When I visited Oxford the other week to attend events at the literary festival, I looked up a cookie seller I used to frequent many years ago whenever I visited the city. Great news, it’s still there.

It's time to share a cover from one of the books in my collection. This one was published by Jonathan Cape in 1959. The jacket design is credited to Hans Tisdall. What I like most about this cover are

I was lucky enough to attend an event at the recent Oxford Literary Festival that I so enjoyed I thought I’d share some words on it here. Book details here It was a talk by one of my favourite historians,

I’ve been writing a short story for the last week or so, based on an idea I had jotted down many moons ago. The entirety of the story has already put itself together in my head, which is very handy as

There was a new experience for me this week when I gave a talk about my writing to a live audience. And no, they hadn’t been tricked into coming along and then being locked in the room! At least, that’s

I completed the initial draft of a new novel about three week ago and then the first re-write this week. Sitting back as I saved the document on my PC, I finally had to acknowledge a feeling I’ve been

It's the first Monday of the month, so it's time to share a cover from one of the books in my collection. This is the 2010 UK paperback edition from Vintage. The cover design is credited to Stephen Parker.

Just fifty words for you to read. But can you make the commitment? Commitment Are you sure? Are you really sure? I question your commitment and the price you’ll pay. What’s done can’t then be undone, let

I'm always writing. When one thing is finished I rarely leave it long until I start another. It's a wonderful way to spend my mornings. My most recently published book is called The Meyer-Hoffman Affair

A close relative has worked in the newspaper business for over two decades, first as a journalist and then as editorial staff. This has provided me with a close up view of what happens to an industry when

Every once in a while, I will find myself writing a new character that I know I want to belong very much to a particular time and place. Right clothes. Right interests. Right beliefs. The list can go on

It's the first Monday of the month, so it's time to share a cover from one of the books in my collection. Published by Macmillan around 1890. Cover and internal artwork credited to Hugh Thomson. The intricate

I’m lucky that we have a study, a room in the house with a desk, where the PC lives and where we keep most of our many books. In theory this gives me a place to hide away, free from interruptions, when

The origins of the British Secret Service can be traced back to 1909 with the establishment of the Secret Service Bureau. Initially staffed by just two officers, Royal Navy Commander Mansfield Cumming

If you’re of an old enough vintage, you may recall a song by the band Orange Juice where they suggest you might like to rip it up and start again. Well, metaphorically speaking, that is what happened to

Romney Marsh is a large, flat expanse of land on the southern coast of England overlooking the English Channel. Criss-crossed by a seemingly endless maze of dykes and water-filled ditches, and dotted here

It's time to share a cover from one of the books in my substantial and varied collection. This is the cover for the 1971 UK first edition. Jacket design credited to David Smee. Published by Penguin Books.

We had our oven cleaned today. Things had got so bad I decided it was time to bring in a professional oven cleaner. Yep, it’s sad but true. The poor guy must have wondered what he’d signed up for. I showed

Seeing how it’s almost the end of the year, I thought it would be a good time to share with you some of my favourite reads of the last twelve months, on both the fiction and non-fiction front. In truth,

Realistically, I’ve got about just a week and a half of full-time work remaining before we tumble merrily into the Christmas holiday period and I can’t wait for that. I mean, it’s time for presents, and