I took a little break before starting The Carny Murders. I have finished Act I and with the exception of a few narrative hiccups/hiccoughs, I'm confident in the direction of Act 2. If you haven't been keeping track, this is story number 4 of my second collection. It is a detective-less horror mystery that still… Continue reading March 9th Update
I'm currently reading a slasher to get into the slasher mood with the Carny Murders. But as soon as I finish that, I'm diving into this bad boy. The title page has a blurb. And I quote -- "Suppose you found a woman dead from drowning, with her body and clothing perfectly dry, in a… Continue reading Latest, old, no-dustjacket-having, rare mystery
I'm still working on Fantome Fatale. No worries -- things are going well, just slower than usual. I haven't mapped out Rowan's exact path to solving it yet. This is unusual for me -- I always know that before I start writing. This fact has caused me to think more carefully about the direction of… Continue reading 1/25/2026 update
The old Visitor House crouched at the edge of the woods like something half-forgotten. Cloudy windows, rafters lost in shadow, and brittle November light that died a few feet past the threshold gave the place the air of abandonment. It smelled faintly of dust and cold stone—an emptiness that made every footstep sound too loud.… Continue reading Fantôme Fatale first scene rough draft
As you can see, winter has arrived in Illinois. With it has come some changes to my writing. I had been doing the prep work for my third story (Fantome Fatale), when I suddenly realized that the isolated mansion/family curse scenario was being shoehorned into my impossible footprint ideas. Basically, I was trying to force… Continue reading December ’25 update
James Scott Byrnside 