Tag Archives: Doug Murano

BEHOLD!: Oddities, Curiosities and Undefinable Wonders wins Bram Stoker Award!

So excited to announce that BEHOLD!: Oddities, Curiosities and Undefinable Wonders (Crystal Lake Publishing) has won the Bram Stoker Award for Best Anthology. Doug Murano was an excellent editor, always a pleasure to work with him. My story “Hiraeth” was really out there, and Doug worked with me on it, and even accepted the EDGIER version, encouraging me to push it, and take chances with the narrative. It was also the last story in the anthology, which to me, is another honor.

Featuring Clive Barker, Neil Gaiman, Ramsey Campbell, Lisa Morton, Brian Kirk, Hal Bodner, Stephanie M. Wytovich, John Langan, Erinn L. Kemper, John F.D. Taff, Patrick Freivald, Lucy A. Snyder, Brian Hodge, Kristi DeMeester, Christopher Coake, Sarah Read and Richard Thomas. Foreword by Josh Malerman. Illustrations by Luke Spooner. Cover art by John Coulthart.

Two Honorable Mentions for Best Horror of the Year

Thrilled that my stories, “Repent” (in Gutted: Beautiful Horror Stories) and “The Offering on the Hill” (in Chiral Mad 3) were both honorable mentions / long-listed for Best Horror of the Year. Both anthologies were also nominated for the Bram Stoker Award. Wow, what an honor, thrilled. Thank you Michael Bailey, Doug Murano, and D Alexander Ward for the continued support, faith, and guidance. Onward and upward!

BEHOLD! Releases, #1 in Horror Anthologies, My Story “Hiraeth” Included

I’m very excited to announce that BEHOLD! Oddities, Curiosities, and Undefinable Wonders (edited by Doug Murano, at Crystal Lake Publishing) is now out! My story, “Hiraeth” is in here, and I think this is really going to be one of the best anthologies put out this year. Doug has been doing excellent work. I turned in TWO versions of my story, and asked Doug which one he wanted (if he wanted EITHER one, LOL) stating that one was riskier, might be more divisive. That’s the version he took.

Who all is in here? Let me list these amazing authors: Clive Barker, Neil Gaiman, Ramsey Campbell, Lisa Morton, John Langan, Brian Kirk, Hal Bodner, Stephanie M. Wytovich, Erinn L. Kemper, John F.D. Taff, Patrick Freivald, Lucy A. Snyder, Brian Hodge, Kristi DeMeester, Christopher Coake, Sarah Read and Richard Thomas (me!). With a foreword by Josh Malerman.

And the reviews that are coming in are excellent, too, not just for the anthology, but also for my story, “Hiraeth” which closes out the book. Very exciting.

Want to hear more about my story? Check out this video:

My Story, “Hiraeth” will be in BEHOLD! Oddities, Curiosities, and Undefinable Wonders

I’m thrilled to announce that I’ll be a part of Behold: Oddities, Curiosities, and Undefinable Wonders. My story “Hiraeth,” will be in this exciting anthology (I’ve seen the full TOC). It’s a story about pain, hope, suffering, and the stories we tell ourselves, the layers of reality that exist around us. Hope you dig it. I’ll be joining a growing table of contents that so far includes Clive Barker, Ramsey Campbell, Lucy A. Snyder, John F.D. Taff, Brian Kirk, Patrick Freivald, Kristi DeMeester and Erinn Kemper. Josh Malerman will write the foreword. More to come! Stoked. Thanks, Doug Murano and Joe Mynhardt for your continued support. Crystal Lake Publishing continues to do great work. (FYI: Hiraeth is defined as “a feeling of nostalgia or longing for a place you’ve never been, or which may never have existed.)

Gutted: Beautiful Horror Stories is OUT!

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Last year I only wrote four short stories, one of which, “Repent,” made it into this amazing anthology, Gutted: Beautiful Horror Stories, edited by Doug Murano and D. Alexander Ward. This is the second anthology I’ve been in with these guys, the first being Shadows Over Main Street. Oh yeah, Clive Barker and Neil Gaiman? Nice.

I’m fascinated by the idea of beautiful horror, the intersection between hope and terror, between vengeance and redemption, between action and consequence. I think this is some of my best work to date, and I hope you’ll pick up a copy. “Repent” is about a father who has done some pretty dark things in his past, and the chance he has to do something right, to protect his son.  Here’s more about the book:

From Bram Stoker Award-nominated publisher, Crystal Lake Publishing, and the editing duo who brought you the best-selling and critically acclaimed small-town Lovecraftian horror anthology Shadows Over Main Street, comes Gutted: Beautiful Horror Stories–a disturbing journey into the beauty that rests inside the very heart of darkness. Awe meets ache. Terror becomes transcendence. Regret gives way to rebirth. Fifteen short stories and one poem span nearly every twisted corner of the horror and dark fiction genres: A woman experiences an emotional reckoning inside a haunted house. A father sees his daughter rescued after a cold case is solved, only to learn the tragic limits of his love. A man awakens a vengeful spirit and learns the terrible price of settling scores. A boy comes of age into awareness of a secret universe of Lovecraftian scale. A young woman confronts the deathly price of existence inside a German concentration camp during the Holocaust. And much, much more… Gutted: Beautiful Horror Stories features the most celebrated voices in dark fiction, as well as a number of exciting new talents: Clive Barker, Neil Gaiman, Ramsey Campbell, Paul Tremblay, John F.D. Taff, Lisa Mannetti, Damien Angelica Walters, Josh Malerman, Christopher Coake, Mercedes M. Yardley, Brian Kirk, Stephanie M. Wytovich, Amanda Gowin, Richard Thomas, Maria Alexander and Kevin Lucia. Edited by Doug Murano and D. Alexander Ward. With a foreword from Cemetery Dance magazine founder Richard Chizmar.

ENJOY!

Interior art reveal for my story, “Repent” in Gutted: Beautiful Horror Stories

Repent

Interior art reveal: Artist Luke Spooner deftly captures the creeping dread and inevitable doom that propel my short story, “Repent.” Luke always manages to find the tension and heart of my work, thrilled that he once again is attached to my writing. He’s amazing, and will be a huge part of Gamut, too.

Description: Awe and ache. Terror and transcendence. Regret and rebirth. Gutted: Beautiful Horror Stories is out in June! Featuring an all-star lineup including Ramsey Campbell, Clive Barker, Neil Gaiman, Paul Tremblay, John F.D. Taff, Lisa Mannetti, Damien Angelica Walters, Christopher Coake, Josh Malerman, Mercedes M. Yardley, Brian Kirk, Amanda Gowin, Richard Thomas, Maria Alexander, Stephanie M. Wytovich and Kevin Lucia. With a foreword by Cemetery Dance magazine founder Richard Chizmar.

“Repent” accepted for Gutted: Beautiful Horror Stories anthology

Gutted

(Cover art by Caitlin Hackett )

Thrilled to announce my 6,000-word story, “Repent” has just been accepted for Gutted: Beautiful Horror Stories, alongside Neil Gaiman! Did you read that there—Neil Gaiman! Wow. I mean, I’ve published alongside Stephen King four times now (Shivers VI, Cemetery Dance #72, and Chiral Mad 2 & 3) but this is the first time with Neil. I’m a big fan of his work, loved American Gods and Anansi Boys, as well as Neverwhere, Coraline, and of course The Sandman series.

Edited by Doug Murano and D. Alexander Ward (who also edited Shadows Over Main Street, which included my story, “White Picket Fences”) this anthology also includes fiction from Amanda Gowin, Brian Kirk, and John F.D. Taff. More names and stories TBD/TBA, but I’m really excited to see who else joins us.

Out with Crystal Lake Publishing in 2016. I’m a big fan of CLP, and I’ll have an announcement about another project I’m doing with them in 2016, but I did publish a story with them in the Fear the Reaper anthology and some non-fiction in the Horror 101: The Way Forward anthology as well. Joe Myndhardt is doing great things over there.

More news to come!