Category Archives: books

The rules of write #2

Posted on January 31, 2023 by Mark Hayes

I’m not a great fan of talking about characters in terms of ‘her/his truth’. Though it is a concept I understand, my problem with the concept is it is by nature restrictive. Which is to say that the concept states that I, a white upper working class British man in his early fifties, should not write about the experience of an African American soldier born in the early 1900’s in the southern states of the US, because I can not know, or speak for, that characters ‘truth…’ Continue reading →

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Piano Man, A Guest Post by Will Nett

Posted on January 20, 2023 by Mark Hayes

Like most authors, I’ll do almost anything to avoid writing. Buying a piano a couple of years ago seemed as good an idea as any. I’d always fancied having a crack at it, but would not have gone out of my way to find one, so when a friend was selling one, and another had a van in which to deliver it, I was first in line. Continue reading →

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Books of the year 2022 edition

Posted on December 7, 2022 by Mark Hayes

As with last year this may be slightly early, as there is a fair chance I’ll read a couple more before the end of the year. (in fact I know I will as there are a couple I am reading … Continue reading →

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Rune Rat Rune…

Posted on November 30, 2022 by Mark Hayes

whats a littler mass murder between friends Continue reading →

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The Sad Cthulhu World Tour 2022 is over…

Posted on November 22, 2022 by Mark Hayes

On the bookshelf of books ‘Wot I’ve Wrote’ sits Sad Cthulhu, usually… But on those occasions, when I venture out into the cruel cold world to sell books at events, he comes with me. Clearly this is merely an affectation … Continue reading →

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Yule is coming…

Posted on November 16, 2022 by Mark Hayes

Its that time of the year again, the nights are drawing in, there is a chill in the air, entities from beyond what we foolishly believe to be reality are seeping through the cracks… Continue reading →

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A special kind of purgatory…

Posted on November 3, 2022 by Mark Hayes

I bought a copy of Barbara Avon’s novella Owl Eyes Motel in a fit of rage spite and with an urge to dress the balance of the universe a little because cretinous arseholes leaving shitty one-star reviews for another human being’s labours of love offends me… Continue reading →

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NaNoWriMo: Or how to first draft 2022 edition

Posted on October 25, 2022 by Mark Hayes

With the 1st of November a week away here is my usual mildly self-aggrandising of attempting to offer some advice to budding writers, or as it is otherwise known the story of how I wrote my first novel. It is also the story of how I wrote my nineteenth novel. Continue reading →

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The Guest Runes…

Posted on October 24, 2022 by Mark Hayes

Somehow I have ended up hosting a discussion panel on Runes, there relevance to dark age culture, what the Victorians did with them and the difference between New Age pseudo-mythology and actual historical facts and ancient cultures… This is fascinating stuff. Continue reading →

Posted in amreading, amwriting, book reviews, books, fantasy, fiction, indie, indie writers, opinion, pagan, reads, rites, writes, writing | Tagged amreading, magic, reads, ritual, runes, spirituality, steampunk, supernatural, writer, writerslife | 1 Comment

Return of the Revenge of the creature from the Friday Reviews

Posted on October 21, 2022 by Mark Hayes

Ardent followers of this fine ongoing series of ever more obscure ramblings of the paranoid conglomerate of emotional baggage that collectively refers to itself as Mark Hayes, will be aware I have a regular feature on a Friday where I do a few quick reviews of several books all in one go. If your definition of regular is once in a blue moon, probably twice a year at best, and frankly not always on a Friday Continue reading →