I am seeking representation for my first book Tumorous Hesticles: Just Say Cancer, a light-hearted and informative 60,000 word memoir about dealing with cancer as a young man.
There are many cancer books focusing on the female experience and science-based cancer books focusing on diets and lifestyle. Tumorous Hesticles focuses on the male journey and how the experience particularly affects them.
Whilst working as Referee and Judges Supervisor at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games – having left my comfortable job in Essex to take a gamble by working in Brazil – I was struck down with a pain in my testicles. A romance and a trip to South America were put on hold as a doctor in Rio de Janeiro confirmed that I had a tumour. At times, the cancer was ‘the easy part’ of this adventure as the world around me soon turned to chaos.
After years of fundraising for charity, blogging and performing stand-up comedy, I went on to combine all three to inspire and motivate others through my own cancer experience. Tumorous Hesticles aims to inspire and guide cancer sufferers and family and friends of sufferers throughout their own journey.
Men can have tendencies to not talk about their feelings and the experience of cancer highlighted this to me in a way I never imagined. My ‘You Got This’ approach has helped many men and women across the world, not just in relation to difficulties with cancer but also in dealing with depression and anxiety. My blue ‘You Got This’ wristbands were sent to five different continents. My story was followed by thousands and I gained the support of Anthony Joshua, Adam Lallana and Dame Kelly Holmes.
Tumorous Hesticles is in a similar genre to The C-Word by Lisa Lynch published in 2010. The C-word was also broadcast as a ninety-minute BBC drama in 2015. Both books combine humour and tragedy with the chaos that cancer brings. My second book will be about how to find yourself again during remission, which is a topic that is very rarely spoken about.
I’ve written blogs and comedy for years but since March 2020 my goal has been to complete this book. I’ve been working with professional writing coach, Jacqui Lofthouse. I now feel confident that my story is relatable, absorbing and inspiring and that it can make a difference to people’s lives. I recently finished employment at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games as the Technical Operations Manager for Boxing.
