Nick Croydon: Trust in Your Agent
In this interview, author Nick Croydon discusses the inspiration for his debut novel, how research enhanced his story, and more.
Nick Croydon was born in Surrey, England, and is the CEO of QBD Books Australia. He has more than 25 years’ experience running international publishing companies and book retail businesses across the United Kingdom and Australia. The Turing Protocol is his debut novel.
In this interview, Croydon discusses the inspiration for his debut novel, how research enhanced his story, and more.
Name: Nick Croydon
Literary agent: Shane Salerno The Story Factory
Book title: The Turing Protocol
Publisher: Harper Collins
Release date: December 1, 2025
Genre/category: Fiction, Thriller
Elevator pitch for the book: Alan Turing, codebreaker, invents a machine that can send a Morse code message back in time, 8 weeks. We follow Turing and his descendants through 80 years of history in this fast-paced action thriller. What would you do?
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What prompted you to write this book?
A deep appreciation for what Alan Turing achieved and the regret at how he was treated culminating in the loss of his life and his potential.
How long did it take to go from idea to publication? And did the idea change during the process?
2 1/2 years. The main idea did not change, but the more research I did allowed me to shape the fiction to the history.
Were there any surprises or learning moments in the publishing process for this title?
Because of my day job, I had to be very disciplined in the output. I followed a chapter plan and set myself weekly targets which of course I did not meet.
Were there any surprises in the writing process for this book?
As a debut author, I had no concept of the editing process. Thankfully this is what my agent and the publishers understand. Seeing the cuts and deletions, the structural notes were at first painful to see, but ultimately made the book so much better.
What do you hope readers will get out of your book?
I hope they get entertained and I hope it sparks their interest in history and a realization of how fragile peace can be.
If you could share one piece of advice with other writers, what would it be?
Trust in your agent, they have done it before.
