What is ‘Out of the Darkness’ About? And Other News

  What’s the Novel About? If you’ve been wondering, here’s the current blurb: Moira Dolan, an investigator for The Proteus Collective, is forced to take on a dead-end case. How did an elite pilot, his family and their ship disappear in a well-policed star system? With so few leads, it seems her boss wants her to fail. And where is her loser brother, Keagan? Torn between her only family and last chance for a career, her journey between the stars reveals more of herself than she ever wanted to know. As the pieces fall into place, Moira and some new-found allies uncover a conspiracy: mankind is no longer the galaxy’s apex predator, and a plot to destabilise human space could cost of millions of lives… Approval How much of the blurb will remain relevant depends on the the approval process, which is ongoing. I’m hoping to hear something back later … Continue reading

It’s Alive! Alive I Tell You!

The Good News Out of the Darkness lives! It’s a real book; Elite settings, characters, plot, themes—it’s all in there. The first gamma draft is complete, and pretty polished. The Scary News It’s very existence in in great peril. The book is currently with Frontier for approval. Death can come in many forms… can Out of the Darkness survive? If so, will its soul remain intact, or will it be torn asunder, rendered a mere shadow of its former self? Only one man knows… which side of Michael Brookes’ personality will the novel draw out? This? Or this?! We should know in a little while… So, backers and would-be readers, as we wait, let us focus on the positive, make optimism our banner, and raise our heads and sniff the roses… the Roses of Success! More Good News We have a proof-reader—qualified, experted an’ everfink! I want to thank the awesome … Continue reading

Author Interview: I’m a Guest of Marko Over at Hooked Gamers

What does a writer do to avoid going loco during editing? Find a friendly human face to talk to. Marko Susimetsä, an avid gamer and bearer of an awesome hat, invited me over to the Hooked Gamers’ website this week to answer a few questions. We talk Elite, ships, writing, problems, and the upcoming novel, Out of the Darkness. Thanks for having me, Marko and your round, pointy-handed friends. We’re at: Just click the piccy to come and join us. ‘Hooked Gamers’ name and logo don’t belong to you, so don’t steal them. (I’m not a lawyer, but I know you don’t want to meet one. Copyright is a tricky beastie—stay safe.)

Ask the Author – An Interview with T. James?

    Progress So Far: Three Quarters Present and Correct, One Quarter AWOI* * AWOI: Absent Without Information There comes a time in most long-term writing projects where there is a lull, a pause when the only thing to do is wait. For me, that time is now. I’ve just sent an email to Frontier full of awkward questions, many of which probably don’t yet have an answer. Getting answers is pressing in terms of my story, but my guess is that fleshing out these aspects of the game is probably lower down Frontier’s to-do list. It involves game content that is more likely, I think, to be released as a later update or add-on pack. (Frontier hasn’t given me any basis for my assumption, I’m just reading between the lines.) This puts me in the rather strange position (for a writer) of being unable to visualise something that does not … Continue reading