Book Two of The Blackchapel Chronicles is Creeping its Way onto Google Play
Yes it’s true, and no you’re not dreaming; Book Two (A Drowning of Mermaids) really is in its final stages of production – it has a front cover and everything.
Getting this one over the line is proving to be the toughest project I’ve ever worked on. Compared with Book One (A Plague of Murder), its world-building is more complex, the action more hard-hitting, and the consequences of characters’ decisions more heart-breaking.
Beginning immediately where A Plague of Murder ended (and you can get your own free copy of that book here), A Drowning of Mermaids covers a terrifying murder case from 1871. Based on actual case files from the time, it continues Jack the Ripper’s origin story, and follows the London detectives who are destined to chase him through the infamous autumn of 1888.
Without spoiling either Book One or Two, I can honestly say the reason this book has taken so much longer than I originally expected is thanks to the weight I feel to do the characters justice and to keep writing better stories for my readers. I believe any work of fiction exists first and foremost to entertain. My goal with any of my books is to pluck a reader from their surroundings and drop them in a time and place that exists only in their imagination.
And a big part of that process is authenticity.
This second book contains a tonne of intricate details that make up the world and help bring it to life from the page; whether its the location of real buildings and their floor plans, biographies of historical characters, or details on the various communities that made up Whitechapel back in the 1870’s. The greatest challenge of all this is to make it invisible when reading. Like a magician guarding their secrets, I have to scatter these authentic details lightly throughout the book to keep it a page turning ride and not a boring slog!
A Drowning of Mermaids also sees the return of our favourite characters who survived A Plague of Murder, and after an initial stop/start writing process, I felt like I was meeting up with old friends as I continued their stories and motivations. But make no mistake, this is not a humdrum sequel that treads water (no pun intended). Heartbreak drapes itself heavily over this book, and no main character is safe from their own actions (or the actions of others). The oft-used term ‘plot-armour’ does not exist in this series, and some outcomes may shock you. After all, Victorian London was as brutal and nasty a place for the destitute as it was a luxurious playground for those in wealth and power. And at both ends of the scale, death could arrive as quick as a knife in the dark.
As always, I am immensely grateful to all those who come across this humble website and decide to grab a copy of any of my works (did i mention they were available for free?). You are the reason I write.
Not long ago, I explained the reasoning behind my new year’s resolution of wanting to give away my literary works for free from now on (click here to read the details). I was finding the Amazon online platform too constricting for what I wanted, and the lack of control was really getting to me since I want the reading experience of my books to be as free-flowing as possible for you guys.
Well, after looking at a number of options, I’m pleased to report that my Publishing House has been accepted in the Google Play Book Store, which means you’re able to download and keep a copy of The Air Between Us for as long as Google exists (or at least their terms & conditions).
THE AIR BETWEEN US
ENGLAND, 1913
Storm clouds gather over Europe, but for Jen Edwards, the future remains bright. Betrothed to a brilliant photographer, her path to married bliss seems guaranteed until tragedy upends the safe and comfortable life they’d planned together.
Now desperate to escape the wreckage of her past amidst the onset of a World War, she enlists as a volunteer in the newly-formed Royal Flying Corps, and is dispatched to France. In the skies over the Somme, many young pilots will meet a brutal end, and Jen learns not to give her heart to anyone when love comes so cheap. Anyone, that is, until her past arrives at the airfield one day, camera in hand…
Better yet, after looking at a number of charity funding models, I can keep supporting my chosen charity by donating £0.20 (approx $0.25 USD) per download of my book via the Google Play Store. So not only do you get an entire novel that I poured my heart, sweat & tears into, you also support the vital work of The Alzheimer’s Society.
And the good news keeps coming – I’m going into print.
That’s right – The Air Between Us will be my first book that is actually printed in hard copy that you can run your hot little hands over and turn the real-life pages of. The cost is still to be determined and there will be a limited print run, but if there’s anyone out there who wants to support my efforts by purchasing a limited edition signed copy, you’ll be able to order it directly from this website.
I’ll have these latest updates in due course, but for now, please check out my book in the Google Play Store. The book itself only came into being over the course of a crazy 3 weeks back in 2022 when I set myself the challenge of writing, editing & designing an entire romance novel in two weeks (I ended up overrunning by 7 days – my first post on the madness can be found here).
The end result was a surprisingly polished war epic set at the height of the air war in WW1 (if I do say so myself whilst twirling a fake moustache). Following the exploits of No.2 Squadron of the British Royal Flying Corps, it brutally strips the layers of innocence from its two main protagonists; Jen Edwards and Hal Drayton, as they both fight their own battles against overwhelming odds. It’s crammed with memorable supporting characters like the irrepressible Baxter Mathers, the precise Captain Andrew Collins and the villainous Wing Commander Samuel Forsyth, amongst many others.
Based on historical events, I worked hard to keep the realism at a solid 10 to maintain an authentic reading experience that puts you in the cockpit of a BE2c, or staring down the lens of an aerial camera during a chaotic bombing raid. Combined with an original love story that I cruelly designed to wrench on the coldest of hearts, it’s my first and possibly last foray into this genre and I heartily recommend you pick up a free copy.
“Great story, reminds me of The Da Vinci Code,” the agent told me down the phone. I could detect her wide grin on the other end as she delivered her next remark. “But there’s no way I’m touching it. And no publishing house on earth is going to get within a hundred yards of it, either.”
“Uh huh,” I simply replied, trying to keep the disappointment out of my voice. Thanking her for her time, I ended the call and sat back to let my frustration simmer down over the next ten minutes.
I didn’t need to ask her why I’d been rejected; like every other email and phone call I’ve ever had with a publisher about my works, the response was a firm no. My other book, A Plague of Murder, was once turned away because of my stubborn refusal to allow it to be cut down from its 480,000 word count. “Would Tolstoy have butchered War and Peace to fit with a publisher’s expectations?!” I once flippantly declared.
But my latest book has an altogether different issue. It’s set almost entirely in the present day and is loaded with modern technology. It’s also a globetrotting adventure novel featuring a desperate treasure hunt, a vengeful secret society, and a strong female lead. On top of that, it’s based on years of academic research and scientific studies to keep it rooted in reality. In short, it’s a perfect holiday escape.
So why the curt rejection?
Well, the best reply I can give is the feedback I got from a friend who kindly read my first 40,000 words over the course of a rainy afternoon;
“It’s an adventure novel that explores the very origins of Islam, and if the research it’s based on is true, it reveals a secret that’s been in plain sight for almost fifteen hundred years. Forget Dan Brown; have you ever heard of Salman Rushdie, and of what happened to him?”
And therein lies the problem for any publisher gazing at such a manuscript over a strong cup of tea. Perhaps I’m being ridiculously naive with my “glad tidings, good stranger” attitude whenever it comes to discussing any form or style of literature – for me, nothing is ever off the table. Here in the West, we have thousands of fictional stories all taking inspiration from various religions. Yet so far, I haven’t read one that delves into the origins of Islam with anything like the breadth and depth of a good adventure novel (but I’m happy to be corrected in the comments below). So I’ve decided to write my own.
I have to stress, this book doesn’t pretend to be anything other than a fast-paced work of fiction, and neither does it seek to cause offence – far from it. I think it treats the whole concept of religion with great respect and doesn’t go stomping around making wild-eyed speculations. Yet it’s undeniable there is a largely untapped historical world out there – some of it is located in the Quran itself, while much is carved into monuments like the Dome of the Rock – and all of it just waiting to be explored by an author’s imagination.
Like I alluded to earlier, this part of human history is an on-off obsession I’ve had for the past three years. When I began delving into the founding of Islam, I expected to find something similar to what I was taught in school about this fascinating but well-recorded religion and its beginnings. But what I’ve found from experts in the field is endless possibilities branching out in every direction.
At the moment, I’m continuing the book’s editing, and still have its final chapters to complete. But for now, I’ll end with its introduction that I think sets the scene and gives you an idea on what to expect. I’m incredibly excited to get this project over the finish line as I believe it’s my best work yet, and I’ve got plenty more updates to come. My self-imposed deadline for publication is 1st September 2022, and there is every expectation the ebook will be absolutely free!
Until next time, stay safe!
Introduction – untitled work in progress
There exists a story, rarely ever spoken.
At the beginning of the Islamic conquest of the Middle East, just twelve years after the death of the Prophet Muhammad, there rose a great Caliph known to history as Uthman. Accused of corruption from the earliest days of his reign, his grip on power was tenuous, even as the religion ignited like wildfire throughout his lands.
By 650AD the Caliph had grown concerned at the number of variations appearing in the Quran as his domain spread beyond the Arabian Peninsula, into North Africa and Persia.
Fearing a fragmentation of his fledgling Caliphate, Uthman ordered a standard version of the holy text be prepared and distributed across the urban centres of the Islamic World. Soon, these new copies were dispatched with armed guards to the nine great cities of his growing empire, and local officials were ordered to burn their existing scriptures.
One by one, each city obeyed, and their unique Qurans were consumed by fire, never to survive the ages.
It’s called The Air Between Us, and my royalties are going to charity
It took three full weeks of grinding work to make this a reality. I loved every minute
Never am I happier than when I’m storytelling. I love everything about the process (perhaps apart from the editing), and I feel incredibly lucky to be able to spend time on my craft because it never feels like work.
Originally for this project, I had set myself the goal of creating a full length novel in two weeks. Well, it turns out that was a bit optimistic. It took me three to get it to a place where I was happy with the quality of the story. And it was one hell of a roller coaster journey fuelled with coffee and a Jon Bon Jovi playlist on repeat.
But the moment has arrived – It’s out now at Amazon in eBook format and priced at the very reasonable sum of £1.77. Of that, my royalty is around £1.20, and for every purchase made, I’ll be boosting it to £2.00 (which is approx $2.65 USD) and donating it to my chosen charity: The Alzheimer’s Society. It’s also available as a Kindle Unlimited subscription, and likewise, all royalties from there will also be added to the donation pot. I’ve created a dedicated charity page on my website (Link Here) to provide monthly donation totals, and it will include any future books that I add to my charity library.
For me, finishing any piece of literature is always a bittersweet moment. A part of me wants to continue working on the characters and adding new scenes in the world I’ve built. But as a great philosopher once said; anyone can make something more complicated. It takes vision to keep things simple. While I might lack the vision, having the short time frame to produce a full-length novel has been a great lesson in learning to know what’s important to a story. For The Air Between Us, it forced me to keep only the important bits in, and discard those ideas that would have just been window dressing. As a result, the final book has a very taut, very punchy story that is going to stay with me for some time, and I hope that for anyone who decides to take the plunge and read it, you are left with the same feeling.
Now that this project is over, I have an opportunity to start work on something new. I have a couple of ideas in addition to my ongoing commitment with the Blackchapel Chronicles, and once I’ve made them tangible, I’ll be providing an update very soon. The past week, I’ve been recharging my batteries and reconnecting with people after being holed-up in a room typing on a laptop for so long. Already, I can’t wait to start writing again.
To anyone who does buy the book, thank you so much, it means a lot to me to know someone is reading my words. And if you just read the sample, that’s great too. When all is said and done, my motivation is to reach out to people with my words and provide an entertaining set of stories. There is so much going on in the world these days, settling down with a book feels like one of the last refuges we have left to escape for a precious hour or two.
The book is finished, and I’m getting it (self)published
It feels a lot longer than the two-and-a-half weeks it’s actually been since writing the first page of my very first (and possibly last) romance novel. Getting it over the finish line has resulted in a lot of missed sleep, and hours upon hours of writing and editing that felt like it would never come to an end. It’s been a real slog that’s seen me not shower for three days, and sometimes hardly even acknowledge the existence of my wife at times.
Seriously – she’s actually left me to stay with her parents this weekend and keeps messaging me with photos of all the great things they’re doing. What can I say – I suffer for my art.
It will completely blow me away if people do buy this book, not just for me as a writer, but more importantly for the charity I’m supporting – The Alzheimer’s Society (link goes to their website). I’ve put a lot of work into the quality of the final product, and I’ve even made my own map of Northern France from scratch so readers can follow where the story is at any point. For an idea of what to expect, here’s the synopsis;
My dream is for the short deadline to not be noticeable while reading it. In terms of the book’s format, it will be available first in eBook, then (very soon after) in paperback. Regardless, all my royalties will go to charity so it can make a great gift for someone.
The next post I make on this topic will contain the details on where it can be bought and how much it will cost (it won’t be a lot of money because I never charge a lot – I’m terrible at business). It will also have a ‘look inside’ feature so you can take a peek of the first chapter or two.
Until next time, stay safe & happy writing / reading!
Since I’ve been writing-up a summary to go on the back cover of my latest book, I’ve been thinking about its purpose, and what makes a good one ultimately sell more books, regardless of the quality of the pages’ contents. Many writers work for days on a punchy, hard-hitting blurb to go on that all important back cover or Amazon store page. Word for word, it probably takes up more time than writing the book itself.
The more I’ve reviewed my old blurbs, the more I realise I must subconsciously keep a pattern, regardless of any of my works’ actual content, because they all fit the same kind of structure. So for anyone out there who’s writing their own, or for those who simply have an interest, I’ve laid out my four-step approach to writing this very important bit of marketing for any book:
Photo by Tim Gouw
1. Go straight-in with the setting, and build outwards.
If you’ve written a taut thriller set in Germany at the beginning of WW2, a simple first line of; Berlin, 1938, will speak more to anyone with an interest in the genre better than any amount of expository background. It will also save on word count, which I always plan to have at around 150. Any more than 200, and people switch off and continue skimming the bookshelf. It helps to keep the first line short and sharp to define a book’s genre like a slap round the face. It allows those readers without an interest to move onto something else, and for those that do, to read more.
2. Start personal, you can always explain your book’s world towards the end.
The setting / genre is defined in the first line. Now it’s time to introduce the main character(s). Whether it’s children’s fiction or adult, everyone wants to know who the characters are as soon as possible. They want to know why they should be invested in your character over the course of four hundred pages or sometimes more, and why they should root for them, sympathise with them, laugh with them. The best way I’ve found to achieve this, is to lay out that character’s motivation. If they’re a disgraced hero, put that down. If they’re setting out for vengeance or a lost love, write that in.
Imagine you’re in a lift with Christopher Nolan on your way to the tenth floor. You’ve got twenty seconds to give him a spoiler-free summary of the manuscript you really want him to turn into a movie. He’s not going to care that your main character has a cat called Stanley, works out at the gym four days a week, and has an intolerance to gluten (the main character, not Stanley). He is going to care that the same character was left for dead by her best friend who’s since run off with her husband. So tell him that.
I’ve been cringing at an old summary I once made for a short story I’m now determined will never see the light of day. In it, I described how the main character looked – in the summary. I actually put that in. Since then, I’ve grown up a bit, and I see characters in a blurb as store mannequins that people can project themselves onto. They want the outline of a human being they can care about, so give them one.
3. Don’t give away the plot
Some of the best blurbs I’ve seen hardly give anything away. They’ll grudgingly throw you some morsels before threatening to mug you and kick you out the bookshop. Check out George RR Martin’s Game of Thrones summary next chance you get. It mentions some guy called Eddard Stark who’s Warden of the North. There’s betrayal and vengeance mentioned, along with an Iron Throne, and a Dragon King. And that’s it. Outside the low-fantasy genre setting, you’re left with no idea what’s going on. It makes you want to read more.
Sometimes it’s tempting to show off the hard work you’ve put in with a certain plot twist, and I’ve had to delete entire paragraphs from a summary because I’m getting close to revealing too much without a single page being turned. Less is more, and creating the setting or main character’s motivation is often enough right there in terms of any plot explanation. The reader’s imagination will do the rest.
4. When you end it, don’t just end it
I recently read the summaries of a particular author’s romantic fiction serial since I’m writing my first and was looking for inspiration when it came to my own blurb for this strange and varied genre (my personal opinion). I was a bit put out when the summaries for every book in the series (I think there were four), just…ended. There was no wrap-up, no cliff-hanging teaser, nothing. It just ended after a connecting sentence as though the printer had missed off the last twenty words.
The blurb’s end is probably as important as the beginning, since it’s the last words any potential reader will see before they (might) turn to the first page of your book. For mine, I always stick to the same formula, and it may not be the best, but here goes; I essentially remind any future cherished reader why I think they should buy my book. I draw them from the bowels of the plot and give a wide-ranging view of the body of work. Maybe the setting changes from the wet and rainy streets of modern London to the dusty plains of the Australian outback? Maybe there are twists and turns along the way? Maybe the book is going to evoke feelings of nostalgia, or a sense of loss? If I was ever given an award for my writing (never gonna happen), I’d remind them of that. In short, I’m trying to give a closing argument on why they should take a risk with my book instead of going for the safe option from tried and tested James Patterson.
And that’s it. That’s what I think through when creating a book summary.
To illustrate the above points, here’s the blurb for my new book that will be getting put to market just as soon as I’ve finished the damned editing today. You can probably see the four rules I’ve followed in order to create it.
My method might not be the best way to create the most compelling summary, and it certainly won’t work for every genre and style. If you happen to be a wordsmith yourself, drop me a note on how you tackle this thorny issue – I’m always interested to see how other writers overcome the problems we all face, often alone.
I’ve written the final part of my manuscript while listening to Bon Jovi. Guess I’m…Livin’ On A Prayer?
At this point, the days have rolled into one and there just aren’t enough hours. My manuscript is finally finished and the word count stands at a respectable 81,000(!) Yet I have a shed load of editing to do, and a difficult decision to make. The choice before me is whether I rush this last part of the project to (almost) meet my self-imposed deadline, or go over that deadline to create a more engaging and polished story.
As this challenge has gone on, my biggest worry has come from not being able to do the story justice. What started as a whimsical project to raise some cash for a great cause has become a labour of, if not love, then something close to it. Coupled with respecting the book’s historical setting, I’ve come to realise I don’t want to screw this up after coming so far. I first began writing to produce something that people want to read, and I hope that by pushing back the deadline a little, I get closer to that goal, and ultimately raise more money for charity in the long run.
Therefore, I’ve decided to dedicate three additional days to do the editing and cover design before publishing this thing. In hindsight, to go from nothing, not even a story outline, to having the rough manuscript completed in two weeks has been an undertaking in itself. Now that I have it in my hands, it feels much more real, and the end is very much in sight.
I’m hoping to post the finished book cover tomorrow, and the book’s blurb the day after. Since the exhausting task of writing page after page is at least done, I’ll be able to post more updates over the coming days, culminating in the final (definitely final) novel very shortly.
Until then, please check out my chosen charity’s website here at: www.alzheimers.org.uk and as always, happy writing!
Before I go any further in this post, I have massively fallen behind on my updates, so I’m wrapping this one into days 6 & 7 – It’s that kind of a project.
At the end of the first week, I have (some would say inevitably) fallen behind by about 10,000 words. So to try and catch up, I’m intending to pull an all-nighter tonight (Tuesday) and then work through the next day until I eventually collapse on Wednesday evening. My current word count stands at 40,000. A mix of personal stuff and re-drafting had slowed things down over the weekend.
On the positive side, I’ve really begun to like some of the characters I’m writing, which is something I was not expecting in a romance novel. Before this, I would have scoffed at such an idea, having wrongly believed the genre was nothing more than two-dimensional mush wrapped up in three-day old bubblegum. More fool me.
There is one character getting under my skin more than the others though, and that is the main antagonist. Somehow I’ve allowed him to morph into a real villainous piece of sh*t. There’s nothing wrong with having an evil villain (in fact it’s the aim, after all) but I do try and set a limit in keeping with the theme of the story, and this guy is pushing it. I’ve known of a few writers whose characters morph in ways they hadn’t originally expected them to, and it’s always been fascinating to me; as their creators, you’d think we could keep to a rigid set of characteristics and stick to them, never deviating from the path. Yet they always seem to creep out the page with a life of their own.
The other thing I have to keep my eye on is the charity element of this book – I’m donating all my royalties to charity, and therefore any organisation associated with this project is probably not going to want it to be too graphic/controversial. On the other end of the scale, I’m a thriller writer who has never censored himself for anything, so there is a large push-pull going on inside my head right now.
Anyone who might have been following my clues in earlier posts may already have got this, but the majority of the book is set against the backdrop of World War One, which is quite fitting considering the awful events currently taking place in Ukraine and threatening to spill across Europe. The nice thing about writing, especially fiction writing, is how it allows you to shut the door on the outside world for a short time and seek solace in one that you can create anew from your own desk.
In portraying events of the Great War, I’ve been careful not to take too many liberties with history, or with the achievements of those who fought on the front lines, struggling against impossible odds on both sides of the conflict. To that end, I put extra research into some of the key events the story follows in order to maintain some authenticity and realism, and I hope the final product will stand as a testament to the sacrifices made by the generation of my grandparents and great-grandparents.
The speck of light at the end of the tunnel is visible in this project. Yet I still have the book’s front cover to start (hopefully by the weekend) and the front & back matter to do as well. There’s just not enough hours in the day…
Another busy day today, this one with more editing to get things slightly closer to the finished product. I can now say with confidence that romance novels are definitely not my thing.
However, some exciting news – today I’m sharing my second draft of chapter one! Be aware that this is not the final article, and events / characters are subject to change.
Spelling and grammar errors are also likely, and the story contains adult themes. Reader discretion is advised.
I don’t think any romance writers out there have got anything to worry about from me, but I’m always grateful for feedback from both readers and fellow writers, especially on a lightning fast project like this where time really isn’t on my side (at least its all for a good cause).
From the chapter’s setting, you’ll probably have a few clues on where this story is going to go. Suffice to say, it’ll have a few twists and turns along the way before everything gets resolved. There’s more to come tomorrow, but for now I hope you enjoy reading the draft.
If you’re brand new to this, the title pretty much describes my situation, but if you want the details, it all began here. I’ve been completely snowed under with the actual writing part of this challenge during the last twenty four hours. For about sixty minutes I just stared at my laptop screen, agonising over four sentences, then blitzed about 3,000 words in an hour and a half. Writing is weird, isn’t it?
So I made the decision to mash these two days together into one update. I’m planning to have the second draft of chapter one posted tomorrow to give a flavour of the story. In the meantime – here’s a progress table;
PLOT
Stuff is generally happening. Right now, the two main characters are about as far apart relationship-wise as they’ll ever be (or close to it). Nefarious deeds are going on in the background and oodles of heartache is on the horizon. I’m hoping to reach a major action scene tomorrow, but if not then it’ll be a day five job.
CHARACTERS
This is one area that is completely done. Both heroes and villains are fully realised with most characters falling somewhere between the two.
THEMES
I’m going to leave this one mostly unsaid from here on out. There is a strong theme that runs through the manuscript on both the male and female side of the relationship (this is a heterosexual love-interest novel). The theme is different for both characters and I’ll let the reader discover what it is for themselves.
BOOK COVER/DESIGN
Pfft. Get out of here. Come back in about nine days for this one.
FRONT & BACK MATTER
See book cover/design
WORD COUNT
This is the big daddy. I can have all the themes and story lines I like, but if it’s not on the page, it’s not a novel. I will be ending the third day with about 15,000 pretty good words. Still not as far as I would have wanted, and it’s (mostly) as close to a first draft as you can get, but it’s a start. Isn’t it?
EDITING
Currently reviewing the second draft of the first chapter. Hope to get as far as the third by end of today. It badly needs it.
On the plus side, I think I’ve got a title, although I’m hovering between two strong potentials and it could go either way.
On the negative side, my coffee machine has broken. For once I am lost for words at this tragedy.
Same as my last update, I’ll end this one with a clue as to the novel’s setting. Gold star to anyone who can guess when/where/what this is;
Michael Averon 