Sleazy times are a-coming...

When it comes to horror, I’m willing to embrace most of the sub-genres and enjoy them for what they offer. Sometimes I like a good ghost story, sometimes I like a good action-led piece, sometimes (looking at you, Gary McMahon) I like them bleak and sometimes I like them old-school, with lashings of sex and violence. I began reading horror in the mid-80s, when gore was good and over the past few years, thanks mainly to Johnny Mains, I’ve begun collecting and re-reading the trashy, sleazy horror from the late 70s/early 80s (especially from Brit houses, such as NEL, Star and Futura). Also, thanks to my reviewing commitments with VideoVista, I discovered Shameless and Arrow, re-releasing on DVD old 70s and 80s sleaze extravaganzas. I’ve been like a pig in the proverbial, I tell you, catching up with titles (books and films) that I’ve been after for years but haven’t been able to find.

Late last year, I was involved in Hersham Horror Books’ “Fogbound From Five” - a five-writer-collection edited by Peter Mark May. It’s a classy paperback, a good size and has some excellent stories. I didn’t realise, at the time, that Peter was planning on making this style into a series - which he’s called PentAnth’s. The second edition, due in September of this year, is Stuart Hughes’ “Siblings” and I have no doubt it’ll be excellent - Stuart’s an excellent editor and he’s got some great writers lined up.

Then Peter asked me if I’d like one. It took me about a second to say “yes, of course” and about a minute to come up with a pitch of what I’d like it to have as a theme.

The book has now been announced on the Hersham Horror Books site and if I tell you the title, you’ll guess the sub-genre straight away.

“Anatomy Of Death In Five Sleazy Pieces” (how cool is that?) will appear in both print and digital editions in March 2013. It will contain stories by Johnny Mains, Stephen Bacon and my good self, plus talented newcomers Selina Lock and Andrew Murray (the latter’s an Aussie and I’ve told him that if he wants to mine the Ozploitation field, he’s more than welcome!) and I will be producing the cover art (probably in league with Neil Williams again).

It’s a long way off, of course and I have no idea what my story is going to be, but I’m very chuffed about this. I hope you will be too.

More news as and when…

This is wonderful...

It combines my deep appreciation of the father/son bond and Stormtroopers. How can this not be a win-win situation?

Guest post by Cate Gardner

(I don't usually have blog tours coming through here but, for the first time ever, I've made an exception for the lovely and hugely talented Cate Gardner. Support her work, folks, you won't be disappointed).

"The Travelling Theatrical Tour: Diary of a Horsewoman"


Thank you to Mark for allowing me to invade his blog so that I can celebrate the release of my book, Theatre of Curious Acts.

The following page was found on a road made from teeth and toenails….

Tuesday
Actually, it's always Tuesday here. Or that's how it feels. Why name the days when they all have the same goal… Bloody hell, I think my sigh just toppled several trees. Sometimes it's cool to be apocalyptic.

Today, a rabble of schoolchildren took a wrong turning during a school trip and wandered into the Worm World Market. My sisters are convinced the children are whom we've been waiting for. The apocalypse is nigh. Overdramatic or what? Personally, I think they just don't like children. And I know the children don't like us. Such caterwauling.

Wednesday
We don't like Wednesday's. We'd quite like the world to end on a Wednesday.

I think I saw one of those schoolchildren hiding behind The Collector. He can't protect them all.

Thursday
I'm going to take up knitting. I'm sure I could knit a scarf the length of the Anabiosis Station. I'll use intestines in place of wool. How long do those things stretch? I read it somewhere. Will make a mess of the floor, I suppose.

I don't care about the floor.

If I could find those children, I'd unravel them.

Friday
Knit one, pearl one, stuff another in the barrel and leave it to rot.

Saturday
We had a riot here last night. An absolute riot. The patrons of the Apple Seed Inn tumbled down the hillside cracking both themselves and the ground open. Thankfully, no more children crept out.

Sunday
A day of rest - or so the local market traders claim - but we all know there's no rest for the wicked. In fact, Blanche carves that saying into those she conquers. I bet it hurts when they sit down. I'd quite like to sit down for a moment or a millennia or until the world ends.

Monday
Is it the end of the world yet?

*

And the answer to the lady's question can be found in Theatre of Curious Acts which is available at all good bookstores.

Daniel Cole wants the world to end.

Returned home from the Great War, his parents and brother in their graves, Daniel walks a ghost world. When players in a theatre show lure Daniel and his friends, fellow soldiers, into a surreal otherworld they find themselves trapped on an apocalyptic path. A pirate ship, helmed by Death, waits to ferry some of them to the end of the world.

Already broken by war, these men are now the world's only hope in the greatest battle of all.

More information is available at www.categardner.net

First acceptance of 2012...

...came today, from Ross Warren and Anthony Watson at Dark Minds press, for their "Darker Minds" anthology.

My story "Looking At Me, Seeing You" will be sharing space with some excellent names and I can't wait to see the book.

Into 2012

Happy New Year to everyone!

Hope your festive season went well and now, here we are, in 2012 and January is already 10 days old! Where does the time go?

One of my Christmas highlights was an influx of Nerf guns (we bought one design for him and for me, my sister-in-law Flo bought him another design and got me one too), leading to some running battles that were great fun (and often led to Alison’s call of “what’s this bullet doing behind the fish bowl?”).

Writing wise, I’m currently working on a ghost story, set on the east coast (surprise, surprise) but set slightly further north than my beloved Yarmouth/Heyton area and I’m hoping to have at least the first draft completed this week. I’ll let you know how things go with it.

I’m also getting involved with some comedy too, as my friend Jon is taking his first steps into stand-up. I’ve written a couple of pieces, which I’m sure he won’t use, but we’re off to the "We Are Most Amused - at the Vic" comedy night this Thursday and having a meal beforehand to discuss his material. Very much looking forward to it.

Over Christmas, there was a new ad for Sainsbury’s on TV and Alison said it reminded her very much of me & Dude. I saw it and knew what she meant and, because this is my blog, I’m going to post it here. As an aside, you can - for the briefest of moments - see the Royal Albion Hotel (where I attended the 2011 Fantasycon).

Merry Christmas!

I’d like to take this opportunity to wish readers of this blog (and their loved ones) a very Happy Christmas, with all best wishes for the New Year.

Thank you for your continued support and interest, let’s hope 2012 is a storming year for all of us!

A Year In Books

Well, it’s that time of the year again, as we gear up for Christmas and remember the good (and not so good) of 2011. Here, I present the now Third Annual ‘My Best Reads Of The Year’ award and my top 20 reads like this:

Joint 1st:
Love & Freedom, by Sue Moorcroft
The Concrete Grove, by Gary McMahon

3: The Silent Land, by Graham Joyce
4: The Hellbound Heart, by Clive Barker
5: Nearly Departed, by Rook Hastings
6: It Knows Where You Live, by Gary McMahon
7: Fogbound From 5, edited by Peter Mark May
8: Peel Back The Sky, by Stephen Bacon
9: The Howling, by Gary Brandner
10: The Derelict, by Neil Williams
11: Immortal Remains, by Rook Hastings
12: Early Autumn, by Robert B Parker
13: Lantern Rock, by Stephen Bacon
14: King Death, by Paul Finch
15: Play It As It Lays, by Joan Didion
16: Nowhere Hall, by Cate Gardner
17: Necropolis Rising, by Dave Jeffery
18: Angels Of The Silences, by Simon Bestwick
19: Last ManThroughThe Gate, by Tim C Taylor

There’s no number 20 listed here, since I’m currently reading Alison Littlewood’s superb “A Cold Season” and that will definitely feature.

The worst, without any close competition, was “Almost Blue”, by Carlo Lucarelli (translated by Oonagh Stransky), a dreadful piece of work.

Stats-wise, as of this writing, I’ve read 50 books - 31 fiction, 8 non-fiction and 11 comics/nostalgia. I didn't read any Three Investigator books at all, since I finished my epic read-through of the first 30 last year but, to be honest, I've missed them.

All of my reviews are posted up at Goodreads here

Writing round-up

“The Mill” continues to gather good notices, the latest appearing at The Book Den, where I also contributed a guest blog post on where the story came from.

The Review can be found here, whilst my guest blog can be found here.

I was also thrilled to discover that the story came at number 8 in the Top 15 Reads of the year, as compiled by Jim MacLeod at the Ginger Nuts Of Horror website.

In other news, “Fogbound From 5” is starting to roll out - it’s available in print and digital editions over in the USA, with the print edition due here very early in the new year, though you can get it from Amazon on Kindle. Really proud of this collection - not only does it contain my story “Last Train Home”, by Neil Williams & I were responsible for the cover artwork.

Coming soon....

..."Fogbound From 5", a new collection from those nice folk at Hersham Horror Books. It features brand new fiction from Alison Littlewood, Adrian Chamberlin, Neil Williams, Peter Mark May and me, with the cover art and design by Neil and myself.

My story "Last Train Home" features a monster dear to my heart and the ending was suggested by Matthew. We were driving one day and I was thinking aloud about what the story could be and he told me how it should finish - and, with a couple of tiny tweaks, I've managed to write what he suggested.

Here's the trailer I produced, ordering details will be coming soon...

My sister

Tomorrow, the 25th, is my Dad’s birthday - he’s a sprightly pensioner now, his life more full of activity than when he was gainfully employed and he has a great time chasing around after his two grandchildren. We’ll visit him tonight, to give him his cards and gifts and wish him all the best.

Tomorrow, the 25th, my kid sister Sarah & I will go up to the cemetery, just on the edge of town and put flowers on our sister Tracy’s grave. It’ll be the eighth anniversary of her passing, which doesn’t feel like any time at all, until you think about everything that has happened since.

When Tracy passed away in 2003, Alison & I were trying for a baby and now we’re the exceptionally proud parents of Matthew, who’s 6 years old and as bright as a button. He’s the best thing I’ve ever created in my life and I’m sure Tracy would have loved him. He knows all about her, he’s seen her pictures, watched her in the wedding video, we talk about her, but there’s a constant nagging sadness that neither of them got to meet. I’m sure they’d have got on brilliantly - I’m convinced of it, in fact - but it wasn’t to be. Likewise, Tracy never got to meet Lucy, my god-daughter and niece, who is a beautiful and lovely two-year-old. Nor did see get to see Sarah graduate from university, meet Chris and get married. Worse, she never got to see how well my parents coped (in a situation that is almost unfathomable in its horror), how strong they were and how determined to keep moving forward - to remain as wonderful parents to me & Sarah and superb grandparents for Matthew & Lucy.

Time does ease pain and scars do heal over, but at certain points of the year, that time is rolled back and those scars are re-exposed. Tomorrow is that day for us.

It’s been eight years, but I remember that awful phone call as if it was yesterday. I wish I didn’t have to hear it, I wish my Mum hadn’t had to make it.

RIP, Tracy, never forgotten.