Dave Higgins's Blog, page 3

Taking the Proverbial

One of the online poetry groups I’m in posted a line prompt based on the Bible’s Book of Proverbs Chapter 18 Verse 24—but in a translation that was rather different from those I’d encountered before. So, in the spirit of difference, I decided to experiment with a new form and chose a rondeau. There are … Continue reading Taking the Proverbial

Jungle Scandals, ed. J. Manfred Weichsel

Weichsel gathers stories that do not shy from graphic sex and violence but realise that plot and characterisation aren’t something to just be cast aside like a blouse before getting to the main action. This anthology contains twelve short stories united by being set in a jungle and not confining themselves to socially polite themes … Continue reading Jungle Scandals, ed. J. Manfred Weichsel

Jungle Scandals, ed. J. Manfred Weischel

Weischel gathers stories that do not shy from graphic sex and violence but realise that plot and characterisation aren’t something to just be cast aside like a blouse before getting to the main action. This anthology contains twelve short stories united by being set in a jungle and not confining themselves to socially polite themes … Continue reading Jungle Scandals, ed. J. Manfred Weischel

Bad English the III: The Mostly True Tales of a Son of a Brit by JM Davis

Davis reframes classic tropes of a con artist being caught by their own con and the absurdity of social status through the lens of a mixed-race US teen in the 1980’s, creating an engagingly modern satire. Grieving the death of his mother, angry at his father for moving them to a different area almost immediately … Continue reading Bad English the III: The Mostly True Tales of a Son of a Brit by JM Davis

The Cats of Innsmouth

They laughed at Lovecraft when he warned of men turning into Deep Ones, claiming evolution and mutation happen over generations not within a single lifetime. But nature—not the nature that can be observed and measured by scientists but the true nature that continues without a care for the human belief in patterns—does not laugh; or … Continue reading The Cats of Innsmouth

Lullabies for Suffering: Tales of Addiction Horror, ed. Mark Matthews

Matthews gathers tales of people already fighting past traumas who encounter new horror, displaying both the true damage of succumbing to addiction and that the real world can be just as terrible. This anthology collects three novellas and three short stories, each featuring addiction as a central plot thread. ‘Sometimes They See Me’ by Kealan … Continue reading Lullabies for Suffering: Tales of Addiction Horror, ed. Mark Matthews

Memory Hovel

I hope you are all enjoying the benefits of the annual Herostratic Rite. And that you have no idea what I mean. It is said that the sheen of the basalt pillars is exquisite, the subtle curve of their surface reflecting back the image of a world that does not contain… Which is where we … Continue reading Memory Hovel

Learning Through Play

I was intersected by multiple things recently, which emerged as a poem: Learning Through Play after Philip Larkin They try their best, your mum and dad. It’s bigger things that fuck it up. Like starting out from what they had And getting extra in your cup. Some cousins told to wait their turn By siblings … Continue reading Learning Through Play

Slaves to the Rhythm: Three Supernatural Stories by William Meikle

Meikle crafts three short tales of archetypally British horror, creating a collection that evokes Hammer House of Horror and classic BBC series. This book collects three short stories, each featuring the use of music to connect with the dead. ‘The Fortinghall Yew’. An army officer visiting his friend wrestles with a code that only appears … Continue reading Slaves to the Rhythm: Three Supernatural Stories by William Meikle

Lots of Places Have a West

There’s this guy who doesn’t work down our— There’s this guy who doesn’t want to make the warnings— There’s a seething distaste at certain things and my mind reacts to that with wry allusions. And there’s joy in the world. So, there’s a guy I know who likes making mathy outsidish rock music and likes … Continue reading Lots of Places Have a West