Ep576 - Simon Bestwick (aka Daniel Church), Author ‘The Hollows’ & ‘The Ravening’

Daniel Church is a horror fiction writer and the author of THE HOLLOWS, which was shortlisted for the British Fantasy Award. His second book, THE RAVENING, is out now and his third novel, THE SOUND OF THE DARK, will be published in 2025. In THE RAVENING, two women fight to free themselves of a terrifying thousand-year-old curse. Jenna lost her mum when she was a girl—a terrifying incident on a lonely road in the woods that no one, least of all Jenna, has ever been able to explain. She’s been angry, defensive, and self-reliant ever since—until she meets Holly and begins to open up just a little. But just as life is beginning to offer some promise Jenna is ripped away from Holly; kidnapped by a bizarre cult in thrall, so they say, to an ancient demon who offers the promise of eternal life in return for a particular sacrifice. A sacrifice that links Jenna, her mum, and a bloodline reaching back centuries. With its antlered demon and a shadowy otherworld behind the veil of our world, THE RAVENING combines cinematic horrors with a compelling story of one woman’s refusal to give up and another woman’s fight for survival against terrible odds – both of them determined to overturn very different expectations. In this interview, we talk about, his childhood fascination with dark and creepy stories, his pen name, the writer's responsibility to serve the story and characters, the importance of avoiding self-indulgence and ego, and more. This episode is brought to you by AutoCrit. Head to www.autocrit.com/brock to get yourself a LIFETIME membership. If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts? It only takes about 60 seconds and it really helps convince some of the hard-to-get guests to sit down and have a chat (simply scroll to the bottom of your iTunes Podcast app and click “Write Review"). Enjoy the show!