Scares That Care Charity Horror Convention is Online for FREE and I am a Moderator!

I am passing on this information on directly from this link at BrianKeene.com about the Scares That Care Event. But before you read about this event, a few things from me.

First, I am moderating a panel at Noon "Horror for Kids." I am not telling you this to brag, but to illustrate that this event is a great "free" viewing option for all library workers. Scroll through it all. It will be a great day.

Second, refers to that "free" part. Scares that Care is a charity I have supported with my own dollars for years. I believe in their mission and have always wanted to make it to the live event. I am honored to be a part of a fundraiser that is doing so much good. I am asking you, my followers, to not only view the content, but to consider making small donation yourself. Literally every dollar counts to these sick and injured people and their families.

Thank you and now here are all of the details.....

The Scares That Care Virtual Charity Event takes place Saturday, August 1st.

100% of the money raised during this one-day event will go to our 2020 recipients. They are:

*Ashley Adams and her daughter Natalya, who has Marfan Syndrome.
*Laura, a breast cancer warrior known for her work in Arkansas’s LGBTQ+ community.
*Patricia, who suffered second and third degree burns to the entire right side of her body.

The Scares That Care Virtual Convention will be livestreamed via the Brian Keene YouTube Page and the Scares That Care website, and is accessible to the general public.

Below is the tentative schedule. All times are Eastern. Please note that celebrity appearances (including actors, authors, directors, and other panelists) are subject to availability and may change without notice.

9:00am – 9:15am: Opening Ceremonies with Joe Ripple and Brian Keene

9:15am to 9:50am: LIVE READING – Jeff Strand and Stephen Kozeniewski

9:50am to 10:00am: Fundraising update with Brian Keene, Alfred Guy and O’Malley Brandt

10:00am to 10:50am: JAWS AT 45 – Jonathan Janz, Victor LaValle, Hillary Monahan, Matt Serafini, Adam Cesare, and Glenn Rolfe (moderator) discuss why, after 45 years, we’re still afraid to go in the water.

10:50am – 11:00am: Fundraising update with Brian Keene and Paul Tremblay

11:00am – 11:50am: MY FAVORITE HORROR COMICS – Tim Seeley, Rachel Autumn Deering, Jamal Igle, Cullen Bunn, Maurice Broaddus, and Matt Wildasin (moderator) discuss their favorite horror comic books of all time.  

11:50am – Noon: Fundraising update with Brian Keene and John Wayne Comunale 

Noon – 12:50pm: HORROR FOR KIDS – Lamar Giles, Stephanie Cooke, Jonathan Maberry, Gretchen McNeil, Bitter Karella, Will Bozarth, and Becky Spratford (moderator) discuss horror for a younger audience.

12:50pm to 1:00pm: Fundraising update with Brian Keene and John Dugan

1:00pm to 1:25pm: RETURN TO ELM STREET – Jack Shoulder, Mark Patton, Nick Benson, and Mick Strawn reminisce with moderator David Heck about their work on the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise.

1:25pm – 1:30pm: Fundraising update with Brian Keene, Brian Smith and Bryan Smith

1:30pm – 2:00pm: LIVE READING – Gabino Iglesias and Cina Pelayo

2:00pm to 2:50pm: MY FAVORITE MONSTER – Stephen Graham Jones, Hunter Shea, Scott Baker, the Sisters of Slaughter, Dee Southerland and Chuck Buda (moderator) discuss their favorite monsters of all time.

2:50pm to 3:00pm: Fundraising update with Brian Keene and Roy Wooley

3:00pm to 3:50pm: THE WALKING DEAD – David Heck moderates this Q&A with The Walking Dead’s Josh Mikel, Steve Coulter, Cooper Andrews, and Jayson Warner Smith.  

3:50pm to 4:00pm: Fundraising update with Brian Keene and Felissa Rose

4:00pm to 4:50pm: THE AMBIDEXTROUS PATH - Mary SanGiovanni, Stephanie Wytovich, Bracken MacLeod, Somer Canon, and Jay Wilburn (moderator) discuss faith and magic in horror and creativity.

4:50pm to 5:00pm: Fundraising update with Brian Keene and Joshua Leonard

5:00pm to 5:50pm: Q&A – Emmy-award winner Pruitt Taylor Vince discusses his career with moderator David Heck.

5:50pm to 6:00pm: Fundraising update with Brian Keene and Eugene Clark

6:00pm to 6:50pm: CAN HORROR GO TOO FAR? – CV Hunt, Wrath James White, Kristopher Triana, Autumn Christian, Wesley Southard, Aaron Dries, and Armand Rosamilia (moderator) discuss how far is too far.

6:50pm to 7:00pm: Fundraising update with Brian Keene and Lar Park Lincoln

7:00pm to 7:55pm: COWBOYS AND ZOMBIES – Gemma Files, Wile E. Young, Keith Lansdale, Christine Morgan, Kenzie Jennings, and Thomas Clark (moderator) discuss the resurgence of Weird Westerns in film and literature.

7:55pm to 8:00pm: Fundraising update with Brian Keene and Josh Malerman

8:00pm to 8:30pm: BIZARRO HORROR – John Edward Lawson, Andersen Prunty, Rose O’Keefe, Michael Alan Rose, and Scott Cole (moderator) discuss surrealism and the supernatural in horror fiction and film.

8:30pm to 8:55pm: Q&A – Night of the Demons’ Amelia Kinkade discusses her career with moderator David Heck.

8:55pm to 9:00pm: Fundraising update with Brian Keene and Joe Ripple

9:00pm to 9:15pm: A SPECIAL PRESENTATION with Joe Ripple and Brian Keene

9:15pm to 9:30pm: COSTUME CONTEST – Celebrity judges Amanda Bearse, John Anderson, Amelia Kinkade, Lynne Hansen, and Matt Blazi discuss this year’s costume contest entries.

9:30pm to 9:40pm: COUNT GORE – Scares That Care Weekend’s beloved Count Gore deVol announces the winners of this year’s costume contest.

9:40pm to 9:50pm: SCARYOKE – Rio Youers, Ronald Malfi, Brian Keene and Joe Ripple present an at home version of this Scares That Care Weekend staple.

9:50pm to 10:00pm: Closing Ceremonies

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Q: What is Scares That Care?
A: Founded in 2007 by Joe Ripple, we are a 501C3 charity. Our Board of Directors and our volunteers are composed of horror fans and professionals. Each year we raise money for three recipient families (a sick child, a breast cancer fighter, and a burn victim).

Q: How can I donate during the virtual event?
A: We will be sharing information on how to donate via text or phone hourly during the event. Yu can also donate anytime by visiting this link.

Q: Can I donate before or after the event, as well?
A: Yes. You can donate year round.

Q: Money is tight. I can’t afford to donate but I’d still love to help. How can I do that?
A: We appreciate you and we understand. You can still by tuning in to the livestream, and encouraging your friends and family to do the same.

Q: I’m involved in programming. What do I need to do next?
A: Brian Keene will email you a link before the event. You’ll simply need to click that link about ten minutes before your appearance, and allow access to your computer’s webcam and mic. It’s that easy. (Costume contest judges will be contacted earlier with additional instructions).

Q: I’m a celebrity who works in the horror genre. Why wasn’t I included in programming?
A: We tried to accommodate as many horror professionals as we could, but unlike our physical Scares That Care Weekend charity events, we are limited by the technological restrictions and time constraints of this virtual event. However, you can still help the cause by sharing the event with your fans and encouraging them to donate.

31 Days of Horror: Day 2-- Becky Interviews Horror Grand Master Brian Keene

Back in the August Issue of Booklist I had this interview with Brian Keene, but due to space constraints, some of it had to be cut.

Today, I am running the full text draft that I turned in to my editor. You can also click here to see the post I did about all of the special coverage in that issue of Booklist which was the spotlight on Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Horror.

Thanks to Brian Keene for graciously answering my questions. He is an amazing writer, a champion for the genre, a mentor for new writers, and just an all around great person. [even though he tries to play the grumpy old man card, but he is too nice of a person to pull it off.]

I asked Booklist if I could profile Keene because with this summer’s publication of Pressure, his first hard cover, major publisher release in many years, he came back on the radar for the average public library worker. [Pressure was also on the Booklist Top Ten Horror of the Year list.] Keene is an author who is great for libraries. Many of his books are published by independent presses [by his own choice], and as a result, many libraries haven’t been collecting them.

Well, I am here to remind you about Keene. Please enjoy the interview [below], and check your catalogs to see if you have any of his books for your patrons. If not, they are all readily available on Amazon in paperback. Order some of the most popular ones, suggest to horror fans, and watch them fly off the shelves. Hordes of horror hungry patrons will be very satisfied with your services.

Here’s the interview....

Sitting here in 2016, it maybe hard to remember a time when zombies did not dominate the horror mass media landscape. At the turn of the century, vampires seemed like they would suck the entire genre dry, but then in 2003 three independent but forever linked tales were released, three works that are frequently cited at as the origin of our current pop culture obsession with zombies-- the film. 28 Days Later, the first issue of the graphic novel, The Walking Dead, and a novel entitled, The Rising by Brian Keene.

From that moment until today, Keene has steadily built himself from debut author to World Horror Grandmaster with over 40 books to his credit. Already this year Keene has released two new books, The Complex, a paperback with independent publisher, Deadalite Press, and Pressure, a hardcover [note my star review in June issue] with Macmillian. Keene is a fantastic storyteller of bloody fast-paced horror filled with diverse protagonists you want to root for, and it doesn’t hurt that few can describe the dismemberment of bodies better. But arguably it is his work on behalf of the genre as a whole where Keene has left his biggest mark. Recently, I interviewed Keene about his work, horror, and how to make it as a writer in the 21st century. 

When I asked Keene what “Horror” means to him and why he has devoted his life to it he immediately mentioned its universality, explaining how it speaks to to the uncertainty and fears we all collectively face, regardless of gender, religion, race, age, or political persuasion. “Alongside love, it's THE [his emphasis] primal human emotion,” Keene proclaimed. This broad appeal of the emotion of horror can be seen in Keene’s own widely varied influences like, Hunter S. Thompson, the Splatterpunks, Stephen King, Steve Gerber, J.M. DeMatteis, Richard Laymon, Joe R. Lansdale, F. Paul Wilson, and Alan Moore. 

But it is when Keene talks about the new, up and comers in the genre that he is at his most animated sharing, “Some great new writers I've just read for the first time are, Gabino Iglesias, Michelle Garza and Melissa Lason. One I wish everyone was reading is Jonathan Janz.” [see my star review of Children of the Dark]. Keene not only actively promotes and mentors new authors, but he is also a strong and vocal advocate for them, helping them make sure that they retain the rights to their own intellectual property, especially when an independent press they have worked with closes. Unfortunately, Keene learned all about this horrific real life situation through experience back in 2010 when Dorchester Publishing, who had published the aforementioned The Rising, under their Leisure Books imprint, went bankrupt. After twenty years in the business as a successful midlist author, Keene has seen it all, both good and bad, and wants to make sure his experiences assist others. But he also hopes that the authors he is helping today will in turn help the next generation of writers just as those Keene grew up reading helped him.

Along with promoting and mentoring talented but lesser known authors, Keene also consciously works with small horror presses. I note that this is a hot button issue for libraries. Since the major publishers do not put out a lot of horror, we need to look to smaller presses to develop our collections, but we also know that not all small presses are created equal. Since Keene has worked with so many over the years I asked him to share his current favorites to which he replied, “I could spend the entire interview singing the praises of Eraserhead Press (for trade paperbacks) and Thunderstorm Books (for high end hardcovers). They're both wonderful.”

Keene’s newest venture is in a new medium, the podcast. As the host of Project iRadio’s The Horror Show with Brian Keene, Keene spends an hour each week interviewing his friends and colleagues from the business, from writers to publishers to movie directors, Keene prides himself on asking his guests the questions they always wished someone would ask them during interviews, the things they never get the chance to talk about when they are out promoting a specific project. Plus, as he told me, he is having a great time promoting, “a genre I love” and connecting writers to readers in the process.

Keene is still going strong as a writer of pulp horror perfect for our public library audiences, but it is his experience with and knowledge of the genre that makes him a wonderful resource for all of us as we try to match readers with their next terrifying read.

31 Days of Horror: Day 16-- Librarians...Brian Keene Wants to Thank You With a Free Appearance This Summer

Readers of this blog know that I am a big Brian Keene fan.  You can click here for more from me on Keene, but for all of you library workers out there the short version is-- his novels are a perfect fit for ALL PUBLIC LIBRARY collections.

This summer he has a hardcover  release coming [you can already pre-order for your collections] called Pressure. From the publisher:

Off the coast of tropical Mauritius, an ecological catastrophe with global implications is occurring. The ocean's floor is collapsing at a rapid rate. World-champion free diver and marine biologist Carrie Anderson joins a scientific expedition determined to discover the cause-and how to stop it. But what they uncover is even more horrific. Deep beneath the surface, something is awake. Something hungry. Something...cold. Now, the pressure builds as Carrie and her colleagues must contend with the murderous operatives of a corrupt corporation, an unnatural disaster that grows bigger by the day, and a monstrous predator that may spell the extinction of all mankind. 

Jaws meets Alien in this hot new thriller from bestselling author and World Horror Grandmaster Award winner Brian Keene. Pressure is the perfect summer read for fans of Michael Crichton and Douglas Preston.

This looks fantastic!  The book is getting a big push by the publisher. Brian plans to go on his largest book tour ever and he wants to come to your library! FOR FREE!!! All you have to do is buy 10 copies of the book. That is way cheaper than most major author fees.

There are no other strings here.  Brian is a huge supporter of libraries and really wants to thank us for supporting him over the years. And, this is going to be a huge summer read. It is a book people will be talking about. Why not take advantage now and set up a visit.

[By the way, this is exactly how I nabbed Gillian Flynn at my old library for free. I noticed the early buzz on Gone Girl and contacted her [we had met once before at a Karin Slaughter event and she lives in Chicago], set up an appearances, and....it turned out she was at our library the week the novel hit #1. Video of our interview here.]

You can click here for Brian’s original post where explains how you get in on this deal. I have also embedded the post below.

But first, one final note, Brian also has a weekly podcast-- The Horror Show With Brian Keene. Brian and his friends have a lot of fun during these recordings [and curse freely for those of you who that might bother] but they also provide great content.  You can hear Brian and his guests, all of them horror authors worth knowing, discuss books, the genre, the state of the publishing world, and much more.  If you want an inside look at publishing and the life of authors, IN ANY GENRE, this is a great insider resource.

I particularly enjoyed their interview with Paul Tremblay, author and juror for the Shirley Jackson Awards [an award I have professed my love for many times], and then, in a later podcast, their spoiler filled discussion of his book, A Head Full of Ghosts.  It was a real discussion of the book, its writing, its appeal, and its meaning.

Attention all librarians, you should have A Head Full of Ghosts in your collections. You should be promoting it to readers. It is this year’s Bird Box.

One more “authors who podcast” post tomorrow. But please scroll down to read Brian’s full offer.

TO ALL BOOKSELLERS AND LIBRARIANS

If there is one thing that has been a constant in my almost 20-year career, it is signings and speaking engagements. I’ve been lucky enough to sign or speak in 45 of 50 states, as well as Canada. This would not have been possible without the help of an enthusiastic and dedicated group of booksellers and librarians. Indeed, I owe my success to their efforts. As I said on a recent episode of my podcast, a writer should always be grateful to their readers and fans, but they should be equally grateful to the booksellers and librarians who guide those readers toward them.

I am in the early stages of planning a signing/speaking tour for Summer 2016, in support of PRESSURE, my new trade hardcover forthcoming from Thomas Dunne Books (Macmillan). The tour will run from the end of June to the end of August. I intend for this to be my most extensive promotional tour ever, crossing as much of the continental US as I can. To do that, I need your help.

If you are an independent or chain bookseller in the continental United States who would like to host a signing or speaking engagement in your store, and can commit to ordering a minimum of thirty (30) copies of PRESSURE, please send an email to bkbooksellers@outlook.com. You are not being asked to pay travel costs, lodging, or anything like that. I’m simply looking for venues to sign/speak in. You open your store to me and my readers, and I’ll handle getting there. In your email, tell me about your store and where you are located (city and state).

If you are a librarian in the continental United States who would like to host a signing or speaking engagement in your library, and can commit to ordering a minimum of ten (10) copies of PRESSURE, please send an email to bkbooksellers@outlook.com. You are not being asked to pay travel costs, lodging, or anything like that. I’m simply looking for venues to sign/speak in. You open your library to me and my readers, and I’ll handle getting there. In your email, tell me about your library and where you are located (city and state). 

Thank you in advance. I look forward to working with you.

WiHM: Kelli Owen Interviewed by Brian Keene

At the end of January, horror "Pulp King" (as I call him in my book), Brian Keene started an excellent new podcast called Horror Show with Brian Keene.

From the About page:

THE HORROR SHOW is a weekly podcast hosted by best-selling, Grandmaster Award-winning writer Brian Keene as part of the Project iRadio network. Each week, Brian, occasional co-host Dave “Meteornotes” Thomas, and their guests discuss the latest news in horror fiction, films, comic books, games, and more, along with in-depth interviews, historical perspectives on the genre, and much more.

I have subscribed, and what I love about the podcast is its focus on horror fiction.  There are many horror related podcasts out there, but not enough with a focus on the written word form of the genre.

And, for Women in Horror Month, Brian invited horror author Kelli Owen on to the podcast:

In this episode, author Kelli Owen joins Brian and Dave to discuss Women In Horror Month, her career, and whether or not the horror genre is more diverse than other genres. Plus: the Amish attack, book recommendations, Melanie Tem, Borderlands Books, The Walking Dead, Magic Vaginas, Fifty Shades of Grey, the Monroeville Mall shooting, and whether or not Brian is writing a vampire novel.

Kelli is definitely a rising talent in horror, so highlighting her during WiHM just makes sense. If Brian Keene is willing to promote her, she is worth your time. To read reviews of Kelli’s work and to see another interview with her, head on over to The Word Zombie.

#HorrorForLibraries Giveaway 122: A Signed Copy of The Complex by Brian Keene

This week I have a signed copy of a book that I proclaim in my book as a "start with" title for one of the genres top authors. Details below, but first, here is how you enter:

1. You need to be affiliated with an American public library. 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.
2. 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.
3. Each entry will be considered for EVERY giveaway. Meaning you enter once, and you are entered until you win. I will randomly draw a winner on Fridays sometime after 5pm central. But only entries received by 5pm each week will be considered for that week. I use Random.org and have a member of my family witness the "draw"based off your number in the Google Sheet.
4. 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.

Click here to see giveaway #121. Our winner was Christopher from Buncombe County [NC] Library. Now on to today's giveaway.

In Chapter 2 of my book, I give an overview of the genre right now. In it, I name Brian Keene as one of my "Old Guard." I write about his work as a protector of the genre and a mentor to many of its best new voices. But then I get to his writing as I say:

However, while his importance as a mentor is unparalleled, he is also a fantastic writer. The undisputed king of mainstream pulp horror, Keene is a master at describing the dismemberment of bodies. He writes blue-collar horror featuring the people he encounters in his own life, from all political spectrums, and as a result. all of his characters are fully realized, heroes and villains. He also does not shy away from writing from the point of view of women or marginalized voices. Readers new to Keene can try The Rising, but the autobiographical and more recent, The Complex is the best place to begin.

The Complex is the best book to showcase how Brian Keene writes today. It perfectly captures why readers love him.

Last week, Brian came Bucket O'Blood in Chicago for an event and I was there. I bought a copy of The Complex with the intent to have him  sign it and give it away to one of you. 

So this week, a signed, finished copy of The Complex is going to one of you to add to your library collections. But to all of you, I want to remind you to add Brian Keene titles to your circulating collections. Since he mostly publishes with small presses, you have to order from a book store. Here is the Bookshop.org link to Keene's catalog to make it easier for you.

Make sure you have The Rising (credited as part of a trifecta that marked the beginning the 21st Century zombie craze- info in the link), Earthworm Gods (one of the first cli-fi horror novels of this era and an OG Summer Scares title), Ghoul (an emotional coming-of-age horror story), and of course, The Complex (being given away today), at a bare minimum. I promise you, they will be very popular.

Enter now and you are entered going forward. And forward includes books by Isabel Cañas, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Clay McLeod Chapman, Paul Tremblay, lots of Nightfire authors, and more. 

Good luck!

Photographic proof that Brian signed
the book just for my winner.

#HorrorForLibraries Giveaway: Dear Hanna by Zoje Stage Plus a Bonus Brian Keene Finished Book

Today I have a copy of a book I reviewed in the current issue of Booklist and bonus book-- all for 1 lucky winner. More details below, but first here are the rules for the giveaway:

1. You need to be affiliated with an American public library. 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.
2. 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.
3. Each entry will be considered for EVERY giveaway. Meaning you enter once, and you are entered until you win. I will randomly draw a winner on Fridays sometime after 5pm central. But only entries received by 5pm each week will be considered for that week. I use Random.org and have a member of my family witness the "draw"based off your number in the Google Sheet.
4. 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.

Click here to see the previous giveaway. Our 2 winners were Justin from Lemont [IL] Public Library and Ken from Bath Township [MI] Public Library. Now on to this week's giveaway.

After sending out 7 books in the last 2 weeks, I did manage to pair down the backlog of books and give more people a chance to win. Now we are back to 1 winner a week, but today, I have 2 books for that 1 winner. In fact, I am going to be doing this more often. Pairing a bigger title with a small press one. First up, one of the books I have a review for in the July 2024 issue of Booklist.

Dear Hanna
By Zoje Stage

Stage has become a popular voice in the space where Psychological Suspense and Horror overlap; however, readers have long clamored for a sequel to her debut novel, Baby Teeth. She has finally thoughtfully obliged with a standalone sequel, a story that can be read either before or after that first book, with each informing the other. In Dear Hanna, Stage brings readers into Hanna’s life as a 24 year-old phlebotomist, married to a 40 year-old widower, and stepmother to his 16 year-old daughter. Told from Hanna’s clearly unreliable perspective, as she shares her troubled past and dark thoughts, readers see how Hanna’s meticulously constructed “normal” existence is put to the test by raising a teenager and being a wife. As things spiral out of control, readers' feelings about Hanna fluctuate between disgust and sympathy, all will squirm uncomfortably, and yet, be unwilling to look away, furiously turning the pages, until the final twist is revealed. A great choice for those who enjoy the work of Sarah Pinborough, Catriona Ward, and Katrina Monroe.

Three Words That Describe This Book: squirm inducing, disturbing, trauma

Click through to read everything I had to say about this book on the general blog. But this is one that your patrons will be asking about and it will make an awesome prize come Spooky Season or for the end of Summer Reading.

But wait....there's more!

Also, for this week's winner, I have a finished copy of Brian Keene's Island of the Dead courtesy of Apex Book Company. From the publisher description: 

World Horror Grand Master Brian Keene returns to zombies in this relentless sword and sorcery horror epic!

Einar, an enslaved barbarian, plots his escape from a war galley transporting troops and a mysterious weapon to far enemy shores. But when an apocalyptic storm at sea leaves Einar and his fellow captives shipwrecked on a strange, uncharted island, friend and foe alike must band together against a steadily growing horde of the undead ... and even worse dangers.Not even death is an escape from the Island of the Dead!

Brian Keene is one of my favorite authors and humans. He is also the ANCHOR of my upcoming book, so as far as I am concerned, the more Keene you have on your shelves, the better. And, since this is a finished copy, you can add it immediately before going out to buy more. 

The best way to get your Brian Keene books is through his independent bookstore-- Vortex Books.

So that is this week's giveaway. Enter now and you are entered going forward until you win. Have you won recently? You can enter again 4 weeks after winning. And I have a lot of books to giveaway from some HUGE names, so you definitely want to be in this one.

Good luck to all!

31 Days of Horror: Day 4- Serial Box

Today I have something to introduce you to that is both general RA related and horror specific-- Serial Box.  From their "How Serial Box Works Page":

Serial Box brings everything that’s awesome about TV (easily digestible episodes, team written, new content every week) to what was already cool about books (well-crafted stories, talented authors, enjoyable anywhere). 

Like TV, we release a new episode of our serials every week and serials typically run for seasons of 10-16 weeks. Easy to pick up, episodes are enjoyable on their own but build over the course of the season to tell a bigger story. Each episode is available in ebook and audio and takes about 40 minutes to enjoy.

Basically, Serial Box has taken the concept of releasing serialized stories, popularized by Charles Dickens in the 1800s, into the 21st Century. They have many genres of content to choose from too.  But her is the kicker, they have the biggest names in media- TV and Print- involved in content creation. For example their nonfiction serial, 1776, is done by the AP.

But wait, there's more, you can read AND listen to every episode. And switching back and forth is super easy. I know because I did it yesterday.

From the library perspective there is much we need to be aware of here. First, as you look through the list of stories available, you can see that readers of all stripes will be drawn to this service, and they are constantly adding more content. Second, because each "episode" is the length of a podcast, I think the more savvy podcast listeners who are looking for well produced content will turn to paying for a better product, and this is a great option. Third, and most importantly for us as I will show today, authors that our patrons already enjoy and ask for are releasing new content exclusively on Serial Box. We need to at the least be aware of it when they ask us for "Paul Tremblay's" new story and, if we can, find a way to provide that content to our readers.

For right now, the solution to this third point is similar to how we get e-only or audible only titles to our patrons, and it's fairly piecemeal. I have seen libraries load iPads with e-only content and then circulate those for people to use. I have also begun to hear about a few libraries who are trying to create their own databases of purchased e-only material that they can then circulate behind a wall that requires they enter their library card number. But I am hoping in the future, the people behind Serial Box will begin to work with libraries more directly. I have been in touch with some of the management and libraries are a market they are interested in pursuing.

Now back to the horror angle. This month Serial Box has doubled down to get horror readers to notice them by releasing one paid horror serial and one free one. And these are not small releases. In the rest of this post I will give you some info on each series so that, at the very least, you know what your patrons are talking about when they come in and ask about Silverwood: The Door and Exquisite Corpse this month and you can't find them in any of your normal book purchasing or borrowing platforms.

I'll begin with Silverwood: The Door which debuted yesterday. It is written by show runner Brian Keene, Richard Chizmar, Stephen Kozeniewski, and the Sisters of Slaughter-- all authors whose books I have reviewed here on the blog.

I bought the full season and am already hooked after the first episode, written by Brian Keene. But what I am also excited about is how the different authors will bring their particular talents to the different episodes as the series goes on.

In this interview from Cemetery Dance, Brian Keene talks about the series and how they wrote it.  That interview gives a lot of background detail about the story and the Serial Box platform. And here you can read a review of the story itself from Cemetery Dance. I did not read ahead, although I was offered a free copy for the entire run. I want to experience the story as everyone else will both because it will be fun and because it will help me to better understand how the Serial Box experience will be for patrons and how we can incorporate it into our library collections. I am equally excited about both.

Later this month, you will all have a chance to try this service for free with Exquisite Corpse:

Click through for the details, but here is the basic idea for this free story from Serial Box:

Follow along as these masters of horror delve into the darkest corners of their imaginations and either set their fellow players up for success, or back them into narrative traps and laugh maniacally as they try to escape. How does it work? It begins with a prompt from horror experts Dread Central. Each author picks up the story where the previous writer left it, adding their own nightmarish short installment and passing it on to the next (un)lucky participant to create a twisty, turny, occasionally peculiar, always terrifying ride. Ten installments will be released hourly for free on October 19th in text (less than 5 mins to read) and atmospheric 3D audio (between 5 and 10 mins to listen).

Brian Keene, Christoper Golden, and Paul Tremblay are among the authors working on this story; authors your patrons will ask for, authors whose newest works people will want to read. This one is going to be fun for the Halloween season, and it is FREE! You do need to sign up here to be a part of it though.

Sign up and follow along for yourself, both to experience a horror story in short bursts and see how the platform works. Think about ways you could incorporate more of Serial Box's content into your library's collection. Remember, they have content for every genre. We can't afford to ignore this service anymore. Our patrons are starting to learn about it, and they will soon come asking us about it. Be ready.

31 Days of Horror: Day 10-- Why I Love Horror by Wesley Southard

Today I am featuring the third author who appeared in my Library Journal column on horror novellas, another debut author, Wesley Southard.

I was given a copy of Southard's One for the Road by author Brian Keene at StokerCon. Keene brought Southard up to me and said, "Becky you have to read this book. Meet Wes." I ended up reading this book on a work trip a week later and I LOVED it. I was inspired to write a review immediately on Goodreads, which you can read here.

This book is third on the list for a few reasons. It follows Snow Over Utopia because both are centered around a road trip, but One for the Road is much more violent [in a good way]. I like to build my lists so that the violence hits its peak in the middle of the list.

Knowing that my audience is a little wary of horror to begin with, I gradually build them up to the most in your face title, and then slowly let them back down, so that when they get desposited at the end, they are back in a comfortable location [as you will see in the next 2 days].

But if you are looking for a thought provoking, fun, fast read, with some of the most creative monsters you have ever read, get this one. Your patrons will thank you. It is currently my leader for my category of "most fun I had reading a book this year."

Click here to read the column in Library Journal if you missed it or want a refresher.

Here is Wesley Southard, author of One for the Road, on why he loves horror.

☠☠☠☠☠☠☠☠☠☠

Why do I love horror?    

When I was young, my father and I didn’t have a whole lot in common.  He liked to hunt, fish, watch football, and work out. I was quite the opposite.  I hated sports, I couldn’t stand to be outdoors, and I would have rather kicked rocks than be caught at a gym.  As an adult, I’ve grown to love sports (ice hockey may be a small obsession of mine), and I now have a better appreciation for activities outside of the house, but back then I wouldn’t have any of it.  We were both looking for something to bond over.   

All he had to do was simply look back to when he was a boy. 

Those nights when he wasn’t rearing me on the classic rock he grew up with, we watched the old horror films he saw as a kid.  He would tell me about a film he loved about a young boy who was being chased by a very tall undertaker, and there were these flying silver balls that would stick into people’s heads and drain their blood from a little drill inside.  He was obviously talking about Don Coscarelli’s 1979 film Phantasm, and after watching it once I was hooked.  Another film he remember from years prior was about a group of teenagers who went to stay in a creepy cabin in the Tennessee woods.  They find a book bound in human skin and inked in blood, and after reading the passages within, all hell breaks loose. To this day, The Evil Dead remains one of my favorite films.  Now granted, not every horror film he brought home from Blockbuster was a winner.  I’ll never forget watching an old Bigfoot film called The Legend of Boggy Creek.  I think we spent more time laughing at the terrible soundtrack then actually being scared. 

That didn’t matter to me.  After years of searching, we finally found something to call ours.  It felt great, and it was the start of gravitating toward other forms of horror.  When I wasn’t watching everything Wes Craven or George A. Romero had to offer, I discovered R.L. Stine and his seminal Goosebumps book series.  Now, you may laugh when I say seminal, but for a whole generation of nineties kids, those books were like a drug.  Me personally, I couldn’t get enough of them. Now granted, they weren’t particularly scary. More than anything, they were entertaining.  They kept kids reading, back before we had to worry about their eyeballs rotting in the glow of cell phone screens. I’ll never forget being at my elementary school Scholastic Book Fair.  Before we could buy books, we had to sit through a children’s improv troupe from the Midwest called Tales and Scales. I enjoyed them, but directly behind them, locked up in large metal cases, was the newest Goosebumps book.  I remember the moment the show ended, and the fair runners cracked open the cases, I sprinted down the bleachers and dove head-first into the books.  No joke. I literally crawled under other kids legs just to be the first to have that new scary book with the embossed letters dripping down its glossy cover.  Remember what I said about those books being like drugs? 

Those Scholastic Book Fairs were a big deal to me, as were the pamphlets they regularly handed out in class.  Any book that looked scary, I had to have it. To this day, I swear it had to be a mistake. I’ll never forget thumbing through those pages, looking for something cool, anything to catch my eye―and there it was.  The cover had vampires across it, and their snarling, fanged faces went on in the painting, as far as the eye could see. I knew instantly I had to have it. My parent’s purchased it, and for the next few weeks I attempted to read my very first adult horror novel.  And although I didn’t understand much of the subtext or heady themes, the short novel nevertheless enraptured me. By the time I hit high school and reread it as a teenager, it blew my mind, and I couldn’t help but wonder how this was being sold to children. Thank God it was, otherwise I never would have read Richard Matheson’s pivotal short novel, I Am Legend, a book that I still call my absolute favorite.  Believe it or not, I still own that very Tor paperback all these years later. 

By the time I hit high school, my love for music and horror helped me find many other friends I wouldn’t have otherwise found.  It was a common bond we all shared. When not learning to play guitar in a band, we were staying up late, watching whatever late night creature feature Joe Bob Briggs was showing on TNT.  But it was my old guitar teacher that truly got the ball rolling for what the rest of my life was going to look like. He knew I liked to read, and he told me about this zombie book he was really digging at the time.  So I went and purchased a copy of Brian Keene’s first novel, The Rising.   

Game Over. 

Sure, I read and enjoyed Stephen King―I still do―but he never truly spoke to me.  Keene’s work was like a nuclear detonation in the horror genre, and I had jumped onto that hurtling rocket very early on in his career.  Discovering his work was like finding my R.L. Stine all over again as an adult. Even while going to college for music, I was still devouring his work, along with the work of his peers.  Keene became Richard Laymon, who became J.F. Gonzalez, who became Tim Lebbon, who became Ray Garton, and so on. Even in a school full of musicians, I still felt like an outsider. From the time I was thirteen, all I wanted to be was a famous guitar player in a traveling heavy metal band…but in the back of my mind I wanted to be like one of these guys whose work I loved so much.  They were becoming like rock stars to me, and once I moved back home from college and decided music just wasn’t my passion anymore, it was a fateful meeting with Mr. Keene at a book signing in Indianapolis that lead me to pull completely into another direction. 

I hung up the guitar and broke out the laptop, and over the course of the next decade I wrote my first novel.  The Betrayed isn’t a perfect book, and it sure isn’t pretty either, but it was my little drop in the ever-growing bucket of horror literature.  And it felt good. Really good. You know what else it felt like? Like I had finally found my purpose. At another book signing event, I encountered other young writers like me who welcomed me into their little horror family.  And what a generous, loving bunch they were. Nearly a decade later, I now have four books published and dozens of short stories―with many more to come―and it was all because of their love and support. I met the woman who would go on to become the love of my life, and years later I would move from Indiana to Pennsylvania, where I could be closer to my new friends and family. 

Earlier you asked why I love horror.  Horror means absolutely everything to me.  It gave me a way to be closer to my family.  It gave me comfort and entertainment in those dark times in my life.  It gave me lifelong friendships and the best mentors I could ever ask for.  And it gave me a purpose. I now have the same unique ability, like my heroes―Brian Keene, Graham Masterton, and Edward Lee―before me, to tell my own compelling stories.  I now get to scare people, to make others cringe, laugh, cry, scream, and smile. I get to tell stories that one day someone will pick up and, hopefully, inspire them to write, too, and give their life some sort of meaning.     

That’s all anyone can ask for.

Libraries...Time to Get Serious About Horror and Halloween Prep and I Can Help!

Seriously serious people.

We are closing in on Halloween-- It's already Sept 3rd. The ads for costume and decoration buying are coming fast a furious-- to my email and my home mail box.  I even saw a small Halloween display at Crate and Barrel on Tuesday. Plus, with the passing of Wes Craven over the weekend, your patrons are really thinking about Halloween and their nostalgia for the horror of their youth.

****On a side note, I could go on for weeks about young Becky's love of the Nightmare on Elm Street movies. Hint, it bordered on obsession. But it is not just me, here is a great article from The Atlantic on how Wes Craven redefined horror. I am not sure I would be the library world's horror expert today if Wes Craven didn't happen, which is weird to think about because if you ask me, I prefer horror novels to movies.  Hmmmm.... Sorry for the digression. Now back to the post at hand*********

I am also in the final tasks of my October planning.  One of the last things I did was an informal survey of a few of my colleagues and no one had started thinking about Halloween yet?!?

Look, I am not saying you need to have a Halloween display up yet. Of course not. It's too early for that. But why not set the creepy tone for those patrons who are beginning to think about it.

So here is how you get started to make 2015's Haunting Season your best ever.

Step One, find a copy of my book or at the very least spend some time reading through the archives of this blog. This will get you up to speed on horror as it is discussed today.

Step Two, start some Halloween display prep by allowing your horror books to act all creepy. What do I mean? Well this is one of my favorite passive RA tricks for horror promotion.  Grab some of your more terrifying titles with great covers-- I suggest Brian Keene, Jonathan Maberry, and Nick Cutter to start-- and put them face out in the stacks. So at the end of the row where Nick Cutter's The Troop is normally shelved, pull the physical book out to display face out; maybe even have it peeking out from the end of the row if you can. If you are a library that actively puts books face out in the middle of the stacks (good for you), switch them all to horror titles.  Even if you never have books face out, go through and randomly put a few where there is room.  The result....your horror books are stalking patrons as they walk through the stacks. It is as if they are following you.... It creates the exact feelings of anxiety, dread, and unease that horror fans crave.  It is AWESOME!!!! [and super easy]

Step Three, check your most popular horror titles for wear and tear and get replacements ordered ASAP! Stephen King, Anne Rice, Dracula, etc... Also, don't forget that some popular authors like Mira Grant and Jonathan Maberry have paperback bestsellers that may be in ratty shape at this point.

Step Four, get on top of the rush of new horror coming up soon.  Immediately order Brian Kirk's We are Monsters (great review in Booklist) and pre-order Slade House by David Mitchell (out in October). I read and reviewed Slade House for Booklist and I am telling you, this slim (yes I said David Mitchell and slim in the same sentence) book will become a Halloween classic, read for years to come. Think Haunting of Hill House or Turn of the Screw. Yes, that classic! In the coming week or so, I will suggest a few more new titles for you.

Step Five, now that I have you in the haunting mood, stop everything and click here to read Brian Keene talk about why horror matters in the Huffington Post. Great article, but more importantly, a great writer. Keene is the best original paperback horror writer out there.  I talk about him and his influence and importance at length in my book, but he is also a fantastic human being who actively champions and supports other horror authors and the genre as a whole. And, he is cognizant of the fact that women in horror get a short shrift. He advocates for them doubly.

Step Six, stay tuned to this blog for all of the horror information you need to make your patrons happy this Halloween.  I will begin daily posts on October 1st which include guest posts by horror authors on why they love the genre, new lists and reviews and a few planned appearances by me to talk horror with you. But before then, I will be back here frequently giving you the horror pep talks and resources you need to prepare.

Cue evil laugh...