This is strange for me. I pride myself on having ideas, so when my kids asked for another Big Crow book, I was surprised to discover I didn’t have one. Usually, they come tumbling out of me like a hideous wave of dishevelled circus clowns from a Morris Minor until my kids (or wife, friends, colleagues, or acquaintances) give me that look, which is a signal that enough is enough. Thanks, Leigh; we’ll let you know.

My kids got so sick of waiting for a new book they started writing their own. Which was brilliant and, honestly, the point. I want them to make their own stories, books and characters. I like their imaginations to work overtime while giving them a practical example of how it can be done. So, as I said, they got sick of waiting, made their own, and gave me two ideas in the process. One was The Haunted Arcade, and the other was 3000 B.C. I’d done a ghost one early on, so going back didn’t thrill me, but the caveman one sparked something, but it didn’t jump-start my brain altogether. It coughed and spluttered a few times and then went silent again. Dang. So, I did what I usually do, I drew a picture. Two, in fact. Two covers to see if that could inspire something inside of me to reawaken. Again, a flutter, a tiny glow that burst briefly and slowly winked out.

Fast forward two months to about two days ago, so rewind about 48 hours from today. No, too far. That’s three days. OK, a bit more forward. Bit more. OK stop! Ah. Yeah, sorry, I was in the shower for this part. Let’s go forward 10 minutes. There. So, I suddenly had an idea. It had taken me what is possibly the LONGEST time I have EVER taken to come up with an angle. But I knew it would work because it passed the only test I needed. It made me laugh. I laughed at the idea and thought about how clever, stupid, and silly it was, then drew it. And that was it, and all it took. What was it? I came up with a name. Two new names, in fact, for the caveman versions of my characters. Crowmag and Pumsquatch. That’s it. So simple. So dumb. All I need.

And that is it. I’ll see how I go. Maybe I’ll be like everyone else and take a year to write a book. That is the way to go. Not bang out fifteen in a year. I’ll slow down. Take it easy. Start by doing one carefully crafted page at a time; take two weeks for each perfectly crystalised sentence. Then, when I’m done, I can show my wife, who works in publishing, and then she can publish it, and then I can get some awards, and then Apple T.V. will buy the rights and make an animated kids series in Vancouver. And. And. And…oh wait, I’m already married to a wonderful person I love way more than all that junk. Okay. Rushed out and whacked up on Amazon KDP it is!

Until next time.

Ugg.

P.S. Here are the covers.