Tag: Julian Barr

Fancy Some Magical Mischief?

I’ve got a (sort of) short story in this excellent new collection of short stories from the listeners of the Bestseller Experiment podcast (click on the image to get your hands on a copy)…

Why only sort of? Here’s my authors’ note from the collection…

Author’s Note (and excuse)

What you’re about to read is not exactly a short story. I did start one — honest, guv! — and it was a belter, all set in the world of my Witches of Woodville series. It started in the 1920s and ended in the 1970s*… which is where the problems started. As I began jotting down ideas for the story it soon became clear that I wasn’t about to squeeze it all into the allotted five thousand words. No, it soon became clear that this was going to be a whopper, perhaps even a novel all of its own. And things happen in the story that, at first, I thought I didn’t want to rush. Then it occurred to me that the real reason that I didn’t want to rush it was that, actually, I might not be ready to write them yet, as it meant saying a final farewell to certain characters. So I’ve popped that story back into a drawer at the back of my mind and will wait till the time is right to go back and see if I’m ready to finally [REDACTED] to poor old [REDACTED].

And if that wasn’t enough of a tease, then what you’re about to read is the first chapter of a thing that might never happen. It’s a new story, set in the world of the Witches of Woodville, and I’m still wondering where it might go, if anywhere. But I had great fun writing this opening chapter and I think it almost works as its own little standalone moment. So, in the spirit of mischief, I offer you The Canary Girls…

Happy reading, and please send all complaints to Miss Araminta Cranberry at the Woodville Village Library,

Mark Stay

*If you’ve ever wondered why the Woodville Village motto is ‘Witch-free since 1973’ this story was going to reveal all

So there you have it… and don’t forget, the anthology is packed with terrific stories from amazing authors, including (deep breath) W. J. Grupe, Jr, Rosie Stirling, Phil Oddy, Jeevani Charika, Jan Carr, Eva St. John, Dylan Blake, Anne Woodward, Angela C Nurse, Andrea Corzatt, BR Dexter, ZA Gowland, WA Leggatt, Trey Montague, Tommy Wills, Morgan Delaney, Kate Baker, Karen Storey, Julian Barr, Jocelyn Sordoni, GM White, GB Ralph, Gareth Lewis, Emmanuella Dekonor, Andrew Guile, Andrew Chapman, Alex Weight, SC Gowland.

Treat yourself…

Get your copy here

The Law of Consequences is out now

I was delighted to be asked to contribute a story to the Law of Consequences anthology, which is available right now!

The anthology is the brainchild of Steve Gowland, W.A. Leggatt and G.M. White who wanted to create a collection that celebrated the talents of followers of the Bestseller Experiment podcast. There are some breathtakingly talented authors in these pages, some you might know, others you’ll be encountering for the first time. I can guarantee that you’re in for a real treat. Here’s a roll call of the authors…

Alex Weight

Andrew Chapman

Andrew Guile

Emmanuella Dekonor

G B Ralph

G.M. White

Gareth Lewis

Jocelyn Sordoni

Julian Barr

JW Atkinson

Karen Storey

Kate Baker

Kate Kenzie

Morgan Delaney

Richie Janukowicz 

SC Gowland

Tommy Wills

Trey Montague

W.A. Leggatt

And the cover art is by Lizzie Leggatt.

From surprises in hessian sacks, pubs run by stone golems, a curious packed lunch, questionable drink choices, to copper urns (best avoided), dogs in space, horrifying boarding schools, families torn apart by war, brooding strangers and suspicious jars of marmalade. 

Discover drama, treachery, love and the unpredictable, and often astonishing outcomes of our actions. Each tale in ‘The Law of Consequences’ reveals the delicate balance between destiny and free will, light and shadow. Enter with an open mind…

I have a story in here, too! It’s called ‘Horrible’ and takes a moment from The End of Dragons and tells it from a completely new perspective. You don’t need to have read The End of Dragons to make sense of it. If anything, you’ll probably enjoy this moment in Dragons all the more if you read the short story first.

You can grab your copy of The Law of Consequences by clicking on the big button thing below…

READ THE LAW OF CONSEQUENCES BY CLICKING HERE

And while you’re reading, why not enjoy a game of bingo? My story is the one with the hessian sack…

Tonight’s Livestream is Bumped to Friday 21st June

Tonight’s Livestream has been bumped to Friday 21st due to “lurgification” — both me and Julian have been ill, and you really don’t want to listen to us coughing for an hour… Or do you? No, didn’t think so. Sorry about tonight, but will see you Friday night, roughly around half time of the Netherlands v France game!

Join the livestream on youtube here (but not till friday)

The End of Dragons Livestream with Julian Barr

PLEASE NOTE: THIS EVENT HAS NOW MOVED TO FRIDAY 21ST JUNE!

I’ll be going live on the internet for one last update before the publication of The End of Dragons!

The more eagle-eyed of you may have noticed that this livestream will be a little later than the previous ones. This is because my special guest is none other than esteemed author Julian Barr, who resides in the distant land they call Australia. The later time ensures that Mr Barr does not need to get up in the middle of the night where he might be attacked by Australia’s many deadly nocturnal fauna.

It also reminds us that we live on opposite sides of a rotating rock hurtling through the void of space around a sun that will eventually consume us all… so why not enjoy ourselves in the meantime and read more books?*

Julian is the author of the splendid Tooth & Blade trilogy and the epic Ashes of Olympus series, and he will have some exciting news about his forthcoming series. He was also a beta reader and proofreader for The End of Dragons and we’ll discuss the difference between those two versions of the book, giving you lucky people a peek behind the curtain of how books are edited, and much more!

*Apologies for the slight existential crisis. This is what happens when one watches too much rolling news coverage on the television. Back to fiction, I think. Much more edifying for the soul.

join the livestream on youtube here
Join the livestream on facebook here

End of Dragons Update: Edits Away…

Here’s a quick update on The End of Dragons in this month’s livestream catch up. I also have a couple of special guests: my beta readers Ian W Sainsbury and Julian Barr…

My Last Ever Episode of the Bestseller Experiment Podcast

Merry Christmas! That’s if you celebrate, if not then Happy Monday! Mondays have been ‘New Podcast Day’ for the last seven and a bit years, and today marks the release of my last ever episode of The Bestseller Experiment as co-presenter. Why am I leaving? I explain myself in full here. And rest assured that this isn’t the end of the podcast: Mr D will continue and it’s going to be amazing.

What will I be up to in the meantime? Well, stand by for an update in the New Year. Until then, here’s our special Christmas episode where I share some of my favourite moments, outtakes, and we get a visit from a very special elf…

David McCloskey on the Bestseller Experiment

When I prepped for my interview with former CIA analyst David McCloskey I was expecting to discuss the kind of things that writers get wrong/right about spy craft, and how to write about the trauma of real life events (which we did), but we also discussed things like letting go of your ego when writing and, erm hot dog vending machines. This is a good one…

Simon Scarrow on the Bestseller Experiment

One of the easiest jobs I had when I was a sales rep was selling Simon Scarrow’s books to booksellers. Of course, the writing is superb, but so much of that first book, Under the Eagle, had everything it needed to become a bestselling series. A great premise, a great package, and Simon knew exactly who his readers were. Lots to absorb in this one! I was joined by guest co-presenter Julian Barr, whose own fantastical historical fiction is definitely worth checking out. Have a look here!

EVERYDAY KINDNESS is out now!

The Everyday Kindness anthology is out today. Collated by the amazing LJ Ross, this features over 50 stories to brighten your day.

I was delighted to be asked by Louise to contribute, and my story TWO CHICKENS FOR LAURA LONG ARMS is a Witches of Woodville tale where Faye Bright discovers that a little kindness can go a very long way. The story was edited by Julian Barr before I submitted it to the anthology and as always it was vasty improved by his input.

All proceeds from the sale of the book will go to Shelter, so Grab your copy here.

Put these in your ears…

Safer than Q-tips and a lot more educational and edifying, you can hear me waffle on not one, not two, but three podcasts this week!

First up, of course, is the Bestseller Experiment where I speak to the wonderful Pernille Hughes about her road to publication, why she shared a photocopier with La-La the Teletubby, and we play a game called ‘Getting to know you’ where there are no right answers. You can listen here.

Secondly, comes the second part of an epic three-part trilogy on The Hero’s Journey that I’m recording with the wise and learned Julian Barr. We look at tricky middle acts, inmost caves, and that sort of stuff with examples from The Godfather, Jaws, Star Wars and The Notebook. But the best part of these is the thoughtful, polite noise Julian makes when I say something stupid… These are for our Patreon supporters, but if you’re not one of them (and if not, why not??), then you can listen to a sneaky peek here.

And third is this interview with Tim Clare on the Death of 1000 Cuts podcast. This is especially fun as Tim laughs at most of my jokes, I drop some truth bombs about marketing and publishing, and then a fire alarm goes off during the interview and Tim keeps it in. You can listen on iTunes here, or the thingy below…