Hi all,

After a long, long slog, nearly six years since I wrote the first lines of this sequel, I’m very pleased to say that the first draft is done and the next stage is here.

The Ardenna Crossing: A Thousand White Fragments

Paul and the crew of the Ardenna have been taken through the next stage of their journey and I have brought things to a close at what I think is a very fitting point.

This has been incredibly difficult at times and I have hit many stumbling blocks – it’s been an entirely different experience to writing the first book. Some periods have been very disheartening and I spent a long time trying to work out kinks in the plot that threatened to overcome the process.

However, I have a story now and I’m so happy with the drama and excitement of it. I can’t wait to share it all with you. Between now and then, though, there are several things that need to happen…

I am about to start the long process of editing. There are five chapters that I need to rewrite to make them fit in with the style of the rest of the book; there are also plot threads that I need to beef up or tone down to make sure all the character have their own arcs. It’s become a lot more complex than just Paul’s story now. There are others who need to grow and develop and that is a balancing act that requires me to keep a close eye on over 93,000 words of text. I’ve invested in some editing software to help, though, so I’m expecting that to be a relief. I’m really looking forward to reading through the story and seeing how it works as a complete thing.

I’m setting a provisional deadline for getting it ready of September 2025, so hopefully you will see it then, and then I can move on to Book 3. In the meantime, thanks for all your support.

All the best

Richard