08/20/2025 Author Notes Series: MOLOCH

Moloch was a “live” Patreon story that was written in weekly installments for all patrons as part of my ongoing Story In Progress series. The purpose of this series is for my readers to see my process, from raw first draft to fully edited finished story.

By stating its written “live” in this situation, I only mean every Sunday morning, I sit down and pull up Patreon, and write the story installment, then post it exactly as is, with zero edits. When I finish, I then do edits, revisions, formatting, and send the finished book out to every patron free as an ebook and paperback. They get it before the public release.

Moloch was inspired by a cover that Ruth Anna Evans had posted. I immediately grabbed it and had a story idea in mind just from seeing it. This turned into a story about a medieval village on the brink of famine and starvation when a strange peddler comes to town, promising wishes in return for favors. But when the true cost of their wishes is revealed, the town is not so willing to pay it. But pay they must, as so to, must Moloch collect his due for his own master.

I really love the freedom that setting a story in early days of humanity allows, it’s more simplistic yet filled with lore, superstitions, creatures that ran rampant in the woods, and villagers that did not know all we know today. It makes for a wonderful story setting especially for horror or fantasy as so many liberties can be taken with the setting, the people, and even the lore you choose to create or chose to make your own. This one has a bit of grief horror, a bit of new love, a lot of fear, and heavy doses of superstition among the villagers.

I greatly enjoyed the direction this story took as it unfolded and as it turned out, so did most of my readers. Demonic horror may be one of my favorite tropes to write but don’t quote me on that, as I’m still experimenting.

You can get this one from the website or directly on Amazon.