A bloody mess A bloody mess

Checkatrade teams up with award winning author

Checkatrade has joined forces with award-winning novelist and oral storyteller Sophie Draper to create ‘A Bloody Mess’, an exclusive short story recounting the horrors of DIY gone wrong.

The short story, downloadable as an eBook, sees Bram Stoker’s iconic ‘Dracula’ get a dramatic makeover just in time for Halloween. Draper’s retelling is inspired by real tales of DIY disasters from social media, as well as first-hand horror stories as told by Checkatrade members.

Illustrated by comic book artist Amrit Birdi, the plot sees Jonathan Harker, the main protagonist from Stoker’s original, recast as a decorator called in to revamp Dracula’s castle. Once inside, Harker encounters a litany of ghoulish home maintenance horrors, including red paint seeping like blood through the door and patterned, chrysanthemum yellow wallpaper horrifyingly hung upside down.

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