So, the first draft of No Going Back is complete. I’m now reading through it to make sure it’s got all the right plot points in the right order—the pitfalls of writing out of sequence!
The main male character in this story is Sir Guy Somerton. Guy’s made other appearances in the series, but in No Going Back, he takes centre stage. He’s spent more than a decade alone, since losing the love of his life in a fire—a situation he doesn’t expect to change, until he meets Madeleine Scott.
When I originally conceived the character of Sir Guy, he was only going to be a minor character—a pompous senior civil servant, and a distinct contrast to his niece, Ros, who had been an officer in the Royal Military Police. Then, as is so often the case with my characters, he knocked on the door to my imagination and told me he could be so much more. That was when he transformed into a former Army officer whose past included a stint on secondment to the Intelligence services, and who became the commanding officer of an elite Government security unit.
Like everyone, Guy has a past. So what happened in his past that means he’s alone now? Why doesn’t he date? What are his secrets? Guy has taught me a valuable lesson, that the throwaway line in one book in a series can be a pointer to the enigma of another character.
And, once a supporting character doesn’t mean always a supporting character.
I shall leave you to consider the last comment above, because Sir Guy isn’t the only one of the Club Aegis family to whom it might apply. If you want to know who I’m talking about… well, you’ll have to read No Going Back to find out…
