Jack Green: Blog

I have received the final chapter of my latest story back from my editor Old Rotorhead. Once again my prosaic prose has been burnished by ORH's professional polish. The tale is entitled '15 Days' and is set in contemporary, pre Covid 19, times in the East Anglia region of the UK.

I intend posting four chapters a week; two on a Thursday and two on a Sunday, beginning on Thursday 10th September. There are 27 chapters, just short of 150,000 words.

Regards
Jack G

To me the pleasure of writing fiction is creating characters and then putting them through the wringer of life, or at least through the wringer of the life I have constructed for them. I create the characters, the world they inhabit and how they live their lives, and can on a whim write them off.
If that isn't megalomania what is?

In the world I create 'the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all,' to coin a phrase or two.

This pretentious preamble is to warn those of a nervous disposition that I have a new story ready for editing before being loosed on Sol. It is something of a change of subject for me as it is in a contemporary, pre- COVID 19, setting and is a crime themed romance, located in East Anglia, with various bits and bobs of stuff that interests me, but maybe not everyone, bolted on.

It is strange how a story comes about, well at least how my stories come about. The current one started with the title for the first chapter, an ending sentence for the last chapter, and the words of a 1940's popular song running through what passes for a brain in my head.
From tiny acorns do mighty oak trees grow. Although this story is not about arboriculture and it is not mighty, although 'Mighty' does make a showing.

Best regards
Jack G

Many thanks to all those readers who commented/emailed me during the run of the Poacher series. Writers thrive on feedback and I am truly grateful that so many took the time and effort to contact me.

A couple of readers suggested my 'reuse of Tarzan movies' could have come from a scene in a Tarzan and/or Bomba the Jungle Boy film, depicting an execution by being torn in half by trees. I may have seen that particular film at the 'Fleapit' in Portobello Road, but I am talking mega years ago, and I have trouble remembering what I saw on telly last night. It's more likely that the tree thing, the impaling, and the elephant thing were filched from GMF's Flashman books!

It is ten days since the final chapter of Poacher's Progress was posted on Sol and as forecast, I have done sweet FA. I discovered I have no head for heights, which put the mockers on sky diving and bungee jumping. Bog snorkelling will have to wait until rivers recede and fields become boggy rather than six feet underwater. Wicker bottomed chair repairing has ruined my nails, and that too has been given the elbow. So, to keep me from turning into a bloated mass of rank unwieldy woe there's nothing for it but to go back to writing. Not immediately, but I'm turning a few ideas over in my head.
Definitely no more sagas like 'Poacher's Progress' or 'Over the Hills and Faraway'. I am of an age when every new day is a bonus, to devote years to a project would be tempting fate.

I have a title for the first chapter of a story and the final sentence of the last chapter; all that is needed now is the bit in the middle.

Regards

Jack

Dun and Dusted is done and dusted. and with it the end of Poacher's Progress. A big thank you to the readers who stuck with the story from start to finish(gluttons for punishment).

Several readers bailed out in Book 1 when my use of 'proper' names for some of my characters 'took them out of the story'. Another blamed the behaviour of some of my characters in Book 3 for his reason for leaving. 'He/she wouldn't have done/said that'.
Most of the bailer-outers found Book 7 a story too far.'You seem to have lost the plot and are casting around to find an ending' or 'I don't find how Roman roads were constructed particularly interesting' to quote some of the reasons given for quitting.
All are valid reasons for slamming a book shut before the end and I thank them for sharing their opinions.

The last person to give the series the big e, or at least the last person with the courtesy to tell me why he left off reading any more of my stuff, did puzzle me. I quote. 'Well unfortunately my journey ends here. You have been going over the top for a while now but when you begin to reuse old Tarzan movies scenes, I'm finished. It was good while it lasted.'
I did reply to his email, asking which scenes he was referring to, as I am not too well up on Tarzan films other than some old Johnny Weissmuller ones where he swung through the jungle on a vine and rode on an elephant.
My story had none of the above and I wondered how I had managed to plagiarise Edgar Rice Burroughs with out realising it.

To date I've had no reply to my request so I throw the question open to a wider audience.
Where in 'Dun and Dusted Part 3' did I 'reuse old Tarzan movies scenes'?

So what happens next on Jack Green's writing extravaganza?
In the short term -- possibly longer - Sweet FA. Since being bitten by the writing bug nearly ten years ago pecking away at a keyboard has been my life. I think I have finally broken the addiction and am finally able to sample other experiences. I've never tried sky diving or bungy jumping, bog snorkelling or wicker bottomed chair repairing.

Freed from the curse of writing the world is now my lobster.

regards

Jack

Assuming I have completed the submission wizard correctly Dun and Dusted Part 3 will begin posting on January 6th. The posting schedule will be four chapter a week; one on a Monday, two on a Wednesday and one on a Saturday. There are 22 chapters and I leave it to the mathematicians among you to work out when the final chapter will be posted.
Once again Oldrototrhead has done his magic of turning a frog into a Prince, or at least a baronet, and any errors encountered are down to me and Grammarly, but mostly me.

I apologise for the change in posting date. I beat Boris to the punch as I thought my reader would prefer to see the story start posting at the beginning of the month rather than at the back end.

Regards
Jack G