BLACKMAIL, extortion, and secrets are at the heart of the latest novel from Clackmannanshire author Garry Scobie.

The Kill Chain, which was inspired by the writer's own work for Edinburgh University protecting their computer networks, launched on Saturday as his second published work.

"At the end of the day it is an old fashioned story when you strip away the technology," he told the Advertiser.

"In my area of cyber security, this is the kind of thing that could happen."

The story, which is set in Edinburgh, follows security expert Jacob Anderson as he secures his dream cyber defence job, until a 'sextortion' attempt threatens his integrity.

"As a young hacker he made a mistake and fell into a honey trap and is now paying the price," Garry, who writes under the name GJ Scobie, explained.

"It is fiction but I used a potentially real scenario.

"You need to make it readable, it is all about blackmail and extortion, people making mistakes and then lying to cover it up."

The 11th novel written by the 62-year-old, The Kill Chain follows in the wake of his self-published debut, The Copernicus Coercion Book 1: Code Critical, which was released in February.

That story follows a different type of 'reality', where hackers are taking control of popular human micro-chips.

"I could just never get one over the line and get a publisher to pick it up," he added.

"But I just kept going, it is an odd feeling (having a book published), I've had so many rejections over time, it can be tough, but that's the name of the game.

"I've been writing for 11 years, the next step is to just keep going.

"I wrote my first book 12 years ago, and at first a publisher picked it up but rejected it after the second round.

"I was actually lucky, I didn't have the stamina as a writer then, now if they turn around and say thy want a draft in three months I can do it, I think that is where a lot of young writers fail.

"I've done this before, I'm resilient, if you start taking things personally you won't manage.

"I had one where an editor told me, 'you've not finished this book', and I had to go away and write two more chapters."

In total, Garry has written 12 books, with his 13th currently in the works.

This includes a five-part-long fantasy series, The Clockmaker Conspiracy, the first of which, A Game of Chess, he hopes to release soon.

"People say how do you manage that, but I get up at dawn, I do that every day," he continued.

"I used to do it on the train to work, but I just get up in the morning and do it, books don't write themselves, that's what it is, that's how every writer does it.

"If you can do 1,700 words a day for 30 days you've got a draft, if you skip a day that's where it gets difficult to catch up."

Garry also has a spot lined up at the Edinburgh Fringe as part of the Cabaret of Dangerous Ideas, performing his show, 'My neighbour hacked my toothbrush', which highlights the potential dangers of internet connected home devices, such as door cameras and smart speakers.

"You have to go out there and talk, it is stand-up, no slides, no prompts, and an audience who have been drinking all day," he said.

"It is nerve-wracking, but you come off wanting to go back on, it is a huge buzz."

The Kill Chain, published by Darkstroke, is available at https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kill-Chain-This-Digital-Dark-ebook/dp/B09YS4D1H5/