Hello! I’m Henry Hyde, a writer, designer and podcaster.
I have been a professional graphic designer since 1991. Nowadays, I specialise in book design, corporate identity and branding. My own experiences over more than a decade have also given me the ability to offer sound advice on self-publishing and online marketing.
My first non-fiction book, The Wargaming Compendium dealing with the hobby of miniatures wargaming, was published by Pen & Sword in July 2013 and became a best-seller. The follow-up book, Wargaming Campaigns, was published in June 2022 and within days reached the #4 spot in the Wargames and Roleplaying category on Amazon.co.uk and the Best-Selling #1 spot in Sweden!
In March 2023, I self-published a pair of books titled Tabletop Battle Tactics (1 and 2) and then, following reader demand, a full-colour deluxe hardcover edition combining the content of those paperbacks and adding extra material. This was followed, in July 2023, by Martinstaat 1744: A Detailed Wargame Campaign Set in A Fictitious World. To my amazement and delight, despite the niche market for them, both titles have garnered five-star reviews and have been successful.
I edited the internationally regarded monthly hobby magazine Miniature Wargames with Battlegames, which combined Battlegames (which started life as my own self-published venture in March 1996 before eventually being bought by Atlantic Publishers in December 2011) and Miniature Wargames, the grand-daddy of the hobby which was first launched in 1983. I left this post in 2016 to pursue my personal creative goals, which include running a successful Patreon podcasting gig at https://www.patreon.com/battlegames. As I write, I am about to record episode 100 of Battlechat.
My other interests extend to international and military history (I have a European Studies: History degree from the University of Sussex), visual arts and music, languages (I speak German, French, Italian, Spanish and a smattering of Portuguese), cookery, health and martial arts.
Over the last few years, I have been rekindling my interest in watercolour painting. More recently, I’ve been experimenting with abstract work using acrylics and gold leaf. As a result of online interest when I have posted photos of my work, I have decided to add this skill to my professional portfolio and you will now find a page dedicated to my art on this site.
I have a deep and abiding love for the place where I live, surrounded by the sea on one side and the South Downs on the other, and enjoy travelling in Europe, with a particular love of Venice and the Dolomites.
I was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2019 and made a series of no-holds-barred video diaries on YouTube. Fortunately, after 37 radiotherapy sessions and ongoing doses of a drug called Prostap-3, the cancer is now in remission, but the stress of the illness combined with other factors (not least the Covid pandemic) led to me having a breakdown in January 2021.
With the help of loved ones, therapy and my own determination to recover and understand my own mind by putting in ‘the work’ and reading widely, I have managed to reach a much better place in my life. In fact, the experience has been so powerful that I decided to share what I have learned and explore the world of mental health, psychology and neuroscience in a podcast, Inside Your Head. I also dedicated myself to losing weight and shed around 49lbs/22kg.
I live in beautiful Brighton and Hove on the south coast of England with my partner Ann and our adorable cat, Bibby.
Thanks for visiting!
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