Benjamin Hope: Author of The Procurement of Souls
Benjamin Hope author of fantasy novel Procurement of Souls
Thrilled that my article, On the Importance of Fairy Tales, was used as the guest foreword in the Kyanite Press Journal of Speculative Fiction Fables and Fairy Tales Winter Digest. In this short foreword I look briefly at the roots of traditional story telling and their inherent shared authorship; at how they act as societal mirrors;... Continue Reading →
A huge dome sat in the middle of the room, stripped of its brass panels, curved girders, like the ribs of an elephant carcass, the only thing maintaining its form. Other machinery lay scattered and broken across the floor, harnessed chairs with glass piping fractured and fissured in every length creating breaches which served to... Continue Reading →
The next invention from the world of The Procurement of Souls is another of Magnus Drinkwater's patented instruments, the EMOTOMETER. EMOTOMETER Notes: Patented by Magnus Drinkwater, the emotometer is a brass-based cylindrical apparatus which houses filament receptors capable of reading and interpreting states of being, determined by the density and combination of hormones and pheromones... Continue Reading →
Following the publication of , The Rookery at Smeaton Abbey, I'm pleased to announce that another of my short stories, The Children of Blackmarsh, will feature in the Halloween special edition of the Kyanite Press Speculative Fiction Journal. The tale is a gothic horror about the grim fate of an isolated community living in poverty... Continue Reading →
The next inventions up from The World of The Procurement of Souls are patented serums from The Inventors' & Engineers' Guild of Bio-Alchemy. Morpheuserum High strength sleeping draught designed by Fellow and Master of The Guild, Professor Clarence Malahide. Veriform This truth serum was designed by Baron Magnus Drinkwater under commission from... Continue Reading →
Thrilled to have my cautionary fairy-tale, The Rookery at Smeaton Abbey, included in Kyanite Press' Inaugural Publication. I had the privilege of receiving an advance digital copy and not only is the authorship fantastic across the work selected but the diversity on offer is captivating: from cosmic horror to post-apocalyptic sci-fi; from deconstructed flash-fiction to... Continue Reading →
VIVISALVE Formulated by Baron Magnus Drinkwater under commission from the king and part-funded by the Sovereign Armaments Division, Vivisalve is a paste compound primarily formed of propolis and the coagulant accelerants vitamin K, Mandragora officinarum, and Guaiacum officinale. The balm is capable of greatly accelerating the healing time of wounds and temporarily boosting the... Continue Reading →
Exploring the world of Victorian inventions for #inventorsmonth got me reflecting on all my own devices and creations within the world of The Procurement of Souls. So, I thought I'd do a series of vignettes showcasing a few. I start tonight with the viroscope, used in the story by Clementine in an attempt to track... Continue Reading →
Well, as a self-confessed beardy of late (you can't deny it when it's on your face, after all!) I felt I had to mark World Beard Day this year. It would appear that I have endowed a number of my characters in The Procurement of Souls with a moustache at the very least! Here's a... Continue Reading →
To celebrate the wonder of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein this 'Frankenstein Day', here's an extract from my novel, The Procurement of Souls. Have you concocted fiendish machines in your own fiction or have a favourite monster in literature? I'd love to hear from you: leave a comment below!
Benjamin Hope: Author of The Procurement of Souls 