The Authors
Les Jones
I got involved in Firefighting back in 1980 when i was 20 years old and worked at a large chemical company who due to its risk and hazards had its own internal fire service. This continued into another chemical industrial role right up to 1996. I attended many external training courses including attending the Fire Service College in Gloucestershire.
During my time within the industrial/Chemical industry fire service I became a member of the IFE the Institute of Fire Engineers and sat their examination at Crewe Fire Station in 1994. I also became assistant team leader of the 8 person crew on my shift and focused on training and fire drill events.
I became a Police Officer in 1996 and found myself torn between Policing and the Fire Service as I had opportunities with both organisations. I spent 20 years in both uniform and plain clothes duties.
12 Doors is dedicated to the commitment of the19,000 or so on call or retained men and women fire fighters here in the UK, I have worked with on many incidents during police duties. Members of the public have no idea about these un sung local heroes who drop everything to answer the call to duty, 24/7 365, some get injured and some fatally.
Many have normal everyday jobs, and respond to calls for help from fire service control rooms via a pager or an alerter system of mobilisation.
On call fire fighters are mainly based in rural or semi rural township locations. The larger cities or towns in the UK have full time or whole time firefighters who are based on the fire station on a shift system.
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12 Doors is fiction based on facts and involves real life examples of incidents involving the on call fire service.
Bells the fire dog is a spin off children's book with its background in the first incident in 12 Doors.
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I spent 14 months putting together and researching 12 Doors all from within my Daughters old bedroom, where I created my project wall. I sought fire fighting technical advice around the 12 incidents and after some research I entered into a contract with my agent and a ghost writer.
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12 Doors relates to the opening and closing of their 12 doors when the crew are alerted to attend Stockwood on Sea fire station.
Steve Eggleston
Founder of The Eggman Global Universe, and a modern-day multi-hyphenate, Steve Eggleston, aka The Eggman, is a law school Valedictorian, former law professor and entertainment lawyer, an acclaimed author (with multiple Amazon Bestsellers), and a filmmaker and music supervisor.
Upon leaving the law, he launched iiHiphop, one of the first global online hip-hop portals, helmed a rock n roll magazine, booked 1000+ live shows worldwide, personally managed 7 x Grammy-winning music producer Steve Thompson, produced NAACP-winning theatrical “Ephraim’s Song”, and has/is producing multiple feature film and TV series projects, amongst them, “A Midsummer Night’s Rave,” “Jim’s Private War,” “Beyond Innocent,” “12 Doors,” and “Blood & Ivory”.
He was also COO of One Roof Entertainment, housed at the worldclass L.A. Center Studios in downtown Los Angeles.
Michael Powell
With a background as a RADA-trained professional actor and musical director and a managing editor in book publishing, Michael has been writing popular non fiction for the last 20 years, including gift books, reference, self development and humour titles for adults and children. Today he is the author of more than 120 books, published by a wide range of industry leaders, on topics as varied as world history, virulent diseases, international etiquette and brain training to dream interpretation, puzzles, toilet yoga and performing arts.
He has written several bestsellers including Games on Thrones (Octopus), Forbidden Knowledge, Forbidden Knowledge Travel and Forbidden Knowledge College (Adams Media Corporation), Mind Games and Stuff You Should Have Learned at School (Barnes & Noble), Behave Yourself and Express Yourself (The Globe Pequot Press), Smarties Guide to the Galaxy (Constable Robinson), The Little Book of Crap Advice (Michael O'Mara) and The Little Book of Dumb Questions (Macmillan).