What have I been up to lately? Here’s a brief summary of my recent writing endeavours.

Short Story: 35 Chestnut Terrace

A young woman tries to exonerate her fiancé of a horrific murder, but is he innocent?

This mystery thriller whodunnit, inspired by a Sherlock Holmes short story I won’t mention (for fear of spoiling both my story and Arthur Conan Doyle’s) has just concluded on Substack and Medium, having been serialised in weekly parts every Thursday.

Check out part one of this suspenseful tale on Substack here. If you don’t subscribe to me on Substack, click here to do so (or upgrade your existing subscription for the appropriate access). Alternatively, part one can be read on Medium here (this is a “friend link” appetiser, so should bypass the paywall, though you’d need to subscribe to Medium to read the remaining parts on this platform).

New Short Story

I’ve just finished another new short story, but it has yet to be tested with beta-readers, so it is somewhat under wraps at present. I won’t reveal the title, but it’s a dystopian thriller, set a few decades in the future, involving an Oxford university student whose unusual dream makes him a target of cultists and sinister government agencies with dubious agendas. This is sci-fi, but it also blends elements of fantasy, and arguably horror. Although a bit of an odd tale, I enjoyed experimenting with it.

At present, this short story sits at a rather bloated 18,000 words, so more of a novella. I may hack it down a bit as I can think of at least one character and subplot I’d like to excise. But on the whole, I’m pleased with this. The premise fits nicely with some of my previous dystopian short stories, such as those I included in my dystopian anthology Love and Other Punishments.

Patreon

I’ve also recently updated my Patreon aims (click here for full details). How did I get on with the goals I posted last September? Check out this article here. Accountability is important on Patreon.

I started my Patreon page a couple of years ago. This has attracted a small but wonderful group of people who believe in my fiction writing endeavours, and financially support my ongoing quest for mainstream publication. They are hugely appreciated, and whilst they provide ample encouragement, I’m keen to grow this branch of the Dillon Empire.

Depending on giving levels, these lovely people are named Allies, Free Citizens, or Knights of the Dillon Empire. All giving levels get my awkward video updates, like this one (which I’ve made free to view). Then, at higher levels, there are insights into my writing process, interviews with my characters, exclusive deleted scenes or bonus material, advance peeks at covers and artwork, and previews of short stories, novellas, and novels. I’ve also finished serialising chapters from my current draft of mystery thriller The Balliol Conspiracy and have recently started another serial of a draft novel, dark fantasy tale The Deviant Prophet.

Please do check out my Patreon page and consider supporting me. Thank you.