I was a teacher and hence a storyteller in the traditional sense. But this humorous thriller came about for several reasons, some far from traditional:

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  A fascination with the theme of being a fugitive - partly inspired by the David Janssen USA TV series, The Fugitive aired in the 1960s;
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  The intellectual and physical challenge of planning the escape, though not for real, out of a corrective confinement facility;
  The equal but different challenge of escape from aspects of life in the hope of improvement;
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  The experience of trekking across the Northumberland moors. Many have done this but not so many in winter and spending nights in makeshift shelters. Some of this was as a result of being in the scout movement, but mostly from teaching and leading students in their expeditions for the Duke of Edinburgh Award;
• 
  ·Taking the opportunity of talking to real gangland leaders I happen to be acquainted with about aspects of the underworld that the public are not aware, such as a whole alternative career and financial structure, security issues and self-preservation. Yes, I taught one of them when he was a mere drug pushing young teen!
• 
  The reality of my teaching job, though rewarding in itself, demanded my imagination to affect an escape.

This novel emerged from these factors and could have been a straight thriller similar, though based in Europe, to the above-mentioned The Fugitive created originally by Roy Huggins. However, as Escaping Reality was my oeuvre, I could not resist allowing my sense of humour to be part of it. Hence it is a cross-genre humour thriller. Mainstream publishers despise humour thrillers, especially as debut novels. Many of the quips and one-liners were erased to little avail - my humour showed through. Consequently, after a dozen rejections, false starts and leadings astray, I was delighted when the upstart experimental small press publisher Brambling Books took it on.

Initially, I courted disaster because as a teacher I could not allow my real name to be used: there were naughty bits - the occasional erotic scene that seemed so natural, they demanded to remain. Luckily, I became so hard of hearing, the government insisted I took ill-health early retirement so that not only am I paid to write but can do so under my own name!

The cover art includes a handgun. My son suggested that my name be embossed into the barrel rather than as a separate type. He reasoned that he'd not seen an author's name used as part of the cover art. I went through my bookshelves and curiously had to agree!

Another aspect of this novel I believe to be unusual is the bold decision by a UK hotel chain to sell it to its residents. Choice-Hotels accepted my argument that hotels are places where many books are read by folk who do not find time to read at home. That hotels do not usually sell books to their customers so why not start a trend? The title, Escaping Reality, has a real flavour appeal to hotel guests. Choice-Hotels have two prestigious hotels in Cumbria where much of the action occurs. Indeed, because of the high amount of geographical authenticity in Escaping Reality, a reader can locate the places mentioned and experience some escape from their own reality!

I was a featured author at Eros & Rust ezine. There is a Q&A session with me Here

.. and a complete short story about what happens when a vampire feasts on the blood of a vegetarian!