2024 was the year I turned my passion for storytelling into a series of accomplishments I never imagined possible.

The Year in Review

This past year, 2024, has been a journey of focusing on my lifelong passion: writing. Before 2023, however, this had only ever been something I would do for myself, share with myself. 

After 2023, when I finally took the plunge and self-published my first novella, First Name Only, I've been working whenever time has allowed to improve my craft and continue to create new worlds, stories, and scenarios. 

At the start of this year, I told myself that my primary personal focus should be on improvements here, which would allow me to get more stories out there and better understand the new world I wanted to be in. 

This year has been successful in many ways, but it's always nice to sit back and see how far you've come. Regardless of progress, it is always worth recognising the achievements, problems, solutions, and failures. 

Protect Me Lord

I published Protect Me Lord, the second book in the Eldenhaven series, at the beginning of this year. It was a story I started working on soon after completing Forgive Me Lord. 

It follows the same villain but with a new set of protagonists a handful of years later. Both stories should show parallels as they are two stories in which the main characters—Nathan in Protect Me Lord and Oliver in Forgive Me Lord—are plunged into a new world, opening their eyes to the dangers that have always been out there but hidden right under their noses. 

I was extremely pleased when this book was completed, as it was a story that I felt I wrote well—at least better than my previous stories. It was a marked improvement, and I could see that I had found a better writing rhythm. 

 

Gough Collection: 10 Short Stories

After completing Protect Me Lord, I didn't know what story I wanted to tell next. I had thousands of ideas rattling around in my brain, and when I thought I had one to stick to, my brain said, "Nope!" and I was back to starting a new outline for another story. 

This continued for some time before I gave in and started getting words on a Google Doc. Eventually, I was left with a few short stories. This led me to keep going, creating short story after short story until I had 10. 

 

The Girl in the Forest

While writing one of the short stories for Gough Collection: 10 Short Stories, I found a story which fit perfectly for a sequel to my first published book, First Name Only. 

Following the aftermath of events, The Girl in the Forest focuses on Christopher Watkins and how he copes with the world he has been opened up to. 

We learn how he has struggled to remain in everyday society and that the search for Harry continues, haunted by the failure he feels from not being a resolution to this case. I won't go any further into this, but if you want to know more, I hope you'll pick up a copy and give it a read. 

This story felt like a massive achievement to me. Firstly, I wrote this and outlined it using a new method, which helped me excel in my story and keep me on track and writing. Secondly, I felt outstanding achievement when it reached number two in Amazon's Best Sellers 90-Minute Short Reads Category. 



Nine Choices Nine Lives

This one just came to me at work; I'm not sure why. But the main question I asked myself was: "What would happen if you woke up and were not where you thought you should be?"

Initially, I planned for it to be a short story, but as I began to outline the plot structure, I found areas where I could expand, ultimately allowing for a larger story. 

Although judging by the Amazon metrics, this book hasn't done well compared to my other works, and this is the story I love the most. 

All the twists and turns, especially while writing, were entertaining to work on. 

 

Forest Through the Trees

After reviewing the stories I had created, I found that most, but not all, were available through Amazon. However, there were a few that, if you were only an Amazon reader of mine, you wouldn't be able to obtain, which gave me the idea to combine all my currently published works into a single book. 

That is where Forest Through the Trees came alive. I'm also pleased with the name I created for this book. 

If you haven't read my stories yet and want to start, Forest Through the Trees may be the perfect purchase!

 

Keep Updated

Want to stay updated on my latest stories and projects? Follow me on X (formerly Twitter), where I share behind-the-scenes glimpses of my writing journey.

 

Where to Buy My Books

 

Onto The Next One!

I'm immensely proud of where my writing has taken me since 2023, and I have no plans to stop anytime soon. However, there is a need for change; without change, there would never be progress.

In 2025, I aim to continue crafting stories but make a marked improvement. I'm going to do this by focusing on one story. I'll have more information about this story in the following months. 

But 2025 is not just a year I want to focus on writing. I also want to make sure I don't fall behind and get lost in the crowd when it comes to my main passion: programming. 

As a web developer at heart, I want to focus more on this, which is why you may have noticed my website has been updated to highlight and promote my books and share, create, and teach. 

As I step into 2025, I’m excited to explore new stories, embrace challenges, and grow as a writer and developer. Let’s make it a year to remember! I hope you all have an excellent 2025, and I hope you all continue to succeed along the way.