Location: United Kingdom
Member Since: Dec. 11, 2015

1 reader has added this author as a 'Favorite Author'.

Sign in to subscribe to email alerts for Barbara Jaques

Barbara Jaques

Biography

Life has so many possible outcomes. From the simple question what if? a thousand stories can evolve. This is how novelist, Barbara Jaques, finds inspiration, through questions of coincidence, uncertainty, superstition and faith.

Born in a tiny town in Alberta to wandering parents before their return to Bristol, Barbara has also wandered a little, although is now settled in Wiltshire with her family, close to her childhood home.

Smashwords Interview

What motivated you to become an indie author?
The mainstream world of publishing has narrowed, rather like the film industry. The vogue is for dead-cert money spinners. No one appears to want to test ideas or expand the market; taking a creative gamble and seeing if it pays off seems to be a thing of the past. Nowadays, unless the genre is very clear and specifically commercial, forget finding the more regular sort of support. Fortunately, the emergence of independent publishing platforms has allowed for greater expression once more.
What is the greatest joy of writing for you?
For me, writing is like painting: shape it, colour it, give it mood with subtle shade; perhaps re work it or throw it away and start again with a new canvas. The process of creation is wonderful.
Read more of this interview.

Where to find Barbara Jaques online

Website: http://barbarajaques.co.uk
Facebook: Facebook profile

Where to buy in print

https://amzn.to/2jo465e

Series

A short story by
Short stories with unexpected outcomes
Baggy
Price: Free!
The Front Door
Price: Free!
Sterling Close
Price: Free!
Anita Smith.
Price: Free!
Fibre
Price: Free!
Party Bus
Price: Free!
Percy's Progress by
Follow reluctant expat, Percy Field, to Singapore in The Cult of Following trilogy, where the rise and fall of this misanthropic Englishman is a thing to behold. Love him, hate him, envy him, nothing bothers Percy for long. Beyond the shores of Singapore and England, follow Percy's Progress as life continues to present challenges only a special man would encounter.
The Cult of Following, Book One
Price: Free!
The Cult of Following, Book Two
Price: Free!
The Cult of Following Book 3
Price: Free!
Flashbulb
Price: Free!

Books

Following Alice by
Series: A short story. Price: Free! Words: 2,280. Language: English. Published: April 26, 2022. Categories: Fiction » Thriller & suspense » Supernatural
Sun, sea and sand serve only to perpetuate an annual nightmare
Listen to Me by
Series: A short story. Price: Free! Words: 1,590. Language: British English. Published: January 30, 2022. Categories: Fiction » Thriller & suspense » Supernatural
A short tale of two people finding warmth at an ancient ritual and a dark, unwanted obsession.
Cold Bones by
Series: A short story. Price: Free! Words: 2,630. Language: English. Published: July 15, 2021. Categories: Fiction » Humor & comedy » Black comedy, Fiction » Science fiction » Short stories
Two cycling friends take a short break from family life and find themselves caught up in a nose twitching puzzle.
Flashbulb by
Series: Percy's Progress, Book 4. Price: Free! Words: 77,780. Language: English. Published: October 16, 2019. Categories: Fiction » Humor & comedy » Satire, Fiction » Humor & comedy » Black comedy
Love him or hate him, Percy Field is venturing from British shores once more. The first time he left he was heading for Singapore hoping to save his marriage. This time Percy's goal is equally unlikely. Whiling away the days on the New Zealand island of Waiheke, how can life and love move on when even the past has become inaccessible?
Lonesome Corpse by
Series: A short story. Price: Free! Words: 2,370. Language: English. Published: October 7, 2019. Categories: Fiction » Horror » General, Fiction » Thriller & suspense » General
A creepy short story of why it is always better to stay on the path
We Are Who by
Series: A short story. Price: Free! Words: 2,190. Language: English. Published: May 31, 2019. Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » Short stories, Fiction » Humor & comedy » Black comedy
The age of technology? The ride might be longer than you think.
Number Ten by
Series: A short story. Price: Free! Words: 2,030. Language: English. Published: December 12, 2018. Categories: Fiction » Humor & comedy » Black comedy, Fiction » Literature » Literary
(3.00 from 1 review)
The decision of one man seems to change the course of the day for many. But was change coming, anyway?
Agnes Wagner's Gardening Club by
Series: A short story. Price: Free! Words: 2,610. Language: English. Published: October 22, 2018. Categories: Fiction » Humor & comedy » Black comedy, Fiction » Horror » Weird fiction
A short tale of an elitist gardening club driving the horticulturally minded to insane extremes. Nature, nurture or just plain creepy?
Portia by
Series: A short story. Price: Free! Words: 4,310. Language: English. Published: August 15, 2018. Categories: Fiction » Thriller & suspense » General
A short cautionary tale; when does a stranger become something more?
Fibre by
Series: A short story. Price: Free! Words: 2,720. Language: English. Published: May 2, 2018. Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » Short stories, Fiction » Humor & comedy » Black comedy
A short tale of threading lives and private stories where not everything is as it seems.
The Cult of Following Book 3 by
Series: Percy's Progress, trilogy. Price: Free! Words: 77,690. Language: English. Published: March 13, 2018. Categories: Fiction » Humor & comedy » Satire
In the final book of The Cult of Following trilogy, Percy Field at last finds direction, deciding he has nothing to lose by sharing the opinion of those in awe of him. Raised up to the highest of heights, Singapore's five-foot way is a hard place to fall.
Party Bus by
Series: A short story. Price: Free! Words: 6,640. Language: English. Published: October 11, 2017. Categories: Fiction » Humor & comedy » Black comedy, Fiction » Literature » Literary
What sort of party starts at 8am, includes the young, the old, and strangers, and begins on a bus in a supermarket carpark?
The Cult of Following, Book Two by
Series: Percy's Progress, trilogy. Price: Free! Words: 80,280. Language: English. Published: March 21, 2017. Categories: Fiction » Humor & comedy » Satire, Fiction » Humor & comedy » Black comedy
After stepping far beyond the warm-beer and soggy-chip comforts of England, Percy Field has finally accepted his lot. While the move to Singapore was everything Percy expected, in this new place was both inexplicable and unexpected. But life for the disagreeable expat is not destined to be easy.
The Cult of Following, Book One by
Series: Percy's Progress, trilogy. Price: Free! Words: 80,650. Language: English. Published: January 4, 2017. Categories: Fiction » Humor & comedy » Satire
Misanthrope, Percy Field, is completely at ease amongst his reserved middle England community. However, if he is to rescue his floundering marriage he must follow his wife and her job to Singapore. Percy’s new home is exactly as he imagined it to be: too hot, too humid, an annoying place where even his habitual comfort of picking fault doesn’t provide consolation, until friendship comes his way.
West of Eden; A Dedicated Tale by
Series: A short story. Price: Free! Words: 3,330. Language: English. Published: November 4, 2016. Categories: Fiction » Humor & comedy » Satire
Two small English cities battle it out, in a short tale of personal rivalry and obsession.
Anita Smith. by
Series: A short story. Price: Free! Words: 2,500. Language: English. Published: July 25, 2016. Categories: Fiction » Humor & comedy » Black comedy
(3.00 from 1 review)
Life is a bus journey. Or is it a lottery, where you select your own numbers or even make a random choice? Whichever, the odds do not change. What does matter, however, is what you do with the ticket. Anita Smith left hers on the bus.
Sterling Close by
Series: A short story. Price: Free! Words: 4,670. Language: English. Published: July 5, 2016. Categories: Fiction » Humor & comedy » Black comedy
(4.00 from 1 review)
Sterling Close is the short story of a tiny community and their very particular, and rather unexpected, tastes. From the author of other unexpected short stories, novelist Barbara Jaques.
Baggy by
Series: A short story. Price: Free! Words: 2,060. Language: British English. Published: February 2, 2016. Categories: Fiction » Fantasy » Short stories, Fiction » Thriller & suspense » Supernatural
(3.00 from 1 review)
An unexpected turn of events for a young mischief maker, forces him to take a different view of his best friend
The Front Door by
Series: A short story. Price: Free! Words: 2,380. Language: British English. Published: January 23, 2016. Categories: Fiction » Fantasy » Short stories, Fiction » Science fiction » Short stories
(5.00 from 1 review)
An unexpected tale of opportunity in the rental market. Inspired by Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Roald Dahl.

Barbara Jaques' tag cloud

ancient world    apocalypse    author    barbecue    bath uk    bikes    black humour    body    boys misbehaving    bus journey    busy day    chance    choice and consequences    choices made    coincidence    competition    computer age    covet    creepy    cult    culture    cycling    cynical    dark fiction    destiny    electric cars    england    english abroad    english comedy    englishman    expat life    expatriate    faith    family    family tragedy    friends    friendship    future culture    gardening    ghost story    gossip    grief and loss    haloween    holiday read    horticulture    huawei    humour noir    idol worship    infatuation    inheritance    injury    jealousy    kiwi    lonely    lottery ticket    love    madness    marriage    memory    murder    mysterious    new zealand    obsession    ordinary lives    pagan ritual    past mistakes    people    peoplewatching    playing pranks    power abuse    relationships    religion    religious humour    rivalry    robbery    romance    rural england    satellite    scary    seaside    short dark fiction    short ebooks    short sci fi    short story    singapore    social satire    south east asia    spiders    stories    stranger    strangers    supernatural    supernatural short story    surgery    technology    unexpected    unexpected consequences    victim    villagers    visitor    winchester    woods