From Short Story to Something More: The Curious Evolution of A Boy Alone

I didn’t mean to write a novel.

Honestly. A Boy Alone began as a short story. A back story for a major character from the first book in my new series coming out in 2026. So this story began as a quiet little piece starting on a child's eighth birthday. I wrote it in a rush of instinct, no outline, no plan, just the pulse of something that felt true, and a vague recognition that this dark beginning had always been lurking in my imagination, just waiting to come out.

If you’ve been following along, you’ll know that A Boy Alone is now three episodes deep in its serialised form. And it’s growing. Not in the bloated, over-plotted way that stories sometimes do when they’re forced to behave. No. This one is growing like ivy. It’s finding its own shape, curling around unexpected corners, tugging at threads I didn’t know I’d left dangling.

I’m a pantser by nature. I write to discover, not to dictate. Which means I often find myself staring at the screen thinking, 'Well, I didn’t see that coming.' And that’s exactly what’s happening here. The boy — quiet, watchful, emotionally elusive — has started to reveal more of his world. There’s a rhythm to it now, a heartbeat. And I suspect we’re heading toward novella territory. Possibly even a full-blown novel, though I’m not making promises. (He wouldn’t like that.)

What’s been most surprising is how emotionally resonant this story has become. It’s not loud. It doesn’t shout. But it lingers and fits so perfectly with the adult man in my new book that I am constantly surprised by it. There’s something about the boy’s solitude, his way of seeing, that seems to echo. I’ve had messages from readers who feel like they know him. Who want to protect him. Who are waiting for the next instalment with quiet urgency.

So yes, I should be working on Chapter 17 revisions in The Earl's Daughter (and I will, I promise), but for the moment, I’ve been slightly sidetracked by this unplanned companion. And I’m letting him lead for now. Because sometimes, the best stories are the ones that don’t ask permission. They just arrive.

Thanks for reading, and for walking alongside me as this one unfolds. Episode 4 is whispering already. If you have not begun the journey yet sign up here and get episode 1 of A Boy Alone.