LINDSEY’S WRITING PRACTICE

Review of Midnight Oil, ed., Kaye Lynne Booth (Wordcrafter Press 2025)

Although Wordcrafter’s three Midnight collections are well-written, engaging, and have been far more entertaining than I’d anticipated,  I admit the third one, Midnight Oil, is my favorite.

Why?

Even if these creative stories often deal with humanity’s “dark side,”and contain some frightening scenes, most of them contain enigmatic characters who reveal the authors’ (and their main characters’) compassion for both humans and sometimes animals who too often suffer due to humankind’s lack of awareness, selfishness, or just plain disregard for life: Note Christa Planko’s “Such a Time as This,” Chris Barili’s “The Snow Globe,” Roberta Eaton Cheadle’s “Just Deserts,” Kaye Lynne Booth’s “Sangoma, Zombie Elephants, and Tokoloshe,” Joseph Carrabis’s “Them Doore Girls” and his metaphoric, “Jeremiah,” which also contains symbolic Biblical themes, as indicated in its title. Further, Carrabis integrates ideas from quantum mechanics. And Carrabis’s “Jeremiah” (although it doesn’t directly reference quantum physics), aligns with scripture being compatible with findings that matter is formed from invisible forces (Hebrews 11:3),and God observes sustaining creation, and that the earth is interconnected, mirroring concepts like quantum entanglement. 

Also integrating scientific possibilities, the award-winning, “The Vanishing,” a psychological tale by Denise Aparo, explores what can happen to a psyche that’s haunted in a most unusual manner.

Moreover, in lieu of presenting children as being possessed (as many frightening surreal tales have done),  Christa Planko’s “Such a Time as This,” Joseph Carrabis’s “Them Doore Girls.” and Kaye Lynne Booth’s “Sangoma, Zombie Elephants, and Tokoloshe” especially appealed to me because in lieu of portraying psychopathic youths, these stories exhibit the innocence and kindness of children who put others’ welfare before their needs—and thus, contribute to building a kinder, more just world.

In a similar vein, although the collection opens with the first line in the book’s goriest tale: Mario Acevedo’s “Villa’s Gold,” a vampire story that’s a far cry from Interview with a Vampire (no Brad Pitt-type character here), even if the tale’s  set in a cave:  “The Mayan bat-god Camazotz snacked on the dismembered remains of his human prey. Grasping a femur between the claws at the front of his enormous wings, he gnawed bloody flesh off the bone,” it also contains a sense of justice in a revenge most readers would likely consider the pernicious character “deserved.”

Further, the collection’s other stories about revenge, including Robert White’s “Cattails” and Cheadle’s “Just Deserts,” don’t merely focus upon ghouls or demons, but rather, the tales unfold rightful revenge upon characters who “earned” it. Similarly, Jon Shannon’s narrator in “The Stairs” reveals that he understands his poor choices and greed for money led to his frightening situation, and Rebecca M. Senese’s character Tanya in “The Price of Beauty” later realizes her lust for perfection came at a greater—and more surreal—payment than she’d anticipated. 

Two tales in this collection each incorporate a haunted house—both of which are haunted in unusual manners. Playing  upon the adage, “if these walls could talk,” in Roberta Cheadle’s “Just Deserts,” the walls are the narrators who reveal the story, resulting not only in a tale showing justice was served—but one that intertwines the humor of gossiping walls. In a similar vein, Paul Kane’s “The Whistling” unfolds the story of a haunted house that indeed comes alive with the DNA of a dead man who frightens any residents or visitors  entering its threshold long after his demise. And dear readers, you must read this tale to discover how that possibly could happen. (Plus, Kane integrates bits of science to help the story make sense. ) Enjoy!

About Lindsey Martin-Bowen

On Halloween 2023, redbat books released Lindsey Martin-Bowen’s 7th poetry collection, CASHING CHECKS with Jim Morrison. Her 4 th collection, Where Water Meets the Rock, was nominated for a Pulitzer; her 3rd, CROSSING KANSAS with Jim Morrison was a finalist in the QuillsEdge Press 2015-2016 Contest. In 2017, it won the Kansas Writers Assn award, “Looks Like a Million.” Writer’s Digest gave her “Vegetable Linguistics” an Honorable Mention in its 85th Annual (2017) Contest. Her Inside Virgil’s Garage (Chatter House Press 2013) was a runner-up in the 2015 Nelson Poetry Book Award. McClatchy Newspapers named her Standing on the Edge of the World (Woodley Press/Washburn University) was one of the Ten Top Poetry Books of 2008. It was nominated for a Pen Award.

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This segment of “Lindsey’s Writing Practice” is sponsored by the Midnight Anthology Series and WordCrafter Press.

Midnight Roost: Weird and Creepy Stories: 20 authors bring your nightmares to life in 23 stories of ghosts, paranormal phenomenon and the horror from the dark crevasses of their minds. Stories of stalkers, both human and supernatural, possession and occult rituals, alien visitations of the strange kind, and ghostly tales that will give you goosebumps. These are the tales that will make you fear the dark. Read them at the Midnight Roost… if you dare. https://www.amazon.com/Midnight-Roost-Kaye-Lynne-Booth-ebook/dp/B0CL6FPLVJ

Midnight Garden: Where Dark Tales Grow: 17 authors bring you 21 magnificent dark tales. Stories of magic, monsters and mayhem. Tales of murder and madness which will make your skin crawl. These are the tales that explore your darkest fears. Read them in the Midnight Garden… if you dare. https://www.amazon.com/Midnight-Garden-Where-Tales-Anthology-ebook/dp/B0DJNDQJD3

Midnight Oil: Stories to Fuel Your Nightmares: 14 authors bring you 16 dark tales that explore your deepest fears. These are the stories which nightmares are made of. Tales of monsters, mayhem, and madness which will make you shiver in the dark. Read them while you burn the Midnight Oil… if you dare. https://books2read.com/Midnight-Oil