Evan Purcell
Author. Frequent traveler. Endearingly strange person.
Tuesday, August 6, 2024
August Horror!
Sunday, July 14, 2024
My Adventures in Student Writing
Saturday, June 15, 2024
Romancing the Rainbow
I’m really excited to announce the release of Romancing the Rainbow, a short story collection about queer couples meeting for the first time. This is a whole series of meet-cutes, basically, and it’s really fun and romantic.
My story is called “Barley.” It changed a lot in the months before publication, but I’m really happy with it. Honestly, this collection is an absolute blast.
Saturday, March 30, 2024
Writers of Kazakhstan 2024
Flying
pigs. Alien words. Mayhem. Superheroes. Armageddon. Romance.
This is Writers of Kazakhstan 2024.
In December 2023, dozens of young writers participated in StudyRoom Language Center's annual writing competition. They were each given four photos and had
to create an original story in under an hour. This collection gathers together
the best stories for their first time in print.
This collection is for anyone who wants to see the world through the eyes of
another culture. Kazakhstan is a massive country full of unique customs and
history that most outsiders don't know much about. In many ways, the authors in
this collection share the same interests and concerns as anyone else. In other
ways, though, their perspectives are wildly unique. This book offers a taste of
Kazakhstan's amazing creativity and specific sense of humor.
Plus, there's a bunch of flying pigs. Everyone loves flying pigs.
Monday, January 29, 2024
Women on the Run
Sunday, January 28, 2024
Twelve Months of Horror
Monday, November 20, 2023
Finding His Prince
Finding His Prince is finally out!
Dorji is the crown prince of Bhutan, a tiny Buddhist kingdom high up in the Himalayas. He lives a life of responsibility and rules, especially with his coronation fast approaching.
Michael is an American botanist working for the royal family after a very public scandal forced him to leave his country. He’s drawn to the handsome royal, but he knows that any interaction between them would lead to yet another life-derailing scandal. The two men come from different worlds, and even though the attraction between them is palpable, they can never give in to their feelings.
During a royal visit to their national park, Prince Dorji's bitchy fiancée, Karma, gets lost, and Dorji has to team up with Michael to find her. In the process, sparks fly between the two men. This sweet, comedic romance follows the two as they trek through the most beautiful country on Earth, all while a humbled and embarrassed Karma develops an unexpected side-romance of her own. But as the dangers worsen and the reality of their impossible situation begins to sink in, will Dorji and Michael accept that their love is stronger than the forces keeping them apart?
Tuesday, November 14, 2023
Things That Go Bump in the Night
Monday, October 16, 2023
I Hate Your Face - podcast
Tuesday, September 12, 2023
Cuddles
Friday, August 11, 2023
Followed by Fear
A city girl needs the help of a small-town sheriff to
stop her stalker.
Harper’s Bend is the perfect small town, especially on
Halloween. Filled with friendly locals and rural traditions, Sydney views this
place as her only chance to take back her life and flee from the mysterious
stalker who’s been after her since the death of her husband.
She didn’t expect the danger to follow her, and she
definitely didn’t expect to develop such an instant connection to local sheriff,
Preston Blacker. He’s standoffish and treats her more like a problem to solve
than an actual person. There’s a reason for his distance, though, and Sydney
realizes that she’s not the only one struggling with a dark past.
As the stalker’s efforts escalate, Sydney and Preston must
work together to find out who is following them. But can they keep their
emotions in check long enough to save themselves?
Followed by Fear is a romantic suspense story where
the heroine finds protection in the arms of a complicated hero while surrounded
by the holiday trappings of rural New Mexico. It’s perfect for fans of the
high-stakes thrills of Cassie Miles and the quirky small towns of Maddie Day.
Monday, May 1, 2023
Equivalent Retribution
Another season, another dreaded call of the siren! That's right! It's finally springtime, which means some Easter celebrations, family barbecues, and lots of pollen-related allergies. Good stuff.
It also means that we have another issue of Sirens Call, the (free) horror magazine with a little bit of everything. For this one, I went out of my comfort zone and wrote a sci-fi story (my first since that Golden Girls spoof about alien Betty White hanging out with a squid. Don't ask.)
This one's a lot darker. It's called "Equivalent Retribution" and it's about a woman who accidentally pisses off an alien and has to figure out how to make things right. The first draft was more of a comedy, but I ended up rewriting it with gnarlier EC Comics vibes.
Sunday, March 19, 2023
Mama Mermaid
Killer mermaid time!
Friday, February 10, 2023
Estelle Harrow Gets Lucky
Saturday, December 17, 2022
The Sirens Call
The nights are getting longer and the days become cold...
Speckles of snow fall through the air, obscuring the dark, hidden things that wait just outside our vision...
It's wintertime, baby! And what better time to curl up and enjoy some dark fiction?
Thursday, October 6, 2022
Kids Are Hell
An abandoned warehouse. A girl with a tail. Screams in an orphanage.
My newest story "Nameless Child" is finally out. The anthology Kids are Hell is the latest anthology from Hellbound Books, and I couldn't be more excited to be a part of this collection.
Sunday, July 3, 2022
The Great Miss Sampson... Again!
My family dramedy The Great Miss Sampson has just been selected in the Christian Family Film Festival, coming this August in New York!
This is its third festival placement, after the Faith in Film and the International Christian Film and Music Festivals. All good things ahead!
Friday, July 1, 2022
And Now... Snow White!
I'm really getting into the podcast world lately. I just posted about my Lovecraftian radio drama for Horrifying Tales of Wonder (please check it out if you haven't). I was lucky enough to be a part of Life on Pause Season 2, which was a total, total blast.
And now, I'm writing ten episodes of a new kids podcast that's a little bit Snow White, a little bit Buffy, and a whole lot of crazy. It's an adventure with chicken monsters, a wicked witch, some karate, and even a little music! Fun stuff!
Here's an early look at Snowii, one of our young leads:
Sunday, June 26, 2022
The Same Old Lake
I finally wrote an old-time radio podcast. This one is for the Horrifying Tales of Wonder series, which merges classic radio with Lovecraftian goodness. It's right up my alley, basically.
So if you're down for a little creeping dread, check out "The Same Old Lake." It was such a joy to write and the actors really knocked it out of the park.
Tuesday, March 29, 2022
Remember: Filming Soon!
For those who've had at least one conversation with me within the last two years, you've probably heard me go on and on about my horror screenplay. Well, it's finally a reality! We go into production this June and I couldn't be more excited.
It's called Remember, and it's a horror movie about a group of young people who go to a cabin in the woods and start getting murdered one by one. Yeah, you've probably heard that set-up before, but this isn't something you've ever seen before. After each kill, the surviving characters forget that the victim existed. Each murder is a reset, and with every change, the characters shift in their personalities, relationships, and abilities to survive. Our friends and lovers shape us in so many indescribable ways, and when their memories are gone, what do we have left?
Remember is low budget. It's wild. It's filming in June! And if you want to be a part of this awesome project, search for "TheRememberFilm" on all of the socials. The producers are still looking for investors to join the team so check out the Remember website to see how you can help!
Monday, March 28, 2022
Chicken Soup for the Soul: Kindness Matters
For those of you who know me, it might come as a surprise that I'm part of the Chicken Soup for the Soul franchise. And yet...
This is my third story for them. It's a nice little mini-memoir from my time in Nepal. The topic is "Kindness Matters." And honestly, I'm really happy to be a part of this. I've used some of these Chicken Soup stories with my ESL students and they're always so charming. Little bit-sized bits of comfort.
(Cute, right? Kind ducks.)
And as far as publishers go, working with the Chicken Soup team has been amazing. They give you a bunch of advanced copies and offer all kinds of support. If anyone is an aspiring writing out there, Chicken Soup is a great outlet. (And every person out there has at least one real-life story that they could share.) Check out their calls for submissions. Seriously.
This story specifically was a bit hard for me, because I had to cut down a 3,000-word experience into something much smaller. Left out some specific details but kept all the big stuff.
Out of the three anthologies so far, I think I like this one the best. It has the biggest variety of funny/cute/dramatic/heartwarming stuff. Not sure how my story fits in that spectrum. Perhaps you could check it out for yourself.
And for the record, the other collections I was in were Life Lessons from the Dog and Grandparents, with one of my stories even included on their awesome podcast!
Saturday, March 26, 2022
Letterboxd
People, I've FINALLY joined Letterboxd! I just started using it, so not many friends yet, but add me if you have an account. I love to discover new movies by lurking on other people's profiles.
Today, I was supposed to work on a podcast script, but I procrastinated for probably four hours writing little reviews and ranking horror movie franchises. If you want to see some hot takes on 90s Whoopi Goldberg movies, check me out.
Friday, February 18, 2022
Listen to Cannibals!
I just saw the new Texas Chainsaw movie. Great stuff. A lot of people have some major problems with some of its choices, but I dug it all around. Wild and gruesome stuff.
Anyway, I figured now would be the perfect time to let you all know that my CANNIBAL short story is now in audio form. I love hearing wildly talented narrators take a crack at some of my horror stuff. For a refresher, this is the anthology:
Thursday, February 3, 2022
Kunzum Reading Corner: My Interview!
I got interviewed! The awesome people at Kunzum Bookshops in India have reached out to talk to me about my Karma Tandin: Monster Hunter series. It was a pleasure to answer the questions (Thanks, Shruti! You're awesome!) including one particularly difficult question about representation that I found quite interesting.
Tuesday, October 19, 2021
Evan Gets Literary!
As you probably know, most of my writing is pretty genre-heavy...
BUT I'm also a serious author (kind of), so it's important to branch out. For the first time in years, I've written something non-horror/scifi/fantasy/romance, and it's included in the second issue of the Blydyn Square Review. It's under a paywall, so you'll have to subscribe, but these guys publish some great, eclectic content.Thursday, September 9, 2021
Banshee Girl at the Austin Film Festival!
Wednesday, July 14, 2021
Underground Monsters
Underground creatures. Everyone loves 'em... from Cannibalistic Humanoid Underground Dwellers to, I don't know, molemen. The concept of weird beings living just under our feet has been the premise for several of my stories, including a particularly gnarly yarn in the San Cicaro anthology.
But this new one is a real doozy. The collection is called "Underground" from COLP, the eclectic magazine from Gypsum Sound Tales. Man, these stories are wiiiiiiild. Mine is called "Rosemont Hills Primary School" and it's about a little girl whose first day of first grade goes horribly, horribly wrong.
Sunday, June 13, 2021
I'm on the Red List!
Happily Destroyed started out as my entry in the 3-Day Novel Contest (top-ten finalist, baby!). After a BUNCH of revisions, the short novel was finally published direct to Amazon, and I'm quite proud of it.
Monday, March 29, 2021
Evan Gets Interviewed (Kid Reporter Edition)
Check out this ultra-charming review from a very professional young reviewer. I made this as part of a writing workshop thing I did for preteens. Man, it was fun.
Sitcom Girl
If you know me personally, you've probably heard me go on and on about "Sitcom Girl," a comedy webseries I wrote. If you don't know me, here's the gist:
A washed-up former child star tries to get her life back on track, but her big comeback is derailed when the fictional sitcom character she once played shows up on her doorstep. It's raunchy and fun, and for me it's a great outlet for my unending passion for cheesy retro sitcoms.
Anyway, this project has had a wild ride. I sold the pilot to an indie company that was all set to make it. Wrote a ten-episode season and worked closely with the producer guy before he pulled the plug on the whole project. Then COVID happened. Then my depression set in.
I still think this show has a bunch of promise, and I've been trying to get it out there as much as possible. It just got honored by Table Read My Screenplay (woo-hoo!) and Wiki: The World's Fastest Screenplay Competition. Not the biggest names in screenplay contests, I know, but still exciting.
So basically what I'm saying is that if you're interested in making a webseries with me, let me know. I figured that if no one's gonna buy this thing, I might as well do it myself.