Anton Verma

The first story I can remember writing was about someone not unlike myself, wandering into a forest and discovering a time machine (that was really a thinly-veiled version of Doctor Who’s TARDIS). I was eight and attending boarding school in the UK. I sat next to a guy named George. I remember George once using the word ‘metallic’ in something he penned during a creative writing time, and being drawn to this word. ‘Metallic.’ It was a word that impressed me for some reason I still cannot adequately explain. Suffice to say, I wrote the time machine story around that word, just to be able to use it. I think the line was something like: “The sword fell to the ground (of the time machine’s TARDIS-like interior) with a metallic clang.” I recall being very pleased with myself, as if, to my then self, I had scaled Shakespearean heights (not that I knew who Shakespeare was back then). Several decades later, I’ve realised that I do have stories to tell and it’s time to do it. The story’s the thing, and I have some more metallic clangs in the boot of the car.

I’ve also read a lot, as writers tend to do, and discovered so many insightful voices over the years. Most are no longer with us but in thinking what I’d like to include on this website (in addition to the usual promotion of ‘serious work’ on offer via Amazon) and I settled on a combination of original short fiction (that hopefully does entertain) as well as pastiches of some of those voices I like or continue to discover. And covering a range of interests I have developed over the years (as evinced by the section headings at the top of the landing page).

So, enjoy and feel free to drop me a line. Also, check out the first book I’ve released: well, technically, the second, but the first under the pen name. I’m currently working on a second book, which should be out in the not-too-distant future.