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Illusion of a Boar on a pale background with a woven wicker heart. Cover of Illusion of a Boar: Two silhouetted men and women standing at a table, on a ground of deep gold with an astrological chart behind them.

In Character: Orion Sisley

August 7, 2024 / In Character

A look at Orion Sisley and what made him the man he becomes.

As The Ground Shifts, Eclipse, Illusion of a Boar, Three Graces

Silent Circuit displayed on a tablet on a table with dried lavender and other flowers. The cover has a silhouetted man and woman in Victorian dress face each other. He is holding a book open for her, as her hand moves to turn a page. They’re on a background of green damask with green pipes, a streak of lightning behind them. A bee is inset on top of a gear in the top left.

Cover Design: Mysterious Fields

July 17, 2024 / Writing and publishing

A look at the cover design for the Victorian era Mysterious Fields trilogy: Enchanted Net, Silent Circuit, and Elemental Truth.

Elemental Truth, Enchanted Net, Mysterious Fields, Silent Circuit

The cover of Three Graces has three women in silhouette, two standing and one sitting, her hand resting on a cane. All three are wearing clothes from during the Second World War, against a deep brown cover with a map. An astrology chart to the back left has the Moon and Venus picked out in brighter gold.

Cover design : Land Mysteries

July 3, 2024 / Land Mysteries, Writing and publishing

Let’s explore the cover design for the Land Mysteries series – with a look at some hidden elements you might not have noticed!

Best Foot Forward, Illusion of a Boar, Nocturnal Quarry, Old As The Hills, The Magic of Four, Three Graces, Upon A Summer's Day

Cover of Weaving Hope on a tablet: A man and woman in 1920s informal clothing are silhouetted on a bright pink background shading to purple. She is holding out a length of cloth to him, showing him something, with phlox flowers inset in the upper right corner. The tablet is lying on a garden path with greenery and small flowers.

Cover design : Mysterious Arts

June 26, 2024 / Writing and publishing

The cover design for the Mysterious Arts books (through Facets of the Bench).

Bound for Perdition, Facets of the Bench, Perfect Accord, Shoemaker's Wife

Cover of Best Foot Forward displayed on a tablet, with a palm leaf, on a golden yellow background. The cover has a deep red background with map markings in a dull purple. Two men in silhouette stand, looking up at a point in the top left. An astrology chart with different symbols picked out takes up the left side of the image, with glowing stars curving up to the title.

Happy Pride! LGBTQIA+ Books

June 12, 2024 / Albion, Reading

A look at LGBTQIA+ books and characters as of June 2024.

Ancient Trust, Best Foot Forward, Casting Nasturtiums, Complementary, Four Walls and a Heart, Goblin Fruit, On The Bias, Point By Point, Seven Sisters, The Fossil Door

Grown Wise: A silhouetted man and woman in 1940s clothes, walking together as he reaches for a branch full of apples. The background is a muted green and brown, scattered with a swoosh of golden light. Shown on a wooden table with a mug of tea.

What’s after The Land Mysteries

May 29, 2024 / Writing and publishing

What made me want to write the Land Mysteries series, and what’s coming next.

As The Ground Shifts, Best Foot Forward, Illusion of a Boar, Nocturnal Quarry, Old As The Hills, The Magic of Four, Three Graces, Upon A Summer's Day

Cover of The Magic of Four on a tumble of smoothed rocks. Four students in silhouette on a blue background of a map off the west coast of Wales. Three stand around a table, the fourth is perched on the near corner, leaning forward and gesturing.

Idea to Book: The Magic of Four

May 15, 2024 / Ideas to books, Land Mysteries

Find out the ideas behind The Magic of Four: a love of classic school stories, exploring a second generation of characters, Schola and her magic. And oh, yes. Horses.

Best Foot Forward, Casting Nasturtiums, Chasing Legends, Eclipse, Goblin Fruit, Old As The Hills, Outcrossing, Pastiche, The Magic of Four, Wards of the Roses

Copy of On The Bias lying on a bouquet of early summer flowers, with tea and honey nearby, in shades of pinks and pastel greens.

In Character: Thomas Benton

May 8, 2024 / In Character

Thomas Benton likes to be quietly in the background. Here’s a look at his life, from his early service in a country house, through the Great War, and his life after, entwined with the Carillons.

Ancient Trust, Best Foot Forward, Bound for Perdition, Carillon Family, On The Bias, The Magic of Four

Cover of Perfect Accord: a man and woman in 1920s dress silhouetted on the cover: she is testing perfume he just handed her on her wrist.

Idea to Book : Perfect Accord

May 1, 2024 / Ideas to books

A look behind the ideas that led to Perfect Accord: alchemical perfumes, Charlotte Edgarton’s story, and the question of cults (with some extremely bad Arthuriana trappings).

Perfect Accord

Old As The Hills displayed on a tablet, in a stone arch with a glowing purple night sky behind it. The cover of Old As The Hills has a man with a can and a woman silhouetted on a green ground with a map. She holds out her hand, he is putting something into it, forming a doorway between them. An astrological chart behind them shows the symbols for Venus, the Sun, Jupiter, and Saturn highlighted behind a splash of glowing stars.

Neurodiversity in my books

April 17, 2024 / In Character, Questions and answers

A guide to neurodiverse characters in my books, as of 2024. (Check out the grid early in the post for the current complete list.)

Ancient Trust, Best Foot Forward, Bound for Perdition, Casting Nasturtiums, Complementary, Eclipse, Illusion of a Boar, Old As The Hills, On The Bias, Pastiche, Perfect Accord, Seven Sisters, Shoemaker's Wife, The Fossil Door, The Magic of Four, Three Graces, Upon A Summer's Day

Shoemaker's Wife against a purple twilight sky with stars and silhouetted grass. The cover of Shoemaker's Wife has a man and woman in silhouette on a vibrant background of green shading through blue to purple. The woman is standing on one foot with one hand in the air, lifting the other and looking over her shoulder at the shoe while the man looks on. A purple 1920s shoe with a big blue ribbon bow is inset in the top right corner.

Idea to Book: Shoemaker’s Wife

April 10, 2024 / Ideas to books

The ideas behind Shoemaker’s Wife: returning from the Great War, theatre in Albion, and making connections in Trellech.

Shoemaker's Wife

Four Walls and a Heart lying on a table with autumn gourds. The cover is a deep red, with a man in a wheelchair and a man standing, both in silhouette, in front of a large blue and glass door.

Architecture and magic

April 3, 2024 / Albion

What is architectural magic like in Albion? This post takes a look at some of the theory and practice, including how it affects the demesne estates and land magic.

Eclipse, Four Walls and a Heart, Pastiche, Upon A Summer's Day

A copy of Bound for Perdition standing upright next to a stack of leather bound books and a pocketwatch. The cover of Bound for Perdition has a man and woman silhouetted in dark brown on a green and brown background, with the woman holding a book while the man gestures. An open blank book and pen are inset in the top right corner.

Idea to Book: Bound for Perdition

March 27, 2024 / Ideas to books

Dive into the ideas that led to Bound for Perdition: Albion’s magical journals and bookbinding, Temple and Delphina Carillon, and the consequences of new technology.

Bound for Perdition

Idea to Book: Three Graces

March 20, 2024 / Ideas to books

Learn about the ideas behind Three Graces: a longstanding mystery about Temple Carillon, three women with different skills, and moving forward in the aftermath of the second world war.

Ancient Trust, Three Graces

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