August Reflections

August was a busy month for reading and writing. I kicked it off with the release of The Killing Pen, a short horror story featured in  ‘That Is TOO Wrong: An anthology of Offbeat Horror: Vol 11’, edited by Jan-Andrew Henderson, Black Hart Publishing.

This is the second instalment of Jan’s horror anthology trilogy. The first volume, ‘That is SO Wrong’, was released in June, and the third instalment ‘That is ALL Wrong’, will be released later this year. To kick off the release of ‘That is Too Wrong’, we held a book launch at Avid Reader. You can listen to the event here: Avid Reader: “That is Too Wrong” Panel with Pauline Yates, Pamela Jeffs, and Jan-Andrew Henderson.

My next release was Breathe, featuring in Plague (4 Horseman Book 3), published by Iron Faerie Publishing. This anthology is part of a series that contains stories about the Four figures in the Book of Revelations and showcases the evils to come at the end of the world, in just 100 words. The anthology is available here: Plague (4 Horseman Book 3) – Iron Faerie Publishing

My next release was Renascent, a horror story I originally sold to Aurealis. It’s been turned into a podcast with Pseudopod. They did a terrific job bringing this story to life in a podcast. You can listen to the episode here: PseudoPod 824: Renascent

My last release in August is Bon Appetit, a bite-sized serving for horror lovers. It can be found in Trembling With Fear, The Horror Tree. You can read it along with other great stories here: Bon Appetit – Trembling With Fear, The Horror Tree

What I’ve been reading

I shouted myself a new book this month: Where The Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens. A movie trailer featuring this story caught my eye, but I wanted to read the book first. I really enjoyed this book. It kept me reading late into the night because I didn’t want to put it down. I even fastened a head torch to my bedhead to keep reading long after I should have gone to sleep. That said, I finished the book in two nights. In the early parts of the story, I worried that the dialogue would bog me down. The tone reflected through the prose, and it wasn’t quite to my liking. Surprisingly, as the character developed, so did the tone; if this was intended, the author did a great job. By the end, I felt like I’d grown with the character and this has now become my favourite book.

Another story I read was Bluebells by Leanbh Pearson, published by Black Hare Press. This is a vampire, paranormal romance, historical fiction, and thriller, all rolled into one exciting story. I really enjoyed the flicks between characters and getting all points of view. I also enjoyed the jumps back and forward in time which showed the broader story. This was another story I read in two sittings. If you’re looking for a 5-star read, you’ll find it here: BlueBells by Leanbh Pearson.

That brings me to the end of August. Looking ahead, my submission list is empty so it’s time for more writing and less reading and hopefully bring forth some more stories to share. In the meantime, I look forward to sharing new releases later this year, and early into next year, including the release of my debut novel. If you’re keen to keep in the loop, you find me everywhere here: https://linktr.ee/paulineyates

Happy reading.