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28 April 2021

On Wednesdays on social media, people use the hashtag #WriterWednesday to chat about all things author, book and writing, including authors promoting their own work. As we love to support self-published authors, we thought we’d join in and we will be featuring a UK self-published author every Wednesday on the website.

This week, we met Christopher Searle to find out more.

Please tell us about yourself; when did you first become interested in writing?
I’ve enjoyed writing for as long as I can remember. Even from a young age I was crafting concepts for various stories – mostly fan-fiction related, but it wasn’t until starting secondary school that I was serious about getting them written down as stories. I was serious about my writing, until I got side-tracked with animation. That took many years away from such focus, though I still was writing throughout those years. It wasn’t until my last year at university that I realised I had no passion for what I had been studying, which was then I decided it was time to finally push concepts into finished products and launch into self-publishing them – which I had been considering at several points during my time at uni.

Do you remember the first story you ever wrote?
One of the first I wrote was a fan-fiction that attempted to turn Animal Crossing into a magical adventure story. The elements of an Animal Crossing story were there, but I didn’t get further than the first chapter with it. Back in those days, stories I wrote were very short, and written in Powerpoint. Which was clear with my first original of Elemental Heroes, telling a story of five teens becoming superheroes and defeating evil using powers gifted to them by a police force. The entire story was told in twenty slides, and I had been planning a sequel to it, but that went nowhere.

What genre/genres do your books fall under?
Most of my stuff fits within fantasy and sci-fi, though I have also put focus to realistic fiction.

What is your latest book called, what is it about and what was the inspiration behind the book?
The Future Adventures of Halesowen released last year, continuing on from the other two books of the series that focus on the interactions and relationships of a group of friends at Halesowen College. During my own years at college, I had a lot of fun within the media course and spending time with my classmates. On occasion, I’d write a short story that exaggerated some event that had happened, and I’d even included them in one of my original stories that had been written during my time there. That original became the basis for the Alternate Halesowen and Beyond series, but I felt it would be wise to use original characters for the book. The first in the series introduced those characters with short stories that focused upon them, with Future Adventures continuing to develop them in another collection of shorts.

Besides your current book, do you have any new projects coming up?
At present, I am working on developing the other two series I have started so that they get some love. Elemental Heroes is almost a completely different world to what it was when it was just a Powerpoint story, with a lot of additions and changes that have given it an identity of its own. The second of that series takes the team away from their home to chase after the threat that had been causing trouble in the first. As for Space Race Championship, I’ve got ideas of where to take it both before and after the events that happen in that first book, but am yet to decide which way to go for the second book.

Where can people find your books?
All of my stories are available on the Amazon Kindle store, but if you’d rather read some fan fiction or original shorts (including free extras within the Alternate Halesowen and Beyond series), I have a Wattpad account where I keep such. All the details are on my website, which also includes all my other content that’s mostly focused upon video games.

What has been the greatest moment in your writing career?
I think the realisation that writing was where I wanted to take myself has been the greatest moment so far, which also includes seeing one of my works on an official storefront for the first time and thinking to myself “I am finally where I belong”.

Besides writing, what hobbies or interests do you enjoy in your spare time?
Video games are where I mainly am, having been doing so for even longer than I’ve been writing. Exploring the worlds within them as I control a character invests me a lot more in them, but that’s not to say I can’t get invested in the worlds shown in TV series and films or written of in books. Along with exploring in media, I also take time to enjoy the outdoors as well, exploring the areas close to me and enjoying the sights they bring. On the occasions I can get further afield, I’m doing the same there, as well.

Which novelists do you admire?
Since becoming a Star Wars fan back at the tail-end of 2007, most of the books I’ve read have been within that franchise. Through authors such as John Jackson Miller, Karen Traviss, and Matthew Stover, I’ve enjoyed a lot of stories set in my favourite franchise but have also taken the time to explore their other works, too.

What has been the best piece of writing advice you’ve received?
I’ve read and heard plenty of writing advice over the years, but I think the one that holds most true is the most basic of advice you could give. Plan, plan more, then plan beyond what you need. Even if things don’t get used, they could inspire other parts of the story. You could hit a roadblock with a section of the story or character that you didn’t think you needed to worry about. Such planning can also be used as part of the world building, making that world feel more real.

Do you have any tips or advice for other indie authors?
Along with that above, I would also say to indie authors who have yet to see success that it will come in time. It can be hard to get noticed, but everyone starts from the bottom. Don’t be discouraged at blank spaces in engagement, cherish what engagement you get, and work to increase that engagement a step at a time. If you interact with others, they will return the favour. Be a person, not a walking advertisement.

You can find out more about Christopher on his website or via Facebook, X (Twitter) or YouTube.