Kimberly Foottit

WHEN THE MUSE BITES BACKA supernatural short story collection that skewers creativity, ambition, and the ghosts we can't escape. A muse who cackles at your misery. A corporate machine that steals your soul for profit. A haunted cutting board that demands blood for inspiration. In "Writer's Block, " Kimberly Foottit delivers a collection of darkly funny, supernatural tales that skewer the agony and absurdity of creativity, ambition, and the ghosts-literal and figurative-that haunt us all. From a data clerk whose illegal soul-cloning unleashes a violent alter ego, to a bestselling author whose family legacy is written in blood, to a psychic investigator facing a building full of restless spirits, each story in this collection twists the familiar into something uncanny.
Whether it's a lonely actress befriending a vengeful ghost, a hearse driver granting a prom queen's final wish, or a toymaker bargaining with the Devil, Foottit's characters are driven by longing, regret, and the desperate need to create-or destroy. With wit as sharp as a ritual blade, "Writer's Block" explores the price of inspiration and the bargains we strike with our own demons. For anyone who's ever stared down a blank page or felt haunted by the stories they can't escape, these tales offer a wickedly entertaining answer to what happens when the muse bites back.