Congratulations people, we have successfully navigated Christmas, New Year and the long-arse month that was January and have come out the other side maybe with a few extra pounds, a few less pounds (in your wallet or purse) and maybe with a few new things you wanted to achieve this year, resolutions makers or not.
Last year I wrote three books, will I repeat that this year, who knows; what I do know though is I will be writing a new novel and I might try and write a snappy horror-filled novella too. I’m currently holding off on over-committing too much as something is lurking in the background (which I can’t talk about) and if it works out, let’s say I’ll be busy!
Updates
A Few Vials More
I had a Publishers Marketplace Deal Announcement for my recently finished horror Western novel ‘A Few Vials More’ and I’m delighted to be returning to DarkLit Press to release this epic tale of the West.
No sooner had it been finished, Andrew at DarkLit was snapping it up, which fills me with excitement, as I truly believe this book is something special (aren’t they all). It takes the Western genre to new heights, adding a little Science Fiction, a lot of horror, and a hell of a lot of grief…mixing it all into a heady concoction of depravity…you’re going to love it!
Harvesting The Nightmare Fields
So, this is another book I wrote last year and I’m pleased to say that Cemetery Gates Media, who I’ve worked with previously on ‘Only The Stains Remain’ and ‘Beautiful Atrocities’ are going to be publishing the paperback this year.
This is full-on horror, with many a ghastly scene and some scares, also there might be a smidgen of grief in there too, come on, I couldn’t let you all down now could I? I enjoyed writing this book and when I was talking with Nathan Logan about the cover design, having to explain the book to him, I was like ‘Damn that sounds like the kind of book I want to read!’ - also, trust me when I say, this cover is going to be epic!
I’m currently working with Andy on editing this one (Austrian Spencer) and it’s been a fabulous time, he’s a very gifted editor and one that I highly recommend working with, he’s not only editing, getting the best out of the book, he’s also getting the best out of me too, teaching me like no one ever has about the craft… top-notch, and trust me I’ve worked with a few!
I Died Too, But They Haven’t Buried Me Yet
There are only a few copies left of the stunning Thunderstorm limited edition of this book, it’ll never be published in this way again, so treat yourself and pick up a collector’s item. The book boasts a wonderful introduction from Tyler Jones, and gorgeous cover art and internal illustrations from Nathan Logan - each copy is signed by all three of us and also includes an exclusive short story set in the same universe, which isn’t available anywhere else.
You can pick up one of the few remaining copies here.
Horror Slices
I’ve been reading a lot in January and February (twenty-three books so far) since not reading much during the writing of my three books last year. Some of the highlights so far this year have been the following books.
Bruises on a Butterfly by Chad Lutzke, my goodness is this book good, it’s possibly one of my favourites from Chad and I’d pitch it as Stand By Me given a Kafka twist, utterly heartbreaking.
Blind Spots by Daniel Barnett (Nightmareland Chronicles #7) was all I wanted and more, with Barnett expanding the universe and characters that he’s already made us all fall in love with; I was also very lucky to get an advanced copy of it, and thank Daniel for sneaking me a copy…I really appreciate it!
The Demon of Devil’s Cavern by Brennan LaFaro is the second book in his Western (trilogy?) series and it again pulled me right back into the world and characters he set up in Noose, I think it’s a powerful book and if you loved Noose then you’re going to love where this takes you.
The Pram by Joe Hill was everything I wanted and more, a grief-laden tale which I enjoyed as we spent the story through the eyes of the male protagonist and got to see and feel what it was like for him after the death of a child, something we don’t often see, this perspective of grief from a father. Great work and hauntingly beautiful.
That’s all folks
Thanks for coming back and reading another issue of Horror Slices, I really do appreciate every one of you who still reads these drippings of my mind. Hope you found something of interest and why not pick up a book and help some authors out by reading/reviewing their work or even speaking to others about it - I know I appreciate it and I’m sure the authors mentioned above would appreciate it too!
So much fun stuff happening!! I can’t wait to read all of these!!
Congrats, Ross. The new book sounds great. I look forward to reading it. Ive alway wanted to do a western but one of my writer friends keeps telling me how much of a hard sell they are. He says even harder than horror, and he, until recently, had been prolific—way over 200 books of mostly horror. It is kind of a kick in the gut since I'm just getting into writing. Horror. So, you, with A FEW VIALS MORE, are indeed an inspiration. Keep going!