I guess we’ve all had moments in our lives where some unexpected event has triggered memories we had forgotten were even there. Perhaps the smell of someone’s perfume that ignites a memory of a loved one long since departed or a meal that was once a sought-after favourite and moves your taste buds to long for the experience anew.

But what if some horrific encounter was to bring back memories of altogether less pleasant times? This is precisely what happens to Pauline Higgingbottom, the central character in my new book, Memory of Murder.

When Pauline discovers the body of her brother, Ralph, in the hallway of his home and it is clear he has not died a natural death, the experience triggers a series of terrible recollections from her own past. But why is this so and what do these memories, so desperately unwelcome, have to do with the murder? Perhaps all the more importantly for Pauline, what part will they play in her own, endangered future?

https://benwesterham.com/books/memory-of-murder/

On a day when the weather is pleasant it is possible to find yourself a quiet little spot where you can turn your face to the gentle sea breeze and listen to the cries of the seagulls arcing overhead or the calls of the blue tits flitting from one weather-gnarled tree to another. As you do so, you can look out over the flat, open canvas as it runs off to the distant horizon, where it meets with a vast, blue sky, streaked in places with whispers of clouds. It is a place where it is easy to feel the beauty of nature.

But pay a visit at a time when the weather is far less friendly and your experience will be altogether different. Then, especially down on the shifting shingle of the shoreline, the wind screams in off the sea, hurling salt-laced water in your face as it attempts to knock you off your feet. And, should you dare to set foot there on a storm tossed night, it can feel as if the land and the sea, the sky and the weather has consorted to crush you in their grasp.

Into this alien world, on the eve of World War One, steps the inexperienced British Secret Intelligence Bureau agent, Alexander Templeman. Isolated and alone, while there appear to be enemy agents everywhere he turns, the desolate nature of the Marsh seems to him to be a fitting, if terrifying, match for the desperate position he finds himself in.

Time is almost up and he is about to face the greatest challenge of his life, one that, until only days earlier, he would not have thought himself capable of meeting. Here, as the darkness of night falls and a raging storm hurls itself against the land, he must prevail, or die in the trying.

The Meyer-Hoffman Affair is published on January 30th 2024 and is available for pre-order now. More details can be found here:

https://benwesterham.com/

But we’re careless, thoughtless in our actions. Having swept away one lot of dust so assiduously, we think it’s gone forever, then do no more than wait in expectation of the next irritating layer that will soon begin to appear on every surface and accumulate in every corner. But we’re wrong to do so, for, while those irritating particles may be gone for now, they are most definitely not gone for ever. Instead, they gather and plan, plan and plot, in such numbers as we could never imagine, our heaving, straining, thrashing billions no match for their vast and growing horde of trillions and trillions.

And they are indignant, angry, swelling with a desire for retribution. Their abandonment and loss of attachment to a host who barely seemed to notice them in the first place cannot be left to go unremarked, nor unpunished. Yes, punishment is on their agenda. The heartless and the careless, the wicked and the evil, in their mind they all deserve to pay a price suitable for what they have done.

So, those swelling trillions draw lots to see who goes next, whose turn it is to point the way towards their collective quarry. And be under no illusion, they can smell their quarry from a world away, no distance far enough to keep any of us out of reach, undetected and protected by obscurity. Once the choice has been made, they are unforgiving and unrelenting, never content with something as hopeless and ineffective as a near miss or a lesson learned. Only total success closes the book and moves them on to another.

When ready to travel, they hitch a lift on a passing breeze, just enough to carry them where they will go, without the danger of disbursement, over mountains and rivers or rolling oceans, from which they know they could never return. The birds are aware, they see their presence, dim though it is, and keep their distance from the travelling bloom, fearful of an unwanted encounter.

And when the trillions have found their quarry, they drift down upon them from out of a cloud-filled sky or blow in across a quivering pavement. By the time their hapless, unprepared quarry has seen them, it’s far too late to escape; the great and growing host has already begun to swoop and swarm in a billowing mass around their helpless victim, engulfing them completely and irretrievably. There is no way out and no chance to plea. Judgement has already been passed and the dust presses on and in, expelling the air and choking the life from a body that has no defence.

The pleasure, the deep, thrilling, satisfying pleasure that is theirs, vibrates through the dust, each and every particle, like the last, lingering note in a newly finished symphony. And, when they are done, they rise and rise, back up on to the breeze, carried away from the scene of the crime by an accomplice too simple to know what part they have played. And never does this revenge-fuelled host leave a single sign of its visit, no calling card, no fallen comrades, nothing, in fact, to inform the unwary and prepare them for another visit.

Dust is all around. Dust that is abandoned. Dust that will have its revenge.

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This is a substantially re-written version of Dust as it first appeared in Collector of Crimes, the first volume of my Shorts in the Dark series of short, dark, crime-related stories where I explore the darker and more unusual corners of the criminal mind. For more information about these dark and sometimes disturbing stories visit https://benwesterham.com/.

I’m Ben Westerham, a UK-based indie fiction author, writing mainly crime, mystery and thriller stories, although I also stray into sci-fi and fantasy.

These words are an introduction to me and my writing as I start out on a journey into the world of Web3.

Beginnings

I wrote in what I can best describe as bits and pieces for a very long time, never having the courage nor the belief to commit to going further. But this was never going to continue forever; the need to write was too strong. Eventually, one lunchtime, I left the office carrying an old desk diary and, taking a seat at my then favourite cafe, started writing my first novel.

That first novel was terrible. Really, it was. But that didn’t matter, because the whole point of the exercise was to show myself that I could do it, that I really could write an entire novel. It was one of the best things I’ve ever done, because I never looked back. Since then, I’ve written countless stories, from the shortest of shorts to full-length novels. If only I’d acted sooner!

When, some years later, I found myself with a manuscript I thought was good enough to be published, I did what most writers still did back then; I sent it out to some literary agents, in the hope that one of them would find it an irresistible temptation. They didn’t.

Independent and Loving It

This left me despondent for a time, wondering how the heck anyone actually ever managed to get published, but then I heard about the Kindle and the self-publishing opportunities that came with it. What’s more, I also discovered there was already a burgeoning indie author community and they were only too happy to share their experiences and expertise with newcomers like me.

Well, I’m the entrepreneurial type and I also like to have control over things, so there was no holding me back and I dived in without another thought. The result of this was that I published a short story in 2015, as a trial run. Then, the following year, my first novel, Good Investigations, came out. The joy was immense, not even the near non-existent sales were able to dampen my enthusiasm.

I’ve spent the years since then honing my writing skills and learning about such previous mysteries as marketing and running a mailing list. It’s been fun, sometimes challenging, occasionally disappointing and I’ve even managed to sell a fair few books along the way.

After a while, I started receiving emails from people who described themselves as fans of mine. That was and still is hard to come to terms with, but it’s deeply gratifying to know there are people out there who enjoy my books so much they are happy to describe themselves as fans.

A Web3 World of Opportunity

All this time I had a day job, working in the tech space, so it should come as no surprise that I soon developed an interest in all things blockchain. It was, from the beginning, fascinating and seemed to offer all kinds of new possibilities in many areas of life.

So, I kept on exploring, on and off, until, towards the end of 2022, I started looking at things from a different perspective: what all this might have to offer to authors and their readers. And, oh my word, what an eye-opening experience that has been. Web3 was the game to play here and, apart from anything else, it quickly became clear that old, established notions of content ownership and centralised gatekeepers are about to be turned on their heads.

Web3 offers so much promise to creators that I can hardly wait to start experimenting. In particular, I’m chomping at the bit to share my stories with readers in different formats and to work with other creators to produce unique, multi-faceted, collectible content that combines words, sounds and visuals.

This is a getting-to-know-me piece, but it will also end up being a record of my hopes and ambitions as I enter the world of Web3. In future, it will be possible to look back and see how these panned out. I’ll keep my fingers crossed that I end up more pleased than disappointed. Either way, I don’t doubt it’s going to be an exciting ride and I hope you’ll stick around to enjoy it with me.

All the best,

Ben

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If you’d like to find out more about me and my writing then take a look here www.benwesterham.com.