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Welcome to My World
I’ve been telling stories for as long as I can remember. A surprising number of them have made it into print—fifteen novels so far, which still surprises me a little when I say it out loud. I live in the woods nears Stockton, New Jersey, a small borough on the Delaware River. The kind of place that inspires mysteries, thrillers and horror in the towns and countryside.
My longest-running series is The Kyle Callahan Mysteries—character-driven, funny in places, dark in others, and rooted in lives you might never expect to be troubled by murder. I also write the Marshall James Thrillers series and the Maggie Dahl Mysteries, each with their own voice and world.
More recently I’ve been working in horror and psychological thriller—territory I find endlessly compelling. And my forthcoming (September, 2026) Devil’s Wood is a supernatural thriller set in nearby Lambertville, drawing on modern small town life and ancient horror.
Through Your Write Path, I offer workshops and coaching for writers at every stage—beginners who’ve never shown anyone their work, experienced writers who’ve hit a wall, people who want to tell the story of their own lives. “Every life is a story, and each of us is the storyteller.”
My imprint Vivid Press publishes annotated editions of public domain classics—recent titles include Carmilla, The Willows, and Gaston Leroux’s The Mystery of the Yellow Room. Stories matter.
Look around, you’ll find much more here, and thanks for stopping by. – Mark
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New Promotional Videos for Your Write Path
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True Crime Tuesdays on the Fearsome Fiction Podcast: The Bloody Benders, a Family Affair
In the lonely grasslands of southeast Kansas, a small roadside inn offered weary travelers a hot meal, a warm bed, and a canvas curtain separating the dining room from the family’s living quarters. What guests couldn’t see was the trapdoor beneath their feet, or the hammer waiting behind that canvas.
Between 1871 and 1873, the Bender family ran one of the most chillingly efficient killing operations in American frontier history. At least a dozen travelers vanished after stopping at their door, seated at the table of honor directly over a hidden pit, never to leave again. When suspicion finally caught up with them, the Benders disappeared into the night, leaving behind an inn full of buried secrets and a manhunt that has never definitively ended. This week on True Crime Tuesdays, we step into the Bender Inn, where hospitality meets murder.
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Song and Video ‘Still Talking to You’ (MadeMark Media)
I’m having a creative burst these days. I made this song using Suno, and the video using Kling and Filmora.
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Twist Podcast 333: Laid Back in Lancaster, Chocolate Pretzel Paradise, and Prance Reviews ‘The Odyssey’
This week Mark and Rick kick back and slow it down a look at Mark’s trip to Lancaster, PA—Pennsylvania Dutch Country and, as it turns out, the self-proclaimed pretzel capital of America. They talk Amish countryside charm, why a chocolate pretzel from the source hits different, and what makes Lancaster a perfect getaway.
Then it’s time for Prance to turn the lens on Homer’s classic and current culture war lighting rod. Does the epic hold up? Does Odysseus deserve the hype? Prance has thoughts.
Laid back vibes, small-town charm, and one very opinionated take on ancient Greek literature—it’s all here on episode 333 of The Twist.
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My Article ‘Beyond the Page Margins: How Writers Can Expand Our Reach, Impact & Income’ Featured in Mystery Writers of America Newsletter
I was asked to write an article for the Mystery Writers of America’s newsletter, The 3rd Degree. It’s out, and I’m so pleased. It’s about how writers can take our experience and skills and offer them ‘beyond the page margins,’ from workshops to one-on-one coaching. You can read the entire newsletter here.
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Our New ‘Welcome to the Twist Podcast’ YouTube Video
