Writing looks like a solo pursuit on the surface, but I firmly believe that the true purpose of writing is to be shared, to be read, to be heard.

An act of seeming self-absorption in the present which turns out to be a gesture of generosity towards others in the near and far future. Months or years spent privately stockpiling a larder, only to eventually throw the doors open and invite everyone to help themselves to your goodies.

While I won’t be rushing to upload entire first drafts of new novels before I’ve had the time to get them reader-ready or the chance to get them published, there’s no good reason for me not to pop samples of my older work on here, including a mixture of fiction and non-fiction pieces.

I’ll periodically refresh this little library with fresh material — and in the meantime, I hope you enjoy what’s on view here now!

Fiction

  • The First Two Deaths On Mars

    It's not a foregone conclusion that anyone will reach the Red Planet in my lifetime, but it's fair to say it won't end well for some of the brave (or foolish) souls who make the trip.

  • Shocking The Mycelium

    The cruelty-free, carbon impact-reducing vision of a fungus-flavoured future is all very well — but those mushrooms aren't going to pick themselves, are they?

  • The 25-Hour Day

    We've all said we'd do anything to have a bit more time at our disposal — but if we suddenly had it, would we know what to do with it, or what the consequences might be?

  • The Index

    All that (supposedly) remains of the (non-existent) biography of an enigmatic (fictional) woman and her (entirely made-up) encounters with a parade of (factual) famous figures.

  • Upward Growth, Downward Death

    Where laws of robotics come into conflict with utter dedication to horticulture, and the irrepressible urge to garden overrides any other directives about preserving human life.

  • Children Shouldn’t Be Allowed To Play With Typewriters

    A story inspired by the unbearable clack of heavy little hands on antique keys and the angry bafflement of digital minds colliding with the relics of analogue culture.

  • The Tell-Tale Carp

    I’d never seriously believed in ghosts, but I also used to like podcasts where painfully ordinary people insisted their lives had been touched by the paranormal.

Non-Fiction