Growing up in London in the 1960s, an exciting time and place to be a teenager, Richard’s passions were books and music. He always wanted to be a writer, but was diverted into writing music rather than books.
After completing a degree in philosophy, music, and creative writing, he played keyboards in various bands and theatre companies, and composed music for TV and radio, working at the BBC’s renowned Radiophonic Workshop (and winning two Sony Awards for The Most Creative Use of Radio).
In 2007, Richard retired from the media music business and downshifted to Tenerife, Spain, to focus on his first love: writing (initially, travel articles for magazines, a column in a local paper, and short stories).
Since then, he has published three books: Nobody’s Poodle, a novella narrated by an abandoned dog (included in the Guardian’s Top 50 Readers’ recommended self-published authors); Somebody’s Doodle, a canine cozy mystery (highly commended, and audiobook winner, in the 2020 Page Turner Awards); and Too Close to the Wind, a travel adventure, philosophical thriller, and the world’s first windsurfing novel.
His current novel, The Rhythm of Time, has been long-listed for the Bridport, Yeovil, and Cinnamon Press prizes, chosen as “notable” in the Gutsy Chapter One Prize, and it was a finalist in the 2025 Page Turner Awards. His short fiction has won third prize in the Lorian Hemingway contest, with honourable mentions from Writer's Digest and Writers of the Future.
