A Big Announcement!
July 2026
Like all big announcements there is a bit of a back story that needs telling first...
In 2020 I was an early adopter of Covid 19 having contracted it from my dying mother as I sat with her during her final days. Following directly on from that I decided to join in with the Long Covid thing and a grim 18 months followed. At my lowest point I made a possibly dubious decision, I decided to challenge my slowly deteriorating self. I would give myself a year to not only get better but to get fit enough to ski the length of Norway from north to south.
At 2,700 kilometres this was to be no small undertaking. The plan was simple, two friends and I would follow a popular long distance summer hiking route called the Norge på langs in winter, on skis . Despite its popularity in summer this legendary route is rarely completed in winter and many who do try fail to finish. I gave little thought at the time to the minor(!?) fact that I had never been on nordic skis before.
Besides, “What could possibly go wrong?” I thought to myself.
Quite a lot as it turned out.
In defiance of everything that did go wrong and a lot did, eventually, on Thursday 7th April 2022 we arrived at Nordkapp, the most Northerly point of Norway and Europe. Along the way we had lost one member of the team (don’t worry, he’s alive and well), passed through three countries and battled one of the most extreme winters Norway had seen for some years.
So, what about this big announcement?’ I hear you ask. Well…
Many of you will have read the blog I did at the time or perhaps followed the audio diaries I made for both BBC Radio Berkshire and BBC Radio Hereford & Worcestershire. What you won’t know is that, for the three months that followed on from the expedition I sat down and wrote an account of my journey. From contracting Covid to finally reaching Nordkapp. A saga that spans more than two years. There is sorrow, hardship and there are highs and lows, but ultimately it is an uplifting account of determination, recovery and friendship infused with humour.
Fast forward four years to July 2026 and I am in London to meet this nice man who wants to publish my book.
I told you it is was a big announcement.
Meet Stuart Leasor. Stuart is a publisher, founder of Chiselbury Publishing and all-round good egg. Not least because he has agreed to publish my book. So meeting him face-to-face was very exciting.
Stuart and Neil provide a typically English display of wild excitement.
I am beyond excited, but also somewhat daunted. Getting a publisher to publish any book is no mean feat. It has taken me more than 2 years and many rejections to get to this point. I am therefore extremely grateful to Stuart and Chiselbury Publishing for this opportunity and for their faith in my work to return on their investment.
Now there is just the matter of a lot of work to do to meet a publish date of March 2027. There are a couple of extra sections to add to the more than 100k words already written, maps to draw, images to edit, talks and publicity opportunities to investigate and organise and (I’m not sure how I feel about this one) social media to engage with.
This will not be a solitary journey. As ever, the long suffering, ridiculously patient and immensely supportive Mrs P will be there with me the whole way.
A lot of coffee will be drunk as I sit tapping away at my desk and hopefully, by September, everything will be ready for draft copies to go out for review.
How many screens!?
So, dear blog readers. please do share this blog far and wide and let me know if you have any ideas for publicity, speaking events, suggestions for content/blogs etc. I would be particularly interested to hear from anyone who just happens to know the editor of the any of the national newspapers, or the director general of the BBC. If you do, please nudge them to keep their eyes peeled for a new and exciting book. You never know, it could be a best seller?
A free signed copy to anyone who gets me an interview on telly.
