It doesn’t matter what form it is in, everyone is searching for their own version of the light. Whether it’s through religion or consumption, we are all on a unique journey trying to fill the pieces within us that feel missing.

That’s a quote from your new book, Oracles Under City Lights. Tell us a bit more about it.
This deeply personal yet utterly relatable memoir follows a young man’s journey as he moves to London to pursue his dream of ‘becoming a writer’. From his initial experiences of the city and  fighting his way from a job in media sales into editorial work, to the 2011 Riots and living in Camden Town when Amy Winehouse died; no stone is left unturned here as we  see professional, political and spiritual roads intertwine.

We all reach a point in our lives where we question ourselves, the world around us and what it is that we truly want. I set out to answer these questions and more in this new release, documenting my post-uni existential crisis and how I used my spiritual rebirth under city lights to overcome it.

Who is the young man in the book, your main character?
I guess that would be myself, although in many ways every ‘I’ in the book represents the reader and how they want to interpret my guidance for their own self-examination. So I guess every reader is the main character and hopefully the book will tell them more about themselves.

What are you hoping it’ll tell us? How are you hoping to leave the reader?
Hopeful and awoken. I’d like to think it will make them look at situations in their life in a different way; perhaps put things into perspective.

What genre is this book?
Self-improvement.

What kind of readers will it appeal to?
Deep thinkers, or anyone feeling a little lost and in need of some ‘light’.

“Light”?
It’s all about the contrast of spirituality and the modern world. I’m challenging the idea that both concepts can’t exist in harmony, which in essence is what the entire book is about.

Have you written any other books that we should read next?
My previous book was my debut collection of poetry, titled ‘Verses’. I released it in 2011 through my co-founded indie publishing house, PRNTD. Each book was hand-bound with recycled paper; in many ways it was a piece of art as much as it was a book. There are a few very limited printed editions left which you can purchase here: http://prntd.co.uk/verses
Otherwise you can download the Kindle edition here.

Tell us a bit about yourself.
I’ve been writing since I could pick up a pen. It started with short stories before moving on to lyrics and poetry. I studied Journalism at university before moving to London to pursue a career in writing. I work as a fashion copywriter by day but spend all my free time on creative writing. I’m currently working on my debut novel and also co-own a literary website called Chptrs, which I am the content editor for.

We’ll check Chptrs out.
Aside from Chptrs, you can keep up with my work on my blog: http://cwgill.com I actually wrote a piece recently about self-publishing on there. My official website is currently in the works and I’m hoping to launch it before the end of the year.

How can we follow you on Twitter and/or Facebook?
Like my page http://facebook.com/cwgill and follow me @ChrisWGill.

What’s next?
I mentioned I’m working on my debut novel, so that is really my main focus now that ‘Oracles’ has been shared with the world. Fiction is my first love, but I wanted to wait until I had a story I was really happy with – which I do now. I’ve been working on the novel on and off for a couple of years now, but I feel now is the time to really delve into that world. This time has also allowed me to explore the world of self-publishing with my first two releases.

I’m not going to give too much away about my forthcoming book just yet, but as I included the first chapter in the back of ‘Oracles’ – I can say a few things. It’s post-apocalyptic science-fiction and the heroine is a fiery character called Red. I am planning to release it first in three digital installments (as novellas) before the full printed version is released. The first is called ‘Surface to Air’ which I hope to have out by the end of the year. Watch this space…