Laird Barron's Blog, page 8

…but you know how it’s going to end. Unwinnable’s Monster issue is out. Thank you to Stu Horvath for soliciting my short essay about doppelgangers. It’s called “Another Me” and shares the table of contents with an all-star cast of essayists, including John Langan, Livia Llewellyn, Philip Gelatt, Michael Calia, Gemma Files, Stephen Graham Jones, and others.

image via Unwinnable–Dave Felton cover art

Michael Calia gives us Six Literary Horror Collections for the Spooky Season. I’m honored that Swift to Chase is listed. Check out titles by Jon Padgett, Ellen Datlow, Stephen King, Joe Pulver, and Ross Lockhart. The article features brief quotes by the aforementioned authors and editors.

As an aside, I can’t recommend The Secret of Ventriloquism highly enough.

image via WSJ Speakeasy

Swift to Chase is officially out in the world today–if you get a physical copy from the publisher, they will toss in an electronic copy as a bonus. It’s my fourth collection. Much as the first three collections are a cosmic horror trilogy, this marks the beginning of what I think of as the Alaska cycle. You’ll meet recurring heroes Jessica Mace, and Rex the war dog. You’ll also get a taste of more nefarious types, such as the Alaska branch of the Tooms family, and the enigmatic J clan.

In the past, I’ve often combined horror with noir, crime, and thriller elements; these stories angle farther from Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith, and dig deeper into my own experiences in the 49th state. It’s not exactly autobiographical, but I’ve let it bleed. The book represents four years of my life, and on the back side of forty that’s no small matter. As usual, there’s more to come, so watch this space.

cover art by Chuck Killorin

 JournalStone has 10 copies up for grabs as a Goodreads giveaway.

Thank you to my friends, family, and colleagues:

Publisher Christopher Payne at JournalStone; Paul Tremblay (for

a fine introduction); John, Fiona, and David Langan; Ron Wier

(technical advice on “LD50”); and Chuck Killorin (for the excellent

cover art); Mark Tallen; the marvelous Deborah Gordon Brown; Yves

Tourigny; Jason and Darci Duelge; Jason and Harmony Barron and

the kids; Timbi Porter; and Jessica M for her love and support.

Special thanks to Vincenzo Bilof for his edits.

My gratitude to the editors who originally acquired these stories:

John Joseph Adams; Steve Berman; Ellen Datlow; Mike Davis; Aaron

French; Paula Guran; Gerry Huntman; Ross Lockhart; and Robert S.

Wilson.

Extra Special thanks to my agents, Janet Reid and Pouya

Shahbazian, and their wonderful support staff, Penny Moore and

Chris McEwen.

Finally, thank you to my readers. You folks make it possible for me to do what I do.

Thanks to James Everington for reviews of my collection, Swift to Chase, and Michelle Paver’s Thin Air at This is Horror.

image via This is Horror

Vol. 1 Brooklyn has released its October 2016 book preview. Alongside Swift to Chase, a lot of great title are incoming, including work by Yancy, Alexis, Percy, and Carroll.

image via Vol. 1 Brooklyn

Christopher Ropes wrote an eerie and unsettling novelette. I’m jaded and so read it looking for the seams and zippers and wires. It stirred my unease despite all that. Ropes does a lot with atmosphere and dread. The characters are sharply drawn, as is the setting. I am interested to check out more of his work.

Complicity is out of print at the moment, but I hear it’s coming back. Keep a watch.

image via GoodReads

I am proud to have contributed an introduction to Nicholas Kaufmann’s short novel, In the Shadow of the Axe. This is taps the Gothic horror vein–it’s also an homage to Hammer, Amicus, and old Universal horror flicks. Kaufmann expertly threads the needle between camp and a knowingly modern update of classic tropes.

image via Amazon

I am a fan of Mike Davis as a person and a publisher. Lovecraft Ezine issue 38 is live. Mike publishes an array of weird fiction. His recent anthology, Autumn Cthulhu, is one of the best weird fiction anthologies I’ve read and I’m proud to have a story in there.

image via Amazon

I will be reading with Alyssa Wong tomorrow night at the KGB Fantastic Fiction Reading Series. 7pm. Looking forward to seeing old friends and new at one of the finest reading venues around.

In publishing news, Paul StJohn Mackintosh gives my forthcoming collection, Swift to Chase, a fabulous review.

Last, but far from least, today is the release of Ellen Datlow’s latest anthology, The Children of Lovecraft. John Langan, Richard Kadrey, Gemma Files, and Livia Llewellyn star.

Mike Mignola cover

Horror author John Langan writes an appreciation of the late, great Charles L Grant.

image via Amazon