Wareham horror author Christopher Maxim's new book "How To Exit Your Body: and Other Strange Tales" draws some hauntingly familiar inspiration for its setting.

"I get a lot of my ideas from Wareham," Maxim said. "Almost everything I write is based here."

According to Maxim, the collection of seven short stories is a host of home grown horror taking place in locations such as the Mill Pond Diner and St. Patrick's Cemetery.

Maxim said he never had any plans of becoming an author but took an interest in horror when his brothers introduced him to online communities such as Creepypasta and the Reddit forum NoSleep.

"It's this really weird phenomenon," Maxim said. "People go on these sites and post first-person horror stories. The more popular ones get picked up and shared. From there, they kind of become urban legends."

Maxim said he decided to try his hand at horror after visiting these sites and was quickly met with a following.

His most popular story, "The Attic in the Basement," was even made into a short film.

From there, Maxim went on to write several other stories such as "The Monster in the Pantry" and his novella "There's Something Terribly Wrong With My Son."

"I love the suspense and mystery of horror," Maxim said. "So I try to have those elements be the most dominant in my stories."

The success of Maxim's writing eventually landed him a job with Creepypasta, managing submissions and the website's social media accounts.

"It's like a dream come true," Maxim said. "It really is."

"How To Exit Your Body: and Other Strange Tales" has already racked up 40 reviews on Amazon, the majority of which rank five-stars. The book is also for sale on shelves at Barnes & Noble.

Maxim said he intends to continue writing, and hopes that one day his stories could be made into a feature length movie or TV show.

"It's pretty surreal seeing how far I've already come," Maxim said. "So I'm excited for whatever comes next."

For more on Maxim and his writing, visit www.christophermaximwriter.com.