Category Archives: amwriting

Nailing my colours to the mast

Posted on August 10, 2026 by Mark Hayes

This is a rant, I make no apologise for this. If you don’t wish to read a rant then you should just stop here, but it is, I feel, an important rant. I also stand by ever word. Originally this … Continue reading →

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Oh what convoluted webs we do weave

Posted on July 21, 2026 by Mark Hayes

Main characters are bad enough, but the incidental characters that hang around the edges get more often than not have their own lives that morph and change as they go from a one chapter, one scene, body with a plot point nailed to it, to someone with a complete back story and who has had their own weird adventures of stage… Continue reading →

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Cover Stories

Posted on June 11, 2026 by Mark Hayes

‘Don’t judge a book by the cover’ as the old wisdom goes, unfortunately, however, in the real world everyone does. There is going to be some harsh unforgiving honesty with myself in this post, but sometimes that is required Continue reading →

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The Creation of Strange Worlds

Posted on May 12, 2026 by Mark Hayes

Did I really want to delve back into the mind of Howard Philips Lovecraft? Continue reading →

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Oh… you’re just self-published?

Posted on April 15, 2026 by Mark Hayes

Oh… your self published, that’s wonderful, tell me about your book… Continue reading →

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Maybe, just maybe…

Posted on April 7, 2026 by Mark Hayes

A storm is brewing in the mid Atlantic and the airship Maybe’s Daughter is caught up in the middle of it. Benjamin West is hanging from a cargo net after someone tried to kill him. Eliza Tu-Pa-KA is trying to save the airship, unaware of West’s plight. Meanwhile in a realm beyond the mortal world, the soul of a dead man faces a stark choice.

Hopefully Perkins will put the kettle on before it all goes too far… Continue reading →

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Not Committing Ritualised Murder

Posted on April 6, 2026 by Mark Hayes

The first bit of news is of a Free anthology. Yes FREE, on kindle and Smashwords and other places. Now normally the moment I talk about a free book I develop a nervous tick because no book is free, it all costs the writers, editors and publishers those most vital of resources, time and energy. Giving books away for free feels like a betrayal of the artist and a betrayal of the art… It is part of the malaise of the industry, because no one truly values that which is free*. However in this case the free anthology was created specifically to be free. It was also, ahem, my idea… Continue reading →

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The Publishing Iceberg

Posted on December 11, 2025 by Mark Hayes

Or of all the typos in the world why did you have to walk into mine… Continue reading →

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The Also By Anomaly

Posted on November 21, 2025 by Mark Hayes

I decide to do something different for Auguries of Euryale, my forthcoming anthology of my own work. I decided instead to write it in a more narrative style, telling a story of my novels and other works. I think it sort of works as a more interesting way to do the Also by pages… Continue reading →

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The Quantum Pagan an Introduction

Posted on October 20, 2025 by Mark Hayes

Last week, because I don’t have enough to write, I started work on a project that has been kicking about for a few years. While it may never see the light of day, as it is in part a personal project, I have been encouraged through conversations with a few people to write a book on pagan mysticism, faith and quantum physics… Continue reading →

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