What Inspired The Twisted Branch: From Nightmares to Published Book

I’ve always loved twists, turns, cliffhangers, and those gut-punch endings that leave you staring at the page. It’s been my dream to write a book stuffed with every wild twist I could dream up. I admire stories that build tension, creepiness, and devastating consequences all at once and that’s exactly where my inspiration started.

Think The Twilight Zone, The Outer Limits, Tales of the Unexpected, and The Monkey’s Paw. I wanted in on that gang, determined to join the greats, whether it took one book or twenty.

I’ve been writing on and off for about 20 years, short stories at first, then longer pieces, before diving into my first full novel. Book one took seven long years to write and another year to publish. Book two? About six months (it’s now in edits/proofs), and book three is just getting started. I chose self-publishing for the first one (not ruling out traditional forever), and honestly? I’m beyond proud. I finally did it.

I wasn’t sparked by one single story, but by a whole group that shared that killer twist. Stephen King’s shorter works, especially in Everything’s Eventual, shaped my style. The slow tension build, dark comedy, and explosive payoffs create that addictive “what happens next?” feeling. I wanted that same impact.

TV added fuel too. Black Mirror and The Twilight Zone nail modern scenarios flipped into eerie, mind-bending alternatives with those perfect “huh?” endings. I aimed for something similar, a slightly off “now” that feels normal… until it doesn’t. Picture a modern Genie-in-the-Lamp tale crossed with Twilight Zone vibes, Key & Peele humor, dark laughs, and a dash of horror.

I had a notebook crammed with 100 plus story ideas and wanted to published them all at once (ha, rookie mistake). Instead, I went with an anthology as the seed for a series, the first book to make readers go, “Wow, that was different,” and the start of something bigger.

People ask where my ideas come from. Truth... all are from my weird dreams. I wake up, scribble frantic notes, some I couldn’t even read after a while because trying to write, remember and wake up in the same moment is a little difficult. Sometimes deciphering the mess created an even better story. I basically have a dream diary turned book series, and I wanted to share these twisted bits with the world.

I researched grammar and American English hard (British writer here!), got my work proofread, and learned tons. My editor called me “one of the bad ones” at first, “Yeah, ouch”, but I studied every note, every correction and suggestion and voila. Book two had way fewer fixes, mostly just word swaps for US spelling. I jumped from a 2/10 to an 8.5–9/10. Big win, yay me!

If you’ve got a story burning inside you, twisted or not then just write it, do it for you if nothing else because believe me, its a fantabulous feeling holding something you took 7 years to make in your hands. The right readers are out there waiting, show them what you got.

So here’s my advice to you... If your ideas feel strange, creepy, or downright effed up, write them anyway. Don’t hide them and don’t worry what people will think. One reader who loves your weirdness will tell their friends, and it snowballs from there.

Someone once told me: “To hell with it, let’s do this.” So I did.

Thanks for reading my ramble, more twists coming soon. Fiona S🖤

A visual reflection of my love for suspenseful storytelling—stories filled with twists, creeping tension.

Many of my story ideas begin as strange dreams scribbled into notebooks in the middle of the night—frantic notes that later grow into the twisted stories behind my books.