J W Publishing

I am thrilled to announce my first event of 2026! On Saturday, January 3rd, I’ve been invited to the scenic highland village of Benderloch to give an informal talk at the Bookends Book Festival. This event feels like a true "threshold" moment for me. As we shake off the Hogmanay celebrations, I’ll be looking back on the journey of self-publishing my first book, The Way That Loved Me Back, while looking forward to a busy year ahead—including the next installment of the Callum Jackson Adventure Series and a new Gaelic poetry collection inspired by my Couchsurfing days in Glasgow’s Southside. A Community Heartbeat in the Reading Room If you haven’t visited before, the Bookends Book Festival is a gem of a charity run entirely by passionate volunteers. Based in the Reading Room at the Victory Hall, it’s a cozy, welcoming space where people of all ages can borrow a book, enjoy some home baking, and have a proper catch-up over a cuppa.  * Festival Hours: 11:00 am – 4:00 pm  * My Tal...

The biggest shopping weekend of the year is approaching, and here in Scotland, it’s also the final weekend of Book Week Scotland. The theme for Book Week this year is " Friendship ."  It got me thinking about how most people discover new favourite authors. Usually, it’s because a friend pressed a book into their hands and said, "You have to read this."  Of course, the other thing I thought about was how good a match this theme was for my own book as a huge part of the book is about a friendship Callum makes and the efforts he goes to to develop the friendship.  So, to celebrate Scottish Book Week and the spirit of sharing stories, I wanted to create an offer that rewards my loyal readers for sharing Callum Jackson with a friend, while also offering a risk-free way for new readers to jump on board before the second book arrives.  Here is my "Adventure Upgrade" offer for this weekend.  The Deal: The Book That Pays You Back   Usually, when you buy a digital b...

The photo that sparked a fresh path into the world of books! My Gran's birthday was coming up soon, and I wanted to do something to mark the occasion. So, I set my mind to it and published my first book in her memory. For years I had been writing, adding to, and editing a manuscript of my experience walking the Camino de Santiago - twice - in 2018. I even did a podcast on Instagram and Spotify! It took until 2025 for all the pieces to join together, both from within myself and in the technology available to me, for me to produce a version which I could happily share with the world.  The revelation came when I realised that writing a piece of narrative fiction based on my experience would make it possible for me to take a brave step to add it to store bookshelves! Callum Jackson is my new character, who gives me permission to be bold and produce a story that isn't just about me and that could resonate with those who read my writing. I also knew my story would be of value to some...