And here’s another author for you to try. She’s one of the contributors to the anthology, too.

British Horror author Nikki Tait is one of the writers whose stories are featured in the anthology The Haunted Train: Creepy Tales from the Railways. Today, she tells us about real-life creepy experiences and what she likes to read.

What is the weirdest experience you’ve ever had on a train?

While living in London, many journeys to and from work included travelling on the underground late at night. On an empty tube train, hurtling through the darkness, noisy and rattling with black shadows fleeting past the windows. More than once I felt the distance between some stations had changed. Sometimes it felt the space between these stations was longer than before. At times I wondered was I ever going to reach the next stop, or would this empty train rattle through the darkness forever? Just as I would be getting worried, the breaks would screech, the train would slow and the light of the platform would appear at the window. In relief, I would get off, only to be faced with another apprehension, an empty station late at night.

Thinking back on it now, I am still convinced something is wrong with time down there. Who’s to know where the tunnels lead to and if we are in the right one. I really should write a story about it.

Have you ever seen a ghost?

No, but I have felt like I was in the presence of one, and it wasn’t pleasant. The light had dimmed, like it was being suppressed somehow by the atmosphere. The air felt heavy and thick, for the first time ever I felt scared of something I couldn’t see, that I was nervous to be in the presence of. I wanted to run away from it, I could feel its presence pressing down on me with dark, negative energy.

It happened in my place of work, a very old building. I usually enjoy the history of the place, the feeling of being somewhere that so many different generations have used. I have never felt it before or since. It was a very strange experience.

I have also felt a lighter presence. Small items would fall from the shelves, not knocked off in a violent way, more playful and teasing. Possibly the spirit of a child.

What scares you?

Dark energies are terrifying, luckily, I’ve only ever experienced this once, but it was enough to make me realise I never wanted to feel it again.

Also, forgetting scares me. Like many, unfortunately, I have closely witnessed horrendous diseases like Alzheimer’s. That is truly terrifying.

Who is your favourite horror writer?

My new favourite horror author is Adam Nevill. Not much scares me these days and I was happy to discover his writing really leaves me spooked. He has a way of making the reader feel deeply uneasy.

What do you personally like about anthologies?

I love the various styles of writing, all about the same subject and in the same genre but all completely different. I like discovering authors I had never heard of. Especially when I find they have a body of previous work I can get stuck into.

Where do you find inspiration for your writing?

I find inspiration everywhere. In the dark, forest paths and in old buildings, by the river on a summers day where shadows lurk on the bank, on a city street late at night, lit up but silent, like a ghost town.

ABOUT NIKKI TAIT

Nikki writes psychological horror from her home in the Forest of Dean (Britain).

ABOUT THE BOOK THE HAUNTED TRAIN: CREEPY TALES FROM THE RAILWAYS

Come on board for a Gothic journey in a funicular railway in Victorian England, a freight train in the Carpathian mountains, a high tech sky train in Bangkok, an underground railway in Tokyo. Visit stations which lure with the promise of safe shelter but harbour unexpected dangers. Meet the people who work on the tracks – stationmasters, porters, signal-men – and those who travel – commuters, tourists, dead bodies, murderers and ghosts.

In this volume, editor Rayne Hall has collected twenty of the finest– and creepiest – railway tales. The book features the works of established writers, classic authors and fresh voices. Some stories are spooky, some downright scary, while others pose a puzzling mystery.

Are you prepared to come on board this train? Already, the steam engine is huffing in impatience. Listen to the chuff-chuff-chuff from the locomotive and tarattata-tarattata of the giant wheels. Press your face against the dust-streaked window, inhale the smells of coal smoke and old textiles, watch the landscape whoosh past as you leave the familiar behind and journey into the unknown.

But be careful: you can’t know the train’s real destination, nor your fellow travellers’ intentions. Once you’ve closed that door behind you and the wheels start rolling, you may not be able to get out.

The ebook is available for pre-order from Amazon at the special offer price of 99 cents until 31 January 2023. (After that date, the price will go up.) https://mybook.to/Train.

The paperback edition will be available soon.