When Chris was seven or eight, his teacher asked the class to write a short story and bring it to school the following Monday. When he presented her with his inspirational effort she read it, ripped it in half and threw it in the bin. 'Your father wrote that!' she accused, implying that he couldn't possibly have produced something of the quality she'd just read. Ever since then he's been trying to prove her wrong. In October 2011, after countless failed attempts to get the interest of a publisher, Chris made it into the last sixteen of a national writing competition organised by HarperCollins. The book was called Hooked. In spite of the event being televised on the Alan Titchmarsh Show, fame was short-lived and there was still no interest or offer of publication. Following some sound advice from Sophie Hannah, one of the judges of the competition, Chris set about writing his second book, a novel called Landlady. Rather than take his new book around the traditional publishing houses, Chris decided to take advantage of the rise in the sale of e-readers and self-publish this and several other books. He continues to strive for recognition. Chris works as an addiction counsellor and lives with his wife in Worcestershire.
