When I signed with Fremantle Press in 2004, I had already written three novels in the Hal Spacejock series. My contract covered these three books, and my job was to rewrite and polish them for publication.

I spent the next 2-3 years doing exactly that, throwing out whole scenes and chapters, demoting some characters to bit parts and promoting others to major roles.

When the last of those books was done, I turned to the next novel, with new allies and foes for Hal Spacejock, and a completely new plot.

Hal Spacejock No Free Lunch is the result, and it's the first book I've ever written to order. The process was very different to the first three novels, because instead of modifying what I already had, my job was to write an effective summary, and only when that was approved did I get to write the novel.

Of course, during the writing of the novel I diverged completely from the summary, but that's another story ...