Rozia’s U-Log, a novella between two novels

 

The blurb:

“In the year 3519 Rozia struggles to rebuild her shattered life.

She uses her U-log, written in obscure Wordtext that only a few can read, to help herself to recover from a serious injury, to mend a broken heart and to come to terms with a demanding new role. Will her new-found friends be able to help?  Especially when she meets an even greater challenge?

Rozia's U-Log, a heart-wrenching and life-affirming story, bridges the gap between books two and three, Babel and The Tower of Gill James' Peace Child series.  

Enjoy reading the episodes now.”

This is a novella, some 15,000 words long. It was first presented in the form of a blog – representing a U-log – a universal log. When I first wrote it I was doing a lot of school visits and promoting the Peace Child series  in secondary schools. Many students engaged with story after the visits.

It’s important to realise that our characters have a life beyond the one that we present in the pages of our stories.  So, this helps to fill in some background on one of the main players. Kaleem is the protagonist in books 1-4 of the series but Rozia is his significant other. There is a gap between books 2 and 3 and at the beginning of book 3 we find out what has happened to Kaleem but we don’t know much about Rozia. This fills that gap.

There are some bizarre twist and turns.

I have now taken the blog down and at the moment it is serialised via Channillo – find it here.  

Later I shall publish it as a novella.      

An interview with Richard T Burke, a contributor to Bridge House's 'Resolutions' anthology

 So, Richard, what do you write? Why this in particular? 

My books are predominantly thrillers, but most have a scientific or technology element thrown in (such as a deadly virus that kills women the moment they give birth). I try to write the type of books I enjoy reading: an interesting premise, believable characters and some good twists.

What got you started on writing in the first place?

I have always been an avid reader and had been meaning to try my hand at writing, but life always seemed to get in the way. My first book, The Rage, took three years to write, and I finally self-published it in late 2015. Since then, I have released another five books, including the Decimation trilogy, at a rate of roughly one per year. My short stories have also been published in anthologies by Bloodhound Books (Dark Minds), Corona Books (The Corona Book of Science Fiction) and most recently, Bridge House Publishing (Resolutions).

When did you decide you could call yourself a writer? Do you do that in fact?

In my view, anybody who writes should call themselves a writer. After six novels and three published short stories, I most certainly classify myself as such.

 How supportive are your friends and family? Do they understand what you're doing?

My wife is very supportive, but she is not a great reader. I think she is fed up of our discussions about the plots of books I am working on. Unfortunately, to date she has only completed my first two books.

What are you most proud of in your writing?

I am most proud when a reader enjoys my work. Last October, I received an email from a reader in Australia who had been suffering from a serious illness and picked up my Decimation trilogy. She thanked me for “an entertaining week of reading” and told me she had “thoroughly enjoyed every page”. That message made my day! I read all reader reviews (both good and not so good!), but I am also currently running an advertising campaign on Facebook and have had several complimentary messages about my writing in the comments section. Moments like those make all the hard work worthwhile.