Category Archives: opinion

Nitschewo : Whatever

Posted on May 28, 2020 by Mark Hayes

If your Russia is as rusty as mine you probably won’t know Nitschewo more or less translates as ‘Whatever’, an expression used throughout these memoirs by both the Russians and the author “You are only a plennie” Wilhelm Max Rose … Continue reading →

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A look back at Indie April

Posted on May 11, 2020 by Mark Hayes

Last month as you may be aware I threw the doors of the passing place wide open to a series of guest posts from indie writers of all kith and kin. The brief i gave them all was simple, write … Continue reading →

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The Subjectivity of Humour

Posted on May 5, 2020 by Mark Hayes

The problem with humour is it is subjective, occasionally some readers do not get a joke, because at the end of the day what one reader is amused by another may not be. My Hannibal Smyth books are somewhat satirical … Continue reading →

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A Tantalising Titillation of Tantamount

Posted on April 30, 2020 by Mark Hayes

Introduction by Mark Todays Indieapril post is an exert from the truly wonderful ‘Tales from Tantamount’ the fictional (we assume and hope in many ways) record of the town of Tantamount By Meredith Debonnaire. This exert is from the original … Continue reading →

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Writing around COVID

Posted on April 22, 2020 by Mark Hayes

The escapism of fiction is essential in our world right now, but for many authors COVID-19 has caused something of a headache. I’m not talking about the closure of bookshops and the postponement of events where we were intending to … Continue reading →

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Strange connections

Posted on April 20, 2020 by Mark Hayes

No Science Fiction writer ever changed the world… Or… perhaps they did, as a wonder through some strange connections on the internet will tell you… Star Trek: Voyager was not the best Star Trek franchise show ever, and was struggling … Continue reading →

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Why Your Day Job could be Good for Your Creativity

Posted on April 13, 2020 by Mark Hayes

We’re all familiar with the dilemma. “I’ve just had this great idea and I want to write it down immediately, but I’m stuck at work right now.” If you’re anything like me, when you think about your day job in … Continue reading →

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First World Problems…

Posted on April 10, 2020 by Mark Hayes

What matters is all relative. Half the world’s population worries where’s tomorrow meal will come from, the other half worries about wifi. I’m one of the fortunate half who worry about the latter and ironically end up wincing on to … Continue reading →

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Indie April#5: Of a man and his rat

Posted on April 9, 2020 by Mark Hayes

Originally posted on The Passing Place:
It’s Indie April, a celebration of all things Indie, be it novels, movies, music or art. The idea being to encourage interaction between indie creatives, and that most elusive of beasties the wider audience,…

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Choosing Names for Your Characters

Posted on April 6, 2020 by Mark Hayes

One of the most important decisions you can make about a character is their name. Whether it’s their first, middle, or last name, it imbues your character with the very essence of who they are. There are so many names … Continue reading →

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