Today I am thrilled to share a guest post written by John Marley for the blog tour for his latest book Godsend. Not only does Godsend sound like a really interesting read, the author behind the book has a wonderfully delightful sense of humour but I do think he should maybe look into buying some ear plugs for his wife….
Description:
It has been eighteen months since Danny Felix pulled off the robbery of his life. His plan brought London to a standstill, but at a heavy price.
Now, living a quiet life running a charter fishing business in the Florida Keys, Danny is trying to come to terms with the death and destruction he had unwittingly unleashed. However, the low profile is beginning to wear thin and he soon starts to crave the adrenalin rush of his former criminal ways.
Little does he know that three very different women are about to enter his life and turn it upside-down. Soon Danny finds himself right back in the action.
But why has he been chosen? And does he have the appetite to pull off another job where the stakes are so lethally high?
You can buy a copy of Godsend via Amazon UK
Shhhh! Don’t wake the Mrs!
When I finally managed to become a full-time writer, the one thing I wasn’t expecting was the lost sleep.
It’s not so chronic that it could be called insomnia, but there are long periods when I’m writing my books that are clearly defined by one thing. Bleedin’ characters waking me up at around 4.30am to poke and prod me about a plot point or development. An idea for a set piece sequence might rouse me, or the motivation for a secondary character’s sudden burst of violence might cause me to toss and turn. I might have to sit bolt upright because of a sudden realisation that a I have to kill this one or that one to give my plot an added burst of momentum.
So why are you complaining, you ask…. isn’t this all adding to productivity, the onerous word count, the dreaded deadline? Well, yes…but why does it have to come to me with such a bolt at an indecent hour? I quite like my sleep…I definitely like my bed.
In an effort to facilitate a swift return to the land of nod, I have tried all sorts of things. First was the pen and notepad by the bed. Now, in theory that is all well and good, except I tried to do this without putting the light on so as not to wake the Mrs. I’d scribble down my creative titbits and nestle back into my pillow secure in the knowledge that the inspiration had been captured for use later. Except… at that time of night my handwriting is a bit like a spider who has enjoyed a few light ales, a half bottle pf whiskey and a late-night curry before knocking over an inkpot and scurrying across my notepad. Indecipherable? Pretty much. It might as well have been written in hieroglyphics.
Next up I tried using the voice notes recorder on my phone. Scrabbling half-awake to get to my phone, wake it up, remember my lock screen code, find the app, get it going and then start whispering into it like a wildlife presenter in the midst of a whoop of gorillas. This didn’t work. Because when I listened back to these mid-night musings, I sounded like I had downed the beer, the whisky and the curry. It also caused the Mrs to stir…not good!!
So, what’s an insomniac scribbler to do? I gave up and gave in. I get up, pad to the bathroom, get my dressing gown, affectionately known as Wuffly Bear in my house, and descend the stairs. Now this sounds all well and good right? Wrong! We have two cocker spaniels. They sleep at the foot of our bed. If I get up they instantly assume it is either a) breakfast time or B) breakfast time. Our bedroom has wooden floors. The food dance then breaks out, where our dogs spin in celebration of their imminent feast. This sounds something like a Hollywood studio floor when Fred and Ginger are going at it for all their tap dancing worth. Little claws pinging about the place at four in the morning. Needless to say, the Mrs stirs.
So, I have now developed an almost stealth like method of sliding soundlessly from under the sheets and across the bedroom to fetch Wuffly Bear. As you can imagine this takes patience and time. When I eventually make it down the stairs, it’s laptop powered up, kettle on, backside in chair and write. Phew!
My first two books have been crafted in this manner, and whilst I am usually a grumpy sod due to lack of sleep, I have to admit that in these moments, I am actually quite chipper, because at the end of the day I’m very blessed to be able to spend my days (and nights) pursuing my dream of being an author. So what if it wakes me up? So what if I have to creep round my own house like Santa Claus on the 24th December? I’m the lucky one. I get to be creative and hopefully, along the way, readers will be thrilled, enthralled, surprised and entertained. I can think of no other pursuit that it’s worth losing sleep over. I’m very blessed. The Mrs on the other hand…
About the Author:
John A. Marley’s writing career started with a poem about two brothers who both liked sausages…their names were Butch and Dutch and his Primary School teacher Mr. Murray liked it so much it made the main noticeboard at the entrance to Holy Child Primary School in West Belfast. A little older but none the wiser, he ended up as a film journalist in his native Northern Ireland, contributing to local newspapers, BBC Radio Ulster and latterly writing as the main film critic for the glossy magazine, Northern Woman.
John’s love of good stories came from the Irish predilection for telling a good yarn and the fact that there was nothing quite like sneaking away his Dad’s battered paperbacks to read even though he knew they were meant for adults and not kids. And so pulp fiction such as The Edge Westerns by George G. Gilman, the adventure novels of Alistair MacLean and the thrillers of Jack Higgins all served to whet his appetite for a good story told at pace.
These days, his reading tastes still focus on thrills, spills and good plot and he can’t walk by a James Lee Burke or an Elmore Leonard without pausing to read a few pages…even if it is in a busy bookshop.
John A. Marley is also a TV producer with a proven track record in creating and producing distinctive, original entertainment and factual programming and formats for both a UK and international audience. His eclectic portfolio of high-profile shows include Britain’s Ultimate Pilots: Inside the RAF, Britain’s Flying Past, Staraoke, Best of Friends, Skatoony, Noel’s House Party, Through the Keyhole, SMTV:Live/CD:UK, How Euro Are You? and live coverage of “The Oscars” with Barry Norman.
John runs his own production company Archie Productions which he launched in 2008. Prior to setting up his own indie, John enjoyed a wide and varied career in television will creative roles at Talent Television, Planet 24, Carlton Television and Walt Disney UK. John’s broadcast media career started in his native Northern Ireland as a radio host.
Godsend is the follow up to John’s debut novel, Standstill in which we first met master thief Danny Felix.
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