Where did Mr Atkinson come from? Both Atkinson and his son originate from recurring nightmares I have had ever since childhood. Nightmares where I am Atkinson in the realm of death severing the invisible umbilical cord / mortal coil that links every human being to their own mortality. In my first Novel Atkinson's Administration, the way the realm of death is depicted is exactly like I see it at least once a week in dreams. I simply took the nightmare added my zest for story telling and ran with it. I didn't even know I was writing a novel when I wrote the words.
'He woke from yet another night of broken sleep, his pillow wet with perspiration, the quilt at the foot of the bed.  His nocturnal journey from bedtime until waking used to be simple: he slept, he woke. This had been the way of things for the past twenty-two years, but not anymore.'
I stared at these words for quite some time and then walked away from my computer. That night I had the dream again only this time I decided to take notes of what had happened. I turned my computer on and the above words displayed on my screen and I thought to myself what if the reaper did actually walk amongst us, which at first made me think could I be the reaper and the dreams are actually me at work. A coffee soon put paid to that thought but it did plant a seed. If the reaper did walk the earth how would he disguise himself (not meaning to be sexist in any way I was still in the zone of me being the reaper) So what would he be that was so opposite his nocturnal duties in a word an accountant. The words Atkinson's Accountancy came into my head and I typed that above the words in the form of a title. After some time Two chapters in I decided to change the title to Atkinson's Administration so the Title and the main player in the story born.