Online For Authors Podcast

No Heroes Required: A Wild Journey of Imperfect People with Author Del Howison

Online For Authors Podcast

Show Notes

My guest today on the Online for Authors podcast is Del Howison, author of the book The Survival of Margaret Thomas. Del Howison is an author, journalist, and SAG actor. He is a Bram Stoker Award-winning editor of the anthology series Dark Delicacies: Original Tales of Terror and the Macabre by the World’s Greatest Horror Writers. He has written articles for Fear.net, Gauntlet Magazine, and Writers Digest among others. Del’s short story Cul-de-Sac appeared in Weird Tales Magazine #369. His western short story The Lost Herd was turned into the premiere (and highest rated) episode, The Sacrifice, for the series Fear Itself. His dark western novel The Survival of Margaret Thomas was shortlisted for the Peacemaker Award given out by The Western Fictioneers. He has been shortlisted for over half a dozen awards including the Shirley Jackson Award and the Black Quill. Del’s retrospective short story compilation of dark tales, What Fresh Hell Is This?, was released in March of 2025 and listed by Australia’s Aurelias Magazine as one of the best books of the year. He was the cofounder and owner (with his wife, Sue) of Dark Delicacies, a book and gift store known as “The Home of Horror,” located in Burbank, California. For that 31-year effort they were awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from The Horror Writer’s Association. The store won the “Il Posto Nero” award from Italy and has been inducted into the Rondo Hatton Hall of Fame.

In my book review, I stated The Survival of Margaret Thomas is a historical fiction western by Del Howison. I don't read many westerns, but this one really caught my attention. Margaret Thomas, known to her friends as Peg, has suffered a loss. Her husband, the sheriff, was killed by a band of outlaws. But now, she has a chance to see the killers go to trial.

The entire book takes place between getting the letter informing her of the trial and getting to the farflung location a several day train ride and then a long horse ride away. On the way, she, her dog, Slocum, and her horse, Horse, meet up with a crazy assortment of others - a gypsy, a dwarf, and a prostitute - who become her found family.

Everyone has experienced pain and hardship. Everyone has something they keep hidden inside. No one is a pristine character. And yet? I loved every character and cheered them on through all of their antics and adventures.

Definitely a fun read!

Subscribe to Online for Authors to learn about more great books! https://www.youtube.com/@onlineforauthors?sub_confirmation=1

You can follow Author Del Howison Website: https://awfulagent.com/jabclients/del-howison/ FB: @darkdelicacies FB: @delhowison IG: darkdelhorror LinkedIn: Del Howison

Purchase The Survival of Margaret Thomas on Amazon: Paperback: https://amzn.to/3SUDr4h Ebook: https://amzn.to/3UQJB5Z

Teri M Brown, Author and Podcast Host: https://www.terimbrown.com FB: @TeriMBrownAuthor IG: @terimbrown_author X: @terimbrown1

Want to be a guest on Online for Authors? Send Teri M Brown a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/member/onlineforauthors

#delhowison #thesurvivalofmargaretthomas #historicalfiction #western #terimbrownauthor #authorpodcast #onlineforauthors #characterdriven #researchjunkie #awardwinningauthor #podcasthost #podcast #readerpodcast #bookpodcast #writerpodcast #author #books #goodreads #bookclub #fiction #writer #bookreview *As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

More from Online For Authors Podcast

Oct 22, 2026

My guest today on the Online for Authors podcast is Lizette S Tupas, author of the book Always on a Tuesday. Lizzete S. Tupas is an author and healthcare strategist whose work explores identity, resilience, and the hidden cost of competence. With more than two decades of experience in healthcare, she brings a unique perspective to the ways high-performing people navigate expectation, control, and the often-invisible work of holding everything together.

Oct 20, 2026

My guest today on the Online for Authors podcast is RA Consell, author of the book Stealing from Wizards: Arson. Ryan Consell is the author of the middlegrade fantasy series, Stealing from Wizards. Aside from writing, Ryan Consell is a teacher of science and mathematics, stage actor, armorer, and nerd culture activist. His work has been featured on io9, Kotaku, Boingboing, MTV Geek, ,adartlab.com and in Game Developer Magazine. He is an internationally acclaimed theorist on the science of fiction. He has consulted on such titles as The Science of Game ofThrones; spoken at events including DragonCon and Convergence, and partnered with the American Chemical Society. He employs his background in materials science and engineering to overthink fictional physics and to make science more accessible to the public. Ryan was born and raised near Toronto. He has lived and worked in Tokyo and Vancouver, but currently calls Ontario home.

Oct 10, 2026

My guest today on the Online for Authors podcast is Theresa E Evans, author of the book Choosing to Die. Theresa Evans nursing career spanned fifteen years with a focus in Critical Care. She opened Stone Path Studio in 2007 where she taught therapeutic yoga and somatic movement. In 2014 she joined forces with Essential Somatics, LLC and began a 5 year journey of domestic and international travel teaching and developing program content for Clinical Somatic Trainings. In 2020 her mother died with MAiD (Medical Assistance in Dying.) Choosing to Die is her first novel and was born out of the experience of supporting her mother through that process. Currently she lives in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin with her husband Pete. Her focus now is on advocating for choice through Assisted Death.

Oct 8, 2026

My guest today on the Online for Authors podcast is Lynne Marshall, author of the book The Extraordinary Dreams of Cynthia Peabody and Cynthia Peabody's Big Fat Fake Funeral. USA Today Bestselling author Lynne Marshall has penned thirty-seven books. She has written Medical Romance for Mills & Boon, contemporary romance for Harlequin Special Edition and digitally with TULE. Publishing independently, she writes Women's Fiction where she explores the mysteries of life through endearing characters in unexplainable situations. Or, as she likes to call it, fiction for women of a certain age plus everyone who loves their nana.

Oct 6, 2026

My guest today on the Online for Authors podcast is Robert A Walker, author of the book Six Moons, Seven Gods. Robert A. Walker grew up in Northwestern Massachusetts. After graduating college, he packed his scant belongings in a car with rusted-out floorboards and headed west, where he began a decades-long career in local government. He’s lived in California ever since, and now resides along the Pacific Ocean with his wife and dogs, where he writes fantasy novels with a mix of drama, heart and humor.

See all episodes →