Pierce Mostyn Investigates Again

Pierce Mostyn fighting inter-dimensional beings. Photo from a secret OUP file.

Pierce Mostyn came into being, as with most if not all of my fiction, out of thin air. Like Athena springing fully formed from the forehead of Zeus.

Technically creatio ex nihilo is reserved for gods; and since I’m not one, there were embryonic thoughts and influences swirling around in my mind which eventually coalesced into Pierce Mostyn. I mentioned a few last week.

Mostyn is a professional paranormal investigator, employed by the Office of Unidentified Phenomena; which is a dark and shadowy and mysterious federal agency. The office’s director, Dr Rafe Bardon, is an equally mysterious and shadowy character.

The X-Files, Twin Peaks, and Stranger Things were undoubtedly the immediate stimuli for Mostyn. Before those shows there was, of course, HP Lovecraft. The federal government’s interest in suppressing what was going on in that ancient seaside town of Innsmouth is a key factor in lending the story an air of authenticity.

Many of Lovecraft’s stories are written as an exposé of suppressed truth. A device The X-Files, Twin Peaks, and Stranger Things all made use of. And since I grew up in the 50s and 60s, I’m very familiar with accounts of government suppression of information some bureaucrat thought was too dangerous for us to know. That theme even found its way into Indiana Jones.

Of course, Mr Snowdon helped us realize that the government is in fact actively suppressing the truth, lying to us, and spying on us. In spite of what the socialists, and big government liberals and conservatives say — government is not our friend. A theme I allude to in Van Dyne’s Vampires.

Next week, if all goes well, Van Dyne’s Vampires, the fourth Pierce Mostyn paranormal investigation, will be available for your reading pleasure. Mostyn and company will encounter some new enemies. There is also plenty of action, and a healthy dollop of humor, along with that good old-fashioned paranormal horror.

If you haven’t yet discovered Pierce Mostyn, take a look at the series page. Some good reading awaits you!

Comments are always welcome; and, until next time, happy reading!