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About Tales From the Hanging Tree
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Inspiration for “The Hanging Men”, by Paul Kane
As soon as Kaye mentioned that there was a Wordcrafter anthology coming up she was gathering stories for, called Tales from the Hanging Tree, something clicked. I remembered an old tale I’d started many years ago, in fact not that long after I’d begun writing and sending submissions off to small press magazines back in the 1990s. Back then, I’d also attend events with like-minded people, all chatting about their influences – such as MR James, Arthur Machen, William Hope Hodgson, Lovecraft and so on.
I’d read a few of those kinds of tales growing up, usually in supernatural anthologies, but was really coming to horror/supernatural writing via ’70s and ’80s fiction by authors like Jim Herbert, Stephen King, Clive Barker, Anne Rice, Ramsey Campbell, Graham Masterton et al. So I went away and read some of those recommendations from my fellow writers, and loved it all – so much so that it influenced tales like ‘Shadow Writer’, ‘St August’s Flame’ and ‘Star Pool’. I eventually moved more towards the modern kind of horror writing again, but still liked to keep my hand in with the more old-fashioned style of tale.
Which is where ‘The Hanging Men’ comes in. I began
writing it in either the late ’90s, or early 2000s, aiming to produce something
that was a mix of ghost story and folk horror; the kind of thing that might
morph into a myth or legend itself. There’s definitely more than a whiff of
James about the whole thing, probably also influenced by those wonderful BBC A
Ghost Story for Christmas adaptations of the ’60s and ’70s.
For some reason I can’t remember now – it might even have been to do with moving more towards a modern style, or perhaps it was because I was starting to teach around then and so my time was a bit limited – I never got around to actually finishing it off. But like something I might have mislaid during a house move, it niggled me. Those things tend to do that – I’ve just recently rediscovered a full-length novel I wrote in my early 20s, which I went through and sent out to be published: The Wet, which has just been released as a curiosity (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Wet-Paul-Kane/dp/1953905935/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2OT394GFS7A40&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.Z5N5llZqAAvpsFpjpXneog.fasuXHPlidz2Ik_jjO2jXQ1AjZSPboqiOvAK0eudfm8&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+wet+paul+kane&qid=1724771978&sprefix=the+wet+paul+kane%2Caps%2C77&sr=8-1).
And while that one is not the novel I’d write today, when I finally laid my hands on ‘The Hanging Men’ in an old folder and re-read what I’d done – maybe 1000 wds or so – I found I slipped very easily into the voice again, like a pair of old comfy slippers. Maybe it’s because we’ve just been putting together an anthology called Beyond & Within: Folk Horror for Flame Tree (out now, folks! https://www.amazon.co.uk/Horror-Short-Stories-Beyond-Within/dp/1804177326/ref=sr_1_1?crid=VASDFLOSSYL1&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.JHGNriPdOKCpgs65pre9wQ._Df1E3MW5R_JlmdmOb5h7VnV9F3o-vM4NnovHRf-4mQ&dib_tag=se&keywords=beyond+and+within+folk+horror&qid=1724772064&sprefix=beyond+and+within%2Caps%2C81&sr=8-1) that it felt so right. Or perhaps it was a simple matter of completing something that needed completing.
Either way, I’m delighted Kaye took the story for Tales from the Hanging Tree, giving it a new lease of life. A tale that spans 25 years or more, not in the narrative itself, but in the writing of it. I hope readers enjoy this short shocker when they pick up the book!
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About Paul Kane
Paul Kane is the award-winning
(including the British Fantasy Society’s Legends of FantasyCon Award 2022), bestselling author and editor of over a hundred and fifty books –
such as the Arrowhead trilogy (gathered in the sellout Hooded Man omnibus), Hellbound Hearts,
Wonderland (a Shirley Jackson Award finalist) and Pain Cages (an Amazon #1 bestseller). His non-fiction books
include The Hellraiser Films and Their Legacy and Voices in the Dark. He has been a Guest at many
conventions, as well as being a panellist at FantasyCon and the World FantasyConvention, and a fiction
judge at the Sci-Fi London festival. A former British Fantasy Society SpecialPublications Editor,
he has also served as co-chair for the UK chapter of The Horror Writers Association and co-chaired
ChillerCon UK in May 2022. His work has been optioned and adapted for the big and small screen, including
for US network primetime television and as the feature film Sacrifice starring Barbara Crampton
(Re-Animator, You’re Next, Suitable Flesh). His audio work includes the full cast drama adaptation
of The Hellbound Heart for Bafflegab, starring Alice Lowe (Prevenge), and the Robin of Sherwood
adventure The Red Lord for Spiteful Puppet/ITV. He has also contributed to the Warhammer 40k universe for
Games Workshop. Paul’s latest novels are the sequels to RED – Blood RED & Deep RED (aka The
RED Trilogy) – the award-winning hit Sherlock Holmes & the Servants of Hell, Before (an Amazon
Top 5 dark fantasy bestseller), Arcana, The Storm and The Gemini Effect. In addition he writes
thrillers for HQ/HarperCollins as PL Kane: the sellout novels Her Last Secret, Her Husband’s
Grave and The Family Lie. Paul lives in Derbyshire, UK, with his wife Marie O’Regan. Find
out more at his site www.shadow-writer.co.uk
which has featured Guest Writers such as Stephen King, Catriona Ward, Dean Koontz, Olivie Blake and Guillermo del Toro.
Socials: Facebook, X (@PaulKaneShadow), Instagram (@paul.kane.376) and Bluesky (@paulkane.bsky.social)
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Undawnteum Vlog:
Author News and Updates Playlist
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Tour Schedule
Monday Sept. 9 – Writing to be Read – Reading Excerpt by Joseph Carrabis & Guest Sylva Fae
Tuesday Sept. 10 – Roberta Writes – Guest Kaye Lynne Booth
Wednesday Sept. 11 – Carla Reads – Guest C.R. Johansson
Thursday Sept. 12 – Undawnted – Guest Paul Kane*
Friday Sept. 13 – Writing to be Read – Guest Matt Usher
