Mandrake & Money Tree

Sunday morning is my favourite time for indoor gardening. Today, I thought I'd share pics of my 4-year old Mandrake coming back to life and my new Crassula ovata project:

Seth's Christmas Ghost Story Collection

I promised a few entries ago that I would do another Seth's Christmas Ghost Stories book post and here it is. As of today, there appears to be 30 books already published in the series, so I have a lot of catching up to do with my collection, which, as of today, looks like this:

As I hope to collect the full series eventually, I have created a webpage to add more info about the series and detail my growing collection. You can find it both here and on my Library page.

Knock Knock

I had a couple of hours spare today and taking advantage of a creative urge, I opened up my Scribe 2 and turned my mind to the next Guy N Smith zine. Unlike the 1st issue, which was a solo effort, my work on the 2nd issue is going to be more of a compiler and design role. That said, I had promised to add something of my own to the project, and a promise is a promise.

I had thought of getting out my box of Lego and recreating a few more GNS Lego book cover recreations. But I haven't been in the mood to work with them for many a moon now. However, over the last few weeks a single scene of a ghost story has been running through my mind. And as I sat there today, ready to kill a couple of hours, I realised I could deal with two birds at the same time if I wrote up this story.

As regular followers of my socials, currently confined to this blog and Bluesky, I plan on writing a series of ghost stories - a genre I particularly favour but have never attempted before. I also need to produce content for the next GNS zine. The ghostly scene that had been haunting my mind of late ia based on a door. Whilst this door was an ordinary front door in my musings, I suddenly realised I could easily change it to a particular door owned by my favourite author, the great scribbler himself. I had seen pictures of it on a GNS forum, and had read a short story Guy himself had written about it. And then, as if by some alchemical mind-magic, my fingers began to scratch the surface of my Scribe 2, and before I knew it I had a good few pages of the short story written. I am rather pleased with it too. 🙂

 

Misty Morning

Mist and Monstrose

I was in a bit of a miserable mood today, sulking that I was trapped in work on a really gloomy and misty day, which I knew would be very photogenic. It was probably a visual hangover from last night's Nosferatu film and I needed to fund some visual feasts of my own.

Mrs E was starving though, having worked through her lunch break and so a trip to our local chippie was needed. And en route back to the this little misty scene caught my eye and satied my need for a pic of the mist: 🙂

Had a wee bit of energy in the evening and did a much needed repotting of my root-bound Trichocereus bridgesii (monstrose long-form) cactus. The prize cactus looks like ir has had a tough winter and is desperate for warmth and a nice, long drink...

Monday - dawn to dusk

A cold morning's drive into work this morning. But, boy, what a beautiful sunrise! 

Finished work early to catch the early evening showing of the new Nosferatu movie...

And, boy (again), I was glad I'd made the effort to catch it at the cinema. For not only was it a ponderous movie, a visual and story-telling masterpiece that  must surely rank as the finest Dracula adaptation to date, but I also to to see this glowing cloud at the carpark afterwards.

Fossil Topsoil

 

Fossil ammonites used as a shingle topping on my 30 year old Crassula ovata, which I grew from a single leaf cutting.

Pwscat Chilling in the Morning Sunshine

 

Polar Christmas Reading

It has been a recent tradition of mine these past few Christmas' to read a vintage ghost story published in Seth's illustrated range of books. Last month's title I chose to read was The Captain of the Polestar by Arthur Conan Doyle. 

Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Captain of the Polestar (1883) presents a chilling ghost story set against the backdrop of the desolate Arctic. The narrative follows John McAlister Ray, a ship's doctor aboard the Polestar, as he documents the unsettling experiences surrounding Captain Craigie. Through Ray's journal entries, the tale unfolds the psychological turmoil and supernatural disturbances that plague the captain, whose fixation on ghostly visions merges madness with the uncanny. 

Reading the story reminded me of another tale I read a few years back - the more modern and longer Dark Matter (2010) by Michelle Paver, which also navigates themes of isolation and fear within an Arctic setting. In this later book, the protagonist, Jack Miller, part of a doomed scientific mission, faces spectral occurrences as the endless Arctic night envelops him. Despite the gap of over a hundred years between the two works, both stories resonate with thematic parallels, and generate an atmosphere of dread stemming from human vulnerability in unforgiving environments.

Both narratives effectively employ the Arctic landscape as a backdrop for psychological and supernatural horror. In Doyle's The Captain of the Polestar, the frozen sea becomes an unforgiving force, mirroring Craigie’s troubled mind. Conversely, Paver's Dark Matter delves into the suffocating isolation of the Arctic, using the perpetual darkness to symbolize the encroaching fears of the unknown. While Doyle's writing is richly evocative, Paver creates a more visceral experience, vividly illustrating the relentless cold and silence that amplify the tension.

At the heart of both stories lies the fragile human psyche under extreme duress. Captain Craigie’s visions and unstable behaviour in The Captain of the Polestar echo Jack’s growing paranoia in Dark Matter. However, while Doyle leaves the supernatural elements open to interpretation—raising questions about the reality of the apparitions—Paver confirms the existence of sinister forces. This difference positions Doyle’s tale as a more enigmatic reflection of Victorian doubt, whereas Paver presents a contemporary psychological horror grounded in tangible threats.

In Doyle’s narrative, the brevity of the story shapes its characters; Captain Craigie remains an enigmatic figure, and Ray largely serves as an observer. In contrast, Paver’s Dark Matter provides a more profound emotional connection to Jack, whose personal fears and ambitions enrich his character's descent into madness. Paver, in developing her story to novel length, also creates a more robust cast of supporting characters, intensifying the story's tragic stakes.

Doyle’s prose, reflective of the Victorian era, possesses an elegance that may seem restrained by modern standards, favouring suggestion and ambience over explicit horror. In contrast, Paver's writing employs contemporary storytelling techniques, intertwining psychological tension with vivid sensory descriptions that immerse the reader in the protagonist's dread and isolation. The Captain of the Polestar stands as a notable example of Victorian ghost literature, infused with mystery and understated terror, while Dark Matter offers a more immediate and visceral horror experience, highlighting psychological intricacies and the unyielding threat posed by its Arctic setting. Readers drawn to ambiguous, atmospheric ghost stories may find resonance in Doyle’s work, whereas those in search of a harrowing, immersive narrative may gravitate towards Paver’s contemporary interpretation. Both tales, however, masterfully illustrate the lasting impact of the Arctic as a canvas for examining human vulnerability amidst extreme conditions. 

I would highly recommend both tales to ghost story enthusiasts.  And, given their chilly settings, the pair make for a fantastic supernatural Christmas reading treat.

And whilst Doyle's short story can be easily found in numerous anthologies, I do suggest you find the version I read over Christmas, if only for the small book's cool design, and Seth's cool minimalist yet highly evocative illustrations.

Watch this space for more info on Seth's range of Christmas ghost stories...

Sleeping Stuart Little

Goodbye Crimbo

 Goodbye Crimbo decorations. For another year...

Up Early

Up early to continue work on my final draft of Familiar...

 

Back to work

Car still bust so bus for me this morning. And the icy pavements were not as kind as the bustop.

Following on from yesterday's roof-top timelapse video, here are 24 hours overlooking Swansea presented in just 6 minutes. Watch out for those rain clouds! 

Forget the Fireworks

Forget the fireworks displays that took place today to see in the new year. The best display was saved for the early evening when a rather fantastic burst of the Northern Lights illuminated the Swansea skies. Thanks to a really excellent piece of kit Mrs E got from Santa, which she set up on the roof outside our attic window, we didn't even need to leave the house to be entertained with this appearance:

Here are a couple of pics of it from my phone camera too:

Thanks to Mrs  E's technical skills, we can even present this phantasmagorical timelapse of the whole display for your delectation. Happy New Year!

New Year's Plans for 2025

Okay, here are my plans for 2025. No strict deadlines as I want as much of a stress free year as I am able to manifest.

Publishing Targets: 

Familiar should be published within the first half of the year. As I have already noted in my blog, this will be my 9th and final novel. I will still be writing, but will be sticking to more short-form work, such as guidebooks. 

Fiction-wise, I will be restricting myself to short stories for a future compilation of Christmas ghost stories. Going forward, I think one new addition to this project a year will keep my creative urges sufficiently fed. I am currently undecided on when the writing of these ghost stories will commence this. The Christmas of 2026 will probably see the first one see light of day, given the the heavy stack of projects I have already piled up for 2025. 

My x4 Explore Gower titles will each get updated this next year for their second editions.

Whilst on the topic of updates, both Avalon and my Guy N Smith zine will get significant updates. Probable publishing dates for these latter x2 projects is mid 2025. 

I will also be publishing a 2nd Guy N Smith zine in May/June next year. I'm not sure what I will be personally contributing to the book, other than collating its content. We'll see. The project will only get released though if enough contributors come forward and if the combined effort will make Guy's family proud of what he inspired in others. His memory deserves our best efforts. For any Guy fans reading this, please send me your contributions as early as you can over the next month or two. 

Oh, and look out for a new professional website to advertise my wares sometime soon... 

Pastimes: 

 

As my regular blog and socials readers will already know, I have a new hobby lined up for next year - one specifically designed to get me out into the world a little more - Magnet Fishing. For anyone not aware of how exciting this hobby can be, check out this guy's magnetic adventures on Youtube - bombs, bikes, safes, knives, guns, he has dragged them all from the water, and more. I wonder what my magnet will dredge from the waters during 2025. Folk following my blog and socials can to keep up-to-date on the adventures to come. 

Holidays: 

Finally, because the major fire that crashed our lives in early 2024, which took away the lovely Sooshcat from our company, we had to cancel all of our holiday plans this past year. They are now firmly back on the cards now, with a May Day visit to the legendary Glastonbury, a Christmas stay in Japan, as well as a visit to Norwich to spend more precious time with my lovely first-born, whose company I still constantly crave. See you soon Ambikin XXXX And that's kind of that. Let's just see how the year unfurls. But please, pretty please, make it better than 2024!