Where's Book No.3?
- 2 minutes ago
- 3 min read
KEEN-eyed readers of this website will have noticed that my next novel, 'All Men Have Secrets', is not, as planned, out yet – and you can blame Nigel Farage for that.
How so? Well...
Things were going swimmingly. I've had the basic idea for the book – a return to some of the characters and themes of my debut novel, 'How Soon Is Now?' – in mind for a while now. Good progress on the first draft was being made. New characters emerged. A really despicable villain (a first for one of my books) began to plot a particularly dastardly scheme. And then, over Christmas and New Year, reality intervened.
My wife created our family business in the early 2000s, and it grew and grew to the point where I was able to leave the grimy world of newspapers and concentrate on my own writing. The business, selling fragrance oils and other ingredients to soapmakers and crafters, supported our entire family and created jobs which helped support other families, too.
We had a particularly strong customer base in Europe, with two-thirds of our sales coming from EU customers. And then ... Brexit. We took every measure possible and cut back wherever we could, but there's only so much that can be done when Farage and his army soulless opportunists have conned the more gullible sections of a populace into making their own lives permanently and palpably worse.
Because, despite what they are – inexplicably – still claiming, you can't make trade with your nearest neighbours permanently more costly and complex without causing massive harm. And our business was right in the path of that harm.
Since formally leaving the European Union, countless firms like ours have struggled to overcome increasing hurdles to the already difficult task of just staying in business. Over Christmas, after years of dwindling sales and growing stress and pressure, we finally decided it was time to shut up shop before the decision was made for us.
If you think running a business is hard, try shutting one down. Especially if you want to do it honestly, decently and carefully. The first three months of 2026 were difficult and painful, as we sold off all of our stock, made sure our suppliers were paid and began the arduous task of clearing out an entire warehouse.
Every desk, every table, every shelf had to be removed and disposed of. Ceilings had to be painted, in order to return the space to the landlord in pristine condition. We filled skip after skip, and ferried everything salvagable to the yard of a nearby friend who buys and sells second-hand furniture.
Shutting down the business was a full time job, mentally and physically, but now it's done. We'll be okay – we planned for this. Unlike most of the people who voted for Brexit, we knew how bad it would be, so we did everything possible to prepare for the inevitable.
It's difficult, though, to leap straight back into creative mode after an experience like that, so I've been slowly working my way back towards 'All Men Have Secrets', revising what I've got written already (which is about three quarters of the book) and refining my plans for the final stretch. All going according to plan, it'll still be ready for release this year. One thing I'll be doing this week to move things forward is take a trip over to Edinburgh for a hike up to the very top of Arthur's Seat, the lofty peak which overlooks Scotland's capital.
This 822ft tall hill is the site of the book's dramatic conclusion, and a perfect spot for some fictional dastardly deeds.
It's just a shame I can't take Nigel...
