Lost in the Weeds - again!

 Hi Guys,

Just a brief note to let you know where I am these days and why I haven't posted anything for a while. And I think the title about sums it up. As you know I recently put out Freaksville, and was extremely happy to have finally got it finished after more than a year of procrastination. But after that I found myself losing focus for a time and ended up watching masses of Youtube and various telly shows. Some old ones but also some brand new.

By the way for those of you into quirky and sort of detectivy, I can't recommend the shows Deadlock and Population 11 highly enough. I don't know what is happening on the other side of the ditch, but the Australians really seem to be excelling with their offbeat characters and plots. Damn, I just wish I could write characters that completely and so hilariously off the wall! I mean years ago they put out films like Malcolm, Strictly Ballroom and Garbo, but lately they've been taking things to a whole new level. I love it!

Other than that, I've been sort of blocked in my writing, sitting at my desk and wondering how the orange trees outside the window can be fruiting when we're just starting winter, and the overnight temperature drops to damn near freezing. Most people keep telling me that oranges shouldn't grow in this climate at all! But I figure since I've also got lemons and grapefruit in my back yard, my back yard must be some sort of tropical micro-climate. Or magical!

The good news is that I'm nearly through the first draft of an urban sci fi - Good Neighbours - the story of a typical New Zealand Vet beset by aliens. The bad news is that I'm blocked again. For some reason this whole book has been like that. I write a chapter or two and then can't think where I go from there. It's like pulling teeth as they say and a lot of coffee has been drunk, a lot of swear words muttered! On the positive side I can't pull my hair out since I got stuck in with the trimmer a few weeks ago and there isn't anything long enough left to get a good solid grip on!

Anyway, that's been my life lately, that and trying to explain to the cat that no she wasn't born in a glass factory and I can't see through her when she decides to deposit herself in front of the monitor, and the reason it's been a while since I've posted. But I hope to have some better news by the next post. And in the meantime, enjoy the alien duck!

Cheers, Greg.

Finally Freaksville!

 Hi Guys,

Yes - it has finally happened! After an entire year of failed promises, Freaksville has finally gone to Amazon! And I can't even begin to tell you how happy I am! (Or is that relieved?)

The book as you know has been a struggle. I've written and re-written it so many times that I can't even remember what it looked like at the start. There have been multiple attempts at a cover - I'm really pleased with the one that I finally got out of Deep Dream. And the blurb actually had me pulling my hair out!

But it's finally done. A 136 K of science fiction, genetic engineering and urban fantasy, all set in the fictional town of Freaksville (Arundale) where witches do battle with one another in the streets and humans stay clear of them if they know what's good for them! Where the mist rises and falls and people arrive and leave. And of course where there are soldiers patrolling the streets, making sure no one escapes the quarantine zone. Meanwhile on the horizon there are sea monsters and six legged cats and battle!

And standing in the middle of it are Frank Fischer - a mechanical engineer trapped in the town - and Rina Crofter, a faerie and orchardist from the other side of the mist. And as their romance blossoms, while all around chaos rages and war looms, the conflicting plans of all the different factions slowly come into focus.

Anyway it's written and my eyeballs are trying to burn their way out of their sockets. Most of all I need coffee. And so I wish you all a great time and hope you enjoy the book.

And of course, be good or don't get caught!

Cheers, Greg.

A Busy Couple Of Months!

 Hi Guys,

Blurb:

Brian had too many problems in his life. Living the life of someone in witness protection was never easy. The rules were hard. Never tell anyone your true name. Never engage in personal relationships – they were a trap. And never forget who you were supposed to be. And he always followed the rules. Or he had. But after fifteen years in hiding, things were starting to slip. He was forming personal attachments. There was a girl he liked. And some days he almost forgot he was in hiding!

Then his family, the people he had put away for life, got out of jail!

Medea wasn't finding the life of a constable with the Fijian Police Force that easy either. Constable it turned out, was another term for dogsbody. The detectives treated her like a slave. Her bosses screamed at her. And there was absolutely no respect! Still she put up with it.

But when somebody started murdering tourists on the island and leaving body parts everywhere, their real problems began!

Blurb:

Having a gift was cool. Magic was cool. Krys loved it. He loved being a druid. But he didn't love everything else that came with it. Like being a member of the Assembly. Having to attend the monthly forums. Being bossed around by the watchers. And never being able to reveal his true nature to anyone.

Callista held similar views. Especially after the watchers had not only demanded all of those things of her, but had stolen her money and her mansion as well! They'd forced her into the life of an indentured servant! And now they seemed to actually want to make her into a watcher! All because of a little bit of fraud! Honestly the normals would never have found out about it!

It just wasn't fair!

Then one day a teenage boy started flying around New York, and none of that mattered. The only thing that did matter was keeping their secret lives, secret! Before the witch burnings began!

Sorry it's been a while since my last post. But I have been a little bit engrossed in my writing. And now I have two books out to show for it. (Covers and blurbs above!) So not a terrible start to the year. And hopefully there'll be a few more out in the not-too-distant future as well. And yes, Freaksville is on that list, currently going through its third edit.

The covers as usual are the creations of Deep Dream (all hail our AI overlords!) with me just adding a few tweaks and titles etc. And I have to say that while it's a frustrating program, often spewing out results that don't resemble anything like what I asked for, when it gets things right it gets them even better than I could have hoped for!

Anyway, I'm proud of these two books, and busy, losing myself in writing several others as usual. But I will try to update my blog more often in the future (and hopefully apologize less for my failures in doing so as well!

Hope you're all enjoying this new year, and I wish you all the best.

Cheers, Greg.

Hobson's Choice

 Hi Guys,

Well yes, it's finally happened! I've put out another book - Hobson's Choice - which is my third detective novel, though not related to either The Keeper or Alone In The Dark. 

As well as a simple detective / police procedural work, it also delves into the spy genre as well. So as well as the basic whodunit plot lines, it also has the more paranoia / suspense plot lines of who's trying to kill me and who have I actually been working for for all these years? There's also a bit of old school spycraft that I remember seeing on shows like Mission Impossible as a kid. And for those who like it, I set the book in Bora Bora. (Yes, I admit it, I do like Death in Paradise - even if it's a different mythical island.)

Also don't ask me what happened to the dagger. I had an image of a dagger covered in black rose petals in my head and Deep Dream had a different one in its! But I still think it's a great image, even if it's not quite right.

Of course as usual, while I was finishing off Hobson's choice, I was also starting two more books, so my timetable for other books has been thrown off a little - but what else is new?

In the meantime, Here's the blurb for Hobson's Choice:

 

One Crime – Two Choices

James Hobson is a copper. A British detective, retired on medical grounds and living in the French Pacific. And life is good. Until a gang of armed robbers raid the Sandstone Resort and kill and injure dozens of his neighbours. After that he has only one choice – to be a copper again. He can't allow such horrible brutality go unanswered. Not on Bora Bora.

Sarah Goldman is a spy. A cleaner for the Agency. And she has covered up the gang's tracks. But after having been there during the raid and seen what they did – can she still be that woman? Will she ever forgive herself?! Then again, can she quit? Or will the Agency kill her first?!

Until she can make that choice however, she has one job to do. To stop Hobson from investigating the crime! If she fails – her tropical vacation will become her funeral!

And here, hopefully, if something is working, is the link:

https://www.amazon.com/Hobsons-Choice-Greg-Curtis-ebook/dp/B0CJQ5HY7W?ref_=ast_author_mpb

Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy the book, and of course keep yourselves safe and don't get caught!

Cheers, Greg.

Enjoying Some Down Time - On The Couch!!!

 Hi Guys,

Been a little while since I posted anything - mostly because I put my back out about three weeks ago and haven't been able to do much in the way of sitting, standing or walking since then. It's no fun having a back that goes out more often that you do!

However the good news is that I have been writing - lying on a couch and tapping away on my laptop which my back seems to be okay with. And I expect my next book should be out shortly. It's another detective - Hobson's Choice - which I'm just finishing off now. 

 Mostly what I'm doing is tweaking the dialogue of one of the characters who is Tahitian and likes to mangle not just the English language but French as well. You'd think this would be easy for me as after two years of failing to learn French at college, my French teacher was glad to see the back of me. But it seems that in order to mangle French properly you should probably know how to speak it first! (I think it may be a little bit late for that in my case!)

I've also picked up a couple of words of Tahitian as well writing this, but I keep wondering when I read the correct pronunciations of the words, whether I should try writing them phonetically. Because the way they're written doesn't match at all with they way they're said!

Other than that the book is basically finished, and two others, Druid and Freaksville, are in the editing process, so hopefully won't be that far away - if I can ever stop starting new books!

Anyway that's my life at the moment. Hope things are doing better with you guys.

Cheers, Greg.