So far, I have stories appearing in four anthologies this year.
Here’s a little inside information about each book, its publisher and editor, as well as what my contribution amounts to in each case.
First off is When the Night Comes Down released by Dark Arts. This is an approach to horror collections I hadn’t come across before. The four contributors to the anthology provide four or five stories totalling 20-25,000 words each. The other writers in this volume are Nate Kenyon, Bev Vincent and Robert Weinberg. Editing the collection is Bill Breedlove, closely assisted by John Everson and Martel Sardina. I’ve come to like Bill very much just through our email communications. He is a wise and free-thinking editor and I’ve welcomed his comments on my work. Happily, I’ll be meeting Bill, some of the contributors and the rest of the DA staff at WHC 2010 in Brighton – When the Night Comes Down will launch on Friday 27th March in Bar Rogue between 10pm and midnight. I’ve contributed five stories to this collection.
Longer in the making but probably to be released well before WTNCD is Darc Karnivale published by The Evil Nerd Empire. The editors, David Byron and Corey R. Scales have put a great deal of time and effort into collecting and organising the stories for the anthology. The artwork has been provided by the talented Nick Rose. The image he’s created for my story ‘The Food of Love’ is superb. Other contributors include Paul Kane, Ralan Conley and Jeremy C. Shipp. With luck the anthology will be available at WHC 2010 in the dealer room, but failing that, it will be stocked by all the usual online suspects.
Next up is Holy Horrors. To give you an idea of how long this anthology has been in the pipeline, I submitted my tale ‘The Germ of His Ideas’ to Matt Cardin and T. M. Wright on 8th September ’06. It was accepted about ten months later. Since then, watching the ups and downs has been quite disturbing. At times, I was convinced – and so were the editors, I think – that the book would never be published. However, we’re finally on course for Holy Horrors to be released in two volumes by Ash Tree Press. Volume 1 in spring and Volume 2 before the end of the year.
I include both TOCs because they excite me so much
VOLUME 1
1) “Sanctuary.” Jim Rockhill.
2) “The Dreams of Cardinal Vittorini.” Reggie Oliver. Reprint.
3) “Bavel II.” Jens Rushing.
4) “Saviour.” Gary Braunbeck.
5) “Vom-Beist.” Mike Norris.
6) “Magog and I.” Craig Holt.
7) “Darshan.” William R. Eakin.
8 ) “Ezekiel Remembers.” Kurt Dinan.
9) “And You Shall Be Adored.” Regina Mitchell.
10) “Sicarii.” Andrew Tisbert.
11) “Porta Nigra.” Darren Speegle.
12) “The Dead Must Die.” Ramsey Campbell. Reprint.
13) “At the Feet of the Forest Primeval.” Randy Chandler.
14) “The Editor.” Pamela K. Taylor.
15) “Behind the Bathroom Door.” Sara Joan Berniker.
16) “The Hands of God.” Michael McBride.
17) “Cold to the Touch.” Simon Strantzas.
18) “Anubis Has Left the Building.” Tim Waggoner. Reprint.
19) “On This Day of Reckoning.” Joseph Nassise.
20) “Rapture.” Robert Morrish and Harry Shannon.
VOLUME 2
1) “Abandon.” Adam Browne.
2) “In the Name of God.” Stuart Young.
3) “The Sect of the Idiot.” Thomas Ligotti. Reprint.
4) “The Shaft.” Brian Hodges.
5) “Waters Dark as a Raven’s Wing, Flames Bright as a Dove’s Breast.” Dru Pagliassotti.
6) “Uncaged.” Paul Finch.
7) “Intentions.” William Freedman.
8 ) “The Tattoo Artista.” Eric S. Smith.
9) “Redemption.” David Niall Wilson.
10) “The Bishop Receives a Visitor.” Marion Pitman.
11) “A Prayer for Captain La Hire.” Patrice E. Sarath.Reprint.
12) “Purifying Vows.” Kim Paffenroth.
13) “The Temple.” Quentin S. Crisp.Reprint.
14) “The Monsters We Defy.” Karen Williams.
15) “The Wound of Her Making.” Gerard Houarner. Reprint.
16) “Bad Religion.” Douglas M. Chapman.
17) “The Germ of His Ideas.” Joseph D’Lacey.
18) “Darkness.” Jude Wright.
Finally – but only for the moment, of course – Mark Deniz of Morrigan Books asked me for a story to complete a pet project of his. Scenes From the Second Storey was The God Machine’s debut album. Released in 1993, it has been hailed as one of the best albums of that decade. It’s one of Mark’s favourites of all time, so the collection bears the same name. Each of the stories in the anthology takes the title of, and is inspired by, one of the songs. Mine was track eleven: Seven. It was a pleasure to write and I’m happy to note that Mark will be giving himself the book for his 40th birthday present! Other authors include Carole Johnstone and Gary McMahon.
For those of you who’d like to see a free JD’L horror tale right now, the gruesome ‘Read my Lips’ is in Ecelcticism #9.
When MEAT first came out, Bloody Books made an unabridged recording of the text. The reader was Sorcha Cusack who has the most amazing voice – it really fits the tale. I heard she was white with shock at some of things she had to say whilst reading! Apologies to you, Sorcha!
The downloadable audio version of MEAT was released last year but was never well publicised. It has now been re-released on iTunes and at audible.com and is currently on offer for a lot less than the book.
It might make a unique Christmas gift or just scare the hell out of you during the season of goodwill…
(SORCHA CUSACK is probably best known for her long running role as nurse, Kate Wilson in Casualty. She has also appeared in The Inspector Lynley Mysteries, Playing the Field and Eureka Street. She has appeared in many radio plays including The First Witch, The Real Charlotte and The Day Daniel O’Donnell Got Married as well as stage productions such as The Vagina Monologues, A View From the Bridge and Feast of Snails.)
I was interviewed by Alan Kelly for the brilliant 3:AM Magazine. It was a real pleasure to talk to him.
In other news, since Borders has gone into administration, my 19th December signing in their Leicester branch has been cancelled. It’s a real shame because I’ve had some great times in that store and the staff are all lovely people. I hope someone can save Borders and keep their way of doing things alive.
I do have one more signing left before Christmas at Waterstones, Northampton on Saturday 5th December between 11AM and 3PM. I should be on BBC Radio Northampton talking about it sometime this week. There will be copies of MEAT, Garbage Man and The Kill Crew available.
FantasyCon 2009 was one of the best weekends of my life.
I rubbed shoulders with many creators and purveyors of fantastic fiction and art. Some of them have appeared on Horror Reanimated already, others I hope to see here soon. Fantasy, Science Fiction and Horror are arteries in the body of the world’s imagination and you can be assured these arteries are healthy and well supplied, pulsing with magical blood.
Among the heroes of the world’s imagination whose hands I shook, and in no particular order, were the following:
Graham Joyce, Simon Bestwick, Conrad Williams, Marc Gascoigne, Lee Harris, Carole Johnstone, Gary McMahon, Tim Lebbon, Mark Morris, Ramsey Campbell, Sarah Pinborough, Mark Deniz, Guy Adams, Chaz Brenchley, Adam Nevill, Allyson Bird, Andrew Hook, Peter Crowther, Mathew F. Riley, John Lenahan, Lee Thompson, Rio Youers, Andy Remic, Raymond Russell, Simon Kurt Unsworth, Andy Barker, David Flint, Geoff Nelder, Raven Dane, Vincent Chong, Peter May, Alex Davis and several others I can’t remember on account of being variously over-stimulated.
I was nervous about attending the convention even though I wasn’t taking part in any panels or readings. I shouldn’t have been. The warmth of the atmosphere and the obvious camaraderie that goes back generations was a welcome embrace. Like an orphan reunited with its family, I relished every second of it.
There were so many stories about young or inexperienced authors (now renowned) receiving invaluable help and support from those who have gone before them. Similar expressions of gratitude came from established authors who still need the encouragement of their peers to stay on course. It’s so easy to go around thinking about yourself, worrying about your own work and career or the lack thereof. But at Fantasycon, you meet publishers whose sole passion and mission is to bring small voices like your own to the fore, even though it means they will never be wealthy. You meet authors who will write until they die – published or not – because there’s a fire inside them which cannot be extinguished.
All this both humbled and inspired me. The most humbling thing of all, however, was the beautiful shock of winning The Sydney J Bounds Best Newcomer Award. When you consider that my BFS membership had lapsed and that, having had a superb curry instead of attending the deadly banquet, I was half intending to nip to the cinema to see District 9, it’s a wonder I was even there to accept it! But friends in the know steered me to the double doors of the banqueting hall and there we stood, watching the awards ceremony from afar, sometimes barely able to hear the nominations. I remember little of what happened after I heard my own name announced, merely the heart thumping overload as I walked to the stage and made a few stumbling remarks of gratitude. You can see the moment for yourself right here.
And here’s Tim Lebbon winning the award for Best Novella (The Reach of Children)
Not to mention Allyson Bird scooping the award for Best Collection (Bull Running for Girls)
And William Heaney/Graham Joyce accepting the award for Best Novel (Memoirs of a Master Forger)
Whether I’d won an award or not wouldn’t have changed the impact FantasyCon had on me. I discovered something far greater than myself (no mean feat when your ego’s the size of Jupiter), something worth giving to not just for my own sake but for that of others. In our rush to be discovered, get deals, be on the shelf - something writers enjoy - to get bigger deals and to advance, it’s easy to forget what writing is for.
Writing is for magic. Writing is magic. I can’t pretend to understand how or why but I know that much about it.
Whether we’re just starting out, languishing in a slump or at the top of our game writing will always be our attempt to reach out to something greater than ourselves. And there are few pleasures in this world as lasting or as true as knowing you’ve grasped a tiny thread of the beyond and brought it back for others to touch.
This suits me because, in essence, I function on a mystical level. When writing, I am certain of nothing from one day to the next. What was true yesterday may no longer be true today. Mostly, I take my cues from the mythic voice of nature. No path, artistic or otherwise, leads anywhere worth visiting save that path which appears from direct contact with the mystical, with the unknown and the unseen. Writing is a way of stretching into the abyss. Somehow, The British Fantasy Society works in exactly the same way.
I hope therefore, having found my spiritual kin within the ranks of the BFS, that I will be able to give something back to the society, something that will bring value and richness to its many members.
Or perhaps I can just buy everyone a drink. Like this one…
Joseph D'Lacey celebrating with a very nice cocktail
The 200 numbered hard copies of Horror Reanimated I: Echoes are gone.
Bill, Mathew and I had mixed emotions about where they went. Some of them did find their way into the hands of horror enthusiasts, collectors and those few lost souls who count themselves among our fans. I suspect more of them, however, ended up in the bin unread. We handed copies to anyone who talked to us on the Horror Reanimated UK tour – those were the rules.
Some of those folks took the chapbook and bought copies of either Bill’s or my novels. Others just took the chapbook and walked away delighted, knowing they’d got something for free. A terrifying number hadn’t mastered spoken English, let alone the written kind. Beings who had no place in a bookshop. Men with missing teeth and unwashed hair barely contained by black baseball caps. Yeah, see me? Yeah? I fucking love horror, me. Saw. Hostel. Fucking love it. Then these dirt encrusted individuals would about face with our rare, precious volume and leave the shop without another word. And you just knew they were taking it home to use as a crossbow target in the backyard because all the local cats were already dead.
So, if you managed to get one, great. And if you didn’t, well, all is not lost. We’re now making the chapbook available as a pdf download. Right here. Right now. And we sincerely hope you enjoy it for things other than target practice.
I doubt there’s anything a writer enjoys more than talking about himself and his work at great length…
That’s exactly what I did on the Dread Media Podcast when asked about my early influences, eco-horror, what’s next for me and a plethora of other subjects. Desmond Reddick and I spoke in-depth about Garbage Man and MEAT too.
Last weekend I also talked to John S. Drew for a spotlight episode of The Chronic Rift podcast. Last Year on The Chronic Rift we discussed the development of the Horror Genre but this time it was all about yours truly…
Altogether almost an hour and a half of me contradicting myself!
Horror Reanimated is giving away an illustrated chapbook to all who attend our evening readings on May 6th and May 7th at the Big Green Bookshop in Wood Green and Borders on Oxford Street in London, respectively.
The chapbook is the first of several and could prove to be a nice little collector’s item in the future, when our careers reach heady heights, ahem…
Today, as a teaser we’re revealing the cover (designed by Lee Casey) and contents.
Horror Reanimated 1: Echoes contains 3 pieces of fiction totalling 25,000 words; one from each of us:
Joseph D’Lacey’s Rhiannon’s Reach – the victim of a diving accident conquers his fear of the water
Bill Hussey’s A Room Thus Stained – a Victorian vigilante loses himself in the streets of Whitechapel
Mathew F. Riley’s Part of the Landscape – a disenchanted worker is drawn from the everyday into an underworld of memories which form the fabric and structure of London
We look forward to seeing you on the 6 or 7 May and sharing our nightmares with you…
For those who can’t make it to London, The Horror Reanimated Tour will then continue around the UK with Bill Hussey and Joseph D’Lacey until 23rd May.
Tour dates, times and venues below:
6 May: 6.30 p.m. The Big Green Bookshop, Wood Green
Reviews of Garbage Man are arriving from around the world.
Before you spend your hard earned lucre on a copy – especially if you’re obliged to pay postage from the UK – you might want to check some of these opinions out. I present them in roughly the order they arrived, the most recent at the end.
They don’t all agree…
Andy Remic, author of Biohell – “Leads the reader by the hand then breaks his arm with a grin. Masterful.”
Geoff Nelder, editor of Escape Velocity – “D’Lacey has imagination to the nth power.”
Bill and I read from The Absence and Garbage Man at Eastercon a couple of weeks ago – alongside giant of the genre Ramsey Campbell! Paul Maclean from Yog Radio recorded it for his Podcast.
Reviews of my first American publication The Kill Crew (Stone Garden Publishing) have also begun to appear. The novella comes out on 10th August and will be available from The Book Depository who won’t charge you postage from the States!
Here are some early impressions…
British Fantasy Society – “…Exceptionally thrilling…Anyone who enjoys survival horror will find this very satisfying.”
Hi all - a brief news item. I’ve been contacted by a number of people in recent weeks about low stock levels on Amazon, Waterstones, Play and other online sites for TAGD. Bloody Books have just reassured me that a new print run has been ordered and these sites will be fully re-stocked by next week. Thanks for your patience, guys!
Just a quickie - Waterstones are currently promoting both ‘The Absence’ and ‘Through A Glass, Darkly’ in bargain offers! Firstly, today is the official start of Waterstones in-store 3 for 2 promotion that includes ‘The Absence’. Secondly, at the on-line Waterstones store ‘The Absence’ is being offered at a credit-crunch busting £4.79!!! (RRP £7.99) and ‘Through A Glass…’ on their new £5 or less offer!!!
In addition,TAGD has just received a new Book Buyer review at Waterstones. Jo Rowles at Waterstones Brentford says - ‘ This was an enthralling read that I cannot recommend highly enough. Though not a book for those of a nervous disposition, it is definitely one for fans of good writing and horror novels alike.’
This is an approach to horror collections I hadn’t come across before. The four contributors to the anthology provide four or five stories totalling 20-25,000 words each. The other writers in this volume are Nate Kenyon, Bev Vincent and Robert Weinberg. Editing the collection is Bill Breedlove, closely assisted by John Everson and Martel Sardina. I’ve come to like Bill very much just through our email communications. He is a wise and free-thinking editor and I’ve welcomed his comments on my work. Happily, I’ll be meeting Bill, some of the contributors and the rest of the DA staff at WHC 2010 in Brighton – When the Night Comes Down will launch on Friday 27th March in Bar Rogue between 10pm and midnight. I’ve contributed five stories to this collection.
Longer in the making but probably to be released well before WTNCD is Darc Karnivale published by The Evil Nerd Empire. The editors, David Byron and Corey R. Scales have put a great deal of time and effort into collecting and organising the stories for the anthology. The artwork has been provided by the talented Nick Rose. The image he’s created for my story ‘The Food of Love’ is superb. Other contributors include Paul Kane, Ralan Conley and Jeremy C. Shipp. With luck the anthology will be available at WHC 2010 in the dealer room, but failing that, it will be stocked by all the usual online suspects.
When MEAT first came out, Bloody Books made an unabridged recording of the text. The reader was Sorcha Cusack who has the most amazing voice – it really fits the tale. I heard she was white with shock at some of things she had to say whilst reading! Apologies to you, Sorcha!
Reviews of my first American publication The Kill Crew (
and