Gordon Thomas admits he was a latecomer to being a novelist.
"I live in Sutton with my lovely wife, Janet, and we’ve been here since our children were small. I used to work as a scientist and administrator in the Home Office but now I write novels. So I was really thrilled on 26th June, the day my second one, ‘The Emerald of Burgos’, appeared in print. Not many people start writing novels when I did - after I retired.My message is simple: if I can write a novel, so can you!
"It all began in 2003 at SCOLA, the Sutton College of Learning for Adults, where I studied Spanish for ‘A level’. I chose to do an oral exam on Spanish composers. I came across one called Juan Hidalgo and could hardly find anything about him. I was coming up to retirement then and thought: what a great project! I’ll write his biography!
"I discovered much about him but not enough to write a really interesting, purely factual book so I wrote a novel based on his life instead. I called it ‘The Harpist of Madrid’. Up to now, it has sold more than 1600 copies and received some great reviews, mainly on www.amazon.co.uk and www.goodreads.com
"While writing ‘The Harpist’, I created a character called Esmeralda. I sensed an inner compulsion to write a book about her, such was the strength of my feelings towards her! In ‘The Harpist’ she is a retired courtesan with a heart of gold, and a spy for the king of Spain. My new book begins when at only fifteen she commits a hideous crime and flees to Madrid with a friend. They are kidnapped on the way and that is where the story really begins.
In the blurb, it says the book is ‘a daring prequel to the Harpist of Madrid’. How daring is it, you will be asking? To start with, it’s written in the first person singular: So I wrote it as if I was Esmeralda! And writing about the adventures of a lady of pleasure is also quite audacious. I think you will love her and her story in ‘The Emerald of Burgos’. But be warned, it’s not for the prudish or easily shocked!
When you’ve published a novel you have to develop other skills such as marketing and promoting it, for example, by doing book signings in shops. My favourite way is through talks. I’ve given more than twenty so far. I don’t charge but take some copies of my books along in the hope of selling some. Gordon can be contacted by e-mail on [email protected] or by phone on 07801 062437.
The Emerald of Burgos is available in W H Smiths in both Sutton and Kingston as well as all good bookshops for £9.99. Or you can buy it direct using the contact details above, for £8.50.