De-blog

A while back, Hans Hirschi sent me a set of questions about my ongoing series, Hiding Behind The Couch . He used snippets from it in his review of A Midnight Clear , but, of course, I write long. I thought I’d share the rest of my responses, as they offer insight into where the series came from, my favourite character(s), the best order to read, and so on. So, without further ado… What is Hiding Behind The Couch? Hiding Behind The Couch is the ongoing story of nine friends from high school/university and the important people in their lives. The stories are about life, so there’s love and romance, births, deaths, marriages, murder, industrial espionage, accidents, affairs, successes, failures – it’s a fictional micro-social study, and it’s inclusive. People are people, and I don’t distinguish by superficial differences, but to clarify, there are LGBTQ and heterosexual characters, as well as characters from some of the different ethnic groups that make up the rich culture of...

So, I'm home, I've had some sleep, and damn, it was good! I hadn't slept properly for at least a week (probably months), and my brain, not entirely convinced it was exhausted, had to give it one last hurrah at bedtime. I snuggled under the duvet, light off, Kindle in hand - I managed to read about four lines before I somehow fumbled my Kindle onto the bedside table and zzzz. Seven hours later... It's a glorious spring morning in North-West England. Blue sky, leaf buds, a crisp frost glistening in the pale yet radiant sun. My mission for today: to keep my thoughts clutter-free. See, I've been having some problems with that. Since Christmas, I've been writing on various instalments of Hiding Behind The Couch , alongside my other work of teaching social science, editing and publishing. There's nothing new there; I operate in a state of constant mental activity, bordering on hypomanic, and I'm happy that way. If I ever watch TV or movies, they need...

Spanish Bay by Hans M Hirschi Spanish Bay by Hans M Hirschi Published by Beaten Track Publishing Genres: Romance, LGBT Cover Design: Natasha Snow 196 pages   Release Date: October 10, 2015 Synopsis Spanish Bay is a feel-good novel about two young men who, despite having the odds stacked against them, never give up, always see the silver lining, work hard, and are committed to their families, come what may. Chris, a Texan native who recently moved to Carmel, rescues wheelchair-bound Neil from bullies. Neither question the love that develops between them, although their life together is not without challenges. When Chris’s parents die in a car accident, their young love faces the ultimate test. Will they be able to cope with the additional responsibility of raising Chris’s baby brother Frank, who is also confined to a wheelchair? Spanish Bay is about love overcoming obstacles, and finding happiness, wherever you are. * * * * * Check out th...