The Copying Cat

by Dark Mawson

Thriller writer Dark Mawson has it a hard-sounding pen name, a complete mastery of copying and pasting, and in his extensive back garden there's a pile of hardback copies of his last book so large that it can be seen from space. For some reason.

Until one day he receives a message that shatters his carefully-cribbed world. A message that reads,

"I COMPREHEND WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER."

Now, Dark Mawson must embark on a desperate quest through the seedy underbelly of independent publising, in order to clear his name and uncover... THE COPYING CAT.

For fans of everyone from Mark Dawson to William Boyd, Ed Vulliamy and Stephen Hunter. Adrenaline-fuelled parody fun featuring that gun James Bond uses... the Walter PPE? Yeah, that'll do for now. Remind me to look it up later.

A 10,000 word comedy short story for all the honest writers struggling to make their way in the sharkpit that the independent publishing community has become.

41 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 22, 2024

Reviews

[Liz Mistry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Relevant and enjoyable short parable that highlights the dangers of getting too cocky as an author and resorting to illicit means to increase your popularity.
Such a shame that this sort of tongue in cheek essay is necessary in this day and age.
Having said that I chortled and laughed my way through it

[Paul Gitsham · Rating 5 out of 5]

An awesome parody

A wonderfully observant parody of the publishing industry, that just might have been inspired by a recent scandal... a tip of the fedora to the author.

[Gayle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb!

Hugely enjoyable short read with some real laugh-out-loud moments. Highly recommend to everyone, even if you're not a writer yourself.

[SKP · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not my personal cup of tea, but it did have a number of funny parts.