Keith Mansfield

The adage from creative writing courses up and down the land is that “there’s no such thing as good writing – only good rewriting”. I must have gone through nearly fifty drafts writing Johnny Mackintosh and the Spirit of London. trying to prove the saying true. It’s lucky I’m such a great re-reader because I can honestly say I never got tired of it. However, it was an incredibly liberating experience to embark on the next one. I’d go so far as to say it was even better than beginning a brand new Harry Potter book having waited a year since the previous one, and only those who know me will realize quite what that means.

So, as I wrote it, Johnny Mackintosh: Star Blaze became my new favourite book and I struggled to contain my excitement over some of the chapters. That said, it’s embarrassing now to look back on the first draft – we’ve probably reached something like version twenty-five or so now and each has been a major imporvement on what went before. I’m still excited to read it, but now can’t wait for the thrill of book three. For today Johnny Mackintosh: Star Blaze is published. You can read the cover copy and the opening page over at JohnnyMackintosh.com.

This is a time of great uncertainty, as an author never knows how a book will be received. My fervent hope is that you’ll enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

~ by keithmansfield on January 7, 2010.

Posted in Harry Potter, Johnny Mackintosh, Publishing Industry, Star Blaze
Tags: authoring, blurb, cover copy, creative writing, excerpt, favourite books, Harry Potter, publication, second book, writing