A lot of people have the dream of writing a novel. I did for many years and, in fact, wrote about 50 pages of one ten years ago, only to abandon it. Even after a long career of writing everything from technical manuals to ad copy to wristwatch reviews, the prospect of sitting down and hammering out 60,000 words of a coherent, entertaining, and well-written story scared me. The fact is, it’s a daunting task.

There are a few things that I’ve found separate the creation of a novel from other genres of writing. First of all, the sheer discipline and perseverance to face the blank page for an extended period. I’ve read that Alistair Maclean wrote his thrillers in about a month. Ian Fleming wrote one a year, spending three months in Jamaica writing, then flying back to London to edit. Rinse and repeat. That’s not me. Depth Charge has taken 18 months, from first word to printing.

And then there’s the research. Though only a handful of saturation and technical divers, Sri Lankan Buddhists, or British historians might read this book, I didn’t want to get details wrong in any of those fields of expertise. Online research can only get you so far, and the worldwide pandemic prevented me from being able to travel for specific reconnaissance. So I had to lean on a number of subject matter experts for their help and critical eyes.

Paul Scurfield provided valuable early feedback on some chapters involving saturation diving and Jason Van der Schyff reviewed the book near its completion with the same focus. Their input was essential to getting those scenes as accurate and believable as possible, though I still took some liberties.

My week diving the wreck of HMS Hermes back in 2017 informed much of my knowledge of the east coast of Sri Lanka, deep tech diving, and World War II shipwrecks. The Deep Sea Resort in Batticaloa was the inspiration for The Deep Blue in Depth Charge. I owe a debt of gratitude to the Deep Sea’s owner, Felician Fernando, who inspired my character, Sebastian, and taught me the art of technical diving and introduced me to the Hermes.

My time spent with the Lost Ships of Cortés Project in Mexico opened my eyes to the world of underwater archaeology and inspired the character, and the work, of my hero, Tusker. I thank Fritz Hanselmann, Christopher Horrell, Melanie Damour, and Jonathan Kingston for allowing me to get a glimpse into their work.

To understand the nuances of Sri Lankan Buddhism and a history of Buddhist extremism, I turned to my friend, Milinda Cumaratunga. Milo reviewed excerpts of this novel, provided valuable feedback, suggested appropriate names, and corrected my often blundered portrayal of the lives and customs of the Buddhist clergy.

Tina Edward read a draft of Depth Charge and provided feedback on some portrayals of Sri Lankan life and for her time and comments, I am grateful.