Chasing the Dragon by Mark Towse (VBT, guest post, excerpt, and GIVEAWAY) GFT ADULT title

 

I have the pleasure of hosting author Mark Towse, who answers my question:

ELF:  What scares you the most or makes you the happiest about writing?

 

MT:  I've chosen this topic because I'm all for facing my demons.

 

I'll start with the happy stuff. Writing is my comfort zone. It's my portal into a thousand other magic worlds. Coming from a place of trauma, it is cathartic, therapeutic, and a chance to unload the bile. When I know I have a day's writing in front of me, it's almost impossible to rip the grin from my face. Think about it: all those adventures and places to explore. Seriously, I feel like a millionaire behind my writing desk. What more could I need besides my imagination, the key to limitless worlds?

When I'm writing, everything else drops out of my head: no more anxiety, stress, fear, or insecurity. It's just me and my guilty giggles as I chill, thrill, and put my characters and readers through the wringer.

Happy doesn't even cut it. But just like playing in the woods as kids, the sun comes down all too quickly. It's a shame, as I could stay there forever.

 

What scares me?

 

Failure scares me. That said, I know I have something unique and extraordinary to bring to the table. I haven't always possessed my current confidence level, but I genuinely back myself now. And some. After spending years writing prolifically and mastering the shorter form, then graduating to novellas, I know this novel kicks ass, and I will champion 'Chasing The Dragon' until I'm blue in the face.

 

To me, this is more than a hobby—it's everything. It's hard to say that out loud, but it's true.

 

I know I'm good enough, but there's a lot of noise out there. Not being heard scares the living daylights out of me.

 

Readers, please give me a try; you won't regret it. That's a Towsey guarantee.

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Chasing the Dragon

by

Mark Towse

 

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GENRE:  Vigilante Crime Thriller/Horror

 

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BLURB:

 

A town on its knees, dread's bony fingers wrapping around its throat and squeezing, death rattles soon to follow.

 

Drugs, filth, and a lack of human decency are starving it of hope.

 

Introducing Simon Dooley, our trauma-driven wannabe superhero, the relentless voice of his dead mother pleading with him to "end the chaos." Dressed in a leotard and armed only with a dozen dog poop bags, Simon's plight will find him falling in love and going head to head with the seediest characters walking the streets.

 

The town needed a hero... it got Reformo.

 

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EXCERPT

It’s happening. It’s finally happening.

 

I strip off in front of the full-length mirror, part self-admiration for my new frame and part sorrow for the shy and squeamish young boy who first walked the corridors of the youth detention centre. 

Okay, not The Rectifier. What then? Captain Justice has been done, you muppet! The Shadow? Nope. Been done, too. The Silhouette? Too jazzy. Unable to wait any longer, the hairs bristling on the back of my neck, I carefully lift the costume from the bed and slip my arms through.

Oh, yes!

It’s as though electricity runs through my veins. I feel alive, reborn. I feel—

“I’m a superhero.”

 

Amazon Buy Link

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

 

Mark Towse is an English horror writer living in Australia. He would sell his soul to the devil or anyone buying if it meant he could write full-time. Alas, he left it very late to begin this journey, penning his first story since primary school at the ripe old age of forty-five. Since then, he’s been published in over two hundred journals and anthologies, had his work made into full theatrical productions for shows such as The No Sleep Podcast and Tales to Terrify, and has penned fourteen novellas, including Nana, Gone to the Dogs, 3:33, and Crows. Chasing The Dragon is his debut novel.

 

Amazon Author Page

Twitter: @MarkTowsey12

Website

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GIVEAWAY

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The tour dates can be found here