Author Archives: Mark Hayes

Unknown's avatar

About Mark Hayes

Writer A messy, complicated sort of entity. Quantum Pagan. Occasional weregoth Knows where his spoon is, do you? #author #steampunk http://linktr.ee/mark_hayes

Dear Edgar 57 ~ The System of Doctor Tarr and Professor Fether

Posted on March 25, 2026 by Mark Hayes

Once upon a dark time of tribulation and despair, whence an ancient nation state lay beneath the uncaring heel of a feared tyrants regime*. Grim dark clouds that circled those that once sang of ghost towns and a race of rats left the safety of there fellows and that which was special ceased to be, and thence they became fun boys a three…
Continue reading →

Posted in Dear Edgar, Poe, pointless things of wonderfulness, reads, retro book reviews | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Time waits for…

Posted on March 17, 2026 by Mark Hayes

Not done a quote post for a couple of years, may not do another for a while. But time was on my mind today and as Chaucer said… And yes you probably didn’t know that was Chaucer, as his quotes, … Continue reading →

Posted in big questions, quotes, reads | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Dear Edgar 56 ~ The Imp of the Perverse

Posted on March 13, 2026 by Mark Hayes

The two pictures above are of Virginia and Frances, the two women shared a remarkable resemblance, so much so that they are occasionally mistaken for each other even now. With Frances portrait occasionally mistakenly used for Virginia Clem and vice versa on the internet. They shared other taints as well, a certain child like qualities, raven dark hair, fair skin and tuberculosis… Continue reading →

Posted in amreading, Dear Edgar, Poe | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Dear Edgar 55 ~ The Power of Words

Posted on March 12, 2026 by Mark Hayes

It is at this point a reader may feel a driving urge to slap Agathos, or our dear Edgar, preferably repeatedly with a large wet haddock. Though maybe that is just my irrational response to this the third, and thankfully final, of Poe’s dialogues between spirits in heaven that pontificate on the meaning of existence, the divine, and eternity… Continue reading →

Posted in Dear Edgar, Poe, reads | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

All we are saying, yet again…

Posted on March 9, 2026 by Mark Hayes

I know its a wild and wacky idea , but perhaps we could try not bombing people and creating the reason for the next war. We have done this particular dance on and off for about the whole of human history. 

Perhaps we could try a new approach , Continue reading →

Posted in big questions, humour, opinion, politics, rant | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Barbaric Pottery and Things of That Nature

Posted on February 17, 2026 by Mark Hayes

That said however, skulls are bones. Ergo, if you learn the porters art and find yourself not entirely burdened by moralistic constraints it is possible to drink from the skulls of your enemies. in the most civilized British way imaginable.. Continue reading →

Posted in big questions, books, humour, pagan, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Dear Edgar 54 ~ Some Words With a Mummy

Posted on February 3, 2026 by Mark Hayes

What could be more Victorian than desecrating bodily remains and destroying another cultures heritage for the purposes of entertainment… Continue reading →

Posted in amreading, horror, humour, Poe, reads | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Dear Edgar 53 ~ The Thousand-and-Second Tale of Scheherazade

Posted on January 29, 2026 by Mark Hayes

Truth, as the old saying goes, is stranger than fiction. It is also on occasion harder to believe. Fiction has the advantage of the internal logic of the story. Truth has to actually be true, even if that truth is … Continue reading →

Posted in amreading, fantasy, Poe, pointless things of wonderfulness, reads, retro book reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Dear Edgar 52 ~ The Purloined letter

Posted on January 22, 2026 by Mark Hayes

Perhaps it needed a good murder… Continue reading →

Posted in amreading, book reviews, Dear Edgar, Poe, retro book reviews | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Pagan Lines

Posted on January 20, 2026 by Mark Hayes

She utters words of honeyed violence to sooth the savage at her breast.

I harken to her words, but they are as nothing to me. Garbled sounds, senseless, meaningless. Words from across the whale road. Words from the lands of the cross carriers. The land where they worship the murdered god. Continue reading →

Posted in amreading, books, fantasy, Harvey Duckman, pagan, quantum pagan, reads | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment