Category: Articles

Articles

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Be Brave Under Threat: Wise Words from Margaret Atwood, 2025 Winner of the British Book Awards’ Freedom to Publish Award

Be Brave Under Threat: Wise Words from Margaret Atwood, 2025 Winner of the British Book Awards’ Freedom to Publish Award

 

By Melody E. McIntyre

 

As someone who grew up in Canada, I am, of course, familiar with Margaret Atwood. As one of Canada’s most prominent, well-known writers, Atwood has published 18 novels, 18 books of poetry, 11 works of non-fiction, plus multiple children’s books, short story collections, and other works. Her best known work is The Handmaid’s Tale, which has been adapted into a movie and a television show that just wrapped its final season in May 2025. Its sequel, The Testaments, released in 2019, won the Booker Prize. Throughout her career, Atwood has won many awards, including the Arthur C. Clarke Award, the Governor General’s Award, and, most recently, the Freedom to Publish Award during the 2025 British Book Awards on May 12, 2025. The British Book Awards are administered by the British trade magazine, The Bookseller, and have been handed out since 1990.

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Writing Prompt Wednesdays: When Clowns Laugh

Writing Prompt Wednesdays: When Clowns Laugh

Welcome to “Writing Prompt Wednesdays,” a haven where your imagination can roam free in the realms of speculative fiction. As we embark on this weekly journey, it’s thrilling to think about the untold stories waiting to be penned in the domains of horror, science fiction, and fantasy. Whether you’re a seasoned author or a budding wordsmith, these prompts are your gateway to unexplored worlds and untapped potentials.

Every Wednesday, we’ll serve up a fresh, thought-provoking prompt designed to ignite your creative spark and challenge your storytelling prowess. Think of these prompts as a key, unlocking the doors to uncharted territories where your creativity is the only limit. From eerie, shadow-laden corridors of Gothic horror to the farthest reaches of interstellar space, and the mystical depths of high fantasy, our prompts are a kaleidoscope of possibilities.

Remember, there’s no right or wrong way to approach these prompts. They are mere stepping stones, guiding you towards the vast landscapes of your imagination. Use them to break free from writer’s block, to experiment with new ideas, or simply as a fun exercise to keep your writing skills sharp.

This week’s writing prompt:

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Articles / Guest Post

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Why You Can’t Write Fear Without Feeling It First

Why You Can’t Write Fear Without Feeling It First

by: J.M. Shaw

Every story requires a different creative mindset. I can’t write a sombre narrative if I’m feeling lighthearted and carefree, nor can I write a tranquil scene if I’m weighed down by inner turmoil. Creativity isn’t something that can be forced—it’s inextricably connected to one’s emotional state. If writing is a process powered by imagination, then one’s mood is the fuel that keeps the imaginative fire burning. And while our feelings can’t always be controlled, they can certainly be influenced.

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The Science of Scare: Understanding Psychological Triggers in Horror

The Science of Scare: Understanding Psychological Triggers in Horror

Fear is one of the most powerful human emotions. It’s instinctive, primal, and deeply rooted in the brain. That’s why horror stories, when done right, can be so effective: they tap directly into that raw emotion, and most importantly, people actually like to be scared by a good story.

 

But what exactly makes horror scary? It’s not just blood, monsters, or things jumping out from the dark. The best horror works because it targets something deeper: psychological triggers that humans are wired to respond to. Of course, you can scare someone with an ugly monster, but to really tap into a deeply-rooted fear of something really disturbing requires some more profound knowledge.

 

For writers, understanding these natural triggers is the key to crafting stories that don’t just shock, but truly unsettle.

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Articles / For Readers

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Indie Bookshelf Releases 06/06/2025

Got a book to launch, an event to promote, a kickstarter or seeking extra work/support as a result of being hit economically by life in general?

Get in touch and we’ll promote you here. The post is prepared each Tuesday for publication on Friday. Contact us via Horror Tree’s contact address or connect via Twitter or Facebook.

Click on the book covers for more information. Remember to scroll down to the bottom of the page – there’s all sorts lurking in the deep.

 

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Articles / Reviews

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Epeolatry Book Review: The Amusement Park by Jeff Whitehead and Ryan Carr

Disclosure:

Our reviews may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something through the links in this article we may receive a small commission or referral fee. This happens without any additional cost to you.

Title: The Amusement Park
Author: Jeff Whitehead
Artist: Ryan Carr
Genre: Horror Graphic Novel
Publisher: Storm King Comics
Publication date: 10th June, 2025

Synopsis: Two titans of horror come together for the first time ever, in John Carpenter Presents George A. Romero’s The Amusement Park, the graphic novel adaptation of George Romero’s lost 1973 film of the same name, presented by John Carpenter and Sandy King’s Storm King Comics.

William Lincoln, an impatient businessman in his 20s, casually asks a small-town coffee shop barista about a carousel horse atop its roof. Within earshot, an elderly man asks William if he would like to learn about the history of the sprawling amusement park that once stood on that spot, the carousel horse the final reminder of its existence. They settle into a conversation that immediately disturbs young William. It is the story of an elderly man hoping to experience the amusement park one last time to recapture childhood memories, to relish the rapidly fleeting remaining moments.

Instead of pleasant memories, each attraction becomes a surreal microcosm of aging and its inherent challenges as bodies and minds begin to break down. The elderly man is abused, pushed in a seemingly endless throng of elderly people through attractions that mimic the final stages of life. Finally, he winds up right back where he started, battered both mentally and physically. Instead of being able to leave the park, he realizes he is trapped in a loop, forced to relive the harrowing experience over and over. At the end of the elderly man’s tale, William is puzzled, concerned, and annoyed, irritated to have had his time wasted on such a story.

William quickly realizes that not everything in the coffee shop is as it seems. The elderly man with whom young William has been conversing shares his name. It is William Lincoln. Perplexed and scared now, young William attempts to leave, fleeing through the coffee shop’s front door. When the door closes behind him, William is back in the amusement park, transformed again into his elderly self, still trapped in the loop, forced to reconcile the reality of aging and ultimately, his own mortality.

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Articles / Interviews

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Going Deep with Julie Hiner

An Interview With Author Julie Hiner

I recently chatted with Julie Hiner, author of Fear of the Deep, about all things monstrous and watery. From the blurb for Fear of the Deep:

But the sea has a way of claiming what it wants. The discovery of a woman’s body, marked by peculiar and familiar bite marks, washes up on her beach, forcing Bailey to confront the fears she’s been running from. Deep beneath the waves, something sinister lurks, a nightmare born from genetic engineering gone awry. As Bailey delves deeper into the mystery, she finds herself entangled in a web of horror and science fiction, where sea creatures of the darkest depths become terrifyingly real.

With each tide, the line between reality and nightmare blurs, pulling Bailey into a psychological maelstrom. Her journey is not just a battle against the horrors emerging from the deep but a fight to overcome the demons within herself.

Julie Hiner spent her childhood lost in the pages of books. The only thing that took precedence was her Walkman. Julie remains a hardcore ’80s rocker at heart.

Julie worked as a computer scientist, specializing in network simulation. While traveling, she published an inspirational book, her own story of facing fear and anxiety by cycling up mountains.

She now writes a unique blend of heavy metal and horror, weaving both psychological suspense and various genres of rock and metal into a tapestry of musically infused storytelling. She has published an ’80s metal murder detective vs serial killer series, a ’90s nostalgic serial killer novella, a death metal demon possession novella, and co-curated a horror anthology. Several of Julie’s horror short stories have been published in anthologies. Torrid Waters, a pulp and extreme horror imprint of Crystal Lake Publishing, published Julie’s deep sea horror novella on Valentines Day 2025.

You can find her at KillersAndDemons.com serving up toxic cocktails of metal and murder.

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Articles

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Writing Prompt Wednesdays: Sleep-Knitting

Writing Prompt Wednesdays: Sleep-Knitting

Welcome to “Writing Prompt Wednesdays,” a haven where your imagination can roam free in the realms of speculative fiction. As we embark on this weekly journey, it’s thrilling to think about the untold stories waiting to be penned in the domains of horror, science fiction, and fantasy. Whether you’re a seasoned author or a budding wordsmith, these prompts are your gateway to unexplored worlds and untapped potentials.

Every Wednesday, we’ll serve up a fresh, thought-provoking prompt designed to ignite your creative spark and challenge your storytelling prowess. Think of these prompts as a key, unlocking the doors to uncharted territories where your creativity is the only limit. From eerie, shadow-laden corridors of Gothic horror to the farthest reaches of interstellar space, and the mystical depths of high fantasy, our prompts are a kaleidoscope of possibilities.

Remember, there’s no right or wrong way to approach these prompts. They are mere stepping stones, guiding you towards the vast landscapes of your imagination. Use them to break free from writer’s block, to experiment with new ideas, or simply as a fun exercise to keep your writing skills sharp.

This week’s writing prompt:

(more…)