Jon Cronshaw's Author Diary - The Real Life of an Indie Author | Writing | Publishing | Disability

This week, I’ve made solid progress on my Watcher story in the Ravenglass Guardians series, hitting the 75% mark in my draft. If everything continues smoothly, I should have a complete draft by the end of next week. I’ve also been outlining the next standalone novel, which will follow a character from the Guardians’ Sentinel faction. Each book in this series will explore a different path of the Gu...

This week, I hit the mid-point in drafting my first Ravenglass Guardians novel, focusing on the Watchers faction. It’s a nobledark fantasy with strong political thriller elements. Since each of the seven planned books will be standalone, this may not be the first released—but my goal is to write the full series before launching it on Patreon. I’m aiming for 60k-word novels (like my Guild of Assass...

This week, I’ve dived into my new series set in the Ravenglass Universe, focusing on the Guardians—a seven-novel, nobledark fantasy exploring the different paths within the order. I’ve written the first six chapters of Book 1, putting me at 25% of the draft already. I also reflect on my shift toward writing more 60,000-word novels, similar in length to the Guild of Assassins books. This feels like...

This week has been a busy and intense one! I’m thrilled to share that I’ve finished the draft of The Prince and the Fool (Ravenglass Legends, Book 4). It’s always a huge relief hitting that final chapter. On top of that, I’ve been deep in website work—the book page platform I’d been using suddenly stopped working, so I rebuilt everything from scratch. You can now browse my updated book catalogue a...

This week, I’ve made solid progress on The Prince and the Fool (Ravenglass Legends, Book 4), hitting the 75% mark in the draft. The story’s really coming together now as I push toward the final act. I’m also busy getting Punks Versus Zombies ready for launch on Kindle, September 1, 2025. It’s up for pre-order now, so lock in your copy for a wild post-apocalyptic ride! On a personal note, I had a f...

This week was mostly spent on admin tasks—the essential but less exciting side of the author life. From scheduling to organising releases, it’s been a practical sort of week. The highlight, though, was seeing Nine Inch Nails live in Manchester! It was an incredible show with a set packed full of early album tracks—intense, loud, and absolutely brilliant. Best of all, my back held up, so I’m hoping...

This week, I’ve hit the 60 percent mark on the draft of The Prince and the Fool (Ravenglass Legends, Book 4). The story is moving steadily, and I’m excited to see it coming together. I’ve also been reading the 33 1/3 book on Kate Bush’s Hounds of Love—a fascinating deep dive into one of my all-time favourite albums. And I’ve finally started watching House of Cards on Netflix—dark, sharp, and brill...

After taking last week off, I’m back at the writing desk and making great progress on The Prince and the Fool (Ravenglass Legends, Book 4). I’ve just hit the mid-point of the book—and the series itself! I’ll be sharing unedited chapters on Patreon over the next few weeks for those following along early. This week, I also chat about reading Homecoming by Robin Hobb—a beautifully written book as alw...

In this follow-up to the 400th episode celebration, I’m back with part two of the Q&A, this time answering questions from Facebook. Once again, I’m joined by my wife and editor, Claire, for more behind-the-scenes chat about writing, editing, and the creative life. Thank you to everyone who submitted questions! And if you're looking for a brilliant editor, check out Claire’s work at cherrye...

This week marks a major milestone—episode 400 of the Author Diary! To celebrate, I’m doing something a little different. I answer questions from my Patreon supporters, covering everything from writing to reading. I’m also joined by a very special guest—Claire, my wife and editor! We chat about editing, storytelling, and what it’s like working together on my books. You can check out her work at che...

This week’s been all about the behind-the-scenes work—the less glamorous side of being an author. I’ve been deep in admin, getting everything in place for the release of Severed Bonds (The Ravenglass Throne, Part Three) on May 19, and preparing the audio edition of Book 4 for my Patreon supporters. It’s been a week of formatting, uploading, scheduling, and ticking boxes—but not much creative work....

This week, I completed work on my four speculative fiction collections: Influenced, Outraged, Cancelled, and Muted. If you’d like a taste, you can grab a free collection at joncronshaw.com/optimised . I also returned to writing The Prince and the Fool (Ravenglass Legends, Book 4). It feels great to be back in the world of epic fantasy after a detour into short fiction. The story’s gaining momentum...

In this week’s Author Diary, I’ve been continuing work on my Speculative Fiction collections, sorting through short stories and getting everything ready for release. The first collection, Influenced, is now available to pre-order on all major ebook platforms. It’s packed with dark, satirical tales that twist reality in unsettling—and sometimes all-too-familiar—ways. I also talk about watching The...

This week, I’ve been busy going through lots of short stories, organising them into collections ready for release. The first collection, Influenced, will be out on May 10! Influenced is a series of dark, satirical speculative fiction tales, exploring twisted futures, sharp social commentary, and unsettling what-ifs. I'm really excited to share these stories, and this marks the start of more sh...

It’s been a big week! I launched two new books: 🔥 Wyvern’s Shadow (The Ravenglass Throne, Book 2) ⚔️ Blade of Sorrows (Guild of Assassins, Book 3) On top of that, I’ve started work on Book 4 of Ravenglass Legends. I’ve made the decision to expand this into a seven-book series, with this fourth instalment serving as a mid-point in the larger story. While it’s not my bestselling work, Ravenglass Le...

This week has been all about juggling projects and getting things ready for some exciting releases. I’ve been busy preparing my short stories for a new podcast — Speculative Fiction Tales. You can find it on your favourite podcast app or over on my YouTube channel. I’m also gearing up for the launch of two books next week: 🐉 Wyvern's Shadow (The Ravenglass Throne Book 2) ⚔️ Blade of Sorrows (...

This week, I’m excited to announce that Forged in Blood is now available! It’s always a great feeling getting a new book out into the world. I’ve also been working on some new Guild of Assassins short stories, which are now available to download for free at joncronshaw.com/guildassassin. If you're enjoying the series, these are a great way to dig deeper into the world. On the viewing front, I...

This week, I finished the draft of Hunters—a gritty Space Western I’ve really enjoyed working on. I’m still undecided on what to do with it long-term, but for now, it may stay as a Patreon-only project. April is shaping up to be huge, with three book launches on the way: 📖 Forged in Blood – April 4 🐉 Wyvern’s Shadow (The Ravenglass Throne: Part Two) – April 12 ⚔️ Blade of Sorrows – April 17 I al...

This week, I wrapped up the draft of Dragon Squadron (RAF Dragon Corps), and I’m thrilled with how it’s turned out. But with three book launches on the horizon—Wyvern’s Shadow (The Ravenglass Throne: Part Two), Forged in Blood, and Blade of Sorrows—my focus now shifts to prepping those releases. In this episode, I reflect on the many open projects I’ve got on the go and the importance of staying f...

This week, I’ve been deep in Dragon Squadron (RAF Dragon Corps), and what started as a novella has now evolved into a full novel! I’m currently 16 chapters in out of 24, and the story is shaping up beautifully—I’m absolutely loving where it’s going. In publishing news, Shattered Kingdom (The Ravenglass Throne: Part One) is now released, and Forged in Blood is officially up for pre-order! It’s been...

This week, I completed a new novella in a new series and a new genre—alternative history/historical fantasy! I’ve been working on Dragon Squadron, a story set in 1939 England that imagines what if there were dragons in World War II. The novella follows Jim Ashford, a young man who defies his naval admiral father to join the elite RAF Dragon Corps. Bonding with Aether, a midnight-blue combat dragon...

This week, I dusted off a project I haven’t touched since May 2023—The Chosen One, a heroic fantasy about a child of prophecy destined to defeat the Dark Lord…except the Dark Lord never came. Now 40, he abandoned his heroic destiny 20 years ago, but fate may have other plans. I also made progress on my Space Western, Hunters, writing a new chapter as I continue expanding that world. This month has...

This week marks a major milestone—I’ve finished book 12 of The Ravenglass Throne, meaning the entire series is now complete! Now, it’s a waiting game for the edits to come back, but the hard work of drafting is done. With The Ravenglass Throne wrapped up, I’ve been reflecting on what’s next. I need to take stock of my open projects and decide which one excites me the most before diving in. There a...

This week has been a lighter one, as I’ve mostly been resting after a big push on Book 11 of The Ravenglass Throne over the weekend. Now, I’m onto the final novella in the series—the last stretch is in sight! I’ve also been reading The 10 Cent Plague, a fascinating history of comic books in America. It’s been a great read, full of insight into the cultural impact and controversies surrounding comi...

This week, I’ve finished drafting Book 10 of The Ravenglass Throne and even started on the first chapter of Book 11! With the series nearing its conclusion, I’ve also been working through edits on Book 2, which I’ll start posting on Patreon soon. As The Ravenglass Throne wraps up, I’m starting to think about what comes next. Possible projects include: • Guild of Assassins, book 4 • Dawn of Assassi...