479 ratings | 17 reviews | avg rating:4.17

Neil’s Year In Books

Neil’s 2025 Year in Books

Take a look at Neil’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.

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Neil J Hart’s Followers (15)

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to-read (397)
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Henry Douthwaite

1,124 books | 22 friends

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1,037 books | 337 friends

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207 books | 101 friends

Liana

433 books | 19 friends

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Charlotte’s Books

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Neil J Hart

Goodreads Author

Born

in Epsom, The United Kingdom

September 04

Website

https://neiljhart.com

Twitter

neiljhart

Genre

Fantasy, Science Fiction, Horror

Influences

Terry Pratchett, V.E. Schwab, Brandon Sanderson, Leigh Bardugo, Neil G ...more

Member Since

August 2013

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/neiljhart

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Neil J Hart has won awards for his haunting YA fantasy adventure novels ‘The Last Scarecrow’ (Nightmare Before Christmas meets Return to Oz) and 'Sadie Madison and the Boy in the Crimson Scarf' (His Dark Materials meets City of Ghosts).

His latest book, 'Harper Hale and the Crystal of Shadows' is a YA sci-fi mystery inspired by the adventure of Star Wars and magic of Harry Potter.

He is currently working on sequels to all a three series with audiobooks in the works too.

Neil also works as a graphic designer and a musician. He fosters for Cats Protection. Relies on coffee. Adores a perfectly made cheese and cucumber sandwich. And collects Tomb Raider memorabilia. ...more

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Ask the Author

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Popular Answered Questions

How do you deal with writer’s block?

Neil J Hart I get stuck. Sure. But I tend to plot quite heavily in the first instance. If there are days when it's not happening then I either write something els…moreI get stuck. Sure. But I tend to plot quite heavily in the first instance. If there are days when it's not happening then I either write something else; a short story or screenplay or a stream of consciousness until I feel like returning to the book.

Other great ways to wake up the brain, in my experience, are a nice long run (this gives me loads of time to think about plots and characters and work out why I'm blocked), play the guitar really loud, read a book or watch a film that touches on the genre or themes that I might be dealing with in the book. One of these activities usually kicks me back into life and gets the words flowing.(less)

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How do you get inspired to write?

Neil J Hart Loads of things inspire me with my books. Mostly, other books (i try to read for the same amount of time as I write each day) but also films, tv serie…moreLoads of things inspire me with my books. Mostly, other books (i try to read for the same amount of time as I write each day) but also films, tv series, dreams / nightmares and the things people say. I also treat the process of writing as a job. For a long time I considered it a hobby but that meant that I could just dip in and out when I felt like it. To actually achieve something with my writing I had to sit down every day and write. I like to set myself a 3000 words goal every day. Sometimes I'm done by lunchtime, other times I'm there until the evening.

One of the best tools I've found for my productivity is the software Scrivener. Among hundreds of features, it allows you to block out the work into folders and sub-folders where you can place each scene and shift the order around with ease. This makes 'seeing' the structure and the length of the book dead simple. Finding scenes and instances and character recurrences is now done in seconds rather than having to painstakingly scroll through hundreds of pages of a Word document into your eyes go funny.(less)

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Combine Editions
Neil J Hart’s books

Average rating: 4.47 · 92 ratings · 58 reviews · 5 distinct works • Similar authors

	The Last Scarecrow (Scarecrows of Coldharbour Farm, #1) 4.54 avg rating — 54 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Sadie Madison and the Boy in the Crimson Scarf (The Madison Chronicles, #1) 4.35 avg rating — 23 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Harper Hale and the Crystal of Shadows (SpiralVerse Saga, #1) 4.73 avg rating — 11 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Spritz (Spritz, #1) 3.50 avg rating — 4 ratings — published 2006 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Hope's Ruin (Scarecrows of Coldharbour Farm, #2) 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Neil J Hart…

45 posts
Neil J Hart's Blog

Fighting Fantasy

Ian Livingstone and Steve Jackson’s Fighting Fantasy series has got a lot to answer for… As a child I hated reading. Really hated it. I couldn’t think of anything worse. I’m sure I was even guilty of saying, “What’s the point in reading a book when you can watch the film?” These days I’ll stop …

Fighting Fantasy Read More »

The post Fighting Fantasy appeared first on Neil J Hart.

Neil is Currently Reading

Neil J Hart is currently reading

Scareground

by Angela Kecojevic (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

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25 nov. 2025 09:21

Neil J Hart is currently reading

The Well of Ascension (Mistborn, #2)

by Brandon Sanderson (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

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17 déc. 2024 10:56

Neil J Hart is currently reading

Amari and the Night Brothers (Supernatural Investigations, #1)

by B.B. Alston (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

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29 juil. 2023 11:39

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Neil’s Recent Updates

Neil J Hart wants to read Hope's Ruin (Scarecrows of Coldharbour Farm, #2) by Neil J Hart (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
18 jan. 2026 18:43 · like
Neil J Hart made a comment on Sarah Cornforth’s review of The Last Scarecrow (Scarecrows of Coldharbour Farm, #1) " Thank you, Sarah. Hope you're ready for more adventures! ...more "
18 jan. 2026 17:33 · see review
Neil J Hart liked Sarah Cornforth's review of The Last Scarecrow (Scarecrows of Coldharbour Farm, #1): "Another AMAZING book! This was my second book by Neil J Hart, the first being Harper Hale and the Crystal of Shadows — and once again, I absolutely loved it. The Last Scarecrow was magical, creepy, adventurous, and genuinely exciting. There’s " Read more of this review »
18 jan. 2026 17:32 · see review
Neil J Hart and 2 other people liked Sarah's review of The Last Scarecrow: Scarecrows of Coldharbour Farm, Book 1: "Thank you to the narrator for providing a free review copy of this audiobook."
12 jan. 2026 20:00 · see review
05 jan. 2026 19:23 · like
Neil J Hart liked Anita Pringle's review of The Last Scarecrow (Scarecrows of Coldharbour Farm, #1):
05 jan. 2026 19:21 · see review
Neil J Hart is currently reading Scareground by Angela Kecojevic (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
25 nov. 2025 09:21 · like
Neil J Hart made a comment on Val Penny’s review of The Last Scarecrow (Scarecrows of Coldharbour Farm, #1) " Thanks for the amazing review, Val! So glad you enjoyed it. "
17 nov. 2025 22:33 · see review
Neil J Hart made a comment on Sarah Cornforth’s review of Harper Hale and the Crystal of Shadows (SpiralVerse Saga, #1) " Thanks so much. Glad you enjoyed HH's adventures at the Galactic Institute! ...more "
16 nov. 2025 11:06 · see review
12 nov. 2025 08:37 · like · view books