#HorrorForLibraries Giveaway #19: Writing in the Dark by Tim Waggoner

 First, a reminder that these giveaways will be running every week, on Thursdays, for the foreseeable future. And here is the best part, if you enter any week, you are eligible for ALL weeks.

The only rule is that you need to be affiliated with a public library in America or Canada. My rationale behind that is that I will be encouraging you to read these books and share them with patrons. While many of them are advanced reader copies that you cannot add to your collections, if you get the chance to read them, my hope is that you will consider ordering a copy for your library and give away the ARC away as a prize or pass it on to a fellow staff member.

Okay now how to enter. If you are interested in being included in any giveaway at any time, you must email me at zombiegrl75 [at] gmail [dot] com with the subject line "#HorrorForLibraries." In the body of the email all you have to say is that you want to be entered and the name of your library.

Each entry will be considered for EVERY giveaway. I will randomly draw a winner on Fridays sometime after 5pm central. But only entries received by 5pm will be considered.

If you win, you are ineligible to win again for 4 weeks; you will have to re-enter after that time to be considered [I have a list of who has won, when, and what title]. However, if you do not win, you carry over into the next week. There is NO NEED to reenter.

Why I am doing this? Well, one of the parts of my job that has gone away for the time being is my visits to libraries, library conferences, and library systems to provide general RA training. On all of those visits, I would  fill my suitcase with giveaway titles and they were mostly horror. It not only gave me a chance to give away books as prizes, but it also allowed me the opportunity to book talk horror even if that wasn't on the agenda.

Now that my services have transferred to 100% virtual, for the time being, I have an overflow of books in my house and less of chance to promote horror to the unsuspecting masses of library workers.

And thus my #HorrorForLibraries giveaway is born. This will be going on indefinitely, so the sooner you enter the better your chances.

Click here to see giveaway #18. Our winner was Anne from Elmhurst [IL] Public Library. 

This week I have the arc of a brand new [released 9/16] essential writing guide, Writing in the Dark by Tim Waggoner. This book is so essential that I have added it to my Horror Resources Page and have included it in the third edition of my book. From that Resources Page:

• Writing in the Dark by Tim Waggoner. Accessible, useful and engaging this guide is a deep dive into the genre itself as much as it is a how-to textbook. There are nuggets of advice from horror authors from all over the world, many of whom your patrons know and love, but  he also breaks  down the entire genre and its enduring appeal in a way that will speak equally to all, from fans to fraidy cats.

I will have a full and glowing review of this book in the October issue of Library Journal, but I want to point out now that I especially LOVE the lively discussion questions and exercises at the end of every chapter. This book is a double threat-- RA tool AND writing guide. It can be used by aspiring writers of any genre too. I would especially recommend this title for any library with a writing group that has members from age 13 and up.

[Also, full disclosure: there are quotes from included in this book.]

This book is published by Guide Dog Books, which is the nonfiction imprint of Raw Dog Screaming Press, meaning you can get this book easily from your normal ordering channels. Seriously, every public library in America needs this book. I have never been to a library where an accessible and useful writing guide is not relevant. 

So enter for a chance to win this ARC [courtesy of the publisher] but also order a copy today.

Good Luck!

#HorrorForLibraries Giveaway #18: Things That Never Happened

First, a reminder that these giveaways will be running every week, on Thursdays, for the foreseeable future. And here is the best part, if you enter any week, you are eligible for ALL weeks.

The only rule is that you need to be affiliated with a public library in America or Canada. My rationale behind that is that I will be encouraging you to read these books and share them with patrons. While many of them are advanced reader copies that you cannot add to your collections, if you get the chance to read them, my hope is that you will consider ordering a copy for your library and give away the ARC away as a prize or pass it on to a fellow staff member.

Okay now how to enter. If you are interested in being included in any giveaway at any time, you must email me at zombiegrl75 [at] gmail [dot] com with the subject line "#HorrorForLibraries." In the body of the email all you have to say is that you want to be entered and the name of your library.

Each entry will be considered for EVERY giveaway. I will randomly draw a winner on Fridays sometime after 5pm central. But only entries received by 5pm will be considered.

If you win, you are ineligible to win again for 4 weeks; you will have to re-enter after that time to be considered [I have a list of who has won, when, and what title]. However, if you do not win, you carry over into the next week. There is NO NEED to reenter.

Why I am doing this? Well, one of the parts of my job that has gone away for the time being is my visits to libraries, library conferences, and library systems to provide general RA training. On all of those visits, I would  fill my suitcase with giveaway titles and they were mostly horror. It not only gave me a chance to give away books as prizes, but it also allowed me the opportunity to book talk horror even if that wasn't on the agenda.

Now that my services have transferred to 100% virtual, for the time being, I have an overflow of books in my house and less of chance to promote horror to the unsuspecting masses of library workers.

And thus my #HorrorForLibraries giveaway is born. This will be going on indefinitely, so the sooner you enter the better your chances.

Click here to see giveaway #17. Our winner was Yolanda from Scott County [KY] Public Library.

This week I have a story collection and a link to a live book release party for said collection-- Things That Never Happened by Scott Edelman. [ARC is courtesy of Cemetery Dance.]

This is a collection of 13 of his best horror stories from his 40 year career, a career where he has been nominated for dozens of awards as a writer and editor across the entire spectrum of speculative fiction. For this volume he handpicked the stories and has excellent notes about each and his career in general at the end. 

I cannot say enough nice things about Edelman as a person and a writer. First, his stories are ALWAYS inventive, original, and compelling. I have never read an Edelman story that did not engage me emotionally, and that is the entire point of horror. 

Second, he is a national treasure-- that is not an exaggeration. He was involved as a very young man in the earliest days of DC and Marvel. He was the creator and writer behind some of the most seminal comics. He worked for the SyFy channel for over a decade, and has been a huge force in the SF/F/H community for decades. Edelman is a walking encyclopedia of knowledge for the entire comics and speculative fiction industries. 

His Eating the Fantastic podcast is a must listen, for you, yes, but you should also be passing it on to your SF/F/H loving patrons. The premise is that he has a meal with a speculative fiction author and records their conversation while they eat. The results are fascinating.  He gets his interviewees to open up and really look deeply into their own work. He also has one of the most inclusive and diverse rosters of interviewees I have ever seen in a book centric podcast. [And he has found ways to continue throughout the pandemic.] 

Edelman is a tireless champion for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, going way back. Click here to see his amazing speech at a recent World Fantasy Convention where he address his privilege, looks back at his own his career, and asks us all to do better. [Click here for my comments on that address]

And finally, his sense of humor is legendary [see below for just one example, of many].

Please go here to see more about Edelman, his career, and his huge influence on the SF/F/H and comics world. 

Edelman's presence is in every one of your libraries already, you just may not realize it. Fix that by adding this collection to your collections. You can also celebrate the book's release this coming Tuesday with a virtual book launch.

Click here or on the image below to  join Tuesday evening, but I did get the inside scoop. This launch party will include Edelman interviewing the cover artist, Lynne Hansen. Then horror author Kaaron Warren will interview Edelman about his career and the book. Cemetery Dance is offering 3, $50 gift cards to their store during the event-- effectively making this post a double giveaway chance!

But the kicker, is that famous sense of humor. Throughout the entire event he is promising to nibble on a bag of  "zombie skittles." They are supposed to taste disgusting. He is hoping his reactions to the taste will add to the fun of the event.

Ironically, I cannot attend because  I will be recording one of my panels for Librarians' Day, but all of you should watch. I will catch the recording.

Good luck this week!

#HorrorForLibraries Giveaway #17: Plain Bad Heroines and The Blade Between

First, a reminder that these giveaways will be running every week, on Thursdays, for the foreseeable future. And here is the best part, if you enter any week, you are eligible for ALL weeks.

The only rule is that you need to be affiliated with a public library in America or Canada. My rationale behind that is that I will be encouraging you to read these books and share them with patrons. While many of them are advanced reader copies that you cannot add to your collections, if you get the chance to read them, my hope is that you will consider ordering a copy for your library and give away the ARC away as a prize or pass it on to a fellow staff member.

Okay now how to enter. If you are interested in being included in any giveaway at any time, you must email me at zombiegrl75 [at] gmail [dot] com with the subject line "#HorrorForLibraries." In the body of the email all you have to say is that you want to be entered and the name of your library.

Each entry will be considered for EVERY giveaway. I will randomly draw a winner on Fridays sometime after 5pm central. But only entries received by 5pm will be considered.

If you win, you are ineligible to win again for 4 weeks; you will have to re-enter after that time to be considered [I have a list of who has won, when, and what title]. However, if you do not win, you carry over into the next week. There is NO NEED to reenter.

Why I am doing this? Well, one of the parts of my job that has gone away for the time being is my visits to libraries, library conferences, and library systems to provide general RA training. On all of those visits, I would  fill my suitcase with giveaway titles and they were mostly horror. It not only gave me a chance to give away books as prizes, but it also allowed me the opportunity to book talk horror even if that wasn't on the agenda.

Now that my services have transferred to 100% virtual, for the time being, I have an overflow of books in my house and less of chance to promote horror to the unsuspecting masses of library workers.

And thus my #HorrorForLibraries giveaway is born. This will be going on indefinitely, so the sooner you enter the better your chances.

Click here to see giveaway #16. Our winner was Michael from Jessamine County [KY] Public Library.

This week I  am very excited to finally be able to giveaway my copies of two of the most hotly anticipated horror novels of the season. The Blade Between by Sam J. Miller and Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth [pictured, the already read ARCs, the actual giveaway copies]. 

Both have an LGBTQ frame which, while essential to the story, just is. This is the best kind of inclusive and diverse storytelling. Main characters are gay or have fluid sexuality, and while that matters in that it makes them who they are, neither is about "coming out." And most importantly, the horror is NOT related to their sexuality in any way. 

I enjoyed both of these books, but I LOVED Plain Bad Heroines. Here are snippets from the drafts I turned into Library Journal for my October Horror Review Column.

The Blade Between: Filled with intense dread and unease that permeates every page, well drawn, if flawed characters, social commentary, and a satisfying resolution, this is a great example of how, Cosmic Horror, a century old subgenre, can still speak directly to today’s readers. 

Plain Bad Heroines: At its heart, this is a novel that asks its reader to contemplate how all stories are told. Which horrors are real, which are imagined, and which are consciously constructed? With a pointed female focus, an unease constantly seeping in from the perimeter, spilling fear all over the page at key moments, and characters that leap off the page, this volume will be sure to inspire many fans. [Starred Review]

Enter now to win both. And thanks to Lainey from Harper Collins' Library Marketing Team for making sure I got print copies of each, despite the bad pandemic timing, precisely so after I read them for review, I could pass them on to one of you!

Good luck!

#HorrorForLibraries Giveaway #16: Three ARCs Courtesy of Silver Shamrock Publishing

 First, a reminder that these giveaways will be running every week, on Thursdays, for the foreseeable future. And here is the best part, if you enter any week, you are eligible for ALL weeks.

The only rule is that you need to be affiliated with a public library in America or Canada. My rationale behind that is that I will be encouraging you to read these books and share them with patrons. While many of them are advanced reader copies that you cannot add to your collections, if you get the chance to read them, my hope is that you will consider ordering a copy for your library and give away the ARC away as a prize or pass it on to a fellow staff member.

Okay now how to enter. If you are interested in being included in any giveaway at any time, you must email me at zombiegrl75 [at] gmail [dot] com with the subject line "#HorrorForLibraries." In the body of the email all you have to say is that you want to be entered and the name of your library.

Each entry will be considered for EVERY giveaway. I will randomly draw a winner on Fridays sometime after 5pm central. But only entries received by 5pm will be considered.

If you win, you are ineligible to win again for 4 weeks; you will have to re-enter after that time to be considered [I have a list of who has won, when, and what title]. However, if you do not win, you carry over into the next week. There is NO NEED to reenter.

Why I am doing this? Well, one of the parts of my job that has gone away for the time being is my visits to libraries, library conferences, and library systems to provide general RA training. On all of those visits, I would  fill my suitcase with giveaway titles and they were mostly horror. It not only gave me a chance to give away books as prizes, but it also allowed me the opportunity to book talk horror even if that wasn't on the agenda.

Now that my services have transferred to 100% virtual, for the time being, I have an overflow of books in my house and less of chance to promote horror to the unsuspecting masses of library workers.

And thus my #HorrorForLibraries giveaway is born. This will be going on indefinitely, so the sooner you enter the better your chances.

Click here to see giveaway #15. Our winner was Jonathan from the Paso Robles [CA] City Library.

This week I am featuring a newer horror indie press, but one that seems to be publishing a nice mix of  authors-- Silver Shamrock Publishing. Similar to Flame Tree, Silver Shamrock is publishing quality pulp horror that is perfect for a public library audience, capturing the breadth of the genre's tropes, writing styles, and storytelling techniques. There are authors I have heard of and newer voices too, mean and women.

However, I want to be clear that I do not take supporting a press in a public way lightly. I have done some asking around, including speaking to authors who are writing for them that I trust. I want to make sure they are fair, that they are paying authors, and that their editing and production are up to snuff. 

Silver Shamrock has passed through my research process and today I would like to offer three ARCs to one of you. I would also encourage library workers to investigate more of their titles here.

The title I am most excited about in this prize pack is Slaves to Gravity by Wesley Southard and Somer Cannon [It came out 8/4]. Readers of my blogs may recall how much I LOVED Southard's One for the Road. It is a great, extreme horror, novella; it even won an award for that exactly. And I just updated my review with even more appeal and readalikes. But I digress. Slaves to Gravity is a different story but both Southard and Cannon are writers on the rise. Here is a quick summary from the publisher:

After waking up in a hospital bed, paralyzed from he waist down, Charlie Snyder had no idea here life would take her. ejected, broken, and permanently bound to a wheelchair, she believed her life was truly over. That is...until gravity no longer applied.

It started out slow. Floating from room to room. Menial tasks without assistance. When she decided to venture outside and take some real risks with her newfound ability, she rose above her own constraints to reveal a whole new world, and found other damaged individuals just like her to confide in.

But there are other things out there, waiting in the dark. Repulsive, secretive creatures that don't want Charlie to touch the sky. And they'll stop at nothing to keep her on the ground.

This is a fast paced, cosmic horror story, fun to read and filled with action. It is not perfect. These are both newer authors, but it shows a lot of promise and is way better than the average horror offering-- by leaps and bounds. It has heart and originality. It is a twisty story that keeps you guessing and begs you to keep reading. 

This prize pack also includes Curse of the Pigman by Asher Ellis. This is a story of a small town, cut  off from the world by a hurricane. Evil is discovered and unleashed. This one will be enjoyed by all of your early Stephen King fans for sure and any Stephen Graham Jones fans as well. And that cover! It sells itself for sure.

Finally, The Malan Witch by Catherine Cavendish which features another small, idyllic town and a home renovation that uncovers a very old and angry witch. Witch stories are extremely popular right now. Also the subgenre has improved greatly in the last decade, especially when taken up by female authors. Recent examples of other witch stories you should check out include, The Year of the Witching by Henderson [my review from LJ], Hex Life: Wicked New Tales of Witchery edited by Golden and Deering, and the forthcoming Boneset & Feathers by Gwendolyn Kiste [My STAR review coming to LJ in October].

This is just a sampling of what Silver Shamrock has to offer. Check out more of their titles for yourself and your collections.

And as always....Good luck!