Robert Craven's blog

There is a certain tranquillity to a place that is almost totally off-grid. Away from the continual digital bombardment of the modern 24/7 culture, The Hotel El Geco Verde offers this: https://www.responsiblevacation.com/vacation/7984/writers-retreat-in-andalucia-spain Situated in the beautiful region of Andalucía, high up in the region of the Sierra de Castril mountains, you could not find a more serene place. “I love your library”, I said “...

I have a friend who’s an accomplished musician. He’s passionate, talented, but hasn’t uploaded any piece, or performed his songs live. His music is sitting in a folder on his computer, gathering binary dust. Which led me to my own novel, Hollow Point , sitting in a folder on my desk top. January 20 th is the date when all the new year resolutions fall by the wayside and, eschewing diets, gym membership, smoking, drinking resolutions, mine was...

Book links: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hollow-Point-wartime-adventures-Molenaar-ebook/... https://www.amazon.com/Hollow-Point-wartime-adventures-Molenaar-ebook/dp... HOLLOW POINT - Robert Craven I think some books are too long. That the writer's voice is somehow lost in the padding. I have just released HOLLOW POINT ; the fourth WW2 novel featuring my character, Eva. It is a short novel, just above the size of a novella, that has allowed me to...

I’ve been published for 6 years now through various small presses with varying degrees of success but this year when my current publisher decided enough was enough and pulled the plug; AmazonKDP and Kobo platforms were the logical step. I think there is still a stigma about e-books and self-publishing in general; Kobo and Amazon regarded as last-saloon options, the rung above the vanity press, but what swayed me was the KDP event held in Dublin...

https://soundcloud.com/robert-craven-649922687/get-lenin-audio-upload-2016 Using a free to download app (Audacity) I've created a post reading the opening of Get Lenin. copy & paste the link above & let me know what yout think. My question is - is an audio excerpt a good idea?

I've always loved music; I was fortunate enough to gig in the 80's & 90's and took it quite seriously. I also, through a musician's network in Ireland, review CDs and they get posted up on-line. Its a real help when the mojo's has abandoned me & the muse is on an extended tea break, so I'm putting this up, not only because I'm a huge fan of the man, but as an idea for anyone suffering with 'blank page syndrome' might think - I could...

Three thousand kilometres from Bram Stoker’s birth place in Clontarf and about three hours’ drive from Bucharest, along Highway DN73, towers the formidable fortress, Castle Bran, in the town of Toerzburg, Transylvania. Built by the Teutonic Knights as a defence against the Ottoman Turks, Tartars and Hungarian marauders, Castle Bran straddles the historic fault line between Western Europe and the steppes of Eastern Europe. Castle Bran is also a...

I've just finished the final edits for the launch May 15th with Blue Hour Publishing. Get Lenin was started in 2006 and took 5 years to write, rework, pitch and get published. Tim Roux took it as a Night Publishing titile then closed Night Publishing down to form Taylor Street based in San Francisco. In 2013, I was released, and Get Lenin remained state-side, picked up by Master Koda Select Publishing. With my contract expring, I have left MKSP...

'An agent needs to see you have done a creative writing course.' I was recently advised. So I spotted on Facebook a posoting about Future learn Open Univeristy course - Start Creative Writing. Now, with 4 novels written, this sounds like a step back, but its not. The great drummer Neil Peart decided to learn jazz drumming and went back to the start and this is how I've approached it. Its a well laid out course, and I have gleaned a few nuggets...