I have remarked in the past that my characters don’t always do what I planned when we actually get to writing the text out. One example, which will only mean something when people have read Slonský 3, is how Slonský rescues Navrátil when Navrátil is detected while sneaking up from behind on some bad people. I will say no more, but it surprised me.

However, Slonský 4 has produced a whole new level of intrusion in the form of Major Rajka. I will not describe him in detail, except to say that he was nowhere to be found in the synopsis and I’m not quite sure what he thinks he’s doing in the book in progress, but he turned up uninvited on Saturday and has refused any requests to leave.

Rajka has an interesting back story but his presence cannot be justified on the strength of that alone. I watched as he described what he intends to do, and then suddenly realised that this resolved a problem three chapters ahead that I’d been puzzling about without ever answering satisfactorily.

Students of the writing art may have a view on this. Was it serendipity writ large? Was it my subconscious suddenly erupting with the answer to my question? Who knows? But the difficulty I face is how to persuade him that he is no longer needed. I have a feeling that, like Klinger of the fraud squad, Rajka is planning to insinuate himself into the regular cast of characters. He will need careful handling or he may start to demand storylines of his own.