The Five Habits of Highly Offended People

Taking a cue from Carlton Mellick III's blog post, The 7 Types of Bizarro Fiction Haters, I decided to profile the five most common types of Extreme Horror haters.

1. The Spooky Guy. "I like spooky, creepy, atmospheric horror stories. Extreme Horror isn't atmospheric enough for me. They don't spend pages and pages describing the scenery and the weather and the shadows on the wall and the sound of doors slamming and creaking floorboards. Obviously, it's because they aren't very good writers. It's much harder to describe shadows and fog and strange noises in the night then it is to describe scenes of evisceration."

Because obviously we see evisceration everyday. It's the shadow of trees and dark storm clouds that we see so seldom. It takes real talent and imagination to describe them.

2. The Gross-For-The-Sake-Of-Grossness-Shock-For-the-Sake-Of-Shock-Gore-For-The-Sake-Of-Gore-Guy. "The entire story serves no purpose but to shock and appall. That's not real horror. That doesn't take talent. In real horror, the entire story serves no purpose, but to terrify. That's a far nobler endeavor."


But don't a lot of people find gross, shocking, gory things terrifying? And why do you think a story written with the sole intention of making the reader cry or laugh or sentimental or angry is somehow more indicative of genuine artistic ability? Let's see you try to freak someone out with a story. Let's see you make today's jaded readers cringe and shudder. There's enough people writing bad Extreme Horror to lend some credence to the opinion that writing good Extreme Horror ain't easy.

3. The Morality Policeman. "That's disgusting! Writers of Extreme Horror have no moral compass. They are all sick, demented, perverts who should be locked away for the safety of society!"

Really? You're an adult and you really believe that people are what they write? You think Anne Rice wants to drink blood and Thomas Harris really wants to eat people? You think it takes a twisted mind to write about twisted murders? So when Stephen King wrote that scene in Firestarter where the government agent dresses in women's underwear and sticks his arm in the garbage disposal while masturbating he should have been locked up for that? You really think Stephen king is a menace to society? What about writers of more mundane murders? Are they exempt or should we lock up Agatha Christie too?

4. The Puritanical Guy. "I don't mind the violence and gore. Mutilate, eviscerate, dismember, and torture all you want. Just don't put any sex in it. That's just disgusting and it makes me uncomfortable. The human body isn't meant for sex it's meant for annihilation! Now that's entertainment. Sex is just... blech!"

Grow up and see a psychiatrist about those issues, missionary man.

5. The Literary Guy. "All genre fiction is inferior. Genre's are literary ghettos where we send our less fortunate, less talented authors. Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror authors are all hacks. If they weren't they'd be writing literary fiction and be in Oprah's Book Club. When you can spend two pages describing the dew on a leaf or write a story about a man or woman from a third world country who finds their humanity through a heroic struggle, then you're a real writer."

THE GIRL NEXT DOOR is as much about the human experience as THE KITE RUNNER. So is SUCCULENT PREY for that matter. A good story should show extraordinary people in extraordinary circumstances and it doesn't matter if those circumstances are real or imagined. Just because you've never been attacked by a zombie or a psychopath doesn't mean that isn't part of the human experience. Our fear of monsters is as real as our fear of starvation, disease, and war. It is part of who we are. And writing about these monsters and how we overcome them has as much relevance as a story about Black women working as nanny's during the Jim Crow era.

And dragging out scenes with pages of endless, unnecessary descriptions that don't serve to advance the story or further engage the reader is not the mark of a true author. Keeping a reader turning the pages, breathless with anticipation and leaving them thinking about the book for days after they put it down, that's true art.

So, fuck those whining, hating, conceited, literary snobs. Fuck them in their upturned noses. They can all kiss the darkest part of my ass.

HERO

It seems like years since J.F. Gonzalez and I penned this brutal little tale together. Well, it has been years, but now it's back in print! On the eve of the publication of our second collaboration, THE KILLINGS, HERO has been rereleased as a trade paperback from Deadite Books. If you haven't read it, get it! Here's a brief synopsis:

Adelle Smith has lived her entire life for the betterment of mankind. A Civil Rights Activist in the Sixties and Seventies, she has spent most of her adult life attending marches, giving speeches, and lending a hand to anyone in need.

But on the very evening she is to be acknowledged with a Lifetime Achievement Award for her humanitarian efforts, a stroke leaves her partially paralyzed and unable to speak. Now Adelle's in the care of a ruthless hospice nurse, who sees not a hero before her, but the cause of her many hardships growing up as a child of interracial parents, someone who decides to give Adelle her very own brand of "Physical Therapy" consisting of pain and suffering, mental cruelty and torture.

And now, after a lifetime of helping others, Adelle needs help, quickly, before another round of brutal treatment snuffs out her life.

Available now at amazon.com!

New Contest!

Write a review of SACRIFICE on Amazon, Goodreads, Librarything, Barnes and Noble, a messageboard, blog, etc. and get your name entered into a drawing to be killed in my latest novel, PREY DRIVE: Succulent Prey II! If you read SUCCULENT PREY then you know the extreme sexual violence that epitomized that novel. PREY DRIVE will be no different.

Ever wondered what it would feel like to be eaten alive by a cannibalistic serial killer like SUCCULENT PREY's super predator, Joseph Miles? Now you can find out. Just write a review of my novel SACRIFICE from Sinister Grin Books. The review can be good, bad, or indifferent. Post the review, and send me a link to it here on my blog or on Facebook or Twitter and you will be entered in the drawing. Make sure to include in your message a statement expressly permitting the use of your name and physical description in the novel.

GOOD LUCK!

Two New Book RELEASES!

SKINZZ is now available from Thunderstorm Books! http://thunderstormbooks.com/skinzz.php

"At a hardcore concert in Philadelphia, a Punk Rock girl named Miranda is stomped, punched and kicked into a coma. On a subway platform at midnight, an old black woman is burned alive. On a busy street in Camden, New Jersey, in broad daylight, a suspected homosexual is stabbed to death. A sociopath named "Little Davey", a member of a racist skinhead group called "The Unrest", is on a killing spree, eager to send a message to the lesser races … and he is just getting started.

In 1988, Philadelphia's legendary South Street was a battleground. Fights between skinheads and punkrockers were growing more frequent and more violent. Concerts became bloodbaths as the two countercultures clashed. Mack and Jason were soldiers in the battle against "The Unrest". They lived to kick ass. But the fight has just gotten more serious than either of them was prepared for and if they want to survive, they'll have to become even more ruthless, more vicious. They will need to be willing to kill.

From hardcore horror master, Wrath James White, comes a story of hatred, violence and the everlasting bonds of friendship."


My long-awaited story of a UAV pilot with post-traumatic stress disorder, The Reaper, is now available from Bloodletting Books! https://www.darkfuse.com/the-reaper-by-wrath-james-white-signed-limited-hc.html

"Each morning, Marc wakes up, does a few pushups, takes a shower, has breakfast with his wife Isabel and his son and daughter, Luke and Carrie. Then he kisses his family goodbye, drives to Creech Airforce base, sits down at the UAV command center, and goes to war. For twelve hours a day, he flies the MQ-9 Reaper Hunter/Killer UAV and bombs targets in Afghanistan. He watches as the survivors crawl from the wreckage, often with missing limbs and severe burns. Sometimes there’s collateral damage. Sometimes kids get caught in the blast, kids as young as Luke and Carrie. He has seen American soldiers die. He’s watched helpless as entire squadrons were destroyed. Then, at the end of the day, he goes home to his family and tries his best to forget about the horrors of war. He tries to remember to pick up the dry cleaning. He tries to pay attention to the conversation around the dinner table. He tries to stay in the moment and keep the war and his family life separate, but it is getting harder. Everyday the line between The Reaper and the sensitive, god-fearing, family man grows thinner and the war comes ever closer to home."

Goodbye 2011!

It is easy to say that 2011 sucked and boy did it ever. I hit rock bottom financially in 2011, got arrested for assault in a road rage incident (Don't ask. Still pending.) I was unemployed twice, tore the hell out of my meniscus and had to have knee surgery, and found and then failed to qualify for a house my wife had fallen in love with. Yeah, shit sucked. But there were quite a few bright spots as well.

I made the ballot for the HWA Bram Stoker Awards for the first time in 2012 for my poetry collection VICIOUS ROMANTIC. I can't tell you how proud I am of that little book. Poetry has always been my first love.

The company that bought the film option for The Resurrectionist, renewed the option with the promise to get started on the movie in early 2012. This is a big deal for me. I think every author's dream is to see his novel hit the silver screen and this book is perfect for it. The sale of the film rights will also help me finally purchase a new house after losing my house in 2009. Fingers crossed.

I helped my good friend Shane McKenzie start his small press publishing company and became one of their first authors when they published SACRIFICE. The genre desperately needs strong publishers and Sinister Grin Press now has a pretty solid business plan that should see them thrive in the next two years. They will be publishing my collaboration with J.F. Gonzalez, THE KILLINGS next year and another novella by me sometime near the end of 2012. Their emergence also helped stabilize my finances when they were at their worst.

I made a great new friend in Brian Wubbena who gave my wife and I the best anniversary we ever had. He also has many of the same interests as me and, like Shane Mckenzie and Nate Southard, bridges the gap between my horror friends and my fighter friends. Kicking it with him and his wife, Tabitha, actually makes me feel normal. In addition to being a horror fanatic and a fight fan, he also likes to cook (he's actually a chef) so that pretty much seals the deal. Odd to find someone with all the same interests as you. My wife doesn't even have all the same interests as me. If he had breasts and a vagina she'd be in trouble. Well, if he had a pretty face as well and was genetically female not transgender and if he was more curvaceous. Okay, I wouldn't get romantic with him, but you know what I mean.

After being unemployed twice in 2011, I ended the year by being rehired at the company I had worked for since 1999. How huge that is for my family and I cannot be measured. It makes the prospects for 2012 all that much brighter.

Deadite Press put out three of my novellas last year and the fans were nearly unanimous in their approval. It's great to have a strong new publisher in the horror genre. Even the rereleases were better received this time around then they were on their initial release. Might have something to do with the covers? If you pick up a book with a title as provocative as LIKE PORNO FOR PSYCHOS with a cover image featuring a woman posed on a bed minus much of her skin and you're surprised by the amount of sex and gore then you're an idiot. I think Deadite got that and the fans got it as well. More good stuff coming from them in 2012.

KillerCon was a huge success in 2011. We had many surprise celebrity attendees, last minute guests of honor, the panels were amazing, and the contests were just plain incredible. Everyone had a great time and we're doing it again in 2012!

Shane McKenzie came through for me like a champ this year, once again proving what a great friend he is and confirming that my choice to move to Austin was a great one. Don't know what I would have done without friends like him, Nate, and Brian.

So, despite the many ill fortunes I suffered this year, I had my share of good fortune as well. Still, as I said in a recent Facebook post: "‎2011 should have been murdered in the womb, but I survived it and came out stronger in the end than I was when it started. Now, I just need some peace."

Appreciation

There's an old saying that goes: "No man loves his debtors." It is hard to feel gratitude. It is hard to live with the knowledge that you owe someone, that you are in their debt. It typically breeds resentment and eventually denial. But this isn't always the case.

There are a great many people to whom I am indebted. My writing career may have never gotten off the ground had it not been for a few writers and editors who helped me along the way. My fighting career would have never begun had it not been for my trainers, promoters, and matchmakers. Here's a partial, but by no means exhaustive, list of those to whom I owe a debt.

Floretta James White (Mom). Besides giving birth to me and raising me, my mother always encouraged me to do and be whatever I wanted to do. She believed that everyone should explore their talents and do what they love. She was also the one who exposed me to horror and nurtured my love of reading. Without a doubt, I would be nothing I am today without her. I love you, Mom. Thanks for making me the man I am today.


Bob Strauss. I had just started writing, posting stories at the Horror Author's Network's now defunct (and greatly missed) website, when Bob contacted me to tell me how much he enjoyed my writing. I had never heard of Extreme Horror before him. I naively assumed that all horror was extreme, but then I hadn't read much horror in over a decade. I was just writing the type of stories I wanted to read. He was the one who told me about Edward Lee, Richard Laymon, and Jack Ketchum. He was also the one who told me about Delirium Webzine and suggested that I submit stories there. I owe you one, my friend.

Shane Ryan Staley. I was an unknown writer still learning his craft back in 2001 when I submitted my first story to Delirium Webzine. It was a twisted little tale called "After The Cure" about an orgy breaking out following the cure for AIDS. Shane published it and then followed that up by putting me in his first and only online gross-out contest. I entered another story titled "Nothing Better to Do" about a man trying to kill a dog who was really a two thousand year-old demon that planted subliminal suggestions in his mind at night while he slept. That story was the first one to really get me noticed. At that time, Delirium Webzine was one of the most widely read horror webzines online. Their Sunday night chats (which I still miss) were attended by some of the brightest up and coming writers in the genre including Brian Keene, Paul Tremblay, and Monica O'Rourke. Putting my little story online helped introduce me to all of them. I was surprised when I went to my first convention, Horrorfind I, and people noticed me and remembered me because they'd read me in Delirium. Shane was also responsible for my first sale to a major anthology, Dark Testament and the publication of my first solo novella, His Pain. Even my short story collection, The Book Of A Thousand Sins, was originally written for Delirium Books at Shane's request though he later passed on it. Thanks for all you've done for me, Shane.

Brian Keene. I was attending my first horror convention, Horrorfind I, when I met Brian. I had spoken to him online before. He'd even published a couple of my stories in Horrorfind's fiction section. Still, I was surprised by how friendly and accommodating he was. He introduced me to several writers, editors and publishers. It was Brian who, at a later Horrorfind, introduced me to Edward Lee, inspiring the collaboration that would have the first major impact on my career, The Teratologist. It was Brian who put me in a reading slot with Edward Lee and Jack Ketchum, one of the highlights of my career, which led to the best blurb I've ever received. It was Brian who introduced me to Don D'Auria, which led to my first mass-market deal for Succulent Prey. No other person has done more for my career than you, Brian. My debt to you is immeasurable. Thanks, my friend.

Brian Hopkins. Brian was my mentor when I first joined the HWA. My style was raw and unpolished (some may say it still is) when he took me under his wing. I doubt that I would have gotten anything published back then if not for his guidance.

Edward Lee. I had just started reading Lee's work when I met him at Horrorfind. I was blown away when he told me that he had read and enjoyed my writing. A nearby editor overheard the exchange and offered to publish a collaboration between the two of us and thus Teratologist was born. Lee didn't have to agree to it. He had plenty of other authors clamoring to work with him. If he hadn't though, my career would never have received that much needed boost. Thanks, my friend.

Monica J. O'Rourke. I met Monica online at Delirium's Sunday night chats and in person at Horrorfind. We hit it off pretty quickly. Her twisted little novel, Suffer The Flesh, remains one of my favorite reads. After reading it, I contacted her about collaborating on a piece and Poisoning Eros, one of my most popular and sought after collaborations, was born. Since then MoJo has been my behind the scenes weapon proofreading nearly every novel and novella I've published. Thanks, my luv.

Larry Roberts and Jamie La Chance. I put them together because, my very first novel, Succulent Prey, would never have existed had Jamie not read it and recommended to Larry that he publish it and had Larry not agreed to take that world altering leap of faith on a new writer. This book was the one that introduced me to the world and later led to my first mass-market deal. My sincere gratitude to both of you.

Don D'Auria. Yes, I have had my issues with Leisure Books. Still, the fact remains that my star would not be shining nearly so bright had Don not agreed to publish my first mass-market novel. And, had he not published The Resurrectionist, the possibility of seeing the product of my imagination on the silver screen would not exist either. Thanks for everything, Don.

Maurice Broaddus. Yeah, I know. I'm stretching here, but the reality is that if Maurice had never invited me to join his messageboard and never invited me to speak at his church, I would never have realized how many people were actually interested in my views on atheism. Arguments with Maurice have led to many of my most popular essays and even led to the creation of my blog at GODLESSANDBLACK.blogspot.com. Our collaboration, Orgy of Souls, introduced my work to a whole new audience and (if he ever gets his ass in gear) our latest collaboration, God's Wrath, is destined to make serious ripples. Thanks, Maurice!

Kru Sam Phimsoutham. Kru Sam was my first Muay Thai instructor. I would never have stepped into the ring had it not been for the patience and skill Kru showed in training me throughout my amateur career and his commitment in sticking by me through my pro career as well, even when I was training with Master Toddy. He was there to train me for my retirement fight. Much of the man I am today, I owe to you, sir. Thank you.


Thohsaphon Sitiwatjana (Master Toddy). When I turned pro, I moved to Las Vegas to train with the world famous Master Toddy. I lived at his house, ate at his table, and fought whoever he put in front of me, even when I sometimes had no chance of winning. I trusted the man that much. If he said fight, I fought without question. I would never have fought in Japan had it not been for Master Toddy. I would never have had some of my most cherished memories. Many of the techniques I use and teach today, I learned from you. For that, I owe you much. Thank you.

There are many more people I could add to this list. My wife, my ex-wife, my ninth grade English teacher, my great-grandfather, my grandmother, my philosophy professor, my latest collaborators: J.F. Gonzalez and Andre Duza, my former fight promoters, the matchmakers who got me my first fights in Japan, everyone who's ever bought one of my books. There are too many to name. My point here is that I hate being indebted to someone else as much as anyone. I am militantly independent and I like to think I can do it all by myself, but the reality is that none of us can. We all need other people and it is good to know there are people who will step in to help even when you think you don't need it. I love my debtors. There is no way I could ever fool myself into thinking I could have gotten half as far in my life without you. Thank you all.

Writing My Ass Off!

Writing to pay bills has always been a fear of mine. "What if I become a hack, churning out the next book just to pay the light bill? What would happen to my artistic integrity?" I didn't see how anyone could give an honest effort while cranking out three or four books a year. Now, even though I have a full-time job, this economy has so decimated my savings that I have had to up my writing output to keep food on the table. This terrified me at first. All my fears of becoming a hack resurfaced. "How could I feed my family with my writing and not compromise myself?"

I remembered Stephen King's output in the eighties. I read then that he wrote 2,000 words a day. I write around 850 words a day. That's not exactly balls to the wall. I have more ideas for stories in my head than I could ever possibly write this year or next. So, I am not at a lost for inspiration. I am not struggling to come up with the next book and churning out whatever I can just to make a quick buck. That would suck, for both you as a reader and me as a writer. I'd rather starve.

Every book I have written in the last year has been one that has been on my mind for at least two years prior to me putting pen to page and some had been sitting unfinished for ten years or more. The stories I'm coming up with now will probably not get written for a year or two at the least. I write as much as I possibly can without taking too much time from my family or risking divorce or insanity.

What I have found is that necessity not only breeds creativity, but it spawns the motivation to actually give life to the ideas languishing in one's mind. An overdue power bill is a great impetus to get off one's ass and write. I cannot imagine how much longer Sacrifice might have remained unfinished had I not needed to pay the rent or when or if I would have ever finished Amber Alert or written SKINZZ. Would I have even begun my collaborations with Andre Duza or J.F. Gonzalez had I not been unemployed from March to September? Probably not.

Writing three or four books a year while working full-time, training fighters, and raising three kids and a wife ain't easy. Don't get me wrong. My point is that it does not necessarily lead to a decrease in the quality of one's work as an artist. Some authors, like Brian Keene, have done some of their best work since they became full-time writers. If I had more time to write, and didn't need the money, I'd probably write a helluva lot less and many of the books my readers now enjoy would not even exist. Hell, I wrote The Resurrectionist under a time crunch and finished the last 17,000 words in one weekend and I would go so far as to say that it is one of my best books with one of the best endings I've ever written. So, more time is not necessary for better quality when it comes to art. And it appears that my fears of becoming a hack have (so far) been for nothing.

Despite my enormous output the last two years, I still have more ideas than time to write them. My novel about a former Ugandan child soldier being chased through Death Valley by subhuman cannibals remains uncompleted. My novel about an interracial couple involved in a cruel BDS&M game is only half complete. My zombie(ish) novel has yet to be written. There's a collaboration I've been meaning to start with one of your favorite extreme horror authors that I have not gotten around to yet. The sequel to Population Zero is still bouncing from brain cell to brain cell, but has yet to make it onto the page. I've got a novella to write for Sinister Grin Press next year that is still just a pile of notes. I am trying hard to finish Prey Drive by January and I just came up with an idea for a screenplay. That's seven or eight projects right there that will carry me through 2013. So no dearth of ideas here.

What's funny in all of this, is that even writing three or four books a year, I feel like I'm not writing enough. I keep remembering Stephen King's 2,000 words a day and thinking: "Damn. I'm a fucking slacker." I need to get my ass in gear! So, I'm setting a goal for myself of 8,000 words a week until Prey drive is complete. That's the goal. Now, if I can just get my slave-driver of a muse to back off and let me concentrate on one project before filling my head with new ideas, I should make it. Wish me luck!

IS THERE A DEMON IN YOU?

A new anthology from Camelot Books containing the following novellas:

The Witching Tree by Brian Keene

Fan-favorite Levi Stoltzfus (the ex-Amish occult detective from Brian's Ghost Walk and A Gathering of Crows) returns home to fact a very different sort of possession--one that will rock his faith to its core and challenge everything he believes.


Possessing Amy by Mary SanGiovanni
When police officer Liam McInnes answers a domestic disturbance call, he discovers a battered woman whose inner demons have given her a new kind of strength. But in order to free her of those demons, Liam will have to navigate the gray areas of evil, and face the desperation that comes with true possession of another.


Mr. Gray by Nate Southard
After years of terror and heartbreak, Ben Gregory confronts the demon that possessed him as a child, but how many innocents will suffer in order for him to get revenge?


Amber Alert by Wrath James White
All over Las Vegas, women are giving birth to monsters. While on a search for a missing child, Spencer Logan stumbles into a world of occult science, demonic pregnancies, and an angry young scientist intent on changing humanity's genetic future.


Specifics on the book:

Cover art: Chad Savage
End papers and intertior art: Glenn Chadbourne
Page count: 303
Limited to 500 signed and numbered hardcover copies
Published price: $50.00

While the above stories may one day appear in digital or paperback form, this will not happen for at least two years from date of publication of the limited.

There will also be a lettered state, but we are still working out the details.


Those ordering copies direct from Camelot Books will also receive a free chapette as follows (1 chapette per 1 book ordered):

Fast Zombies Suck by Brian Keene
Baby Teeth by Mary SanGiovanni
The Devil Crashed In by Nate Southard
Tamara's Last Exorcism by Wrath James White
Chapettes are limited to 125 signed and numbered softcover copies


Here's how the chapettes work:

With each order of a book, we will include a chapette with the shipment or paid for copy, put in hold box. Please don't ask for a particular chapette as they will be shipped one after the other as books are shipped or put in a hold box, while supplies last. What that means is, when I ship out a book, or put a paid for copy in your hold box, I'll include "Fast Zombies Suck", with the next book, I'll include "Baby Teeth", then "The Devil Crashed In" with the next book and "Tamara's Last Exorcism" with the next, and then start the sequence over.

Order your copy now!

http://www.Camelotbooks.com