The '13' Dark Fantasy & Horror Anthology Series

Bringing this series to life has been a wonderful journey. It has been a steep learning curve and I can honestly say I’ve loved every minute of it.

In 2015 I decided to take a break from writing a novel. I wanted to explore the worlds of dark fantasy and horror further and give myself the opportunity to see where my imagination would take me. Once I started I couldn’t stop and this project became the focus of my writing. (Don’t worry I will be returning to that novel when I’ve finished this series).

With these stories and characters I wanted to enfuse the everyday horrors of modern life with the dark and macabre; that people of today could relate to. I set myself the aim that no two narratives would be the same and each tale would be told from the viewpoint of a variety of people regardless of their gender, age, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation or mental and physical abilities; ones that represent the world we live in today. In some cases I’ve left out some of these details, keeping it non-specific in the hope that readers can make their own choices about these characters and identify with them in their own way.

It’s always challenging for a writer of any genre to try and come up with something that hasn’t been done or said before, but I strive to achieve it in some small way. Yes, there are vampires, zombies, werewolves, ghosts, demons, mermaids, monsters, murderers and serial killers but I try to add my own flavour to the mix, put my own little spin on things.

All I can say is it certainly has been and continues to be one hell of a rollercoaster ride. Watch this space there is plenty more to follow.

“I blink. The luminous after-flashes flicker in my vision as if something is calling from another world, and I am completely enamoured and under its spell.” Extract from The Vanished by Mark Young.