong></p>
<p><strong>Out of Time</strong> is available from Kindle as well as in paperback, <strong>The Enemy is Within!</strong> and <strong>On the Run</strong> are both available as paper versions, for <em><strong>Kindle</strong></em> and <strong><em>Nook</em></strong> and from <em><strong>Google Play</strong></em>.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383222014-02-10T01:00:00+01:002014-02-10T08:11:45+01:00THE OUTER EDGE on sale within days ...
<p><em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em>, the fifth in the Harry Heron Adventures, has been uploaded to Kindle, Google Books, iBooks and Nook, now it is a matter of days until it appears on their listings and I can post links to sources. The print version will appear on sale sometime within the next week or so as it takes a little longer for the printer to get it on the pores and then through the binding process. So here is the cover description to whet the appetite ...</p>
<p>Sent to the outer edges of the expanding human sphere of explored and colonised space in this section of the galaxy, the NECS <em>Beagle</em> carries a team of scientists on a voyage of discovery, but when the ship becomes the target of the Niburu, an ancient predator, the stage is set for a new threat to the survival of humankind. The consequences are dire, and the encounter could result in a war to the death with no quarter given and none expected. At the helm once again is Lieutenant ‘Harry’ Nelson-Heron of the North European Interstellar Fleet. He has the unique ability to communicate with the ship’s artificial intelligence, which makes him the best man to command one of the new corvette class ships in the Fleet‘s mission to destabilise the Niburu, but it also makes him a prime target for the Niburu’s deadly intentions.</p>
<p>Along with their alien allies, Harry and his shipmates cope with this merciless enemy even as they battle the onslaught of misinformation about their mission propagated by politicians and news journalists who believe that humanity is the cause of the conflict. Meanwhile, the mysterious Sidhiche, enigmatic, often cryptic, and very alien, give guidance and assistance, but nothing is ever straightforward with them, and it quickly becomes apparent that they have their own agenda.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/18198529f84acb6797387c04a2acabca2f1cef39/original/cover-ad.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NjQyeDkyNyJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="927" width="642" /></p>
<p>The ISBNs are:</p>
<p>eBook: 978-0-9887048-7-9</p>
<p>Print: 978-0-9887048-8-6</p>
<p> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383212014-02-03T01:00:00+01:002014-02-03T23:35:02+01:00Coming Soon - so here's a taster ...
<p><em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em> is in the very final stages of publication, the last outstanding task on the countdown list is the final cover design, now in hand. At the publisher's suggestion we have an artist's sketch of the hero of the story, Harry Heron himself, as a frontispiece, and the final layout has been turned into a PDF ready to go to press as soon as the cover is finalised and agreed.</p>
<p>So, here as a taster, the cover blurb ...</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>Sent to the outer edges of the expanding human sphere of explored and colonised space in this section of the galaxy, the NECS Beagle carries a team of scientists on a voyage of discovery, but when the ship becomes the target of the Niburu, an ancient predator, the stage is set for a new threat to the survival of humankind. The consequences are dire, and the encounter could result in a war to the death with no quarter given and none expected. At the helm once again is Lieutenant ‘Harry’ Nelson-Heron of the North European Interstellar Fleet 2211. He has the unique ability to communicate with the ship’s artificial intelligence, which makes him the best man to command one of the new smaller corvette class ships in the Fleet‘s mission to destabilise the Niburu, but it also makes him a prime target for their deadly intentions.</em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>The Fleet must prevent the enemy from over-running the human colonies and reaching Earth itself. Along with their alien allies, Harry and his shipmates cope with a merciless enemy even as they battle the onslaught of misinformation about their mission propagated by politicians and news journalists who believe that humanity is the cause of the conflict. Meanwhile, the mysterious Sidhiche, enigmatic, often cryptic, and very alien, give guidance and assistance, but nothing is ever straightforward with them, and it quickly becomes apparent that they have their own agenda.</em></p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/55605aea4a5b07643e39e010d04eac4d6d576dbb/original/harry-heron-bust-final-image.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzQ4eDQ0MSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="441" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="348" /></p>
<p>The book will launch on Kindle within the next fourteen days, and in print about a week later. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383202014-01-29T01:00:00+01:002019-12-21T20:54:51+01:00The Final Leg for The Outer Edge ...
<p><em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em> is now in the final phase of publication. The artwork is in hand, the cover precis written, the typeface chosen, the cover layout is in hand, the final edits and proofs are complete ...</p>
<p>Some authors have compared this final stage of publishing a new book to the expectation of awaiting the birth of a child, and it isn't a bad comparison. As an author you've laboured to create the story, often spending as long or longer researching the background than writing it. You've revised the original, revised the revised version and revised that until you are almost able to recite the work in your sleep. You've let editors read it and agonised over the critique they provided, then revised the areas they didn't like yet again, and finally you've got a finished manuscript.</p>
<p>But you're not finished yet. Now the publisher's editor will have another go, and you need to go through their changes, edits, corrections and polishing. Continuity issues have been checked and corrected where necessary, the whole checked for plagiarism of other work, and finally you're there. It's out of your hands. It's being set up for printing and for sale as an e-book, and your baby is about to be sent out into the world for readers to love or hate, for critics to tear apart or praise, and, you hope, that more people will like it than the other - and, of course, that it will at least repay the effort you have put into it.</p>
<p><em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em> continues the Harry Heron adventure series. I think, and the publisher, <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com/published-books/" target="_parent" data-imported="1">Indiego Publishing</a>, agrees, that it is an exciting tale. Graphic, humourous in places, dramatic and full of action in others. I'm in your hands. I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I enjoyed creating it.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383192014-01-17T01:00:00+01:002014-01-17T07:30:42+01:00Now there's a compliment ...
<p>I recently got a note from a friend I (ab)use as a 'test bed' for my writing. I have been developing a sixth Harry Heron Adventure while my publisher (<a href="http://indiegopublishing.com" target="_blank" data-imported="1">IndieGo Publishing</a>) prepares the fifth, <em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em>, for publication. The new book is tentatively titled <em><strong>Target</strong></em>. It must be said right at the outset that she was a reluctant candidate for this as her normal reading list doesn't include scifi. That said, she has now read the first 26 chapters (there are a total of 38 in the latest book), and responded as follows - </p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>Oh, Patrick! How fabulous this chapter is! I felt as Boris and Lenard did as the gig was launching! What an adventure! You have such an AMAZING imagination - it all reads so true-to-life! </em><br><br><em>What a shock Harry received from the Lagan, too - it jolted me reading it. I can well imagine they might have learned a lot, were it not for the Lagan's refusal to communicate. </em><br><br><em>I am so, so glad I continued reading your book. I am so honored to have the opportunity, my friend. What a learning experience - don't judge a genre before you give it another chance...LOL. You've converted me, Patrick, and as an avid reader since childhood, I think I can honestly say that is quite a feat. I am now a die-hard SF fan (of YOUR books anyway).</em></p>
<p>Now, if that isn't encouraging, then I'm not sure what is. </p>
<p>Breaking news for <em><strong>The Outer Edge,</strong></em> is that I now have the final edited version from the publisher, and will be going through it carefully in the next few days. So far it is looking fantastic - and I am looking forward to seeing it on sale within the next couple of months.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383182014-01-13T01:00:00+01:002019-12-21T20:54:51+01:00Great Feedback ...
<p>Who doesn't like to receive good feedback from a Publisher? I suspect any author receiving a message like the one below from the editor working on your MS feels a little rush of pride. It is hugely encouraging to know you have engaged your editor so thoroughly.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>Hi, Patrick,</em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>I'm totally immersed in your book and working my way to the end; on the home stretch now, down to the last 75 pages. I had to take a moment to tell you how much I'm enjoying this book! I want to compliment you on the skillful and intelligent way you present the posers Palmer and Montaigne, who present an image of being accepting and inclusive of all races, but who really aren't at the core of their being, yet Harry, the one they accuse, has two beings as close friends and coworkers, and all his other friends/crew mates are various nationalities, as evidenced by their names. I think any astute reader will pick up on that subtle message, and I can only say a hearty well done to you on that!</em> </p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>The fact that it is framed within an action-packed, fun, and quite often witty story is what's so brilliant about it. I love the humour you've laced throughout the story, and I get the gist of the humour, too!</em></p>
<p>It is always nice when someone compliments you on the story you have managed to put together, it is even better when you can get them to engage with the action, the characters and the story. At least now we are in the ‘home straight’ and heading for the final stage before we can publish it.</p>
<p>No, I’m not going to put up any ‘plot spoilers’ at this point. It is the fifth book in the Harry Heron story and it pits our hero against people who have a very different view of life, humanity and honour - and a terrifying alien threat …</p>
<p> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383172013-12-31T01:00:00+01:002013-12-31T10:02:38+01:00Good bye, 2013, Hallo, 2014
<p>It has been a busy year, so busy that at times I've had trouble finding time to blog, but I can live in hope that at least some of the effort will bare fruit in 2014. The next Harry Heron Adventure, <em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em> is still going through the editing process, and will, I hope, emerge in time for Easter. <em><strong>A Baltic Affair</strong></em> continues to sell well, mostly in e-formats, but that, in itself, is encouraging, as it does seem to be having a knock-on effect on sales of my other titles.</p>
<p>So, standing on the edge of the last few hours of 2013, may I take the opportunity to wish each and every one of my friends and readers a very happy and, above all, successful, 2014.</p>
<p> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383162013-12-16T01:00:00+01:002013-12-17T00:51:46+01:00'Tis the Season ...
<p>My 'to do' list just seems to get longer and longer at the moment, leaving little time for writing on my blogs. Working on getting <em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em> ready for publication is obviously a top priority, but so is trying to promote the other books in the run up to Christmas. That part is both time consuming and sometimes expensive. I don't have the budgets the larger publishing houses give authors, so my efforts are much more modest, but, I'm pleased to say, do seem to be bearing fruit in a modest manner.</p>
<p>This does seem to be an appropriate moment to wish my readers a very merry Christmas. I hope that everyone reading this will have a Christmas surrounded by family and friends. A safe and happy time. I am very conscious of the loneliness many experience at this season, and, like many, I wish there was a way I could address that for them. There will, I have no doubt, be many people of all ages who will experience hardship at this season, and regret that this cannot be prevented. Unfortunately it seems that we will always have some among us who, for whatever reasons, fall through the gaps in society. Perhaps one day, we will find a solution.</p>
<p>Until then, let us remember those less fortunate than ourselves at this season, and, if we can, try to share some of our good fortune with those we can. Have a very blessed Christmas and may the new year bring all you hope.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383152013-12-03T01:00:00+01:002013-12-03T04:38:44+01:00The Outer Edge moving closer to publication
<p>I am delighted with the progress we are making on the new <em>Harry Heron Adventure:</em> <em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em>. It's really taking shape, and between getting that sorted out I am also polishing a new story, ironing out the bugs, beefing up parts, taking out inconsistencies and correcting little gaps. Who says writing is dull?</p>
<p>Good news is that sales seem to be starting to pick up on all my books, which gives me an incentive to do some more writing, and to take a new look at marketing the stories. Again and again I am told "this would make a fabulous movie or television series". I'd love to do that, it would be absolutely fantastic to have one or more of the books as a movie, and even better I think to have each one become a television series. If any reader is interested in discussing this please contact me.</p>
<p> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383142013-11-08T01:00:00+01:002019-12-21T20:54:50+01:00Boffins, baffles and gadgetry ...
<p>Sometimes one grows up using an expression which has entered the language at some point, you have heard your parents use it, and have heard others use it, and even used it yourself in your own career and environment. Then it comes as a surprise to learn that not only does not everyone understand it, some have never even heard it. Thus it was when Janet Angelo, the editor of the latest Harry Heron adventure, <em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em>, dropped me an email asking what the term "boffin" meant. It is one I have heard my father, my grandfather, various officers and non-commissioned officers use and have used myself in my own service career in the Fire and Emergency Services.</p>
<p>So, if Janet didn't know it, where does it come from?</p>
<div>The term apparently originated in WW1 when there were a lot of 'gentleman inventors' suddenly deluging the Navy and Army with wonderful ideas for super weapons. A little digging was required, to unearth some, at least, of the background to it. Firstly, it was used, sometimes in a derogatory way, by members of the Armed Forces in WW1 to refer to anyone who was a bit of an intellectual, always coming up with grand ideas. It really came into its own - and the first reference I managed to find of its use in a document, was a note from Admiral Sir Roger Keyes, in reference to a gentleman who had a grand invention he was convinced would destroy any submarine. My dictionary tells me that in WW2 it was the RAF who used it most extensively to mean a scientist or technical expert carrying out work for the RAF, but my father served in the RN and it was extensively used in that service to mean the same thing. </div>
<div></div>
<div>There was a similar surge in such wonderful inventions in WW2 and Winston Churchill was a great fan of some of these. Like a device called "The Great Panjandrum", a huge rolling cylinder with rockets mounted on the outer sides of the 'wheels' to propel it forward. It was supposedly steerable with cables attached to the central axis on each side. The idea being that one of these would roar up a beach clearing mines, machine gun nests and obstacles so the infantry could run behind it and reach their objectives. Pity it couldn't be controlled and was almost as dangerous to it's own side as it was a threat to the enemy. There were plenty of other equally zany ideas, but many actually did work. Such as the bouncing bombs used to break dams, or get inside U-boat pens. Or the miniature submarines, radar, what is today called Sonar, but known to the RN as ASDIC. Or one specially for D-Day called PLUTO - Pipe Line Under The Ocean - a large diameter hose, rolled onto a floating cylinder, which was then towed across the English Channel, hauled ashore in Normandy and fed fuel for tanks, trucks, air craft and everything else until the German Forces could be dislodged from harbours and normal supplies established.</div>
<div></div>
<div>The usual routine would be the 'boffins' would come up with a wonderful idea, the engineers would attempt to make it, and Jolly Jack (under the profane guidance of a three badge Petty Officer) would be tasked with making it work. The guys tasked with setting up these trials always said the 'boffin' was usually some quietly spoken grandfather type, fussing round his brainchild and never quite sure what it actually would do, but "I think I've got the bugs out of it now …" </div>
<p>Jolly Jack Tar usually added a rider to the general definition, probably since most of the "experts" he encountered sometimes appeared to have only incidental contact with reality. As my father once told me, with some of the 'boffins' they encountered, if he said "Oops" everyone dived for cover.</p>
<div></div>
<div>A 'boffin' is always the one poking around in some new weapon, guidance system, propulsion unit or fancy piece of kit whose purpose was obscure, or which isn't behaving in the manner it is supposed to. My father used to say that often, when the boffins were standing round scratching their heads in bafflement because their latest toy wouldn't do whatever it was supposed to do, some Stoker or Torpedoman, Telegraphist or Electrician would be summoned. He'd look at it for a moment, open his tool kit, select an appropriate hammer, screwdriver or other suitable tool, wave it at the misbehaving machine, or deliver a sharp tap with the tool on a sensitive spot while all the boffins looked on in horror. Generally the thing would spring into life. As they say, it isn't fit for purpose if Jolly Jack can break it, or if it can't be fixed with a lump hammer, a screw driver or a plumbing wrench.</div>
<div></div>
<div></div>
<div>Having personally seen a Gunnery Petty Officer fix a jammed training ring on a missile launcher with a 2lb (1kg) lump hammer aimed at just the right place, I tend to understand this. It never seemed to occur to anyone that the marks of previous applications of said lump hammer might give a hint to what needed to be fixed. Even in my fire service career, I recall one of our vehicles that would flood its carburettor if it didn't fire up first time - and then refuse to start. Many 'expert' boffins fiddled and proclaimed it fixed, only to have it repeat the problem immediately they'd gone. Even replacing the carburettor didn't help. What did fix it instantly, was the application of a sharp tap with a long jack handle applied to a point on the carburettor. Since its first appearance, the term does seem to have broadened to embrace almost anyone who might be called a "technical expert" on something, as well as the traditional "intellectual" wandering into the realms of the practical.</div>
<div></div>
<div></div>
<div>There is a terrific story from WW2, when the battleship HMS Duke of York got into a scrap with the Scharnhorst. A shell from the Scharnhorst passed through the Duke of York's mast, cutting the cables for the radar rangefinders. The officer in the radar cabinet, just below the antenna on the mast, realised what had happened, climbed through the roof of the cabinet, found the break and calmly (remember he was something like 80 feet above the deck and it was blowing a full gale in the Arctic at the time) grabbed the flapping ends, and brought them together. There were three or four cables, and he tried each one in turn until his men shouted they had the signal back, then he twisted the broken ends together and they carried on. It was only much later that everyone else found out, and the 'boffins' declared that he should have been electrocuted because he was standing on steel, in normal sea boots (leather) working with high voltage cables with bare hands, and being drenched in freezing spray in a gale. No safety lines, no tools, just his hands in an exposed position under fire. He got the Dinstinguished Service Order for it later ... Thanks to this man, the radar was kept working, the big guns kept firing, and the Scharnhorst was sunk.</div>
<div></div>
<div></div>
<div>Another fabulous story on this comes from the first nuclear reactor, built as part of the Manhattan Project in a squash court under a baseball stadium. The piled graphite blocks into the space, inserted the nuclear fuel and then carefully, by hand, removed the 'control rods' until the reaction started up and heat was produced. It doesn't get much more experimental or basic than that. A case of "OK, guys, pull those rods out until I tell you to stop. We don't know what's going to happen, but we might get a reaction."</div>
<div></div>
<div></div>
<div>As I said, if the 'boffin' said 'Oops' everyone else looked for a place to hide.</div>
<p> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383132013-11-05T01:00:00+01:002013-11-06T08:20:40+01:00In Production, the next Harry Heron ...
<p>The fifth book in my Harry Heron scifi adventure series is now 'in production' with me going through the first tranche of editor's changes, corrections and suggestions. It is hard work I'll confess, but I enjoy working with <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Janet Angelo of IndieGo Publishing</a>, and find her approach sympathetic and helpful. I'm confident that <em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em> is going to be the best finished book in the series so far. One reason is that Janet is a scifi fan herself (we're both fans of Star Wars, Babylon 5, Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica and others). It makes working with her a laugh as well as getting the book into the best form possible.</p>
<p>Very encouraging is the news that her son, another scifi fan has looked over the first few chapters and is excited by the story, rating it as 'the best he's read in recent years'. Now that is great news, he's of an age with the hero of the story and is the very audience I'd like to engage. </p>
<p>So, watch this space for more updates as the work progresses. There is a lot to be done, but, done properly, it is worth every drop of the blood, sweat and tears it takes to do it properly. Now, back to work, I've several more chapters to work through - and Janet wants my response! Should anyone reading this be looking for a good, sympathetic editor and publisher, contact <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Janet</a>. You'll get an open, honest and fair response.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383122013-11-01T01:00:00+01:002013-11-01T09:16:37+01:00Nice to see some good reviews ...
<div class="mb15 txtnormal"><span class="valignMiddle">It's nice to see that <em><strong>A Baltic Affair</strong></em> is getting some attention on Amazon.com, with some good reviews to it's credit.</span></div>
<div class="mb15 txtnormal"></div>
<div class="mb15 txtnormal" id="revFMSR">
<span class="valignMiddle"><strong>Amazon.com:</strong></span> <span class="swSprite s_star_4_5 " title="4.3 out of 5 stars">4.3 out of 5 stars</span> <span class="valignMiddle"> 3 reviews</span>
</div>
<div>
<div id="revMHFRL">
<div class="mb30" id="rev-dpForeignMktReviews-R2N2C57BWYX0LD">
<div class="gry txtsmall hlp">3 of 3 people found the following review helpful</div>
<div class="clearboth"></div>
<div class="mt4 ttl">
<span class="swSprite s_star_5_0 " title="5.0 out of 5 stars">5.0 out of 5 stars</span> <span class="txtlarge gl3 gr4 reviewTitle valignMiddle"><strong>Fictional Olde British Naval story told at it's best</strong></span><span class="gry valignMiddle"> <span class="inlineblock txtsmall">16 May 2013</span></span>
</div>
<div class="mt4 ath">
<span class="txtsmall"><span class="gry">By</span> Peter J. Kurt</span> - <span class="green"><strong>Published on Amazon.com</strong></span>
</div>
<div class="txtsmall mt4 fvavp">
<span class="inlineblock formatVariation"><span class="gr3 gry formatKey">Format:</span><span class="formatValue">Kindle Edition</span><span class="gl7 gr7 gry">|</span></span><span class="inlineblock avpOrVine"><span class="strong avp">Amazon Verified Purchase</span></span>
</div>
<div class="mt9 reviewText">
<div class="drkgry">I really enjoy the fictional Olde British Naval stories that keep me focused on the stories lines without bogging me down in the nitty-gritty of the aspects of sailing ships of the day. This book has a great story line and will keep your attention from start to finish. I hope that the<br>author(s) will keep the plot line going.</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="mb30" id="rev-dpForeignMktReviews-R1XLPUGPQOJMC5">
<div class="gry txtsmall hlp">4 of 5 people found the following review helpful</div>
<div class="clearboth"></div>
<div class="mt4 ttl">
<span class="swSprite s_star_5_0 " title="5.0 out of 5 stars">5.0 out of 5 stars</span> <span class="txtlarge gl3 gr4 reviewTitle valignMiddle"><strong>If you like Historical Fiction, this is a book to read.</strong></span><span class="gry valignMiddle"> <span class="inlineblock txtsmall">2 Mar 2013</span></span>
</div>
<div class="mt4 ath">
<span class="txtsmall"><span class="gry">By</span> Duncan Long</span> - <span class="green"><strong>Published on Amazon.com</strong></span>
</div>
<div class="txtsmall mt4 fvavp"><span class="inlineblock formatVariation"><span class="gr3 gry formatKey">Format:</span><span class="formatValue">Paperback</span></span></div>
<div class="mt9 reviewText">
<div class="drkgry">The author does a nice job with this novel, keeping it interesting and fast paced while not losing the feeling of the period the story is set in. For those who long to ride the seas on the HMS Kestrel, climb aboard and get ready to be drawn this tale of diplomacy, intrigue, and espionage, with a few twists and surprises along the way.</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="mb30" id="rev-dpForeignMktReviews-R1ETVQAFB9WJI9">
<div class="gry txtsmall hlp"></div>
<div class="clearboth"></div>
<div class="mt4 ttl">
<span class="swSprite s_star_3_0 " title="3.0 out of 5 stars">3.0 out of 5 stars</span> <span class="txtlarge gl3 gr4 reviewTitle valignMiddle"><strong>Naval Action and Romance</strong></span><span class="gry valignMiddle"> <span class="inlineblock txtsmall">18 Oct 2013</span></span>
</div>
<div class="mt4 ath">
<span class="txtsmall"><span class="gry">By</span> Ocean View Retiree</span> - <span class="green"><strong>Published on Amazon.com</strong></span>
</div>
<div class="txtsmall mt4 fvavp">
<span class="inlineblock formatVariation"><span class="gr3 gry formatKey">Format:</span><span class="formatValue">Kindle Edition</span><span class="gl7 gr7 gry">|</span></span><span class="inlineblock avpOrVine"><span class="strong avp">Amazon Verified Purchase</span></span>
</div>
<div class="mt9 reviewText">
<div class="drkgry">Petroc Gray follows the tradition of Hornblower Aubrey and Ramage in that he is a competent, dashing, and resourceful warship captain. The naval action is exciting and good reading; his life parallels Jack Aubrey' s in that his family has an estate and a bit of nobility. He does get wrapped up in intrigue as much as battle action. Nonetheless, a good sea story.<br><br>A significant part of the story concerns his romance with Miss Silke, the daughter of a wealthy, influential, German merchant. Mr. Cox needs to take a few lessons from Nora Roberts on love stories. In four years, Captain Dudley Do-Right doesn't lay a hand on his intended, and he professes to miss her conversation and little else! Now come on. Even 19th century ship captains are human. If one makes the love interest such a large part of the plot, at least add in a little heat!</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383112013-10-26T02:00:00+02:002013-10-26T10:48:08+02:00A Boost ... and some Caution
<p>This has been an interesting month in many ways. For a part of it I have been in Belgrade, attending a conference at which I was a speaker. It is always good to know that your expertise is still current, still in demand, and still of use to someone. These cultural trips are always a rich source of ideas for books, articles and stories, and this one was no exception. Serbia is a fascinating place, and the culture equally so. Ergo; I have a number of character sketches, some history to play with a few new ideas to kick around for a storyline.</p>
<p>I returned home to some very good news though, and I hope it is a sign of things developing in the right direction. The publisher of <em><strong>A Baltic Affair</strong></em>, <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">IndieGo Publishing</a>, had sent me the latest payment for Royalties covering June to July from Kindle, Nook and another outlet. OK, so the figure is only a three figure one, but it is almost four times the previous largest number and surprised even the publisher. Now I'm keeping my fingers crossed this is going to keep building. It will make my tax declaration next year worthwhile if it does.</p>
<p>Other news is that the "Hollywood Treatment" of <em><strong>Out of Time</strong></em> is evidently attracting interest, but here I have to be careful. I'm under a lot of pressure to put up a large amount of money (which I would have to borrow) to pay a professional Script Writer to develop the 'Treatment' for an interested party. Much as I want to see my story in film/video/etc., I just haven't got the kind of money they are looking for. On top of that, I am advised by a movie 'insider' that the interested party is the one who should be paying me for the right to develop it - not the other way round.</p>
<p>It's great that someone is this interested. It would be great to see my work turned into a movie (I could even live with a tax problem from it!), but there is risk taking, and there is risk taking. Neither my wife nor my bank see this as sensible. Any suggestions anyone?</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383102013-10-18T02:00:00+02:002013-10-18T09:24:17+02:00Movie 'Treatment'
<p>Having taken the plunge and had someone in the movie industry take a look at <strong>Out of Time</strong> and do an appraisal of how it could be turned into a movie, video show, or perhaps a miniseries, it is very flattering to get a positive response, with an honest assessment. So, I went ahead and asked for a professional script writer to take a look and do a "Treatment". In essence this is a synopsis of what would go into a movie. Here is the overview - </p>
<p> <em><strong>Title: Out of Time </strong></em></p>
<p><em><strong>Author: Patrick G. Cox </strong></em></p>
<p><em><strong>Treatment By: Robin Campbell </strong></em></p>
<p><em>Mission Statement: </em></p>
<p><em>Out of Time is a true science fiction epic – spanning multiple storylines in two centuries, there is enough in the book for two movies, or even a miniseries. The challenge in adapting it is figuring out which plot lines, characters, and other details can be condensed and streamlined into three acts without sacrificing the main thrust and spirit of the story. </em></p>
<p><em>While many of the scenes that take place in 1804 provide great detail and background to the lives that Harry, Ferghal and Danny leave behind, this treatment has greatly diminished the amount of time spent on these scenes. A choice has been made to integrate the information about what happened to the Spartan into the exposition laid out for Harry when he arrives on the Vanguard. While this does violate the “show, don’t tell” rule, it moves the story along faster and places the burden of the consequences on Harry and his friends. </em></p>
<p><em>Much of what happens on the Vanguard has been excised out of concerns for running time and clarity. The author has gone to great pains to fully explore just how a large starship runs; conversely, there are dozens of characters in the book, each with a very specific job, each with a name. For the sake of clarity (and also with an eye to a budget), many characters have been left out or folded into other, more central characters. For example, the team of scientists onboard the Vanguard has been trimmed dramatically. Additionally, to avoid confusion, James Heron has been made a Commodore from the beginning, rather than being promoted mid-story. Danny has been definitively relegated to a secondary character, due to the fact that he is not present for many of the major scenes including Harry and Ferghal. </em></p>
<p><em>Many of the details about the Consortium’s misdeeds have been left out or streamlined in favor of moving the plot along; the same goes for details about the Lacertians. In the Author Questionnaire there was a mention of androids on Vanguard; since the word “android” appears nowhere in the manuscript, that detail has been done away with entirely. </em></p>
<p><em>Even though the story deals some of the more outlandish aspects of science fiction, with events that are difficult or impossible to explain, at the center Out of Time are a group of recognizably human characters. Their journey draws the reader/viewer in and doesn’t let go. For an epic story, these grounding forces are the most important component.</em></p>
<p>I must say, I'm delighted and flattered by the summary and reading through the complete document (sorry folks, not repeated here, but ...), the writer has picked up the elements I had hoped for, and done a superb job of outlining how and what would be done to produce a script for it.</p>
<p>Now then. Anyone interested in taking this further? </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383092013-09-25T02:00:00+02:002021-04-22T03:46:51+02:00Promotional Dilemmas
<p>Sometimes one is faced with a dilemma in this game. What to do with your limited budget in order to promote your work and attract sales? After all, that is the name of the game; getting people to read your work, and that means selling them the idea, or, as a politician once phrased it, "you have to sell the sizzle" to attract attention. That, however, brings you back to budgets. To get noticed you do need to rise above the horizon, get into the spotlight and then grab the imagination of the passing reader, film maker or agent/publisher. It is easy to splash out a lot of money and get a minimal return, in fact, most self-publishing authors face just this dilemma. </p>
<p>Recently I heard of an author who went for broke, laying out $100k on promoting his book. Great, if you have the money to do that, but most authors don't. I'm told this particular author has recouped his outlay, which is good to hear, but it is a huge risk if you're laying out capital. I'll confess that on some of my ventures I'm still a very long way from covering the original costs, but it is slowly starting to build up and maybe, sometime, I'll be in that happy position of having recovered what I spent. </p>
<p>So, to the latest dilemma. One of my books is published through a well known self-publishing company. Returns on it have been, to say the least, disappointing, but now that sales are starting to pick up, they are urging me to lay out around £5k to get it turned into a movie or TV script. They claim to have a Hollywood company expressing interest, but wanting to see a "treatment" and a "Proposal" and draft script (written by a Hollywood Script Writer) before committing anything to it. In short, the book has found someone in Hollywood interested in selling on a movie version, but unwilling to carry the expense of creating it.</p>
<p>Now, it's easy to get excited about this sort of offer, but frankly, here I need to tread very warily. My discussions earlier this year with several folk in the film industry have warned me that this is one offer that needs to be very carefully handled. First off, if someone is genuinely interested in turning a book into a movie, they generally make the author an offer to pay for the book to be given the necessary "treatment". They don't get the author to commit financial suicide and carry all the risk. As I said, this is not the first time I've been asked to go down this road. So I'm not wildly excited by this prospect. After all I do have another book/script circulating and attracting interest.</p>
<p>The big thing with book sales is always the author's "exposure" as the marketing people put it. To be noticed you have to be visible, and certainly getting a book made into a movie increases your exposure dramatically, but that also depends on how much you can throw at it. There is my dilemma, if I pursue this one book and throw everything I've got at it, maybe I will see a return, and maybe not. There are no guarantees. On the other hand, if I continue as I am, with an advert here and an advert there; with a small promotion through an online review, through increasing my presence on Google and other search engines, I may not see a sudden illumination of "success" but I may see my sales continue to increase slowly and steadily to the point where, as my friend Jonathon suggested, someone makes an offer to pay me to be allowed to turn the book into a movie.</p>
<p>That is an attractive proposition. </p>
<p>In the meantime <a href="http://indiegopublishing.com/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">IndieGo Publishing</a> is in the process of getting the fifth Harry Heron Adventure - <em><strong>The Outer Edge</strong></em> - ready for publication. We've started the preliminary editing and I'm awaiting the comments and possibly the change suggestions from the editor. It's a long process, but worth it, and I'm looking forward to the final product sometime early in the New Year.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383082013-09-04T02:00:00+02:002013-09-04T08:42:27+02:00Nice
<p>It is nice to open your mail and find a pleasant surprise - like a cheque for royalties. That was my good news yesterday, a nice cheque, though still not in more than double figures, but an indication that somewhere down the line all my efforts at marketing must be starting to pay off. The cheque was for the first two books in the Harry Heron series, <strong><em>Their Lordships Request</em></strong> and <strong><em>Out of Time</em></strong>, and the sales seem to have been a spin-off from the sales of <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong> plus some exposure at two Book Fairs recently.</p>
<p>Whatever, the good news is that the books are slowly starting to get noticed and that without my having yet succeeded in getting <strong><em>Their Lordships Request</em></strong> up on Kindle. I know, I know, I really need to sit down and get to grips with it instead of writing the sixth in the series and trying to market the others. Still a long way to go to get to the 'Best Sellers' but then, it's a start.</p>
<p>In the meantime, <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong> is doing nicely and now it looks as if there is growing interest in my other work. With several outlines to develop, one book to complete revising, and some articles commissioned for various technical magazines, I have plenty to do. And, if sales keep building, I'll be a very happy bunny ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383072013-08-29T02:00:00+02:002013-08-29T07:52:10+02:00Wonder where the Summer went ...
<p>Here I am at the end of August wondering what happened to the last month or so. Again. The good news is that I've been busy. First there was my youngest daughter's wedding to get to. That led into a short holiday for myself and my wife, but the getting from Frankfurt to London turned into something of a nightmare from which we are still feeling the aftershocks. One day, perhaps, I shall write a book about it. Nobody will believe it though ...</p>
<p>Once we got home again, things needed dealing with, and that certainly kept me busy for most of this month. First I am preparing to deliver a paper at a conference in Belgrade. This will be my second visit there, and as with all my visits to the Balkan and other Eastern European countries, I have found the places fascinating and the people, warm, welcoming and generous. When I get a moment I'll have to post some pictures and some comments on this latest visit.</p>
<p>More good news though is that the fifth Harry Heron Adventure has been accepted by Indiego ePublishing and will hopefully appear in print and on all the electronic reader formats in time for Easter next year. Getting the MS into final shape to go has taken a little time as there were a couple of things I needed to 'tidy up' with regard to formatting and continuity, and now it will need the editor's views and adjustments as well. With that underway, I've started developing the sixth in the series and we'll have to wait and see where that goes and when it is ready to be sent out for consideration. In between I am still revising my life of St Patrick to take on board the critiques I've had on it.</p>
<p>So, in between, I'll try to keep you, my readers, updated on my blog. Now, an extra day in the week might be useful, I wonder where I can get one ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383062013-07-24T02:00:00+02:002013-07-24T04:09:06+02:00Catching up slowly ...
<p>July has been an exciting and busy month. In one sense it's been a bit of a rollercoaster, with preparations for my youngest daughter's wedding, a book under revision, a dog to prepare for a long distance trip and having our kitchen units replaced with all that entails. It has been a month of positives and negatives, so I'll start with the negatives.</p>
<p>The new kitchen unit meant stripping out the old kitchen and repainting the walls in preparation. That proved an interesting challenge and left us without a kitchen for two days. Thankfully we do have a BBQ and made do around that. Harry was quite intrigued by all of this and it was a challenge at times to discourage his "helping". All of this took place in the last few days before the "big" event on the horizon, the wedding of my youngest daughter which was to take place on Friday the 19th in London. </p>
<p>Our carefully planned and prepared trip to the wedding almost came apart at the airport. Despite having done extensive research to make sure we'd covered all bases, the British animal regulations still had a hidden, and rather unpleasant surprise in store. Harry, our 9 month old Sheltie was refused at the airport. Why? Because to enter Britain by air he must be "shipped" as cargo, separate from all passengers and through an "approved" agent of DEFRA. Since this is not on any website and was apparently unknown by the airline when we booked that left us stranded and unable to fly. To cut a long and convoluted story involving a flight to a European destination, then trains invloving three changes, and my son travelling by car to a ferry port, then crossing the channel, fetching us and a return journey, we made the wedding. But not without upsetting the rest of the family.</p>
<p>The wedding went well despite the dramas, the reception, in a grand former Stately Home, also went extremely well, so now we are embarking on a short holiday in the UK with Harry in a Mobile Home (RV in the US) before we return to the grindstone.</p>
<p>On the even more positives, I have just received another Royalty payment for <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong>, which brings the tally up rather nicely. It is a nice feeling to see sales holding steady and spilling over into sales for my other books as well. As a result I have begun discussions with Indiego ePublishing to publish the next of my Harry Heron Adventures. This one entitled <strong><em>The Outer Edge</em></strong> and it follows on from Harry's adventures on Canus in <strong><em>On the Run</em></strong>.</p>
<p>As they say; watch this space!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383052013-07-02T02:00:00+02:002020-02-17T19:44:43+01:00July? Whaddayameanitsjuly?
<p>There is so much happening around here at the moment it's getting difficult to keep up. Harry vom Goldbachmoor, my Sheltie minder, insists he take me for at least one walk a day. The trouble is, being a working dog, his idea of a short ramble and mine are on different scales. Add to this the fact my youngest daughter is getting married in three weeks time, and has asked me to preach at her wedding. OK, that one is relatively straight forward, the problem is I live in Germany, she lives in the UK, and we have to get a 'passport' completed for Harry as well. </p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/e9d4712f4291b4f6a25d3ff138784547614eba7e/original/img-1617.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NjQ0eDg1OSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="859" width="644" /></p>
<p>That's not really a major problem, he already has all his paperwork, but, the tricky bit is he must have one final dose for a type of worm five days before we leave. And the vet has to certify that it 'took' before we can go. Add to these little disruptions, having our kitchen refurbished, trying to revise a major novel draft, marketing, gardening and all the other bits and pieces that make the world go round, and I begin to think maybe I should stop something. The question is what? Writing is my pleasure, so is Harry, and the walks, the garden ...</p>
<p>At least I know I'm not alone in my struggle to keep up. Everyone seems to be saying something similar. One small pleasure today, is to announce a small change in my sidebar, to mark the creation of a new website, by a fellow author, the poet <a href="http://darrylashton-com.webs.com/apps/profile/112722565/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Darryl Ashton</a>. Darryl describes himself as a 'comic' poet, and his verses are witty, sometimes a little sarcastic and often a unique take on the daily life of the world and the UK in particular. Do try the link here, or the sidebar, and take a look at his work. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383042013-06-17T02:00:00+02:002013-06-17T11:10:18+02:00Sad news ...
<p>I received news today that is rather sad, both from my point of view and from that of the person behind it. Two years ago Peter set up 46South ePublishing, and invited me to allow him to publish two of my Harry Heron books electronically for sale through his site. At the time none of my books were available as ebooks, so I agreed, and I have to thank Peter and his wife for the care they took editing them, setting them up as ebooks for Kindle and Adobe. </p>
<p>Sales have not been 'stupendous' and though they have sold, Peter simply hasn't managed to make the enterprise pay, so he has taken the decision to close it down. I cannot fault that, though it does mean I shall now have to look into taking on the task of republishing Their Lordships Request on Kindle and perhaps Nook and iBook. Not being a techy on these things, and not having looked into the skills required for layouts and internal design, I shall have to see what I can achieve with this.</p>
<p>Another job on the "Things to do today" list. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383032013-06-10T02:00:00+02:002019-12-21T20:54:47+01:00Some Encouraging Signs ...
<p>A nice boost to the ego is how I would describe receiving a cheque for royalties from one of my publishers late last week. OK, I won't be rushing out to buy a mansion, chateau, stately home, or even a new car just yet, but it does mean that at least some of my marketing effort is paying off. Sales of <strong>A Baltic Affair</strong> are encouraging as well, still not in danger of hitting the "Best Seller" lists yet, but moving up the ratings and it really is good to see a return stirring on the money I've invested. </p>
<p>As the comment on my previous post by Charmaine Clancy says, I'd be happy enough if the return on my investment in publishing my books, paid my current reading lists purchases. It is a great boost to the ego to see your books are being bought, one always hopes that these are buyers who, having enjoyed one book, have looked for more. One hopes even more that they're telling their friends ...</p>
<p>With my focus on family matters and the marketing efforts for the last few months my writing has slowed down, probably no bad thing, as it has given me an opportunity to look again at the projects I have in progress and in planning. Two of the big one's will be visible later this year, a new <strong>Harry Heron Adventure</strong>, and a 'first person' based on the life of St Patrick. The latter is a project very dear to me, and I'm taking a lot of time to get it absolutely right historically. The research for it was absolutely fascinating and revealed a man who transcends the legends. A giant of a man, but a very modest one as well.</p>
<p>Well, back to my revisions ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383022013-05-27T02:00:00+02:002019-12-21T20:54:46+01:00Keeping up ...
<p>Writing takes up a lot of time, and, it must be said, is very rewarding in a 'spiritual' way. If you're very, very lucky, it can be rewarding in terms of your bank having to build a larger strong room, but the truth is not many of us get that lucky. It's all down to getting noticed in the market place, which is hard work. It isn't cheap either, taking out an advert in a newspaper, magazine or catalogue that will draw attention requires something eye-catching. That means getting someone competent in designing such things if you aren't able to do it yourself (which can, as I've discovered, not be the best way to go) and working with them to get what is needed. The outlay can be a bit daunting, but, if you want to get noticed in the herd, you have to take the chances.</p>
<p>In the meantime, I've a number of other tasks to keep going, all fairly demanding and, naturally, the usual bills to pay. It's a little like the old joke "How do you make a small fortune gambling? Answer: Start with a large one." Marketing your writing is a bit of a gamble. The trick, as with any 'gamble' is to know how much to venture and when to cut your losses. Neither are easy to gauge.</p>
<p>So far I've a lot invested, the returns are slow in developing, but the indications are very encouraging. <strong><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">A Baltic Affair</a></strong> is doing quite well, and so are the <strong><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Harry Heron Adventures</a></strong>. Sales are building slowly and that is very encouraging. The good news is there's another nibble around possible movie or TV rights ... We wait and see. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383012013-05-13T02:00:00+02:002013-05-27T14:52:55+02:00Piracy. It's just theft by another name ...
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">There has been quite a lot of focus on the downloading of music tracks from 'free' sites and a number of attempts to end it. There has equally been a lot of opposition to any attempt to put a stop to the 'sale' by unauthorised sites of these 'free' recordings. Those in favour of the continued supply of free downloads of music often claim that 'no one suffers from it; music must be 'free' and anyway, the recording companies are ripping off the people.' You also hear the argument that the artist and the recording company are only 'capitalist exploiters' who 'deserve to be ripped off'. </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">The same arguments are advanced by those who sell pirate copies of DVDs, videos and CDs. Yet another argument advanced, usually by those who 'buy' these pirate copies, is that the 'exposure is good for the artist'. They think that a few thousand pirate copies of something somehow 'promotes' sales through normal outlets, so it must be good. Right?</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">Wrong. On every level. It may be that the royalties on a few thousand copies of a hit song by a multi-millionaire Pop Star don't make a great deal of difference to his or her earnings, but to the vast majority of performers, actors and authors it does. Authors? Yes, the advent of e-books means our work is also now being ripped off. Sometimes quite blatantly, and the people doing it claim to be striking a blow against 'capitalism' or for 'freedom'. Frankly it is simply theft, and what is worse, those who buy from them are encouraging the crime - and very likely feeding the profits of international crime syndicates in the process.</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">Recently an author I know published a book. In the first few months sales went well, clocking up a few thousand a month. Now some folk would look at that and think - 'Hah! He's making a mint. He's rich!' What they forget is that a book takes time to write. There's a lot of sweat and tears invested in writing it, editing it, correcting and often rewriting parts before it is finally in a shape to be published. The author has invested heavily in terms of time - and often his return is less than a dollar per copy. The vast majority of authors don't get enough from royalties to live on them. So, when sales of his book suddenly 'tanked' and dropped to single copies he wondered why.</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">Thanks to some sophisticated searching on the web, he soon had the answer. Pirate copies of the book were being offered for free on some sites and sold through ebay's eBooks on others. Nor is he the only one to suffer from this problem, several other authors I know have also been hit by these thieves. It leaves you wondering why you made the effort in the first place. For some of us, independent authors, our books are published through Joint Ventures with our publishers. Not only have I got time and effort invested in my books, but some of my money as well. The return on each book is quite small, electronic or hard copy, and I have to sell quite a few before I recoup my outlay and can start showing a return. A thief can destroy my sales - and thus my outlay - in the blink of an eye.</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">Copying and reselling any electronic book is theft. Copying it to sell for your own profit takes it further, and if it continues it will destroy any incentive for creativity. After all, why should anyone write a book, create a picture, make a film or record a song if some thief is going to steal it and profit from it at the creator's expense? The UK government is currently changing the law concerning photography - and it will affect any writing posted on the internet as well - to make it legal to use any image, stored electronically, which cannot be identified as the 'property' of the creator. Since some sites that display many images strip the Meta Data out of the files, there are literally millions of images now available for anyone to claim are 'orphan' images.</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">There is a danger in this for writers as well, as another acquaintance discovered when he posted his poetry online on an author website. Another member of the same site copied the poems verbatim, relabeled and refiled them - then published them via Lulu as his own work. To add insult to injury, the thief entered them in various local and national competitions and boasted that he'd won awards for 'his' poetry. The theft was so blatant it was breathtaking. It has cost the real author - resident in another country - thousands to regain the intellectual rights to his creations and have the sale of the book stopped. The damage is, however, done, and he will never recoup his costs.</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">So far I have been fortunate - but I am watching very carefully!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60383002013-05-05T02:00:00+02:002013-05-06T01:14:58+02:00Interviewed by Kura Carpenter
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">Recently I had the enjoyable experience of being interviewed online. Kura Carpenter, the designer of the cover art on two of my books, <a href="http://www.harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/their_lordships_request_/" data-imported="1"><strong>Their Lordships Request</strong></a> and <strong><a href="http://www.harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/a_baltic_affair_paperback_and_ebook/" data-imported="1">A Baltic Affair</a></strong>, is also a member of a writers' group in her homeland, New Zealand. She has posted the full interview on her Blog, <a href="http://kuracarpenterdesign.blogspot.co.nz/" data-imported="1">Kura Carpenter Design</a> under the title "<a href="http://kuracarpenterdesign.blogspot.co.nz/2013/05/interview-with-patrick-g-cox-author-of.html" data-imported="1"><strong><em>An Interview with Patrick G Cox</em></strong></a>" and I must say it was a different experience. I've been interviewed a number of times 'live' and the main difference here was the removal of the usual opportunities for opening one's mouth only to change feet.</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">As an independent author, getting noticed is always a major problem, you are up against some serious money and marketing available to the big publishing houses. Sadly, the advent of the internet and access to publishing means that there is quite a lot of very poor writing also competing for space and sales, and this tends to give all independent work a bad name.</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">I hope you'll enjoy my answers to Kura's questions as much as I enjoyed the experience of being interviewed in this way.</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; text-align: center; margin: 0px;"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/20be709ebd7b0cec4968df2ee2b7aa6fab1c2c50/original/a-baltic-affair-cover-d-playing-card-size-for-web.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MTcweDI1MiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="252" width="170" /></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382992013-05-03T02:00:00+02:002013-05-04T00:34:31+02:00Interesting fun
<p>I've just done an online interview. I've been interviewed on television several times for different things but this is really the first time I've been 'interviewed' online. It was a fascinating process, waiting for the question, then having lots of time to think of the answer, and type it up. In a way, of course, it gives you the opportunity to take your foot out of your mouth and avoid making a completely idiotic statement, or having to try and retrieve a situation immediately after you hear yourself saying something that can be misinterpretted or which opens that yawning chasm before you ...</p>
<p>Tricky, when the interview is 'live' or you have no 'editorial' controls on what is ultimately broadcast. No wonder so many of us end up having to remember the maxim, "when you're in a hole, stop digging!" By contrast this interview wasn't pressured, and was quite relaxed. I enjoyed it, and I hope Kura did as well. THe resulting question and answers will appear on her Blog, <a href="http://kuracarpenterdesign.blogspot.de/" data-imported="1">Kura Carpenter Design</a>, in the next few days. I hope you'll take the time to visit it, I'll be posting a link as soon as it goes up.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382982013-05-01T02:00:00+02:002020-10-19T14:50:11+02:00What happened to April?
<p>Ever have one of those months where the momentum felt like an avalanche? April seems to have been a bit like that. In between some work on the house, writing - yes, there is another Harry Heron in the pipeline - promoting <strong>A Baltic Affair</strong> and the <strong>Harry Heron series</strong>, the month sort of flashed past. </p>
<p>At times it has been a struggle to sort out the different tasks, but it is getting there. I hope. Maybe. One of the things causing a slight distraction at the moment is the youngest daughter is getting married in July. So there has been planning to get there, and then, if you are going to travel for the occasion anyway, why not make a holiday of it. Now we have a young Sheltie living with us, rejoicing in the name Harry vom Goldbachmoor, our planning has to include travel documentation for him and pet friendly accommodation. Not easy to find, but now solved.</p>
<p>Winter is finally giving way to Spring so now the garden needs attention ... Another distraction, especially with Harry the Hound 'helping'.</p>
<p>Oh well, it is how we rise to these challenges that counts. Still, this months achievments include getting a 'treatment' sorted out for Out of Time so it can be peddled round Hollywood, purchasing advertising copy and space to promote <strong>A Baltic Affair</strong>, and getting a professional critique for the next Harry Heron. Provisionally titled <strong>The Outer Edge</strong>, I'm hoping it will be ready for publication in the Autumn.</p>
<p>Now, back to work. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382972013-04-14T02:00:00+02:002013-04-14T13:26:25+02:00Developing a presence?
<p>From time to time I do a search of the web to see where my books pop up. I get some surprising results sometimes, like the fact that an Australian bookseller has three copies of <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong> on eBay. Sometimes it is a much better result - from my perspective - such as this one at <strong><a href="http://www.historicnavalfiction.com/component/tortags/tag/Patrick_G._Cox?Itemid=118" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Historic Naval Fiction</a></strong>. It actually lists <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong> and all<strong><em> the Harry Heron series</em></strong>, starting with <strong><em>Their Lordships Request</em></strong> and running through <strong><em>Out of Time, The Enemy is Within!</em></strong> and <strong><em>On the Run</em></strong>. Obviously I'm interested to see where I might be getting reviews and, I hope, sales.</p>
<p>It is encouraging to see booksellers, both online and 'terrestrial' listing the books, one such being <strong><a href="http://www.alibris.com/search/books/author/Patrick-G-Cox/aid/1089037" target="_blank" data-imported="1">aLibris</a></strong>. Their Lordships Request comes up on <strong><a href="http://patrickgcox.authorsxpress.com/author/patrickgcox/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">AuthorsXpress</a></strong>, unfortunately with the original 'temporary' cover design, and several of my books have reviews on <strong>Blogcritics </strong>with reviews of <strong><a href="http://blogcritics.org/books/article/book-review-their-lordships-request-by/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Their Lordships Request</a></strong>,<strong> <a href="http://blogcritics.org/books/article/book-review-out-of-time-by/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Out of Time</a> </strong>and<strong> <a href="http://blogcritics.org/books/article/book-review-on-the-run-by/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">On the Run</a></strong>. <a href="http://www.blueinkreview.com/reviews/view/578/srch:the%20enemy%20is%20within" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><strong>Blue Ink Reviews</strong> have a nice review</a> of <strong><em>The Enemy is Within!</em></strong> on their website and there are others to be found as well. They all come up on all the Amazon sites, which is great, and several on Barnes and Noble and on Google Books. Their Lordships Request is still available from <a href="http://46s.biz/ViewBook.asp?Code=PC002" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><strong>46South Publishing</strong></a> as an e-book at US$2.99 which is a bargain.</p>
<p>Unsurprisingly the books all appear on the Publishers websites as well, and certainly in the case of <strong><em>Abbott Press</em></strong> that is where to get the best price for <strong><em>On the Run</em></strong>. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382962013-04-07T02:00:00+02:002013-04-08T01:19:53+02:00Getting NoticedPatrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382952013-03-26T01:00:00+01:002022-05-22T21:48:12+02:00New Titles on Kindle from Jada Penn
<p>My good friend and fellow author has just released two of her titles on Kindle and if you are looking for good romantic stories with a distinctly African flavour, then I commend to you -</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/2c7f10cdd83ce76694e6252867cf33b40530844c/original/thorns-in-the-bush-thumbnail.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MjQ2eDMyOCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="328" width="246" /></p>
<p>and</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/662ccd77e9ca1b8b84109218ade7353c0d9e7395/original/villa-mallorca-4.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzAweDQyMyJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="423" width="300" /></p>
<p>Links to the Amazon Kindle store for both can be found by following this <a href="http://harryheron.com/jada_penns_bookshelves" target="_blank" data-imported="1">link to Jada Penn's Bookshelves.</a></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382932013-03-04T01:00:00+01:002013-03-04T08:52:52+01:00Very Encouraging ...
<p>In the slightly less than two months since <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong> became available through Amazon's Kindle bookstore, sales have gone very well. In fact, very encouragingly well. Especially as this is just one of the outlets currently selling it. Yes, Amazon is probably the largest, but if, as is possible, each of the others sells even a fifth of the sales coming through Kindle, I will be very happy indeed.</p>
<p>While I'm certainly not heading for the sales of someone like Reeman, Kent, Cornwell or King, it does suggest that my books are getting noticed and being read. </p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/20be709ebd7b0cec4968df2ee2b7aa6fab1c2c50/original/a-baltic-affair-cover-d-playing-card-size-for-web.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MTcweDI1MiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="252" width="170" /></p>
<p>I may be a long way from being on the "best seller" lists, but the book is selling steadily, and, given the market, my marketing budget and the sheer numbers of new books released almost daily - I'm pleased. No, I'm more than pleased, I'm thrilled. My publisher, Indiego ePublishing is also thrilled, so, hopefully we'll be looking at further joint ventures.</p>
<p>The book is available as a paperback, in the format for Kindle and for Nook and from iTunes as an iBook as well. See my page for sources on this site to check where and prices.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382922013-02-22T01:00:00+01:002013-02-22T02:03:22+01:00Revising my manuscript ...
<p>I seem to run out of day before I run out of jobs at the moment, and part of the problem is my new 'helper' - Harry vom Goldbachmoor. He's a Sheltie pup who, like all pups has two speed settings, flat out 'go' and 'slump.' Still, he's a fantastic little fellow, growing fast, endlessly amusing and absolutely devoted to us. But he doesn't 'help' when it comes to the task in hand - to revise the MS for my latest Harry Heron story.</p>
<p><strong><em>The Outer Edge</em></strong> takes Harry and his friends into a new battle for the survival of humanity against an enemy of ancient origins. Unfortunately for all concerned, the human trait to adopt unshakeable positions at the extremes of belief between 'fight' or 'roll over and let it happen' bedevil the political and the military scene. The enemy is an ancient predator, one that will not show mercy, probably because it does not understand the concept. Harry and Co must win - or humanity itself may be destroyed, but, there are those at home who see Harry and the Fleet as the enemy of 'peace' and the cause of the enemy's aggression ...</p>
<p>OK, that's enough of a spoiler. Having had the entire MS professionally critiqued, I'm now working my way through it to address the several small issues raised by the editor. She 'liked' the story, but pointed out two weaknesses in the way the characters are portrayed. So I need to give Harry a slightly more 'rule breaker' edge and his chief foil needs to be less a victim of his own blindness and redeem himself (a little - he's modelled on a personality type I really can't stand!) at least in part by the end. I think, for me, the ten page critique has been a great booster, because it confirmed, in the main, that the story was more than just 'readable' and does have a real chance of being a success.</p>
<p>Now I'd best get back to work, while Harry snoozes off his latest burst of 'playtime' on my couch ...</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/f627046e4963d494d2d618cf7fe4f82b6c15d5a3/original/dscf0025-2.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NTA0eDM0NCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="344" width="504" /></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382912013-02-09T01:00:00+01:002013-02-09T13:20:19+01:00A nice link
<p>The Press Release prepared for <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong> has been posted on the website <a href="http://newbookjournal.com/2013/02/a-baltic-affair-by-patrick-cox/" data-imported="1">New Book Journal</a> courtesy of the site's owner, another author of science fiction. It is also posted to <a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/61994932342652072/" data-imported="1">Pinterest</a>. </p>
<p>I'm working my way through a long list of newspaper contributers and reviewers and making some encouraging headway. It all takes a lot of time though, which is one reason posting here is not as frequent as I would wish. It also cuts into time I want to spend writing, but there's no pointb doing that if I can't persuade someone to read it.</p>
<p>So, I guess I'll keep working my way down the list. Soon, hopefully, it will pay off. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382902013-01-29T01:00:00+01:002013-01-30T01:04:41+01:00Sales and Marketing
<p>I'm told that every author - except, perhaps, those on the "Best Seller" lists - has to put as much effort, if not more, into marketing and selling his or her work as they devote to creating it. So it is flattering to get a call from a small independent book store asking if you can supply a copy of your book for a customer. The fact that it wasn't an English or British Book Shop I think makes it a little bit more special. I've been happy to oblige and asked them to consider stocking, on a 'sale or return' basis copies of all my other books. I also asked how they found me and was pleased to learn they'd done an internet search and found this site, then my Facebook page and my other blog. At the moment they aren't stocking any more of my books, but hopefully the word is now spreading.</p>
<p>Yesterday I received a list, from another friend, of possible contacts with book reviewers for a number of newspapers, both national and local, so my next step is to begin working through that to get my work "out there" in newspaper reviews and, hopefully, noticed by potential buyers. Who knew being an author meant being a salesman? It seems that this is, in fact, the way the Publishing Industry has gone in recent years, authors are now part of the sales team, in some cases, they are selling themselves rather than any specific book on their catalogue of work and I have it on very good authority that even the very big "names" in the literary world have to keep promoting themselves. Such, I would guess, is the nature of today's 'celebrity' status. It can vanish as quickly as mist if not maintained.</p>
<p>That leaves open the question of exactly how does one balance one's creative writing, marketing, selling and any sort of family life? The answer seems to be; 'with difficulty.' Especially if one is also having to earn a living to support oneself and one's passion for writing. At least I have some support in that direction, but it is still a tricky balance.</p>
<p>Right, so, today is the first day of a new drive to ascend the cliff face of recognition. Back to work ... </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382892013-01-23T01:00:00+01:002013-01-24T04:22:18+01:00Feels like a treadmill ...
<p>Someone once said if it quacks like a duck and looks like a duck, it must be a duck. So, if it feels like a treadmill, it must be - right? Not necessarily, but it certainly seems like it. Chasing up enquiries, marketing activities, writing, and coping with our new pup are keeping me very active at present. Someone once told me that it's good to be busy - it means you're alive and making progress.</p>
<p>OK, but the converse of that is the swan - serene and beautiful on the surface, and paddling like fury below to keep moving. Still, there are a lot of things coming together slowly, and the response to <strong><em><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/a_baltic_affair_paperback_and_ebook/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">A Baltic Affair</a></em></strong> has been very encouraging. Of course I won't have any idea of the actual sales for another couple of months, but from what I have seen and the feedback I've had from a few readers, I'm hoping it will get a great response.</p>
<p>In the meantime, I better get back to the 'history' I'm putting together (I don't like saying I'm writing it - one merely assembles the facts and information in a readable form) and the new <strong><em><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Harry Heron</a></em></strong> I've started.</p>
<p>And the pup wants a walk again ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382882013-01-13T01:00:00+01:002013-01-13T11:19:29+01:00Going Digital ...
<p><strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong> has gone digital. It s now available as an eBook from Kindle ($5.99 in the US, £ in the UK and €4.72 in the EU). It is now also on sale for Nook, iTunes Books, Adobe Reader and others. I'm delighted to have reached this market and look forward to being able to place other books on this platform in future.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/20be709ebd7b0cec4968df2ee2b7aa6fab1c2c50/original/a-baltic-affair-cover-d-playing-card-size-for-web.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MTcweDI1MiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="252" width="170" /></p>
<p>I'm placing links to all the eBook outlets and systems as I get them on the page for the book on this site. Please take a look and I hope you'll enjoy the book. The page can be accessed by clicking this link to <strong><em><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/a_baltic_affair_paperback_and_ebook/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">A Baltic Affair</a></em></strong> or by using the link at the top of this page to the Suppliers Page.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382872013-01-01T01:00:00+01:002013-01-01T02:46:11+01:00Off to a Great Start
<p>The year is off to a great start from my perspective - <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Baltic-Affair-Patrick-G-Cox/dp/0984668594/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1357002342&sr=1-1&keywords=a+baltic+affair" data-imported="1">Amazon</a> has <strong><em><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Baltic-Affair-Patrick-G-Cox/dp/0984668594/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1357002342&sr=1-1&keywords=a+baltic+affair" data-imported="1">A Baltic Affair</a></em></strong> listed as available in the paperback format and I'm assured the e-formats will be on sale early next week.<a href="http://indiego-epublishing.com/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"> IndieGo ePublishing</a> has done a great job of the design, inside and out, and<a href="http://kuracarpenterdesign.blogspot.co.nz/" target="_blank" data-imported="1"> Kura Carpenter's</a> cover image is superb. Lightning source are the printers for IndieGo and I have to say they've done a great job as well.</p>
<p>All that remains now is for Kindle, Nook, iBooks, et al to get the book set up and on their sales sites.</p>
<p>Best New Year present an author can get I think.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Baltic-Affair-Patrick-G-Cox/dp/0984668594/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1357002342&sr=1-1&keywords=a+baltic+affair" data-imported="1"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/20be709ebd7b0cec4968df2ee2b7aa6fab1c2c50/original/a-baltic-affair-cover-d-playing-card-size-for-web.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MTcweDI1MiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="252" width="170" /></a></p>
<p>From the back cover - </p>
<p class="FreeForm">Captain Petroc Gray, commander of the ship-rigged sloop of war, HMS Kestrel, 22 guns, finds himself drawn into diplomacy, intrigue and espionage when he rescues the Freiherr von Dieffenbach and his family off the island of Rügen in the Baltic. The Freiherr proves to be an important and valuable connection in the struggle to beat the Napoleonic Continental blockade of British trade, and Petroc finds romance in the person of the Freiherr's daughter ...</p>
<p class="FreeForm">But the shifting sands and changing moods of the Baltic and the North Sea coast are the least of the couple's problems as they navigate their way through the changing political alliances of the Northern European and Scandinavian states. Petroc must deal with his own family problems while taking care of his ship's company, the Freiherr's 'connections' and his Admiral's orders.</p>
<p class="FreeForm">War, sea battles, storms, death and Napoleon's 'hundred days' leading to the defeat at Waterloo all conspire to frustrate Petroc's intention to seek Silke's hand in marriage right to the last ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382862012-12-31T01:00:00+01:002012-12-31T06:30:11+01:00The end of another year
<p>Well, there are only a few more hours left to 2012. It has been a challenging year in many respects, but it closes with a lot of positives, among them the publication of my historical novel,<strong><em> A Baltic Affair</em></strong>, some interest expressed in turning my Harry Heron scifi tales into a movie or a TV show, more interest in two more MS I am circulating - and my marriage to a lovely lady, the inspiration for the heroine on <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong>.</p>
<p>Looking back, I think that 2012 has been a good year for me. My book sales aren't astronomic, but they are increasing slowly. This is the year eBook sales are starting to pick up and I'm hoping that with <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong> going out on all the "e-reader" formats and outlets, sales will start to gather momentum. It's all, as they say, in the marketing, and I've been putting a lot of effort into that this last year. Rome, as they say, was not built in a day.</p>
<p>So, as 2012 closes and 2013 looms, I'd like to take this opportunity to wish all my readers a prosperous year ahead. May 2013 bring all you hope for, all you work for and plenty of fun along the way.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382852012-12-27T01:00:00+01:002012-12-27T11:03:39+01:00Step by step ...
<p>The release of <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong> frees me up for a couple of other projects now moving slowly toward, I hope, fruition. One is another Harry Heron adventure, this one - in my view - the best yet, and my revisions to my story on the life of St Patrick are also coming along well according to my editor. The Harry Heron story is the next in the series. Entitled <strong><em>The Outer Edge,</em></strong> it takes place over a two year period during which Harry and his friends must confront an ancient predator intent on the annihilation of humanity now it has found them. It has had a very good editorial assessment from an editorial review service, so now I need to start sending it out and around for a publisher to look at. </p>
<p>In between I've been assembling the information to write the meat of a history of my former place of employment, and here I have the help of several friends from the same place. Recent events have shown us that there is a need to create this record for posterity, before it is all lost in the 'mists of time' as it were.</p>
<p>What our research has turned up to date is that while we have quite a lot about the prigins of the College and about the latter part of its activities, there is very little in existence about the middle part. This is a pity, since it covers a transition and, at the time, provided probably the only such development for the leadership of our service anywhere in the world. Fortunately there are still people alive who served there and studied there - and we are tapping into their memories and anecdotes to try to rebuild those years. It is turning into a fascinating project.</p>
<p>One of our hopes is that all the surviving Commandants will be able to contribute their own reflections and memories to it and we hope to back that with reflections from some of those who served on the staff under them.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382842012-12-26T01:00:00+01:002020-10-05T08:31:46+02:00A Baltic Affair released ...
<p>IndieGo ePublishing has uploaded <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong> to Kindle and one or two other eBook outlets. It will soon also be available on iTunes as an "iBook" and with Nook and other e-reader suppliers. It's a little late as we had a couple of delays in getting the editing and set-up completed, and I hope to be able to post the links for the e-versions and the paperback soon. In the meantime, here is the cover image to look for -</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/20be709ebd7b0cec4968df2ee2b7aa6fab1c2c50/original/a-baltic-affair-cover-d-playing-card-size-for-web.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MTcweDI1MiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="252" width="170" /></p>
<p>And, while I'm at it, I'll take the opportunity to wish all my readers and visitors, a great new year, and hope you've enjoyed a wonderful Christmas.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382832012-12-15T01:00:00+01:002012-12-15T09:19:54+01:00Coming Soon ....
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/e6322a7cfb57986aeef19ae77ec6fde13b0ef4c8/original/cover-under-wraps-availble-mid-december.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NTAweDgwMCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="800" width="500" /></p>
<p>Well, that's the plan, but I'm still on target for a release before Christmas!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382822012-12-13T01:00:00+01:002012-12-13T11:43:45+01:00The Final Lap
<p>I've just received the clean edited version of the MS for A Baltic Affair and must now go through it myself to agree the changes and alterations that have been made between myself and the editor. I have no doubt it will be OK, but one has to check. Possibly the best compliment the editor could give is to add with her report "I really enjoyed working on your book and I loved the story as a whole." It can't get much better than that I think. Now for the last hurdle and it will be in print.</p>
<p>The Metadata has been generated and is now available. To save everyone the hassle of looking for it, here it is - </p>
<p><strong>Metadata for </strong><strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong><strong> </strong></p>
<p class="FreeForm"><strong> </strong></p>
<p class="FreeForm"><strong>Print book ISBN: </strong>9780984668595<strong></strong></p>
<p class="FreeForm"><strong>Ebook ISBN: </strong>9780988704800</p>
<p class="FreeForm"><strong>BISAC Codes (in this order of priority):</strong></p>
<table border="0" cellpadding="0">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>
<p>FIC014000</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>FICTION / Historical</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>FIC032000</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>FICTION / War & Military</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>FIC047000</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>FICTION / Sea Stories</p>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p class="FreeForm"><strong> </strong></p>
<p class="FreeForm"><strong>Book Description:</strong></p>
<p class="FreeForm">Captain Petroc Gray, commander of the ship-rigged sloop of war, HMS <em>Kestrel</em>, is drawn into diplomacy, intrigue, and espionage when he rescues the Freiherr von Dieffenbach and his family off the island of Rügen in the Baltic. The Freiherr is an important and valuable connection in the struggle to beat the Napoleonic Continental blockade of British trade, and his daughter, Silke, is a delightful young woman with a quick wit, brilliant intelligence, and a keen eye for observing the events unfolding around them. The ever-changing political alliances of the Northern European and Scandinavian states—war, sea battles, storms, death, and Napoleon’s “hundred days” leading to the defeat at Waterloo—all conspire to frustrate Petroc’s intention to seek Silke’s hand in marriage, right to the last. But Petroc isn’t one to be easily defeated, whether he is navigating the open seas or matters of the heart, and Silke stands bright and strong in his life like a beacon in a safe harbour.</p>
<p><strong><br></strong></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382812012-12-04T01:00:00+01:002021-02-12T11:55:50+01:00Getting Closer to Publication ...
<p>A message from the publisher of <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong> today informs me that we are now in the final stages of the final edit. Ant day now I will get the final edited version for approval, then its all go for publication. Indiego ePublishing tell me that the eBook version should be available for sale by the middle of the month and the paper version just before Christmas.</p>
<p>As ever, bringing a book out is a bit like awaiting the birth of a child. You've lived with it, laboured over it, revised and edited it, suffered the criticisms of your editor and now you've finally got the finished object in your hands. Too late now for corrections, changes or revisions, it is finished, final and out there. Now you wait to see what your readers and critics say about it. </p>
<p>Hopefully, they'll love it.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382802012-11-28T01:00:00+01:002012-11-28T11:44:18+01:00Telling a Story
<p>My excursion into trying to write a film script has proved to be a real challenge in more ways than one. In a book one can build a character slowly, bring the person to life, with a background, future, quirks - all the human foibles. In a movie you have to launch them in, full on, larger than life and almost egoistic. There's no room for a build up, no room for frills, all of that has to be 'painted in' in the way the character is played, ultimately, by an actor or actress.</p>
<p>This carries thrugh all the characters, and here you run into another limitation. You have to make the story work with an absolute minimum of them. The dialogue can be carried by no more than three 'main' characters and they can be supported by no more than ten 'others' - some of whom you shouldn't even give names to. In fact, ideally, the 'supporting' characters end up almost as cardboard cutouts, two dimensional, walk-on, lead the 'main character' into his next speech, smile sweetly, drop dead, or exit appropriately. Since I started this project I've pulled out a lot of my DVDs and even some VHS tapes and watched carefully, note book in hand, to see how some of the big movies tell the story. It's been interesting, and somewhat daunting as my story is still to complex to be carried by only three 'main' characters.</p>
<p>Oh well, I shall have to do another revision and see how that works. Back to work ... </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382792012-11-25T01:00:00+01:002012-11-25T06:22:56+01:00Publication a step closer ...
<p>The publication of <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong> has moved a step closer. We are now in the final editing process and hopefully we're at the final sprint to the finish now. I had originally hoped it would all come together in time to appear in October, but, as ever, that was over optimistic of me. Now I've completed the rewrites and additions the editor wanted, she's gone through them, and hopefully we're there.</p>
<p>It will be good to see the book in print and in e-format. It will be released on Kindle, B&N's version and on iTunes Books. I must admit I'm looking forward to it. It was fun to write, it was a challenge to get some of the rewrites right, and even more of a challenge to add the bits the editor felt were lacking, but now I've finished, I have to admit I enjoyed it and think the story is much better for the additions.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/c027ffae79d806c8368aba6e42a40287dd5d33a3/original/a-baltic-affair-cover-under-wraps-text.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NjAweDk2MCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="960" width="600" /></p>
<p>Watch this space, I hope to be able to announce its appearance in all its splendour soon!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382782012-11-23T01:00:00+01:002012-11-23T12:49:06+01:00New Project
<p>I'm currently engaged in sorting out a short history of my former place of employment and doing a fair bit of research for it. It isn't just a 'pet project' it is part of a larger attemtp involving two other former members of the staff to bring together all the memories and all the history we can before it is lost. Part of the drive to do this is that changes in use, changes in culture and changes in our Service itself have all given rise to a decline in the activities we used to provide and a fragmentation of what the place was set up to provide.</p>
<p>The research for it has, in itself turned up information which casts new light on certain aspects and certainly there have been some surprising revelations, some of which will be included. Others, for a variety of reasons we may exclude and leave to others to 'uncover' at a later date. </p>
<p>I was once told that technological development is "linear" but human history goes in circles. That is certainly true in the writing of this little bit of it. Centralised training for the Fire Service was identified as a need in the 1920s but it took the Blitz and the Luftwaffe to get the motivation into action. From 1941 onwards all aspiring officers in the UK's Fire Services had to attend a variety of "progression courses" at the Central Training establishment. It was the envy of the world and non-UK fire officers aspired to being given the opportunity to train there, and many were lucky enough to do so.</p>
<p>But, in 1994, the UK's largest service decided to go its own way and in 1997 others began to use "Treasury" rules requiring "best value" to argue for cheaper alternatives and from there on training has been fragmented again. Mapping it all out, I wonder how long it will be before someone, somewhere asks - why did we let it all go?</p>
<p>In the meantime we are hoping to produce a history and a memoir which will record all the history, the personalities and all the names of those who worked there, shaped courses and delivered the training. Perhaps, in future, it will provide someone with the inspiration ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382772012-11-16T01:00:00+01:002012-11-16T05:21:32+01:00Descriptive Writing ...
<p>I've been goofing off the last few days. I just needed a break and I picked up a book at random from my collection of favourite authors. It has been a while since I last read John Winton's classic<strong><em> "We Joined the Navy"</em></strong> but I'm finding it as fresh and as funny as the first time. Part of it is his superb eye for detail and his ability to translate it into words on the page. Here is an example - </p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>HMS Barsetshire, the Cadet Training Cruiser, was a comfortable ship, at least in the opinion of her officers and her ship's company. The cadets' opinion of her was not known, nor was it consulted. She had been built in the spacious days before Hitler, when it was not unusual for a naval officer to have a private income and when recruiting for the navy was not subject to party recrimination in Parliament but depended on more mundane influences, such as the end of hop-picking and harvesting seasons and the decline of local industries. Her high speed and four funnels made her ideal for service on the China Station where the one enabled her to return from Wei Hai Wei in record time for the Hong Kong Races and the other impressed the Chinese. Her peacetime service in the tropics evidently demonstrated her admirable qualities for wartime service in the Arctic, for she never steamed south of the British Isles throughout the war, except after D-Day when she was attacked by a group of Messerschmitts who, it was assumed, mistook her for a newly constructed Mulberry Harbour.</em></p>
<p>I think even a non-seafarer reading that gets a mental image of a ship built for one purpose, now fulfilling another, having done everything except what she was designed for in between. He also neatly encapsulates the changing political scene and captures the sense of a society in change, setting the scene for what is coming in the story very well. Elsewhere in this book he has his reader in stitches of laughter with his description of jaded and disillusioned officers, hardened seamen and petty officers who keep everything going and the confused, slightly dazed, 'cadets' being put through endless training, lectures and evolutions. The ship is commanded and officered by a collection of eccentric characters brought to life by his eye for little details of behaviours and sayings which draw you in. You soon realise you know people like these, you've met them, worked with them and even associate with them because they're charming, witty, fun.</p>
<p>My second favourite in the line of powerful descriptive writing is Douglas Reeman. He writes historical novels under the name Alexander Kent and his descriptions of battles, ship handling and day to day life on the ships he places his characters on is, again, the stuff that draws one in. You 'hear' the roar of gunfire, taste the gunpowder smoke, feel the sting of icy spray - and the terror of the men engaged in hopeless battles. This example is from his book <strong><em>HMS Saracen.</em></strong></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>Colquhon stood up and walked quickly to the screen. Flotsam from his own ship floated around in the calm water, and he could see smoke from the Aureus's wounds streaming astern towards the scattered convoy. But for a few moments longer he forgot his own duties and stared fixedly at the monitor.</em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>She was less than a quarter mile away, and seemed to be leaning forward as she thrust her blunt bows deep into the blue water, the plume of funnel smoke adding to the impression of desperate effort and urgency. He saw the great battle ensigns, and the two massive guns swinging slowly in their barbettes, their muzzles pointing protectively across his own ship.</em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>Behind him he heard Beaushears croak, "What is it? What is that madman doing?"</em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>Colquhoun said: "It is the Saracen. She's going to tackle the bastards alone!"</em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>Beaushears contracted his muscles against the pain. It was almost as if the shell splinters were gouging his chest wide open. "Tell me Colquhoun! Describe it!" Each word was agony. </em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>The Captain winced as three waterspouts rose alongside the monitor. "The enemy have found her!" He banged the screen with mounting excitement. "By God she's going to open fire!" As he spoke the two long guns belched fire and brown smoke, and the air seemed to shiver from the force of the twin detonations."</em></p>
<p>From here on you take the same death ride as the men of <strong><em>HMS Saracen</em></strong>, feeling the ship being torn apart as she takes hit after hit from the battleship she was never designed to stand against. She defends her convoy, steaming out of the battle eventually barely afloat, her survivors grateful to be alive and her convoy intact. You don't have to know ships to feel this and to be able to visualise what is happening. The descriptions draw you in and you feel the blast, duck the shells and the splinters, taste the cordite and smell the fire and the blood. I can only hope my own writing will one day be held to do the same.</p>
<p>For those that have never seen, and probably never will see, the Royal Navy going into battle, I had better explain the term "Battle ensigns." Ever since the 18th Century when, during a battle a ship's colours were shot away and confusion arose over whether or not she had surrendered, major British warships hoist "battle ensigns" as they prepare to engage an enemy. In the age of battleships this meant flying the white ensign at the peak of the foremast, and the mainmast, at the gaff on the mainmast and on the extremities of each of the main yardarms. My father once described it to me as the most awe-inspiring sight you could ever see. I expect it would be, especially when the ship opened fire. The muzzle flash from a fifteen inch gun extends about 300 feet from the muzzle and the blast wave from it will knock you down and do internal damage, which is why it was customary to 'clear the upper deck' when the main armament was to be fired.</p>
<p>So there I have it. Two brilliantly descriptive writers, one humorous and the other more serious, yet both able to paint a word picture for their readers that invokes the emotions, triggers the memory and draws the reader into the scene. Something to work for.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382762012-11-02T01:00:00+01:002012-11-02T15:20:49+01:00Tempus Fugit ...
<p>Whaddayamenitsnovember? Where did October go? It's been a busy month, A Baltic Affair is making progress, the editor, publisher and I are getting there. There's some more to do on it, but we're over the hump.</p>
<p>More challenging is creating a movie script. That has been a learning curve possibly equivalent to climbing a rock face with borrowed equipment. The first thing I've had to learn is to limit the number of characters included in the story. I'll be honest, its something I'd never actually considered. In a book you can have a whole population, in a screen play you want in order - </p>
<ul>
<li>the hero</li>
<li>the baddie</li>
<li>supporters for the hero and the baddie</li>
<li>something attention grabbing which shows off the hero's strengths and weaknesses, and</li>
<li>something climactic which suggests the baddie gets what's coming to him ...</li>
</ul>
<p>It's a challenge, as it means trying to take the character out of your story, cherry-picking scenes from the book and cutting out almost every character, while playing up the baddies. As was pointed out to me, if it's a SciFi movie, it basically has to have a hero (flawed) an anti-hero type as a foil for the hero, a really bad baddie, lots of aliens, some cute robots and lots of fighting. If you can include some love interest and rivalry between the hero, the anti-hero and the baddie while you're at it ... Winner.</p>
<p>I'm now on Version 2 Draft 4 of the script. I think the description will end up being 'based on the book' rather than 'of the book.' The 'hero,' is still Harry Heron, but he's having to become an older, brasher and less thoughful version of himself. Some of the minor characters are assuming a larger role and some of those I originally gave more space to in the books have almost vanished. Then I've had to introduce a couple of alien species and some robots. Plus a few 'bunnies' to serve as cannon fodder for the baddies.</p>
<p>As I said, it has been a learning curve, but I think I'm getting close to that final sprint to the top ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382752012-10-22T02:00:00+02:002012-10-22T05:43:54+02:00A Baltic Affair - progressing slowly ...
<p>I think the title says it all really. Making the changes, additions and corrections the editor has flagged is taking a lot of thought and time - as you would expect. The key is to keep things in the right sequence, insert new points of view and comments in the right place so that, for instance, one group of characters are not describing an event or a letter that hasn't happened - in the story sequence - to the principal character yet. It is surprisingly easy to get 'carried away' with an idea and to drop something into the wrong point in the story sequence - as I have discovered a couple of times so far!</p>
<p>Of course I get impatient. I've never been 'Mister Patience' anyway, but it is a skill I'm having to learn, or perhaps acquire. I want this book to be good. I want it to sell and I want it to be something a reader isn't going to be tripping over typos and typesetting problems in. So ...</p>
<p>For me, working with Janet Angelo (<a href="http://indiego-epublishing.com" target="_blank" data-imported="1">IndieGo ePublishing</a>) who is both editor and publisher for this story has been extremely helpful. She is thorough and she has flagged several problems in the original draft with suggestions for ways to fix them. She has been encouraging, at times exacting, but I am pretty sure that when we have done with the editing and the revision we will have a book and a story that will be good. No it will be better than good! </p>
<p>So what is the storyline? OK, a little teaser then ...</p>
<p>Set between 1809 and 1816 it is a romantic naval history story set in the Baltic. It involves a full cast of characters both historic and fictional, there's lots of 'action,' there's espionage, world events unfold around the central characters, frustrating their hopes and ambitions as they are separated by events and distance. Can they 'get it together?' Sorry, you'll have to wait for the book to find out! </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382742012-10-13T02:00:00+02:002012-10-13T14:56:26+02:00A Baltic Affair
<p>Progress ... </p>
<p>I now have the editors corrections and comments for the first 18 chapters and can see I have a fair bit of work to do to address the suggestions and revisions. All are things that need either clarification or will improve the reading experience, so now I need to make time and space to go through them carefully and address each point. There are a couple of things which I need to build up a little more as well, so this needs some thought.</p>
<p>On the plus side, the corrections are fairly minor ones, some the result of my own revisions, so they have been picked up and flagged. Now it is just a case of getting down to it. Sounds easy when you say it, but experience tells me it takes a lot of time and patience ...</p>
<p>One more bit of exciting news os that the publisher has expressed interest in producing my book,<strong><em> "Ego sum, a sinner and most unlearned ..."</em></strong> as well. But that is now a project for next year.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382732012-10-05T02:00:00+02:002012-10-05T12:04:54+02:00I need a 48 hour day ...
<p>Someone once told me that when I retired I'd have all the time in the world to focus on what I really wanted to do. It doesn't seem to have worked out like that. I seem to run out of day before I've run out of things that need to be done. I make a point of trying to dedicate a specific time each day to writing. But I find that often that time gets shifted, because there is a need to go somewhere, or do something at the time I have set aside. OK, so change the schedule - I do, but often that doesn't quite work either since I tend to work out a scene or a story or some aspect of the story - and I need to get it down on paper or on the screen immediately, while its fresh in my head.</p>
<p>Often that is where things go adrift, by the time I get to my keyboard - some key detail is gone. That usually means I have to spend a lot of time working my way backward to try and recapture the idea, image or concept. Sometimes it works, other times I find a different solution. To complicate this, I'm finding that I have three projects on the go at present, obviously all at different stages of development. It works for me since I can switch to a different 'story' if I get a block on the one I'm writing at that point. It sometimes provides a way forward for whichever project I'd got stuck on.</p>
<p>So, why do I now need a 48 hour day?</p>
<p>Simple. A few weeks ago someone connected with the fil industry wrote that my "Harry Heron" books should be made into films. I contacted him and discussed the means of achieving this. I'm a realist, I know this isn't going to be a case of "here's a load of money, we'll make a movie out of it." So I learned how to prepare a script, how to "sell" it to an agent or a movie financier, and a whole lot more. Now I need to make it happen, it certainly isn't going to do it all on its own. So, since two of my three projects have no deadline and are largely for my own interest and amusement, they're going on "hold" for the forseeable. </p>
<p>For the next few months I'll be writing a script and nursing "A Baltic Affair" through to publication. As Captain Oates remarked - "I may be a little while." But this is something I simply have to do.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382722012-09-28T02:00:00+02:002012-09-28T07:33:18+02:00A Baltic Affair and other projects ...
<p>The editor is doing a final overhaul of my new book, <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong>, and I'm looking forward to seeing what it produces. I'm advised there are no 'story changes' just 'technical adjustments' for the most part. If, at the end of this process, we are both happy with the outcome the book will go into print as a paperback and as an eBook to be sold on Kindle, iPod, B&N's Nook and several others I've not heard of.</p>
<p>ePublishing is definitely taking off. Most of the sales I'm recording on my Harry Heron series are for the e-versions and that is encouraging. I'm still wrestling with creating movie/television film outlines for the four Harry Heron books and the project I have on hand for the writing of a history of my former place of employment is also taking shape. The juggling continues, at this rate I should be able to take the stage as a juggler any day now! </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382712012-09-10T02:00:00+02:002021-07-04T07:41:11+02:00Interesting developments for Harry Nelson-Heron ...
<p>Earlier today I got a message from the author of the blog that published the comments on my Harry Heron stories. Jonathon is entusiastic and provided me with a wealth of ideas and suggestions, even offering to help me set one of the stories up as a trial script for a 'pitch' to a producer. Clearly I am going to have to do a lot of work still to give this idea 'legs' and equally clearly it would be a big help if I could get an agent to help me with it. There are a number of things I now need to consider carefully and a whole lot of things I will have to explore to see what is really practical for me.</p>
<p>As I've often remarked, there is a reason I spent my career in the fire and emergency services - I'm not a great salesman. To sell one needs to be confident and a little extroverted. The first I can manage, the second is a problem. That said, I'm going to have to get to work on it - because I do believe that Harry will make a great movie or TV series.</p>
<p>I can't let him down.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382702012-09-06T02:00:00+02:002019-12-21T20:54:36+01:00A very nice surprise ...
<p>Every so often one gets an accolade out of the blue. Today I have received a very unexpected, but extremely welcome one on a blog titled Save The British Film Industry. Entitled "<a href="http://www.savethebritishfilmindustry.com/2012/09/three-cheers-for-patrick-gray-cox-the-gray-monk-and-please-pray-for-the-peace-and-prosperity-of-jerusalem-and-stand-up-for-israel/comment-page-1/#comment-33161" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Three Cheers for Patrick Gray Cox</a>," the author calls for my Harry Heron books to be considered for conversion to films. I'm stunned, but delighted. I'd love to see Harry come to the big screen, just as I'd love to see my books produced by RandomHouse or Harper Collins, Gollanz, Corgi, Pan or Bloomsbury ...</p>
<p>A number of people who have read the books have told me how 'visual' my writing is and how much they'd like to see these stories turned into a movie or a television series, so this comes as confirmation of that view. To me it is all the more startling because the author of this article and owner of the blog is a 'movie insider' who is passionate about the British Film industry and what it is capable of producing.</p>
<p>I'm not going to hold my breath, but I'm immensely encouraged, I'm flattered and I shall now renew my efforts to get these stories 'out there' and up the charts! </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382692012-09-05T02:00:00+02:002012-09-05T05:37:57+02:00Progress - Maybe ....
<p>The project to create a history of my former place of employment is coming along slowly. It's amazing what is turning up in the research and the gaps are slowly filling, though I suspect some may remain when the project reaches its final form and shape. Even so there will be a lot for those who worked there, those who attended courses and those interested in what it was all about, to chew over. We're hoping to be able to get some of the surviving leaders of the whole enterprise, and as many of the former staff and even students as we can manage to find and fit in to contribute short reminiscences as well.</p>
<p>The history of the organisation is, at first glance, quite short. However, it is not so straight forward, because it did arise from a need identified in 1923, exposed cruelly in 1940 in places like Coventry, and resolved in emergency measures which shaped the fire service for the next sixty years. It is a history worth the telling.</p>
<p>Future generations will, I hope, find in it some salutary lessons as well. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382682012-08-30T02:00:00+02:002012-08-30T12:03:23+02:00Where did August go?
<p>August seems to have whizzed by. Come to think of it, so has the summer. Or perhaps I should say; what summer? We've had perhaps a week of warm to hot weather here in the Uberwald, the rest of it seems to have been fairly cool, wet or windy. At least that meant getting on with some of the projects I've got on my plate at the moment. The most demanding being the history I'm collaborating on of my former place of employment.</p>
<p>There are several reasons for this, one being that my collaborator wants to expand it, while I'm trying to keep it manageable. Plus, there is a lot of research to do and a lot of tracking down some records to be done. One of the biggest challenges is going to be persuading some of our former colleagues to make a contribution. That problem is two-fold; many want to contribute, but, certainly among those who shared (and are still labouring) the latter years of the establishment want to make plain their unhappiness at the manner in which they and the organisation have been abused and destroyed. We have to be sensitive about that aspect.</p>
<p>I spent almost sixteen years working at this establishment, a post which followed twenty years in active fire service duty and four in London in consultancy and then marine fire safety. My work took me to many different lands and gave me the opportunity to meet some interesting people. Sadly, there will not be the same opportunities for those who come after us. As we prepare this draft history, the whole establishment is being carved up, downsized and sold off to the highest bidder. I have no doubt that eventually people will ask whay? And what went wrong? How did we lose this resource? Hopefully some of what we are preparing will provide the answers.</p>
<p>There is a huge archive of photographs we can draw on, likewise a wealth of positive material. The time consuming part os the sorting and selecting of the best and most suitable items. It's going to be a longer project than my colleague thinks ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382672012-08-20T02:00:00+02:002012-08-20T08:47:02+02:00Mea culpa, mea maxima culpa ...
<p>Someone has pulled a time contraction on me lately. Either that or I'm slipping badly on my 'time management.' I'm in the throes of thrashing out a first draft of my own biography. A real vanity project in my view, but various friends and family have been trying to get me to do it for quite a while. It is proving to be a very interesting exercise, not least because it has opened some dusty cupboards I'd long locked and forgotten and it has occasioned a long hard look at the path my life has taken thus far.</p>
<p>The dilemma in an exercise like this is how much to reveal of the most private and intimate parts of your life, and how much not. Likewise, the choice between discussing the people and events which have a positive bearing is an easy choice, but being honest and open about the negatives can lead into extremely sensitive and tricky areas. There is a fine line between being frank and saying it like it was, and libelling someone - or at least damaging their reputation. OK, I know that my "life story' hardly compares to that of say, Lady Thatcher or Tony Blair, but one can never tell who will pick it up and read it even if it is privately printed in a very limited edition. One of my bosses once remarked if he did write his biography there'd be a libel action on every page.</p>
<p>Hopefully mine won't produce that sort of response from anyone, but there are still some delicate decisions to be made.</p>
<p>Anyone who has attempted this will know the feeling one gets when, for instance, trying to describe the circumstances prevailing in a dysfunctional family. If one explores the reasons for the dysfunction too closely, it soon begins to seems totally disloyal. Yet if you don't at least include some of that background, how will the reader ever understand some of the events that were a direct result of that persons problems/background?</p>
<p>Writing about one's own weaknesses and failings is a walk in the park emotionally by comparison.</p>
<p>I've now covered about half of my life so far, and I progress (alongside two other projects) slowly. I have realised already that I am going to have to go back to the beginning when I reach the present, and fill in some of the blanks I have skated over or evaded in describing my childhood and early years. When I do I'm going to have to confront a whole raft of loyalty issues alongside some pretty emotional ones. What I can say is that this exercise has brought a lot of things in my life into focus.</p>
<p>Yes, I think I can say it is cathartic, but in a very positive way.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382662012-08-10T02:00:00+02:002012-08-10T08:12:19+02:00Juggling Projects - Again
<p>With <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong> in the hands of the publisher's editors, I have three other projects lumbering along at the moment. One is another Harry Heron tale, taking shape slowly, the second is that I'm trying to put together a service booklet in English and German for our wedding blessing in September and the third is a new one, a 'history' of my former place on employment. It's to be a bit more than a straight history, we are trying to include memories and points of view from students, staff, former Commandants, Inspectors and so on. The easiest bit, is the 'history.' We've plenty of material and lots of photographs, but the real challenge is to get the views, memories and opinions of events of people who actually worked there.</p>
<p>Now I'm going to be all mysterious. I'm not going to name either the place or the working title for the book. It's still in a concept stage but we do have a sponsor in view and are pretty sure we'll get the support. Once I have that confirmation there will be more to say here as it develops. It promises to be a very interesting project and it is starting to take on a shape and form. Soon, no doubt, it will take on a drive toward deadlines ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382652012-08-02T02:00:00+02:002012-08-02T05:44:16+02:00Pitching to an Agent
<p>This has to be one of the most difficult things an author needs to do. It's something I find very frustrating as well, and that's not the agents fault, it is something to do with the way I read, understand or interpret the various 'guidelines' they so helpfully publish.</p>
<p>For a start I have never been very good at 'selling' myself. I'm not very good at 'selling' anything actually, so there's the first problem right there. Pitching to an agent is a 'selling' exercise. You have to come up with a sales pitch that makes them want to read the rest of your story - and then sell your story and the characters to a publisher. As one put it too me rather kindly, he has to be able to 'like' a character to sell them. If he doesn't immediately think, 'this is someone I'd like to meet in person,' it's a waste of the his time and the authors taking it on.</p>
<p>That presents something of a challenge for a writer. Quite often - certainly in many of the books I've read - you don't really get to know the main character until about halfway through the story - and even then, you may really only 'know' his/her reactions, sexual preferences or role. So the challenge for a new author is to give the reader (and of course, the agent and publisher) a strong introduction to the main character in the first few pages. This can be a challege because you're also trying to set the scene and pull the reader into the story and the world it is set in. One successful author I've met told me it took him years to find out how to do it all effectively - and now he doesn't have to.</p>
<p>To an extent we, as writers, are also up against the 'Twitter Mentality' which a fellow teacher and technical author sums up as the "tl;dr" syndrome. It stands for "to long; didn't read" and is a response he got to a request for instructions on a rather complex operation the sender asked for.</p>
<p>Agents have time constraints as well, after all, they have to get out and sell the work of their clients, so the pitch has to be eye-catching, succinct and grab their interest. According to one agency that must all fit on one side of A4 paper as a covering letter accompanied by the first three chapters of the book. Right. It's a challenge, it is possible, and it shall be achieved.</p>
<p>Time to get back to refining my pitch. Time to go for a "gold." As my former boss once told me after I'd been beaten in competition for a promotion - there are no prizes for coming second. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382642012-08-01T02:00:00+02:002012-08-01T05:23:01+02:00Cover Designs.
<p>My new, and soon to be in production, historical naval romance is slowly getting toward the publisher's edit stage. <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong> is set between 1809 and 1816 in the Baltic and North Sea as Britain struggles to beat the Napoleonic 'Continental System.' Captain Petroc Gray, a Cornishman, finds himself in command of a small ship rigged sloop and embroiled in diplomacy, espionage and love for a young lady whose father is involved in trade as well as representing the King of Saxony. The Freiherr von Dieffenbach is well connected, shrewd and loyal to his country and king. His daughter is unusual, shares her father's sense of humour and has a love of adventure. She and Captain Gray find, however, that politics, events and a small matter of a war, bedevil their courtship ...</p>
<p>As any author will tell you, these final months of pre-production are a nail biting time, waiting to see what the editor and publisher want changed, modified or just plain rewritten. As far as the latter is concerned, that can be quite a tricky task. Every word you wrote is precious to you. It's no fun having to take out a huge chunk of text and rewrite it. It also invariably means a few more changes are needed elsewhere to keep everything consistent.</p>
<p>Thankfully, so far, my editor seems to be content with, pardon the pun, my content as is. So we move slowly forward toward that all important moment for an author when the book finally appears in print and hopefully on bookshelves.</p>
<p>This was, perhaps, not the best time in the world to embark on upgrading my computer Operating System either, but I did need to do so. Now I'm discovering that it works quite well for me, I've a whole range of layout templates I can use to get a feel for how some of my technical books can and should be laid out. That gives me a bit more control of some aspects of that little exercise, but learning the black arts of doing it well and attractively is - like everything else worthwhile - time consuming.</p>
<p>In the meantime I have had a fabulous response from the designer of the cover for A Baltic Affair. The designer, Kura Carpenter, has captured the spirit of the book beautifully in her artwork. I have no hesitation in commending her to other authors and to publishers.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"> <img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/b902a0ef86a56af3c87346f509e2a047abb7a56c/original/a-baltic-affair-cover-under-wraps-no-text.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MjAweDMyMCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="Teaser cover design" height="320" style="vertical-align: middle;" width="200" /></p>
<p>The taster above will be fully revealed in due course - hopefully soon with an update and perhaps a release date for the finished product. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382632012-07-26T02:00:00+02:002012-07-26T06:04:57+02:00New Book Trailer
<div style="color: #000000; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: #ffffff; margin: 8px;">
<p>My publisher for <strong style="font-weight: bold;"><em style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/the_enemy_is_within/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">The Enemy is Within! A Harry Heron Adventure</a></em></strong> is certainly working hard on promoting this book. They've just produced and posted on three separate sites a new trailer for the story. It can be found on <a href="http://www.dailymotion.com/video/47484287" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Daily Motion</a>, <a href="http://youtube.com/watch?v=NDQEg2sVys8" target="_blank" data-imported="1">YouTube</a> and <a href="http://www.metacafe.com/w/8825499" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Metacafe.</a> I must say the new trailer has been very well put together.</p>
<p>All attempts to embed the trailers here seem to cause some strange commands in this site and result in an erased post. So, dear reader, please use the links above to find the trailer. I'd really like to hear from you and your feelings on this marketing tool.</p>
<p> </p>
</div>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382622012-07-16T02:00:00+02:002021-04-22T04:35:02+02:00Amazon Reviews
<p>I wonder how many other authors are sometimes frustrated by the lack of reviews of their work on Amazon? I know I certainly am, especially when those that I did have, suddenly vanished. I've never actually managed to get to the bottom of that little trick, though I suspect it has something to do with Amazon's review policy. As an occasional reviewer on their sites, I've had the odd snotty notice from them accusing me of being a "paid reviewer" or of "unauthorised advertising" on their site. This is almost always related to the fact my "reviewer name" (My own and my publishing name) links directly to my Amazon Author Page. They never seem to get the idea that their own system is responsible for that and not yours truly.</p>
<p>It gets doubly frustrating when someone who has bought your book on their site and tries to review it, eventually writes to you, the author saying -</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>"I tried to post a review on Amazon but the site defeated me. There is something about their sites that blows mental fuses with me and defeats all my attempts to do anything other than buy things - and even that is only achieved with difficulty." </em></p>
<p>I can sympathise with him. He lives in South Africa and deals with Amazon.com and the DOTco.uk sites and has some of the same problems I have living in Germany and buying English titles from these sites. It's a pity, but at least he sent me what he'd attempted to post and invites me to post it here. So, here it is -</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><strong>'On the Run' is another highly entertaining space adventure from Patrick G Cox. Once again, I find the creativity of his scientific and technical imagination to be the highlight. The computers are central characters in the story, and the economic warfare waged through the computing systems gives the story a very topical feel.</strong></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><strong>Ben Curran. </strong></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><strong>Marine Engineer.</strong></p>
<p>All I can say is that its a nice review, one I wish he could have posted. It is super of him to send it to me and alert me to the apparent blockade he encountered. Now I shall have to attempt to flag this up with Amazon and hope for an answer. I am also very flattered that he took the trouble to contact me through this site to alert me to the problem. I wish a few more people would take the trouble to do so, it might then come to Amazon's notice so they'll fix it!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382612012-07-13T02:00:00+02:002012-08-02T05:19:20+02:00Publishing Milestones
<p>I'm sure every author knows the thrill that accompanies the passing of each milestone on the road between handing over that precious manuscript to seeing the finished product on bookshelves, in catalogues and online. Today I've just had one. It arrived courtesy of <a href="http://kuracarpenterdesign.blogspot.de/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Kura Carpenter</a>, who designs cover art. She did the cover for my first Harry Heron, <strong><em>Their Lordships Request</em></strong>, and now she's doing the cover for <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong> to be published by <a href="http://indiego-epublishing.com/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">IndieGo ePublishing</a>.</p>
<p>Kura is brilliant at capturing the author's ideas and turning them into something stunningly visual. The PDF she has sent me contains eight variations on the concept she has created around a map, a sunset over the sea and a ship under full sail. The colours are breathtaking. the impact is 'pick me up' which is exactly what you need on a cover. This one definitely demands closer examination, and once someone picks a book up off a shelf, you are halfway to a sale. At least that is what a number of marketing experts tell me. I'll believe them, because I know my own reaction when a cover attracts my attention, if I like the blurb I read and I like the genre and possible storyline - I'll take it to the cashier and buy.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/c027ffae79d806c8368aba6e42a40287dd5d33a3/original/a-baltic-affair-cover-under-wraps-text.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NjAweDk2MCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="960" width="600" /></p>
<p>The picture gives an idea of the design, there are seven other variations to consider! I am going to have a tricky time deciding which to use since they are all stunning.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382602012-07-11T02:00:00+02:002012-07-13T01:06:53+02:00Hmmmm...
<p>Like a lot of authors, I subscribe to a number of literary journals, information sources and digests, so I get quite a few 'newsletters' from them. Some time ago I joined a site called YouWriteOn, hoping to get some constructive feedback for my books and some useful advice on how to improve my writing. To a limited extent I got some, but I also quickly discovered that most members saw it as a tool for pushing their work through the back door and into the publishing house that sponsors it. </p>
<p>Sadly, a lot of the reviews I got weren't that helpful. Some were downright disheartening. Part of the problem was the way they allocated reviews. If you posted work, you had to review something to 'earn' a review of your own. Most of the stuff I got to review would not have been on my reading list at all had I a choice. Still, that was how the game was to be played, so I did my best and spent a lot of time reading, making notes and then trying to give the work a fair and reasonable score. I'm sure others were doing the same, but the ones I drew seemed to play by a different set of rules. You'd get a written critique along the lines of "I liked the way ..." or "Your characters come to life ..." or "You make excellent use of non-verbal communication in you speech tags ..." and then, when you checked the score - Bingo, the lowest scores they could give.</p>
<p>Now I'm the first to admit that I'm no Dickens or Shaw. I'm not even a Banks or a Pratchett, but other appraisers assure me my work is very good or excellent - so why the discrepancy? I discovered that the scoring system was what got an author noticed by the site administration - and potentially by agents and the publisher. So, as the aristocratic meerkat in the TV ads in the UK says - "Simples." All you need to do is score the opposition as low as you can. </p>
<p>So, having wandered away from posting material there for a while now, I still get their newsletters. The latest one invites me to apply for one of two hundred 'free' publishing slots with someone called "FeedARead." I have to say, it looks interesting. I would have to upload my MS into one of their templates, make sure I've everything arranged as it should be in the layout - and submit it. </p>
<p>I'll admit, it's tempting. Very tempting, especially as they offer 'reviews by top authors in the Random House stable' for the top selling authors publishing through them. But that begs a question. What I've not discovered is this. What do they consider 'top selling?' and secondly, how do you promote the books through them?</p>
<p>I think this needs a lot more research on my part. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382592012-07-05T02:00:00+02:002012-07-05T07:42:15+02:00Writing, Editing, Marketing ...
<p>Trying to balance the creativity with the need to edit and to market is tricky. Especially when you are, essentially, on your own. Just lately I've been trying to get to grips with the latter two elements in my title, editing takes a lot of effort and, even when I'm sure I've caught everything and sent the manuscript to my professional editor, I can still open the file - and immediately spot another three or four things I've missed. I was reminded of this again the other day when, by way of taking a "time out," I read Robert A Heinlien's "The Door into Summer." </p>
<p>It's been a while since I last picked it up, but it's still very readable, even though he wrote it in the 1950's and set it in 1970 and 2000/2001. At the time he wrote, no one really anticipated the explosion in technology lurking in the 1970s, but then, a lot of what he thought might happen by then, hasn't. Cryogenics has turned out to be a bit of a dead end for one thing. But that is not the reason I mention him. What surprised me was how many typesetting mistakes I found in the copy I own. OK, it is a reprint, but I would have thought someone would have checked it.</p>
<p>I've noticed recently that there does seem to be a problem with this. Even some of the 'big' publishing houses seem to be letting quite a number of typos and formatting problems slip through.</p>
<p>Editing is one thing, marketing is another. The battle any author faces these days is to get noticed. There are an awful lot of writers out there. How do you make your story, your work, stand out? That is quite a challenge.</p>
<p>My method is to make as much use as I can of the "social media" to keep my titles on the search engines. I use Twitter as well, for this Blog and another I write on. I'd love to do radio talk shows, but I live in Germany, so that is a little restricted as are book signings, getting my books on shelves and so on. Yes, the German Bookstores do stock English titles - but they limit their shelf space to only the 'Best Seller' names and titles - for probably good financial reasons.</p>
<p>Another good way to get noticed is to get reviewed, preferably by someone for a major publication such as a national daily. Again, that is an uphill battle when all the major dailies you have at hand are in German, but one has to keep plugging away. I have found reviewers on the web, such as <a href="http://harryheron.com/files/The_Enemy_is_WithinR.pdfhttp://harryheron.com/files/The_Enemy_is_WithinR.pdf" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Blue Ink Reviews</a> and <a href="http://blogcritics.org/books/article/book-review-on-the-run-by/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Blogcritics</a>, both of them are good ways to promote yourself as they do publish their reviews online and they are linked to B&N, Amazon and other distributors. I have also undertaken reviews for other struggling authors, on the understanding they would do the same for me. So far I have discovered that some do and some don't, even after you've read and posted something on their work. Sadly, I suppose, there are folk out there who will promise the earth, but not deliver on it. </p>
<p>It all takes time, effort and sometimes money, but there is no alternative. If you believe in your writing, you believe there is a market to be reached, you have to put in the effort to reach it.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382582012-06-28T02:00:00+02:002012-06-28T14:33:41+02:00Preparation
<p>I'm spending a lot of time at the moment putting a final polish on the MS for <strong><em>A Baltic Affair,</em></strong> to begin its run toward publication in a day or two. As is always the case, the time constraints are under pressure because I've a consulting task on at present and have spent the last couple of days preparing a report and an outline specification for a part of the project. As they say, it never rains but it pours. Still, the upside is that once the consulting project gets underway, it will fund a bit more creative writing, so the reports need to be prepared, polished and sent off when requested.</p>
<p>It certainly makes life interesting!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382572012-06-24T02:00:00+02:002012-06-24T12:41:27+02:00Review
<p>I'm rather pleased to have had a rather good review posted at Blogcritics.com. The reviewer is Marty Dodge, and he has done a good honest review of the book, <strong><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/on_the_run/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">On the Run</a>,</strong> there. The full review can be seen by following this <a href="http://blogcritics.org/books/article/book-review-on-the-run-by/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">link</a>.</p>
<p>It is always good to get a review, and for an author like myself, an essential boost when one appears. In this one he pays some compliments, such as - </p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>Cox does a great job at evoking the "duck out of water" feel for those who are of the high-tech 23rd century when they are onan alien planet with few provisions having to survive.</em></p>
<p>and the overall conclusion is very pleasing -</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>The book has enough merit so that I was pleased I was able to read it in two sittings. It is certainly a page turner. A book for those who enjoy approachable science fiction.</em></p>
<p>All in all, a nice review.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382562012-06-18T02:00:00+02:002012-06-19T02:00:35+02:00A nice compliment
<p>Yesterday I got one of those out of the blue compliments that make all the effort of writing creatvely, researching backgrounds, and so on, worthwhile. It came from a member of the writing group I belong to. We read each other's work in rough, comment and edit, make corrections and suggest improvements. Some of the members are really excellent writers in their own right and the compliment came from one of them.</p>
<p>She wrote of my latest "Harry Heron Adventure" - </p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Patrick, you have to be the most conscientious writer ever. You have conceived this world in such vivid detail and make it all sound so totally authentic. Your imagination astounds me. I so look forward to the next book. </p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Another thing I love about your writing is that while you have researched and created such a credible science and history for this world, you also have given us great characters like Harry, whom I truly care about :-) You really ought to be proud of this achievement.</p>
<p>Now, if only I can find an agent or publisher who feels this strongly, I think I'll be the happy author of the year! The MS is tentatively titled <strong><em>"The Outer Edge: A Harry Heron Adventure"</em></strong> and if any reader here is an agent (or a publisher!) and would like to see it, please drop me an email ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382552012-06-14T02:00:00+02:002012-06-14T10:09:26+02:00Time Pressures ...
<p>I'm sure everyone else has pressure on their time available for writing and reading or researching. Just lately I don't seem to have enough of it at all. I no sooner get set in to trying to write, than something crops up which demands immediate attention, or I have to go out to fetch, collect or deal with something. It certainly eats into the time available - and I do try to keep to an alloted period daily - to write.</p>
<p>Then, of course, there are things like lawns, household chores, meals and so on that also interupt. OK, so I do sleep between Midnight and 06.00. Some things are just unavoidable. Add to the list the need to network, to market, to chase down tentative contacts, and there isn't much left of the day. </p>
<p>Keeping a blog doesn't help either. Or does it? Maybe that's the marketing bit ...</p>
<p>We did take a short holiday recently in Denmark and spent a fascinating morning in a reconstruction of a Viking village, complete with the smells, the sacrifices and the longships. Plenty of ideas there for some future stories - assuming I can find the time!</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/854053897a182f7f068d51413d7822c44f38310b/original/img-1056.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NTkyeDQ0NCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="444" width="592" /></p>
<p><em>The interior of the Chieftain's longhouse. The strange mound just through the door is an oven, the chiefs bed, with sliding doors to shut at night, if on the right. The room beyond has bed shelves on either side and was for the retainers. His personal guard slept in the same room as the chief.</em></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382542012-06-10T02:00:00+02:002012-06-10T09:53:00+02:00Creating Aliens ...
<p>Creating believable aliens for my scifi stories is a fascinating business for me. First of all I like to make them believable, so I have to put in a lot of effort to see what, among carbon or silicone based life, is possible. The limits are, according to some biologists and experts, pretty wide. So the next step is to try and work out how the human element in the story is likely to interact with them. That does impose some limits, especially if you want them to be able to communicate or even work together. As an early Star Trek episode demonstrated, interaction between humans and a giant slug-like creature is next to impossible.</p>
<p>Creatures with tentacles for limbs also tend to need a liquid in which to be really effective and efficient in their movements, so putting them on terra firma can be a bit limiting. Insectoid creatures, because of their breathing arangements, tend to need extremely oxygen rich (or even methane rich) atmospheres in order to support their size. An oxygen level much above 22% would be poisonous to human life and most mammals, so there is a restriction on exposure for the human characters in that situation. Gilled creatures need a liquid atmosphere in which to live and breath - again a bit of a no-no for humans.</p>
<p>Then comes the ability to communicate. Humans have vocal cords, as do some other primates, though not all, and some of the mammals as well. Insects and most reptiles don't. Surprisingly, a lot of birds don't either and as for marine anilmals ... So, this really does mean you have to be imaginative and sometimes a little elastic when 'creating' and alien character.</p>
<p>My favoured method is to look about me at the variety and diversity of life on our own planet and sometimes to delve into mythology. Once I've formed an idea of what the creature/character will look like and what physiological features it displays, I do a sketch. Sometimes a lot of sketches to work out the mechanics of the creatures limbs, body and movement. Then I write up a 'bio' of it. Does it wear clothes? How does it communicate? Does it look friendly or terrifying? How does it move? What sort of society does it create or live in? Does it follow the basic 'laws' of animal behaviour? (Summarised I'm told as - Can I eat it? Can it eat me? Can I mate with it? Or it mate with me? Is it a threat to my territory/young/food supply? Can I fight it?) Once I have this down on paper, I have to work out what will happen when it meets a human or a human meets it for the first time.</p>
<p>There is one other slightly limiting factor. Humans tend not to interact easily with creatures that are not at least slightly humanoid in shape and features. So when you need an alien your human characters can relate to, work with and talk to, they need to be at least vaguely human-shaped. It isn't an absolute, but it certainly helps.</p>
<p>Interestingly, I have had inspiration from a wide range of experiences, encounters and sources for all of this. The Lacertians (Out of Time) came into being as I watched a rather interesting lizard who had taken up residence on my hotel verandah in the Caribbean. He was fast, extremely clever at disguise and an absolute terror when hunting. The Canids (On the Run and now my latest Harry Heron story) came to mind after an encounter - at a distance - with wolves in the forest. When you live in the land which most likely inspired Terry Pratchett's Uberwald, it is easy to see the humanised version that inspires the myth of Werewolves.</p>
<p>Here is an example of the sort of note I make - </p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; text-align: justify; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; padding-left: 30px;"><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px"><strong><em>Canids</em></strong></span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; text-align: justify; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; padding-left: 30px;"><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px">As the name suggests, these people resemble the Canine species superficially. The concept came from the idea of Werewolves, the "human wolf" concept. Thus I have envisioned a creature that has a wolf-like features and behaviours, but is humanoid in most physical aspects. The face and head is very wolf-like as are the 'hands' and the deep chest and some other physical attributes. The 'hands' are paw-like, having claws at the tips of the phalanges, though with the flexibility of fingers and a thumb. </span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; text-align: justify; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; padding-left: 30px;"><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px">The head and neck are covered by thick fur, though, like humans, this is as varied as human coloration and appearance. The neck is thick and, like a wolf, protected by a heavy mane. While they have a thick fur on the face, head, neck and shoulders, the rest of the body is hairless, hence their need for the specialised clothing they wear. </span><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px color">The eyes are set quite wide, on either side of the short muzzle. This gives them a very wide field of vision. The eye is equipped with an extra lid (Like cats) and the ears stand above the head.</span><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px"> The mouth, like a wolf's, is equipped with some serious teeth. Their speech consists of growls, sharp staccato sounds, whines, whimpering noises and a more gentle growl-like noise which may indicate pleasure or approval. Communication is always through a translation device they carry with them in human company and which has its origins on their home world, which is regulated by a living 'computer' created by the Sidhiche. This calls itself 'Canus' and is known to the Canids as the "Provider."</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; text-align: justify; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; padding-left: 30px;"><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px">The Canids live in a highly organised and regulated society, due to the harshness of the seasons on their homeworld, most of the year in vast cities below ground. They have factories, nurseries for their young and all the trappings of a civilised society - but, being alien, it isn't exactly as we would expect if judging by human standards only. They are organised in 'packs' with a male Pack Leader and a female Pack Mother who imposes discipline and regulates breeding cycles. A Council of the Senior Pack Leaders deals with all matters of joint interest, conflicts and the sharing of labour and division of the products of their labour. </span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; text-align: justify; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; padding-left: 30px;"><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px">The species have evolved as a variation of the Marsupial species, with the female producing an egg when fertilised. The 'egg' is then carried in her pouch where it incubates and the incubus then suckles until it is old enough to leave the pouch. Canids develop more rapidly than human young, but live at least as long. </span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; text-align: justify; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; padding-left: 30px;"><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px"><strong><em>Canid Clothing</em></strong></span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; text-align: justify; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; padding-left: 30px;"><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px">The Canid's wear clothing adapted to their physiognomy and suited to their climatic conditions and environment on Canes, their home world. It comprises a pair of trousers which reach half way up the chest on a male. On the females it is slightly different, with an opening flap allowing access to the incubation pouch. A 'shirt' style garment that includes long sleeves and mitten style 'gloves' at the end of the sleeve is worn with, when outdoors (or on shipboard) a jacket over it. This pulls over the head and shoulders, the head protruding through a close fitting 'collar' opening around which a hood is rolled when not in use.</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; text-align: justify; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; padding-left: 30px;"><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px">The Canids wear heavy looking boots (but, as Harry and his team discovered while hiding out on Canes) the appearance is deceptive, the boots are, like the clothing, hardwearing, close and comfortably fitting, and very light and warm. The fit and appearance of the clothing it closely resembles neoprene a 'wet suit' worn by divers and surfers. Made from a material not unlike neoprene rubber, it is quite thick on the trousers and jackets and the outer surface is water and weather proof. A type of harness is worn over the jacket to carry tools, weapons and other items with a type of small back-pack and pouches on the front belts and the waist.</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; text-align: justify; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; padding-left: 30px;"><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px">The Canids also use a cloak-like garment which has the property of bending and reflecting light to deceive the eye and make them 'invisible.' Originally a hunting tool, the Canids have found it useful when attempting to watch visitors to their world or to hide their activities from those they don't trust. Harry and Co use it in <em>On the Run</em> against their enemies.</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; text-align: justify; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; padding-left: 30px;"><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px">During their stay on Canes, Harry and his team had to have this clothing adapted to allow their skin to 'breathe' and for perspiration. The Canids, like dogs, have no pores and don't perspire. One other difference - both cultural and physiological - meant the clothing for humans had to have some additional adaptions.</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; text-align: justify; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica;"><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px">Once I've got an idea of the creature's appearance, behaviour and society, it becomes much easier to write about them. Nothing like having a clear picture! The saying that a "picture is worth a thousand words" is certainly true when writing about creatures of the author's imagination.</span></p>
<div><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px"><br></span></div>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382532012-06-07T02:00:00+02:002019-12-21T20:54:31+01:00Good News
<p>A book I wrote some time ago, and have been polishing and touting around various small publishers, has found one. <strong><em>A Baltic Affair </em></strong>has been accepted by <a href="http://indiego-epublishing.com/" data-imported="1">IndieGo ePublishing</a> and will hopefully appear in print and eformats around October. The process of editing it will begin at the end of this month, as will the design process for the cover.</p>
<p>Despite the name, the publisher does produce print versions of the book as well, though their main effort is to the eBook market. I have been toying with the idea of exploring this market for sometime, so this is something of an experiment for me in more ways than one. Now, of course, there is a lot of work to do to make sure the MS I send the publisher is as 'clean' as I can get it. I must now devote some time to writing the 'blurbs' I want to use to promote it, something I never find that easy to do.</p>
<p>One of the major pluses from my perspective with IndieGo is that the package includes full editing services plus the usual design of the interior, conversion to all the formats and so on. Yes, I'm putting some money into this as well, but I can say it isn't anything like as much as most POD publishers ask, and, having looked out some of their products, it looks very good.</p>
<p>So what is <strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong> about?</p>
<p>Set in the period 1809 - 1816, it follows the historic events of the Napoleonic attempt to bar British trade and British goods from the Continent. Captain Petroc Gray commands a small ship rigged sloop in the Baltic, with orders to protect British trade and ships agains a range of hostile states bordering that sea. He encounters the enigmatic Freiherr Rheinhard von Dieffenbach and his family - and finds himself drawn into the tangled politics of Northern Europe and finds love in the person of the Freiherr's daughter. Events, the Freiherr's activities, the demands of the Royal Navy and his ship, all conspire to ensure the path of their love runs in any direction but smoothly ...</p>
<p>As one of my "test subjects" wrote -</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>The author has made the scenes so clear, and the characters so vivid, that you could imagine yourself being in the moment, and enjoying the situation and the cultural differences, all with the overlay of the ruling party, person, or class. I am interested in reading about history, wars, conquests, and the subjugation of the people, and their determination to persist and prevail. History does not have to be boring, the author made it interesting. I guess I had better buy the book. </em></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382522012-06-01T02:00:00+02:002012-06-01T13:21:31+02:00A Busy Month
<p>It has been a very busy month. First of all, I got married. The preparations for that took up a fair amount of time, and the last few days we've been enjoying some time in Denmark, on the North Sea coast of Jutland. It was a wonderful break, one we've both enjoyed and will repeat when we have time to do so. Yes, I've come back with a lot of material for another story and perhaps two or three ...</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/d45a607ed59643ad13c7de5ad6ee624b4742003d/original/img-1029.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NjQ0eDg1OSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="859" style="vertical-align: middle;" width="644" /></p>
<p>Denmark is a land rich in history and the coast we visited for our holiday has seen a lot of it. History is always interesting to me, and some of what I've seen here in the last few days will almost certainly, eventually, translate itself into stories. I'll just have to wait and see.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382512012-05-16T02:00:00+02:002012-05-16T12:57:13+02:00Juggling demands ...
<p>If one is serious about writing, one of the important points is to write. Almost every writing course one comes across makes the point that you should write daily, preferably at the same time every day. My experience is that this isn't always possible. Life, the world, one's nearest and dearest, often have other demands and pressures which demand your attention. I'm having one of those periods at present.</p>
<p>I've been invited to review several books, I have two books I'm revising and one to finish. I've also got requests to submit a couple of technical articles. But my "better half" and I have an engagement at the weekend that is demanding our full attention to say the least. OK, it will emerge elsewhere anyway, we're getting married and have a houseful of guests to deal with. That doesn't leave a lot of time for much else at present.</p>
<p>At the same time I am deeply conscious of the need to keep my 'social media' links going, develop my marketing plans and find that all important agent somewhere. At least one of my 'works in progress' is to be published later this year, by an "Indie" publisher. It is "<strong><em>A Baltic Affair</em></strong>," a naval historical romance set in and around the Baltic between 1809 and 1816. The Baltic Trade was key to British commerce and Napoleon tried to strangle it. That led, first, to the famous Battle of Copenhagen, but then to a protracted campaign with constantly shifting alliances and fortunes on both sides. In the end, Britain's ominance of the seaways won through, but, to quote the Duke of Wellington, it was "near run thing." </p>
<p>All in all - it's a bit of a juggle at present! A lot to do, but all in different directions.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382502012-05-12T02:00:00+02:002012-05-12T12:18:52+02:00Concluding a First Draft ...
<p>I'm slowly coming to the end of writing the First Draft of the fifth book in my Harry Heron series. In fact, I'm currently working on the final chapter. Easy, some might say, but there are a number of dangling threads to be collected, and either tied off, cut out or used to link this story to the next ...</p>
<p>As I have developed this storyline I must say that I've had an enormous amount of help from editors, from what I call my "Alpha Readers" (friends who also write and offer critical appraisals of what I've drafted) and members of my family. Something I've noticed is that my style of writing has developed as well. Personally I think it has improved no end - but then, I would. So, I put the question to others, most of them known for being fairly forthright. Yes, I'm told, it has got better. Infinitely better.</p>
<p>Looking back I cringe at some of my first efforts in "creative" writing. I already had a fairly solid base in technical writing, and so thought, erroneously, it would be easy to make the transition. No. Not so. Not at all so. Where the technical writer makes exclusive use of a 'narrative' style, the author of fiction must do a lot less 'telling' and a lot more 'showing' in the story. So I've had to learn to write realistic dialogue. Ever actually listened to the way people speak? It isn't always grammatical, it certainly isn't always in complete sentences and is often riddled with adverbs. I didn't actually believe this myself until I recorded a conversation and then analysed what was said, by whom and how they said it. It was quite an eye-opener.</p>
<p>I can only say it is now hugely encouraging to go back to the first of Sir Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels and see how he changed his style, his characters and the writing itself as the story has developed. If someone that successful can still develop - then there is an example for all of us to follow.</p>
<p>That said, all of these lessons have taken root. Punctuation is still my <em>bette noir</em> and so are 'run on sentences.' So, when I finish a first draft, those are my first priority. I go through the whole thing carefully, inserting commas, apostrophes and all the other niceties (and taking a few out!) while hunting down the 'run-ons' and cutting them into digestible pieces. Then I send it to a trusted editor - and she rips things apart.</p>
<p>Here is a small sample of a piece from my latest draft of the penultimate chapter. It serves to underline what I'm rabbiting on about - </p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; text-align: justify; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; padding-left: 30px;"><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px">Mary flung her arms around him as he stepped from the transport.</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; text-align: justify; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; padding-left: 30px;"><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px"><span style="white-space:pre"> </span>"You were magnificent." She kissed him passionately. "He thought you'd attack him - did you see his face when you interrupted him?"</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; text-align: justify; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; padding-left: 30px;"><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px"><span style="white-space:pre"> </span>Harry returned the embrace, colouring a little sheepishly. "No, I was far to angry, I'm sorry to say. But I could not let him malign my Papa."</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; text-align: justify; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; padding-left: 30px;"><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px"><span style="white-space:pre"> </span>"Well done, Harry." Theo shook his hand. "I expect it was very interesting in the reception afterward."</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; padding-left: 30px; margin: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing:0.0px"><span style="white-space:pre"> </span>Harry laughed. "That is one way to describe it. Some of the production staff looked terrified, others furious and of course, two of the panel looked as if they were facing a firing squad at any moment. Poor Monty, he looked as if he was halfway to a heart attack." His grin spread. "He drank four tumblers of whisky without, I suspect, even tasting them as soon as we were in their lounge."</span></p>
<p>Thank the Lord of iMac, Apple, Microslosh et al for those wonderful commands Highlight,''delete,''cut,''paste' and 'redo.' What would we authors do without them? I, for one, would be going through forests of paper and gallons of ink! </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382492012-05-03T02:00:00+02:002012-05-03T05:50:22+02:00Character Building ...
<p>I find I can't make a character come to life unless I have at least a full biography of him or her written down or at least roughed out in my head. I may not reveal all there is in it, but as someone else has said, the character should be as 'real' as a member of the family or your best friend. Why do they respond to a certain type of stimulus, why react in a certain way to an event? You can only write this sort of detail convincingly if you've (at least mentally) walked their path. </p>
<p>Seriously, we are the product of our experiences, good and bad, and the way we (and our fictional characters) react in any given situation is, in part, dictated by our experience of whatever the scenario is. An interesting experiment about ten years ago made an assessment of how people from different backgrounds responded to having to deal with an emergency. Those from a military/police/fire/emergency service background did not "logic" their way to a solution. Those from a management background did. More often than not, the "military/Emergency" group got the solutions right without an apparent "process" and those who applied the "logic" system often arrived at a solution, but too late. <br><br>The study was then extended, with the participants being monitored for brain activity and it was discovered that the Military/Emergency group almost shut down the "cognitive" areas of the brain, while the subconscious parts lit up like the proverbial Christmas tree. What they were doing is essentially a "data search" of their experiences, along the lines of; "Where have I seen/experienced something similar? What worked? Do that." The second group lacked that experience, so attempted to do the opposite and ignored "experience" and tried to take a logical and step by step approach. <br><br>We are the product of a whole range of "inputs" from experience, through learning and training and a large dollop of "culture" as well. In the Far East, a fire I investigated involving over two hundred dead, turned up the fact that no one had attempted to escape even though they could see the fire growing and some of their co-workers attempting to fight it and escape. The reason? They were paid by the hour and any breaks were deducted. None attempted to escape because the managers hadn't authorised them to leave, and they knew they would not be paid if they did. An extreme example, perhaps, but this is one of the reasons I try to work out the full "biography" of a character in a lead role in my stories.<br><br>These little details shouldn't be part of an 'information dump' but, as Susannah has said, should emerge through the dialogue, through actions, gestures and even through their private thoughts. <br><br>For the main character in my Harry Heron series, I have mapped out his life from birth, through all the major events in it, given him a violent temper and a stubborn determination to control it. I know where he went to school, what he studied, what his friends think of him and who his parents were and their influence. Most of it doesn't emerge in the stories - but it is a part of what makes up his personality. <br><br>I couldn't do without my notes and I do something similar for all my major characters.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382482012-04-28T02:00:00+02:002012-04-28T13:18:57+02:00Positive Feedback ...
<p>Positive feedback from someone who knows something about the situations you are creating in a story - such as the complexity of a major "fleet" engagement, is always a boost to the confidence. I use a group of readers and writers to get feedback on my writing and suggestions for improvement. They have a fairly diverse background, some are grammarians, some editors and all are writers. One way or another, we all help each other to get our structures, our stories and our manuscripts as polished as we can make them. Sometimes you get a critique that makes you take the work apart and rewrite it, and sometimes its just a list of corrections to deal with. Occasionally you get some really moral boosting feedback and comments.</p>
<p>Today I got one of the latter from someone with a military background. The chapter he was reading on this occasion is a first draft of my latest Harry Heron, and it is near the end of the book with a climactic battle in progress. His response was very flattering - </p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em><strong>Incredibly complicated battle, you must have spent considerable time just coordinating every vessel and the attack plan. As I re-read this, all of the pieces moved as if they were on a giant chess board, and I was able to understand what was taking place. Good twist about the gravitational pull of the huge mother ship under attack, and the effect of the atmosphere causing frictional heat on the attacking ship's hulls. <br></strong></em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em><strong>The reasoning and interpretation by Harry, and his calm orders are a good example of "Courage = Grace under Fire."</strong></em><em><strong> </strong></em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em><strong>Great chapter!</strong></em></p>
<p>Now I'd call that a compliment and then some. He is right, I do spend some time working out the move and counter move in any battle scene. I draw on my own service background for Fire Command, where one is constantly assessing, juggling and trying to second guess the "enemy" - the fire. I have also had the benefit of taking part in some military strategic "war games" played out in real time on a large expanse of floor using scale models and a set of values and rules known as the "Fletcher-Pratt Rules" which actually do give very realistic outcomes. </p>
<p>Obviously, on this occasion, I got the descriptions and the moves exactly right!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382472012-04-26T02:00:00+02:002021-08-10T01:38:31+02:00Making headway?
<p>Not really. Apart from having reawakened an old back injury and having to spend several days keeping very still and as horizontal as possible, I'm having a running battle with Apple. Yes, I use an iMac and a MacBook and I certainly don't want to change back to the alternative. The problem is I need to upgrade from my present Operating System to the latest version to the Lion OS X. Easy, you'd think. Buy the upgrade, download or receive the CD-Rom and upgrade.</p>
<p>Apple don't work that way. First of all they won't allow me to buy the upgrade using my UK credit card. As I live in Germany, I MUST buy it from the German App Store and that will only accept a German Credit Card. Not even my Amex card is acceptable. OK, so we go with an alternative, except they don't accept PayPal either, so I have to open a new account with ClickandBuy, not the company I would consider either the most helpful or the most user friendly.</p>
<p>So we go that route and now the next little problem arises. For some reason, the App Store won't recognise my password. OK, we change it. Still no joy. Try again - "Your Account has been suspended due to too many failed attempts to log-in." Phone Apple, several minutes on the line, several bewildered young assistants, try again to log-in. Bingo. Buy the upgrade! Can I have it on CD-Rom?</p>
<p>No, it can only be downloaded. Immediate problem, with the download speed available from my supplier at my location, this will take three days. That's right, three DAYS. Contact Apple again. Sorry, that's our ploicy, no discs, it can only be downloaded.</p>
<p>In other words, as far as the Apple executives are concerned, take it or leave it. Not exactly what I would have expected from a cutting edge company. It seems that my only alternative at present is to go out and buy a completely new iMac with the Lion OS X installed. Not something I'm prepared to do, even though this means I cannot, at present, convert my books to the format necessary for selling them on iTunes Books - because the program I need, iBook Author, can only run on Lion OS X.</p>
<p>Perhaps this is a cautionary tale. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382462012-04-19T02:00:00+02:002012-04-19T13:50:53+02:00Exploring Self Publishing
<p>I'm exploring self-publishing. As in actually becoming my own publisher. I plan to start by taking control of e-publishing of my work under my own banner. Having read extensively on the pros and cons of this, my thinking is to start in a small way, but the first step is to find the right software. There are several programs available, but not all of them will do what I am looking for. For e-publishing one needs a process that allows you to set up the interior design of your book in a professional manner, not every program will do exactly what is required.</p>
<p>Plus, you quickly discover that the current crop of programs available don't necessarily work on all readers and some may only be used to set up a book for a particular system. What I'm looking for is something that will let me do the layout and set up the chapter headings, headers and footers as I want them. There are quite a number of programs out there, but, as a Mac user, they need to be Mac compatible as well as user friendly. Finding the right one is proving tricky.</p>
<p>Still, I don't plan to rush this one, it's far too important not to get it right. So I have quite a bit more to research before making my move.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382452012-04-16T02:00:00+02:002012-04-16T06:20:09+02:00A Broader Appeal ...
<p>Today I've added a page to the site. It's dedicated to the books of a good friend, another struggling author, who writes romantic fiction. Jada Penn lives in Gauteng and writes romantic fiction set against the backdrop of the modern South Africa. Her love of the country, its people and the animals she includes in her stories brings them to life. Even if you've never seen a lion in the wild, or smelled the hot African earth after rain, you'll discover she is able to bring both to life in her pages.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/d878227e0746ef9b5a95fc06f7ba1204255dbe87/original/jada-penn-portrait.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NTQweDgxMiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="812" width="540" /></p>
<p><a href="http://harryheron.com/jada_penns_bookshelves/" data-imported="1">Her titles currently include</a> - </p>
<p><strong><em>Grave Injustice</em></strong> - a tale involving a malignant pair of ghosts seeking to return to their former life and home in Johannesburg's "millionaire row" in the fabulous setting of Park Town. Played off against the backdrop of the "Old Money" of the Park Town mansions and the Western Cape wine farms, the ghosts do their utmost to take possession of two young lovers ... </p>
<p><strong><em>Cunning Challenge</em></strong> - When the wealthy Lady Lombardi decides to compel her granddaughters into abandoning their 'bachelor' lifestyles and settle down she unleashes a string of romantic entanglements with unforeseen consequences ... Again, Jada Penn's keen eye for the characters and their foibles makes for an excellent story...</p>
<p><strong><em>Thorns in the Bush</em></strong> - Set against the backdrop of the African Bush as found in a Game Park, the reader is entangled in the magical world of bush, the animals around them and, of course, the drama of two people finding their future in each other's arms...</p>
<p>Having known Jada for a while now, it's a pleasure to be able to offer her the facility of this site to make her books more widely known. I will be adding links to sales outlets for her books once I have them and the descriptions she wants to accompany them.</p>
<p>Watch this space! </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382442012-04-13T02:00:00+02:002022-01-07T13:21:51+01:00New Blog
<p>I'm delighted to see that the artist who did such a magnificent job on the design of the cover for <strong><em><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/their_lordships_request_/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">"Their Lordships Request ..."</a></em></strong> now has her own blog advertising her capabilities. <a href="http://kuracarpenterdesign.blogspot.co.nz/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Kura is a really good designer</a> when it comes to picking out the right images to convey the message you want and the layout of text and essential information in and around it.</p>
<p>It was a real pleasure working with her on the cover, and I'm now in the process of discussing another with her. Though she's based in New Zealand, the internet makes it dead easy to discuss anything and everything about the design, the concept and the content of the story your cover will represent to a potential reader. I've always believed that the cover HAS to be striking. It must draw the potential reader's eye and make them pick the book up asking themselves the question, "wonder what this will be like?" </p>
<p>In my experience, watching browsers in various bookshops over the years, once someone picks up a book you've got a good chance they'll read the blurb on the back, sample a couple of pages - and in many cases, buy it.</p>
<p>Kura's cover designs certainly have that "pick me up" factor. Yep, I'm happy with that!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382432012-04-07T02:00:00+02:002012-04-07T10:40:25+02:00Positive Feedback
<p>Is always very welcome. Sometimes negative (provided it's not completely negative) feedback can be positive as well since it should encourage the author to look again at the work and set about fixing it or making it work. I must admit I'm particularly flattered by feedback from a 'reader' who really knows the background I draw on to paint my scenes like this - </p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>"Diplomacy by other means" is alive and well, even in the far future. <br><br>Reminiscent of the WWII alliance of convenience between, the US, GB, SU, and the FF. De Gaulle a constant, petulant pain in the posterior, the Russians an imponderable though necessary factor in conducting the war. <br><br>Interesting that the equivalent of acknowledging a Geneva Convention is mentioned. One of the fears the Nazis, and Japanese imperialists had near the end of the war was the probability of being called to account for their bestial treatment of their captives. <br><br>The backfire is a consideration. The Allied Powers in WWI had the handicap of the gas blowing back into their lines, effectively negating any advantage to its use. The Germans, on the other hand, could simply let fly with the prevailing easterlies carrying it directly toward the allied lines. <br><br>Nicely done, with a historical touch of the brow to our near past and the complications it might cause in future conflict. </em></p>
<p>As I believe that human history is cyclic in many respects, drawing on previous history to paint a future scenario provides the reader with something familiar, and yet, not, since it is in a new context. I also draw on my own experiences of dealing with situations, people and the things I have little or no influence or control over to paint the background to the stories. So it is very useful when you have a 'reader' able to spot the parallels and confirm their appropriateness - or otherwise. Then there are the really helpful edit suggestions as well, such as this from another of my abused friends in the craft ...</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>"Now, Pack Leader. Let him know we have teeth as well." Harry said this quietly and Regidur grunted a response. <br>These lines read strangely. You've told me how Harry said something after he actually said it and thus I have to go back and reread the line in the way you suggested, ie-quietly. <br><br>Harry felt a wave of relief <br>the relief from the strain bursting over them like a wave <br>a bit of a repeat within the same sentence you might like to sharpen up. <br><br>relief flooding through him <br>then he gets another dose of relief. Is he now doubly relieved? <br><br>Feeling slightly dazed, Harry <br>to the lounge in a slight daze and stopped <br>so I assume he was 'slightly dazed'? </em></p>
<p>It is people like this that help me polish my work and get it to the point where I think I can risk sending it out to find a publisher. After my 'official' editor has had a go to catch anything else I've missed!</p>
<p>Feedback is so important at every step of the way. I'm a firm believer in the idea that I stand far to close to my work to be able to see everything that is wrong with it. From experience I know that going over it myself I can spot repititious words, but will not always see a glaring typo. Nor can I always spot the run-on sentences or the slightly confused imagery I'm painting. I know what I mean so I read it that way. Others don't and that is where having a group willing to read your drafts and throw birckbats and accolades is so useful.</p>
<p>That's my view - and I'm sticking to it.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382422012-04-06T02:00:00+02:002012-04-06T06:57:05+02:00A great new review ...
<p>It's always great to get a review that is flattering and does your hard work justice. I've just had that pleasure. Blue Ink Reviews have just released their review of <strong><em>The Enemy is Within!</em></strong> and have given it a good report. </p>
<p>I'm worried when someone says something like "this has the feel of ...." and names a book, film or TV series, but in this instance, I'm quite flattered to be compared to the late Patrick O'Brien and his "Master and Commander." The full review can be read here.<a href="/files/498730/the-enemy-is-withinr.pdf" data-imported="1">The_Enemy_is_WithinR.pdf</a></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382412012-04-02T02:00:00+02:002020-10-19T14:49:13+02:00The Joy of Writing?
<p>My pet hate is the kind of story where "facts" are invented, mangled, shifted and then presented as "proven" with the usual PR reportage that the story is "based on true events and facts" which the gullible who don't have the desire to check, will swallow them whole. A lot of this has gone on and one frequently now finds, when researching something, references being cited which, when checked, make reference to earlier work, which in turn ... and then you find that the source, far from being either accurate or reliable, has been discredited or even utterly refuted. But, because its now been "quoted" in later works, it has become "fact."</p>
<p>This is, of course, the art of the spin doctor or, to give it its proper name, the propagandist. This is where the modern author has to be extremely careful. Of course my views, my attitudes and a lot of my likes and dislikes are going to enter my writing. However, if I want to make use of "facts" to support any of it, I MUST make sure the facts are accurate and not taken from a decidedly "iffy" source originally. And there are plenty of those around. There were some very "creative" scientific and philosophical writers around in the late 19th and early 20th Century and quite a lot of their writing draws on sources that are neither reliable or even what they purport to be. Even those that are, have been frequently misrepresented, with bits used and other, qualifying sections, hidden or dismissed as "not relevant."</p>
<p>Believe it or not, some of the biggest names in the field are guilty of this on occasion. The trouble is, because they wrote something, quoting an earlier source, it isn't challenged - even though many of those "sources" are now known as forgeries or pure invention.</p>
<p>Pratchett once wrote that "writing is the most fun anyone can have on their own." He is, in my view, right. But check my reference - it comes from the author profile in one of his books - and you'll find I haven't actually quoted him accurately. It's close, but not accurate. And that is the problem for any writer who wants to build a story around some factual matter or some piece of known history - it is all too easy to introduce a subtle but possibly misleading change to the truth, sometimes with unforseeable consequences for the future.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382402012-04-01T02:00:00+02:002020-10-19T14:48:37+02:00Trailers for Script Writers ...
<p>As a Jewish friend of mine was found of saying - Oi vey! This writing and marketing gets more and more complicated. I have submitted one of my books to a site that showcases books with potential to become movies. OK, that sounds great, but now comes the complicated bit, I have to try and give the people tasked with making a trailer that will catch the attention of a script writer or film producer, some ideas of scenes from the book I would like to see showcased.</p>
<p>That's almost like asking a parent to name the favourite features of a child ... You know the bits you like, you know the traits, characteristics and so on of the child and you know which you love and which you wish could be changed, but they are what makes the whole. You can't always have one feature and not another. So it's time to cheat a bit - and ask some of my readers to suggest the bits they really enjoyed. Even then, I have to cut my selection down - the 'trailer' is a maximum of 90 seconds.</p>
<p>Time to get back to the drawing board! Er, make that 'keyboard.'</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382392012-03-21T01:00:00+01:002012-03-21T08:28:15+01:00Fan Mail?
<p>I was very flattered recently to receive what I can only describe as "fan mail" from someone who has read my latest book and has used some of my technical books for study purposes. It is very flattering to have a complete stranger write to say how much he had enjoyed your fiction stories - and add that he had found the text books invaluable. I can't say I've ever had a written compliment of that sort before. Perhaps even more flattering is the fact that one of my wife's colleagues is currently reading <strong><em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTwcT5W991k" data-imported="1">On the Run</a></em></strong>, and comes to her office daily to tell her how much he's enjoying it, how great the characters and the situations are and how he's looking forward to reading the next one. Considering he's reading in English and though his language skills are good, it's not his first language, I take that as a compliment indeed. </p>
<p>Since I started writing some years ago, I can see an enormous improvement in my own work. As a technical writer you have to be good at descriptive writing, essentially painting pictures with words so the reader can visualise what you are trying to explain. With fiction you need to learn to let the reader imagine the scene, the scenery, the people and so on. It isn't easy to make that transition, and one of the best lessons I have learned is how to use dialogue to provide the reader with the essential information - and then let them form their own pictures.</p>
<p>Receiving the email from my "fan" was a huge compliment. I was especially impressed by the fact he had managed to figure out how to contact me through my professional links.</p>
<p>It's made my day, and inspired me to get my head down and finish another chapter! </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382382012-03-16T01:00:00+01:002012-03-16T07:41:41+01:00Time Travel
<p>I was intrigued recently to see a quote from Stephen Hawking suggesting that time travel is possible - but only to the future. I quote - </p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; font-size: 18px; font: normal normal normal 18px/1.5em Calibri, Candara, Segoe, Optima, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; color: #212121; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;"><strong style="font: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; font-weight: bold; padding: 0px; margin: 0px;">“A supermassive black hole is a time machine. But of course, it’s not exactly practical. It has advantages over wormholes in that it doesn’t provoke paradoxes. Plus it won’t destroy itself in a flash of feedback. But it’s pretty dangerous. It’s a long way away and it doesn’t even take us very far into the future. Fortunately there is another way to travel in time. And this represents our last and best hope of building a real time machine.”</strong></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; font-size: 18px; font: normal normal normal 18px/1.5em Calibri, Candara, Segoe, Optima, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; color: #212121; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;"><strong style="font: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; font-weight: bold; padding: 0px; margin: 0px;">Stephen Hawking</strong></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; font-size: 18px; font: normal normal normal 18px/1.5em Calibri, Candara, Segoe, Optima, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; color: #212121; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;"><span style="font:inherit; vertical-align:baseline; padding:0px; margin:0px">On further reading I discovered that he does indeed think that at least four of the world's greatest Physicists are wrong in saying that time travel is impossible. He sides with Arthur C Clarke who once said, "When a distinguished scientist says something is impossible, he's very probably wrong." Sir Arthur, author of 2001: A Space Odyssey, has been proved right in that statement rather frequently. I can recall being told it was impossible to reduce certain electronic components because the Laws of Physics "forbade their being smaller than a certain size." There are, of course, other examples of similar statements.</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; font-size: 18px; font: normal normal normal 18px/1.5em Calibri, Candara, Segoe, Optima, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; color: #212121; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;"><span style="font:inherit; vertical-align:baseline; padding:0px; margin:0px">It seems that Professor Hawking has, rather riskily, told the Daily Mail that "Time travel was once considered scientific heresy" and that he used to avoid talking about it, but no longer. He now says we need to look at everything in four dimensions, the fourth, obviously, being time. He continues a very interesting discussion to point out that we are, in fact, all "time travellers" in a sense. Time flows like a river, and like a river it travels primarily in one direction, though there are a lot of eddies, back flows and so on, ultimately everything ends up being discharged at the mouth. As Hawking says, we all move forward in time, so we are all, in a sense, travelling "Back to the Future."</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; font-size: 18px; font: normal normal normal 18px/1.5em Calibri, Candara, Segoe, Optima, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; color: #212121; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;"><span style="font:inherit; vertical-align:baseline; padding:0px; margin:0px">Science, to me, is fascinating. OK, I don't have the maths to be a physicist and sometimes I have to read some scientific tract a couple of times to grasp it, but each tiny advance in knowledge simply increases my wonder at the fact that life can even exist in this chaotic, and ultimately deadly, universe. As a lover and now writer of Science Fiction, I have found it equally fascinating to see how things that even 40 years ago were definitely "fiction" are now "fact." Even in my own writing, things I wrote about as little as eight years ago, and which were "fiction" then are rapidly being turned into reality.</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: 0px; font-size: 18px; font: normal normal normal 18px/1.5em Calibri, Candara, Segoe, Optima, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; color: #212121; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">Sadly, I didn't think to copyright or patent some of the ideas! </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382372012-03-09T01:00:00+01:002012-03-09T06:52:32+01:00Say that again ...
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">Sometimes you have to wonder about what you have just heard or read. A case in point is the US Army officer who told reporters that a village in Vietnam had been bombed out of existence in order to save it ...</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"><a href="http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/culturelab/2012/02/protection-efforts-may-not-save-endangered-animals.html" target="_blank" data-imported="1">The New Scientist reports a similar statement </a>has recently been made by a wildlife conservation journal, "Game Changer" to the effect that we have to be prepared to kill some endangered animals in order to "save" them. In short it is being suggested that "culling" elephants, rhinoceros and other large endangered animals provides the only way to control their activities and prevent, for instance, a herd of elephants destroying forests and crops - or lions killing cattle herds.</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">Reading this debate reinforces, for me at least, the complexity of the whole ecology. Tweak one part and something else unravels. This runs right through the entire environmental argument. A lot of the time well-meaning individuals and organisations grab hold of one tiny piece of the jigsaw, insist that this is the "key" to everything and then run with it. Until it all goes wrong. Then, of course, its someone else's fault.</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">The excuse is always, "we have to start somewhere ..."</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">One thing I learned a long time ago, is that it is often better not to start something until you know exactly which dominoes are going to fall - and what they will trigger in their turn. At least then, you have some idea of how to contain the damage.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382362012-02-24T01:00:00+01:002012-02-24T05:02:33+01:00A nice response from a test reader ...
<p>I'm rather proud of this response from one of my editor/readers for the book I am currently writing ...</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>"This chapter was stellar, it was interesting as hell <br>Really it was the last three chapters I read of yours you pulled me and kept my interest, but nothing like this. <br>Once I started I couldn't stop, I liked your closing as well. it was strong for sure grabbing the reader for another round. <br>Your notes were astonishing, the last little info on metal eating organisms I really enjoyed as just the thought that something can really do this is both scary and wow! Thanks for the read it was a pleasure."</em></p>
<p>Now if I can get that kind of response from an agent or publisher.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382352012-02-23T01:00:00+01:002012-02-23T05:59:25+01:00Pondering ...
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">Book trailers, actually.</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">I've been discussing this with a young lady who makes films. She had a hand in one for Random House and one of their 'Best Seller' authors. The numbers she gave me weren't as big as I would have expected, but now I have to think this through carefully. Which book to do this for? What aspects of the story do I want the trailer to reflect? How will I pay for it?</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">It needs a lot of very careful consideration I think.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382342012-02-07T01:00:00+01:002012-02-07T12:17:08+01:00Marketing, writing and development ...
<p>Writing the story is, as most authors will tell you, the fun part, the hard part is selling it. Juggling the various things is sometimes demanding and a little tricky to say the least. Especially when the author is trying to be the marketing man, develop the story he's currently writing and mange the process of getting a book through the publishing process. So it is with a little relief that I can say I've received the final versions of the marketing "trailers" for my first four Harry Heron books. The fifth is now close to 60,000 words and about two thirds complete. </p>
<p>Between trying to chase the marketing, research things for the current story, develop the plot and write it - I haven't been giving as much time to this or my other <a href="http://www.thegraymonsscriptorium.blogspot.com" data-imported="1">blog</a> as I should. </p>
<p>In the meantime, please do feel free to visit the Trailers by following the links below - </p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zqCBGE5XQI" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Their Lordships Request ...</a></strong></p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6XOSY3KyWk" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Out of Time</a> </strong></p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obWz8eWPzdU" target="_blank" data-imported="1">The Enemy is Within!</a></strong></p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTwcT5W991k" target="_blank" data-imported="1">On the Run</a></strong></p>
<p>They have all been created by <a href="http://www.apexreviews.net/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Apex Reviews</a> and I have to say they have done an excellent job.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382332012-01-29T01:00:00+01:002012-01-29T08:30:29+01:00Getting sucked in ..
<p>You know you're getting sucked into a story when you dream of the characters and wake up mapping out where the story is going from here ... My latest story has a working title of <strong><em>"The Outer Edge"</em></strong> and is developing strongly if the feed back I'm getting from my test readers and editor is anything to go by. It has a complex plot and keeping everything straight within it is a challenge, but it's also great fun. Here are some comments from the feedback ...</p>
<p><em>Good action chapter, I enjoyed the respective view points of the Canid and Feline evolved Regidur and Sci'antha, reflecting the strict laws of the wolf pack and then the independence and self-reliance of the reptilian species. Typical but unexpected action by the LPSL faction, and a well-described interception and capture by Beagle. Good tension from the hair-splitting-but justified- transit that caused a twelve degree diviation from their intended arrival point. Realistic that Harry would have a headache trying to absorb too much information at once, had the same reaction when I was learning to speed-read. Good dialogue exchange between Captain Kretzmann and Harry, clarifies the story while they are throwing out questions and answers.</em> </p>
<p>And now, back to work ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382322012-01-03T01:00:00+01:002012-01-04T01:03:02+01:00Some excellent feedback on my new draft ...
<p>Having started a new Harry Heron story, I am posting sample chapters on a website to get feedback on the story and on the writing standard. So far the comments have been extremely encouraging. Some samples include -</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>I found this a compelling read, full of detail giving an excellent visual. What is following them? That is the question. Very well written. Worth six stars.</em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em></em><em>I was happy to find you continuing your story, and you got off with a bang. You have some of the crew at odds with each other, some skullduggery going on with Dr. Palmer, and a strange space ship stalking the Beagle. You have a touch of romance with Harry and Mary Hopkins. And of course I am gratified that you kept the two Irish lads, Ferghal O'Connor and Danny Gunn in the mix. Like that description of Dr. Palmer as a "Blinkered bigot." </em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em></em><em>And away she goes. A very interesting first chapter, Pat. I can already see plenty of trouble on the horizon with Dr Palmer around. I think you did an excellent job here and can't wait for the next installment. </em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em></em><em>Patrick, I'm thrilled you're continuing Harry's story! </em><em>You set the stage well in your opening paragraphs. </em><em>You do a great job of making this all sound authentic/realistic. </em><em>Excellent use of natural-sounding dialogue. </em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em></em><em>Mr. Heron and his Survey team will have the Observation Dome active for the Astro teams, - add comma </em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em></em><em>You create tension and suspense well as they discuss this huge thing that keeps appearing on their equipment and then disappearing. </em><em>And then there's Dr. Palmer and his little cliche. - little clique </em><em>A poignant closing to this chapter as Harry writes to his old connections and his thoughts drift to home.</em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em></em><em>Well-penned and exceptional read, as usual, Patrick. Enjoyed the second installment and moving on to number three. One item: You wrote - "His gaze swept the group. Dr. Klonowski, Dr. Abbott, Dr. Knop, perhaps I can leave you to work out the details of the equipment and personnel you need to land ..." </em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em></em><em>I liked the way that you used a flashback to show what was discovered in the tunnel. I remembered the mental link that Harry was able to perform from the first part of this story. </em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em></em><em>The evacuation and use of the pods was accurate and convincing, exactly what should have and would have been the procedure to prepare for what may prove to be a hostile contact. Good chapter.</em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em></em><em>I throughly enjoyed this. Great charecter development, good descriptive sentences that clearly give a "picture" of the story, and the storyline itself has a good flow making it easy to follow. This is an exceptional work. Thank you for the read.</em></p>
<ul>
</ul>
<p>The above are extracts from some longer critiques of the first four chapters, all of which are extremely useful in tightening up and polishing my writing. Many of the commentators also provide suggestions for corrections to my typos, punctation and so on. I can't say often enough how much using this approach has improved my overall writing!</p>
<p>OK, so now I have 35k words written. Back to the keyboard, there's another chapter taking shape in my head as I type this ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382312011-12-30T01:00:00+01:002011-12-30T08:21:18+01:00Out with the old ...
<p>And in with the new as we say good bye to 2011 and welcome 2012. As I am definitely not a subscriber to the "2012 - we're all doomed!" set, I look forward to the new year with a sense that at last my writing is getting some recognition and seems to be building up a following. It has certainly taken an effort to get there and will take even more to keep up the momentum and really keep it going. Plus, I've made a start on the first draft of a new story in the Harry Heron series.</p>
<p>In the last year I seem to have been kept very busy, writing, revising, editing and re-editing - plus, of course, getting a real editor to look at it all - and I think I can say without embarrassment, that my writing is far, far better for it. </p>
<p>I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all those who have helped me, corrected my typos, fixed my punctuation and generally constructively criticized my writing. It's all helped to make the stories better, the characters stronger and the reading experience a good one. Marketing is a big challenge from where I am. There isn't a big demand for books in English here in Germany, but I keep trying. Sales do seem to be happening though, because I keep getting cheques for the royalties, small though they are.</p>
<p>Now I know this is early, but what the heck, I probably won't have a chance to do this tomorrow - so here goes.</p>
<p>I wish all my readers a Happy New Year. May 2012 bring all you hope for. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382302011-12-22T01:00:00+01:002011-12-22T06:02:42+01:00Merry Christmas to all my readers
<p>I'd just like to say Merry Christmas to all my readers and to those who don't celebrate Christmas, I hope you have a great holiday as well. I really appreciate all the support, encouragement and help I have received in the last couple of years, from my friends (long suffering!), my family (Even more long suffering!), my editor and the folk I have dealt with at the publishers.</p>
<p>In particular, however, I want to thank those who have bought my books. You're the people that make it all worthwhile.</p>
<p>Thank you. May you have a terrific Christmas and may the coming year bring everything you hope for. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382292011-12-17T01:00:00+01:002011-12-17T04:50:36+01:00Trailers ...
<p>I am impressed. Seriously impressed. <a href="http://www.apexreviews.net/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Apex Reviews</a> have done a superb job of the trailers for all four of my Harry Heron series, but the final one, ON the RUN, is terrific. I had to watch it twice just to be sure. Click on the image below to see what I mean!</p>
<p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XnV3Ml2-jE&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank" data-imported="1"><img src="http://harryheron.com/img/OTR_Cover_Thumbnail_small.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="232" width="154" /></a></p>
<p>These folk are really creative, super helpful and deliver exactly what they say they will. Watching these trailers I can only say that I think I should be trying to attract someone in the film or television industry now. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382282011-12-14T01:00:00+01:002011-12-14T06:59:47+01:00Nothing like holding a book
<p>My "Author Copies" of <strong><em><a href="http://harryheron.com/suppliers_where_do_i_buy_it/on_the_run" data-imported="1">On the Run</a></em></strong> arrived today and yesterday. There's nothing quite like holding a hard copy of your own book to give you satisfaction. Writing it takes a lot of effort, revising, polishing and editing take even more - and then its out of your hands and the publisher gets to do some more polishing tweaking and setting up. OK, you get to see the Galleys, correct the Galleys, and hopefully, between you and the proof reader, catch all the funny little quirks that creep into formatting between various versions of Word, Pagemaker and Publishing Pro or whichever program your publisher uses.</p>
<p>The book looks good. It feels good in my hand and I certainly hope to see it eventually gracing someone's bookshelves. It is selling online, I know this because several people have told me they have ordered it, bought it or are reading it and I know the only place they could have done that here in Germany is online!</p>
<p>Now I have some hard copies to distribute I feel a visit or three to local and national booksellers coming on. Somewhere there is a shelf with a place for my books ... </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382272011-12-13T01:00:00+01:002011-12-13T12:31:10+01:00Waiting on my trailers ...
<p>My latest book, <strong><em>On the Run; a Harry Heron adventure</em></strong>, is starting to sell. It's going slowly at present, but I have high hopes that the trailer I have commissioned will be available soon and will increase interest and sales. There seems to be some hold up in the works with producing them which is a bit disappointing. I've heard nothing from the producers since I approved the first two drafts, but as they are posting two trailers a day to YouTube, I can but hope mine are in the queue and I will soon have sight of the trailers for <strong><em>The Enemy is Within</em></strong> and <strong><em>On The Run.</em></strong></p>
<p>In the meantime I've made a start on the next book in the Harry Heron series. With a working title of <strong><em>The Outer Edge</em></strong>, the first draft is well under way. With a little luck, On the Run's trailer will be released before much longer. It is, after all, a key element in my marketing plan!</p>
<p><strong><em><br></em></strong></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382262011-12-02T01:00:00+01:002011-12-02T04:06:15+01:00Great Review of Their Lordships Request ...
<p>I am very pleased to be able to say that I am flattered by a very good review of Their Lordships Request ... which has appeared on the website <a href="http://www.fyddeye.com/book-reviews/fiction/815-review-their-lordships-request" target="_blank" data-imported="1">The Fyddeye Guide</a>. The author, Joe Follansbee, is a noted naval historian specialising in American Maritime history. His comments regarding the historic seafaring aspects of the book are a compliment indeed.</p>
<p>The full review can be seen by following the link to the website above. Two exerpts I find particularly encouraging - </p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"> <strong>Cox is at his best as Harry goes into battle with pirates</strong>, which attack one of the prison ships with a xebec, a ship with two means of propulsion: lateen sails and oars. <strong>Cox has mastered the culture and language of the period in both description and dialog.</strong> The final moments of the xebec skirmish are truly exciting, ending with an image that reminds the reader of the horrible fate of slaves on the losing side.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">......</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">However,<strong>Cox weaves an interesting, but separate thread into this novel, a parallel story of the launching of a large spacecraft in orbit above Mars.</strong> The year is 2202, and the warship Vanguard is fitting out for its first assignment under the command of Captain James O’Niall Heron.</p>
<p>I do commend to readers, a visit to The Fyddeye Guide which has a wealth of other links and resources for those interested in the sea, sea stories and other sea related matters.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382252011-12-01T01:00:00+01:002011-12-01T03:11:22+01:00ON the RUN now in the online sellers ...
<p>I have to say that Abbott Press have certainly not wasted any time in getting <strong><em>ON the RUN</em></strong> onto all the online sellers lists. Having done a trawl around I find it is now listed in all its formats on the Amazon sites, Barnes and Noble and their own online store. I've just finished building the links to all the sellers sites in my suppliers pages here so now readers can find it quickly and easily by "clicking the link" of their choice.</p>
<p>Abbott have produced a good looking book. It has a really well laid out look to it, the spacing and font is good and - dare I say it - I think readers will enjoy the story all the more because of it. It is available in Hardback, Paperback and as an eBook. At present it is listed only by <a href="http://www.xlibrispublishing.co.uk/bookstore/bookdisplay.aspx?bookid=300925" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Abbott Press as an eBook</a>, but it will hopefully also be available to Amazon and B&N's eReaders in due course.</p>
<p>It can, of course, be ordered through the High Street stores such as Waterstones, W H Smiths and others. It is now on all the catalogues so they should be able to find it if you prefer to browse in a booklined brick and mortar environment instead of in cyberspace!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382242011-11-26T01:00:00+01:002011-11-26T13:03:00+01:00ON THE RUN released ...
<p>The latest Harry Heron adventure is now available. Published by Abbott Press it was released for sale yesterday and will be on Amazon, Barnes and Noble and others soon. What's it about?</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>Take three young men from a ship-of-the-line in 1804, thrust them four hundred years into the future, give them some high-tech implants and a dash of illegal gene splicing, and you have a trio with a different approach than that of their new friends and companions. Harry, Ferghal, and Danny face the uncharted waters of the bitter conflict between the organizations known as the Consortium and the Confederation; these sailors are now without a known star to steer by.</em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>Harry Nelson-Heron is, in appearance, an ordinary young man with some special talents. Other than his friend Ferghal O’Connor, Harry may be the only man who can stop the Consortium’s plan to ruin the democratic Confederation’s economy and impose their own oligarchy. In any century, a patronizing bully of a superior can make any man’s life miserable, and for Harry, things haven’t changed in four hundred years. Fortunately, Ferghal has crafted a better relationship with his superior, who encourages him to use his “antique” skills for recreation. These same skills will ultimately play an important part in the events to come, thanks in no small part to the incompetence of one individual in particular.</em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>It’s a desperate race for survival on an alien world for Sub-lieutenant Heron and his men. When they find shelter with a strange alien people and their even stranger Provider, things start to take a hopeful turn. Do they dare let their guards down?</em></p>
<p>I hope to be able to post a video book trailer for the story here in the very near future! In the meantime, please feel free to take a look at the book on the <a href="http://bookstore.abbottpress.com/Products/SKU-000481741/On-the-Run.aspx" target="_blank" data-imported="1">Abbott Press online bookstore site.</a></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382232011-11-22T01:00:00+01:002011-11-22T07:13:37+01:00Book Trailers ...
<p>I had not, until recently, come across a 'Book Trailer.' 'Trailers' for movies, DVDs and even concerts, but not books. But then a friend asked my opinion on a trailer for his book. It was impressive, so I enquired where I could explore this for my own.</p>
<p>I've now had the opportunity to review the first two produced by the company and I have to say that I found both grabbed my attention and made me think I really needed to read them myself ... Right, so at present the two trailers are drafts, not yet polished and ready for release, but I'm delighted with the result and I'm looking forward to actually releasing them for wider viewing.</p>
<p>Most writers will know that there is concern among educators that the present generation - Generation Z: The "Connected Generation" - is now so used to being in constant touch with their circle of contacts on text or "Twitter" that their reading is limited to 140 characters. Anything longer tends to get the response "tl;dr" which stands for "To long; didn't read." That is, of course, not good news for those of us trying to sell books and stories to them.</p>
<p>I happen to believe that there is hope out there for us all, but it depends on how we get their attention and how interesting we make the experience. The idea behind the trailers is to grab the initial interest. Once they actually open and start to read the book, you need to make sure it holds the attention all the way through.</p>
<p>Great, now all I have to do is make sure I've met my own rules ... </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382222011-11-18T01:00:00+01:002011-11-18T07:40:36+01:00Almost in print at last ...
<p>The final Galley checks have been made on <strong><em>On the Run - a Harry Heron adventure</em></strong>, and now it is a case of waiting for the printer to start production. In the meantime I am waiting to publish a "trailer" to the book currently being produced by Apex Reviews.</p>
<p>The book has been copy edited, line edited, undergone several revisions since I started it and I am convinced it is my best "Harry" story yet. I sincerely hope everyone else agrees with that. As a taster, here is the cover for the Paper Back edition, the Hard Cover carries slightly more information and some extracts from within the book as a "taster."</p>
<p><img src="http://harryheron.com/img/OTR_Cover_Reduced.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="400" width="500" /> </p>
<p>I'm very pleased with the result. The cover painting itself was done by my brother, Robert, who lives in Cape Town, so this is a really "international" product!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382212011-11-12T01:00:00+01:002012-02-07T11:46:08+01:00Publisher's Assessment for film or TV conversion
<p><strong>Xlibris</strong>, publisher of <em><strong>The Enemy is Within!</strong></em> have forwarded an assessment by a professional script writer of the story as a potential script or scripts for film or television. I have to say it is very encouraging, even though there are a number of suggestions for improving elements. It is encouraging to see that this, the second of my novels to be written, comes out so well in this assessment. The suggestions regarding the development of the characters, has already been done. In <strong><em>On the Run</em></strong>, Harry is expanded by playing up some of his faults and his companions and friends have been filled out a bit as well. </p>
<p>The appraisal has been uploaded to a site used by film makers, scriptwriters and agents, so I would hope that it gets noticed. Of course, there are no guarantees in any of this. There never is with marketting, but there is less chance of success if you don't. So, as the saying is, having cast my bread upon the waters, now I wait in hope!</p>
<p>That said, I have sent copies of all the books to someone in the film industry that I know and have helped in the past. Hopefully she will bring it to the attention of someone else, and the snowball will begin to roll ...</p>
<p>The assessment can be accessed through this link. <a href="/files/498729/the-enemy-is-within-xluk-ks-proof-1.pdf" data-imported="1">The_Enemy_is_Within-XLUK-KS_Proof-1.pdf</a> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382202011-11-09T01:00:00+01:002011-11-09T05:08:06+01:00Another step forward ...
<p>The publisher has sent the Galley Proofs for "<strong><em>On the Run; A Harry Heron Adventure</em></strong>" and I have sent these on to my editor. As ever, the deadlines are tight, especially if I want to get the book out in time for Christmas.</p>
<p>I'm intrigued by the pricing though. Abbott have come up with prices of US$22.95 for the paper back, US$37.95 for the Hard Back and US$3.95 for the e-book versions. I think this needs a little discussion and negotiation perhaps, since I can't see how the hard copy versions can attract sales at these prices. They claim the price is based on page numbers, but another publisher I use has a much lower price than this for another book with a slightly longer page count.</p>
<p>This seems to be a case of - Hmmm, perhaps this needs to be carefully discussed.</p>
<p>OK, pricing aside, the Galleys have arrived and I must say, so far look as if they have been created by someone who took the time and effort necessary to get them right. I have had, on a previous occasion and with a different publisher, a real problem with formatting, something I have seen recently discussed at some length on another site I belong to. Word, in its various iterations, has a rather annoying habit of adding or removing formatting when a document is transferred from one document to another. This can play havoc with the transfer of a Word file into a publishing format.</p>
<p>As I said, I've some experience of that in an earlier book. I can't see anything in these proofs to indicate the same problem so I must conclude that Abbott have taken time and trouble to sort it properly. Right! Back to proof reading, not my favourite occupation so I will rely on my editor to see what I miss.</p>
<p>What would we do without editors? </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382192011-11-04T01:00:00+01:002011-11-04T01:01:38+01:00Cover Proofs ...
<p>The cover proofs for <strong>On the Run; <em>A Harry Heron Adventure</em></strong>, have been delivered. Now I need to sit down and consider them carefully, particularly the excerpts and blurbs, to make sure they are not only looking good, but "marketing" oriented as well. First glance suggested they are good, and closer scrutiny confirms it.</p>
<p>There are two different back covers, and the hard cover version has the 'flaps' to be considered as well. The designer has done a good job with the picture I provided, painted by my brother in Cape Town, and the blurbs seem to make all the right statements. So far the team at Abbott Press have done an excellent job on it.</p>
<p>My long suffering "test subjects" have given the thumbs up - so its on with the show! </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382182011-11-03T01:00:00+01:002011-11-03T08:16:54+01:00Revising a manuscript ...
<p>At present I am revising a manuscript for a story very dear to my heart - one that I did a huge amount of research for and spent a long time writing. It isn't easy to revise, since the subject spent large amounts of time alone, or cut off from those around him for reasons of language, status and age. He wasn't an easy man to find either, he is now so hidden behind legends, fairy tales and mythology that you have to dig deep and wide to find the truth. What emerges is a man far more interesting than any legend about him can ever be.</p>
<p>So who is he?</p>
<p>The name Magnus Sucatus Patricius probably doesn't mean a great deal to many, but those are the real names of the man we know today as St Patrick. It is his story that I am trying to tell from his own eyes and mouth. It has been and still is, an 'interesting' experience. There have been times when I have searched and searched for the right words or the right scenario for certain events he has left hints at (Two documents known to have been written by him survive) only to have the story almost write itself, often in a direction and a place I had not considered.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/fb45dc4100c131d145bce5601b67ad3ee9cde045/original/bishop-patricius-small.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MjE5eDQwMCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="400" style="border: 0px initial initial;" width="219" /></p>
<p><em>My own sketch of how he probably appeared early in his mission. I have depicted him in garments typical of the people he came to minister to, the usual depictions of him show him in 14th or 15th Century vestments. The Mitre now worn by Bishops did not come into use until at least four centuries after his death and the idea that he was a monk arose two centuries later when the monastic movement was in the ascendancy for control of the Church of Rome.</em></p>
<p>One of the surprises in researching this was the discovery, that contrary to the generally accepted statement that very little written material exists from this period, there is a wealth of it. Almost a surfeit of it in fact, though some is not easy to access and much is of little help in looking at a man who came from England (Britannia Prime which at that time included what we today call Wales), was of minor noble birth and lived through the period in which Roman power and influence was waining rapidly. Indeed, he was probably the victim of the power vacuum as Rome withdrew to fight its civil wars in Gaul and then of the turbulence that followed the invasions of the winter of 407 AD. There is almost enough material in just his lifespan to qualify for a Doctoral Thesis!</p>
<p>Now I must continue my revision. I have an editor waiting to see what needs further correction once I have finished. I am currently revising Chapter 15 of 48, so there is a way to go yet.</p>
<p>I begin to think a 48 hour day would be useful ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382172011-11-01T01:00:00+01:002011-11-01T09:07:39+01:00Book Review: Young Nelsons
<p>I acquired a copy of this excellent book from the Royal Navy Museum shop in Portsmouth. Written by D A B Ronald and published by Osprey, the book is very well put together, and very readable. I have long had a fascination for Naval history, particularly British history and this book is a part of my ongoing search for information and background for my own writing. </p>
<p>The author has opened a window into a world most modern youngsters would find intolerable, a world of bullying, self discipline and hardship. It was a world of separation from friends and family at a very early age and one in which you either learned fast and grew to manhood and responsibility - or perished. Mr Ronald has used the journals, letters and diaries of the Midshipmen who served with, under and alongside Admiral Nelson. He has taken records from the Marine Society - formed to provide "boys for the navy" in the late 18th Century - and included their experiences and details in the account.</p>
<p>The Royal Navy of the 18th and early 19th Centuries depended on boys to man their ships, fill the officer corps (if they could find a patron, pass the exams and get promoted) and run the many tasks required to keep a fleet of sailing ships afloat, at sea and in fighting form. Boys aged 13 and upwards - though many were younger - were recruited and served as "Powder Monkeys," "Servants" and junior Warrant Officers (Midshipmen) in all the RNs ships. One the size of Victory needed 60 or more boys to keep the guns supplied with powder, act as stewards in the Gunroom, Wardroom and for the Captain and Admiral and also carried around 40 Midshipmen all hoping to become officers. </p>
<p>Their bravery and the adult perspectives they have left us move the reader by turns to anger, despair and tears. How many 13 year olds today, could serve on their father's ship as did young Mister Norwich Duff, Midshipman, whose father was Captain of HMS Mars at the battle of Trafalgar. A witness to his father's having his head knocked off by a cannon ball, he then wrote the most moving and tragic letter to his mother beginning -</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>My Dear Mamma,</em></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>You cannot possibly imagine how unwilling I am to begin this melancholy letter. However, as you must unavoidably hear the fate of dear Papa, I write you these few lines to request you to bear it as patiently as you can. He died like a Hero, having gallantly led his ship into action ...</em></p>
<p>I doubt many thirteen year olds today could write anything as coherently as this about the death of their father. Small wonder then that several Captains offered to accept this youngster into their ships, or that he rose to the rank of Admiral himself. Nor is he the sole example, boys from all backgrounds, moneyed and humble rose to the challenge before them and, as the book demonstrates, not only made the best of it, but in so doing, made Britain great.</p>
<p>This book is a must read for anyone wanting to write about life at sea in the 18th and 19th Century, but I think it should be a must read for all school children today. These boys may "have no memorial" but they left an indelible mark on the world, on history and on a nation.</p>
<p>This is one book I commend heartily - even if you are not a history buff, the human aspects of it will hold your attention like nothing else!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382162011-10-26T02:00:00+02:002011-10-26T08:36:34+02:00New cover art for On The Run
<p class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">The new cover artwork for my latest book, On The Run; a Harry Heron Adventure, has arrived. Below is a somewhat reduced image of the painting which has taken sometime to realise ...</p>
<p class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"><img src="http://harryheron.com/img/SKMBT_C45211102516530.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="778" width="550" /></p>
<p class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">I must say I'm pretty pleased with what he has done. He's captured the alien nature of the planet a large part of the story is set on and some of the action. So what is the story about ...</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Take three young men from a Ship-of-the-line, thrust them 400 years into the future, give them some hi-tech implants, a dash of illegal gene splicing and you have a trio with a different approach to that of their new friends and companions. Sometimes with explosively different results …</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Harry Nelson-Heron is, to all intents, an ordinary young man with some special talents. He’s also possibly the only man beside his friend Ferghal O’Connor, from the same age and background, who can stop the Consortium’s plan to ruin the democratic Confederation’s economy and impose their own oligarchy.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Sub-lieutenant Heron and his men find themselves in a desperate race to survive on an alien world – until they find shelter with an alien people and their even stranger ‘Provider’ who helps them create their own weapons and mayhem for the Consortium … Add a mix of frustrating an enemy's plans, guerilla warfare and an explosive outcome and you have an inkling of what is to come.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">A fast paced adventure that takes Harry, Ferghal and their friends on a chase across the galaxy and into a very alien culture.</p>
<p class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">Now it remains to be seen what the cover design team at Abbot Press can do with it. I'm pretty sure it will be a professional job when they're done!</p>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium;">
<p style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color:#808080"><br></span></p>
</blockquote>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382152011-10-23T02:00:00+02:002011-10-23T06:20:16+02:00Readable? That's irrelevant ...
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">I recently watched the pre-Booker Prize Dinner interviews on the BBC. It was eye-opening to say the very least and made me very aware that some of the Traditional Publishers - and perhaps the Book critics as well - have no interest in generating a wider audience. The statement that really got my attention was from one of the Judges, who is a senior member of the Prize committee and if I heard it right, a Commissioning Editor for one of the major publishers. In response to the interviewers comment that the "favourite" for the prize was a thick tome which was "barely readable" he stated "Readability is irrelevant. What matters is its literary value."</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">I confess I almost choked on my coffee. Surely for something to be a "literary contribution" it must be readable? Or has my editor got that wrong? No wonder I haven't been nominated for these awards ...</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">Listening to the rest of the interviews it emerged that many of the judges are looking for "social commentary" or "presenting a view of society" or even "a critical re-examining of history and institutions." Evidently the main criteria are that the book must, in some way, promote some view of society or the world which the judges and selectors wish to promote. That is interesting, since my editors have commented on this aspect as well, one remarking that my Harry Heron stories made some interesting comments on aspects of current and possibly future society. </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">I have often seen books advertised as "Winner of the XXX Prize" or "Nominated for the XXX-Prize" and wondered how they were selected and by whom. Since I began publishing my own work in fiction I have learned that publishers nominate books from their catalogues and, in theory, any publisher can nominate a book. Whether it actually gets accepted is another matter and whether it gets a mention depends on the rules for that prize, the selection committee's preferences and tastes and frequently whether or not the author is "known" and successful - or has the right connections. </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin: 0px;">Of one thing I think I may be very certain, I'm unlikely to see any of my efforts listed in the nominations!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382142011-10-22T02:00:00+02:002020-02-17T19:46:55+01:00Chasing deadlines ...
<p>I got back from my conference in Tehran yesterday in the early hours of the morning. The list of "things to be done today" is daunting, especially chasing the things that should have been completed by my return ... </p>
<p>I have to say that the experience was a mixed bag. The people I met, talked to and was hosted by are fantastic, the regime, obviously, is another matter and the experience of getting the visa and then of the security checks at the airport were - shall I say - designed to deter anyone, however well disposed, from visiting the place.</p>
<p>Iranian hosts take their duty as hosts extremely seriously. The duties of a host are those you find in the Bible and the visitor is honoured as a guest under the same conditions. Naturally, as a guest, you also have certain duties, such as respecting their culture and their rules. Many westerners find that tricky or even objectionable. I don't. It is no more and no less than I expect of someone visiting my country. OK, so I can't have alcohol. Big deal, I didn't go there to drink anyway. I do find it difficult that I can't visit a church, though I am always religiously told I am welcome in any mosque should I wish to pray ... It isn't quite the same as having the full freedom to worship, practice or discuss my faith that I enjoy in most countries. There is also a very palpable tension in Iran at present, the current regime is not universally popular and I expect that one day it will be expelled from power, but, it will have to be an internal expulsion and not a western "intervention." In that country it simply will not work.</p>
<p>Now I have returned I have to chase my artist for the cover picture, now well overdue. I have to get on with a revision I started and put aside to complete the preparations for the conference and I have to chase the Galley Proofs for On The Run which are now also overdue! Then there is a question of getting a response from the company I engaged to create trailers for the Harry Heron series, they haven't responded since I sent them my material and paid them. Plus, Autumn has shown its bite and the garden needs "winter proofing." Oh well, at least the trip to Tehran has given me a fistful of ideas for the next Harry Heron ... </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382132011-10-16T02:00:00+02:002011-10-16T08:45:37+02:00Artwork, marketing, conferences ...
<p>Time seems to accelerate when you're busy. My artwork for the latest Harry Heron novel has been delayed - the artist went and got sick - and that's thrown a spanner in the works for finishing off the cover, which knocked on delaying the production of galleys ... It always has that domino effect when something is delayed, or so it seems. </p>
<p>My lack of posts recently is down to last minute preparations for a conference I am speaking at and problems getting the visa, the airline tickets and all those last minute details. Trying to push forward and expand my marketing activities at the same time is probably not good timing, but then when is it? </p>
<p>Speaking of marketing, I find it eats up a lot of time, but its an essential ingredient if you want to sell the writing you've invested time, effort and money into. Perhaps I can make use of the latest discovery by physicists, that time is experienced differently by people in different places and occupations, or maybe Stephen Hawking's hypothesis that we actually inhabit a "Multiverse" with billions of parallel universes all side by side. That way I should be able to engage several of my "parallel persona" in some of these essential activities?</p>
<p>Or maybe I'd wind up selling everything in the "wrong" time frame or universe ... As Fagan says, "I t'ink I better t'ink it out again ..."</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382122011-10-06T02:00:00+02:002011-10-06T13:48:56+02:00Progress - I think ...
<p>Sometimes it seems that time just slips away, regardless of your efforts to keep it under control. It reminds me of an article I read recently which stated, among other things, that we all experience time differently. It certainly feels that way at present.</p>
<p>I have been busy sorting myself out for a conference at which I am one of the principal speakers, delivering two papers and the presentations have taken quite a while to sort out. I have also been busy chasing the artwork for the cover of "On The Run" and doing a bit of advance publicity. Between visa applications (complicated when you live in one country and have the nationality of another ...) and trying to keep track of the editing and typesetting proofs for a book, time sort of runs away from you ...</p>
<p>There is also the small matter of setting up the publicity for your new book to consider. To that end I have been looking at people to produce a book trailer for me and some review coverage. I guess we do experience time differently - I just wish I could find some more of it at present!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382112011-09-25T02:00:00+02:002011-09-25T05:56:06+02:00Their Lordships Request goes electronic ...
<p>It's taken a while, but it has finally come together. The e-publisher, 46 South Publishing has released <a href="http://46s.biz/ViewBook.asp?Code=PC002" data-imported="1">Their Lordships Request</a> in the formats for Kindle, iPad and PC/Mac. On sale through their online shop at US$3.99 it's a very affordable read. </p>
<p>The process has been an interesting one for me as an author, perhaps naively believing that it was simply a matter of converting the Word MS into an electronic version of the publisher's page layout program. It's a bit more complex than that! A second part to it was the need to redesign the cover, something I had wanted to do anyway as I wasn't entirely happy with my original design. Thanks to the publisher I was put in touch with an extremely competent lady whose final product now graces the cover of both the electronic version of the book and soon will be adorning the paper version as well.</p>
<p>I have to say - Peter, Kura and everyone involved at 46 South - great job!</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/4d5e20c80e73dd0a88c36a595f89636787267f37/original/cover-final-lordships-request-playing-card-size-web.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MTc4eDI1MiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="252" width="178" /></p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382102011-09-19T02:00:00+02:002011-09-20T01:15:53+02:00Books, publishing and readers; a conundrum?
<p> </p>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">The death of paper based "print" books is much discussed these days on a variety of fora frequented by authors and would be authors. <a href="http://seanan-mcguire.livejournal.com/390067.html">Seanan MacGuire, writing on Live Journal</a>, makes an excellent case regarding the need for "printed words" to continue. I find myself in full agreement with him.</div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">Electronic books are fine, I have some of mine available in e-format now, but if you don't have a Kindle, iPad, whatever, you can't read them. All you need to read a paper book is the book. You can get it from a library, from a bookstore, from Amazon and even from the second hand bookstore tucked away in a backstreet. But here lies a part of the problem. Authors have to get past a large number of "gate keepers" in order to get published by the traditional publishers. Most won't even look at a manuscript submitted by an author if it doesn't come through an agent. Even when they say they will. The truth is that they are swamped by manuscripts these days as the electronic age gives more and more people the power to create the novel "everyone" is supposed to have inside them. </div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">Even if you do get read by a traditional publisher, more and more manuscripts are rejected because the author isn't marketable. Note, I said the Author isn't marketable. An unknown writer is just too much of a gamble. It costs a lot to publish traditionally, the overheads are enormous in terms of premises, salaries and so forth and then the manuscripts have to be edited properly. That all takes up time and money. I know, because I have been told and have now acquired quite a bit of experience in "doing it myself" that the actual printing isn't expensive. It ain't, what is expensive is the editing (Someone has to take the time to find the mistakes, typos and so on), the correcting (Again, there has to be a physical check that the "Proofs" are correct and there are no glitches), that any "facts" are properly sourced, correct and acknowledged, and finally, the really expensive bit - promotion. If people don't know its available, they won't buy it! More and more, this is the bit left to a new author ...</div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">Even once you have managed to get your book printed, there is a further hurdle. The bookstore has limited space on their shelves. The books they are prepared to put there are those they believe will sell rapidly. Any book that sits on the shelf more than two weeks is costing them sales. Ergo, the books they will put there are those they KNOW will sell quickly. In other words, the books that make it through the next hurdle gate, the media review pages, the advertising posters and blurbs and so on. The books listed for various "Literary Prizes" and promoted to the point the public believe that only that book will be available in the stores ...</div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">This leaves the "fringe" author very few options. I can try to get my books noticed by the bookstores, I can even offer them a "sale or return" deal on limited numbers so it gets at least onto a shelf. Trouble is, I know it won't get a prominent place and it remains a matter of chance whether anyone will actually spot it. (Funny thing about shops and shelves - the middle range, around eye level is where most people will look for something and buy it. Lower shelves seldom get looked at unless the buyer knows they are looking for something on a low shelf, and the same applies to anything above head height. These are well known ploys in store layout and marketing. Being on a bottom shelf is near 'death' for a book and being on a high one is to be classed with the sort of magazine that comes in opaque wrappings and not for sale to minors ...)</div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">It is also said these days, that for a "self published" author to get taken seriously, they need to make sales of 10,000 copies. I find that threshold a bit misleading, especially since the traditional industry regularly publishes "Prize Nominees" and "known" authors who sell fewer copies. One "Prize Nominee" a few years ago sold a total of 150 copies!</div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">So, this leaves us with a market where the easiest way for a fringe author like me to sell my stories and books is through the e-formats. However, I still prefer the book to be available in paper and like to see paper sales. After all, I like to hold a book, to smell a book, to feel a book and to read it. Like Seanan MacGuire, books were my friends as a child. They were my escape into a wider world and a wider understanding of how the world works, its people and the wonders of science, religion and nature. What I think needs to change is the publishing industry, not necessarily the format of books. There are a lot of good books not published by "traditional" publishers, some of them definitely potentially best sellers. But there are also a lot of absolute rubbish books as well. As they say, the buyer must exercise judgement and caution there.</div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">Personally I think the paper book is far from dead, but the industry that produces them must also change and adapt. E-Books are here to stay, though not everyone will embrace them and some, like me, will continue to keep stacks of printed books on every flat surface and in every shelf we can find.</div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">Books provide a fantastic opportunity to learn, to gain knowledge and to have fun doing it and killing off the paper based book will cut off access to them for a large section of every community. The Public Library was my door into a whole new world as a kid and I sincerely hope it will continue to provide that door to generations yet to come. Sadly, though, there is another part to this problem, illiteracy. </div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">Looking around the sink estates today and listening to the youngsters speaking one quickly realises that many cannot read anything complex. Worse, they don't have the underpinning knowledge to realise what they are missing or what they could gain by stretching themselves reading a good book. There are all sorts of causes underlying this state of affairs and one of them is the "instant gratification" that comes from "quick hit" TV shows, games and the like. Reading a good book means actually having to savour the anticipation of the pleasure to come as the book reaches its peroration. For a generation now trained to have the attention span of gold fish, that is difficult to grasp.</div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">If books are to survive in our society it requires that we nurture a wider audience than the cognoscenti who currently dictate what is published. We need to engage the youth at schools, particularly among the poorer end of society and show them what is available to them in the printed word. Books must be saved, but not just as the preserve of those who consider themselves "above the common herd" or as the "literate" - we must find ways to reach those who don't, at present, read anything other than the blurb on the latest "game" wrapper...</div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">Quite a challenge for authors, publishers, sellers and educationists.</div>
<p>The death of paper based "print" books is much discussed these days on a variety of fora frequented by authors and would be authors. <a href="http://seanan-mcguire.livejournal.com/390067.html">Seanan MacGuire, writing on Live Journal</a>, makes an excellent case regarding the need for "printed words" to continue. I find myself in full agreement with him.</p>
<p><br>Electronic books are fine, I have some of mine available in e-format now, but if you don't have a Kindle, iPad, whatever, you can't read them. All you need to read a paper book is the book. You can get it from a library, from a bookstore, from Amazon and even from the second hand bookstore tucked away in a backstreet. But here lies a part of the problem. Authors have to get past a large number of "gate keepers" in order to get published by the traditional publishers. Most won't even look at a manuscript submitted by an author if it doesn't come through an agent. Even when they say they will. The truth is that they are swamped by manuscripts these days as the electronic age gives more and more people the power to create the novel "everyone" is supposed to have inside them. </p>
<p><br>Even if you do get read by a traditional publisher, more and more manuscripts are rejected because the author isn't marketable. Note, I said the Author isn't marketable. An unknown writer is just too much of a gamble. It costs a lot to publish traditionally, the overheads are enormous in terms of premises, salaries and so forth and then the manuscripts have to be edited properly. That all takes up time and money. I know, because I have been told and have now acquired quite a bit of experience in "doing it myself" that the actual printing isn't expensive. It ain't, what is expensive is the editing (Someone has to take the time to find the mistakes, typos and so on), the correcting (Again, there has to be a physical check that the "Proofs" are correct and there are no glitches), that any "facts" are properly sourced, correct and acknowledged, and finally, the really expensive bit - promotion. If people don't know its available, they won't buy it! More and more, this is the bit left to a new author ...</p>
<p><br>Even once you have managed to get your book printed, there is a further hurdle. The bookstore has limited space on their shelves. The books they are prepared to put there are those they believe will sell rapidly. Any book that sits on the shelf more than two weeks is costing them sales. Ergo, the books they will put there are those they KNOW will sell quickly. In other words, the books that make it through the next hurdle gate, the media review pages, the advertising posters and blurbs and so on. The books listed for various "Literary Prizes" and promoted to the point the public believe that only that book will be available in the stores ...</p>
<p><br>This leaves the "fringe" author very few options. I can try to get my books noticed by the bookstores, I can even offer them a "sale or return" deal on limited numbers so it gets at least onto a shelf. Trouble is, I know it won't get a prominent place and it remains a matter of chance whether anyone will actually spot it. (Funny thing about shops and shelves - the middle range, around eye level is where most people will look for something and buy it. Lower shelves seldom get looked at unless the buyer knows they are looking for something on a low shelf, and the same applies to anything above head height. These are well known ploys in store layout and marketing. Being on a bottom shelf is near 'death' for a book and being on a high one is to be classed with the sort of magazine that comes in opaque wrappings and not for sale to minors ...)</p>
<p><br>It is also said these days, that for a "self published" author to get taken seriously, they need to make sales of 10,000 copies. I find that threshold a bit misleading, especially since the traditional industry regularly publishes "Prize Nominees" and "known" authors who sell fewer copies. One "Prize Nominee" a few years ago sold a total of 150 copies!</p>
<p><br>So, this leaves us with a market where the easiest way for a fringe author like me to sell my stories and books is through the e-formats. However, I still prefer the book to be available in paper and like to see paper sales. After all, I like to hold a book, to smell a book, to feel a book and to read it. Like Seanan MacGuire, books were my friends as a child. They were my escape into a wider world and a wider understanding of how the world works, its people and the wonders of science, religion and nature. What I think needs to change is the publishing industry, not necessarily the format of books. There are a lot of good books not published by "traditional" publishers, some of them definitely potentially best sellers. But there are also a lot of absolute rubbish books as well. As they say, the buyer must exercise judgement and caution there.</p>
<p><br>Personally I think the paper book is far from dead, but the industry that produces them must also change and adapt. E-Books are here to stay, though not everyone will embrace them and some, like me, will continue to keep stacks of printed books on every flat surface and in every shelf we can find.</p>
<p><br>Books provide a fantastic opportunity to learn, to gain knowledge and to have fun doing it and killing off the paper based book will cut off access to them for a large section of every community. The Public Library was my door into a whole new world as a kid and I sincerely hope it will continue to provide that door to generations yet to come. Sadly, though, there is another part to this problem, illiteracy. </p>
<p><br>Looking around the sink estates today and listening to the youngsters speaking one quickly realises that many cannot read anything complex. Worse, they don't have the underpinning knowledge to realise what they are missing or what they could gain by stretching themselves reading a good book. There are all sorts of causes underlying this state of affairs and one of them is the "instant gratification" that comes from "quick hit" TV shows, games and the like. Reading a good book means actually having to savour the anticipation of the pleasure to come as the book reaches its peroration. For a generation now trained to have the attention span of gold fish, that is difficult to grasp.</p>
<p><br>If books are to survive in our society it requires that we nurture a wider audience than the cognoscenti who currently dictate what is published. We need to engage the youth at schools, particularly among the poorer end of society and show them what is available to them in the printed word. Books must be saved, but not just as the preserve of those who consider themselves "above the common herd" or as the "literate" - we must find ways to reach those who don't, at present, read anything other than the blurb on the latest "game" wrapper...</p>
<p><br>Quite a challenge for authors, publishers, sellers and educationists.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382092011-09-11T02:00:00+02:002011-09-12T01:45:14+02:00Cover Designs ...
<p>The new cover is now available and will appear within days on the e-version of the <em><strong>Their Lordships Request</strong></em>, available from <a href="http://46s.biz/" data-imported="1">46South Publishing</a>. I will make sure there is a proper link to it in the "Store" section when I have it.</p>
<p>My original cover design was meant to look as if it had been executed by someone aboard the ship Harry is serving on, but I was never very satisfied with it. So I commissioned a new cover. Now I have to get it swopped onto the printed version, an exercise which I suspect will take longer than I think. Never mind, it will be worth the wait, of this I am pretty sure. In the meantime, here is an image of it ...</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/4d5e20c80e73dd0a88c36a595f89636787267f37/original/cover-final-lordships-request-playing-card-size-web.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MTc4eDI1MiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="252" width="178" /></p>
<p>I have to say that I am very pleased with the finished product. I sent copies of the four final drafts round to a wide range of friends and family and got some very useful feedback on it. The consensus was divided between two of the four, but with the largest number preferring the cover above. Better yet, the publisher is delighted!</p>
<p>The final product is the work of Kura Carpenter in New Zealand, and I can heartily recommend her work to anyone else looking for a graphic cover designer. I'll happily supply her email to anyone interested in making contact. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382082011-09-08T02:00:00+02:002011-09-08T08:00:23+02:00The face of Harry ...
<p>Redesigning a cover for <strong><em>Their Lordships Request</em></strong> has been an interesting excursion into graphic design. Working long distance with a designer in New Zealand makes for some challenges, but has also been educational and exciting. Kura has taken the materials I've sent her, added some elements of her own and come up with four exciting designs. Two of these include the "face" of "Harry" the hero of the book.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/38e325afe271b9fe93ff9073ca707ebab37bff63/original/harry-n-heron.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzQweDI1NyJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="257" style="border: 0px initial initial;" width="340" /></p>
<p>The picture has had to be 'doctored' slightly - his neckcloth should be black to start with - and then inserted into a background. I hope to reveal the final result here soon!</p>
<p>I have to say that working with this young man was a real pleasure. He regarded the whole exercise as an enormous joke to be enjoyed to the full and he was also interested in the background to the story and the history behind it. One of the biggest 'in' jokes for us all is that Lukas is German and will appear as the 'face' of Harry Nelson-Heron, a British/Irish Midshipman of the late 18th/ early 19th Century on the finished cover ...</p>
<p>Mind you, at the time the "Harry" part of this book is set, Britain was working to forge a fragile alliance with the Baltic States, including Mecklenburg, Brandenburg and Prussia. Eventually the intervention of the Prussians under Field Marshall Blücher at Waterloo would seal the fate of Napoleon and his ambitions for a French Empire of Europe. History is sometimes far more intricately woven than the finest fiction. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382072011-09-02T02:00:00+02:002011-09-02T03:48:19+02:00Marketing?
<p>Oh, yea! Or, as a Jewish friend would have said, Oi vey!</p>
<p>Finding time to write among all the letter writing, website posting and general perusal of social media in an attempt to keep my books moving takes up an enormous amount of time. I can certainly appreciate why the traditional publishing houses spend such vast amounts of money in pushing the books on their catalogues. Sadly, I haven't that kind of budget to play with. </p>
<p>Even so, there are outlets to pursue, agents to approach and it does feel as if I'm making some headway. </p>
<p>Now, back to my writing timetable!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382062011-08-29T02:00:00+02:002011-08-29T14:01:06+02:00Sometimes it seems ...
<p>Sometimes it seems that progress is not in the direction or the speed desired. I'm going through one of those phases at present.</p>
<p>The cover art for <strong><em>On The Run</em></strong>, the latest Harry Heron adventure, is coming together and should be ready, I'm assured, in a week or so. At the same time I'm waiting on a photograph for the redesign of the cover for <em><strong>Their Lordships Request ...</strong></em> and neither seem to be making the sort of progress <strong><em>I</em></strong> would like to see! The trouble is you can't rush the creative process and trying to take short cuts is often disastrous and counter productive - so patience is a vitue I'm having to discover yet again.</p>
<p>The entire MS for <strong><em>On The Run</em></strong> is still with my editor, so, from my perspective, I have to be patient and wait to see what changes she requires to the text before anything else can happen anyway. Once those have been made it will go back to her so she can check to see there are no glaring contradictions as a result of the changes and then to the typesetting process.</p>
<p>In the meantime, of course, I'm trying to prepare my marketing strategy. I knew there was a reason for my being in the fire and emergency services for my career. I doubt I could sell an eskimo a snow-ski ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382052011-08-17T02:00:00+02:002011-08-17T02:59:53+02:00My Swan Impersonation
<p>Ever get the feeling you're riding a runaway train? Then you know what I mean by the title of this post, presenting a serene and controlled appearance on the surface, while paddling like fury to stay afloat.</p>
<p>At present I have <strong>On The Run</strong> with an editor, the cover art in development, several personal matters to resolve in respect of papers required from government departments reluctant to respond quickly and a conference to prepare for. The conference requires that I write two papers and prepare the presentations, so there's not a lot of free time there. There have also been problems with speakers pulling out at the last minute and having to find suitable replacements. Coupled with that, having moved countries, I am having to track down and obtain copies of documents I have never needed before. Dealing with bureaucrats is NOT one of my favourite occupations and is seldom actually a productive exercise...</p>
<p>The publisher for <strong>On The Run</strong> is also pressing me to get my marketing strategy together, so there no pressure there then! The book won't be available until end September on current time scales, but they are, of course, right. Marketing has to be launched in advance of the book. And I'm trying to revise a large MS for a book I really do want to see in print and on sale.</p>
<p>OK, so all of the above is self-inflicted. Who wants to be an author?</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382042011-08-03T02:00:00+02:002020-10-19T14:47:48+02:00A fascinating read ...
<p>I have long pondered the direction of the our "western" society and its ultimate fate. I see I am not alone in this. A new book has crossed my horizon and I would have reviewed it here, save that someone better qualified has done it already. His review of the book;</p>
<p><a href="http://tartanmarine.blogspot.com/2011/08/book-review-coming-collapse-of-american.html" data-imported="1"><strong>The Coming Collapse of the American Republic</strong></a> can be found by following the link I've embedded. The book itself, while I found it heavy going in parts and dealing, as it does, with things I am familiar with only through news and TV reports, pretty much confirms my own feelings on a number of issues.</p>
<p>I certainly commend this to anyone writing for a 'future world' genre.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382032011-07-27T02:00:00+02:002011-07-27T07:01:51+02:00Hurdles
<p>Had a message yesterday from Abbott Press yesterday to say that their legal team had gone through "<strong><em>On The Run - A Harry Heron Adventure</em></strong>" and have given me the all clear - in other words there is no plagiarism or anything which could be said to be the "intellectual property" of anyone. It's always good to know that your work is not duplicated anywhere else I suppose and if we are honest, there is always the possibility that an idea could have come from someone else.</p>
<p>Now the book is in their "editorial review" process and I await the outcome of that with some trepidation. I have no doubt there are things that can be 'tightened up' and improved in my writing, but I just hope that after the number of revisions I've already made to <strong><em>On The Run</em></strong>, there won't be too many this time round!</p>
<p>Now I await the cover art, being prepared by my brother (An artist of considerable talent) in Cape Town. From the sounds of it so far - this will be interesting and exciting. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382022011-07-26T02:00:00+02:002011-07-26T07:45:38+02:00Reading Matter
<p><a href="http://harryheron.com/dashboard/pages/blog/post/a%20href=" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px" data-imported="1"><img src="http:/photo.goodreads.com/books/1184781535m/1529316.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="FRIGATES, SLOOPS AND BRIGS (Pen & Sword Military Classics)" /></a><a href="http:/www.goodreads.com/book/show/1529316.FRIGATES_SLOOPS_AND_BRIGS" data-imported="1">FRIGATES, SLOOPS AND BRIGS</a> by <a href="http:/www.goodreads.com/author/show/597177.James_Henderson" data-imported="1">James Henderson</a><br>My rating: <a href="http:/www.goodreads.com/review/show/189946016" data-imported="1">5 of 5 stars</a><br><br>"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/0acd03d98300be5b272c74c7fe71f8dc11d4ba73/original/1529316.jpeg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzIzeDUwMCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="500" width="323" /></p>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1529316.FRIGATES_SLOOPS_AND_BRIGS" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="FRIGATES, SLOOPS AND BRIGS (Pen & Sword Military Classics)" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1184781535m/1529316.jpg" /></a><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1529316.FRIGATES_SLOOPS_AND_BRIGS">FRIGATES, SLOOPS AND BRIGS</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/597177.James_Henderson">James Henderson</a><br/></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">My rating: <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/189946016">5 of 5 stars</a><br /><br /></div>
<p>Finished reading this excellent book - first published in 1970 - recently. My only caveat is that the latest publication must have been edited using Microsoft Spellchecker. Throughout 'Ile' and 'Iles' have become 'lie' and 'lies.' That apart, invaluable source book, terrific historical reference tool.</p>
<p>The characters in it are all historical figures who have more than earned their place in history. In fact they make all of today's 'leaders' look like pygmies ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382012011-07-24T02:00:00+02:002011-07-24T11:52:57+02:00Editorial Revisions ...
<p>Following on from an Editorial Review I commissioned of my book <strong><em>Ego Sum</em></strong>, I have started a revision to see how best to implement the very good suggestions made for its improvement. This is a long haul task, to get it right means taking each chapter apart carefully, looking at how it fits with the rest of the story and then looking at how that can be improved - or even whether it is necessary.</p>
<p>Nor is it an easy task. The yawning trap at each step of the way is that, because I know what I was trying to show, or what I wanted to show, it becomes very easy not to see how it would bore the reader. As the book is based around the idea that the subject character is telling 'his' story to an audience, the second trap is to leave in to much 'telling' and not leave some of it to the imagination of the reader by 'showing' the key elements through the dialogue and letting the reader fill the gaps.</p>
<p>There is a small problem with that in places, since in the early part of the story, the subject spent long periods isolated by language, culture and social position. Later, in a more social context it becomes easier, but still tricky because he wasn't always accepted by those he was surrounded by. I'm not going to put in a spoiler here - the book is a very special project. It's one I believe needs to be told. It needs to be told sympathetically and it is also about someone who many would say is extremely well known ...</p>
<p>At least the legends about him are. The man behind them is even more fascinating than the legends. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60382002011-07-21T02:00:00+02:002011-07-21T14:24:36+02:00Another milestone ...
<p>Managed to complete another manuscript today, a story set in the latter part of the Napoleonic War in an around the Baltic. It's been quite an interesting one to write for a number of reasons, not least being the historical background to the tale. The Baltic campaigns between 1808 and 1812 were pivotal to the outcome of the Napoleonic War. Had Napoleon succeeded in holding together the alliances which prevented the import of British manufactured goods into Europe and the export to Britain of vital shipbuilding timbers, Britain would have lost the war.</p>
<p>In fact, they came very close to total economic collapse. Before 1808, Britain's trade with the Baltic area was worth some £43 million per year. After the Treaty of Tilsit in 1808, the blockade steadily reduced the trade until it dropped below £5 million a year. At this point the British were forced to introduce "Deficit Budgeting" - with the government printing money it didn't have the cash to back. The legacy of this is still with us, on bank notes which are actually "Promissary Notes" and carry the statement "I promise to pay the bearer on demand ..." and signed by the Secretary to the Bank of England. It is also with us in the manner in which all western governments now budget for their activities - borrowing against the taxes they hope to collect ...</p>
<p>Britain was saved by the rivalries and the ambitions of the various royal families and by Napoleon's own ambition. That and the fact that his imposition of his brother as King of Spain, caused the Spanish to revolt. Wellington's successes drained the French at a moment when Napoleon decided to stamp on the Tsar - and lost to the Russian winter.</p>
<p>Through it all the Royal Navy fought a difficult and successful campaign against gunboats, privateers and fixed fortresses. This is the background against which I have set a romatic historical novel ... </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60381992011-07-19T02:00:00+02:002011-07-19T07:47:55+02:00It's here!
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/393880/00f4e3ea27a96dd69a1460e9464abaaa68813040/original/out-of-time-draft-cover2-thumb.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MTUweDIxOSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="219" width="150" /></p>
<p>The eBook version of <strong><em>Out Of Time</em></strong> was released this morning by the publisher - ePublishing for Success. It has been an interesting and exciting ride, but worth every moment of it. <strong><em>Their Lordships Request ...</em></strong> will, I hope follow soon. The delay is due to redesigning the cover, the book itself is ready. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60381982011-07-18T02:00:00+02:002011-07-18T10:07:48+02:00ePublishing a step closer...
<p>The release of <strong>Their Lordships Request ...</strong> and <strong>Out of Time</strong> as eBooks came a significant step closer today. </p>
<p>Both have now been converted to MOBI, PDF and EPUB and will be released as soon as the Publisher and I have agreed on the marketing blurb and the pricing. I am obviously excited about this as now everyone with a Kindle iReader or simply the Adobe Reader programme on their desktop can buy an electronic version, download it and read away.</p>
<p>OK, enough fanfare for the moment, back to writing the marketing blurb. </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60381972011-07-14T02:00:00+02:002011-07-24T11:36:36+02:00ePublishing
<p> </p>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">Turns out to be a bit more complicated than we thought. There are a range of things to consider, such as the systems and readers the work will be available on. Ot appears there are several different operating systems in use and each has its own coding process. Plus, it isn't as simple as just copy/paste into the required format.</div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">To be successful, it has to have the same appearance as a printed book - so pages have to be formed, bookmarked and formatted. In short, it is the same process as is required to produce the Galleys for a printed book - but with the added twist that, because it will appear on a screen, you have to be able to scroll it and go to a page, chapter or section on command. It's been quite a learning curve. Guess I'll now have to buy an e-reader so I can actually get used to this technological stuff myself.</div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">Cutting to the chase - both Jada and I have books in preparation for the New Zealand based company - <a href="http://46s.biz/">ePublishing for Success</a>.</div>
<p>Turns out to be a bit more complicated than I thought. I should have realised it is almost as technical - or maybe more so - than producing a print version. There are a range of things to consider, such as the systems and readers the work will be available on. It appears there are several different operating systems in use and each has its own coding process. Plus, it isn't as simple as just copy/paste into the required format.</p>
<p>To be successful, it has to have the same appearance as a printed book - so pages have to be formed, bookmarked and formatted. In short, it is the same process as is required to produce the Galleys for a printed book - but with the added twist that, because it will appear on a screen, you have to be able to scroll it and go to a page, chapter or section on command. It's been quite a learning curve. Guess I'll now have to buy an e-reader so I can actually get used to this technological stuff myself.</p>
<p>Cutting to the chase - both a friend and I have books in preparation for the New Zealand based company - <a href="http://46s.biz/" data-imported="1">ePublishing for Success</a>. It's proving to be very interesting!</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60381962011-07-08T02:00:00+02:002011-07-08T02:06:52+02:00Intellectual Property?
<p> </p>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">Copyright is always a tricky area, especially once things start to go international. Some countries and cultures simply don't seem to have any concept of "intellectual property" or the right of an author to control or profit from his or her own hard work, research and - often - outlay of capital to achieve their goal. </div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">A major topic at present on several Blogs is the theft of an authors work, 'stolen' copies which are currently being sold on Amazon. What is meant by 'stolen' copy?</div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">In short, someone has created an electronic copy of three books by the children's author Ruth Ann Nordin and is now selling these as an "Electronic" book version through Amazon. The problem is, of course, that Ms Nordin gets absolutely nothing from the sales as whoever the 'pirate' is, simply keeps everything they get from the sale. In this electronic age, this is a major hazard for any author, it is all too easy to make a copy of someone's work, repackage it and then sell it through any online outlet entirely for one's own profit.</div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">What is worse is that there are now a number of hackers out there who regard it as their "right" to strip someone else's intellectual property and profit from it. Other authors have suffered the same problem, though a larger one is the 'file sharing' through 'torrent' sites. These steal music, books, movies and anything else they can find in electronic format. One author who dared to make public accusations against the operators of one such site ripping off his books had his websites hacked and then shut down by the hackers.</div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">As an author I do find this worrying. So far (as far as I am able to discover anyway!) my fiction has not been the subject of such an attack - however, my technical work has been. I am well aware that a large amount of my technically published work has been translated, repackaged and republished - but there's not a heck of a lot I can do about it and neither can the people who hold the copyrights to it. Why? It goes back to the whole concept of 'intellectual property' and the 'ownership' of it. Some cultures simply don't recognise an authors right of ownership ...</div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"></div>
<div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;">Perhaps that is why Leonardo da Vinci kept his notes in a way that no one else could read... But then, he wasn't trying to sell his writing either.</div>
<p>Copyright is always a tricky area, especially once things start to go international. Some countries and cultures simply don't seem to have any concept of "intellectual property" or the right of an author to control or profit from his or her own hard work, research and - often - outlay of capital and time to create the work. </p>
<p>A major topic at present on several Blogs is the theft of an authors work, 'stolen' copies which are currently being sold on Amazon. What is meant by 'stolen' copy?</p>
<p>In short, someone has created an electronic copy of three books by the children's author Ruth Ann Nordin and is now selling these as an "Electronic" book version through Amazon. The problem is, of course, that Ms Nordin gets absolutely nothing from the sales as whoever the 'pirate' is, simply keeps everything they get from the sale. In this electronic age, this is a major hazard for any author, it is all too easy to make a copy of someone's work, repackage it and then sell it through any online outlet entirely for one's own profit.</p>
<p>What is worse is that there are now a number of hackers out there who regard it as their "right" to strip someone else's intellectual property and profit from it. Other authors have suffered the same problem, though a larger one is the 'file sharing' through 'torrent' sites. These steal music, books, movies and anything else they can find in electronic format. One author who dared to make public accusations against the operators of one such site ripping off his books had his websites hacked and then shut down by the hackers.<br>As an author I do find this worrying. So far (as far as I am able to discover anyway!) my fiction has not been the subject of such an attack - however, my technical work has been. I am well aware that a large amount of my technically published work has been translated, repackaged and republished - but there's not a heck of a lot I can do about it and neither can the people who hold the copyrights to it. Why? It goes back to the whole concept of 'intellectual property' and the 'ownership' of it. Some cultures simply don't recognise an authors right of ownership ...</p>
<p>Perhaps that is why Leonardo da Vinci kept his notes in a way that no one else could read... But then, he wasn't trying to sell his writing either.</p>
<p> </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60381952011-07-05T02:00:00+02:002011-07-05T04:48:25+02:00Phew!
<p>Ever feel like you've run a marathon mentally? That certainly is how I feel today. My elderly cat has developed a problem with her hindquarters, and the treatments at the vet are helping - but now we have an upset stomach ...</p>
<p>Ce la vie! At least I have completed editing the books for the ePublisher and the edit of On The Run is coming along well. It's amazing how much you spot on the fourth and fifth passes through a text that evaded the first few runs. Still all worthwhile in the end... </p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60381942011-06-26T02:00:00+02:002011-06-26T09:52:41+02:00Editorial ...
<p>Preparing my Manuscripts for <strong><em>Their Lordships Request</em></strong> and <strong><em>Out of Time</em></strong> to be converted into eBook format has proved interesting to say the least. First of all I had to go through all the Galley Proofs for the printed versions to find all the corrections I had made and which editors suggested as they were prepared for printing. Then, having done that, they had to be tidied up - Out of Time was originally written in Word 98 - as the small difference between various versions of Word don't always swop the formatting correctly.</p>
<p>At least they are now with the ePublisher and I am expecting to get a few more corrections and cosmetic changes when I get their proofs back. The third Harry Heron, <strong><em>The Enemy Is Within!</em></strong> is already available as an eBook through <a href="https://www.xlibrispublishing.co.uk/bookstore/bookdisplay.aspx?bookid=300925" data-imported="1">Xlibris</a>, though this is an Adobe format.</p>
<p>In the meantime I'm going through the MS for the fourth Harry Heron book, <strong><em>On The Run</em></strong>, which is to be printed by Abbot Press and will appear, hopefully, in about four months time. Abbot Press will produce it as Paper Back, Hard Back and eBook so all you Kindle and other eReader users will, I hope, pick it up and give Harry and his friends a try. This and the first two books in the series will be available in all the current formats for eReaders.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, back to editing and correcting ...</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60381932011-06-21T02:00:00+02:002020-10-19T14:46:56+02:00Exciting News ...
<p><strong><em>Their Lordships Request</em></strong> and <strong><em>Out of Time</em></strong> will soon be available as eBooks from <strong><a title="ePublishing for Success" href="http://46s.biz/" target="_blank" data-imported="1">ePublishing for Success</a>,</strong> specialising in eBook publication. It also means that anyone with a Kindle, iPad, iPod or any of the other eBook reader devices will be able to purchase them direct and download to their reader. The third in the series, <strong><em>The Enemy is Within!</em></strong>, is already available direct from <strong>Xlibris</strong> in an Adobe Reader format and is moving nicely from their site.</p>
<p>I've been exploring this for some time and hope this will be successful. Obviously getting the word out and promoting them will be an essential task, but hopefully a fun one.</p>
<p>More good news is that <strong>Abbot Press</strong>, a Division of Writer's Digest, want to publish the fourth 'Harry Heron' story, <strong><em>On the Run</em></strong>. I'm currently discussing this with them and look forward to being able to make an announcement about it in the not too distant future.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60381922011-06-17T02:00:00+02:002011-06-17T15:38:24+02:00Editorial Services
<p>A writer needs an editor. Some would add "like a hole in the head" but I don't. I know all to well that I make typos, that I sometimes create run on sentences and get so involved in the story that I risk boring my reader. So a critical editorial review is essential. They don't come cheap either, but it's worth it. I can say it has improved my writing enormously.</p>
<p>So it is a real pleasure when a "blind" reviewer, one who is asked to review the work without seeing any of the early drafts then posts a review like this one - </p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">"A Baltic Affair" is a credible, finely plotted historical novel that encompasses all possible theories about Napoleon motives and acts. It also provokes readers to challenge historical interpretation in an intelligent, dynamic, and adventurous way. Well-researched and well-written, "The Baltic Affair" is an exciting, surprising, yet sensitive novel that will delight every reader appreciative of excellent historical fiction.</p>
<p>It makes all the effort to tweak, edit, cut, rewrite and, perhaps most importantly, the research, worthwhile.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60381912011-06-12T02:00:00+02:002011-06-12T09:05:36+02:00Busy times ...
<p>Since I set up this site, things have got busy, most of it in a very positive manner. Two of my Harry Heron titles are currently being considered for publication as e-books by a publisher selling books to Kindle, Apple and others. Another is being considered by a publisher and all of them are soon to be offered for sale through an online bookstore besides Amazon and the usual outlets.</p>
<p>A friend and computer code expert is also tweaking parts of this site to make t look even better and hopefully spice it up a bit.</p>
<p>I hope readers will watch this space as things develop.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60381902011-06-07T02:00:00+02:002011-06-07T08:31:47+02:00Coming together
<p>I'm slowly getting things together here and building in links. There are one or two features I haven't quite sassed out how to get them to function yet, but it is getting there - I just hope it all works for you - the reader.</p>
Patrick G Cox tag:harryheron.com,2005:Post/60381892011-06-06T02:00:00+02:002011-06-06T04:32:09+02:00D-Day
<p>It seems appropriate to launch this site on this particular day. I certainly hope that the visitors - of whom I hope there will be many! - will not face the same hardships suffered by our fathers as they scrambled ashore in 1944.</p>
<p>In launching this site I am taking something of a gamble. For a number of years now I have been engaged in writing, primarily technical material for classes, for my profession and for magazines. A few years ago I began to explore the writing of fiction. I can say that in the years since then I have learned a great deal about writing - and probably even more about publishing.</p>
<p>I hope that those who venture through this blog and this website will find something interesting, perhaps entertaining - and maybe even sample my fiction!</p>
Patrick G Cox