Solitary Confinement (Issue 7)

On By forsakenpressIn Solitary ConfinementLeave a comment

The official weekly Forsaken Press Newsletter:

Issue 7: 14/12/2019

From the desk of the President and Editor in Chief, Mr. Cameron Walker.

Hello ladies and gentlemen,

Welcome to another issue of Solitary Confinement, the official Forsaken Press newsletter. We have a massive issue for you this week with lots of exciting news and announcements to make. First off, as we have been advertising a little bit these past couple of weeks we are now closed for submissions from the 14th of December until the 30th of January for the holiday period and to sort through the submissions we have while dedicating some time and effort to other things that require our attention.

Tomorrow also marks the official release of the first Forsaken Press title released under the company’s banner, Ken Dixon’s, The Roots of Marvis Jedd. An absurdist, satirical take on small town life in the American Mid-West, it tells the story of journalist Clay Reston returning to his home town, a place he despises after a fifteen year absence. You can find it available for purchase on Amazon, Smashwords, Kobo, Scribd and Apple Books.

“Returning apprehensively to his home town of Thune, writer Clay Reston endeavors to document the early years of enigmatic musician and fellow Thune native, Marvis Jedd. At every turn, he is reminded of the many reasons they both left as soon as they could.

The Roots of Marvis Jedd is a satirical, somewhat absurdist portrayal of small town life in the American Mid-West. Baring similarities to the work of existential philosopher Albert Camus, Clay Reston struggles to find a sense of meaning and purpose to his own existence and the people and events taking place around him, while writing a biography on his home town’s most famous son, Marvis Jedd.”

Not only that, but we have another two novels scheduled for release before the year is out with Through the Gates of the Silver Key: The Best Collaborative and Ghost Written Works of H.P. Lovecraft set for release on December 23rd and the second and print editions of Cameron Walker’s tale of pillage, plunder and pirates, Devil’s Eye out December 30th.

We’re all hard at work behind the scenes, with our Social Media Manager Jenna, and our Marketing Manager Ashley, working with us to really make our marketing and social media network something impressive and innovative that offers our authors a lot of exposure, support and presenting a refined and professional image that’s eye catching and easily identifiable. Jenna is working hard on our twitter to bring you all the latest news and updates, while Ashley recently took over management of our Instagram and we are all very excited to see what she achieves with that.

Meanwhile I am hard at work helping to prepare Devil’s Eye by going over it with a fine comb, and perfecting the manuscript for its print and our new and improved second edition release. In conjunction with the myriad of other tasks I deal with while conducting the every day operations of Forsaken Press and preparing some promotional pieces for The Roots of Marvis Jedd and our future releases out later this month. Priest is working hard at designing cover art and formatting manuscripts for their Ebook and print releases. If he escapes with his sanity intact, it may very well be a miracle.

In closing we are also revamping a few things around the place as part of our campaign to enhance our image and ensure Forsaken Press meets its potential, for clients and customers alike. If you’ve visited the blog before you’ll notice a few changes with a sidebar menu and options at the bottom of the page now clearly visible as we seek to flesh the blog out a bit and make it easier to navigate. We also have some new additions coming to the Facebook page and don’t forget to look us up on DeviantArt and Tumblr.

That’s all from me for this week, stay tuned for next week’s edition, which will be the last for a while as we wind things down a bit for the holidays and focus more on behind the scenes developments we have in the works.

Warm regards,

Cameron Walker,
President and Editor in Chief,
Forsaken Press.

A Dream of Pirates

On By forsakenpressIn Short Stories1 Comment

“Fifteen men on a dead man’s chest, yo ho ho and a bottle of rum. Drink and the devil did for all the rest, yo ho ho and a bottle of rum.” Treasure Island, the first book I vividly remember reading. Well I didn’t read it. My dad read it to me of a night before bed, after we had moved up the coast, away from the big city to a small country town by the seaside. For the first few months after our move we lived in a small caravan park by the beach.

I found myself falling asleep every night to the sound of the distant waves crashing upon the shore, vivid images of cutlass wielding pirates, buried treasure, tropical islands and galleons doing battle upon the sea coursed through my mind, fueling my imagination and filling my dreams with tales of adventure, debauchery and battle, ruthless buccaneers, handsome heroes, beautiful damsels in distress, and exotic far off places. Looking back this early obsession with pirates plays a significant role in my fascination with history, and most of all my love of reading and literature later on in life.

Sometimes of a night, once my parents had gone to bed, and I felt the need to pee, or get myself a drink, I would sneak out of the caravan, being careful to not make a sound as I slipped outside and wondered down to the beach. I recall one such occasion with such clarity, as if it happened only yesterday, not some twenty-five years ago. I can’t say if what I saw was a mere figment of my excited child’s imagination, was in fact a dream of such detail and vividness that I confused it for reality upon waking, or was indeed a ghostly vision of a time centuries before. As if somehow my fevered imaginings had opened a portal through space and time, allowing me to see through the veil of the centuries and into the past. What I can tell you is I had an experience that whatever its nature, was of such profound significance to me, that it stayed with me all these years with a vividness and clarity of detail, unlike anything else I have ever experienced.

I was taking one of my regular late-night strolls from our caravan, winding my way through the labyrinth of caravans, campers, tents and cottages before turning onto the path towards the ocean. Shrubs, mangroves and grasses lined the sides of the sandy track as it snaked its way through the dunes, down towards the beach. Something rustled in the grass among the dunes and a bird of some sort cawed in the trees above as I strode along the path, my bare feet sinking into the soft, cool sand, leaving a track of footprints in my wake. I descended onto the beach, the sand becoming noticeably deeper and colder as I wondered across the sand. I strode down the sand until I came to the line where the waves reached their peak upon the shore and followed it for a time. I stopped to stoop down and retrieve some pebbles and began to toss them into the water, seeing how far I could hurl them out to sea.

Unexpectedly a curious sensation came over me and I stopped to take in my surroundings, giving my full attention to the night that engulfed me and now tickled at my senses with an indistinct feeling of surrealism. Everything suddenly felt vague and ethereal, like being trapped in a dream which one could not awake from as my hair stood on end and my pulse increased, my breathing becoming heavier as I became more alert and aware of the night around me. The steep cliff face of the large hillside that flanked the beach loomed menacingly above the shore, casting the beach nearby in a dark, malevolent shadow devoid of light. Hiding the rock pools below the cliff, where hermit crabs and small fish frolicked, from sight.

The waves lapped lazily at the shore, rolling up onto the sand before receding back upon themselves. The sea was eerily calm with the swell of the waves laying quite close to shore. Beyond them the ocean lay as smooth as glass, the pale light of the crescent moon reflecting upon the surface of the water and making it shimmer like the stars that blinked down upon the earth from the heavens. Several large clouds drifted across the night sky, the light of the moon giving them a ghostly visage, so they appeared as phantoms floating among the stars that glittered like jewels within the black, abyssal darkness of space. The trees rustled in the breeze that blew through the night, cavorting to a song only they could hear. It was then that I spotted it.

Out beyond the waves a ship glided over the sea, its large rectangular white sails fluttering in the wind as its bow cut a path through the inky darkness of the water. As it came closer I recognised it distinctly as an old sailing ship from centuries past and ran up the beach towards the headland that overlooked the bay gave unobstructed views of the vast ocean beyond. Unable to believe my eyes I stood there in a state of shock and awe, staring at the mysterious ship as it approached, gradually growing as it loomed closer and closer.

Shaking myself out of my trance I raced across the sand and up the rocky path that snaked its way from the beach into the rolling hills of the coastal field that overlooked the beach. Once cattle grazing land it now served as a recreational area for tourists and locals alike to have picnics, play sports and relax away from the sand and surf while still providing them with scenic views of the beach and ocean beyond. Breathing heavily and with my legs aching from the physical exertion of the uphill run I finally reached the top of the hill and looked out across the bay at the advancing ship.

The ship had turned with the tide and was making its way towards me as it followed the coast south, coming about on her starboard side to reveal two rows of ten cannons along her top and gun decks. Thanks to my reading of books on pirates, sailing and naval warfare during the age of exploration I identified her as a small galleon. A relatively fast, well-armed and formidable ship capable of not just hunting down prey; but severely punishing anyone who dared resist.

As she skirted the coast past the headland the skull and crossbones flag hanging from her masthead was clearly visible, fluttering lazily in the night wind with its infamous grinning skull mocking all unfortunate enough to set eyes upon it. Men scrambled amongst the rigging, swinging from ropes, racing deftly over narrow beams and scurrying up and down the ratlines as they shouted and cursed to each other through the forest of masts, ropes and timber beams and posts.

“Heave to ya bilge rats, come on ya godless sons of whores, on yar way,’ shouted a large portly officer, who stood amid ship barking orders at the men around him, encouraging them to pick up the pace. The pirate in the crow’s nest kept a vigilant eye out for trouble, or the prospect of an easy target that could bring them some quick booty. More buccaneers raced around on deck tending to the variety of tasks that consumed their daily lives. A group of men feverishly scrubbed the deck, scrapping off the layer of salt that built up while others polished the ship’s cannons, cleaning out their barrels and clearing any obstructions. A large burly sailor stood at the helm, steering the large wheel with practised ease as several other pirates crowded around a map and conversed nearby.

The bustle of conversation, shouted orders, curses and song piercing the night in a cacophony of noise as I stood amazed by the sight before me. As the galleon sailed past the headland I got a good look at the men on board as they rushed about their work under the light of the pale glow of the moon, seemingly oblivious to my presence upon the hill. Covered in piercings, tattoos and with a fair share of eye patches among them they were a fearsome bunch of hardened criminals, rebels and outcasts who had shunned society and made a life of their own on the sea where they were the masters of their world and the scourge of all who would dare oppose them.

I stood watching the phantom ship that had appeared out of the abyssal gulf of time, emerging from ages past into the modern era via some mystical means unknown to man and beyond the reach of science. Watching as it followed the coast in a southern trajectory for some time before turning to her port and moving back out to sea, casting a ghostly shadow upon the waves as she glided over the water and disappeared beyond the horizon.

Interview with Cassandra Castaneda: On Writing

On By forsakenpressIn InterviewsLeave a comment

Welcome to another edition of our On Writing series of Forsaken Press collaborator interviews. For this edition I sat down with Sci-Fi/Fantasy writer Cassandra Castaneda to discuss reading, writing and what makes her tick, as a writer of course.

When did you first start writing and what got you into it?

I was really young actually, the first “book” I wrote was a short story I made for a school contest, where you made a short picture book about any story you wanted to tell. Me, being the ubernerd I was decided to write a book about dinosaurs, about the different types of dinosaurs, and different theories on how they went extinct. I won first place for the school, although, as far as I recall I didn’t make it at the county level. Beyond that, I continued to be a heavy reader and writer all the way until adulthood, although the last few years I have slacked quite a bit.

What’s your favourite novel?

Without a doubt, The Neverending Story. More than any book I have read has this one influenced the way I write and how I develop worlds. The book in and of itself is sort of a love letter to the art of storytelling, with the Nothing representing the lack of imagination that often comes with adult life. I would almost call it a proto-Millennial mindset in many ways. If you’ve read The Neverending Story, you can pick up little hints and nods I throw towards it in my various writings. My character Storyteller, who appears in many of my stories, although in many forms and names is representative of the idea of certain beings being able to travel across worlds, be it from Earth to Fantastica, or in her case, from Earth, to the Aether, to the Nine Realms, etc.

Who are your greatest influences?

Aside from Michal Ende and his novel, I actually have quite a few literary influences. Kevin Dean Anderson, Michael Crichton, Dean Koontz and, of course, H.P. Lovecraft. It’s hard to say who has had the most influence on me, and they are a great many more I could list here, these are just the ones who come to mind.

You’re currently working on your debut novel Aether Station, what inspired the story?

This is a long story. So, I had been working on a tabletop roleplaying game, the original idea was actually to create something I could play for a Mass Effect themed game, but I decided it would be more fun to create something that was my own, although you can sort of see a small reminder of the influence in some of the races I created, the Arkdavieans and the Leirynn being similar to the Salarian and Turians, although much of that is superficial now. As I wrote down more of this universe I started to fall in love with it. I decided to write a series of short stories, that were meant to help the player (the novel takes place 100 years before the events of the game) immerse themselves in a universe that was rich in lore and not just a generic Sci Fi game. That is sort of why there are 4 parts in the novel, each part was originally a short story reworked into a novel.

What’s the most challenging thing about writing for you?

I have really bad ADHD, combined with anxiety and depression, its hard for me to motivate myself into writing. It really sucks when you have all these ideas and they seem to refuse to come out, like some sort of reverse writers block where its not that you don’t know what to write, but so many ideas you don’t know which one!

How do you create your characters?

Depends. Sometimes I create stories around characters I come up with, sometimes it’s the reverse. To narrow it down, in the case of Alicia I created her because I wanted a hero who was like me, a neurodivergent, Mexican woman. While I am not a super-scientist, many of her personality traits, especially her negative ones are very much mine. Comparatively, Rebecca was created to be a counterpart to her, to be the bad bitch I always wished I was.

What advice would you give to someone thinking about writing a novel of their own?

Read more. Not even kidding. When I started writing the first draft of Aether Station 5 or so years ago, I realised I had not read much in awhile and you can’t be a good writer if you don’t take the time to see what people want to read.

What kind of fiction do you like to read?

I’m not super picky, I do love Sci—Fi and Fantasy but I will read just about anything. I have been reading a bit of True Crime lately, most recently The Phantom Killer: Unlocking the Mystery of the Texarkana Serial Murders by James Presley. 

What is it about Sci-fi and fantasy that you find so alluring?

The escape. I was bullied a lot, and as an awkward LGBT person, having a fantasy realm to escape to was an important coping mechanism. I think it’s a lot of why I fell in love with The Neverending Story, the idea I could just disappear into another world, if just for a bit, was more than I could ever ask for.

What is your favourite story you’ve ever written and why?

Bob the Dieting Turkey. Wrote it when I was 12 and it was about a thanksgiving turkey that came back to life and forced the family to go on a low-carb high-protein diet. I was 12 and have no fucking clue why I thought it was funny, but me and my mom still have a laugh about it now and then.

How would you describe your writing style?

Accessible. I try to use language that conveys ideas, emotions, actions, etc without being pretentious. I think this is something I try to take from JK Rowling, wording that tells a deep story while being understandable to all groups of people.

What’s your favourite thing about writing?

Being lost in my own head for hours, coming up with new stories, new places and new people to meet!

Solitary Confinement (Issue 6)

On By forsakenpressIn Solitary ConfinementLeave a comment

The official weekly Forsaken Press Newsletter:

Issue 6: 07/12/2019

From the desk of the President and Editor in Chief, Mr. Cameron Walker.

Hello all,

It’s been a very chaotic week outside of Forsaken Press for many of our staff. What with people losing employment, having university finals, financial issues, sick pets and high anxiety provoking jobs. That’s without even getting to the issue of me trying to find more work to support myself and having both of my cats be sick and lose their appetites because of the haze of smoke that lingers over the city of Sydney. So as you can see its all on behind the scenes, but through it all we will persevere and do our very best to bring you some excellent new reading material from unknown writers.

First thing’s first. As per Murphy’s law of “If something can go wrong, it will,” we’ve had a few complications with the release of the paperback version of Devil’s Eye that was originally slated for release on December 14th. To cut a long story short, to ensure the novel is of the very highest quality we’re currently re-editing it in order to bring you a more streamlined, exciting and vibrant tale of high seas adventure. This process is taking longer than originally anticipated, hence we have had to cancel the December 14th release and reschedule it for December 30th instead. In addition to this the Ebook version of the novel will reflect the changes made in the paperback edition and will feature a brand new cover specially designed for the physical book.

We’ve had to reshuffle things with our release schedule around a bit as a result of that and other external factors, but the good news is all three of our promised releases for December will be still happening this month and we have another release slated to take Devil’s Eye’s place for a release date of December 14th.

On December 14th we will be releasing Ken Dixon’s, The Roots of Marvis Jedd. Which is a satircal look at small town life in American, seen through the eyes of journalist Clay Reston, as he seeks to write a biography on his home town’s most famous son, the mysterious Marvis Jedd. The novella will be launched for a pre-release on the 7th of December.

Other than that we are happy to announce the beginning of two new Forsaken Press programs to help promote the company on Facebook and Social Media. The first being our “Promotional Partnerships” program with other individuals, pages, companies and entities as a mutual promotion program. I am very happy to announce that our first promotional partnership is with our very own consultant and accomplished Indy writer Roxanne Bland, who’ has won numerous awards for her work.

The second being the Official Forsaken Press Web Team. Which is a group of dedicated supporters helping to promote Forsaken Press on Social Media by liking, commenting on and sharing our posts across Social Media to help expand our presence and let more people know who we are.

That’s it from me for now, but before I go I would just like to point out that we have now reached 500 followers on Facebook, which is a huge accomplishment. Thank you so much to everyone who liked our page and we hope to see you getting involved in the fun.

Warm regards and sincerest thanks,

Cameron Walker,
President and Editor in Chief,
Forsaken Press.

Arabesques

On By forsakenpressIn Short StoriesLeave a comment

A poem by Forsaken Press writer Sasha Cuha……

You are smoke, my love,
an arabesque of desire
that floats and waltzes
through the briar and oak.

I am trapped
by the way you lie
in that foreign floral halo,
your lips embroider the night
bringing colour to skin
and names to Gods
when they land
(like promises or moths)
on me.

The well of your skull –
a space between drab and divinity
where serpents lie and twist,
singing secrets to the silent witness
hiding amongst the bones and rain.

She weaves the fishnet of our limbs
and lets us trawl for jewels
across the mouth of our river.

You are smoke my love,
and I am become the ember and trout.

Interview with C. Priest Brumley: On Writing

On By forsakenpressIn InterviewsLeave a comment

Hello ladies and gentlemen, Forsaken Press President and Editor in Chief Cameron Walker here. I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Forsaken Press writer, our Head Graphic Artist and the maestro of madness, Mr. C. Priest Brumley for the next edition of our On Writing series of interviews. We discussed writing, horror and how writers can find inspiration for their imagination and ideas. I hope you enjoy reading the interview as much as we enjoyed conducting it……..

How did you first become interested in writing?

-Always was, growing up. I recall wanting to be a writer as far back as primary school. Hell, I tried writing my first novel in 6th Grade. Fun times. I don’t know what drew me to it, it’s just always been, like sunlight or Ozzy.

Who are the major influences on your style?

-Lovecraft was a MASSIVE early inspiration. Others include Stephen King, Thomas Harris, Rosemary Edgehill, Piers Anthony, Jo Rowling, and Jim Butcher. I’m also greatly influenced by comics, in particular the works of Brian Michael Bendis, Warren Ellis, and Jeph Loeb.

You’re someone who is really into music, how does that impact upon your writing?

-Not as much as you’d think, to be honest. While I am a devoted metalhead, it’s rare for themes from the music I enjoy to find their way in to my works. My writing is much more inspired by film scores and recently synthwave albums. They both provide a proper ambiance conducive to me shutting my brain down long enough to write.

How do you find inspiration for stories?

-Nightmares and the human condition. I’ve had a number of medical issues over the years, primary of which is my eyesight. To combat that, I have to get injections IN my eyeball every four weeks or so. Ladies, Gentlemen, and that gorgeous technicolour rainbow in between, that is NIGHT TERROR fuel. So you save those terrors, write them down as best you can after waking, and expand on them later. Makes for effective subject matter, I’ll tell you that.

What is it about horror that makes you focus primarily on that genre?

-It’s fun and it’s versatile. Horror can be such a wide range of things, from campy and comedic to heart-stopping terror. It can be about something as generic as vampires to something as specific as spousal abuse. It’s literally anything you want it to be, and I love that.

Your first release is a collection of short stories, do you have plans to write any novels or are you primarily a short fiction writer?

-Short fiction. My span of attention is horrible, and every time I’ve tried writing longer narratives I lose track/interest/plot details/etc. super easily.So I circumvent that by not doing it. Seems like a reasonable solution to me, at least.

What part of the writing process do you find the most challenging?

-All of it. I see writing in much the same way Thomas Harris does: it’s torture. It’s a painful process that I have to be miserable to do in any meaningful capacity. Hence going 6 or so years between stories. There’s a reason I focus on my other big love, graphic design. Designing book covers gives me no end of pleasure, from the puzzle elements in finding just the right font or tweak, to the messages of elation when an author loves the cover I’ve made for them. Makes my entire day.

What is it about writing that you love the most?

-The feeling of completion after it’s done. That pure feeling never grows old.

Horror movies these days get a lot of criticism from old school fans of the genre, what’re your thoughts on the current horror movie scene?

-It’s a two-sided coin. On the one hand, there’s the studio-engineered stuff, the PG-13 bullshit that the big corporations want to shove down your throat purely to increase their profit margins. It produces the occasional gem (Occulus, etc.). On the other hand there are the artists, like always. The people who aren’t afraid to push boundaries. The Soska Sisters, Robert Eggers, Ari Aster, and more are beautifully changing the game one film at a time, and I love it. So long as there are always artists, there’s always hope.

Do you have a specific ritual in place for when you’re sitting down to write to get yourself in the mood?

-Not really. On the rare occasion that a story idea comes to me anymore, I just write it down as quickly as possible. When I go back to it for expanding/revision, I like to be in my living room where I’m comfortable, with a decent film score or synthwave album on in the background as white noise. That’s about it, really.

What’s your favourite story you’ve written and why? What’s it about?

-Nine times out of ten I’m going to say Conversations With Dead People. In the pseudo-Universe I’ve created in my stories, I’ve made zombies work slightly different than normal, being part of a hive system. This was the first true example of that, and also features my absolute favorite death across any of my stories (except maybe for The Red Recliner). As for what it’s about, well, you’ll have to read it for yourselves.

Is there any underlying social criticism or message to your stories that go beyond being entertainment?

-Yes. Take care of your eyesight, kids. It’s important. Joking aside, not really. They’re primarily morality plays, particularly the Masach stories.

Can you give us an example?

-Yes. Childish Negotiations is a warning about taking the time to be there for your children before they’re gone forever. Other stories follow along similar routes.

How much inspiration from your life experiences and surroundings can be found in your work?

– As much insofar as dreams are comprised of the collected events of the day combined with one’s rampant imagination. Sometimes they’re informed by exagerated versions of things I’ve witnessed in life, sometimes wild stories brought about from my younger days of wild drinking.

What do your friends and family think of your writing?

-They’ve been supportive from the off. The majority of my family has been really cool with the fact that I’m a creative type, even if they’re not too keen on the stories themselves. Now, I’m not too close with the majority of my family, mostly because I like to stay in my corner away from most people. But those that I do feel close to are supportive and I can only express gratitude at that fact.

Forsaken Press Quality Guidelines:

On By forsakenpressIn DocumentsLeave a comment

Forsaken Press is dedicated to embracing creativity, imagination, originality and pushing the boundaries of storytelling by encouraging experimentation and thinking outside the box. As such there’s no idea that we consider too crazy, wild or out there for us to support.

However we believe in maintaining a high standard in the quality of work we publish in the quest of establishing a reputable and respected brand. This in accordance with our modus operandi means there are certain types of stories we are going to be less interested in. That’s not to say we don’t like conventional stories, not at all. Devil’s Eye, the first novel ever published by Forsaken Press, is a conventional story.

What we are not interested in is stories that are very stereotypical, cliché or have been overdone and can be found elsewhere in abundance. In addition to anything that we find morally objectionable which we have reason to believe is a testament to the author’s own views. Although it should be noted that if you put an interesting twist on these things, we will certainly hear you out. We believe in giving everyone a fair reading and if we feel it is well written enough or overcomes these barriers in some way we can certainly get behind it. This guide applies to both short stories and longer works.

Here is a list of the sort of stories/themes we are talking about:

1) It turns out nothing is real: Stories where everything turns out to be just a dream, virtual reality, a product of the protagonist’s imagination or it turns out they are insane. While there’s nothing wrong with this narrative device it is rather passé and overdone.
2) Technology is evil and natural things are good. While this can present an interesting theme within a work, it shouldn’t be the main focus of your story.
3) The protagonist is a bad guy. While we have no issues with evil characters (they’re very fun), again your story shouldn’t revolve around this fact.
4) A twist ending occurs which is predictable or falls flat. A twist ending is supposed to make the story more interesting, not the other way round. (IE: M. Night Shyamalan films).
5) It turns out the main character isn’t human after all, as the reader has been led to believe. While there’s nothing wrong with this concept in theory, it’s been done to death.
6) Story involving time travel where something happens that affects the past/future as a result. Again, this has been done many times in film, TV and literature. It’s not interesting anymore.
7) Characters speculate what it would be like if something bizarre and outside the realm of reality was true, then it turns out it is. Let’s try to be original shall we?
8) Scientist uses themselves as a test subject.
9) Stories revolving around how awesome space/time travel or some hypothetical technology is. Your story should have more depth to it than that.
10) Stories revolving around how women, people of other races/sexualities etc are inherently evil or inferior in some way. Forsaken Press isn’t here to lend psychological validation to your bigotry. Not only is it morally and factually wrong, but it’s a poor concept to revolve a story around. We suggest taking some time out for open and honest self-reflection as to the basis for your beliefs.
11) Characters spend the entire story, or an inordinate amount of time contemplating a moral dilemma of some sort. While moral dilemmas lend a story/character depth and add drama it shouldn’t be the primary focus. We do want a narrative of some sort so the story progresses somewhere.
12) A political manifesto in the guise of a fictional narrative. No one wants to read about your personal politics. While political themes are encouraged again this shouldn’t be the driving factor behind your story, especially if you’re portraying anyone who disagrees with you in an unrealistically negative light.
13) Superhero story focuses on the mundane aspects of superhero life. This has been done quite a lot already.
14) Weird, random and mysterious things happen for the sake of it. While we love weird and mysterious things there must be some sort of rhyme or reason for it, otherwise its pointless and points to poor writing.
15) The story revolves around the concept of rape, sexual assault or violence against women, usually depicted in loving detail, in a story about how it is wrong. Again Forsaken Press is not here to act as a vehicle to vent your psychological issues.
16) Real world concepts, dynamics and power structures etc are inverted. It’s overdone and is a sign of a lack of imagination.
17) Stories of someone becoming a superhero or developing superpowers. While we love these types of stories they’ve been done to death and so your story would have to involve a unique take on it to be approved.
18) Story revolves around the concept of minors being test subjects of some sort in a government facility. There’s nothing wrong with this, but it has been done a lot.
19) Stories that are a thinly veiled work of fan fiction. We’re not opposed to fan fiction or being influenced/inspired by a fictional universe, but if you write a story about a character that’s basically Batman under a different name we’re not interested. We want originality, not cheap rip offs.
20) Romance stories. While we’re not opposed to romantic relationships or subplots, romance isn’t a genre that fits with the image we seek to portray at Forsaken Press.
21) Stories about everyday life, trials and tribulations people encounter in the real world. Forsaken Press aims to focus primarily on speculative, or genre, fiction. While we are open to the idea of publishing stories set in the real-world drama stories aren’t something that fits our image. In general there has to be some “larger than life” aspect to your work that sets it aside from normal, every day life.
22) Finally Forsaken Press, like every other publisher, independent or otherwise is bound to the constraints of the law. Stories glorifying, promoting or normalising illegal activity, revolving around incest, paedophilia, rape, bestiality, terrorism, torture, murder etc are illegal in most markets and as such will be rejected instantly.
23) Supernatural romance. This genre has been done to death and is a crowded marketplace where its almost impossible to stand out. Hence Forsaken Press isn’t interested in stories of supernatural romance or your thinly veiled Twilight fan-fiction.

Now we move on to the subject of quantity. We do want to allow our writers as much freedom as possible with their own work, but by the same token we do need to establish some guidelines to ensure we are offering a professional, good quality product that is fairly priced and of sufficient length. While we firmly support the saying “quality over quantity” we also believe customers should get their money’s worth.

Forsaken Press like most publishers doesn’t sell individual short stories, nor are we interested in individual novellettes. The shortest type of single story product we want to produce is a novella which is between 20,000 – 40,000 words with novels being 40,000 and over. Single writer short story collections should be at least 40,000 words in length. Omnibus’s and anthologies released by FP should meet a minimum word count of 60,000 words. (NOTE: from 01/12/2019 until 30/01/2020 we are not taking submissions for single writer collections).

However, we are flexible with how you incorporate this into your works. Say for example you’ve written a novelette length story, if you so wish you can include it in a short story collection you are publishing. Anthologies have stricter guidelines because in order to appear professional they must be cohesive. Remember that professionalism, organisation and lay out plays an important role in a reader’s perceptions of your competence as a writer and what they deem high quality material.

Note: Forsaken Press reserves the right to alter these conditions at any time. Whether it be by editing, subtracting or making new additions to the terms discussed therein.

Copyright Forsaken Press 2019.

Solitary Confinement (Issue 5)

On By forsakenpressIn Solitary ConfinementLeave a comment

The official weekly Forsaken Press Newsletter:

Issue 5: 29/11/2019

From the desk of the President and Editor in Chief, Mr. Cameron Walker.

Hello all,

As usual its been another busy and eventful week here at Forsaken Press, but I am happy to announce that things are finally settling down into some sense of normality as we get everything we need established set up and ready to roll. The editing and formatting process with a number of works for release is progressing very well and we’ll be getting those out right on schedule in the coming weeks. And you can be sure that in the coming months we’ve got a load of new releases in the works with five scheduled in the coming months and another four currently in development. We are constantly growing, picking up new authors and scheduling new material to be released under the Forsaken Press banner.

A brief look at our release schedule for the next month shows three exciting releases that you’re sure to love:

Devil’s Eye. PRINT EDITION, by Cameron Walker – Coming December 14th.

Through the Gates of the Silver Key: The Best collaborations and ghost writings of H.P. Lovecraft, edited by Cameron Walker – Coming December 23rd.

The Roots of Maris Jedd, by Ken Dixon – Coming December 30th.

Aside from the news on upcoming releases we’re happy to report that our social media network of Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, DeviantArt and Twitter are slowly, but surely growing. So if you’re on any of these platforms be sure to give us a follow and show your support. I would also like to take this opportunity to announce that next week’s issue of Solitary Confinement will include a very significant and special announcement concerning releases and submitted material, so stay tuned for that.

Plans for our Youtube channel and other forms of media and content outside the area of Social Media have been unfortunately delayed for the near future while we focus on other, more pressing matters, but we still have big plans for them in the longer term. I’m quite excited about what we have in mind, but unfortunately it will have to wait for a later date. Updates and announcements relating to that will be revealed as they become available.

Be sure to follow the official Forsaken Press blog and Facebook page as we have some great content coming for you in the near future in the form of interviews, samples, excerpts, reviews, focus pieces and related articles. Speaking of which I was recently interviewed by our wonderful Social Media Manager Jenna for the first entry in our “On Writing” interview series, right here on the blog, which I would really recommend checking out. Stayed tuned for next week’s addition to the series when I sit down with the maestro of the macabre C. Priest Brumley and discuss writing, horror and things that go bump in the night.

Lastly I would like to take the opportunity to welcome Allyson Cooper Russell to the Forsaken Press team. Allyson will be releasing her debut novel, True Companion, through us in the coming months and its sure to be a hit with fans of slow burning Sci-Fi.

That’s all from me for this week, as I said stayed tuned next week for what could possibly be our biggest announcement yet. 🙂

Thank you for all your continued support,

Cameron Walker,
President and Editor in Chief,
Forsaken Press.



The Merciful Deal

On By forsakenpressIn Short StoriesLeave a comment

TThis short story about pacts with dark forces is a cautionary tale that comes to us from the warped mind of horror writer C. Priest Brumley. A valuable addition to the team here at Forsaken Press. 

“Oh for fuck sake, just leave the kid alone already, huh?” The sound of Dad’s voice rang out from the living room, muffled slightly by the sound of the football game on in the background. “He got C’s; what the fuck do you expect from him? He’s a fuckin’ sinful retard, Linda. C’s are probably the best we can ask for!”

Mom’s voice answered from the laundry room. “Yeah, but he can still study, can’t he? And if he can study, he can get better fucking grades, Greg!”

The entrance to my room was always open, ever since Dad took my door off the hinges a year ago after they accidentally caught me masturbating. According to them I was now “sinful” and “not trustworthy”. So instead of having privacy, I now have to listen to them bitch all day: about me, about finances, about me, about each other, about me… On and on it went, day after day. I swear, I’d sell my soul for a reprieve from this bullshit.

The column of fire in the center of my room was sudden, and before I could call out for help was gone, leaving only a slight scorch mark in my rug. Oh, and it left behind a man. He was tall, but not like NBA tall. He wore a pair of tailored pants, a nice shirt, tie, and HOLY FUCK HE HAS HORNS.

“Who are you and what do you want?” My voice was barely above a whisper, trying to not alert my asshole parents to the sudden intruder in our house.

“Good afternoon, Robert. You can speak plainly. To your parents and everyone else you’re fast asleep on your bed. Don’t want to interrupt our chat, you know.”

I nodded without thinking, eyes still drawn to the pair of jet-black horns jutting from his upper forehead. “Okay, that’s great and all, but who the fuck are you? And why are you here?”

The man chuckled to himself before answering. “Well, straight to the point. I can appreciate that. To answer your first question, my name is Masach. Pleased to make your acquaintance!” He stuck his hand out towards me, a pleasant smile on his lips.

I stopped looking at his horns long enough to watch his face and look at the proferred hand. Got nothing to lose, right? I reached up and shook his hand. It was warm, and his hands were exceptionally soft. Huh.

“Excellent! Well, Mister Robert, as you have more than likely guessed by now, I am here to fulfill your attempted barter.”

My mind finally tore itself away from Masach’s horns and tried to grasp what he was saying. “What do you mean, ‘fulfill my attempted barter’?”

Masach nodded once. “I see. Do you not remember mere minutes ago? I do believe the thought was, and I quote, ‘I swear, I’d sell my soul for a reprieve from this bullshit’. Was that not you?” His eyes arched upwards in what looked to me like genuine curiosity.

I let out a small laugh. How he knew that I had no idea, but it probably shouldn’t surprise me. “Yeah, it was. So what are you gonna do to help me?”

“Well, I can proceed in many ways, but the more pressing matter is when would you be willing to hand your soul over to us? The sooner the better, obviously.”

I threw my hands up in indifference. “I honestly don’t fucking care. You could take it right now if you want. I just don’t want to have to deal with their bullshit anymore.”

Masach’s face lit up. “Are you sure of that?”

“Yes! I don’t fucking care! Fuck, if it’ll get rid of them I’ll do anything! Do you know what it’s like to live like this? They won’t let me play video games or have a phone or even have a fucking door!”

Masach nodded sagely. “May I sit?”

I felt tears running down my cheeks without even realizing I was crying. I tossed my arm to the side, showing him it was okay. Masach snapped his fingers once and sat down next to me on the bed.

“I do. I was there, too, once. Why don’t you tell me what they do to you?”

I jumped to my feet, sudden anger bursting through my veins, threatening to tint my vision as red as Masach’s skin. “They refuse to let me be me! I don’t wanna go to fucking church and they fucking drag me there, I can’t whack off anymore, they think all my friends are trying to lead me down some bullshit ‘life of sin’ so they took away my fucking phone and, get this, changed the password on my computer so I can’t use it without them watching my every move! MY COMPUTER! On top of that they think all video games are gonna do is cause me to be violent but they don’t realize THEY’RE MAKING ME VIOLENT ALREADY!”

“Er-hem.”

My stomach dropped to my feet. I knew that voice. I’d had my back to the door as I ranted and raved to Masach. I looked at Masach’s face, watching the sad smile form there. “Wasn’t I supposed to be asleep? Wasn’t this supposed to be in my head or something?”

“Yes, and I do apologize about that. But you’ll understand relatively soon, Mister Robert.”

I heard the jingle of Dad’s car keys attached to his belt loop. I didn’t have to turn around to know my mom was probably standing right behind him as well. I didn’t know what was coming, but I knew it wasn’t anything good.

“C’mon, Robbie. You wanna talk shit about us, you’re gonna get out here and face us like the man you seem to think you are.” I turned at long last to see my dad standing there with eyes as cold as death, filling my once-empty doorway with his massive frame. His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, showing off the fading Marine Corps tattoos he’d accumulated over the years.

I tried to shove past him to go to the living room to take my beating. Instead I was met with a fist on the side of my jaw.

“You wanna talk about us? Talk shit about The Lord? Boy, your retard ass just fucked up big time. Get up! You want to be a man, right? Get up and fight me like one!” I went down to one knee with the impact of the second blow. Dad’s breaths were coming faster and deeper now as he advanced on me. I heard mom scream as I felt another fist collide with the back of my skull.

My world went black. And it was peaceful.

Thank you, Masach. Thank you for your mercy.

Interview with Cameron Walker: On Writing

On By forsakenpressIn InterviewsLeave a comment

Hello and welcome to the first Forsaken Press writers interview in our On Writing series. This series focuses on our authors and their work in general and serves to operate as a sort of “get to know me” from a professional viewpoint. This interview with Forsaken Press founder, President and Editor in Chief Cameron Walker was conducted by our Social Media Manager Jenna.

What got you started with writing?


I’ve always had a vivid imagination, ever since I was little. I remember when I was in the first grade I used to make up stories to tell my mum when she walked me to school. I’ve always loved reading and stories. I believe it comes from being read bedtime stories by my parents and uncle as a kid and so the imagination combined with a love of reading just naturally colluded and it was something I fell into. My dad reading Treasure Island to me was the catalyst, I think. I was only 4 at the time but I vividly remember him reading it to me and being enthralled by the tales of pirates and adventure and really getting into it with my own imagination. You can really see where the influence for my first novel Devil’s Eye, about pirates, came from there, ha ha.

Who are your greatest influences?


In order of discovery: Robert Louis Stevenson, George Lucas, R.L Stine, Joss Whedon, J.R.R. Tolkien and H.P. Lovecraft.

What do you hope to accomplish with your writing?


Build a good sized fan base and provide them with a lot of good quality reading material. Ultimately that’s what it all comes down to. But to elaborate a bit I thrive on always challenging myself and striving to try something new or risky. Be it a different narrative style, genre, plot, characters, setting etc, you name it. I’m always looking to push the envelope and accomplish something new.

What has been the highlight of your writing career so far?


Finishing and finally publishing my first novel Devil’s Eye has been the most significant moment for sure. I don’t do anything by halves or half arse it when it comes to my writing. A lot of writers, their first novel will be 50-80 thousand words long, something on the shorter side. Devil’s Eye is 135,000 words and I get a lot of satisfaction by knowing that my first is an epic, that I went all out and gave it my all to produce this monster as my first released novel. I bit off more than I could chew and it took a long time as a result, along with a couple of other factors, but in the end it makes the achievement all the greater.

What is the most challenging aspect of writing for you?


Actually doing it. Coming up with an idea and turning that vague idea into a fully developed plot with characters, themes, a direction and overall message is easy for me. The hard part is actually writing it all down and getting it right, a lot tends to get lost in that “brain to paper” transition. Developing the skills and ability to get it down the way you want it has been the biggest challenge for me, but one I’ve done well at overcoming, thus far at least. It takes a lot of time, patience and energy to write, hence I find I struggle to do more than a thousand words a day before I start to feel burnt out. So I’m certainly a slow writer in that regard, which is a challenge in itself.

What impact has writing had on your life?


It’s something that I’m passionate about and that I love doing. It’s a creative outlet and that combined with a vivid imagination certainly makes life more interesting and fun. I derive a sense of meaning and purpose from it, but at the same time it’s isolating. If you want to be a good writer and achieve any measure of success you’ve got to be prepared to spend a lot of time alone. It doesn’t bother me, because I love my alone time, but’s not an interest for extroverts. You also have to accept that most people won’t be remotely interested in your work. Musician, artist or actor? Sure, it’s fairly easy to get people interested in that, but writing’s something that takes time and effort to appreciate, which most people don’t have the patience for. And if you’re an indy or unpublished writer, most people are going to automatically assume you’re shit at it. What it comes down to is, writing doesn’t build egos, it destroys them. That’s the cold, hard truth of it.

What is the first book that made you cry?


None thus far. I don’t think I’ve ever read a sad book. I’ve seen plenty of sad movies and cried during lots for various reasons, but I can’t say a book has ever drawn that sort of emotional reaction from me.

If you could tell your younger self anything about writing, what would it be?

Focus less on fan-fict and more on your own material. Don’t waste your time trying to get Devil’s Eye perfect, it will never be. By the time you’ve finished editing it once more you’ll have improved as a writer and hence will find more to take issue with. This process will continue ad infinitum if you let it. (Part of the reason it took so long to release).

What’s your favourite under-rated novel?


Probably Dean Koontz’s One Door Away From Heaven. I’ve read about 8 of his novels and most of them are among his best and most highly rated. This one really struck a cord with me, yet I have never seen it be rated that highly anywhere. I loved the plot, narrative style, blending of fantasy, sci-fi, horror and thriller, the characters, atmosphere and focus on imagery and environment that’s missing from a lot of his other works.

Have you ever read anything that changed what you thought fiction could be?


I already knew that fiction is often philosophical via the themes and messages within a story whether it be via film or literature, but Sartre’s Nausea opened my eyes to just how deeply philosophical fiction could be. How actual philosophy in itself could literally drive a narrative and shape a plot around it.

Do you believe in writer’s block?


As in do I think other people get it? Yeah, I know its quite a common thing for a lot of writers to get. George R.R. Martin had it for years while trying to get The Winds of Winter done.
I’ve never really had it myself because of the way I write. I know what I’m going to write before I write it. If I ever find myself getting stuck for whatever reason then I get up, walk away and return at a later date and continue. I’ve never really had much of an issue with it except for the odd day where I wanted to write, but it just wasn’t happening.

You’ve recently released your own full-length novel, Devil’s Eye.  What kind of research went into writing it?


Despite the fact it’s a historical novel set in the late 1600’s not as much as you would think. I’ve always been an avid reader and have loved history since the 4th grade. I’ve loved pirates specifically since I was four years old, so I’d already read quite a lot about them and the era. At least enough to write the story convincingly. The only real research I did was learning about different names for parts of the ship, different types of ships there were, what sets them apart and making sure I had them all right.

What was the hardest scene to write?


It really depends, different things can be tricky for various reasons. For example battles and combat scenes were tricky in the sense that a lot of the same sort of stuff happens over and over again, but you’ve got to try to find different ways to express it so it doesn’t grow stale and get boring. How do you describe ships firing their cannons at each other six times without it getting dull?
But the part I really struggled with was some of the dialogue scenes between Christine, a young aristocratic French woman and the pirates. It was difficult to try to have them interact with meaningful discourse that was believable. I wanted to get a social criticism going of different sides of the social scale and their perspectives on the world, which was very difficult. Reading it back you can tell I struggled with it as it didn’t really come off as intended, but it is what it is.

What did you edit out?
To be honest I can’t really remember much of what I cut out, but there was a decent amount of it. The final version before I began editing it ended up being 150,000 words long and I ended up cutting about 15,000 from it. A lot of it came from just deleting unnecessary words, tightening up sentences and rewrites here and there. I trimmed a few scenes, but I don’t recall anything specific. It’s stuff I chose to delete because it was inferior, and I tend to not focus on the crap.

How can your fans best support you? 

This may sound cliché, but its true, buy my work, read it. The best way to support someone is to take an interest in their work by investing your time, money and energy into it. You never know you might just surprise yourself and end up really enjoying it.

If you’re interested in a good adventure story you can check out Devil’s Eye here at Smashwords (Also available on Amazon and Kobo): https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/986119