It’s Sunday morning. I smell coffee. I’ve been sick for a couple days. It’s hot out. Can’t wait for Fall. Might go to the river later and fish some. I don’t know. Allow me to grab a cup of Joe, and welcome to the newsletter.
What’s New
Pre-order is up for my forthcoming book from Encyclopocalypse Publishing, Mojave Mud Caves.
This book is a creature feature spawned from a conversation I had with my dad about a wasp nest I had seen with spiders in it. I’d knocked the nest down from the side of a house I was painting. It was a mud wasp nest. The thing bust open and there was a smattering of wasp larvae and little spiders within. I thought the spiders had taken over the nest and were feasting on the larvae. It was pretty fascinating either way. Nature at work. My dad told me no, the wasps bring spiders into the nest to feed the larvae. Again, nature at work. I got to thinking about that, and thus the seed for Mojave Mud Caves was watered in my mind.
You can pre-order the book HERE. It comes out on Aug. 12th
I have signed a contract with Raven Tale Press to publish a stand-alone book. They have been publishing creature features recently. I’ve had a book finished that I’ve not known what to do with. It’s an apocalypse-type story wherein half the population spontaneously turn into various bizarre creatures. My original title was Depraved New World, but we will be changing it, which is fine by me since I’ve never been partial to that title anyway. It’s a very ambitious book, and a longer book that what I usually write. More news on this one as publication nears.
Circus Oasis has been out for about a month now. Wow, time just doesn’t give a shit, does it. Flies on past like nothing matters. Reviews are trickling in. Typical for any one of my releases. If you’ve read the book, please leave a review. As the saying goes, books live and die by reviews on Amazon. It’s true. Reviews and ratings equal visibility. It’s an algorithm thing. Circus Oasis available in all formats including Kindle Unlimited.
I will be releasing my short story collection Infected Voices via Godless sometime soonish. I haven’t locked down the dates just yet. I will release the stories in four batches at .50 each, one release every two weeks. Or something like that. It will eventually be published in ebook and paperback as well. I have the paperback cover art and it’s killer, but I’m waiting to share it. The Godless releases will have unique cover art, but I’m still working on that.
Cracking the WIP
I finished the first draft of my long time WIP At the Hour of Violence. The book weighs in at around 55K words. I started it at the end of 2020, put it down for a while to finish other projects, and then picked it up again several months ago to finish. I’m happy with what I have here. It will take me at least two solid red-throughs to get it where I want it. Maybe three.
I started writing my next book, which will be a series of four novelettes that all take place in the four units of a small quad-unit apartment. Individual stories that will be tied together with a wraparound story. I will most likely release the novelettes individually on Godless next year, and then release the paperback version with the wraparound story. Intimate horror with a very small cast is my favorite. If I pull off what I’m going for, this will be an awesome batch of stories.
I am dreaming up an idea for a sea themed ultra-violent short. I’m sure many of you writers out there know what that is for. I have the bones of the story already. It will be called “The Sea-Freak”. I have actually already written a story based on this idea, but it’s a coming-of-age tale that isn’t at all extreme in nature, and that’s what this particular submission call demands. Oh, there will be blood.
Recent Reads from Hell
A Love Not Deceased by Eric Kapitan
I met Eric at FrankenCon a few months ago. We exchanged books, as I like doing when I meet another author and I’m not familiar with their work. I liked the cover of this one and I think he suggested it. It was a quick read about grief and love lost and . . . necrophilia. I’m not a fan of erotic horror, and this story kind of fits in that sub-genre, but I did enjoy the read. Eric has a bunch of books available, so you should go check out his stuff, especially if you’re into extreme horror.
The Nightrunners by Joe. R. Lansdale
I’ve read a bunch of Lansdale books. I had been on the hunt for a first edition paperback of this one for years. It’s hard to get for a reasonable price. I finally got one (after some haggling with the online seller). A great addition to my collection. It’s a pretty good story, but far from the best that I’ve read by Lansdale. I really would have liked the God of the Razor to be more involved. The best part of the book was the description of the God of the Razor (so good, in fact, that it made the cover). And yes, I am aware that there are other God of the Razor stories. I’ve read a few of them in one of his collections.
Come Thirteen by David Silva
I have been telling you that this story was kind of discombobulated. In the end, it all came together and made sense. It was an enjoyable read, though not nearly as good as Silva’s debut. I have no idea if Silva wrote any other books besides this and Child of Darkness, but I will have to do a quick Google search and find out.
I’m currently reading The School by Ed Kellehrer and Hariet Vidal. They were a staple of the Leisure roster in the 80s. I’ve read a couple of their books and enjoyed each one. So far, The School is no exception. Also chipping away at Borderlands 5.
Extreme Horror?
I kind of hate labels. But then I kind of think some of them are fitting. I’d love to say heavy metal is heavy metal, but then someone might put on DefTones and I’m just not a fan, you know? I’m over here listening to Venom and Sepultura and whatnot. In fact, I don’t care for a whole lot of Nu Metal, so I guess that distinction is pretty good. Lets me know what I should avoid.
In the world of horror, there are many labels. If I see erotic horror, I avoid the book. Erotic fiction is not my thing whatsoever. That being said, extreme horror is another label, one that some of my work has been given. One that is broad in its own way. A lot of extreme horror crosses with erotic horror, for instance. Some extreme horror is plain out violent, or even mean spirited. Sometimes animals are slain, sometimes babies (and strangely people seem to get more offended about the animals—something I’ll never understand). There are nuances to extreme horror. I suppose this is why some folks put disclaimers or trigger warnings at the beginning of their extreme horror novels. I’ve had reviews of my books that mention triggers. I figure those reviews probably sell books to the folks that have no triggers, but there’s also a part of me that wonders just how triggered an individual was by the material. It almost seems like the very label of extreme horror is a trigger warning in itself (providing there’s any indication on the Amazon listing or the back cover copy that the book is indeed an extreme horror novel). This shit is fucked up and vile and there’s a good chance you’re going to be disgusted. Enter at your own risk!
Anyway, Stronger Than Hate is probably my most extreme story. Well, that and Tweaker Creatures. And Death Obsessed. And . . . this list goes on. Anyway, If you’re into that sort of fiction, you’d probably like Stronger Than Hate. I feel like there’s a sort of Rennaissance at the moment as far as extreme horror goes. I never thought that would be the next big thing, but I’m beginning to wonder.
Until Next time . . .