Designing the cover for Arkship Omega – Vlog #010
- At May 14, 2019
- By Niel
- In Writing
0
You can pre-order Arkship Omega here:
https://getbook.at/Arkship6
Passionate People, Passionate Places
- At April 16, 2019
- By Niel
- In General
- 0
Back in 2005 I took part in a campaign to help promote the North East of England as a great place to live and work. It started with a letter about the campaign which was sent to dozens of local businesses, including mine. At the time I was running my animation studio, Qurios Entertainment. I responded immediately to the letter (unusual for me!) saying how much I liked the idea and asking how I could support it. A representative of the campaign came to see me and, in no time at all, I was named as one of the ambassadors of the One North East Passionate People, Passionate Places campaign. What followed was a blur of publicity, starting with a photo shoot of me in my studio, perched next to a CRT monitor. It soon spread to local newspapers, billboards and even some promotion in London. It was exciting and embarrassing! I was interviewed by national newspapers and radio stations and, for a while, it felt like I was a very, very minor local celebrity.
But it kept going! For years I had my face in the underpass at Middlesbrough Railway Station. In all that time it somehow remained intact! No graffiti, no crude drawings, nothing. It lasted for almost a decade until it was eventually removed. The one in Newcastle Airport lasted even longer. I last saw it just a few years ago in 2016. Every time I travelled abroad my 2005 face would be waiting to greet me as I queued for customs. It was all very surreal!
It wasn’t just me, of course. There were about a dozen faces of the campaign, some who were included in TV adverts. I went along to a launch event at the Tall Ships Race in 2005 and met some of the other people involved – innovators, scientists, entrepreneurs and me.
Eventually, the campaign came to an end. I’m not sure what sort of impact it made, and it’s really hard to find anything about it now, but for a while I was a poster boy for the North East!
Out now: Arkship Prophecy
- At March 08, 2019
- By Niel
- In Writing
- 0
It’s here! Arkship Prophecy, book 5 in the Arkship Saga is available to read now!
As the Church of the Infinite forces its doctrine on the survivors of humanity, the battle-weary Prince Halstead finds himself torn between his desire for peace and the growing tide of resistance, led by his estranged wife Bara. As the survival of humanity hangs in the balance, Halstead must finally decide what the Infinite Gods want him to do, a decision that could change the balance of power across the Cluster forever.
Meanwhile, the followers of the prophet Gofal, in hiding from the brutal forces of the Church’s Inquisitors, work towards a better future, one that may demand the ultimate sacrifice of their outlawed cult.
Now, I’d better get writing book 6, Arkship Omega.
My week: finishing my 10th book!
- At February 14, 2019
- By Niel
- In Writing
- 0
It’s been a busy start to 2019, with me frantically working on Arkship Prophecy, the 5th book in the Arkship Saga, and my 10th novel to date! I can’t quite get my head round that, it’s such a weird concept. When did I write ten books? Like any big achievement, its only possible by breaking it down into lots and lots of little tasks. It’s taken me almost ten years to get this far, and it’s been a lot of hard work, but I’m really glad I did it.
Arkship Prophecy, book 5 in the Arkship Saga, is now available to pre-order. It’s due out next week, and you can get 25% off the launch price if you grab it today!
As the Church of the Infinite forces its doctrine on the survivors of humanity, the battle-weary Prince Halstead finds himself torn between his desire for peace and the growing tide of resistance, led by his estranged wife Bara. With the survival of humanity hanging in the balance, Halstead must finally decide what the Infinite Gods want him to do, a decision that could change the balance of power across the Cluster forever.
New Year, New Books
- At January 17, 2019
- By Niel
- In Writing
- 0
It’s 2019, the year of Blade Runner! It’s time to go buy yourself a flying car and book a trip to the off-world colonies to get away from the constant rain. (I live in the UK and I’m used to rain, so I’ll be fine right here.)
January is a good time to plan for the coming year. Here’s what I aim to do:
More books!
No big surprise there, right? Arkship Prophecy is on pre-order right now, due out at the end of next month. Then there’s book six to think about. That’s the last volume in the main run of the Arkship Saga, although there are three prequels planned as well as several side stories.
There’s also the prospect of me writing two separate licenced titles but those are not yet confirmed. They’re both science fiction but very different beasts.
I plan to return to Tobin Artichoke later in the year with two more adventures, so I’m going to be busy.
Screenplays
I’m in the middle of writing a post-apocalyptic love story which I hope to finish in the summer. I’ve really enjoyed doing this and I hope I can do more of this sort of thing as well as writing books.
Events and talks
I’ve been doing less public events so that I can focus on writing, but I’ve not abandoned them completely. I’ve got a few school events coming up as well as some industry talks to writers and publishers.
Animation
I’m still working as an animator in between writing. There are more Doctor Who blu ray box sets coming out which include work from me.
My aim this year is to be productive but to avoid being the busy fool I’ve been in recent years. How about you? What’s your goals for 2019? Let me know what you’re up to.
Arkship Prophecy revealed!
- At December 04, 2018
- By Niel
- In Artwork, Writing
- 0
The Arkship Saga continues with book five, Arkship Prophecy, which is now available to pre-order! Members of the Arkship Saga Facebook page have already seen the cover, but if you’re not a member then you can see it for yourself now! Just click this link!
What’s it all about? Well….
As the Church of the Infinite forces its doctrine on the survivors of humanity, the battle-weary Prince Halstead finds himself torn between his desire for peace and the growing tide of resistance, led by his estranged wife Bara. As the survival of humanity hangs in the balance, Halstead must finally decide what the Infinite Gods want him to do, a decision that could change the balance of power across the Cluster forever.
Meanwhile, the followers of the prophet Gofal, in hiding from the brutal forces of the Church’s Inquisitors, work towards a better future, one that may demand the ultimate sacrifice of their outlawed cult.
Past and future collide in this fifth volume of the explosive Arkship Saga. If you liked Battlestar Galactica, Isaac Asimov’s Foundation series or The Expanse then this might be the series for you!
“Aren’t you Trevor Hoyle?”
- At November 30, 2018
- By Niel
- In Talks/Events, Writing
- 0
Yesterday, I was in Manchester for the Society of Authors Annual General Meeting. I’ve been on the committee of the Authors North sub-group for the last few years and, until yesterday, I was its Chair. Don’t worry, this isn’t going to be a story about how I got kicked off the committee, I was due to step down and hand over to the new Chair, the excellent Rhoda Baxter. My tenure as Chair was, thankfully, without incident. (Nothing was proved.)
I was helping to look after the registration desk when I heard a familiar name mentioned: Trevor Hoyle.
My brain began to buzz. How did I know that name? Then it came to me: Trevor Hoyle was the writer of one of my favourite books from my childhood, the first novel based on the BBC TV series, Blake’s 7.
I left the registration desk and caught up with a somewhat startled chap, as captured in this aggressive-looking picture taken by Colin Shelborn.
“Aren’t you Trevor Hoyle?” I asked.
“Yes,” he replied, with all the nervousness of a man being accosted by a scary stranger.
“You worte a Blake’s 7 book!” I declared, like an idiot.
Trevor chuckled. “Well, I wrote three, actually.”
Indeed he did. Here’s a selection of my own copies of those books, a mix of the UK and US editions. In fact, Trevor is an incredibly varied and prolific author:
“Trevor Hoyle has published fiction with John Calder: The Man Who Travelled on Motorways, Vail (a dystopian vision of Britain as a police state) and Blind Needle, a chase thriller set in the Lake District. His novel The Last Gasp is currently under option in Hollywood. In 2003 Pomona reissued Rule of Night (originally published in 1975), about skinheads in a northern town, which was Time Out’s Book of the Week and was highly praised in the Guardian and City Life. More recently Trevor Hoyle has written for BBC Radio 4. His first play, GIGO, won the Radio Times Drama Award, and another, Randle’s Scandals, about the rude Wigan comedian Frank Randle, was critically acclaimed. He also wrote and presented a feature for Radio 4, The Lighthouse Invites the Storm, in memory of the writer Malcolm Lowry.”
My chat to Trevor was brief – the registration desk was calling me – but it was a genuine thrill to meet someone who was part of my childhood. That copy of Blake’s 7 was well-read and fondly remembered.
My week: slow progress
- At November 12, 2018
- By Niel
- In Writing
- 0
The fifth book in the Arkship Saga, Arkship Prophecy is coming soon. No, really! Hey, I mean it! I’ve just been sidetracked by other work, which means that Arkship Prophecy might not appear until after Christmas. I really wanted it out before now, but hopefully you won’t have too much longer to wait.
And the third audiobook, Arkship Alliance, is also on its way. Mike Robinson is working hard to get this finished, and I’m sure it’s going to be worth the wait.
But right now, it’s my wedding anniversary. We’re celebrating 24 years together, which I can’t quite believe! Look, I had hair back then! As Delmore Schwartz put it (and Star Trek Generations immortalised) time is the fire in which we burn. But just make sure you burn brightly, and for a long, long time.
