Welcome Nick Fisher and Geoff Burke who work under the pseudonym NG Neville. Both are from Lancashire. Nick is from Wigan and Geoff originally from Salford, now resides in North Wales.
We are meeting because of your third book, Death and Salvation which is an anthology of eight stories due to be published in 2021. The extraordinary tales feature many amazing characters taken from your second novel, Betsy Roberts.
Would you say you were in the right place at the right time when you met?
Geoff married Beth who is Nick’s cousin. We reconnected at Beth’s father’s funeral and so we were at the right place and arrived at the right time.
How did you know that your collaboration would be successful?
We spark off each other and, among other interests, we have a joint passion for the American Old West. Nick has always had a strong interest in outlaws such as Jesse James and early American history, particularly around the War of Independence. We discovered a shared fascination with Daniel Boone and David Crockett which led us to research the Harpe brothers, who were savage. They fought for the British under Colonel Banastre Tarleton whose father was Mayor of Liverpool and involved in the slave trade. The Harpe brothers are at the black heart of our third book, Death and Salvation.
Our first literary success was a novella, Degeneration which is based on true events and characters from the early pioneer period of American history just after the War of Independence.
The second accomplishment was a book entitled Betsy Roberts. This tells the story of a woman who, as a child was captured by the Harpe brothers and lived a hellish life. Talented actress Katie McConnel is the voice over for our audiobook of Betsy Roberts which is now available on Amazon audible! Our work on Betsy Roberts has been spotted by an American Producer and a French Director. We are proud to tell you that the story is due to be made into a film within the next eighteen months.
Are there any other shared interests?
Literature: Yes, we read Russian literature particularly the novelist, journalist, and philosopher Dostoyevsky who, for us, unwraps the world of human psychology. We enjoy how the bohemian novelist Kafka fuses realism with the fantastic and we were amazed to discover that we both read Tolstoy’s War and Peace when we were seventeen. We don’t think many other teenagers would have that as their claim to fame!
Art: Nick studied art at college, paints for pleasure, often selling his work. Geoff gained B.A. and M.A. degrees and a Fellowship at the University of Cambridge studying Art and Philosophy. He taught art as a Head of Department in a school in Colwyn Bay.
Music: There are other similarities too. We both play the guitar and have organised the Llandudno Jazz Festival, a series of Blues concerts in Wigan and tours for the legendary Cream bassist Jack Bruce and singer Mica Paris. We co-run an Art collective in Wigan with Geoff’s wife, Beth, called The Swinley Group.
Thank you. It was a pleasure meeting such an inspirational and creative team. I wish you much success with your projects.
For more information on NG Neville and their accomplishments visit their website https://ngneville.com/