This year to date has certainly flown by, and is a reflection of how busy I have been – along with lazy days wasted on the beach, in another fine Summer of sunshine on the Sussex coast. I had intended to be substantially progressing my fourth book ‘Ovda’ a memoir based on my work and travel in Israel and Palestine. To some extent I have been successful as the first chapter of some 8000 words was finally produced and knocked into reasonable shape a few weeks ago. However, it will now be book number five.

In between, I wanted a break from the ‘war zone’ of completing my Dad’s WW2 biog ‘Battle Honours’, which went on sale both in eBook and paperback format last Autumn. I am pleased to say that virtually all the first edition paperback versions have now been sold (via Waterstones etc). So, as a means of distraction, I decided to throw some paint at a canvas or two, for the very first time (encouraged by my artist wife Sue). By the time I rested my paintbrushes, some 25 paintings later in a brief two month period, I realised I could make a book out of it all! So the idea of ‘Pablo and Jackson – On Tour’ was created. Two fictional giants of the art world, collaborating and influencing cultural and iconic scenes from recent history. This has become my fourth book, and is currently in final edit stage. Hopefully will be presented as a graphic novel in eBook format by mid August 2019. I also plan to take selected images and produce a 2020 calendar!

Anyway, bang up-to-date, and still enjoying the sunny beach bum weather, here’s an interim splash of paint ‘Surf’s Up’ (the paint is still wet of course, as I work ‘plein-air’), while I juggle the eBook release of ‘Pablo and Jackson – On Tour’ and plan the next chapters for ‘Ovda’. Take it easy!!