Tag Archives: Simon Dillon

Spectre of Springwell Forest: Have you read it yet?

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Have you read Spectre of Springwell Forest yet? If you love a gripping supernatural mystery, why not give it a go?

Spectre promo 1

A nail-biting ghost story in the classic tradition of Susan Hill or MR James, the plot concerns Lily Parker, who, after moving to the sleepy village of Springwell, discovers in her attic an eerie painting depicting an abandoned railway tunnel amid a local forest.

When she learns the secretive villagers also have paintings of this image on walls in their homes, Lily begins to ask questions no-one is willing to answer. Then, after an uncanny encounter in the forest, a mysterious figure appears in the painting, emerging from the tunnel.

Every time Lily looks at the picture, the figure gets closer and closer. At the same time, Lily’s young daughter Olivia begins to exhibit increasingly strange, disturbing behaviour.

Spectre of Springwell Forest has had several great reviews. Here’s a sample from Amazon:

“A darkly intense and intriguing horror story full of mystery… Will have you on the edge of your seat all the way to the end.”

“A wonderful horror/thriller, which cannily interplays woo and rationality so that the reader can decide which explanation they favour. A creeping sense of unease starts almost immediately – even before you know what is to come you are shouting at Lily to leave well alone. Dillon writes excellently and believably as a 1st person female protagonist. The story is tightly written with little preamble which has a pleasingly sudden way of throwing you into this strange and disturbing village.”

“Carefully chosen words oozed from the text, creating a creepy feeling as the story went on. But the element of the novel that kept me turning the page was the suspenseful mystery and the attachment I felt to the mother protecting her child.”

“The story is slow-building and the spookiness develops in a subtle manner with an occasional BANG of fright. If you like subtle creepiness that builds as the story progresses, I’d recommend this. Good read for horror fans. Also good for those who enjoy sniffing out a mystery.”

“Spine-chilling, terrifying, absolutely gripping… a fantastic read, very well written.”

Spectre of Springwell Forest is available now and can be ordered here.

New release – The Irresistible Summons

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Exciting news! My next novel, The Irresistible Summons, is out on the 27th of July.

Published by Dragon Soul Press (who published my previous novel, Spectre of Springwell Forest), The Irresistible Summons is a gripping supernatural horror thriller that grabs from the very start and doesn’t let go.

The photos in this article tease a few locations from the novel – Wistman’s Wood on Dartmoor, a haunted office block on Canary Wharf, and eerie, abandoned London Underground tunnels.

Here’s the blurb from the back of the novel:

The nail-biting new novel from the author of Spectre of Springwell Forest…

Television producer Naomi Levinson makes documentaries debunking the supernatural.

When asked to film a promotional video for computer game company Persephone, she considers the task beneath her talents. But as production gets underway at the Persephone office block on London’s Canary Wharf, a mysterious disappearance, ghostly sightings, and lingering tragedy from Naomi’s past lead her to believe she might have stumbled into a genuine haunting.

As Naomi continues to investigate, past and present collide in a horrifying conspiracy. Cutting edge technology and ancient evil meet, leading to the discovery of a shocking and terrifying secret that could change the nature of life and death as we know it.

The Irresistible Summons is released on the 27th of July. Pre-orders will be available soon, and there will be a cover reveal within the next week or so. Watch this space.

Reflections on my earlier novels

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Folded Valley coverSomeone recently asked me whether I still liked my earlier, pre-traditional publisher novels. Another individual noted that they could see an improvement in my prose style between Children of the Folded Valley (self-published) and Spectre of Springwell Forest (traditionally published). These interactions made me curious. Would I still like my earlier novels? Could I see a marked improvement in my writing style?

After re-reading Children of the Folded Valley and The Birds Began to Sing (and I’m still working my way through other earlier works), the answer to the second question is yes. I can see how I have improved as a writer. That ought to be the case. With every book, I get more experienced, so with every book, I hope I improve.

The Birds Began to Sing_1600x2400_Front CoverI also must be honest and admit certain things in those earlier stories made me slightly cringe: words I overuse, needlessly passive sentences, sections of “telling” that ought to be “showing”, and so on. These days, such things would be picked up on by my wife (who has since taken a much more active role in assessing my work) as well as my editor. Despite this, I still like both novels, and judging by reviews, readers do too. Both remain rock-solid stories, and The Birds Began to Sing in particular has a twist ending I am very proud of.

All that said, I did take the opportunity to make a few tweaks to their respective manuscripts, so new versions purchased from now on will reflect these changes. However, I think both still stand as examples of where I was then as opposed to where I am now. Hopefully over the next few years, my writing will continue to improve.

Recent Reviews: First Love and Spectre of Springwell Forest

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I’ve had one or two very encouraging reviews on Amazon for my recent work. Firstly, there was this review for Papercut, my short story included in Dragon Soul Press’s romantic fantasy anthology First Love.

First-Love-Kindle“I had a fantastic time reading the anthology. My absolute favourite stories were A Season’s Time, Papercut, and The Rusalka of the Murashka. Mayhap I’m biased because I like stories with a folk and fairy tale twist, or it maybe that I love stories set in nature, or perhaps I simply loved the strong and surprisingly well fleshed out female characters in each story, and wanted them to get everything they wanted. But either way, my reading time was well spent with Shargorod’s little river, Chimney’s dreamscape and a nyad’s forest.”

Secondly, this lengthy rave review of Spectre of Springwell Forest proved particularly satisfying. It essentially told me I achieved everything I set out to achieve with this novel. Here is a slightly edited version:

SSF cover“A darkly intense and intriguing horror story full of mystery, Spectre of Springwell Forest… will have you on the edge of your seat all the way to the end. You won’t dare want to put this book down, as it will haunt you with the darkness that threatens a family, and that threatens to tear them apart in every way… Dark, intense, engaging, and truly gripping from beginning to end…

If you are a lover of horror novels, the supernatural, and don’t mind twisted endings then I think that this book will be a good fit for you. The damage that the family in this story suffers is truly believable. You would honestly think that this story could have happened to someone from the way that it is written so true to life. There are moments of where I normally would have been angry at characters for what they did, but this story felt so real and I loved it!

I am rating this book 5 out of 5 stars. There is nothing that I didn’t like about this story. It is twisted, creepy, dark, and mysterious and kept me engaged. The more I read the deeper I was pulled into the story. I loved the moments of where my jaw literally dropped in shock. I have to admit that I am one who enjoys books from time to time that gives you that less than happy ending, and this book does exactly that. A curse has been laid… and nothing will stop it. Enter Springwell Forest if you dare, but be prepared for the consequences.”

If you read and enjoy any of my stories, please leave a review on Amazon or Goodreads (or ideally both). Reviews on Amazon in particular really help. This isn’t because I require constant affirmation, but because reviews mean their algorithms show my work to more readers. As such, reviews are essential to the livelihood of small time or independent authors like yours truly. They don’t need to be essays. A simple “I liked it” is fine.

Thank you.

Title Announcement for my next novel (and other news)

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As well as promoting new releases Spectre of Springwell Forest and my short story Papercut (part of the First Love romantic fantasy anthology), I’ve made good use of the grim winter months writing another spooky mystery novel entitled (drumroll…) Phantom Audition.

St Johns Museum, Warwick

I struggled more than usual to find a title for this particular novel, even resorting to testing a few suggested titles on social media. But in the end, my closest friend suggested this title to me, and it stuck.

Phantom Audition revolves around Mia Yardley, a recently widowed bit-part actress grieving for her much more successful actor husband in his ancestral family mansion (like the one pictured above). Cryptic runes, a strange diary, a mysterious medium, and ghostly visions gradually lead to the unravelling of a sinister mystery. Is Mia being given a message from beyond the grave?

This novel sits more at the supernatural/psychological thriller end of my gothic thriller/horror spectrum, though there are still plenty of suspenseful, skin-crawling moments. I intend to beta test it very soon, and once that’s happened (and it’s been through various publisher hurdles), it should be available this October.

Before then I have another scary novel to unleash, called The Irresistible Summons. This is a haunted house story of a very different kind about which I will say no more at present, other than you can expect to have it in your hands in July.

In between those two releases, I might just release another short story. It all depends whether my somewhat offbeat submission to my publisher’s upcoming Coffins and Dragons anthology is accepted. Watch this space.

Spectre of Springwell Forest: Summary of Recent Articles

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SSF coverIf you haven’t yet picked up a copy of my ghost story mystery novel Spectre of Springwell Forest, why not give it a go? Here’s a one-stop shop with links to all the articles pertaining to this page-turning, spooky nail-biter.

Introduction to the novel

“Lily starts to make out a mysterious figure in the painting of the railway tunnel. As time passes, the eerie figure becomes more and more clearly defined, but Lily is disturbed to discover no-one can see it but her…”

Influences and Inspiration

“Two undoubted influences on the story are Susan Hill’s seminal The Woman in Black, and the shorts of ghost story par excellence author MR James…”

Trees, Tunnels and Toadstools

“I undertook research into hallucinogenic fungi for the novel (no, not that kind of “research”).”

Simple, Relatable Fears

“All great horror stories have, at their core, a simple and relatable fear which is then explored, exploited and exaggerated.”

Early reviews

A smattering of early review comments, including this one: “Spine-chilling, terrifying, absolutely gripping… a fantastic read, very well written.”

The Tangent Tree podcast interview

Samantha Stephen interviews me about Spectre of Springwell Forest and my writing in general. Listen on Spotify, iTunes, Podcast Addict or on the Tangent Tree website.

To order a paperback or e-book of Spectre of Springwell Forest click here (for the UK) and here (in the US).

Spectre of Springwell Forest – Initial Reviews

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Initial reviews for my ghost story mystery novel Spectre of Springwell Forest are starting to come in, and they are very positive so far.

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Here’s a sample from Amazon readers:

“A wonderful horror/thriller, which cannily interplays woo and rationality so that the reader can decide which explanation they favour. A creeping sense of unease starts almost immediately – even before you know what is to come you are shouting at Lily to leave well alone. Dillon writes excellently and believably as a 1st person female protagonist. The story is tightly written with little preamble which has a pleasingly sudden way of throwing you into this strange and disturbing village.”

“Carefully chosen words oozed from the text, creating a creepy feeling as the story went on. But the element of the novel that kept me turning the page was the suspenseful mystery and the attachment I felt to the mother protecting her child.”

“The story is slow-building and the spookiness develops in a subtle manner with an occasional BANG of fright. If you like subtle creepiness that builds as the story progresses, I’d recommend this. Good read for horror fans. Also good for those who enjoy sniffing out a mystery.”

“Spine-chilling, terrifying, absolutely gripping… a fantastic read, very well written.”

To order a paperback or e-book of Spectre of Springwell Forest click here (for the UK) and here (in the US).

First Love Author Interviews – All of them

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First-Love-KindleOver the last few days, I’ve been running interviews on this blog with all my fellow First Love authors, discussing their contributions to the eponymous romantic fantasy anthology from Dragon Soul Press.

My short story is entitled Papercut, and it concerns a lonely teenage boy living with his ultra-strict Jehovah’s Witness mother. One night a mysterious girl made entirely of paper appears in his dreams, taking him on a mysterious and magical journey that I won’t spoil here.

Whether you fancy reading about the dreamscapes of the religiously oppressed, or love stories involving forest nymphs, mages, selkies, Native American mythology, or, as one of my fellow writers pitched her story to me, “Bridget Jones meets Morgana Le Fay”, this is a must for those who like their romance with a fantastical twist.

For ease of reference, here are links to all of the afore-mentioned interviews (including a separate interview with yours truly):

Meg Boepple interview

Story: Message in a Bottle.

Story tease from the interview: “Boy meets girl on the beach. It’s instant attraction… but he’s already promised to wed the daughter of his king even though he’s never met the future bride… Meanwhile, the pretty girl looks at this handsome dude with a ring on his finger and assumes she’d never be in his league even if he were available… and just to add a twist, he’s pretty sure she’s a siren out to break his heart and destroy his life.”

Sofi Laporte interview

Story: Chestnut Woman

Story tease from the interview: “Imagine falling in love at first sight in a really mundane place: the crowded, stuffy metro. What would you do? My heroine, shy, introverted Pamela, can’t muster up the courage to make the first move. At home she runs into her superbly aggravating, gossiping neighbour, Mrs Schmid. Who is not at all what she appears to be. Mrs Schmid gives her three roasted chestnuts that will change Pamela’s life forever. Is she going to have a second chance with the mysterious, smiling stranger in the subway?”

Kathryn St John interview

Story: A Season’s Time

Story tease from the interview: “Whilst on a summer visit with his grandparents, a young man meets a strange young woman in a nearby forest. Over the course of the season, their feelings blossom into love, but there’s an obstacle looming in the distance that threatens to separate them. Is their love doomed from the start, or will they manage to find a way around their difficulties and remain together?”

Zoey Xolton interview

Story: Once in a Blue Moon

Story tease from the interview: “My story Once in a Blue Moon is about a girl called Faith. She is an orphan on the cusp of womanhood who comes face to face with her death, and salvation in the space of a single night, when she discovers vampyres not only exist, but rule over their small, Victorian harbour town!”

Melinda Kucsera interview

Story: Caught in a Glance

Story tease from the interview: “Ours was a friendship for the ages–an abused mage just trying to raise his younger brother and a gray-clad enigma who hides beneath a cloak and veil. (That’s me, Shade, your narrator for this interview.) We didn’t know it but the day Sarn and I met, we took the first step toward a perilous friendship that would unleash a demon and earn the ire of an angel. From the mines under Mount Eredren to the Gray Between life and death, follow the twisted paths friendship takes. Only one will survive when adoration turns to obsession. But not even death can sever some bonds.”

AR Johnston interview

Story: Twin Flames

Story tease from the interview: “Dragons, young love, and curses that need to be broken. Will fate tear them apart or will love be enough to keep them together?”

AM Cummins interview

Story: Savage

Story tease from the interview: “My story is a dramatic recreation of a family legend that was told to me by my grandfather. He was proud of his Native American heritage.”

Edeline Wrigh interview

Story: Of Seals and Storms

Story tease from the interview: “When a storm threatens the lives of several local fishermen, Elizabeth’s best friend – a selkie and the girl she’s in love with – comes up with a plan to save them. But there’s one little caveat: she has to return to the ocean for the rest of eternity. Assuming they can find the skin her father hid from her before he drowns, of course. Of Seals and Storms is a love story about hard decisions, sacrifices, and trusting fate.”

DS Durden interview

Story: Lonely Oni

Story tease from the interview: “An exiled woman in a futuristic city finds hope and love where she never expected.”

AD Carter interview

Story: A Forbidden Union

Story tease from the interview: “The story is about a young prince name Zander who sees a woman and instantly falls in love with her, but her fate is sealed. Now Zander must make a decision that could very well change the course of history for his kingdom as well as himself.”

Galina Trefil interview

Story: The Rusalka of the Murashka

Story tease from the interview: “The murder of an innocent spawns a seductive creature which stalks a Ukrainian village for centuries.”

Simon Dillon interview

Story: Papercut

Story tease: See earlier in this article.

First Love is out now, as a paperback or e-book, here (in the UK) or here (in the US).

First Love: Out Now!

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It’s finally here! First Love, the romantic fantasy anthology from Dragon Soul Press, is out now. This anthology features my short story Papercut.

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Those of you who normally give me a wide berth because of my horror writing needn’t be put off this time. Papercut is a poignant, heartfelt love story about a lonely teenage boy living with his ultra-strict Jehovah’s Witness mother. In his dreams, he is visited by a mysterious girl made entirely of paper, leading to a fantastical journey into… You’ll have to read the story to find out.

Also, don’t forget to join me today for the Facebook online launch of First Love. The event begins at 11am Eastern time (4pm UK time), and lasts for a whopping six hours, with each author in the anthology taking a 30 minute slot. My slot is at 12:30pm Eastern time (5:30pm UK time). Join me for a Q&A, games, giveaways and more by going to this link at the above time.

To get your copy of First Love click here (in the UK) and here (in the US).

First Love: Out Tomorrow

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First-Love-KindleIt’s almost here! First Love, the romantic fantasy anthology from Dragon Soul Press, is out tomorrow. My short story Papercut is a part of this anthology. It concerns a lonely teenage boy living with his ultra-strict Jehovah’s Witness mother, who keeps being visited in his dreams by a mysterious girl made entirely of paper.

Also tomorrow, you are all invited to the Facebook online launch of First Love. The event begins at 11am Eastern time (4pm UK time), and lasts for a whopping six hours, with each author in the anthology taking a 30 minute slot. My slot is at 12:30pm Eastern time (5:30pm UK time). Join me for a Q&A, games, giveaways and more by going to this link at the above time.

First Love also features stories from a bunch of other hugely talented authors. Whether you fancy reading about the dreamscapes of the religiously oppressed, or love stories involving forest nymphs, mages, selkies, Native American mythology, or, as one of my fellow writers pitched her story to me, “Bridget Jones meets Morgana Le Fay”, this is a must for those who like their romance with a fantastical twist.

To pre-order on Amazon Kindle or to get paperbacks in the UK click here.

To pre-order on Amazon Kindle or to get paperbacks in the US click here.