Dartford dad releases debut horror novel The Doctor Will See You Now

Tom Carter, a dad-of-two who has lived in Dartford his entire life, and even used to deliver the News Shopper paper as a young boy, has released his horror novel on Amazon – The Doctor Will See You Now.

Set in the modern day but with classic twists inspired by 90s horror, the story follows a detective who is assigned the case to find a serial killer in the fictional town of Crescent Hill.

Tom initially wanted to produce the idea as a film script based on traditional horror characters such as Freddy Kruger, Michael Myers and Ghostface, but after realising that finding the budget to produce such a slasher film would be difficult, he turned his idea into a novel.

Tom told the News Shopper: “The story changed over time - and as it was no longer planned to be a film, I could go into more depth and include more characters.

“I thought I could get the story out there myself, but Question Mark Press, a small publisher set up to help authors get their work into the world, actually published it and they are fantastic.”

The book reached number 89 in the Amazon horror chart, and Tom has high hopes to see the figure keep climbing with horror fans encouraged to read his anticipated novel.

After work commitments and raising two young boys alongside his partner, Tom said it took him roughly eighteen months to finish the novel and says his process on writing his stories, is by having a beginning, and an idea of the characters.

Sign up to our newsletters to get updates sent straight to your inbox.

“I would just sit and write” Tom said, as he says the purpose of a first draft is to “get your ideas out on the paper”, to which you can go back and edit.

He explained: “I have never sat there and thought I had nothing to write.

“I mean, it may have not been great at the time, but the point of a first draft is to go back and tweak the story.

“In this book, there was no police presence when I first started writing, but after the fifth chapter, I thought something was not making sense, and knew that a police investigation was needed, especially as dead bodies were turning up.”

Tom says the support he has received from his friends and family has been “unreal” and “hard to believe” when he is given credit.

He added: “My uncle took the book up to a social club in the local area telling them to buy it.

“I have three brothers, and my eldest said he has ‘never read a book for fun’ but still has continued to read two of my own – my mum even read the book within a week.”

Tom is currently working on two more horror novels, with one set to be published later this year.

Tom said: “I finished one book during Covid and self-published, but I took it down because I loved it and thought I could improve it.

“The story has horror elements, but it is more of a paranormal romance vibe – I loved it and was so proud of it, so it deserves a little more effort.

“The other one I am writing – The House Of Whispers – is focused on a haunted house with elements of family and religion.”

You can buy The Doctor Will See You Now on Amazon