In Tribute To David Bowie: Talking About My Book “Playing God”

I remember January 10th, 2016, like it was yesterday… I remember what I was doing and where I was on the day when I heard that David Bowie had died… and I remember what I did next: I wrote a poem. I wrote a poem for David Bowie called “Always The Starman”, because I wanted to pay tribute to him, to who he was, and to what he and his music meant to so many people from all around the world. Then, not long after, I was inspired to write a short story that was not about David Bowie per se but his spirit definitely influenced it, my story “The Man in Black”; and following on from my short story I would go on to write six more short stories once again influenced by the spirit of David Bowie, which I would go on to collect together and have published in my short story collection “Playing God”. The original 2018 paperback version of “Playing God” had this image of David Bowie on the cover which I drew against a starry backdrop, and the 2024 hardback version featured a cover which was inspired by a sketch of David Bowie which was already within my book – but I gave it a fresh twist of colour and detail. Anyway, suffice to say, if it weren’t for David Bowie then I don’t know who I would be right now, because David Bowie has inspired me and he has influenced me for years in one way or another. I am so grateful for the spirit and the music of David Bowie which has visited me and inspired me so many times over the years, and I know that I am not the only one who feels that way. Rest in peace, David Bowie. Thank you, Starman. ⭐ 🖤

– Mark

Bowie” by Annatomix

A Journey Through Poetry #40: Tales of Wonder Lands

This episode is a part of Mark’s “A Journey Through Poetry” – a personal reflection of his life as a poet, a writer, and an author – in which he recites a different poem from every one of his poetry collections. In this episode Mark recites his poem ‘Tales of Wonder Lands’, from his poetry collection The Dreamer and The Dream, and he gives some insight and some context into why he was inspired to write this poem in particular.

My Poem “The Wolf Moon” (2020)

My Poem “The Wolf Moon” which I wrote in 2020 – which was published in my poetry collection ‘The Rambler’, originally published in paperback in 2020 and republished in hardback in 2024.

My book ‘The Shadow of The Wolf’ – Out February 2

In this episode, Mark talks about his upcoming book ‘The Shadow of The Wolf’ – the fifth book in his The Wolf and The Vampire book series, which focuses on the mother, daughter, wife, werewolf Olivia Hunter – which is due to be published February 2, 2026.

What’s it about?

Two Wolves Collide.

Sister and brother,
Olivia Hunter and Mark Mayweather –
separated from one another all their lives –
are once again drawn together;
however, their reunion does not unfold
as they hoped it would,
and as a result they find themselves
on opposite sides of a life and death struggle
that will expose who they are, what they are,
and what kind of a werewolf they both are.

And witness the reunification
and the reckoning of the relationship
of Olivia Hunter and Vega – The Vampire King.
Will their love survive the battle being fought
beneath The Shadow of The Wolf?

Preorder The Shadow of The Wolf from Amazon: https://amzn.eu/d/5p8DJJF

The Shadow of The Wolf – Out February 2

I am thrilled to finally announce that my new book, ‘The Shadow of The Wolf’ – the fifth book in my “The Wolf and The Vampire” book series, which focuses on the mother, daughter, wife, werewolf, Olivia Hunter – will be published February 2, 2026!

What’s it about?

Two Wolves Collide.

Sister and brother,
Olivia Hunter and Mark Mayweather –
separated from one another all their lives –
are once again drawn together;
however, their reunion does not unfold
as they hoped it would,
and as a result they find themselves
on opposite sides of a life and death struggle
that will expose who they are, what they are,
and what kind of a werewolf they both are.

And witness the reunification
and the reckoning of the relationship
of Olivia Hunter and Vega – The Vampire King.
Will their love survive the battle being fought
beneath The Shadow of The Wolf?

Preorder ‘The Shadow of The Wolf’ from Amazon: https://amzn.eu/d/5p8DJJF

My Poem “Count to Ten”

I was once a poet of a single poem…
I was once a dreamer of a dream…
I was once a rambler of fields of gold…
I was once a boy who loved, who laughed,
and who saw the world with an eternally optimistic eye…
I was once a believer in everything that I saw,
everything that I heard, and in everyone whom I met;
however, over time, I was struck
by multiple instances of unpredictability
that changed the course of my life forever…
I can still remember who I was and where I was
when so many of the things that happened
to me left their mark upon me…
I can can still remember writing that first verse,
that first step, that first gift of adoration and love
which was the spark of inspiration that I needed
to start the fire of creativity within me
that has only grown in size, heat, and ferocity,
as I have allowed myself to evolve as a writer
and as an author into whatever, whomever,
wherever I believe I have always been destined to be…
unlike some, I have never been afraid of words;
in fact, words are powerful and sacred to me
in ways that are sometimes hard to describe -
because words matter to me,
because words energise me,
because words feel so natural to me,
and whenever I write a collection of words,
especially poetry, I feel like I am writing something
that only I could write and something
that I do not require anyone but me to understand…
a sphere, a sound, a multiverse, a path, a story -
throughout each of my eras and experiences
as a poet and a writer, I have witnessed
change happen around me,
as well as change happen within me,
that has sometimes been challenging to face,
to overcome, and to experience;
however, I know that I have no choice
but to continue doing what I know I have to do:
to keep going, to keep dreaming, to keep writing,
to keep being fascinated by things and by people,
to keep my eyes, my ears, and my mind open -
because there are times when everyone
has to admit that things are different
from what and how they expected them to be,
and which is why it is always helpful in certain situations
to take a moment to look, to listen, to consider,
and then count to ten before making a decision
about what to do, where to go,
and about who they want to be
in the next phase of their future.