The best stories aren’t created. They are discovered. That’s my firm belief.
There are snatches of time when it peels open—the place where stories reside. I see the back of a character’s head, a frozen scene of whispering trees, a coin changing hands. My heart lurches, I stay with the moment, praying the gap doesn’t close. Usually, I must ascend to a place beyond myself, beyond the tangible, and hollow out my interior so the story can flow down into me; I need to create that gradient.
This doesn’t often happen in one sitting. Heck, it never even happens when I am still. It happens when I least expect it, when I’m driving, or seeing a patient, or taking a shower. Once I spot the portal, I mark the spot and return with my tools. I chisel away gently, so the story wouldn’t feel threatened. Small, small, poco a poco, the space widens. I see the characters in their milieu, moving, interacting—layer after layer exposed until the whole story runs its course. It’s like transcribing a movie.
I drive 45 minutes to work every day. A quarter of my journey is through country roads. Every day, I meet roadkill, animals slaughtered by merciless cars, left to rot. I have often wondered who clears them away, who takes care of these messes. One day, on my drive, the portal opened, and this time, I saw a tall man in a black robe kneel beside a roadkill, I think it was a dog. He was there to bury it. That image stayed with me for months, till my first daughter was born. And with her birth, the dog in the road became a placenta. As soon as this incarnation locked into place, the rest of the story that will become Where Shadows Gather tumbled into me; the receptacle, the observer, the chronicler.
Over the months that followed, I wrote in the wee hours of the morning, at night, in any space I could find amid the tensions of work, family, and schooling. I wrote feverishly, as one who understands the responsibility of witness. The things I see, I must write, because how else can stories, those particles of life, be packaged and distributed?
In Where Shadows Gather, you’ll find the suburb of Kwabenya, Accra, warped into a treacherous maze by a madman’s words—populated by gossips, hotel boys, prostitutes, pastors, charlatans, witches, spirits and nightmares. This maze must be successfully navigated by Police Officer Comm Quartey, or disastrous consequences await.
My publisher, Masobe Books, places it in the “Horror” genre. But there is so much more—magical realism, mystery, poetry, music, philosophical ruminations, and a touch of romance. If you’ve never visited Ghana, this could be your travel guide, a cultural immersion. Forgive me if you stumble over the Ghanaian lingo scattered throughout the text. They aren’t meant to be landmines. They’re meant to be spice. If you’re Ghanaian, I offer you both nostalgia and fresh perspectives.
People often say they are reading an author. When you read this novel, I don’t think that will be true. You’re not reading me. Because, in a sense, I am neither the author, nor the creator. None of that fancy stuff. I simply observed a story and transcribed it. It is its own living, breathing entity.
I hope you read it and that whatever it reveals to you, you cherish. I hope you press it into someone else’s hands when you turn the last page. Above all, I hope your sleep is safe, free from nightmares, because for me it wasn’t. I have borne the brunt of sheltering Where Shadows Gather. And now, I’ll share it with you—poor soul!
Where Shadows Gather is published by Masobe Books. Its paperback is due for release on 13th August, 2026, while Epub will be out earler on July 17th. The book can also be accessed via the Masobe Books app, available on Playstore and Apple Store. Where Shadows Gather pre-order is available here.
Michael Agyapong
Michael Agyapong is a Ghanaian writer and the creator of Snappy Stories, a microfiction serial published on his Instagram and X platforms (@kwasi_sei). His work has appeared in The Munyori Literary Journal, The Kalahari Review and in two anthologies from the Ama Ata Aidoo Centre for Creative Writing. He has previously written under the pseudonym Kwasi 'Sei. He is a practising medical doctor. When he is not working, you'll find him wrestling with his toddler and losing, or sleep-writing at night. You can engage with him at www.michaelagyapong.com
