We all have our heros
Mine is my dad. He's the guy in the glasses in the image above.
Author Biography
The name Jules MacLeod is a pen name the author uses to represent his work. Not because he wishes to remain anonymous. It’s more his real name is not that sexy. As a technologist, he knows well that people can find out who he is. He cares not for his name, but more that his readers enjoy his work.
His first name, Jules—similar to Jules Verne—is a dedication to a dearly departed friend named Julie, who inspired him to write his first novel. The surname MacLeod is a tribute to his Scottish partner (her mother's maiden name), Vicki, who worked just as hard as Jules on his first novel. It’s like we said, he doesn’t care what he’s called—he’s been called far worse than Jules MacLeod.
More about Jules
While Jules writes in American English, he is British and was born in Staffordshire, in the Midlands, just north of Birmingham. As an only child, he was mischievous and always getting into scrapes. He survived these scrapes but not the tongue lashings that followed. The detentions bored him—write one hundred times: I am an idiot, then start again. The teacher never checked, so he wrote as requested on the first page, then ‘the teach is an idiot’ on the rest.
Jules studied at a reputable secondary modern school (high school) before moving on to a local technical college to study Information Technology. Unbeknownst to him, he was first published in a school magazine during his first year at secondary school. His English teacher recognized his talent and told him he was a gifted storyteller, but he ignored this advice for many years.
Looking back, he wishes he had listened and acted. He still regrets not going to university and often wonders what might have happened.
Born to working-class parents, his dad a lorry driver and his mom a secretary, he enjoyed a happy childhood. His mom enrolled him in the Boys and Lads Brigade at an early age to learn some discipline—he needed it. She later became a cub scout leader when Jules joined the cubs.
Jules started his IT career as a lowly computer operator, but earned a promotion to computer operations manager before he turned twenty-one. He advanced further by becoming an IT manager for a blue-chip global company.
However, Jules didn’t like the corporate structure of the blue-chip world. In 1997, he quit and moved to Tenerife, taking a demotion to work as an IT technician. Within a year, he earned another promotion to IT manager.
In 2007, Jules volunteered for redundancy and studied web design. While still living in Tenerife, he practiced the art of web design for fifteen years, finding it to be a fulfilling outlet for his creativity.
When Jules isn’t at the keyboard, he enjoys cooking. His friends know him for his authentic Indian curries and his ability to cook a great steak. As well as enjoying cooking, he also likes to eat. Good food. A food and wine snob? Hell yeah! The menus in his first two books show one thing—a refined pig.
He knows what he likes, and he has a palate. But he wasn’t always like that. Jules comes from a blue-collar family where only special occasions called for a restaurant. His dad could cook well, but it was mostly meat and two veg. Jules expanded his palate when he moved to Tenerife, learning to cook the things he liked.
No one leaves the MacLeod household without feeling full or thinking they had a substandard meal. His BBQ's and curry afternoons as he calls them are legendary (2pm until at least 8pm, or later). Well, that's his opinion anyway. A legend in his own lunchtime, maybe?
He also likes DIY projects when he has the time. His dad earned the nickname ‘Patch,’ and Jules has followed in his footsteps as ‘Patch Junior,’ known for his ability to fix things. When he fixes something, it stays fixed for at least a week, often longer. Jules’ long-suffering partner, Vicki, prepares lists of things for him to fix, which he ignores for as long as he can.
However, she knows how to motivate him. They live in a three-story townhouse, with his writing study on the garage level. To get him to check an item off the list, Vicki walks through his office and into the garage, selects tools, and then walks back through the office, brandishing the tools. Jules follows within five minutes, fearful of what she might attempt. She is not good at DIY.
Jules has a yearly project he enjoys. He and his partner own a 12 seater teak dining table, located on their terrace. Out comes his Bosch delta sander, and he sands the tables and chairs. Once done to Vicki’s exacting requirements (she owns a whip), he oils the table with special oil developed for teak.
As the tenth anniversary of the death of a dearly departed friend approached, Jules and Vicki hatched a plan for a memorial to their friend, Julie.
Julie had written short stories and novels, and they decided to bring one of her short stories up to date and self publish it in her memory.
The story took over Jules' life, and before he knew where he was, he'd written two books named Shadow of Justice. He followed up with a novella, and is currently writing a fourth book. Jules wishes to acknowledge Julie as the reason for him turning to writing and becoming an author.
