About Me
My story…
1
Book going through the publishing process
3
Books under development
Random facts about me
- Born in Manchester, UK
- I still hope to climb Machu Picchu one day..
- Avid travel and portrait photographer
- International fly fisherman with 30 years experience
- Married and living in South-East Asia
- Would love to cycle along the great wall of China
My Timeline
1960
I arrive into this world
1964
My family moved south, breaking away from the extended family in the north of England. My father was the youngest of 14, my mother was an only child.
As a result of the move, the family relationship with them was never the same again and I saw little of my extended family.
1970
My parents shipped me off to Wellington School in Somerset. Boarding school was a shock to the system, but I came out of it 8 years later a stronger and more independent teenager.
Although I was not to know it at the time, a couple of the friends I made there but lost touch with have in 2022 reconnected and nearly 45 years later, have assisted me with research for the debut novel!
1980
My first job, working for a company producing building materials that ultimately I would stay with for 25 years.
During that 25 years I married and had 2 fabulous children.
1990
I had progressed through that same company and in 1999 I started my second career with them, HSE.
I was encouraged by my father, who liked all things to do with words and books, to consider writing at least one book, to show I could do it and as he put it, to ‘leave a legacy’ even if it was only within the family.
My mother too encouraged me to ‘follow my dream’ if it was writing and to produce something.
Sadly, my father passed away from an inoperable brain tumour in 1998, a source of support and encouragement now gone forever.
2000
By now I was in a regional position with that company.
Notice how, up until this point, there is no mention of me actually writing or discussing book ideas!? Of course, I wrote reports, summaries and evaluations and they were always well-received. Quite simply, I thought about book-writing but there was never time to do it.
I had one more amazing child in this time, making three altogether.
I finally left that original company and worked for two other firms in the UK.
2008
An opportunity to move to Abu Dhabi presented itself. I was looking for a new start after divorce, and so started the Middle East chapter of my life.
Initially I planned for a year, two at the most, but one thing led to another and ultimately, I stayed for fourteen years!
Several times in the period, I thought again about writing.
I even had ideas for a book. I jotted notes down, meaning to develop them later.
2009
I moved to Qatar, as part of my Middle East adventure, living in Doha
2012
I moved to Oman, living in Salalah. As with my time in Qatar, I met many interesting people – some who became good friends, and sampled many different cultures.
The Middle East experience opened my eyes to so much more of the world.
2014
I missed the many friends I had made in UAE and I moved back to Abu Dhabi.
2015
While still in Abu Dhabi, I flew back to Bangkok and married my fiancé on the 30th December of this year.
2017
The final part of my trip to the Middle East was when I moved to Dubai.
The house-build in Thailand commenced. I project-managed it from afar, with my wife managing the day to day issues on site.
After all this time since my father passed away I still had not put pen to paper to write a book, even though the desire was as strong as ever.
2018
At the age of 91, my dear mother passed away peacefully in her home in the UK.
I was able to be there, and later again for the funeral. It is a sobering feeling to realise that you are now the oldest of the Laveracks and the head of the family.
The help and advice I so often called upon from both my parents was now no longer available. I had some big shoes to fill.
This was the last time I was in the UK.
2020
My time in Dubai was finishing and I made preparations to go home just as COVID hit the world.
By now I had been based in Thailand, not UK, for eight years. I went home to my wife (and her two daughters) and the house I had built.
With this new found time on my hands, I finally set up a home office, switched on my laptop, and for the first time… I started to write.
Just notes and ideas and not in earnest, but still, career number three had begun!
2021
There was much to do to make the new house into a home, but in May, I started writing the manuscript that would become the novel, ‘JASON’.
I embarked on building a kitchen, and a dressing room fit-out to the principal bedroom.
I also made a start on turning the jungle of overgrowth outside into a tropical garden.
2022
Debut novel – JASON – accepted for publication
The manuscript for JASON was completed in June of this year! Then the querying process started.
In October of this year, I had an offer for publication, and the whole process of turning a manuscript into a novel (and hopefully a best-seller) began.
Of course, this has spurred me to work on the next manuscript, one of three I currently have under development.
As a family, we became rubber farmers, duck farmers and fish farmers this year. With an acre of garden, we need to start the mini zoo, in addition to the bananas, papaya, mangoes, chillies and various salad veggies that are already growing!
Home-wise, we are preparing for the festive period and have just purchased a new solid teak dining table and 12 chairs in readiness for family get-togethers.