A short career as a journalist with a provincial newspaper convinced Franklin Bishop that it was not favourable to longevity. Moving on to freelance work including copywriting and teaching proved to be more agreeable. Gaining a BA(Hons) qualification in 3-Dimensional Design proved entirely useless and a TESOL Certificate ( Teacher of English to Speakers of Other Languages) only marginally less so. Of much more benefit was Rai, my pet dog whom for some 12 years taught me much about having fun and enjoying the moment.

A visit to Newstead Abbey former home of Lord Byron led me to discover the one time companion of the famous poet - John William Polidori of which little was known and even less was written about. The Anglo-Italian Romantic became an obsession and drove me to over 15 years of painstaking research to find out more about this fascinating romantic figure - Polidori is responsible for creating the iconic vampire in English literature having based it clearly upon Lord Byron and his less than attractive qualities. Handsome seducer, amoral, cynical and ruthless Polidori's iconic vampire creation was and remains a major influence on the genre of vampire literature.
 
Having traversed the North Sea in a Force 6 on a very old and creaky ferry ship I can truly say I have looked the eye of the storm in the eye. I didn't like it and as a consequence will never again cross the North Sea in a ship of any description. I continue to research neglected literary figures, write about them and hope readers will enjoy discovering their works as much I do.