Doubtless many 2020 year-end reflections will include interminable references to a certain popular plague on world tour. I will spare you such misery, and instead focus only on what happened in my writing world this year.
New Novel: Peaceful Quiet Lives
Firstly, and most excitingly, my dystopian future shock novel Peaceful Quiet Lives was released. Intended as a satire of the political and religious fears of both sides of the so-called US culture wars, the novel follows illegal lovers Sam and Eve, who fall foul of laws in both nations that rose from the ashes of the Second American Civil War.
Written in 2018, I had planned to hold on to Peaceful Quiet Lives for a while, and eventually submit it to publishers. However, current events in America persuaded me an earlier release would prove timely. So far, the response has been largely positive, which is very gratifying.
Work in Progress: The White Nest (working title)
I wrote a new gothic mystery novel this year, which I’m calling The White Nest as a working title (the real title is a secret for now). This book represents something of a culmination in my gothic mystery horror/thriller oeuvre, as it is also a coming of age drama drawing on highly personal baggage. It proved cathartic to write, despite jabbing a lot of raw nerves concerning subjects like regret, parental fears, and lost siblings. In fact, this novel is every bit as personal as Children of the Folded Valley. I’m not sure when it will be released, but I intend to look over the first draft next year (having given myself sufficient distance from the manuscript to be more objective) and we’ll see where we go from there.
New Short Story: Hole in the Wall (working title)
In addition to the above novel, I found time to pen a new ghostly horror tale, the details of which remain secret for now. I’m not sure when this short story will see the light of day, but I’m rather pleased with it. I’ll probably release a short story collection some time soon, as I have quite a pile of unreleased sinister shorts and novellas building up.
On The Blog
As ever, I’ve contributed several blog posts, mostly relating to books or cinema (as well as the ongoing film reviews). I do enjoy tackling a variety of topics, and like to provoke thought and discussion, so here are a few of my favourites that you might have missed.
The Pillars of the Earth: Brilliant Books and Bad Sex
What Makes A Great Fantasy Story
Ten Great Literary Protagonists I Relate To
My Journey of Faith and The Exorcist
On The Tangent Tree
The fourth series of The Tangent Tree, the film podcast I co-host with Samantha Stephen, hit a series of delays this year, but we did release the third series. Here are a couple of my favourite episodes. Well technically three episodes, but one of these is a two-parter.
Musicals Make The Medicine Go Down – Samantha and I wax lyrical about our favourite musicals. Part two here.
Will Media Be The Death Of Us? – Samantha and I delve into the debate around violence in film.
In closing, I want to say a huge thank you to all my readers. Thank you for supporting me by buying (and reviewing) my books this year. I hope you enjoyed them. I will be revealing my plans for 2021 on New Year’s Day, so watch this space.
Simon Dillon Books 
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