Cirrus@Austlit

An author of dark fantasy, science fiction and horror, Alan Baxter's stories have been published in a number of print and online magazines and anthologies. 'I write in the fantasy, sci-fi and horror genres and my stuff is primarily based in the magical and the arcane.' he records on his website. 'I often like to play with various religious mythologies in my fiction. And it always seems to be dark. Even stories that I think are going to be lighter fare seem to end up a bit disturbing. Above all, I try to tell a good yarn with my fiction, but I would also like to make people think' (The Word - Alanbaxteronline.com).

Born in the United Kingdom, Baxter combined his passion for dark fiction with music (as a musician in various bands) and with martial arts throughout his youth and twenties. He studied various martial arts styles (including Kung Fu Judo, Karate and Muay Thai) and received instructor certification in the UK and USA during the course of some twenty-five years. After winning the 1996 he won the British Wutan Federation National Championship title, Baxter moved to Australia in 1997, initially living in Sydney where he became a dedicated student and teacher of Chan Family Choy Lee Fut Kung Fu and Qi Gong. He later established himself in the Kiama region of the Illawarra south coast of New South Wales, becoming associated with the Illawarra Kung Fu Academy as Chief Instructor.

Baxter's first novel, a dark fantasy/horror thriller called RealmShift, was self-published in 2006. Two years later he founded the independent small publisher Blade Red Press, based out of the village of Jamberoo (situated about 10 kilometres west of Kiama). The press' first publication was a re-released version of Realmshift (2008) followed by its sequel MageSign (2008). In 2010 both novels were acquired and republished by Gryphonwood Press. That same year he received an Honourable Mention in the Writers of the Future Competition (Second Quarter).

In addition to his novels Baxter has published both short fiction and non-fiction. His noir sci-fi novella Ghost of the Black: A 'Verse Full of Scum was initially serialised on his website throughout 2008. It is now available in print and e-book through Blade Red Press. He has also had stories published in numerous online and traditional publications, including Martial Arts Planet, Cyberkwoon, Haringer Journal, Horror Bound Magazine, House of Horror, M-Brane SF, Flashes in the Dark, Antipodean SF and Op-Ed Magazine. In 2007 his flash fiction entry, "Stubborn" won first place in the Scribe's Writing Desk Flash Fiction Competition (July). The first sentence was supplied and the word count was set at a maximum of 300 words. The previous month he has been placed second with "Grandma's Legacy."

Baxter's non-fiction includes general articles on writing, publishing, martial arts, strength conditioning and fitness, music, and movie reviews. His writings have appeared in such publications as Publitariat.com, Player Magazine, Publishing Renaissance, Business News Makers magazine, Miscellaneous Voices #1 (a blogging anthology) and is a regular contributor to Metal as Fuck e-zine.