I was saddened to hear Mark Justice passed away suddenly this week. Although I never met him in person, I communicated with him regularly over the years via Facebook, email and message boards. When I sold my first short story, Mark was the one I reached out to for advice on what to write for my author bio. The example he sent me basically ended up being what I’ve used from that point on. He was always available to give advice and encouragement despite how busy he must have been working a full time radio DJ job, spending time with his family, writing horror novels, short stories and a weekly newspaper column and putting out his fantastic Pod Of Horror podcast. On a side note, his choosing my short story “Here He Comes A Wandering” as the winner of his POH Christmas Horror Story Contest in (2009), then personally reading it on an episode has always been a great source of pride for me.
I considered him a friend, as did a lot of people. He was someone you couldn’t help but instantly like due to his sense of humor and kindness. Mark appeared regularly here on Horror Delve, highlighted by his allowing me to interview him. I called him and talked to him for about an hour, which I recorded and transcribed for the site. Afterward, he graciously complimented me on how well he thought it turned out. Mark was an exceptional writer. His short story collection, LOOKING AT THE WORLD WITH GLASS IN MY EYE, is phenomenal with countless stories that have stuck with me ever since I read them. His weird western novella, THE DEAD SHERIFF, is tremendous fun, and I’m hoping the sequel he was working on is still able to come out. If I continued to rambled on about how awesome Mark was and how sorely he’ll be missed, this piece would never end, so instead I’ll post some links below to the times Mark was featured here. My heart goes out to his wife Norma, his friend and co-author of their DEAD EARTH SERIES, David T. Wilbanks, and everyone else lucky enough to have known Mark Justice. May he rest in peace.
DEAD EARTH THE GREEN DAWN REVIEW: https://horrordelve.com/2014/11/28/dead-earth-the-green-dawn-by-mark-justice-and-david-t-wilbanks-review/
MARK’S FAVORITE HALLOWEEN COSTUME: https://horrordelve.com/2014/10/08/horror-delve-asks-what-was-your-favorite-halloween-costume-mark-justice/
THE DEAD SHERIFF REVIEW: https://horrordelve.com/2014/04/27/thedeadsheriffreview/
INTERVIEW: https://horrordelve.com/2013/12/02/an-interview-with-mark-justice/
APPALACHIAN WINTER HAUNTINGS (Mark as co-editor): https://horrordelve.com/2014/12/18/appalachian-winter-hauntings-review/
Article by Matt Cowan
Horror Delve 
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