Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am originally from Bedford in England but I grew up in the north-eastern town of Middlesbrough. When I was four years old, in the mid-1950s, my parents took me to Jamaica to live for two years when my dad was transferred through his work. This must have planted in me the seed to travel, as I have been travelling ever since. I have lived in ten different countries and worked in five-star hotels and restaurants around the world as a chef. I have also worked on cruise ships, Antarctic supply ships, and a gold mine in Papua New Guinea and the Falkland Islands after the war with Argentina.
I have written eleven books in total, six of which are travel books aimed at retirees and digital nomads who are looking for another country to live or retire to. I retired to Thailand in 2017 and I divide my time between Koh Samui and Hua Hin and travel extensively throughout South East Asia researching my travel books. I also have a YouTube channel Thailand My Land…Retiring Disgracefully.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is the The Retire in Thailand Handbook 2023…The Next Six Years which is a follow-up to the original book I wrote and published in 2018 on living or retiring in Thailand, The Retire in Thailand Handbook...The First Six Months. The book is an updated version because so much has changed since covid arrived in 2020 and devastated the country’s economy and tourism industry. This book covers the six years that I have lived here and guides the reader through the procedures and protocols of establishing oneself in a new country. The book is crammed full of advice on all aspects of relocating to a new country, including... What to bring, and what not to bring to Thailand with you. * How to apply for a Retirement Visa from your own country. * How to apply for a Retirement Visa from within Thailand. * How to open a Thai bank account * Transferring your pension to your new Thailand bank to avoid bank fees. * How to buy a vehicle. * How to apply for a Thai driving license. * How to rent a condo or a house. * How to buy a property in Thailand. * How to obtain suitable medical insurance coverage. * Healthcare and dental costs * Best retirement locations within Thailand * Advice for single retirees. The book is also filled with cost comparison charts, helpful tips on living here and the best areas to live or retire in Thailand as an ex-pat.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Being of a certain age I didn’t grow up with computers but I have certainly adapted to them since I started writing books. I do most of my writing thanks to the wonders of Wifi sitting on a beach or around a swimming pool in Thailand or some other South-East Asian country. Quite often when the sun is going down my inspiration is helped along with a cocktail or two.
What authors or books have influenced you?
The first books I remember reading were the Just William series of books by Richmal Crompton. As I matured going through my schooldays I read all of Charles Dickens books. In my hippy days, I read The Hobbit series of books by J. R. R. Tolkien and Catcher In The Rye by J.D. Salinger, I also loved Catch 22 by Joseph Heller. My daughter Rebecca was born in 1977, and as she grew older I would read Watership Down by Richard Adams to her at bedtime. Looking back now it was probably a bit scary for a little girl, but she loved the book as much as I did. Being at sea for much of my life books were an important source of entertainment in the few leisure hours that you get working as a chef on a ship. I would read everything that I could get my hands on, from Agatha Christie to Ernest Hemingway, from Nevil Shute to Leslie Thomas. When I got desperate and ran out of books to read there were always books on how to tie nautical knots or ships navigation onboard the vessels to pass the time. My favourite authors of today are James Lee Burke, Elmore Leonard, Dennis Lehane, Kate Atkinson, and I love the historical crime novels by CJ Sansom I also like to read any travel-related books especially anything by Michael Palin and Bill Bryson. I don’t think any author actually influenced me, I just loved losing myself in a good book.
What are you working on now?
I have just finished updating The Retire In Thailand Handbook 2023 and I am now busy making videos for my YouTube channel and looking for inspiration to write the next in the series of my Chai Son Sinuan mystery novels.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I have recently published a website as it seems a necessity in this day and age. Apart from that, being a retiree and of that certain age I am not very knowledgeable about computers and social media, so I rely on word of mouth and hopefully my publisher getting my name out there. I know I must be missing out on many selling opportunities but I find the whole social media thing rather boring and time-consuming.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
As I am a new author myself there is not much advice that I can offer. Just keep doing what you’re doing; even if you don’t get published you’re still improving your mind, enjoying what you’re doing and fulfilling an ambition. My brother John, who was a much better writer than I will ever be, tried most of his life to get his books published and never succeeded. I wrote my second book in 2018 (the first book I wrote was never meant for publication) and I was offered a publishing contract for it within a few months of releasing it on Amazon. What I discovered since becoming an author is that getting a book published is quite often down to luck, being in the right place at the right time and of course writing a great book.
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What is the best advice you have ever heard?
"Travel whenever you get the opportunity. The greatest experiences in life are seeing other cultures and getting a real perspective on life and the lives that other people lead”. Which is the way I have always tried to live my life.
When I was in Cambodia recently doing research for one of my books, I spoke with a lady who was just forty-two years old the same age as my eldest daughter. Her father was arrested, imprisoned and later killed by Pol Pot’s henchmen for the crime of being a teacher. When she was one year old, she was force marched along with her mother, older brother and sister 330 kilometres from their home in Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville to work on a communal farm. Her mother died along the way of sickness and malnutrition, she was separated from her brother and sister, and she would never to see them again. She was taken in and raised in impoverished conditions by another family who had befriended her mother on the long march south. Being born in Cambodia during those murderous days she had not had the opportunities in her life that my children or grandchildren have had. She had no education, no real family, and had been working as a prostitute since she was fourteen years old to survive. It certainly put everything in perspective for me. You don’t see the real world by watching it on the television.
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What are you reading now?
The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 4 or 5 books with you what books would you bring?
The Blah Story by Nigel Tomm. It’s reputed to be the longest book ever written. I am not sure if I would enjoy it but it has 7312 pages so it would last a while whilst waiting to be rescued. It’s probably cheating but I would take the boxed set of The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings. How to Survive on a Deserted Island by Tim O'Sheid would be invaluable and for a little light entertainment Adolf Hitler; My Part in His Downfall by Spike Milligan.