The Lowdown with... Mark West

Mark West was born in Kettering, Northants in 1969 and grew up in nearby Rothwell, which serves as the basis for his fictional town of Gaffney.  He's married to Alison and they have a son called Matthew (who's more often than not referred to as Dude).

Since 1998, he's had over seventy short stories published, a collection (aptly titled “Strange Tales” in 2003), two novels (“In The Rain With The Dead” from Pendragon Press in 2005 and “Conjure” from Rainfall Books in 2009), a novelette (“The Mill”, originally in the “We Fade To Grey” anthology from Pendragon Press, 2008), a novella ("Drive" from Pendragon Press in 2014, which was nominated for a British Fantasy Award) and has more novellas forthcoming.  Both of the novels and “The Mill” have been reprinted in digital and print editions by Greyhart Press, whilst PenMan Press released a 'special edition' (digital and print) of "Strange Tales" in 2013. Mark has also been known to tweet, which he does here.

 

1. Tell us three things about yourself.

I have been writing fiction since I was eight, I can play adequate rhythm guitar and I’m a very good shot with a Nerf gun.

2. What was the first thing you had published?

A short piece in a school magazine, which filled me with pride.

3. Which piece of writing are you proudest of?

“The Mill”, a novelette I wrote for Gary McMahon’s “We Fade To Grey” anthology, which was later published as a stand-alone title by Greyhart Press. I lost my sister and the grief blocked me for a long time - Gary pulled me out of that and I wrote a story about someone consumed with grief who has to come to terms with some supernatural activity. People seem to like it.

4. …and which makes you cringe?

Probably that first piece in the school magazine, if I read it back today. With my earlier published stuff, going back to the late 90s and early 00s, I’m sure there are bits and pieces where the technique or blood and thunder content might make me raise my eyebrows now.

5. What’s a normal writing day like? 

I don’t have one, to be honest. I know the prevailing wisdom is to write every day but I never have and I learned long ago not to beat myself up for it. I can write at home, in silence (or with noise, if Dude comes in to see what I’m doing), I can write in my office during my lunch break.

6. Which piece of writing should someone who’s never read you before pick up first?

“The Mill” seems to have developed a wide range of fans, so that’s perhaps a good start and my novella “Drive” is nominated for a BFS award this year, so that’s clearly doing something right.

7. What are you working on now?

I am just about to start a short for Stormblade Productions, which’ll be the first of my stories to receive the audio-book treatment. I’m excited about that and also looking forward to the writing - a female-centric tale set in a fogbound Paris where a necktie murderer is on the loose…

The Lowdown with... Damien Angelica Walters

DamienAngelica Walters’ work has appeared or is forthcoming in various anthologies and magazines, including The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror 2015, Year’s Best Weird Fiction: Volume One, Cassilda’s Song, The Mammoth Book of Cthulhu: New Lovecraftian Fiction, Nightmare Magazine, Black Static, and Apex Magazine. Sing Me Your Scars, a collection of short fiction, was released in 2015 from Apex Publications, and Paper Tigers, a novel, is forthcoming in 2016 from Dark House Press. Find her on Twitter here.

 
1. Tell us three things about yourself.

I'm terrified of spiders.

I'm a huge fan of the movie Alien.

I still have one baby tooth.

2. What was the first thing you had published?

I had a few poems published in various places, but my first short story sale was "The Depository" to Bards & Sages Quarterly in 2010.

3. Which piece of writing are you proudest of?

I'm very proud of my collection Sing Me Your Scars and incredibly pleased with the reception it's received. I was terrified it would be released and vanish into the ether of forgotten books. With respect to individual stories, that's a hard question to answer because the stories that mean the most to me do so for personal reasons. "This is the Way I Die," published in Nightmare Magazine, is one of those stories.

But "The Floating Girls: A Documentary," which was a finalist for the Bram Stoker Award, almost didn't happen because I couldn't get the format to work the way I wanted it to, and I struggled with the emotional resonance. I'm proud that I stuck with it and happy that people enjoyed reading it.

4. …and which makes you cringe?

That's another tough one to answer because if I pick something readers like, I don't want them to think my feelings negate their opinions. I'll just say that whenever I look at older work, I spot all the blemishes and flaws, all the things I'd change, but I do so with the knowledge that I'm viewing those things through the lens of the writer I am now, not then.

5. What’s a normal writing day like?

When I first wake up, I typically take care of administrative things: proofing stories, edits, answering interview questions, updating my website, etc. Then I'll work on my current project, whether it's actually writing or brainstorming. At the end of the day, when I step away from my computer, I take a notebook and pen with me and often write snippets or story ideas or what have you at night.

6. Which piece of writing should someone who’s never read you before pick up first?

I think my collection Sing Me Your Scars would give someone a good idea of the sort of work I write. It contains several pieces of new fiction written in 2014 as well as selected reprints from 2011 through 2013. If they'd like to read something before committing to the purchase, I have links on my website to short fiction available to read free online, including the collection's title story, which was reprinted in Apex Magazine.

7. What are you working on now?

I'm working on several solicited stories for various anthologies, collating reprints for a second collection, and trying my best to keep all my deadlines in a row.