Well it has certainly been a while since I’ve done one of these!

I’ve been working on a whole manner of things since last time I posted anything here. The Precinct Zero novelisation, Human Cargo, a lycan/vampyr project that is as yet untitled. That’s what I’m on currently, and have been focused on for the last few weeks.

I took a two week break as the kids were off school. It’s hard to get out for a write when they’re on holiday, which is fine. More time with them is always a bonus. We’re now solidly into a Saturday Morning Swim ‘n’ Breakfast combo outing. Hitting the Dunfermline Leisure Centre for 9am if I can help it, so we can get at least an hour in before it starts getting busier. Then we wander across into town for a Bob and Bert’s, which usually consists of pancakes and smoothies. Then a little peruse at our usual places, B&M, Waterstones and HMV.

Then we swing by the store for snacks and junk for a Movie Night before it’s home for either Fortnite or Roblox.

Now they’re back at school I’m getting into a rhythm. Back to the coffee shop for a little breakfast and I’m aiming for an hour to an hour and a half of writing before I amble back towards the car. Sometimes picking up lunch and another coffee, or stocking up on cheap energy drinks for work. Or more movies I’ll not watch for six months. I already have a sizeable backlog.

It had dawned on me that a chapter or two of any one of my current WIPs would make for suitable Halloween Reading, but unfortunately I think my feeble brain stumbled on that blatant nugget of wisdom a little too late to work with.

But what have you been working on, today, Chris? I imagine you asking, with enthusiasm!

Well! Today, I have been working on, I reply, equally enthusiastically, if not more so because I am actually doing it and the question was imaginary, the ‘origin’ chapter of our soon-to-be Vampyr Hunter!

I’m not very enthusiastic about using the word ‘origin.’ Though that is really what it is. The Priest is his current name as I have yet to name him officially. He will turn up a length through the Lycan story, but I wanted to dig deeper into him as a character as you don’t just wake up one day and become a vampyr hunter, do you. It may make the whole thing more interesting to suggest that he is not even a real priest. I’m also choosing to use vampyr instead of vampire, much like I’m going with lycan over werewolf.

I do enjoy my sits in the mornings, and I get to whip out one of the fountain pens from my growing collection. It was not all that long ago that I thought a pen was just a pen. But how so very quickly I learned that this is not the case! I mean it is, but why limit yourself to just one? Why have a plain old boring pen when you can have a yellow one and a red one and a rollerball version so it doesn’t leak when you fly and a copper one and a blue one and one you drove four hours to make yourself and another one you made yourself because they actually had two different ones, all with various nibs and then there’s the inks that come in way too many colours and it’s hard to choose which ones and it’s all quite addictive when you get started.

They are predominantly LAMY AL-Stars (with a couple plastic versions, The Safari) and Kaweco Sports which are interestingly both German brands, made about 3 hours from each other.

I have been note-taking concerning this chap’s origin and have finally begun to feel it coming into focus. We’re at a greasy spoon cafe in the morning amongst the early brewings of a storm. Dark clouds and cold rain stuttering and swirling through gusts of a growing wind.

An invitation of a cash-in-hand opportunity. An hour at most, he says. A stake and Holy water, a crumbling warehouse. Smashed glass, shrieking. Blood pooling on concrete.

The Priest tried the front door. It creaked as he pushed it, the only resistance came from the aging hinges. The Kid’s grip on the stake tightened, his hands turning white. His eyes darted from shadow to shadow, scanning for any signs of life or movement.

That’s all for now, but there are chapters of all the mentioned projects here on the website, so please do take a look around!