I'm Paul Iddon, a storyteller who, at the end of the day, is just an average bloke from County Durham in the North East of England. I'm a married father of two and, since leaving school in the '90s, I've always worked a full-time job. My writing happens in the stolen moments after my family is asleep, driven by a lifelong passion for stories that explore the boundaries of light and darkness.

When I'm not writing, you'll likely find me following football, gaming on my PS5, or indulging in my other passions: superhero movies, heavy metal music, and a fascination with all things macabre. It's this blend of everyday life and a deep appreciation for the darker, more intense side of things that shapes the worlds I create.

My goal is to transport readers to worlds that linger in their minds long after the final page, crafting tales that are both unsettling and deeply human.

Why I Write Horror & Dark Drama

For me, storytelling has always been a way to process a life that hasn't been all sunshine and rainbows. As a teenager, I was severely bullied, and even endured a vicious assault by a teacher at the age of twelve. These experiences, along with other dark times in my life, gave me an understanding of pain and suffering that I now channel into my work.

Writing became my catharsis. It is a way for me to explore the strength that can be found in hardship and to give a voice to characters who endure and transform. My stories are not just about fear; they are about resilience, survival, and the blurred line between fear and empowerment.

Whether I’m writing about a descent into madness or the raw realities of human cruelty, my work is driven by a love for atmospheric tension, morally complex characters, and the eerie unknown. If my stories make you think, make you feel, or make you check the shadows one more time before bed, then I’ve done my job.

Fun Facts

Here are a few things about me that may surprise you:

  • Favourite Genre to Read: Horror, dark fantasy, and thrillers.

  • Favourite Author: Iain Rob Wright. Also from North East England, he’s been a huge inspiration.

  • Writing Quirk: I always create detailed backstories for my main characters. It's a process that helps me truly understand them and bring them to life on the page.

  • Hidden Talent: I am double-jointed in my thumb. Not sure if it counts, but it's a fact nonetheless!

  • Inspiration Sources: Human depravity, ancient legends, rainy nights, and coffee (lots of coffee).

  • Favourite Theme to Explore: The blurred line between hero and monster—and how sometimes, they are the same person.

Thank you for being here. If you'd like to chat about writing, creativity, or anything else, feel free to reach out. I'm available via the contact form on this website or through the social media links at the top of the page.

Happy reading,

Paul x

Q&A

Because life taught me early that the world is not all sunshine and rainbows — in fact, it rarely is. I’ve battled severe depression, and writing became my catharsis. Life imitates art, art imitates life… and when there are no rainbows to imitate, only darkness remains. Horror is where I can shape that darkness into something that breathes.

Obviously Stephen King — is there a horror writer alive who doesn’t name him? I’ve always related to Carrie. As a bullying victim, I could understand exactly why she did what she did, and why her rage felt inevitable.

Another huge inspiration is Iain Rob Wright. Like me, he’s from the North East of England, and I admire the way he grounds his horror in ordinary lives. His characters aren’t superheroes or stereotypes — they’re people you recognise, people who could be your neighbour or colleague — and then he rips their world apart. That blend of realism and brutality has shaped how I write, and how I want readers to feel when they step into my stories.

I also have to mention Clive Barker. I haven’t read a great deal of his work, but what I have showed me something vital: never shy away from the sordid and the grotesque. His stories proved that horror can be sensual, filthy, and beautiful all at once — and that the things we’re most afraid to write are often the ones that cut the deepest.

The first thing that ever truly terrified me was Freddy Krueger — specifically A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors. I was ten years old the first time I saw it, and even now, after dozens of viewings, it still makes me uncomfortable. None of the other films in the series strike that same chord, but that one has never loosened its grip.

Outside of the screen, my fears are more ordinary, but no less real. I’m petrified of spiders. If I walk through a web, I convince myself for the rest of the day that they’re crawling over me, unseen. I’m also afraid of heights. There’s no trauma or trigger I can point to — it’s just a cold instinct that makes my stomach lurch whenever I look down.

I’ve never been a die-hard believer in ghosts, but I have had at least one experience I can’t explain. At work, there was an office that was supposed to be empty. As I walked past, I heard the sound of typing. I opened the door — silence. Closed it again — the typing started back up. Opened it once more — silence. It rattled me in a way I still think about.

I’m not the only one, either. Colleagues swear the building is haunted, and one even told me she saw a nun in a white habit standing right next to me when she was watching the live CCTV feed.

One thing I do believe in, without doubt, is aliens. The universe is too vast for us to be alone — Earth is a single grain of sand in an endless desert. Whether or not little green men have visited in flying saucers, the jury’s still out. But I’ll devour every documentary on the subject I can find.

Serpentine is the one I relate to most — she’s my Carrie. She was born from my struggles with bullying at school. Of course, her story isn’t mine exactly, but my own pain and anger shaped her. She exists because I needed a way to give voice to the wounds I carried.

The character who unsettles me most is The Smiling Lady from Hollow Grove. I created her by following advice to tap into both my personal fears and universal human ones. Our children are the reason we drag ourselves out of bed in the morning, so I built her around the terror of putting that reason under threat. She frightens me because she doesn’t just attack the body — she gnaws at the bond between parent and child, which is one of the most sacred things we have.

Explore the taboos society hides from view, and turn them into sources of horror. The genre is at its most powerful when it forces readers to confront uncomfortable truths in a way only fiction allows.

Draw from real life. Even when exaggerated, real events give horror a layer of believability that makes it cut deeper.

Never flinch. Don’t be afraid to push boundaries or dig into the darker corners of human nature, even if it offends some readers. Horror isn’t meant to be polite.

And finally — leave space for mystery. Not everything needs an answer. Sometimes the most terrifying thing is what the reader imagines in the silence between words.