I asked fellow Midnight Oil anthology contributors to share some things about themselves prior to publication and those generous enough to do so will be appearing here for the next week or so.
Each entry gives a taste of their contribution, a little about them, how to contact them, how their story came about, and definitely a link to Midnight Oil (which you should purchase because it would make each and every one of us happy.
you do want to make us happy, don’t you?
i mean, considering what we wrote, you want us to know you’re a good person, right?).
And now, Denise Aparo’s The Vanishing:
Dvita stared at her reflection, disturbed by the image in the mirror. At twenty-two, she still had a baby-face expression when she was in a good mood. But now, the face in the mirror smiled at her with dead eyes.
Get OUT!
She flinched, trying to back away. Unable to turn her head, her arms hung limp by her sides. Helpless. The image in the mirror was speaking, but there was no sound.
Cheeks wet with tears. Her head jerked back in silent laughter. Hysteria overtook her body, shaking in a frenzy. Wild-eyed, she forced her own words, “STOP!” As she punched the mirror with her right fist, blood spewed from torn knuckles as she fled the bathroom.
How the story came about:
The 2025 Annual WordCrafter anthology is Midnight Oil: Stories to Fuel Your Nightmares is the third book of the Midnight Series. This book will complete the Midnight Anthology Series. The story prompt was looking for the dark fiction genre.
I had seen several YouTube video/articles in the past about science and medical marvels. I had remembered reading about an actual syndrome that pregnant women have experienced, called The Vanishing Twin Syndrome.
Vanishing twin syndrome (VTS) is a miscarriage that causes a pregnancy involving twins to become a pregnancy involving one embryo. It occurs when one of the embryos detected during an ultrasound stops developing and the viable twin is thought to ‘absorb’ its sibling. VTS can’t be treated or prevented.
I found it fascinating and eerie. I did further research on the subject and created questions, such as; what would happen if the viable twin had either memory or sense about the lost twin? What if the cells merged and carried the soul of both newborns—two souls occupying one body? What if the surviving twin had experiences involving the lost twin, or if the twin had an extrasensory perception and actual knowledge about the lost twin—communicating throughout their lives? Lastly, what if the twin, who had not survived, was in control of the body without the knowledge of the surviving twin?
I created a story taking into consideration all of the subject matter in mind and created “The Vanishing.”
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About Denise Aparo: Denise Aparo is an author with four published short stories in the horror/supernatural genre in the WordCrafter Midnight Anthologies. Her Midnight and Curses Series stories are written under Denise Aparo and are edited by Kaye Lynn Booth, through WordCrafter Press. As a native New Englander, she lives with her husband Joe, spending much of her time writing, reading, gardening, making crocheted blankets, and crafting with her grandchildren. She loves the paranormal historical fiction genre and has recently completed edits on her first novel, a historical fiction titled Crossbows, which will be self-published in the near future. She has a Master’s Degree in English – Fine Arts/Creative Writing with concentration in Fiction from Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU). And a member of five honor societies with leadership recognition. She is published in several newspapers and magazines—special interest articles, along with poems and short stories that have been published in print and digital format. She is a member of the Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association (CAPA) and the author of a WordPress writing blog, The Write Voice. Denise has three short stories in the horror/supernatural genre in the Midnight Series, through WordPress. These short stories are published under Denise Aparo. The third and last of the Midnight Series, MIDNIGHT OIL: STORIES TO FUEL YOUR NIGHTMARES. A short story published in another anthology is titled Curses: Chronicles of the Darkness, is titled “The Mohawk Monster: The Curse of the Herkimer Diamond,” a horror/supernatural genre based on curses. This anthology is also edited by author, Kaye Lynn Booth. Midnight Roost: Weird and Creepy Stories: 20 authors created 23 paranormal stories of horror. Creepy tales that give you goosebumps! Her short story is “The Pines.” Midnight Garden: Where Dark Tales Grow: 17 authors crafted 21 eerie horror stories. Her short story is “Jack Moon and the Vanishing Book.” Midnight Oil: Stories to Fuel Your Nightmares: Chilling stories that steal into your thoughts! Her short story, “The Vanishing” was chosen as the winning story in the 2025 WordCrafter Dark Fiction Contest, published October, 2025! You can fine Denise on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn |
See all Midnight Oil stories here.
And for our finale, a teaser to the anthology
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