A Fragile Thing and a Neurotic Woman

And no, I don’t mean me!

Once upon a time, my novel, A Fragile Thing, was a short story of 3000 words and appeared in the anthology, Gothic Tales of Terror, back in 2015. It’s title was “Leave” and centred on the unfortunate consequences of a Victorian mesmerist’s assumption of power.

The Victorian era was one which saw a growth in the fields of hypnotism, mesmerism and spiritualism. Areas which were often regarded as the work of quacks and charlatans and whose practitioners were sometimes seen as no more than entertainers of a fraudulent kind. It was, however, a field which some saw gave an answer to the neurotic and hysterical women who apparently inhabited the upper realms of society. Whenever I have researched the Victorian era (and I have studied it a lot), it is noticeable that only the more genteel and upper echelons seem to be affected in this manner. The working class women are struggling to just survive, caring for their families as well as working (oh yes, for the working class woman, they really did ‘have it all’ back then). But for those who were well off, were regarded as weak or somehow compromised because of their female nature, they were seen as needing to be ‘fixed’ and I, personally, regard this as part of the need of the husband or the father in such instances to control their child, wife, niece, mother. And if they couldn’t be ‘fixed’, quite often they were put away in some asylum or other. (I also think corsets are responsible for a lot of women’s ‘issues’ at the time, but that’s another topic.)

I came across one tale in particular, and it is his story which inspired “Leave” and A Fragile Thing and the subsequent development of the latter’s central character: Isaac Bercow.

Franz Neukomm, an Hungarian hypnotist, was attending a séance at the castle of Tódor Salamon. His twenty-two-year old daughter, Ella, had previously appeared with Neukomm and, under hypnosis, had apparently been able to solve events such as murder and theft.

On this particular occasion, however, Neukomm directed Ella’s soul to leave her body and travel a distance and enter the body of an ill man. This she did and related details of the man’s illness to the audience. But when she reported the probable outcome of the man’s disease, she collapsed and died.

An investigation was launched by the authorities to see if this was in fact a ‘death by hypnotism’. Neukomm was initially convicted of manslaughter but then cleared. She had died of heart failure which could have happened at any time. It was just an unfortunate coincidence.

A Fragile Thing

ISBN HB: 978-1-965546-27-7

ISBN PB: 978-1-965546-28-4

From Watertower Hill Publishing 17th March

March 2, 2026 0

World FantasyCon

This year, World FantasyCon took place in Brighton, UK. Wrexham to Brighton is over 250 miles, a bit of a trek, but one we decided to do because it gave me a chance to meet up with writers coming in from different parts of the globe. In particular, the wonderful Lee Murray – with whom I have been online friends for some years now – was arriving from New Zealand. But there were many people I wanted to see, whether for the first time or to renew acquaintance and, as is the nature of cons, many of these meet ups were fleeting in nature. Yet it reinforced connections and reminded me that writing is a ‘real’ thing, it is a proper profession and not the ‘hobby’ that so many outside the business seem to regard it.

Before I go any further, however, a huge thankyou to my lovely husband, Geraint. He always gets me to these things and is forever my moral support.

So, Brighton. Warmer than Wrexham most definitely but matching the latter in terms of wind! Almost home from home in that respect. Some brilliant wall art too – we discovered the Simpsons not far from the hotel. And the programme – so much to choose from and again, some clashes which made it very hard to decide which to attend.

From folklore to emotional wringers, the impact of AI to what makes British horror British, the panels were interesting and entertaining. I also made sure to attend a few book launches this time:

Alexandra Beaumont – Ballad of River Bones (Brigids Gate Press), who proved herself a fantastic singer. It was great to see these books in the flesh having had some involvement in their production.

On a side note, it was also lovely to fleetingly meet SJ Townend, author of Sick Girl Screams (Brigids Gate Press), another book I helped produce. Next time, we will talk properly!

The Slab Press – Hiding Under the Leaves, folk horror anthology. Features Lauren McMenemy’s debut story (which I beta read) and being a Horror Tree colleague, of course I supported. And got the book signed. And ate cake.

Other books were signed by Keith Rosson (Coffin Moon), Catherine Cavendish (The Stones of Landane), Lee Murray & Dave Jeffery & Kayleigh Dobbs (This Way Lies Madness).

And I also met with Ellen Datlow and was very reassured by her comments on editing. I wasn’t going to go initially, being a coward, but Lauren McMenemy nudged me and Trevor Kennedy into going. So me and Geraint turn up promptly – and Lauren’s late! Starbucks to blame apparently.

Who else did I meet? A number are shown below but I missed out on pics with Trevor Kennedy, Catherine Cavendish, Ben Langley, Erzebet Barthold (Hadean Press) amongst others. Never mind, next time.

Any lows? Only one, eating something which disagreed with me ended up with me missing a chunk of Saturday afternoon/evening programming. Such is life. But I was well enough to go back for some Sunday morning panels before we left at 1 pm to trundle back to Wales.

It was a great convention and thanks go to everyone involved in its organisation. I had a brilliant time.

November 3, 2025 0

Is it Downhill After 50(+) for Women in Horror?

A while ago, I wrote a blog post for the British Fantasy Society ‘A Woman’s World (Not)’ because as a woman who came late to writing – and writing horror at that – I was struggling to see myself in the community. Where were others like me? Where were the opportunities? And it’s something I still ponder although with a few improvements.

I have found some of those older women, usually via zoom meetups or readings, women who don’t have profile pics or the images I had seen did not equate to the reality. Why are we so frightened of showing ourselves as we are? I have also seen more women in conventions and some improved networking aspects but I still have a struggle with the issue of age and the female writer. I am now 60 and have been writing for just over a decade, starting like most with short stories and my first novella in 2020, with novels following. And whilst I saw possibilities still at 50, I am now wondering if those are vanishing.

Rejections are often worded that they ‘can only take on a small number of new authors’ to develop their careers. These wordings have had me thinking that they do not perceive an older female writer as ‘value for money’, even if we can give twenty plus years more of our writing. Calls which say no simultaneous submissions with long turn round times suddenly seem not worth doing. As an older writer, thoughts of mortality make you realise you don’t have the time to wait around for some decisions. Nine months plus for a book? I don’t have that time to waste any more. I don’t mind that a book will be accepted but not published for a year or two. That’s fine. It’s the idea of wasted time that I have a problem with.

I have my own experiences, my own perceptions and I would love to know what others have found. I recently responded to Gwendolyn Kiste’s call out for women who’d like to be involved in raising issues concerned with women in horror, taking part in discussions, promoting each other – all sorts of things and I stuck my hand up, referencing in particular my interest in older women writers in our genre. We’re hopefully going to get a panel together and do something online related to this topic. With this in view, I’d like to find other women who fall into the category of the 50+ writer. Yes, to take part in the panel, but also to provide me with information I can use to compile an article giving a snapshot of what it’s like to be us. If you would just like to offer up responses to the questions I pose below and are happy for me to use your comments in my article, please respond in the comments or use the contact form (I can withhold names if wished).

I think there are two aspects to consider before you look at the questions:

Are you a woman who has been writing for some time but now hitting 50+ or are you a new writer just starting out at 50+?

For the established writer, are you seeing few opportunities, do you feel you are becoming invisible?

For the new writer, as above but do you feel invisible already?

Do you think women are invisible as older writers because they are also invisible within the pages? (We see few older female protagonists, including those showing menopausal/post-menopausal symptoms. Our biology impacts our lives in all sorts of messy ways but it’s never shown on page or screen, barring the occasional exception.)

Do you think that male editors don’t necessarily ‘get’ female horror, ie we don’t write the kind of horror they think people want to read? And life experience can deliver up some pretty grim source material.

Are you restricted in your writing by your circumstances, especially those working full-time but with carer roles (whether children/elderly parents)?

Social media is a horrible necessity but it is draining. Does the whole thing exhaust you? Do you have time for it?

Do you think social media is skewed against older women because the cult of youth or youthful appearance dominates?

Do you feel isolated, are you looking for a support network? (Or where have you found your tribe?)

Have you experienced ageism (and/or sexism)?

Do you think ageism exists or do you think this is perception when the reality is different?

What could be done within the indie horror industry to help older women?

When submission calls asks for underrepresented groups, do you think older women fit this category?

Many of the above questions could apply to female writers of other genres but I think a proper look into our own industry is worthwhile. If there is an issue, it needs to be dealt with, if it’s misconceived perceptions, then it would be nice to put those to rest.

March 7, 2025 2