Category Archives: reads

Men in Dark Tweed #10

Posted on June 28, 2024 by Mark Hayes

The Men in Dark Tweed were created on a whim while I was working on my current WIP novel, a Victorian Urban Fantasy entitled ’Lucifer Mandrake and the Hanoverian Proxy’ The new, somewhat nefarious Home Secretary sets up a plain clothes … Continue reading →

Posted in books, fiction, Harvey Duckman, humour, indie writers, men in dark tweed, reads, sci-fi, steampunk, writes | Tagged amreading, art, books, men in dark tweed, photography, poetry, reads, sciencefiction, steampunk, travel, writerslife, writing | Leave a comment

A writers solstice

Posted on June 20, 2024 by Mark Hayes

I have always been fond of the above quote. It comes form Stephen King’s memoir/guide to the craft of writing, On Writing . A book I recommend to anyone looking to progress in the craft. It is also a quote … Continue reading →

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The Men in Dark Tweed #9

Posted on May 9, 2024 by Mark Hayes

Posted in men in dark tweed, reads, steampunk | Tagged humour, men in dark tweed, reads, steampunk, writing | 1 Comment

Forgotten forests

Posted on March 28, 2024 by Mark Hayes

The nexus of my identity is not external to me. This was a hard lesson, long to be learned, over many years and to an extent still unlearned. Coming to the realisation that what makes you you, and understanding that … Continue reading →

Posted in amreading, books, reads | Tagged amreading, books, pagan, paganism, reads | 3 Comments

The Maggot of Salamanca

Posted on January 29, 2024 by Mark Hayes

Occasionally while happily writing away, you write yourself into unexpected corners. For example, in my current main work in progress ‘Lucifer Mandrake and the Hanoverian Proxy’, the plot requires a hole in the arcane wards protecting Queen Victoria’s court. As … Continue reading →

Posted in reads, Uncategorized, writes, writing | Tagged books, reads, steampunk, writerslife, writing | 4 Comments

Pagan Books (of the year and otherwise)

Posted on December 21, 2023 by Mark Hayes

Fellow author, blogger, musician, poet, worshipper of trees, insightful guru, druid, and all round wonderful person,Nimue Brown started a Facebook group called Pagan Book News. If you are interested in paganism, belief structures, and humanities connection to the wider universe, … Continue reading →

Posted in pagan, reads, Uncategorized | Tagged amreading, books, druid, pagan, paganism, reads, witchcraft, writers | Leave a comment

A Brush with the Law A Guest post by Will Nett

Posted on December 14, 2023 by Mark Hayes

To the Black Maisonette the Childe Nettleton came This line is of course from the infamous fragment of the lost narrative poem by Bob Brown, found written on the back of a fag packet in 1992. Many have since claimed … Continue reading →

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Monkeys! a guest post by Will Nett

Posted on November 29, 2023 by Mark Hayes

Sir William Nettleton IV, once married a monkey called Kevin. He was drunk at the time (Kevin, not Sir William) which was the only reason he agreed to the marriage, which it is believed was never consummated. At least, as … Continue reading →

Posted in amreading, indie writers, pointless things of wonderfulness, reads | Tagged amreading, guestposts, reads, writers, writerslife | Leave a comment

Love, Death and Witchcraft

Posted on November 22, 2023 by Mark Hayes

A couple of short reviews for sequels to books I have previously reviewed. That is the brief here. No waffling on about anything, just do the reviews… Have I ever mentioned I hate sequels. As a writer that is, not … Continue reading →

Posted in amreading, book reviews, fantasy, horror, pagan, reads | Tagged amreading, books, horror, reads, urban fantasy | 1 Comment

Dear Edgar 16: Silence, a fable

Posted on November 20, 2023 by Mark Hayes

“It was night, and the rain fell; and falling, it was rain, but, having fallen, it was blood.” It is not unreasonable to say that a good half of our Dear Edgar’s out put over the years was poetry. As … Continue reading →