Wednesday, 11 February 2026

Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volume 12

 

As all of the contents for Volume 12 of Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy were chosen during our last submissions period in October last year I thought it timely to announce the contents now, prior to publication in May.
The inclusion of one of my own stories is a bonus of sorts, as that was added after the budget for this volume had already been filled.
The stories are:
Wall Master to the Late Emperor by Henry Helbog
Twilight’s Four by Phil Emery
Noose and the Fae’s Gifts by Jaap Boekestein
Coldwell: A Stranger Tale by Jay Litwicki
The Altar of Self by Henry Ikechukwu
The Cold Maiden’s Aid by Eli Freysson
Raid on Knorrtuft by J. Benjamin Sanders Jr
Atonement for a Shattered Eye by Frank Sawielijew
Vampires in Moratt by David A. Riley
Where Dwell the Forgotten Men by Jeffery A. Sergent
The Stone Knights by Adrian Cole
The book is 310 pages long.
 

 

Tuesday, 10 February 2026

The Collected SF, Fantasy & Horror Stories of David A. Riley - Volume One 1970-2010

The first of the planned two-volumes of The Collected SF, Fantasy & Horror Stories of David A. Riley will be published in the next few weeks.

Coinciding with Mr Riley's 75th birthday this May, volume one will include all of his stories published between 1970 and 2010. Measuring 9.5 inches x 6.3 inches (24 cm x 16 cm), this 500-page collection of over 200,000 words includes 32 stories. Published in hardcover, this will cost £25.00 per copy. At the same time an e-book version will be available for £5.00. 

Stories included are:

 The Lurkers in the Abyss was first published in The Eleventh Pan Book of Horror Stories, 1970

The Farmhouse was first published in New Writings in Horror & the Supernatural, 1971

Corpse-Maker was first published in Weird Window 2, 1971

After Nightfall was first published in Year’s Best Horror 1, 1971

The Urn was first published in Whispers #1, 1972

A Bottle of Spirits was first published in New Writings in Horror & the Supernatural 2, 1972

A Sense of Movement was first published in From Beyond the Dark Gateway, 1972

Terror on the Moors was first published in World of Horror, 1974

The Shade of Apollyon was first published in World of Horror, 1974

The Satyr’s Head was first published in The Satyr’s Head & Other Tales of Terror, 1975

Prickly was first published was first published in Death, 1982

Writer’s Cramp was first published in Fantasy Tales, 1988

Winter on Aubarch 6 was first published in Fear Magazine, 1989

Retribution was first published in Peeping Tom, 1991

The Shadow by the Altar was first published in Peeping Tom, 1992

Out of Corruption was first published in The Mammoth Book of Zombies, 1993

A New Lease was first published in The Anthology of Fantasy & The Supernatural, 1994

Gwargens was first published in Beyond Magazine, 1995

No Reason in Being Hungry, She Thought was first published in Peeping Tom, 1996

Help-Plants was first published in Aboriginal Science Fiction, 1998 

Inside the Labyrinth was first published in Alone on the Darkside, Roc Books, 2006

Hoody was first published in When Graveyards Yawn, 2006

Lock-In was first published in The Black Book of Horror, 2007

The Bequest was first published in Dark Horizons, 2008

Now and Forever More was first published in The Second Black Book of Horror, 2008

Soft Little Fingers was first published in Shades of Darkness, Ash Tree Press, 2008

The Worst of All Possible Places was first published in Houses on the Borderland, BFS, 2008

The Fragile Mask on His Face was first published in Dark Discoveries Magazine, 2009

Their Own Mad Demons was first published in The Fifth Black Book of Horror, 2009

Their Cramped Dark World was first published in The Sixth Black Book of Horror, 2010

The True Spirit was first published in Back From The Dead, 2010

Romero’s Children was first published in The Seventh Black Book of Horror, 2010

 

Volume Two, covering the period 2011-2026 will also be 500-pages long, containing 200,000 words and 34 stories.  This will be published later this year, along with an e-book.


 

Sunday, 8 February 2026

The Collected SF, Fantasy & Horror Stories of David A. Riley

 

In a few months time I intend to replace my earlier collections of stories with two hard cover mammoth volumes divided between my stories published between 1970 and 2010, and between 2011 and 2026. 

Below are the covers that will be used for them, which include details of all the stories included in the books. These do not include any of my Welgar, Horbeck or Ossani the Healer stories and quite a few other fantasy stories that have yet to find a market.







Saturday, 27 December 2025

Forthcoming in 2026 from Parallel Universe Publications



As we approach the New Year here are the covers for two books from Parallel Universe Publications that are already planned for 2026, though there will be more, details of which will be released soon.

Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volume 12 will be published in May 2026.

Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volume 13 will be published in November 2026. 


Thursday, 11 December 2025

Happy Christmas from Parallel Universe Publications

With just two weeks to go before the great day we at Parallel Universe Publications would like to wish everyone a Happy Christmas.

Wednesday, 12 November 2025

Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volume 11

 


Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volume 11
is now available as a trade paperback and kindle eBook. 

amazon.com

amazon.co.uk 

In the meantime, as a taster, below are copies of the Introduction, which contains details of all 10 writers included in the eleventh volume: Harry Elliott, David A. Sutton, Susan Macdonald, Marc Edward Star, Tais Teng, Andrew Darlington, Geoff Hart, Uumbi, Daniel Mahoney, and Craig Herbertson, plus the award-winning artist Jim Pitts.





 

 



Tuesday, 4 November 2025

SWORDS & SORCERIES: TALES OF HEROIC FANTASY VOLUME 11

  
 
I have now emailed everone who submitted a story to Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy, whether they were accepted for volume 11 or 12 or if, alas, their submission had been rejected.
 
I can now reveal that the stories for Volume 11 are:
 
SILENCE FOR SNAKES by Harry Elliott
MIDWINTER by David A. Sutton
TOMB ROBBERS by Susan Macdonald
BLACKSHIELD MANOR by Marc Edward Star
THE EGGSHELL CARVER by Tais Teng
THE ETERNAL ASSASSIN: THE MAN WHO HUNTED DEATH by Andrew Darlington
THE GWAILOU SHIP by Geoff Hart
GOOD FORTUNE by Mungai M'mbogori (Ũũmbi)
THE WYRM'S TONGUE by Daniel Mahoney
WARDARK AND THE SANDS OF SERPANAM by Craig Herbertson
 
The book will be published later this month as a paperback and kindle eBook. 
 

 

Monday, 3 November 2025

Stories chosen for Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volumes 11 and 12


 

I have chosen all the stories to be included in Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volumes 11 and 12, the latter to be published in May next year. Full details soon.

 


 

Saturday, 1 November 2025

Submissions period for Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volume 11 has now ended

The submissions period for Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volume 11 has now ended. It's my intention to email all acceptances and rejections by the end of the week (7th November). Thank you everyone who has sent me stories this time!

Monday, 13 October 2025

A Grim God's Revenge

It was in 2017 that my first effort at a swords and sorcery story, "A Grim God's Revenge", was published in Mythic #4. Sadly this publication ceased to exist a year or so back. I reprinted "A Grim God's Revenge" in my collection of the same name.
Below is a link which will lead you to a pdf of my story which I'm presenting here as a free read. Hope you enjoy it

A Grim God's Revenge