And so it begins. Welcome to Pollen.

I was in a shop a couple of days ago, and my eye was drawn to a display of greetings cards and prints. There were some beautiful and unique drawings and paintings, by local artists. My wife bought a couple … Continued

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I can’t get her out of my head.

I know I keep on about Andorra Pett but here’s the thing. She’s my favourite character, out of all the ones that invade my mind. And to think she started out as the result of a challenge. My wife suggested … Continued

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They read it first, in praise of the Beta Reader

Before my new masterpiece sets out into the big wide world, there’s a group of unsung heroes who help to make it a lot more readable than it might have been. One of the problems with being the author of … Continued

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The long and winding road. Using characters in sequels and spin-offs.

Back in 2013, in my first novel, Freefall, I introduced a character called Ballantyne Alysom. He was a galactic explorer and owner of the magazine Galactographic! His claim to fame and the reason for his creation was as the discoverer … Continued

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Finishing the story, why I need to write that sequel.

As well as the new ideas that I told you about last week, I Remember Everything and my other new story, My Sister Alex, I have several sequels in progress, I know that I really ought to get on and finish … Continued

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Another new idea. I remember…everything.

Not content with the seven or eight works I have in progress, I’ve been getting a burst of ideas, for new stories and sequels. Dare I say it, some of them seem to be moving away from Science Fiction, towards … Continued

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Creating and using promotional graphics

This time, I’m looking at some tools to help you create graphics for your website, social media etc. In the same way that your book covers are the first thing that a potential reader sees, so the rest of your … Continued

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The first bite is with the eye. Author Branding.

Welcome back to the second of my posts on marketing. This time, we’re looking at one of the most important things you can do to improve your visibility. Branding is the art of establishing a connection between everything that you … Continued

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