Stephen Bacon’s ‘Pseudonym’ kicks off the book and although in itself it isn’t a sleazy horror story as per the tagline of the book, it centers on an author who, in his heyday, was made famous for writing those kinds of horror books.

The story’s protagonist, after many years, finally gets a reply to his request to interview the author, Gilbert Hudson (A play on Shaun Hutson perhaps?), in his rural home. Upon arrival the protagonist doesn’t find what he expects. Stephen Bacon does a great job in the build up, lavishing us with great memories of those pulpy 80s horror books about tentacles, slugs and leeches etc. He draws us into a mystery with a satisfying conclusion. For those who remember the horror books of the period will no doubt get a kick out of this one. I didn’t think the reveal quite hit the highs of the earlier buildup, but that’s certainly no detriment to a fun and well-written story.

Next up we have a story that caused me the most problems of the book. I fear this story might be quite divisive and very much dependent on personal taste. Johnny Mains gives us the marvelously sleazy title ‘The Cannibal Whores of Effingham.’ It’s gory, pulpy, darkly comic and weird. My main problem with it was that for me personally, I couldn’t really follow the narrative—which to be fair I think is part of the aim. It feels like one of those drugged-up 60s psychedelic horror films where you’re not entirely sure what’s going on. I didn’t really know who was a protagonist or antagonist. Within the first page, utter chaos rains down and keeps going at full throttle until the very end with frantic head-hopping and mad scenes one after the other. In some ways it reminded me of American Psycho.

I’m not saying it’s a bad story at all, just that for my personal taste I didn’t really get invested in the style of it. But I know that fans of gruesome bizarro fiction will get a kick of Mr Mains’ wild story. It certainly fits the brief and will no doubt appeal to sleaze aficionados.

In a dramatic change of style, the third story from John Llewellyn Probert, ‘Out of Fashion,’ takes us to the clogged streets of Victorian London. Written in a subtle and flowing style, I was immediately hooked. The slightly pompous, but inventive Professor Morley Cavendish is disturbed by one of his students knocking at his door after-hours. Within his arms is the unconscious body of the boy’s girlfriend. Her corset is stuck, and not by natural means. The story quickly gets into a Lovecraftian bent with a suitably horrible monster and the realization by Cavendish of a far wider consequence of the things that came out of the Thames.

With no disrespect to the other stories, this, along with Mark West’s story was my favorite of the collection, but then I’m a sucker (no pun intended) for Lovecraft style fiction, and Mr Probert has done a fine job in conjuring the right atmosphere and creating engaging and vivid characters. I’d love to read more of Probert’s work in this style. Highly entertaining.

The fourth story in the collection by acclaimed writer Stephen Volk is highly disgusting. And that’s testament to Volk’s quality and no slight on the story. I rarely have this problem with horror. I’m desensitized to most things and rarely get a reaction beyond mildly entertained, but this one made me feel physically sick, which given the kind of story it is can only be taken as a glowing reference.

Volk starts us off with a first person narrative of a fairly dull individual who has learned one skill: how to be a brown-noser: how to appease his bosses to make his life easier. He’s proud of this skill, but it soon comes back to bite him on the arse (pun intended).

When a new employee starts at the business, the narrator soon realises that he can’t schmooze his way around the new man and intends to get rid of him, which for the time being he accomplishes. But he didn’t imagine what would come next in an ordeal so grim and so expertly written that you’ll no doubt cringe all the way to the grissly end.

It’s the finest story of sleaze I’ve ever read and don’t wish to read again. Volk’s skills and imagination are considerable. It’s weird that I should recommend this story given my reaction to it, but like Mains’ madcap tale, I know this will be popular with the right kind of reader.

And lastly, to cap off this eclectic mix is Mark West’s ‘The Glamour Girl Murders.’ Set in London, 1976, the story follows up-and-coming photographer, and foot fetishist, Bob Parker, as he attempts to break into the glamour/porn industry with his skills behind the lens. Back-dropped to Parker’s story is the series of murders of glamour girls, of which Parker finds himself right in the middle of.

I’ve read a number of works by Mark and one of his great strengths beyond a riveting narrative is really nailing the atmosphere of a by-gone era, whether that is the 80s or 70s. I felt as if I were right there following Parker as he travels around London going about his business. Every description hit home and conjured strong images in my mind. It’s a great study in how to use setting as a character.

I won’t say much more about the story as I don’t want to give too much away, but Mark does a fine job of feeding enough information and detail to keep the suspense running from start to finish in a fine murder/thriller story. It’s a thoroughly enjoyable tale that caps of an anthology of mixed subject matter. Each story, in their own unique way, gives homage to the cult of sleaze horror.

Although a couple of the stories weren’t to my personal taste, overall this is a fine collection and I’m sure horror fans will find a lot to like about this Hersham title.

Anatomy of Death can be purchased in ebook and paperback versions from Amazon.

There were a few issues I had with writing this one, and I faced a number of different challenges to writing the first. And it’s here that I will discuss some of those, mainly to exorcise a few bad times, and also to give readers an idea of what it’s like to write a follow. Lastly, other writers might benefit from what I’ve learned, or at the very least commiserate/relate to their own struggles.

So here’s just a few select issues I had writing the 2nd book:

1. Oh my god it’s all crap and everyone will hate me.

Once your first book is out there, you’re only judged on that book, and that book alone—unless you have happened to have committed some awful crime, or appeared on X-Factor (one and the same thing?), then you might be judged for those things as well. But either way, it’s a relatively clean slate.

Before Artificial Evil, I had only put out and had published a number of short stories. People hadn’t read anything longer than about 10k from me. So my first novel was something fresh and new. And in the main, those who have read it enjoyed it. Sure, it’s not a best seller and I’m not surrounded by hot gold-diggers and driving to the shops in a red Lambo. Riches aside, the book was well-received generally. Huzzah! *Throws confetti*.

Now though, there’s a little bit of pressure. That hideous, Nyarlathotep-looking ‘what if’ beast rears its ugly, eldritch head in as many guises as one’s imagination can come up with. And when you’re talking about trans-dimensional Cthulhu-Mythos creatures, that’s a lot of what if scenarios.

“What if it’s really bad? What if they hate it? What if poops all over the good credit that the first book earned? What if all those bad pictures that people on twitter keep telling me others are spreading are true?”

Ultimately, all this stems to a core problem that all writers face: self-doubt. There’s only one-way to get through it and that’s to keep writing. Easier said then done, and the self-doubt and what ifs crippled me for more days than I care to remember. Still, you have to grind through and drag some faith from somewhere, or as I did on more than one occasion: learn not to give a shit and write anyway.

2. What was the story again? Where’s this going? That don’t taste like cheese.

A vision can change over time. What started out as a story about freedom turned into something much larger: a story that questions what makes us human, and how far we would be willing to go to preserve that. But still more questions crop up and before you know it, the story has myriad themes punching you in the face, demanding attention and wanting to be written.

You read the first book again to get back on track, but now you see it with new eyes. Much bigger eyes, like dinner plates ready to analyse all the themes and distill them down into one uber-theme— a Frankenstein-esque monster, made up with various parts that goes running out screaming, and scaring Victorian ladies at night in the high street.

So now book 2’s original idea seems tiny, pointless, shallow. It’s Victoria Beckham when you want Roseanne Barr. You want a story full of meaty issues with a little side dish of crazy. Not a barely-there photo opportunity.

So I weep for a few days, lost in the plot woods, trying to find a way out. There seems to be no path, no route, and no signposts—just more woods. And I do that weird thing where I’ve walked for what seems like days, heading in one direction only to find I’m in the Blair Witch Project and I’ve done a full circle and ended up back where I started with the far-off laughter of some mentalist mocking me for not bringing a working compass.

The answer in this case? Something that I speak on more in the next issue, but essentially it’s this: go with it. Don’t worry that there’s no direction, just drop the map. Hell! Burn it, make a paper plane out of it, smear poop on it if that gets you going, just let it go. And much like the first problem: learn not to give a shit and keep writing.

(I didn’t address the cheese question. I know. Don’t worry about it.)

3. This isn’t how I imagined it! Why are you doing that?

I was a plotter—a big time, super-detailed, known everything in advance like some blinded old wizened seer who sits cross-legged in a cave with a lizard for a pet kind of plotter.

For years it worked well. For novels and short stuff alike. But then occasionally I’d trip up, and struggled to make the story fit. I’d fight against that terrible anxiety every time I accidentally slipped in a subplot or I wrote a character doing something that I hadn’t previously divined with my runes and chicken bones.

This 2nd book, which was already plotted out just did not want any of that farseer stuff. Nope, not happening, Skippy.

I was this book’s bitch. I had it plotted it out because I had already planned a third in the series. The original goal was this: Three books, all approx. 50k words in length, single point-of-view from a different character in book.

Simples. Or so I thought.

The first one played ball—to a degree. I was confident it’d be a quick project to wrap up all three books into a nice concise series. But hell no, sunshine! No.2 bit back and no matter how much I got all Steve Irwin (RIP) on it, wrestled it into the shallow waters; it refused to do what I told it.

So, this 50k single POV book that was all ready to go turned out to be an 85k word story with multiple POV, and five new characters. One who completely turned the entire series on its head. This barely covers the number of untold new plot twists that have made any ideas I had for no.3 an exercise in futility.

Lesson learned: embrace the chaos, go with the madness, join that club run by that nice bearded man in the robes. And of course: learn not to give a shit and keep writing.

I won’t labor the point anymore, as I’m sure you’ve got the gist, but the pressure of matching expectations, real or imagined; the fear of doing the first book an injustice; the fear of losing control and thus the metaphorical plot; the logistical concern of making sure your characters and the world is consistent. These are all things that can cause self-doubt and derail a book.

I’m sure many of these apply to standalone follow-up books, too. But I think they take on a sharper edge when applied to a series. Despite that, I made good progress in the end, and learned to embrace the chaos. Hopefully, with conquering those various issues, I’ve written a good book that transcends my fears and delights readers. Time will tell! But either way, I love it and think it’s one of the best things I’ve written.

When is it out? I hear you ask.

I’m part way through the 2nd draft. When this is done (about a week) it’ll be off to a couple of trusted beta-readers. When I have their notes, I’ll assess any fixes or additions needed and run a third draft. That will then go off to my copy-editor, which will generate a further draft, and then the proofreader, and finally published.

At this point in time I’m looking at anywhere between 6-10 weeks. Hopefully quicker depending on everyone’s schedules. As soon as I have more concrete dates, I’ll be sure to let you all know.

In the meantime, if you’ve not read the first book, now would be a good time to do so. I’ve dropped the price for a short period so why not take advantage? You’ll help me eat for a day or two and perhaps I’ll live long enough to finish the third book.

Artificial Evil: Book 1 of The Techxorcist.

Print and ebook available from Amazon US and UK (and all the countries too).

Without further ado, on to the interview.

1. In your book, Nexus, you explore transhumanism through the lens of a government/public struggle for technology. In Kade and his friends we have the altruistic view of transhuman technology, and with the various government agencies they represent a more militaristic view of the technology, seeking to keep it out of the hands of the public. Do you think going forward, the governments of this world will stifle transhuman progression, or like Kade, do you think independent entrepreneurs and scientists will be able to develop this technology themselves?

Ramez: My best guess is that consumer demand is going to drive this, and governments are going to have to bow to that.  People have pretty baked in desires to live longer, be healthier, have greater capabilities, etc… In most cases, governments are going to bow to that.  That’s going to mean change.  Today there’s no mechanism in the world to approve a drug or genetic tweak that makes you smarter.  We don’t have a way to approve enhancements – only to approve things that cure diseases or heal injuries.  That’s likely to change as the technology matures.

Now, the wild card is terrible things happening.  9/11 shocked this country, and led to the reversal of what had been a long-term trend towards greater and greater civil liberties. If the technologies I’m writing about – biotech, nanotech, neurotech – get used in major terrorist attacks, or are central in terrible accidents, you may see society recoil away from them, and governments lock them down.  That’s the backstory of the world in Nexus – that between now and 2040 there have been some terrible things done with these technologies, and that’s part of why they’re so restricted.

I’m very pleased to announce that I’m being published by DarkFuse. My horror novella ‘Dead Five’s Pass’ will be released in a limited edition hardback and ebook in March, 2014. For those who don’t know, I’ve been running a writing challenge—The Million Word In a Year Challenge—and this novella was written as part of the challenge. But you came here to find out how I got this published and I shall tell you.

Seeding Serendipity

Usually, when a book gets published, it has followed the traditional route: The writer finishes their opus, researches agents or publishers, sends their manuscript out, and receives rejections until they  either give up and try a different book or it gets accepted. This is a process I myself have done many times for both novels and short stories, and I was prepared to do this for my my novella ‘Dead Five’s Pass.’ However, it didn’t quite happen like that.

Before I wrote this book, I had written and chosen to self-publish another book called Artificial Evil: Book 1 of The Techxorcist. And that’s where the serendipitous event happened. Dave Thomas, one of the editors over at DarkFuse saw my book and decided to give it a read. Luckily for me, Dave enjoyed it and asked if I had anything else, and whether I would be interested in submitted to DarkFuse. Well, at the time I didn’t have anything ready as I was already part way through Assembly Code, the follow up to Artificial Evil, but I did have an outline for a horror novella that I wanted to write some time ago.

So, as this opportunity presented itself, and as I started the million word challenge, it all fell into place and I took that outline and wrote the novella. With beta-reading help from a good friend, I polished it and sent it off to Dave and waited.

It turned out the guys at DarkFuse liked it and offered me a deal. It will be a limited ed. Hardback and ebook and scheduled for March, 2014, with the artwork for the cover created by the super talented Zach McCain, who works closely with DarkFuse and other publishers.

To say I’m happy with this is an understatement. DarkFuse have been signing up some of the best talent in horror as well as a number of my fellow british horror authors, and I’m honoured to be in their company. I will update this website with more news, the cover etc nearer the time. For now, though, here’s the blurb for the novella (subject to change).

Dead Five’s Pass

When a new cave is discovered in the Rocky Mountains, no one considered the terrible consequences that would follow.

A volunteer mountain rescuer dealing with the loss of a child, the break-up of a relationship and the grief of a rescue gone wrong, Carise Culey isn’t sure she’s the right person for the job when she receives an emergency call. A climber is missing, presumed dead, and his girlfriend is found bloodied, beaten and catatonic with fear.

Carise soon realises the discovery of the cave is worse than anyone could have imagined and learns of another group of teenagers already on their way there. With the onset of harsh winter weather, and the dark threat of a great unknown evil, she reaches out to her ex-boyfriend and fellow rescue volunteer, Marcel, for help.

The two have to travel to the cave and face the insidious thing under the mountain in order to save the kids, themselves, and perhaps all of humanity.

Other Publishing News

It’s been a good few weeks for acceptances, and along with my novella I’ve also been fortunate enough to have two short stories accepted for anthologies with two excellent publishers.

The first is with the brilliant girls over at Sirens Call Publishing.

Step off the beaten path and explore the psychosis that defines the line between your average run-of-the-mill murder and the complex mind of a serial killer!

My story ‘Crimson Stiletto’ was accepted for their Slaughterhouse: Serial Killer Edition anthology. More details here. It will be available a little later in the year. I’ll update with more details soon. This is my fourth credit with SCP and I’m always impressed by their professionalism and this is shaping up to be a great collection of stories.

The second acceptance was for a special anthology project by Screaming Spires Publishing. My story ‘Truffle Pig’ will feature alongside such authors as Ramsey Campbell, Graham Masterton, Gary Fry, Gary McMahon, Mark West, and many more. Check it out; it’s going to be a great anthology and the most important thing is that this is for a really good cause: children with autism.

1. For readers new to your work, could you give us a brief introduction of your work, what your early influences were and what made you want to be a writer?

I’ve written a number of novels in a number of genres, about 30 of them now. The majority are SF. I’ve been most successful in action-SF. When I was young, my favorite pastime was reading fantasy and SF. I would say classic authors from the 1950s to the 1990s are my biggest influences. I started sending in short stories to magazines when I was 17. Like many who love fiction, I wanted to create my own worlds.

2. Many of the readers to my blog are fellow writers, and one thing we writers often like to talk about is process. Given the number of titles you have available you appear to be quite a prolific writer. Could you tell us about your writing process and how you approach your stories?

When I’m writing, I write every day. Even on Christmas and my B-Day. But in-between books I’m editing and sleeping and reading new material. It’s a cycle. As far as what to write next goes, I keep a recorder with me at all times and record thoughts and story ideas. Later, I type them into files and organize them. I have files with literally thousands of these thoughts, which I weave together into a story when I have enough related material.

So, from one standpoint a book takes me a few months to write, but from another it might take a decade or more. SWARM, my most successful book, was something I was thinking about and piecing together for more than a decade. When I finally wrote it, it seemed to write itself.

3. One thing that is noticeable when looking at your bibliography is the wide variety of stories that you tell. You have everything from paranormal romance, fantasy to military SF. Have you faced any challenges in marketing these disparate genres? Or do you readers find something common in all of your stories regardless of genre?

The new system of Indie publishing allows us to write what we wish. Under traditional publishing models, this would never be accepted. This has the advantage of allowing for more freedom and experimentation. But it also means I confuse and upset some of my readers. Many don’t understand why one of my series might not read like that last one at all. Overall, it’s probably best to write one thing over and over, but I get bored easily, thus the variety is unstoppable.

4. Given your variety of styles, how do you decide which book to write next? Do you plan them out in say, a series, or are you the kind of writer who just writes whatever they feel like at the time?

I generally write books in pairs. The first book is from my most popular series at the moment. The next one is whatever I want, an experiment, a new idea, something from an old series that isn’t as popular. Then the next book goes back to popularity again. This keeps me from getting stale. Many authors I’ve read who pound out one book after another in a popular series seem to get sick of it after a while and upset their fans. I write other things to stay fresh.

As far at planning them out, yes, I do think in terms of a series now. It depends on the book, however. I write the Mech Series as independent books in the same SF universe, for example. Often, few or no characters carry over from one to the next. The Star Force Series is very different, as it is first person and centers on a single man’s POV. Therefore, the Star Force Series had a goal endpoint to be reached before I even started. The Mech Series is more episodic, and so I just write one at a time.

5. You seem to have enjoyed quite a bit of success at self-publishing, other than writing a great story, one of the biggest challenges is exposure and discoverability. Have you done anything specific to help your books be found amongst the vast catalogue available? What techniques or methods have you found to be effective for your stories?

Honestly, I did very little marketing and facebooking, etc. You have to build a product people want and make it attractive enough to get that click on Amazon, BN, etc. Learn and use every tool they give you to reach your audience. That is about all I’ve done.

My advice to people who have little success with a title is to move on after a few attempts to fix it. If a book doesn’t sell well in its first three months, it never will. Time to write something else! As Raymond Chandler often said, “Every author’s first million words are crap!”

6. I noticed you have some books with Amazon’s imprint 47North (Congratulations, by the way), had you received interest from other traditional publishers given the success of your indie titles? And if so, what was it about Amazon’s Imprint that made you sign with them?

I’ve sat with my agent in the offices of Del Rey, Penguin and others. So far, I’ve not done a deal with them, despite requests. I’m ambivalent about working with them, but it may happen in the future. I want to reach that half of the reading world that doesn’t do Ebooks, but I’m not willing to submit to their contract terms.

They basically want all rights and they want to do the whole project in slow-motion. Amazon’s 47North people really wanted me to be part of their initial 8 authors, and I couldn’t say no!

7. On a similar note, how have you found working with Amazon so far? I’ve heard/read from a few authors who generally only have positive things to say about working with Amazon’s Imprint’s, has that been your experience?

Amazon’s 47North has been more flexible and faster-moving than other publishers. I’m very pleased with them at every level and I plan to stay with them for now. I can give you a few examples: they welcome the author’s input on everything, covers, blurb, editing steps, the works. They also give books a publicity budget, rather than expecting new authors to do all the marketing themselves.

8. Given your work with Amazon, would you consider working with a ‘traditional’ big six (or is it 5 now?) publisher?

Yes, I would consider working with them and have been invited to do so. I’ve met with them and I was impressed with the people. They have energy and talent. All my problems with them come down to contract and speed issues. I live in a new world where I can’t wait two years for a title to hit the shelf. Physical BN stores may or may not exist in two years, for example. To tie up a property for that long seems like a fantastic waste to me. I feel as if I want to sell my car, but the dealership wants to repaint it and detail it before putting it on the sales lot—that’s fine, but not if he takes two years to shine it up!

9. What are your thoughts on free ebooks or super-low price books? Are you in favour of them as a promotional tool, or do you think they are detrimental to the market as a whole?

I’m against this whole trend. Giving away the first 10% of any book should be more than enough. I don’t mind Amazon’s book-a-month token system, which makes sense as their is a source of funding from Amazon Prime. But giving away full content to gain marketshare in the short term is a doomed path. There’s not much I can do about it other than produce books people believe are worth money to read.

10. Finally, could you tell us a little bit about your current book, and for readers new to your work, where would you recommend they start?

My latest book is ANNIHILATION, the seventh novel in my most popular Military SF series. If you are new to my work, start with SWARM, the first book in the series. As of this writing, it is the number one bestseller in Military SF (but that won’t last too long). The books tell a Space Opera that is hard to follow if you don’t start at the beginning.

You can find out more about B.V Larson here:
- Website
- Amazon Author Page

First off, I have to give you 11 facts about moi.

1. I’ve climbed three mountains: One in Wales and two in Canada.
2. I don’t believe in ghosts or the afterlife.
3. Despite being on only a handful of boats, I often dream of being a deep sea fisherman.
4. I believe Ray Bradbury is our greatest ever prose writer.
5. I will never write a zombie story.
6. I have a double fracture in my left ankle that will never heal.
7. I’m really bad at angling.
8. I used to build and race radio controlled cars and boats.
9. I can make electric guitars and fine furniture.
10. I had a dog called Satan who was the most loveable creature ever.
11. I will wrestle you.

And now for the 11 questions:

1. Who’s the most underrated author out there that you know of?
   Brian Lumley. A real stalwart of horror and writer of Cthluhu Mythos, rarely gets enough credit.
   
2. You need to pick one song to be used to torture unpleasant terrorist types, by playing it to them full volume 24/7. What do you pick?
   Anything by Coldplay or Maroon5 (basically the same shit). It’s the worst of all music; insipid nonsense.
   
3. As a writer, what is your own personal definition of success?
   Enough readers, and thus money, to ensure I can write full time.
   
4. How do you like your steak?
   Well done. I hate blood in my meat.
5. A genie grants you get an extra hour every day, meaning your days are 25 hours long. The condition is you must use this hour to take up a brand new hobby. What do you pick?
   Blacksmithing; to make one’s own tools and weapons. 
6. What’s the most overrated piece of writing advice you’ve ever been given?
   Write what you know. It’s utterly useless advice.
7. If you were in a band, what would your band name be?
   BUY MY BOOK!
8. Oxford Commas – yes or no?
   Yes. It makes perfect sense.
9. What’s the most embarrassing typo or mistake you’ve ever found in your work after publication?
   I missed the ‘e’ on ‘snake’ in a crucial, violent moment, thus ruining the entire effect. No one is scared of a dangerous ‘snak.’ 
10. Who’s your favourite Muppet?
    I don’t really have one, but at a push, I’d say Beeker.
11. Will you write me a haiku?
    No. But here’s one I stole of the Internet: 
    I am the Batman
    ‘Cuz my parents were shot dead
    Bad guys are douchebags

Nominations:
For this I have to nominate 11 other writers, so here you go:
Joseph D’Lacey, Anne Michaud, Krista Walsh, John Wiswell, Johann Thorsson, Aaron Sikes, Margrét Helgadóttir, Angela Addams, Steve McHugh, Laura Diamond, LK Jay

And here are your 11 questions:

1. You could be one character in a TV show. Who would that be?
2. What is your strongest skill in writing?
3. What is your weakest?
4. Other than writing, what else would you like to be known for?
5. You could save the dolphins or tigers… which one?
6. Who’s the weirdest person you’ve ever met?
7. Your most embarrassing public experience?
8. If you could be proficient with one weapon, which would it be?
9. Which genre would you like to see disappear?
10. You could take one book to an afterlife, what would it be?
11. Remote cabin in the woods, or a city centre apartment?

This week I’m departing from books for a while and talking about a couple of cracking horror films I’ve seen lately. First up is Sinister.

This comes from the writer of the Exorcism of Emily Rose (which I didn’t enjoy very much) so I went in with low expectations but my opinion soon started to change in the first few minutes when I discovered that the lead actor was Ethan Hawke and that he was playing a true crime writer. I always enjoy films featuring writers and frankly I don’t care if that’s a cliché.

When Hawke’s character turns up at a new house we soon discover that it was home to a family murdered (hanged in the tree in the back garden no less) and the youngest daughter kidnapped. He soon finds a box of Super 8 vides in the attic, each one showing a horrific murder of a family.

Hawke plays his character superbly, showing us how he gets obsessed about the case, and his book, and starts to unravel. His conflict isn’t just with uncovering the hideous truth of these murders, but also trying to keep his family together. His career hasn’t done so well for the last decade and he sees this as his last shot. His wife however doesn’t share his confidence, and when their son starts having night terrors, and their daughter paints freakish pictures on the wall their relationship is strained to breaking point.

Summary

I’ve been disillusioned with horror films from Hollywood for a long time. Insidious which had a great deal of acclaim I found to be a train wreck, and with all the remakes and sequels coming out instead of decent new films, I was done with Hollywood. But this one gives me a slight renewed confidence. Despite a couple of contrivances, this was a smart, well written, and well directed horror film with a tight story and a great end—which so many horror films fail to achieve. Highly recommended.

Absenstia

On the other end of the scale of production, Absentia is a small indie production film. And despite the poster isn’t a ‘boogeyman/slasher’ flick. Instead its a smart, slow-burn film with quirky ideas and an atmospheric feel.

The story is centred around two sisters. The older of the two is finally applying for a death certificate for her husband who has been missing for the last 7 years. The younger sister is a wayward, ex-drug addict who has come to stay now that she’s all cleaned up.

The two sisters bond, and we learn that the elder sister has been developing a relationship with a police officer in the missing person’s division (and is pregnant by him). Everything seems to be okay as she gets closure from her husband’s disappearance until she starts to hallucinate, seeing him in the closet, in the living room, grabbing her from her behind etc… her psychologist tells her its just the anxiety of finally sighning him off as dead and the associated guilt. From there the mystery of his disappearance deepens as the younger sister learns more about the mysterious subway. (I can’t say much more than that).

Summary

Absentia is stylish, tense, and well written. The two sisters are very well acted and you really feel for their relationship. There’s a really nice undercurrent of weirdness and offbeat-ness that runs throughout the film, and the unease ratchets up at a nice pace. The film is relatively quiet and subtle, and for that I love it. It’s all too easy to bang out the shock scenes and overblown soundtracks to get a scare, but Absentia achieves it through great characters and great writing.

Also highly recommended. Support an indie film maker and check it out.

Other notable horror films I’ve seen lately (mostly on the word of horror author Adam Nevill) are: The Pact and Berbarian Sound Studio (the later is genius, but I couldn’t sum it up so I’ve linked to IMDB instead). Happy films watching!

There was a time when Nathan Garrett was feared. When the mention of his name was enough to stop his enemies in their tracks. That time has long since passed.

When Nathan’s friend asks for help investigating a pattern of horrific crimes, he reluctantly agrees. But his investigation leads to a serial killer who is something more, or less, than human, a creature of pure malevolence and hatred.

There are some things that even a 1600-year-old sorcerer hesitates to challenge. But when evil targets those Nathan cares about, his enemies will discover exactly who Nathan used to be. And why they will learn to fear him once more.

Born of Hatred is an action-packed, Urban Fantasy set in modern-day England with historical flashbacks to late nineteenth century Montana. It’s the second book of the Hellequin Chronicles, following the widely praised Crimes Against Magic, which introduced sorcerer Nathan Garrett.

Purchase from Kindle:

Amazon.co.uk

Amazon.com

Steve McHugh is the author of the popular Urban Fantasy series, Hellequin Chronicles. The first book of which, Crimes Against Magic, was published in April 2012 and followed by the sequel, Born of Hatred in December 2012.

To learn more about Steve and his work, you can find him:

http://stevejmchugh.wordpress.com/

https://twitter.com/StevejMchugh

https://www.facebook.com/Hiddenrealmspublishing

I went right back to where it all started for King in 1974 with his debut novel Carrie.

Before I came to this book, like many people I had seen the film starring Sissy Spacek so I was already familiar with the story, but I was initially surprised by the difference in format.

I’m not going to do a full run down of the plot here as I suspect most humans on Earth have either seen the film, read the book, or by social osmosis are familiar with the story, but if not, I’ve linked to the plot at the bottom of this post.

Fragmented

Unlike the single narrative of the film that follows Carrie through her various, and numerous, experiences of habitual humiliation and degradation by her cruel peers, the book shapes the narrative through multiple points-of-view, which isn’t unique by any means. An added dimension to this, however, was the inclusion of after-the-fact testimony throughout the story (even before the dance hall climax) via news reports, inquest documents, documentaries, and in the case of Sue Snell (a guilt-ridden peer of Carrie) a personal recital of her view of the events as they unfolded.

I think it’s very much a personal decision to whether this fragmented view of the story works. In terms of publishing and launching a career it clearly worked, and to great success. But now reading it after all this time, and with the colouring of my opinion by the film (which I enjoyed a great deal), I have to say I wasn’t enthralled by the constant interruption of the timeline by these reports and inquiry excerpts.

I wanted to get into Carrie’s head and follow her journey through the miasma of second-hand religious guilt from her zealous and pious mother, the discovery and subsequent training of her telekinetic ability, and the righteous revenge she sought (eventually) for the crimes done against her, but every time I was getting deep enough, one of those out-of-time reports would jump in and pull me out of the story.

Great Characters and Slice of Small Town Americana

Well, duh! That’s King all over. Few writers sum up the feel of a small, insular American town like King, and he does it brilliantly here. From details of Carrie’s Mother’s textiles employer (which I suspect is born from King’s own personal experience. In ‘On Writing’ King’s part-biography, and part writing book, he talks about his job in a textiles company.) to the small, police station, the fruit juice store, and later the dive bar.

We get to see a great deal of the town later on *SPOILER* when Carrie finishes her melt-down at the school dance and goes on a rampage through the town burning half of it down after opening fire-hydrants and the gas-lines as the gas-stations and bringing down electricity cables to ignite the river of gas.

In terms of characters, there’s a few that really stand out. Other than Carrie, there’s really none that you can sympathise with. Carrie’s Mother is one of the greatest nutters in fiction. A vicious and self-righteous religious fanatic who would often bully and chastise Carrie for every ‘sin’ imaginable. This constant abuse—along with the abuse from her school peers—was the catalyst for her to finally take the shackles off her ability and unleash her rage.

Then we have the girls at the school who bullied Carrie. I’m sure we’ve all known that group of  ’cook kids’ who centred around a bully and an entitled little swine. It’s this group that plague Carrie with years of persistent psychological, and often physical, torment. It’s the final humiliation at the dance that finally pushes poor Carrie over the edge, and it’s not just those hyena-like kids who get their comeuppance, but the entire town of Chamberlain (Maine, natch) that is on the receiving end of her endless fury.

Summary

This was King’s debut novel, but not the first that he wrote. He wrote in a 2 week period, and had to trust his wife Tabitha’s opinion on it. He thought it was garbage. It turned out that his publisher ‘Double Day’ took it on, and later sold the paperback writes for $400,000 which was a huge amount back in 1974. It’s that break-through that enabled King to write fulltime.

Is this is a great book? I don’t think so. It’s still very good, and that it launched Stephen King’s career is a great thing. Who knows if we would have the great Stephen King of today if this book didn’t get published?

It’s a relatively quick read, and there’s some truly memorable scenes, both with iconic imagery and grimace-inducing detail.

What this book does show however is the start of King’s immense talent for vivid characters, the small-town feel, and a great yarn.

Wikipedia plot summary

Buy it on Amazon

I have my own horror novella out at the moment. It’s a gothic horror set in the 1800s and an homage to the Frankenstein myth. ‘Heart for the Ravens‘ is published by Fox Spirit Books. More details here.

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By Gary McMahon and Simon Bestwick

Set in a post-industrial British town, this chapbook, published by the fine fellows of This Is Horror, is a collaborative story by two of Britain’s leading horror writers. It nicely conveys the dying industry that many towns in Britain have suffered over the proceeding few decades. Where once these places were filled with factories, forges, and refineries, are now home to modern housing estates—or at least on the surface. It’s within these estates that feral youth prowl the streets looking for mischief. But for our protagonist, Child Protection Agency worker, Gabby, these are the least of her problems.

She follows up the case of Heather Mayhew. A teacher of the young girl contacted Child Protection after noticing odd behavior and marks on the girl’s skin. Heather had mentioned to her teacher reports of men staring at her from the bottom of her bed. When Gabby pays the family home a visit, the girl’s father refuses to allow her entry to the home to talk to the girl. The police aren’t much help either, after a previous case of Gabby’s went sour.

It’s there that Gabby starts to suspect something is wrong, and as she learns more about the Loudon estate, and Wheatclif road in particular, she realises that something decidedly weird is happening.

McMahon and Bestwick have created, in Gabby, a character with depth and history, and one that I immediately empathised with. Her frustration at the police and Heather’s father is palpable as is her feeling that something is very wrong. And when she encounters those terribly thin men with their strange yellow faces you’re with her every frantic step.

A theme within the story, one of old things lurking in the shadow of time to return is something that is nicely communicated with the first chapter, which essentially works as a kind of prologue. And at a single paragraph packs in a lot of potential and intrigue. I’m sure the authors won’t mind if I borrow that opening paragraph to tease you with:

“Soot. Grime. Dirt. Neglect. The stains of a past generation, the grubby little secrets of another age. But sometimes those stains can’t be removed. Sometimes they remain hidden out of sight, waiting for the time when they will once again become visible and make a mark upon the present…”

The story is written in present tense, and I’m always a fan of these types of stories. It gives the narrative an immediacy a cinematic feel, and it works brilliantly for this story, as it rattles along a great pace. But the authors haven’t sacrificed detail for this pace. They expertly drop in mini-scenes and key details that connect the history of Wheatclif road to the current-day happenings.

As we follow Gabby’s thought process and reaction to the situation, the paranoia and horror comes in waves and builds and builds. The prose is tight and taut, just like the story, and when Gabby learns about what lurks beneath the ground, and what has survived the time, the full horror is revealed in vivid detail.

You’ll read it in a single sitting and by the end will no doubt feel the same sense of satisfaction of watching a heart-racing film. And in the titular bad-guys McMahon and Bestwick have created a horror creature with genuine menace.

There’s more content here that could be explored, and a longer story about the Thin Men would be a great read, and I for one hope that happens. In the meantime, do yourself a favour and check out This Is Horror and their chapbook series. I also ready Dave Moody’s ‘Joe and Me’ and highly recommend that also. I believe there is a Conrad Williams story coming soon.

At £4.99 per story they perhaps seem a little expensive, however, they are limited edition and signed, so there is value there, and more importantly you’re supporting the hardworking authors and publishers of a small outfit, not a huge press churning out workaday fiction. Given the cost of a current DVD or a BlueRay I’d rather spend my money on a great read.  I’d personally recommend the subscription as you save money and get access to future works. You can find more details at This Is Horror.

Note: I’m not affiliated in any way to the authors or This Is Horror—just a satisfied customer.