In this episode, Mark talks about collecting together his books and stories ‘The Wolf in Me‘ (originally published in 2017), ‘The Wolf in You‘ (originally published in 2019), and ‘The Wolf in Us‘ (originally published in 2022) into one brand new hardcover volume and edition: ‘The Wolf and The Vampire‘ – which is now available to buy on Amazon: https://amzn.eu/d/285pz9C
Mark also talks about the republishing of his book ‘Vega – The Vampire King‘ – the origin story of “The Vampire King”, who was first introduced in ‘The Wolf in You‘ – which serves as a parallel story to the events of that story as told from the perspective of Vega himself – which is also available to buy from Amazon: https://amzn.eu/d/06Yx7aS
Get your copy of my book ‘The Wolf and The Vampire’ – the new collection of my books ‘The Wolf in Me’ (originally published in 2017), ‘The Wolf in You’ (originally published in 2020), and ‘The Wolf in Us’ (originally published in 2022).
When I first began writing ‘The Wolf in You’, I started to imagine that the story that I was telling – starting from ‘The Wolf in Me’ – felt like it could one day become a trilogy of books; however, the more that I wrote, it became clear that I was creating a world of stories that I could expand upon in a variety of ways, and which would all be connected to each other and exist in the same continuity as one another: the supernatural world of werewolves, vampires, ghosts, gods, shape-shifters, and all the other interesting characters that populate many of the stories that I have written.
When I was given the opportunity to republish my books, when it came to republishing my books ‘The Wolf in Me’, ‘The Wolf in You’, and ‘The Wolf in Us’, I thought that this would be a golden opportunity to collect all three books of this trilogy of stories that I had written into one complete volume: ‘The Wolf and The Vampire’.
The books and the stories within ‘The Wolf and The Vampire’ are the tale of Olivia Hunter – a mother, a daughter, a teacher, a lover… a werewolf: the story of someone who has had to live through many different, and sometimes difficult, experiences throughout their life, but who has always overcome whatever, and whomever, they have had to face. This is also the chronicle of Vega – The Vampire King – and their love for Olivia Hunter, and what happened when two worlds collided and were forever intertwined with the destinies of The Wolf and The Vampire.
It gives me great pleasure to once again share the story of Olivia Hunter and Vega – The Vampire King – in this new 500-page hardcover collection, which allows anyone to read and experience the thrilling and epic love story of two supernatural individuals whose relationship and connection to one another would go on to have an impact upon the entire world.
You can get your copy of ‘The Wolf and The Vampire’ from Amazon now!
Get your copy of the new hardback version of my book ‘Playing God’!
‘Playing God’ is a book of “Seven stories. Seven perspectives. Seven experiences. Seven morality tales of one immortal Rebel, Hero, Friend, Fan, Father, Son, Playing God” – which was originally published in 2018.
This new hardback version of ‘Playing God’ features a new front-cover artwork, depicting the main protagonist and character of each of the seven stories – the enigmatic “Man in Black”, and sometimes “Man in White”.
The stories of ‘Playing God’, and the character of the powerful and mysterious “Man in Black” and his interactions with those he meets, are some of the most compelling and inspiring tales I have written, and I often think about them and what they personally mean to me.
And I also have to mention that ‘Playing God’, its stories, and the character of the “Man in Black”, is dedicated to, and was inspired by, the late, great, David Bowie.
You can get your copy of the new hardcover version of ‘Playing God’ from Amazon now!
My short-story and poetry collection ‘Too Close To The Sun’ is once again available to buy from Amazon in its new hardcover edition – but now with a brand new cover, and including a never before published short-story called ‘Nora’.
The stories and poems within ‘Too Close To The Sun’ represent a shift, as well as an experimentation phase, in my journey as a writer and an author. When it was first published in 2016, I knew that ‘Too Close to the Sun’, was somewhat of a new beginning and a new direction for me – and the stories and poems within are symbolic of what kind of writer and storyteller I have grown to become, and what kind of stories I am interested in telling.
“A sad story about the end of the line for a lonely ghost girl. The thrilling tale about the devilish gift of a psychic psychopathic psychotherapist. A word of warning about the wicked “Witch in The Well”. A ray of hope in form of a story about a New York City bartender who discovers that there is more to life, and to death, than they could ever have imagined. A vision of another universe where a vengeful Vampire King finds love, but who must also embrace his fate. The tale of a dragon and a hero – who both discover they are not who they think they are.
Short-stories and poems of strange, magical, and extraordinary other realities that exist on the other side of doors that lead to other worlds and possibilities that can be found when you venture too close to the sun.”
Get your copy of the brand new hardback version of ‘Too Close To The Sun’ on Amazon now! 😎
It is always great to be able to interact with a child... it is always fascinating listening and communicating with a child... it is always wonderful watching a child explore, discover, and play without being told that they are doing something right or they are doing something wrong in any way... it is always touching and telling when you see a child look into the eyes of those closest to them and you can feel - even from a distance - the love emanating from them by observing the smile upon their face.
Children love stories... Children will watch the same thing over and over again... Children are sensitive to more than even their parents might realize... Children have the most amazing superpower of them all: their unfiltered and seemingly infinite one of a kind imagination.
The mind of a child is a fertile garden where all forms of thoughts and ideas interact with one another without the barrier, or the fear, that what they believe is true does not make sense - because to them everything is as it appears to be... the more that a child is told and shown how much they are loved the more that they will keep within them the same unmistakable spark of innocence and tenderness to others that is always beautiful to see.
Introducing a child to new things can sometimes be harder to do than it might appear - because children, especially as they get older, start to develop their own individual personalities, perspectives, as well as likes and dislikes... what I think is one of the most wonderful things to see has to be watching parents and family members reading to their children, fueling the imagination of their children, while spending the best time there is with their children - whether while sitting in a garden with them on a sunny day; or while they are lying in bed, teetering on the edge of drifting off to sleep, and listening intently to the voice of their favourite storyteller, as they are told the tale of one of their favourite bedtime stories.
Simon Starling is a young man who just has no luck when it comes to relationships - and no matter what he does he always finds himself heartbroken. You would think that one day Simon's luck would change. Right? You would think that one day Simon would find "The One" for him? Well, one day, after breaking up with his girlfriend, something happens to Simon which leads him to visiting a magical place called "Reader's World" and be introduced to its enigmatic and mysterious custodian, "The Doorman", and from that moment Simon's life would never be the same again.
Chapter One – “Introduction”:
Chapter Two – “Mrs. Robinson”:
Chapter Three – “Reader’s World”:
Chapter Four – “Shrödinger”:
Chapter Five – “Raven”:
Chapter Six – “The Green Door”:
Chapter Seven – “The Cardinal”:
Chapter Eight – “The Dream”:
Chapter Nine – “Open”:
Chapter Ten – “The Break-through”:
Chapter Eleven – “The Red Queen”:
Chapter Twelve: “Deadlock”:
Chapter Thirteen: “Phoenix”:
Chapter Fourteen: “The Shadow Man”:
Chapter Fifteen: “The Dark Room”:
The Doorman (2024) – Chapter Sixteen: “Ouroboros”:
Get your copy of the hardcover version of The Doorman on Amazon now!
In this episode, Mark recites his poem “The World of My Stories” from his 2024 poetry collection ‘The Pathfinder’ – which is now available to buy in paperback and as an ebook from Amazon: https://amzn.eu/d/aXnSwxa and you can check out more of Mark’s poems at http://MarkThePoet.Me
In this episode, Mark talks about the “canon” and the continuity of connections that span and are interwoven throughout the stories of his books, and how he accidentally created his own interconnected world of characters. Mark discusses the importance of canon in his works as well as within other literary and television and film franchises.
In this episode, Mark reflects upon his literary journey from his first novel, ‘The Wolf In Me’ to one of his most recent books ‘The Wolf In You’ – essentially the beginning and the end of the main protagonist of the books of his literary world of stories: Olivia Hunter. Mark talks about and compares the experiences of writing a story that eventually becomes a book, which eventually continues into another story in another book, and how, over time, a share story universe can naturally come into being. Mark also talks about the equally valid and yet different experiences of reading a story by an author and listening to a story read by an author, and how rich and informative those experiences can be for readers, listeners, and authors also.
Mark The Poet 