Advertise on podcast: Jon Cronshaw's Author Diary - The Real Life of an Indie Author | Writing | Publishing | Disability

This week, I’ve been making more progress on my strange little LitRPG side project. I still don’t quite know what I’m going to do with it, but I’m having far too much fun with it to stop. I’ve also returned to Seeker’s Reckoning, the third standalone novel in the Ravenglass Guardians series. I’m around 25% into the draft now. This one has a very different feel from the previous books, combining archaeological thriller, jungle adventure and eldritch horror in the Ravenglass Universe. I also talk about adjusting to life without my retired guide dog Digit and what it’s been like suddenly losing that constant companion from my day-to-day routine. On the reading side, I’m currently on the third Discount Dan’s Backroom Bargains book. It’s a wonderfully fun series, although at this point I’m starting to suspect it’s deliberately trolling me with all the emotional dog stuff. Plus, the usual thoughts on writing, reading and life as an indie author.

This week, I finished the first drafts of both Wyvern Academy and The Waywarden, which means two more projects are now moving on to their next stages. I’ve also started playing around with a completely different side project, a slightly wacky LitRPG set in Britain. I’m not quite sure what I’m going to do with it yet, but it’s been a fun palate cleanser between other projects and a chance to write something very different. There’s also a much more personal update this week. Tomorrow, I’ll be saying goodbye to my guide dog Digit. He’s now retired and is being rehomed after being my constant companion since January 2018. He’ll be hugely missed, and I talk a little about what it means to reach the end of our time working together. After that, I’ll be waiting to be matched with my next guide dog.

This week, I finished Seven of Swords and sent the completed draft off to my editor. With that one done, I’ve started work on a new novella set in the Ravenglass Universe called The Waywarden. It’s a nobledark ranger story set on the border between Ostreich and Molotok, and I talk about the story and its place in the wider world. I also did something completely different this week. I went gliding in an unpowered aircraft with Galloway’s, a local charity supporting blind and visually impaired people. It was a fantastic experience, and I talk about what it was like getting up into the air without an engine. Plus, the usual thoughts on writing, storytelling and life as an indie author.

I’ve been feeling a bit under the weather this week, so writing has been slower than usual, but I’ve still made progress on both Seven of Swords and Wyvern Academy. Away from the writing, there’s a much bigger change coming. My guide dog’s retirement is now imminent, and he’ll be rehomed early next month. I talk about preparing for that goodbye and what the next few weeks are likely to look like. I also had my assessment for a new guide dog on Wednesday. The process is moving forward, but it sounds as though I could be without a dog for a while before the right match comes along.

This week, I’m around 30% of the way through the first draft of Seven of Swords and talk about how the story is progressing as I get deeper into the book. I’ve also spent some more time on Wyvern Academy, adding three new chapters to the first act and continuing to develop the story beyond the original Wyvern Rider novella. On the reading side, I’ve finally finished Will Wight’s Cradle series.

This week, I’m around 40% of the way through my draft of The Hammer and the Crown, book five in my Ravenglass Legends series. The story is gathering momentum, and I talk about how the draft is progressing as I move deeper into Ragnar and Maja’s next adventure. I’ve also returned to an older project, Wyvern Academy, a follow-up to my Wyvern Rider novella for Patreon. On the reading side, I’m nearing the end of Will Wight’s Cradle series. I’m now on the final book and have been hugely impressed by how the series has developed. Wight has done a fantastic job of building the characters, escalating the stakes and improving his craft across twelve books while keeping the story compulsively readable.

This week, I’ve finished Six of Swords and sent it off for editing, bringing another Ravenglass Chronicles novella to the next stage of production. I’ve also made good progress on The Hammer and the Crown, book five in the Ravenglass Legends series. I’m now around 25,000 words into the draft as Ragnar and Maja’s story continues. I also talk about my ongoing readthrough of Will Wight’s Cradle series. I’m currently on book eight, Bloodline, and thoroughly enjoying it. One of the things that has stood out is how much Wight’s craft develops as the series progresses, particularly in terms of pacing, character work and handling an increasingly large story without losing momentum.

This week I’ve continued making progress on Six of Swords and now have 17 chapters drafted. The book is moving along well, and I’m getting close to the final stretch. I’ve also been working on The Last Eagle, a prequel novella for a potential new Arthurian Britain series. The idea is to take the legends of Arthur and place them in a grittier, more grounded post-Roman Britain, while still keeping the heroic and mythic elements that make the stories so enduring. That project also tied in nicely with a couple of recent visits to Lammerside Castle and Pendragon Castle. Both places have plenty of history and atmosphere, and Pendragon in particular comes with its own Arthurian associations. So this week’s diary is a mix of Ravenglass progress, new Arthurian ideas, and a bit of real-world historical inspiration.

This week I’ve been making good progress on Six of Swords. I’m 12 chapters into the draft, which probably puts me somewhere around the halfway point. I’ve also been going back over what I’ve written so far for The Hammer and the Crown, continuing work on the next Ravenglass Legends novel. One of the more satisfying things this week has been returning to older projects. I revisited Blind Sight, a prequel novella to Blind Gambit that I originally abandoned back in 2018. I’ve finally finished it and published it on Patreon. I’ve also been working through another story from my open projects folder, this time set in the Black Death world, which should hopefully be ready next week. On the reading front, I’m continuing with Will Wight’s Cradle series and have now reached Book Five, Ghostwater. I’m really enjoying the series, and I’ve also finally worked out why I struggled to follow parts of the second book, Soulsmith. It turned out to be a useful lesson in storytelling craft.

This week’s Author Diary is a little different because I did absolutely no writing. Instead, I spent the week at Coniston in the Lake District on an Adventure Week organised by Galloway’s, a charity supporting blind and visually impaired people. It was a brilliant week packed with canoeing, sailing, fell climbing and plenty of other activities. One of the best parts was getting to meet other blind and visually impaired people, hearing how they approach different challenges, and picking up ideas about ways of doing things that I hadn’t considered before. The highlight for me was definitely the sailing. I especially loved getting out on a Dart catamaran, which was enormous fun. It’s something I’d really like to do more of, so I’m now looking into what sailing opportunities might be available locally. No word count this week, then, but plenty of new experiences, new people and perhaps the start of a new hobby.

This week I’ve been getting RAF Dragon Corps Book 3 ready to send to my editor. After finishing the draft, I’ve been working through the manuscript one last time, checking that everything is in place before handing it over. I’ve also started drafting The Hammer and the Crown, the fourth book in my Ravenglass Legends series. It feels good to be back with Ragnar and Maja and moving forward with the next stage of the story. On the reading front, I’m halfway through Soulsmith by Will Wight. I really enjoyed Unsouled, but I’ve found parts of the second book harder to follow. I’m going to keep reading for now, as so many readers love the Cradle series, and I’m hoping the story finds its footing again. I also talk about feeling increasingly tired. I haven’t had a proper break since our trip to Rome in May, so I’ve decided to take next week off and give myself some time to recharge.

This week I wrapped up my draft of RAF Dragon Corps Book 3. I'll be letting it rest for a while before coming back with fresh eyes, but it's always a great feeling to reach the end of another novel. With that finished, I've started outlining—and even written the first chapter of—The Hammer and the Crown, the fifth book in my Ravenglass Legends series. It feels good to be returning to Ragnar and Maja. I also decided to tackle a couple of older projects as part of my ongoing audit of unfinished work. I completed Family of the Wasteland, a novella I originally drafted back in 2017. It's now available exclusively on my Patreon, where even free members can download and read it. I also finished Threads of Wolfsbane, a Ravenglass Legends prequel starring Maja. That story will be landing on Patreon this weekend, and I'm pleased to finally cross another long-standing project off the list. On the reading front, I’ve been reading Unsouled by Will Wight and thoroughly enjoyed it. It's my first real taste of progression fantasy. I'm still not entirely sure where the genre boundaries lie, but the focus on steadily developing the protagonist's abilities gave it an almost anime-like feel. A really entertaining read, and I'm looking forward to continuing the series.

This week I finished Five of Swords and sent the manuscript off to my editor, marking another milestone in The Ravenglass Chronicles. I also completed a proof-listen of The Ravenglass Throne: Parts 5–8 audiobook, and once again Emmy Coates has done an outstanding job bringing the story to life. I can’t wait for listeners to hear it. One of the more interesting things I did this week was a full audit of all my open writing projects. The results surprised even me: more than 15 novels, around 10 novellas, and several short stories in various stages of completion—including ideas dating back more than a decade. Some of them still excite me and will definitely get finished. Others have probably had their day. It was a fascinating exercise in taking stock and deciding which stories are still worth telling.

This week I've been focused on bringing Five of Swords to the finish line. The third draft is now complete! Before it heads off to my editor, I'll do one final read-through to catch any lingering issues and make sure everything hangs together. Looking ahead, I've also finished outlining Six of Swords, so I'm ready to keep the momentum going with The Ravenglass Chronicles. One unexpected development came from looking through some of my old, unused book covers. That sparked an idea to return to the world of Black Death. I've now outlined a second novel—an apocalyptic thriller set in the UK—and I'm excited by the possibilities. It's still early days, but it reminded me how ideas can come from the most unexpected places.

This week I reached the midpoint of Five of Swords as I continue writing the next instalment of The Ravenglass Chronicles. I've also carried on writing RAF Dragon Corps Book 3, returning to the skies over Britain during the Battle of Britain. Outside of writing, I've restarted the Ray Bradbury Reading Challenge. The idea is simple: read one short story, one poem, and one piece of non-fiction every day. I'd forgotten just how rewarding the habit is. It's a great way to keep the creative well topped up and discover voices and ideas I might otherwise have missed. A productive week of writing, reading, and getting back into good creative habits.