Short #HistoricalFiction Audiobook for #Summerween: Rhapsody in Blood

Stream "Rhapsody in Blood" now on Spotify.

For fans of historical fiction and readers of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, this vampire fantasy features fictional versions of blues singer Bessie Smith and composer George Gershwin. Vampire Bessie senses that George is not long for this world and offers to pass on her dark gift to him.

New Victorian Christmas Horror Story from There Might Be Cupcakes Podcast 2022

 

Find Carla’s short story “Holly Jolly Christmas” in Antimony and Elder Lace Press book Monsters Vol. 1 - preorder for $4.50 

Or follow Carla on Patreon and the cost of your book is included in your Patreon subscription.

***

December 10th is the birthday of poet Emily Dickinson, born in 1830.

Lo-Fi Grunge Emily Dickinson Bubble-free Stickers

'A Stir of Echoes' by Richard Matheson - Mid-Century Spooky Story

Stir of Echoes by Richard Matheson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

(Mild spoilers, not of major plot points.) Interesting mid-century artifact. The narrator, Tom, is mildly paternalistic and condescending to every woman in his life, including his pregnant wife Anne. That gets annoying, but it's somewhat alleviated by the facts that a) he genuinely loves her and the children and b) nothing horrible happens to her in the furtherance of the plot.

The supernatural element of the story is less of the monster variety that went into the writing of I Am Legend (which I haven't read; I've only seen the film) and subsequently inspired George Romero to make Night of the Living Dead. It's more of the atmospheric/eerie/parapsychology type.

And it's nothing like the 1999 movie that starred Kevin Bacon. The movie took out the casual misogyny and replaced it with sexual violence; there isn't a hint of sexual violence in the book. Reading the book does, however, make certain points in the movie make a lot more sense. They're orphaned elements from the novel without the through line.

This book came out in 1958. The Diagnostic and Statistics Manual (DSM) I, modern psychology's text for diagnosing mental illnesses, first appeared in 1952, and psychology was a bit of a "trend" in the '50s. In 1954, The Bad Seed explored psychopathy, and the word "psycho" was cemented in the public mind by 1959 when Robert Bloch released Psycho.

https://amzn.to/4xHY1n8

 
A Stir of Echoes touches on abnormal psychology with one character, but it's more of a fanciful "what if our minds have hidden psychic powers?" novel. It's less muddled and more clear-cut than in the movie, especially when it comes to Tom and Anne's 4-year-old, Richard. What's happening to Richard in the movie doesn't really resemble his little bit of involvement in the book.

Bottom line: Someone should write an updated script based on the book, without the implication that femaleness itself is a mild mental illness.

I borrowed this audiobook from my local library using the Libby app and was not obligated in any way to review it. Richard Matheson doesn't care because he died in 2013. I got the idea to borrow it from listening to Podcast Like It's 1999.

https://amzn.to/463lIJD - this is an affiliate link

When Bedtime Reading Enters My Dreams

I had another one of those dreams last night, a dream I was caught in the middle of the zombie apocalypse. When this happened before, I turned the dream into the short story "The Wild Ones," which you can read in Love, Lust, and Zombies, edited by Mitzi Szereto.

I always love a good zombie story, and I still have crushes on SEVERAL cast members from The Walking Dead, but the specific reason for this zombie dream had to do with my choice of reading material before bed. It was TVTropes.org, which I have mentioned several times previously as a favorite resource.

Like Wikipedia, it's also a good place to follow a proverbial rabbit trail. As one writer on Tumblr once said, "Does anyone else go on Wikipedia to look something up and then click on a bunch of random links and then half an hour later you’re 10 articles deep into the inner workings of Vietnamese politics?"

I do; I suppose that's part of the life of the writer. The day I found Wikipedia's pseudohistory category was a pretty clear example of that.

My search into TVTropes last night began with Rihanna. I'd heard her song "What Now" on Spotify the other day. I hadn't seen the video in a while, but I remembered that I contained images of the singer doing some moves that involve contortions and other non-dance moves that may remind viewers of either a person with a mental illness or film depictions of a person who is possessed (by evil spirits, perhaps).

This is the official video from Rihanna's VEVO page on YouTube. It's not available for embedding as of this writing.

This screencap captures Rihanna as she begins to fall backward.

I wondered if anyone had commented about this on TVTropes. Music videos are written of and discussed on the site, and I wondered if anyone had added "demonic possession" or anything similar as a trope in the "What Now" video. Well, there isn't even a page for the "What Now" video. The single and its accompanying video are barely mentioned on TVTropes at all.

This caused me to wonder a very specific thing: When I imagine the trope of what "demonic possession" looks like visually, what am I actually thinking of?

A related question I'd been interested in the past month or so had to do with the origin of the zombie myth in pop culture. Wikipedia actually does a really good job of answering that one. When I think of a zombie, I'm largely thinking of the visual language created by George Romero in his Night of the Living Dead, which I watched as a child and have seen several times since. It premiered in 1968, before I was born.

A fascinating audio book I heard recently (having borrowed it from the library via the Libby app) was Rabid: A Cultural History of the World's Most Diabolical Virus by Bill Wasik and Dr. Monica Murphy. In it, the authors mention that George Romero's film was inspired by Richard Matheson's 1954 novel I Am Legend. Even though Matheson calls his infected, murderous undead "vampires," the book essentially inspired the modern myth of the zombie apocalypse.

In turn, the bloodthirsty, relentless vampires in the book and its subsequent adaptations resemble animals with rabies. The human fear of zombies is closely related to the human fears of disease transmission and the kind of loss of control associated with neurological diseases like rabies. (Note that in real life, rabies isn't transmittable from one human being to another - not easily, anyway.)

And all of that was interesting to me, but if you visit the page on demonic possession on Wikipedia, you get more of a religious and historical discussion than a pop culture one. So to dig a little deeper into the cultural history of film depictions of demonic possession, I visited the TVTropes page on The Exorcist. (You may remember this post about the ongoing cultural relevance of Pazuzu.)

But then somehow, from there, I ended up on the page for Jesus Christ Superstar, the 1970 rock opera by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber. I've never seen the whole thing, only bits of it as a student in various Catholic schools. (I wanted to watch the TV version that aired earlier this year, but I missed it.)

If you go to TVTropes' Your Mileage May Vary (YMMV, i.e. opinions) page, you see there are versions of this musical in which Judas and Jesus are depicted with varying amounts of sexual tension between them. Now, when you say "Judas" to me, the first thing I think of is the Lady Gaga video. That is also unavailable for embedding, but it can be found here. Here's a little screencap:

Actor Rick Gonzalez (left) portrays Jesus, with Gaga as Mary Magdalene

That Judas? He's Norman Reedus, one of my Walking Dead crushes. I've been into him ever since my first viewing of Boondock Saints. And Judas x Jesus is the reason I had a dream about zombies last night.

It wasn't even a particularly scary dream; it mostly involved avoiding the darkness I Am Legend-style.

So if you're down to do a little wiki editing, someone could add some pop culture references to Wikipedia's demonic possession page and fill in some more of Rihanna's video tropes on TVTropes.org.

By the way, if you're really trying to give yourself nightmares, a good TV trope to explore is fold spindle mutilation. Read the real-life examples if you have a taste for gruesome reading, especially the Byford Dolphin diving bell accident story. It's both tragic and gross, if you're into that sort of thing. (And what human being doesn't have at least a little streak of morbid curiosity?)

Watch Rihanna’s Emmy winning Savage X Fenty Show Vol. 4 on Prime Video today! - this is an affiliate link

Horror Audiobook: 'A Midsummer Night's Scream' by R.L. Stine

A Midsummer Night's Scream by R.L. Stine

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I really enjoy a fresh take on A Midsummer Night's Dream, but this one's a bit hard to love. The plot is full of holes, the writing is hacky, and actual references to Shakespeare's play are few and far between. The Puck character never even says, "Lord, what fools these mortals be."

One thing I really didn't like was the main character Claire's tendency to call other girls and women "sluts." To be fair, many young women do really use this term. However, I don't think many thoughtful teenage girls would appreciate the stereotype that they are shallow, catty, and judgmental. In real life, this kind of name-calling can lead to bullying, and a young person who is bullied and doesn't know how to get help may even contemplate suicide. I know this personally because my cousin's 12-year-old daughter committed suicide in May 2015 after being bullied at school about not wearing designer clothes and being "poor." I have strong negative feelings toward girl-on-girl name-calling, or any name-calling between teens. Young folks really need to be positively reinforced for being kind and gentle toward each other.

But if you like kitschy early-1980s horror films, especially of the slasher variety, you might be able to appreciate this book on that level. I did care enough about the characters to root for Claire and Delia to live. It's not the worst young adult horror story ever. It's just not brilliant.

I purchased this audiobook at a library used media sale with my own finds and was not obligated in any way to review it. This review represents my own personal opinion.

This is an affiliate link:

Ghosts in Houses and Other Spooky Places by Daniel Hardie. $2.99 from Smashwords.com
Enter a world of the unknown and the paranormal, where strange ghostly and haunting happenings take place all over the world. Ghosts in Houses & Other Spooky places is a book that explores ghostly realms in haunted houses, haunted hotels, historic castles and cursed graveyards. Read this book... if you dare.

#Horror Book Review: Sunshine Boulevard by J.Q. Rose

Once upon a time, many years ago (Halloween 2011, to be exact), I took part in a Halloween blog hop. I won a prize from author J.Q. Rose, and that prize was an e-book copy of the horror novella Sunshine Boulevard, set in a gated retirement community in St. Augustine, Florida. It took me a shamefully long time to do so, but I finally got around to reading it on my Nook.

I'm so glad I did.

The book starts out with a mystery - what's killing the seniors in a most unusual fashion? Some form of spontaneous human combustion? Aliens? Or some kind of deadly new critter?

The novella contains a good amount of snarky but good-natured humor in addition to the mystery and body horror. It was a fast, fun, easy read. It reminded me of one other book I read before in the same horror subgenre, but alas, to name what that subgenre is would spoil the mystery. Best to just read it for yourself, if you're any kind of a comedy/mystery/horror fan.


Sunshine Boulevard on Goodreads

J.Q. Rose's author website

J.Q. Rose's blog

The Kindle edition of 'Midsummer Night' is now available!
Don't forget to enter to win a paperback copy from Goodreads!

This is an affiliate link:

Ghosts in Houses & Other Spooky Places by Daniel Hardie. $2.99 from Smashwords.com
Enter a world of the unknown and the paranormal, where strange ghostly and haunting happenings take place all over the world. Ghosts in Houses & Other Spooky places is a book that explores ghostly realms in haunted houses, haunted hotels, historic castles and cursed graveyards. Read this book... if you dare.

Cover Reveal: 'Death of the Body' by Rick Chiantaretto

Happy Halloween! Today is the cover reveal of Death of the Body by Rick Chiantaretto!

Release Date: December 13, 2013

I grew up in a world of magic. By the time I was ten I understood nature, talked to the trees, and listened to the wind. When the kingdom of men conquered my town, I was murdered by one of my own—the betrayer of my kind. But I didn't stay dead.

I woke to find myself in a strange new world called Los Angeles. The only keys to the life I remembered were my father’s ring, my unique abilities, and the onslaught of demons that seemed hell-bent on finding me. Now I must find out who I really am, protect my friends, and get back to my beloved hometown of Orenda.

Add Death of the Body to your Want to Read List on Goodreads

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About Rick Chiantaretto

I've often been accused of having done more in my life than the average 30 year old, but if I were completely honest I'd have to tell you my secret: I'm really 392.

So after all this time, I'm a pretty crappy writer.

I have one book published but out of print, one coming out soon, and a bunch half written (when you have eternity, where's the reason to rush?). I've been favorably reviewed by horror greats like Nancy Kilpatrick, and my how-to-write-horror articles have been quoted in scholarly (aka community college freshmen's) papers.

I enjoy the occasional Bloody Mary, although a Bloody Kathy or Susan will suffice.

Mostly, I just try to keep a low profile so people don't figure out who I REALLY am.

- Rick

Website

Facebook

Twitter

The Unlikely Planner - Guest Post by 'The Undying Love' Author Greg McCabe

Guest Post:

Are you a planner or a pantser?

            This question, or a variation of this question, is probably as old as fiction writing itself. Do you plan out your stories or do you write them by the seat of your pants?

            If you asked ten of my closest friends and family members if they thought I was a planner or pantser, I’d bet that just about all of them would guess that I was a pantser. It just seems to fit my personality. I often live life by the seat of my pants. I love unexpected adventures and hate firm itineraries on vacations. So it just seems natural that I’d fly by the seat of my pants when writing.

            However, when it comes to the novel creation process, and writing in general, I’m a die-hard planner. I know it doesn’t sound like a very creative-writer-literary-thing to say, but I plot out my entire story and the majority of my characters before I even sit down at a computer.

            I was shocked myself when I discovered this about my writing process. In fact, years ago, when I first decided to write a novel, I sat down and tried crank out a book by the seat of my pants. I had a title and a rough idea of the story and that’s about it. I didn’t have characters or locations or twists or any details for that matter, I just sat down and started typing. It was disastrous. I must have stared at a blank computer screen for an hour before I was able to type three or four sentences, and those sentences were so awful I deleted them from existence for all of eternity. I was terribly dejected by the entire experience and figured my writing career to be over for good.

            A couple years later, I found inspiration in zombies, then read some articles online about planning out a novel and found one that made the most sense to me. Then I jumped in and began creating my debut novel, The Undying Love. It took almost three years to complete, but I did it. Yep, I wrote a book. Then I went out and even got it published. I consider the entire project to be one of the most rewarding experiences of my life, and I couldn’t have done it without planning.

            My planning process looks a little like this: I start out by handwriting pages of notes about the book including a short summary, a long detailed summary, detailed character descriptions, and even sketches of what’s forming in my head. I then write out each scene with a quick one sentence description in an excel spreadsheet (the spreadsheet just makes it all easier to manipulate). These scenes then become the chapters of my book. As a write the first draft, I’m constantly going back and tweaking the spreadsheet and my notes. My notes serve a constant source of reference as I’m writing out each scene.

            Yes, without planning, I’d never have achieved my dream of becoming a published author and I’d probably still be looking at a blank computer screen. I still remember the name of the book that I started years earlier and never finished. It was going to be titled Running the Streets. One day I’m going to go back to that idea and write that book, but this time I’m going to have a plan!

* * * 

The Undying Love by Greg McCabe

Synopsis:

For Diane and Jackson, life is just about perfect. They’re healthy, happy, and madly in love with one another. Unknown to them, a virus is sweeping across the globe that instantly kills the infected and turns their corpses into mindless, murdering cannibals. In short: zombies have taken over the planet.

Diane and Jackson find out about the epidemic the hard way when their wedding is crashed by friends and family who have succumbed to the virus. Now, fighting for survival, they're faced with unthinkable decisions.

Follow their story across Southeast Texas as they meet unforgettable characters and face challenges that will put their love, and lives to the ultimate test.

Purchase Links:

Amazon: US, UK, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, Brazil, India, Mexico

CreateSpace

Smashwords

About the Author:

Greg McCabe is a proud Texan. He was born and raised in Midland, Texas, received a degree in Speech Communication from Texas A&M University, and currently resides in the Lone Star State. He enjoys spending time with his wife, Mandy, his daughter, Annabelle, and his dog, Walter, as well as traveling, sports, movies, reading, and writing. He enjoys all genres of fiction, but seems to gravitate towards horror and science fiction. The Undying Love is Greg’s first book.

Even More Tales of Biblical Terror: Dybbuk Press Plans 'King David and the Spiders From Mars'

This is my 665th post on this blog. You know what that means - the next one will be #666. It's too bad I couldn't get THIS to be the 666th post on account of its Biblical theme.

In 2010, I read and reviewed the Dybbuk Press horror anthology She Nailed a Stake Through His Head. It's an awesome read. I liked the book so much, editor Tim Lieder decided to use my review as the editorial review that appears on Amazon and Goodreads.

Now, Dybbuk Press is getting ready to publish a second anthology on the same Biblical horror theme. A short blurb by Dybbuk Press publisher/editor Tim Lieder reads:

"I am both the publisher and the editor of the anthology. This book and the previous Bible-themed horror collection - She Nailed a Stake Through His Head - are inspired by my love of the literary Bible studies as pioneered by Robert Alter and Erich Auerbach. When I first started publishing books through Dybbuk Press, I knew that I wanted to edit a book of Bible-themed stories because regardless of one's faith or lack thereof, the Bible is a great literary work with tight plotting, an economy of language, sudden bursts of violence and poetry as well as some of the most memorable characters in Western literature."

The authors and tales are all lined up - the small press is now seeking a little crowdfunding assistance. If you care to, please watch this short video from Tim.

Also, I think you should follow Tim on Facebook because, well, I think he's awesome. You won't see him around on the Sabbath or on Jewish holidays, because he's observant.

Welcome To My Coffin! Coffin Hop 2012 Giveaway

Welcome to the Coffin Hop 2012! This is my second year participating, along with dozens of other authors of the strange, the horrific and the eerie. Visit the Coffin Hop's WordPress blog and be sure to visit all the participants. There's a giveaway at each author's website!

I rarely write straight horror, though. I did write my first zombie piece this year, but that - like most of what I write - was paranormal erotica. PN erotica is precisely what you can win in my Coffin Hop giveaway:

The Giveaway: I have a very witchy prize to give away: 5 copies of "The Spell You Cast" by Erin O'Riordan and Rushmore Judd.



In this e-book, Troy falls for Madeline’s magic only to discover he is part of a much larger plan plotted by Madeline, an admitted witch, and her "sisters." The sex is enchanting as Troy’s infatuation for Madeline becomes deeper even as she introduces him to the other women. The coven is up to something, but will the spell they cast be something he likes? Or will he perhaps end up in the cauldron? 

To Enter: Due to the e-book content, you must be 18 years or older to enter. Simply leave a comment on this blog post. If you have a Blogger (Google) account with a public e-mail address and I can find your e-mail by clicking on your name, you need only comment. If not, please leave an e-mail address with your comment. To thwart spambots, I typically use this format: erinoriordan AT sbcglobal DOT net.

Winners will be chosen by Random.org on November 1st.

You do not need to be a follower of my blog to win, but follows are always warmly appreciated.

My Other Favourite Supernatural Creature ~ Guest Post by Julianne Snow

Now some of you might wonder why I’m making a stop on the divine Erin O’Riordan’s blog but we all have different likes and dislikes. I am a fan of Erin’s and while my main loves are horror and science fiction, I still enjoy a juicy erotic tale. I’m sure the same can be said for the lovers of erotica. Just to show you all that my interest in supernatural creatures is diverse, I’ve decided to write about -

My Other Favourite Supernatural Creature

I think it’s safe to assume that everyone knows that I love Zombies. I read about them, I watch them on television and in movies and I even write about them. My first book Days with the Undead: Book One is currently available at all the major self-publishing outlets. But the subject of this post is not Zombie related. What I want to talk to you about is my other favourite supernatural creature: shape shifters.

I have had a fascination with supernatural creatures as far back as I can remember. There is something dangerous and secretive about the things that we don’t readily understand. Shape shifters are among the most compelling of those for me. You’d never know that you were looking at one unless it let you in on its secret. The ability to transform into someone else is a power that many just may covet. Imagine if you could be someone else for a few days… The things that you could do, the things that you could find out, and the experiences that you’d be able to live. The list is endless.

One of my favourite books containing shape shifting is The Marvelous Land of Oz by L. Frank Baum. That was likely my first introduction to quite a phenomenon; when it was discovered that Princess Ozma really is Tip and that Tip has been searching for herself all along, I was just in awe. Even in C.S. Lewis’s tales of Narnia, shape shifting has a place or two where it transforms a character. Additional books containing shape shifters are Shiver (Maggie Stiefvater), Nightshade (Andrea Creamer) along with Stray (Rachel Vincent) and Moon Called (Patricia Briggs). The books detailing the exploits of shape shifters are plentiful and if they interest you, you will have no trouble finding a multitude of different series.

In the movies and television, shape shifting has been utilized to entrance and to terrify us. The Doctor is probably one of the most notable shape shifters in popular science fiction. If you don’t know who I’m talking about I suggest you pick up some Dr. Who at some point and get acquainted; you have no idea what you are missing. The Thing held audiences mesmerized by the horror of just what it could do to a small population in such a short period of time. See what I mean about the ability to disguise oneself? In some cases, that ability could definitely work against you. You can find shape shifters in other films such as Terminator 2: Judgement Day, the X-Men franchise, Lady Hawke and Cat People and that just to name a few.

Shape shifting might not be the most terrifying of all of the supernatural creatures but the potential for terror is still present. Given the fact that they can take on so many different forms, you cannot rule out the fact that they may exist. There is always a little truth hidden deep in folklore. The next time you take a seat on the bus or open your mouth wide for the dentist, think a little on the idea of shape shifters and try not to let your imagination take root in fear.

Days with the Undead: Book One Synopsis:

It’s a journal of survival.

Five people set out to escape the Undead who have risen too close to home. Join the emotional and physical struggle as they began on the third day after the awakening of Brooks VanReit, as they are recorded from the point of view of Julie, a former pathologist and part-time survivalist.

Each entry is geared toward helping those who want to help themselves and maybe give a few that don’t a swift kick in the ass. Join our group of survivors on their journey through these Days with the Undead.

Excerpt

Day 4:

For those of you out there that have no idea what is going on or those dealing with minimal information, I’m going to fill you in with what we know so far. Ben managed to survive being at the epicenter when Patient Zero transformed from being medically dead to Undead. Forgive me if the language I use is technical or scientific, being a pathologist, it’s how my brain is programmed to work and right now it’s on autopilot.

Four days ago my world - our world - went to hell and I don’t think it’s coming back. From what I’ve been able to gather from Ben, Brooks VanReit, whom I will refer to as Patient Zero from this point, came into the Emergency Room of St. Michael’s Hospital with practically non-existent vital signs. The staff assigned to treat him tried to resuscitate him but their efforts failed. Sometime between 7:30AM and 7:45AM, he was pronounced dead and as quickly as he died, he came back to life. From what I understand, the doctors and nurses first thought they were witnessing a miracle. They immediately found out how wrong they were.

Ben had tucked himself away in the nearby nurse’s station while completing a few charts before going home and he said he had a fairly good view of what transpired. His description of the carnage left in the wake of the reawakening is brutal.

Date Released - February 29th, 2012
ISBN: 1468007998
ISBN-13: 978-1468007992

About the Author - Julianne Snow

It was while watching Romero's Night of the Living Dead at the tender age of 6 that solidified Julianne’s respect of the Undead. Since that day, she has been preparing herself for the (inevitable) Zombie Apocalypse. While classically trained in all of the ways to defend herself, she took up writing in order to process the desire she now covets; to bestow a second and final death upon the Undead.

As the only girl growing up in a family with four children in the Canadian countryside, Julianne needed some form of escape. Her choice was the imaginations of others which only fostered the vibrancy of her own. The horror and forensic/crime thriller genres top her list of favourites, but she can never turn down a good science fiction, fantasy or mystery read.

Julianne appears in the anthology Women of the Living Dead with a story entitled "The Living Dead at Penderghast Manor." Look for her short stories in future anthologies. Days with the Undead: Book One is her first full-length book, the basis of which can be found in her popular web serial of the same name.

Days With the Undead: Book One - Available in print and digital formats.

Purchase Links - Print:

CreateSpace
Amazon

Purchase Links - Digital:
Smashwords
Amazon US
Amazon UK

THEDAILYTERROR ~ Guest Post by Jake Bannerman

ANXIETY THRUST DEPRAVE DEAD MURDER RAPE SMUT DISEASE ROBBERY FILTH CHILDREN HOMELESS GUNSHOT POLICE AMBULANCE There is an exercise going on, pay attention, there will be a test at the end. VIOLENCE SATAN KNIFE ACCIDENT HOSPITAL ABANDONED DEPRESSION FIRE FLOOD TORNADO BLIZZARD ECONOMY WELFARE STARVING MALNOURISHED CUT OFF LAY OFF FIRED EXCUSED SUSPENDED WITHOUT PAY Is anyone catching on yet? GUTTER ABORTION SACRILEGE UNHOLY BLACK JEW NAZI BOMBING SOLDIERS Anybody, anyone? Just raise your hand if you think you have it. WARLORD FAMINE CANCER AIDS FLU ANTHRAX NUCLEAR WARFARE HEAVY METAL SUICIDE HAZING MASSIVE LOSS JOBLESS CRASH BURN GHETTO BROKEN POOR KNIFE GASHED DESPICABLE...any clue?

Words I found in today’s newspaper. That’s right; in one day, the daily newspaper makes not only my work but any horror master's work seem pretty fucking lame, huh? I try and explain this in just about every interview or post I can - LISTEN CLOSELY. Mankind is horror, just read the papers...

Do I need to spend an hour writing a thousand word guest post about this? NO WAY! I am sure that there is a newspaper close by where you are sat now, and what makes that even more interesting is that we are ADDICTED!!!

We, you, them - the guy on the train next to you, the school teacher, the nurse, the redhead you want to fuck on the sixth floor…We want the news! We revel in how fucking sick we have become. Are you ready for this? We are the main characters in the most frightening book of all time!

What I want from you, dear reader, is an argument, a solid foundation of reasoning of why I am wrong. I bet you will try and fail, but humor me. Send your argument to alysbonde@gmail.com and you might just win yourself a copy of my newest book ‘The Pitchfork Diaries’ where I take the newspapers to school and fill your brain with horror you have never even thought of!

****

The Pitchfork Diaries is a collection of short stories and prose unlike anything you have ever read before. Even the darkest and most violent imaginings of your mind cannot come close to matching the horrors contained within.

J.S. Bannerman, a new name in the horror genre, has skillfully woven a collection of tales that will inescapably work their way into your psyche, take up residence and relentlessly haunt you. Prepare yourself to be confronted by words that will threaten to shake the foundation of everything you thought you knew; no truth is too uncomfortable, no thought too gruesome to share.

All are invited to read The Pitchfork Diaries. Many will never be the same.

Currently Available on Smashwords.com
ISBN 978-1-4657-1708-5

Early Praise for The Pitchfork Diaries:

“It’s refreshing to find a multifaceted storyteller that can tie together a multitude of different genres. J.S. Bannerman leaves no stone unturned and attacks any subject that his mind lays purchase to. He weaves a brilliant story each and every time that pulls you in and keeps you engaged.”

Julianne Snow
Author of Days with the Undead

****

Born and raised in the church, J.S. Bannerman has taken the dangerous stance to question events that have been spoon fed to him as the truth since his childhood. He continually pushes boundaries as a purveyor of terror and often strives to find that disquietude that exists inside each one of us.

He is a nomad, calling no one place home; choosing the life of a traveler while on the mission of writing the Family of Dog series. As a result you may find him in your town, writing at your local pub, crafting tales of horror so terrifyingly deprave and heartbreakingly cruel that you would never believe that they come from a mind as normal as his. Just beware, because within each tale is a message; it’s just up to you to figure out what it means.

When Sex Meets Evil - Guest Post by Jake Bannerman

Erin O'Riordan's Note: Jake is a 19+ author of extreme horror/erotica. I haven't read Jake's work yet, so when I was introduced to him through Shah Wharton, I was curious about what was meant by "horror/erotica." Was it sex-positive, I wondered, i.e. did it portray sex as the good, life-affirming thing that it can be? As an erotica writer, one of my goals with this blog is to keep you reading, but another goal is to subtract shame and negativity from the public discourse about sex. I asked Jake about whether this was one of his goals as well, and this is what he had to say:

Greetings,

My name is Jake Bannerman I am the author of The Family of Dog book series as well as The Pitchfork Diaries. I am very happy to be contributing this post for a number of reasons. Number one because I was invited - lol, that does not happen often - and to explain to you the reader how I go about the term "erotica" in my work.

The first time I heard the term erotica in association with my work is after I released ”The Scarecrow's Lament” which is a tale of a father who teaches his mentally handicapped daughter how to kill men and animals to build a sex partner so he could charge people to watch his daughter have sex with a “scarecrow” crafted out of pieces of dead bodies. Now I have to ask do you think for a second I had erotica in mind? Absolutely NOT!

I also heard the term mentioned to me after the release of my next story “To Walk the Path of Maggots” which entails a group of men who stream video of women ripping maggots off of themselves while they masturbate and charge people to watch this on the net. Once again EROTICA?!?!?!?!

Not in a million years did I ever consider that anyone would ever for a split second look at my writing as an aphrodisiac.

At this point you have either stopped reading and have formed a voodoo doll of me and are stabbing it with a fork OR out of morbid curiosity you are just waiting to see what I say next.
What is my writing and how is sex involved? Sex is ritual and Sex is power; it is the driving force between battles and a master force of deviance! What did Adam and Eve do when they found out they were no longer divine? They had SEX!!

Sex has driven mankind to atrocities unspoken and that is the focus in SOME of my writing the extreme measures we as creatures will let sex push us to. It is also and nobody can deny sex is a train wreck the carnal desire we have if you throw sex into a story it does not even matter if it is relevant it adds kick ! Though carnal, the majority of us still feel dirty and naughty after we read, see or hear sex--it flips an engine in all of us.

We want it because it is so good; even your worst sexual experience (think first time, lol) was pleasurable; if it was not we would die as a species. It feels good, it smells good, it tastes good.

Does that mean that I condone rape, torture, murder that include sexual themes? Not a chance!

Do I think that I am determined to point out the evils of mankind even if I get accused of being a supporter of the things I write about?, Yes! My writing is meant to take you further than our minds are supposed to go and the truly HORRIFFIC part is that nothing I have written or will ever write is nothing that has not been done before, and will be done again. That is why it is HORROR, and more importantly it is labeled FICTION, however, after you finish the last sentence and say "I bet that has probably happened or will happen."

I invite you to join in and experience when Sex and Evil meet. The darkness of humankind is a journey; we all starve for even if we do not want it. I write it, humankind supplies it.

Sex Satan Sacrifice,
J

Image attribution:
Scarecrow: J.C.H. (full name unknown), Harper's Weekly, 1872. Public domain in the U.S.
Adam and Eve by Hans Thoma, 1897, public domain worldwide
To the Accuser by William Blake, public domain worldwide