Rochdale schoolteacher publishes Halloween-themed novel

The cover of 'Horror in the Dells'

A former primary school teacher from Rochdale has published a Halloween-themed novel, Horror in the Dells.

Written by Stuart Barlow, the 166-page book sees five curious children, dubbed ‘the super sleuths’, investigate a mysterious plume of smoke rising from the dells at midnight on Halloween.

However, a far different place awaits them at night than by day, as they must dig deep to face and escape the horrors they encounter. Will they get away or be forever lost in this dismal half-world between their reality and the horror in the dells?

Stuart said: “Horror in the Dells is the product of the stimulus I provided pupils with during my time in years five and six.

“To create the setting for this story, I would take my class into the adjacent dells and once there we would create a fantasy world of witches, goblins and other gruesome creatures which fired the children's imaginations and expanded their vocabulary, the end product of which was the creation of some wonderful writing, which they were invariably proud of.”

Stuart taught in local primary schools for a number of years. His passion focused on the teaching of imaginative writing with an emphasis placed firmly on children enjoying the use of vocabulary, style and context to produce a piece of work they could be proud of.

In his spare time, he completed three degrees at Manchester University, including a PhD.

‘Horror in the Dells’ is published by Vanguard Press books and is available for purchase now.