OTHER WRITING

Outside of my work on comics, fiction and audio, I've worked in a range of fields, from movie criticism, games and film scripts to commercial copywriting and subediting.

If you're an editor, project manager or fellow creative seeking a reliable collaborator, then please don't hesitate to reach out via my Contact Page...

Film Criticism

During several years as a freelance movie critic, I wrote dozens of reviews, interviews, articles, critical pieces, advertorials, general copy and subediting for publications including Empire, Sight & Sound, the British Film Institute, Total Film, SFX, Film Review, Shivers, Starburst, Dreamwatch, and DVD & Blu-Ray Review.

I also wrote Empires Of The Imagination: A Critical Survey Of Fantasy Cinema From Georges Méliès To The Lord Of The Rings, published by McFarland in 2005.

W_978-1-4766-8137-5.jpg

  • I was fortunate to write Empires of the Imagination in the early 2000s, a period that turned out to be one of the most exciting in the history of fantasy cinema. While The Lord Of The Rings and the Harry Potter series were duking it out at the box-office, innovative novelists like Philip Pullman and China Miéville were challenging traditional conceptions of literary fantasy, paving the way for future movie material.

    Critics and pundits gathered to give fantasy cinema a belated appraisal. But what frustrated me was just how ill-informed much of this discussion actually was, founded mainly upon an astonishingly narrow view of what actually constitutes the fantasy genre.

  • Fantasy cinema encompasses more than most people realise. Sure, the genre is best known for its excursions into magical worlds, as in The Wizard of Oz, The Dark Crystal and The Chronicles Of Narnia. But fantasy cinema also admits incursions of magic in our own world, as in Peter Weir’s Picnic At Hanging Rock, Alfonso Arau’s Like Water For Chocolate, Wim Wenders’ Wings Of Desire and Woody Allen’s Zelig.

  • Fantasy cinema also enriches us more than we may realise. The greatest fantasy films do not escape reality; they engage it from a fresh perspective. They do not seek to console; only reveal the heart’s desire in our own back yard.

    The greatest misconception about fantasy films is that they offer an absolute escape from the real world. The truth is they cannot, and we must beware those charlatan movies that say they can.

  • In Empires Of The Imagination I attempt to define this most misunderstood of movie genres. Films like Edward Scissorhands, It’s A Wonderful Life and Conan the Barbarian aren’t merely the uncategorised leftovers of horror and science-fiction, but belong to a genre that thrives in its own right, sustained by its own history, conventions and concerns.

  • I’ve explored fantasy cinema in its entirety. Ruby slippers and seven dwarfs; labyrinths and gothic fairy tales; avenging angels and charming devils; lost worlds and swapped bodies; friendly phantoms and rifts in time; feminist witches and boy wizards; Italian strongmen, Austrian barbarians and all-American adventurers; heroes of Greece, kings of Albion and Hobbits of the Shire.

    How will fantasy cinema maintain this legacy? I hope Empires Of The Imagination helps establish a basis for debate.

    Available from Amazon, Google Play Books, Kobo, and publishers McFarland.

  • "Terrific analysis... an impressive book."

    NC Flix

  • "An impassioned and enthusiastic read that really makes you want to seek out the more obscure titles."

    Vector

  • "An essential critical guide."

    Dreamwatch

  • "Most useful... recommended."

    Choice

  • "Comprehensive... meticulously researched... richly illustrated."

    Prehistoric Times

  • "A stimulating and worthwhile read."

    Reflections on Cult Movies and Classic TV

Games

In 2020 I contributed to scripts for The Multilingual Misadventures of Dash and Blink: Forgotten French, Vanished Spanish and Missing Mandarin, an educational game developed by Aerian Studios for BBC Bitesize with voice performances by Catherine Tate.


Film / TV

In 2018 I worked on a script with award-winning British director Martin Gooch for A Midwinter Night's Dream (2019), a single-shot short film that won multiple awards following its premier at the inaugural Trinity Challenge by ARRI Media and Director’s UK.

I have also adapted for the screen one of my own short comic scripts, The Caretaker (published in John Carpenter’s Tales for a Halloween Night, Vol 8).



Agent of Weird: Exploring the Write Fantastic

  • Then unsheathe your eldritch runesword! Burst forth from your grave! Gun the thrusters on your starfighter like the laser-bats of Moonfort-Sigma are closing on your six!

    And subscribe to Agent of Weird: Exploring the Write Fantastic, a free monthly newsletter for anyone who craves a deeper understanding of fantasy, horror, sci-fi and every slippery subgenre in between.

  • Your FREE subscription gets you a new, in-depth feature EVERY MONTH.

    Don’t worry. I won’t spam your inbox every five minutes. Instead, I’ll bring you fresh and challenging views on the craft, significance and history of fantasy, horror and science-fiction, as well as easy access to a full ARCHIVE of previous essays.

    Join a community of geeks and creatives who share your undying love of swords, fangs and lasers.

  • Whether you create (or want to create) comics, novels, screenplays, or psionic thought-dramas for the pixies that live in your head, you’ll find something here that’ll help you develop your craft, better understand your genre, and make you realise that none of us are doing things quite as badly as we think.

    Subscribe now and get weird.

Copywriting / Subediting

After several years as a subeditor at a London content agency, I've been hired regularly for subbing, editing and copywriting by a variety of clients, including The Folio Society, Eaglemoss, Engage Publishing and John Brown Media.
Overall, I've worked on numerous online and print projects for clients including KPMG, Santander, Dixons Retail, the British Council, Virgin Media Business, the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign, Marvel Entertainment and DC Comics.

If you’re in need of a reliable freelance subeditor or copywriter who respects deadlines, is organised, thorough, and can adapt to any style or tone of voice, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.