Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am originally from Bedford in England but I grew up in Middlesbrough. When I was four years old, in the mid-1950s, my parents took me to Jamaica to live which must have planted in me the seed to travel, as I have been travelling ever since. I have lived in ten different countries and worked in five-star hotels and restaurants around the world as a chef. I have also worked on cruise ships, Antarctic supply ships, a gold mine in Papua New Guinea and the Falkland Islands after the war with Argentina.
I have written eleven books in total, six of them are travel books aimed at retirees and baby boomers and I have also written my biography, “You will never amount to anything”.
I have now retired to Thailand where I live on the beautiful island of Koh Samui and travel extensively throughout South East Asia researching my travel books.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is A Three-Week Road Trip Through Southern Thailand and is the first book in the Just Another Day in Paradise series. Unlike my “Retirees” books, this series is not just for retirees or people who may be considering living here. This book is a little different as it is aimed at anyone who would like to take an exhilarating road trip through Thailand and is the first book of three which covers Southern Thailand the next two books will cover Northwestern Thailand and Eastern Thailand
Thailand is a fantastic country to visit, but with most people flying into Bangkok before moving on to the more touristy hotspots such as Pattaya, Phuket, Chiang Mai, and Koh Samui, they miss out on seeing the real Thailand, the Thailand that is virtually undiscovered by tourists. This book takes you on a three-week road trip to the hot spots of Southern Thailand: Hua Hin, Koh Samui, Krabi, Phi-Phi Island, and Phuket, and on the way, explores some of the more unique places that most tourists rarely get to see. The book is filled with the information that you will need to give you the confidence to take the trip of a lifetime from Bangkok to Phuket, with some out-of-the-way regions in between.
• How to plan your trip of a lifetime
• Suggested itinerary
• The best seasons to travel.
• How to get there
• Where to stay
• Where to go and what to do in the daytime.
• Where to go and what to do in the nighttime.
• Interesting facts on many places in Thailand
• Places for eating, drinking.
• Best nightlife and bars and lady bars
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Being of a certain age I didn’t grow up with computers but I have certainly adapted to them since I started writing books. I do most of my writing thanks to the wonders of Wi-Fi sitting on a beach or around a swimming pool in Thailand or some other Southeast Asian country. Quite often when the sun is going down my inspiration is helped along with a cocktail or two.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
The first books I remember reading were the Just William series of books by Richmal Crompton. As I matured I read everything Charles Dickens wrote and all of The Hobbit series of books by J. R. R. Tolkien, I also loved Catch 22 by Joseph Heller. My daughter was born in 1974, and as she grew older I would read Watership Down by Richard Adams to her at bedtime. Looking back now it was probably a little scary for a little girl, but she loved the book as much as I did. Being at sea for much of my life, books were an important source of entertainment in the few leisure hours that you get working on a ship. I would read everything that I could get my hands on, from Agatha Christie to Ernest Hemingway, from Nevil Shute to Leslie Thomas. My favourite authors of today are James Lee Burke, Elmore Leonard, Dennis Lehane, Kate Atkinson, and Khaled Hosseini. I also like to read travel-related books especially anything by Michael Palin and Bill Bryson. I don’t think any author actually influenced me, I just loved losing myself in a good book.
What are you working on now?
I am writing the second book in my Just Another Day in Paradise series. This book will cover Northeastern Thailand on a three-week 900-kilometre road trip from Bangkok to Chiang Rai taking in many interesting and off-the-beaten-track places, places that many tourists miss out on when they come to Thailand as most people only go to the more popular areas of Thailand such as Koh Samui, Pattaya, Phuket and Krabi
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I have recently published a website as it seems a necessity in this day and age. Apart from that, being a retiree and of that certain age, I am not very knowledgeable about computers and social media, so I rely on word of mouth and hopefully, my publisher getting my name out there. I know I must be missing out on many selling opportunities but I find the whole social media thing rather boring and time-consuming. I also promote my books via my YouTube channel…Thailand My Land: https://tinyurl.com/3t32zprj
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Just keep doing what you’re doing; even if you don’t get published you’re still improving your mind, enjoying what you’re doing and fulfilling an ambition. My brother John, who was a much better writer than I will ever be, tried most of his life to get his books published and never succeeded. I wrote my second book in 2017 (the first book I wrote was never meant for publication) and I was offered a publishing contract for it within a few months of releasing it on Amazon. What I discovered since becoming an author is that getting a book published is quite often down to luck, being in the right place at the right time and of course writing a great book.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Travel whenever you can, the greatest experiences are seeing other cultures and getting a real perspective on life and the lives that other people lead”. Which is the way I have always tried to live my life.
When I was in Cambodia recently researching my book, I spoke with a lady who was just forty-two years old the same age as my daughter. Her father was arrested, imprisoned and later killed by Pol Pot’s henchmen for the crime of being a teacher. When she was one year old, with her mother, older brother, and sister, they were forced to march 330 kilometres from their home in Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville to work on a communal farm. Her mother died along the way of sickness and malnutrition and she was separated from her brother and sister, and she would never see them again. She was taken in and raised in impoverished conditions by another family who had befriended her mother on the long march south. Being born in Cambodia during those murderous days she had not had the opportunities in her life that my children or grandchildren have had. She had no education, no real family, and had been working as a prostitute since she was fourteen years old to survive. It certainly put everything in perspective for me. You don’t see the real world by watching it on the television.
What are you reading now?
I love reading great books but unfortunately living here in Thailand with the many things to see and do here and being an author as well as having to make content for my YouTube channel there are not enough hours in the day for me to sit down and read a good book. I thought that when I retired, I would have lots of time to read but it didn’t work out that way. I don’t mind because it keeps me active and I get to meet many interesting people and make new friends
What’s next for you as a writer?
When I have fished my travel books in the Just Another Day in Paradise series I intend to write my third book in my Police Lieutenant Chai Son Sinuan series of books
Police Lieutenant Chai Son Sinuan of the Royal Thailand Police based on the tropical island of Koh Samui is an incorruptible policeman in a police force that is deep-rooted in corruption. Its a work in progress and it will be called, Lawyers, Guns and Money.
What is your favorite book of all time?
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.
Author Websites and Profiles
Gerald Hogg Website
Gerald Hogg Amazon Profile
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