'The Call' in BLOOD IN THE BRICKS

 Really pleased to announce that my story, 'The Call' is part of the lineup for the forthcoming anthology Blood In The Bricks from NewCon Press, and edited by Neil Williamson. It's a book of urban folk horror, and being launched at World Fantasycon in Brighton in October. The blurb, preorder links, and the stellar lineup are below:

Tales of the city redolent with ritual and drenched in dread.

Folk Horror is primarily associated with isolated settings and weird beliefs. Traditionally the isolated setting is rural, but our cities have been around for a long time too, their histories constructed layer upon layer, their secrets long kept and buried deep. And there are other types of isolation than geographical remoteness: housing schemes and suburbs, gilded business districts and gated communities, industrial wastelands and crumbling tower blocks...

Who knows what our old bricks were made of or what lies beneath our brightly lit pavements? Who knows what superstitions have been passed down the generations and who knows what goes on behind the locked doors of the community centre?

Down Street – James Bennett
Danse Macabre – Kim Lakin
Hagstone – Tracy Fahey
Gerädert Fühlen – Steve Toase
The Inverse Nurse – Ian Whates
Open Studios – E Saxey
Escape Notice – Tim Major
Larking – Phil Sloman
When the Blood Runs Dry – Lyndsey Croal
A Tiding – Timothy J Jarvis
Our Sister of Blackthorn – Dan Coxon
One of The Rotten Ones – Matthew Hopkins
The Rope Swing – Penny Jones
A Pinch of Salt – Joanna Corrance
A Body’s Got to Have Hope – Angela Slatter
The Call – James Everington
Fulfilment – Harvey Welles & Phil Raines
Extraction – Don Redwood
Flip – Ray Cluley

Blood in the Bricks is available as a paperback, an ebook, and as a signed limited edition hardback signed by all the contributing authors.

Top 10 Horror Reads 2024

It's been awhile since I did any book recommendations on here, so I thought I'd see if I could come up with my favourite horror reads of 2024. After some deliberation, and in no particular order, here's the result:

Last Night Of Freedom, Dan Howarth (Northern Republic)

A story of a stag-do gone horribly wrong (and not in the strippers and vodka shots kind of way) this was like an English version of Deliverance and it kept me absolutely gripped all the way through. Bloody violent and bloody good.

The End, Kayleigh Dobbs (Black Shuck Books)

A mini-collection in the Black Shuck Shadows range, featuring six tales about the end of, well, everything. Who can end the world six different ways and still keep you guessing until the last page? Kayleigh Dobbs can. 

Stone Gods, Adam Golaski (NO Press)

Adam Golaski might be the most underrated author working in horror/weird fiction at the moment? Maybe it's because he's surreal as much as scary, or maybe it's because he's not exactly prolific—I think this is his second collection of such fiction. And like his first, Worse Than Myself, Stone Gods contains many tales that demonstrate what a travesty that like of recognition is.

Subject 11, Jeffrey Thomas 

An author new to me, and one I immediately vibed with, if that's the right word. This is a novella-length work about ten people undergoing some weird kind of experiment where they're living together in an abandoned factory. Identify-warping weirdness ensues. Loved it.

The Weird Tales Boys, Stephen Jones (PS Publishing)

A book about horror rather than a horror book, this tells the story of Lovecraft, Clark Ashton Smith, and Robert E. Howard, and also the broader story of Weird Tales magazine and pulp publishing at the time. Odd praise for a nonfiction book, but I found it a real page-turner. I knew a bit about HPL's life but not really the others, so some of the tragedy they faced was an actual shock to me.

Dirt Upon My Skin, Steve Toase (Black Shuck Books)

A mini-collection in the Black Shuck Shadows range (hey wow, deja-vu...), each of the stories here is a weird and twisted take on the theme of archeology. Original, well-written, creeps you out - what more could you ask for?

Uncertainties 7, ed. Carly Holmes (Swan River Press)

It's kind of hard to praise an un-themed horror anthology in a couple of sentences without just going 'all the stories are amazing!' but guess what: here, all the stories really are amazing. The Uncertainties series continues to set the bar for original, literate horror fiction in the short story form.

Ivy Grimes Grime Time, Ivy Grimes (Tales From Between)

I'd never heard of Ivy Grimes at the start of 2024, but she's firmly on my radar at the start of this year, based on this mini collection and a smattering of other stories I read in various places online. I hate the word quirky, normally, but it seems to fit these well-written, messed-up and psychological messy tales.

Charlie Says, Neil Williamson (Black Shuck Books)

The minute I read the description of this—basically, urban folk-horror based around the fears and implied rituals of those fuck-creepy 70s public information films—I pre-ordered it. (The fact it's by the always great Neil Williamson was a selling point, too.) And it very very much rewarded me for doing so.

The Return, Rachel Harrison (Holder & Stoughton)

An utterly brilliant horror debut, mixing a creepy hotel, a changed person who's returned after they vanished, and a subtle, funny, and realistic depiction of female friendships, this is really creepy and compulsively readable.

Music For Writers #9: Neil Williamson

Music For Writers this week features none other than Neil Williamson, a writer whose work I always both admire and enjoy. I recently read his BSFA-nominated novel The Moon King and (all to be predictably) loved it; you'd do well to check out his short story collection Secret Language too.

Based on the below his taste in music—and films, and creepy French TV shows—is spot on too.

Take it away, Neil:

As a writer who works mostly in public spaces, I started using writing music initially as a means of boxing my attention off from my environment. With the right music and noise cancelling earbuds, I find I can dial into the right mindset for thinking about my story and getting the words down on the page even when people are talking and doing things around me. It has to be the right kind of music though: something that in itself won’t be distracting (my best writing sessions are the ones where I’ve barely been aware of the music). This usually means no words and no huge dynamic or stylistic shifts. I used classical music for years, but these days I’m turning more and more to modern TV and film composers.

Here are some of the perennials on my Spotify playlist:

Olafur Arnalds - Only The Winds

Arnalds’ composing style is the perfect example of what I look for in writing music. It’s evenly tempered and paced with enough body to block out most background noise. It’s also heartbreakingly evocative. See also: his soundtrack to the TV show, Broadchurch.

This Will Destroy You - Dustism
For louder environments, I tend to turn to post rock. I first saw This Will Destroy You at Glasgow’s Art School at around midnight after a long day of watching various bands. They utterly melted my head. This track is typical of their ocean-like blend of layers of noise and musicality. Blast this up to 11 and nothing gets through.

Max Richter - The Departure Suite

Richter has rightly found favour in the genre community for his wonderful soundtracks for the likes of Arrival (along with Johann Johannson) and Black Mirror, but I really adore this soundtrack for the TV show The Leftovers. 'The Departure' is a recurring theme that turns up now and again in different arrangements and I find it really transportational. Maybe one day I’ll find time to watch the actual show.

Nick Cave & Warren Ellis - Song For Bob

Several years ago I went to see a cowboy movie starring Brad Pitt. Several people left the cinema within the first half hour on realising that it wasn’t “a cowboy movie starring Brad Pitt”, it was The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford, a nuanced indie movie about hero-worship featuring terrific performances from Pitt as well as Casey Affleck and Sam Rockwell (who is never less than terrific in anything). One of the best things about the movie is the lonesomely plaintive soundtrack by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis. (Cave actually turns up as a barroom troubadour late on in the film too.) I recommend both the film and the music wholeheartedly. 

Mogwai - The Messiah Needs Watching

Kind of coming back to post rock here, but not really. It’s been interesting watching Mogwai explore their composing chops in a succession of soundtracks in recent years. This is from the first one I heard them do, the spooky French TV show, Les Revenants. It was a toss up between this and Atomic. Both full of great music, absolutely band on the brief for their projects but still unmistakably Mogwai.

Imposter Syndrome launched!

It’s here! 

Imposter Syndrome is the second anthology edited by myself and Dan Howarth; it's published by Dark Minds Press and the stunning cover artwork was done by Neil Williams. 

The book will be formally launched at this year’s Sledge-Lit on November 25th with the editors and a number of the authors in attendance. Paperback copies will be available at the event but follow the link here to order if you can’t attend. The Kindle version will be released on launch day, just click here to pre-order.

Should further proof be needed that this will be one of the anthologies of the year, just another take a look at the TOC…

INTRODUCTION
James Everington & Dan Howarth

I KNOW WHAT THEY LOOK LIKE
Gary McMahon

IN THE MARROW
Laura Mauro

WHO IS THAT ON THE OTHER SIDE OF YOU?
Timothy J Jarvis

WHAT’S YOURS IS MINE
Holly Ice

THE INSIDER
Neil Williamson

OTHER PEOPLE’S DREAMS
Stephen Bacon

HOLD MY HAND AND I’LL TAKE YOU THERE
Ralph Robert Moore

THE WRONG HOUSE
Tracy Fahey

LITTLE HEART
Georgina Bruce

VIRTUALLY FAMOUS
Phil Sloman