Starting out.
It feels like a new beginning. Like I’m starting out on my self-publishing journey. This isn’t exactly my first rodeo, though.
A decade ago, I finished my first full novel, Philip Grossman is Better Than You. I was almost completely blind to what the world of publishing entailed - not to mention the fact that I was rather inexperienced as a writer in those days. But youth brings unwarranted confidence with it, so at the age of 24, I shoved an unedited, poorly written manuscript out into the world as a Kindle e-book. If you were one of the thirty or so people who downloaded a copy, thank you.
As it stands, I do think that Philip Grossman is a good story. What it needs is the decade-older version of me - the James who’s spent eight years as a writer and editor professionally - to take another look and do it justice. Watch this space.
I’ve written other stories in the time since Philip Grossman entered the Amazon, mostly for my own amusement, although I did share one manuscript with a few friends to get their thoughts. It’s a coming-of-age story, written in the first person, about growing up in the 2000s and entering adulthood in the 2010s. I called it Make It Rain Man and feedback from friends who gave it a read was mixed. There’s a chance it also makes it out into the world someday, but I think another edit is in order first.
Around the time I was finishing Make It Rain Man, our second son arrived. This was five or six months into the pandemic and parenthood this time around was both more and less intense than the first time. Less intense in that our lives weren’t completely altered the way they were when our eldest came along, but moreso in that there was no respite from life with a newborn due to the ongoing lockdowns (anyone remember being in Tier 4 for Christmas?) as there was nowhere to go to get out of the house on a rainy day (although we persisted with this, forcing the pram down some muddy National Trust pathways) and nobody could visit and hold the little chap for a few minutes.
Looking at it from a more positive angle, I’m grateful for the extra time I got to spend with our littlest guy. Working from home certainly brings its benefits to newly minted parents and I found being up with the baby at all hours a lot less stressful in the knowledge that there was no alarm set.
It was during the early - some might say, obscene - hours one morning that a new idea popped into my head. I’d sit downstairs on the sofa with the little guy in my arms and watch old movies and shows that I’d not seen for a while, such as the Harry Potter films, Rick and Morty, and Austin Powers. On my way downstairs, at about 3am, to resume whichever of these I was in the middle of watching that week, the idea came to me out of the blue, uninvited in the dark. I dared not turn on the lights during these early morning movie sessions, for fear of the baby thinking the day was starting.
I stood there, baby in arm, allowing the idea to sink in. Unlike most ideas, which provide a dim view of what might lie ahead if you just move forward and look for it, this one came almost fully formed. Like a brand new, bright bulb shining above my head. My mind raced to piece it all together and commit it to memory. I’ve had what I’ve thought were good ideas at night before, only for them to have disappeared by the time morning arrives, turned to dust by Thanos or some similar source.
Immediately, I knew who most of the main characters were: Hip Harrison, Judas, Mr Montgomery, Sovereign Noble. Ivy Jane wasn’t there yet - she would turn up unexpectedly during the writing process and steer the course of the story rather dramatically. These are the key players in the Galactic Wrestling Federation.
I’ve been a wrestling fan since I was a kid. I’m probably too old to grow out of it now, but what I love is the unique storytelling, which often blurs the lines between fact and fiction, and the larger-than-life characters. I’d also wanted to write a wrestling story years ago, but each time I started, it felt forced. I hadn’t allowed the story to come to me. This, on the other hand, had found me and let me know immediately what the solution was to something that had nagged me in the past. The question I’d asked myself was: how do you tread the line between reality and showtime, work and shoot, true life and kayfabe? The answer was simple - in space, nobody can hear you scream and pro wrestling is real.
But why is there wrestling in space?
Because Earth’s broadcast transmissions have travelled across the universe and been intercepted by beings in another galaxy. And, of course, they are true believers when it comes to what goes on inside the squared circle.
It’s been a few years now and the first installment of Galactic WF has been written, edited, and produced. It’s almost time for my new baby to enter the world - in paperback and ebook formats, on 21st November.
The ebook can be pre-ordered now on Kindle.
The paperback will be available on Amazon and from all major bookstores on release day.