Articles written by Darmon Richter

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About me - Darmon Richter

Darmon Richter was born and bred in Oxford, England, and had started writing short stories by the age of seven. He went on to live in North Devon for a decade, where he studied English Literature and Music, and wrote a regular music column for a local newspaper.

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Creative Writing > Short Stories Short stories: Surreal tales: 1 of 35
INFESTATION"Damn roaches!"Steve swung his makeshift newspaper club, narrowly missing yet another of the swarming creatures. The bug made a deep, defiant clicking sound, and scuttled back into cover behind the microwave. The flat Steve was renting was overrun with the insects, and so far all his attempts at eradicating them ha... More..
Creative Writing > Essays Essays: The full moon and its effect on humans: 1 of 15
The full moon has long been associated with magic, as well as with states of madness and insomnia. We've all heard the old warning, if you stare too long at the moon you will go mad. The link runs so deep in our culture, that we even see it in our language; the words 'lunacy' and 'lunatic' both derive their meanings from asso... More..
Creative Writing > Poetry Poetry: Remorse: 2 of 21
My Perfect Hell In my perfect hell,The air is a-buzzWith secrets that whisperFrom dead men's lips.My jailors float somewhereLike bones in a sack,Hidden from sight,All swollen and black.In my perfect hellThere is no referee,Just the finger of blamePointed squarely at me;And the dry bone beneathChatters like my own teeth,As I ... More..
Politics, News & Issues > Environmental Awareness Reflections on dying cities and towns: 1 of 10
A few years ago now, I spent several months staying in a remote mountain village in Bulgaria. We were driving back from a visit to the nearby city of Gabrovo one evening, when nightfall caught us unawares, and in hope of speeding the return journey, we decided to navigate a shortcut through the mountains. It was a good idea ... More..
Creative Writing > Novel Excerpts Novel excerpts: Suspense: 31 of 180
It was him again. The child beckoned, its blue lips opening and closing in muted speech. The white face was framed in a rough-hewn fur coat, and snowflakes rested on the forehead and cheeks without melting. There! Was that a voice? Any noise the child may have made was immediately drowned out by the wind, as it tore relentle... More..
Creative Writing > Essays Essays: Comparing humans and wolves: 3 of 15
What words and concepts might we use to describe a wolf? Primarily, we might consider the hunger; the ravenous drive to hunt and feed, the lonesome predator beyond the light of the campfire. However, these primal urges of self-preservation that are so often represented in our minds and culture by the figure of the wolf, are t... More..
Creative Writing > Essays Essays: Sunsets and the human spirit: 4 of 15
There is something in the human spirit that is inexplicably drawn to the sight of a sunset; something deep in the psyche that sighs with the waning of the light, in all its plethora of colours and textures.Perhaps it is a bittersweet connection we feel with the symbolic end of another day. In ages gone by, before electric lam... More..
Creative Writing > Novel Excerpts Novel excerpts: Dreams: 6 of 22
Marek tumbled headlong into a vision of something eldritch and terrible, like blind creatures somewhere in the dark, lolloping through viscous fluids. White lips parted over broken gums, and an empty wail tore at his heart like a swarm of tiny black hands groping a lamp. As he struggled to escape, the sky split apart, and the... More..
Arts & Humanities > Ethics Benevolence: Self-interest in disguise?: 4 of 12
Benevolence can be defined as a disposition to do good, or a nature of charitable kindness. By definition then, benevolence and self-interest are complete opposites, the former being an expression of selflessness itself.Strange as it may sound however, some argue that benevolence is no more than skin-deep, and that human bein... More..
Religion & Spirituality > Astrology & Prophecy How your Sun sign affects compatibility: 5 of 13
We've all heard of the Zodiac, and most of us know what our star sign is. However, what a lot of people don't know is that we actually have twelve star signs each. These correspond to the twelve astrological houses, and tell us a little bit about how we cope with different situations or responsibilities, such as work, familie... More..