Joseph Harper is an old man down on his luck, ignored by his family at home and unappreciated as an English teacher at work. Rayleigh Laurel, one of his students, is a young man with nothing but luck. Strikingly handsome, the top of his class, he was born into the lap of luxury as the son of a wealthy senator. The two could not have any less in common. That is, until the day an accident befalls them in a closed and decrepit wing of a museum, and they are inexplicably bestowed with an otherworldly power: to shape the world around them with no more than a spoken word.
 
Joseph devotes himself to using this gift for the sake of others, selflessly helping those in need wherever he finds them. But Rayleigh, finding pleasure in the control this omnipotent narration offers, indulges in his darkest impulses. He becomes a cold and remorseless killer, preying on all those who cross him.
 
As the consequences of their actions unfold and they are brought to the attention of the public, it soon becomes clear that their differing paths are fated to violently collide.

**First place winner of the 2023 Next Generation Indie Book Awards in the novella category**
 
"The Bookish Dark" by Matthew Brady is a dark fantasy novella published by Mannison Press.