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

This week’s been a bit of a struggle—I talk about feeling off and wondering if Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) has kicked in earlier than usual. It usually hits me in November, but with autumn feeling like it arrived early, the dip may have too. Creatively, I’ve been working on thriller projects and thinking ahead to my next fantasy book. I’m torn between starting Ravenglass Guardians Book 3 or...

This week marks eight years since I started this podcast—back in October 2017, I recorded the first episode, and here we are in 2025, still going strong! I reflect on the lessons I’ve learned about author branding, especially as I launch my new pen-name, J. Cronshaw, focused entirely on domestic psychological thrillers. Narrowing the audience has made everything—from messaging to marketing—so much...

This week, I’ve made the decision to close my paid Substack and focus fully on Patreon as the central hub for my writing, early releases, and community. It feels like the right move to streamline things and better serve my readers. On the writing front, I’ve continued working on my psychological thrillers, while also reviewing the audiobook editions of The Ravenglass Throne and Undead Anarchy (Pun...

This week, I’ve been juggling projects—working on my psychological thrillers while doing final checks on the first two Ravenglass Guardians novels. I’m also getting ready for the upcoming launch of Divided Crown (The Ravenglass Throne, Book 7), and exploring the idea of putting together Kindle boxed sets for other series. On a less exciting note, I talk about my disappointment with the Punks Versu...

This week’s been packed with releases and reader questions! I launched The Ravenglass Throne: Parts 1–4 as a boxed set, available now in ebook and paperback formats. The Punks Versus Zombies audiobook is now live, as is the Trial of Thieves audiobook (Dawn of Assassins, Book 2)—great news if you’re an audio listener! I also took time to answer questions from readers about my writing process and wo...

This week, I’m happy to share that I’ve finished the draft of The Sentinel’s Mercy, the latest standalone in my Ravenglass Guardians series. With that wrapped up, I’ve shifted gears and started writing a psychological thriller under a new pen name—an exciting side project that’s been on my mind for a while. I also talk about something more personal: I’ve received the official retirement date for m...

foreshadow cellarThis week, I took a research trip to Lytham to scout locations for a future psychological thriller. I’ve got two domestic thrillers planned and will be writing them as side projects under a new pen-name to keep them separate from my fantasy work. On the fantasy side, I made solid progress on The Sentinel’s Mercy (Ravenglass Guardians). I’ve now reached 75% of the draft and hope to...

This week, I’ve been recovering and feeling much better—just in time to reach the midpoint of The Sentinel’s Mercy, my latest Ravenglass Guardians novel. The story’s hitting its stride, and I’m excited with how it’s coming together. I’ve also been hard at work preparing for the launch of the Punks Versus Zombies trilogy, which goes live this weekend on August 31! Can’t wait to get this wild post-a...

This week’s been a bit rough—I’ve been dealing with a throat infection that had me in bed for a few days. Despite that, I made good progress on The Sentinel’s Mercy (Ravenglass Guardians, Book 2), reaching eight chapters out of a planned 24. I’ve also finished my final readthrough of The Silent Watcher (Book 1 in the same series). Though I’m calling them Books 1 and 2 for now, the Ravenglass Guard...

This week, I took a mini-break to Chester, enjoying peaceful walks in Delamere Forest, the stunning Chester Cathedral, and strolling the historic city walls—a great way to reset. Creatively, I’ve been working on Hunters, my wacky Space Western originally written as a Patreon side project. I’m now rewriting it as a nautical fantasy set in the Ravenglass Universe, and it’s been a fun challenge adapt...

It’s been a busy week! I’ve been reviewing alpha reader feedback for The Silent Watcher and checking through the audiobook edition of Trial of Thieves (Dawn of Assassins, Book 2). The paperbacks for the Punks Versus Zombies trilogy are now ready, and audiobook production is underway. I’m also thrilled to have Emmy Coates back to narrate The Ravenglass Throne—she was brilliant on The Ravenglass Chr...

This week, I finished my draft of The Silent Watcher—the first completed novel in my Ravenglass Guardians series—and sent it to alpha readers for early feedback. I’ve also begun the next standalone in the series, centred on the Sentinel faction. While The Silent Watcher is a slow-burn psychological thriller, the Sentinel novel is shaping up to be a gritty military fantasy—both firmly in nobledark...

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...