Author Archives: Mark Hayes

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

Imposter Syndrome, SciFi Scarbrough & really wild things…

Posted on March 19, 2019 by Mark Hayes

Confession time. I have never done a book signing. Oh, I have signed books for people, I am more than happy to, though I am generally slightly bemused anyone wants me to sign a book. But I have never done … Continue reading →

Posted in amreading, amwriting, books, booksale, fiction, goodnews, goodreads, Hannibal Smyth, indie, indie novels, kindlesale, novels, pointless things of wonderfulness, publication, sci-fi, self-publishing, steampunk, writes, writing | Tagged #amwriting, #scifi, amreadingscifi, amwritingscifi, books, conventions, depression, mentalhealth, scarbrough, sciencefiction, scifiscarbrough, writer, writers, writing | Leave a comment

Research and the novelist

Posted on March 18, 2019 by Mark Hayes

On occasion, prospective writers will ask for advice on how to become a better writer. Join any faceache writers group, and you will see a dozen questions of this type a day. Occasionally those asking such questions will even listen … Continue reading →

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Harvey Duckman presents…

Posted on March 6, 2019 by Mark Hayes

Harvey Duckman presents is the first in a series of collected works of suspense and mystery in the genres of science fiction, fantasy, horror and steampunkery, called, oddly enough Harvey Duckman Presents… This anthology features work by exciting new voices … Continue reading →

Posted in amreading, amwriting, book reviews, books, booksale, fiction, goodreads, Hannibal Smyth, horror, humour, indie, indie novels, indiewriter, kindlesale, novels, pointless things of wonderfulness, reads, sci-fi, steampunk, supernatural, world book day, writes, writing | Tagged #scifi, amwritingscifi, fantasy, horror, novels, sciencefiction, short stories, steampunk, writer, writing | 9 Comments

Stocktaking…

Posted on March 4, 2019 by Mark Hayes

March is here, the daffodils have poked their heads out in my garden, winter is tailing off into spring and the anniversary of the death of Caesar looms soon upon us. It is at this time of year, because some … Continue reading →

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The writer’s ambition: Riftmaker

Posted on February 21, 2019 by Mark Hayes

When writers settles down to write their first novels, and I am as guilty of this as anyone, they occasionally bite off more than they can chew. They envision something broad and sweeping, with multiple characters all interacting through multiple … Continue reading →

Posted in amreading, book reviews, books, goodreads, indie, indie novels, indiewriter, novels, reads, sci-fi, steampunk | Tagged #scifi, bookblog, bookreview, books, newbooks, sciencefiction, specfic, spectulativefiction, steampunk | 4 Comments

I Love books…

Posted on February 15, 2019 by Mark Hayes

I learned to wonder at a tender age, wandering through a wardrobe, to a lamppost in the snow. I learned of courage on the walls of the deep while an elf and dwarf bickered in the face of a white … Continue reading →

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Sparks of Inspiration

Posted on February 14, 2019 by Mark Hayes

“Where do you get your idea’s from?” Now there is a question that writers get asked so often it has become proverbial, if not a full-blown cliche. It’s one of those things that aspiring writers ask the experienced writers almost … Continue reading →

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The Dream-Quest Of Unknown Kadath: TCL #52

Posted on February 13, 2019 by Mark Hayes

So, here we are after 47 shorts stories of various qualities from the wonderful to the torrid, a fragment which should never really have been printed, a couple of serials, one fabulously entertaining, one best forgotten, and one novelette the … Continue reading →

Posted in amreading, amwriting, book reviews, books, cthulhu, dreamlands, Esqwiths, fiction, goodreads, horror, insomnia, Lovecraft, mythos, Nyarlathotep, reads, retro book reviews, rites, sci-fi, supernatural, writes | Tagged #scifi, amreading, amreadingscifi, cthulhu, horror, Lovecraft, lovecraftian, mythos, Nyarlathotep, sciencefiction | 1 Comment

Quote me not…

Posted on February 12, 2019 by Mark Hayes

Life is not so much about begins and endings, but about going on and on and on, its about muddling through the middle ~ Anna Quin With that in mind, because the quote appealed to me, as quotes sometimes do, … Continue reading →

Posted in amreading, amwriting, goodnews, goodreads, quotes, rant, reads, writes, writing | Tagged amreading, humour, quotes, wisdom, writer, writing | Leave a comment

King Solomon’s Mines, She, and the imperfect past…

Posted on February 5, 2019 by Mark Hayes

I enjoy a lot of older fiction, fiction that has stood the test of time and still permeates the zeitgeist of modern literature as it’s influence is still felt in modern fiction. This should come as little surprise to anyone, … Continue reading →