Confessions of my Past, Present and Future
by
Paul Flewitt
The Past
Who here (if you’re from the UK, that is) remembers the Brittania Music and Video Club?
This was a scheme that would send out catalogues of
records (remember those?) and videos that were recently released. One of my
earliest and most vivid memories was leafing through that catalogue with my
cousins. I couldn’t have been very old. The catalogue was split into sections;
western, romance, horror… This was the 80’s and the horror section was one that
I would return to, just to look at the pictures. One image that was branded
onto my memory was that of a mean looking dude with nails driven into his head.
That one image gave my little-boy nightmares, but it was an image that has
stuck with me for a long time. Is it strange that I now view the Hellpriest as one of my best friends?
But … I’m getting ahead of myself here (as writers are
often wont to do). The story really begins here…
Books and reading have always played a big part in my
life from such a young age that I can barely remember a time in my life when I
haven’t had a stack of books, waiting to be read.
My father, throughout my childhood was a hobby-writer,
penning short stories and poems whenever the mood took him. He was an avid
reader and had a large collection of books which I would routinely raid myself.
It’s my dad that can probably take responsibility for my writing, because he
would encourage me to imagine.
English was always my subject at school. I could read
books beyond my years from a very young age and grasped the many vagaries of
the English language with relative ease. Hardly surprising, given that there
were times in my childhood when we didn’t own a TV and a games console was but
a dream and fantasy for me. There were times when books were literally my only
form of entertainment.
The first books I remember as receiving for my own were a
box set of Beatrix Potter classics, bought by my parents for me. I have to say,
they all provided literally minutes of entertainment before I’d read them all,
but I return to them even now with my own children. I love the innocence of
them and the quite obvious life-lessons they provide. My personal favourite; Squirrel Nutkin, I could read over and
over… and have.
Another set of books that entered my life and never
really left were Enid Blyton’s Famous
Five series. I was enthralled from book one and lived the adventures as if
I were with them on Kirrin Island. My favourite was always Five Go to Smuggler’s Top, which is perhaps the darkest book in the
series and possibly informs my future tastes as both a reader and writer.
As I went into secondary school, I began to find my own
books and one was a certain book of children’s horror, the name of which I
can’t remember. However, it contained a story called Video Nasty; by Phillip Pullman which I read over and over. If
memory serves, it was about two boys who find a snuff film and decide to find
out the where’s and why-fore’s of what had gone on in the video. A rather dark
tale for a kid of eleven, but it gave me a real appetite for the dark matter
that I would devour with such appetite later.
Back to my dad again. He noticed that I was beginning to
read “older” books and stories, so he dug out his collection of fantasy. And
so, J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings
entered my life. I remember I was eleven and it took me several attempts to get
through the whole trilogy (because the bastard never told me I didn’t really
need to read all the appendices…) but when I did, it was with a sense of
achievement. I lived in Middle-Earth throughout my reading of the trilogy,
enraptured by the totality of creation which existed within those pages. Next I
read the Shannara Chronicles (Terry
Brooks) and the Chronicles of Thomas
Covenant (Stephen Donaldson) but it was always Lord of The Rings that took up a place within my young psyche. It’s
a book I often return to, along with The
Hobbit and the various Lays and poems. I’m looking forward to experiencing
them once again soon, this time through the eyes of my own children.
Later on in school and I discovered Stephen King. Skeleton Crew was the first King book
that I remember reading, given to me by a neighbour. I read it in one or two
days and felt instantly at home. I ate up all of his early works; Carrie, It, The Stand, The Shining… you know the ones. I was
hooked. But there was a catch. After several books, I noticed a formula
creeping into his work. Soon, I was falling out with King and looking for new
writers; darker writers. Herbert, Laymon, Koontz, Campbell, Masterton… all of
them were devoured in my search for something. I didn’t know what, but I felt I
was looking for something.
I found it when I was fourteen and a close family friend
thrust a very small book into my hands and just winked. I dived in as soon as
he’d left and didn’t come up for air for the rest of the day. The book was the
first volume of Books of Blood, by
Clive Barker, and I was lost. Here I’d found what I was groping in the dark
for. Here was a writer who unlocked doors in my mind that I’d had no idea were
closed until I read that book. Of course, I needed to read more so I tracked
down his works and read everything that I could. Imajica is probably my favourite of all of his works (although Great and Secret Show and Everville are certainly strong
competitors), melding fantasy and horror with such style that I was left
gasping. I’d found, finally, my touchstone author.
The Present
The present; that’s today, right?
I guess I should start by what was in my hands most
recently. I’m currently reading Matt Hickman’s Jeremy, a great little horror about an eleven-year-old kid which
I’m thoroughly enjoying.
Over the last few years I’ve been writing for a living,
which is something of a minefield, but it has huge benefits for a reader. One
thing is that it affords me the time and the opportunity to read more “new
writers.” I’ve had the pleasure of being among the first to read bits and
pieces from Michael Bray, Matt Shaw, Alex Laybourne and others … sometimes
before they go to print. It’s a hell of a privilege and one that I do not take
lightly. I’ve discovered some truly awesome writers, far too many to list here,
but I would certainly urge anyone reading this to delve into the indie market
and find those gems before they’re discovered.
There are a lot of us out here.
This aside, I’ve been reading a lot of stuff I missed
when I was growing up, or just never bothered to read because I was so immersed
in the darker writers. Most recently I delved into Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey,
followed by Dante’s Inferno. Soon,
I’ll be reading George R.R. Martin’s Song
of Ice and Fire series since I missed it when it was first released and
only recently succumbed to the Game of Thrones
fandom. I’ve also read the complete works of George Orwell, H.P. Lovecraft,
Edgar Allen Poe, H.G.Welles … all the stuff I probably should’ve read years
ago. It’s been quite a journey and one I’ve thoroughly enjoyed.
I’m also on a mission of broadening my tastes; so writers
like Mark Billingham, Ian Rankin and Bernard Cornwell have now found places on
my shelves. Some writers, like Agatha Christie, I dismissed out of hand when I
was a kid. Not so now. There is almost nothing that I won’t read. I learn something
from every book I delve into, whether it be good, bad or indifferent. It’s not
just about the learning curve for me, but it is a great bi-product of reading.
The Future
Ah, the future; that great unknowable sea that we all
fear to swim and yet all are doomed to drown in.
To guess what might happen to me in the future, I should
really address my most recent past. I have published several short stories
which appear in anthologies and also have my debut full-length work; Poor Jeffrey available on Amazon. The
last three years have been a huge learning curve, mistakes have been made and
amidst those mistakes, some small triumphs too. I’ve learned a hell of a lot
about the business of being a writer and only now do I feel armed to take this
thing forward.
Currently, I’m writing a piece for Steve Dillon’s Refuge Collection. At the same time, I’m
also penning a novella for Matt Shaw’s Black
Cover strand (something he challenged me to write last year and that I’ve
toyed with ever since, but never quite got right). Speaking of Matt Shaw; he is
currently working with me to negotiate the self-publishing market, which is
something I never felt qualified to attempt before. Matt is probably the most
helpful and supportive author in the indie market and I will not forget his
support for me as time marches inexorably on.
In the far-flung future? Who knows? I don’t rule anything
out. I foresee that I’ll be doing much the same as I currently do; which is
write stories that I would like to read, in the hope that people “out there”
agree with me. That’s what I do really, not trying to reinvent any wheels or on
a search for something “new,” just write the kinds of stories I want to read …
what greater ambition can there possibly be?
You can buy any of Paul’s books here.
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Thanks.
CONFESSIONS REVIEWS PAUL FLEWITT
Paul Flewitt was born and raised in Sheffield, Yorkshire where he still lives with his family. He is the father of two children and keeper of several beta reading demons.
Paul is a writer of horror and dark fantasy, and a former steel worker. He has contributed to several anthologies including OzHorrorCon's Book of the Tribes, his short story "Paradise Park" appears in the Thirteen vol 3 anthology.
Paul's debut novel Poor Jeffrey will be relaunched in April 2016.
Paul spends his time caring for his children and devotes much of his free time to writing his next works. He writes only for the thrill of scaring his readers in new and inventive ways.
And for more about Paul, visit his site or find him on social media:
Facebook – Twitter – Goodreads – Amazon Page
Facebook – Twitter – Goodreads – Amazon Page
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