On Funerals - Somer Canon

Somer Canon is an exciting new author who has hit the horror scene with a most unusual, exceptional novella. Here she gives a clue as to one of her influences:

          

I have a hazy memory of being not long out of my toddler years and attending my first funeral.  My grandmother had me for the weekend, as she often did, but she needed to attend the viewing of her recently deceased elderly neighbor.  I knew the woman vaguely in that to my young mind, she as a gifter of an endless supply of colorful hard candies.

             It was an uncomfortable experience, seeing that kind lady looking to be asleep surrounded by her weeping family.  I remember my grandma telling me not to look at her and when I asked why, she said that I was too young, a catch-all explanation that I loathed.  

             “If I’m not supposed to look, why is she out for everybody to see?”  I asked.

            My grandma had no answer.

            The experience was vastly different when my grandma passed.  Drowning in the grief of losing someone who had always been so important to me, I was still able to be confused that my mom and my aunt bought my grandma a new dress and jewelry for her viewing.  The funeral home styled her hair in a way different from how she wore it and they put too much makeup on her.  All of that toiling away to create the illusion that she was merely sleeping ended up looking gruesome to me.  I, like everyone else who knew and loved her, preferred her how she had looked when she was alive, not overly painted and wearing clothes she’d never have picked out for herself. 

            Seeing her like that caused me to make up my mind that I did not want that for myself. 

            Vicki, a character in my novella, Vicki Beautiful, agrees with me.  She has serious concerns about how her last showing to her loved ones would be carried out. While I want to avoid causing distress to my loved ones by creating a poorly executed illusion, Vicki wants to avoid looking anything other than beautiful perfection.

One last taste of perfection… 

Sasha and Brynn descend upon the showplace home of their girlhood friend, Vicki, planning to celebrate her surviving cancer to reach her fortieth birthday. As they gather around Vicki’s perfectly set dinner table, though, her husband shares devastating news. The cancer is back, and she doesn’t have long to live.

Her life is cut even shorter than Sasha and Brynn expect—the next morning, their friend is found dead, her flawless skin slit at the wrists. But a tub full of blood is only the beginning. Before the weekend is through, they are forced to question how far they’re willing to go to fulfill Vicki’s last wish.

A very specific, very detailed recipe that only the truest of friends could stomach…

 Praise for Vicki Beautiful

 “ I read this at one gripping session and I shall read more by this author. Excellent, original and worth every one of my five stars.” –Catherine Cavendish, Author of The Devil’s Serenade

“At times it reminded me of the cult classic "Eating Raoul" and others "The Big Chill". Suffice to say, Canon has created an intriguing tale that will not only have you caring about characters put into an awkward, unsettling situation but also wondering how they'll react to it every step of the way. I highly recommend this unique and entertaining story.” –Matthew Franks, Author The Monster Underneath

“This is not the normal type of book that I would read, but the cover sold it to me, and I like reading new authors and genres. This book is beautifully written, the writing flows and you feel you really understand what the character’s are feeling…” Rebecca, GoodReads Reviewer

“The ending of this story was truly horrific. I am an old school horror fan, and have been indulging in the genre since I was old enough to hold a book. I also adore and enjoy the sub-genre splatterpunk, I read Jack Ketchum as a bedside book all the time. It takes a lot to phase me, but even I was turning my head in repulsion at the end. What a wonderful debut story for Somer Canon.” –Badseedgirl, GoodReads Reviewer

“A simple story, but all the more powerful for its simplicity. Four stars. The author has guts and skill.” –Outlaw Poet

Purchase Links
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Samhain

 Biography 

Somer Canon is a minivan revving suburban mother who avoids her neighbors for fear of being found out as a weirdo.  When she’s not peering out of her windows, she’s consuming books, movies, and video games that sate her need for blood, gore, and things that disturb her mother.

Vicki Beautiful is her debut novella.

Find out more about Somer and her upcoming works at her website http://www.somercanon.com. You can also connect with Somer on Twitter: www.twitter.com/SomerM.

On Writing Horror with Humour and Other Interesting Tales - Stuart R. West

 

Today, it is my pleasure and privilege to be joined by Stuart R. West. Now Stuart is a very different kind of horror author - in fact sometimes he doesn't do horror at all! Frequently, when he does, there is a lavish helping of humour on the side, so I thought it was about time I asked him how he achieves this, and about his cross-genre experiences.

CC: I found your latest novella – Demon with a Comb-Over – a brilliant read.

Blending horror with humour is a really difficult act to pull off, yet you do it so effectively in this story. Come on, spill, what’s your secret?

SRW: Hey, Catherine, thanks for having me here! No secrets here (as anyone who reads my blog can attest to). Demon with a Comb-Over didn’t start as a humorous book to be honest. Originally, I’d planned it to be straight-up horror. But once I got into it, the subject matter, setting, characters, everything sorta screamed out for a humorous bent. It was a happy accident. Now is the book funny? Humor’s very subjective. Reader’s calls. 

 CC: Well, I certainly enjoyed the humour, and I loved your central character – Charlie Broadmoor. I kept wanting to tell him to stop taunting that member of the audience. You knew it was going to end badly, but he just kept on teasing him. So engaging and authentic. Kobal was a masterful demon too. I believe there is to be a sequel. Can you tell us what we can expect from Kobal in the future?

SRW: Thanks Cat. Well, regarding Charlie, I’m a sucker for everyman sad sack characters (being one myself). If you can’t root for the lead character in a book, it doesn’t work for me. Of course, the villain has to be as strong as the lead, too. Now there’s not a sequel to Comb-Over. But I have written a prequel: The Book of Kobal. As suggested, it’s my demon Kobal’s tale up until the events in Demon with a Comb-Over. I had a lot of fun writing it, although it’s much darker than Comb-Over. And outrageously irreverent (might get me in trouble with some Bible thumpers). Kobal manipulates Satan into battling angels, spanks Hitler and gets into a hissy slap fight with Jesus. Oh, and he totally destroys a disco during the ‘70’s. Violent, gruesome, sickly funny stuff.

Alas, with the closing of Samhain Publishing, the book is currently without a publisher. (One beta reader told me that no one should read it!)

CC: I think it sounds like great fun. Come on publishers, sign Stuart up so I can read it! 

Moving onto your other work, you have also written a comedy whodunit – Bad Day In A Banana Hammock. How did that one come about?

SRW: Simple! It was my way of selling out! What better way to sell books than have a vapid male stripper as the lead and his very pregnant, very cranky sister as the brains? Most fun I’ve had writing a book, actually. I plan on a sequel later this year.

 In fact, genre-wise, you’re hard to pin down – The Ghosts of Gannaway is a story about a seriously haunted mine. Then there’s your dark horror thriller Godland and much more besides. Tell us a bit more about your other books and why you choose to write in so many diverse genres.

SRW: Catherine, I’m probably not doing myself any favors by writing all over the board. Readers never know what to expect. The way I like it, though. I can’t imagine writing the same type of book over and over. As long as I’m interested, I’ll keep experimenting. I have a children’s picture book coming out later this year and there’s a straight up romantic comedy in my future. But horror’s always my first love, something I keep getting drawn back to.

Ghosts of Gannaway was the toughest book I’ve written. I spent two or three months in research alone! (Not doing historical horror ever again). Godland is my dark psychological horror tale, a puzzle piece that I’m proud of. Then there’s my YA paranormal, mystery, comedy, romance quartet, Tex, the Witch Boy which deals with current topical issues. Oh! And my morbidly amusing serial killer thriller series, Killers Incorporated.

The only links between the books? Every one is a bit autobiographical (except, um, I’m not a witch nor a serial killer) and they all take place (at least partially) in Godforsaken Kansas.

CC: Speaking of Kansas, you say that your home state provides a lot of inspiration. What is it about the Midwest that inspires your writing?

SRW: Inspiration’s giving Kansas a lotta credit, Catherine! Well, I’m stuck here for better or worse. But as I like writing dark, Kansas is full of creepy things and people. It gave birth to the heinous Westboro Baptist Church for crying out loud! There’s still an active KKK branch, mafia, black magic worshippers. Lots of gist for my books.

 CC: Right. That certainly sounds scary! Now, what is the hardest lesson you have learned in relation to your writing?

SRW: Ah...don’t give up your day job? Momma, don’t let your babies grow up to be cowboys? Don’t poke a sleeping bear?

What are you working on now?

SRW: Dread and Breakfast is another Samhain contracted book that’s currently in need of a new home. Think Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight, only it’s modern day and takes place at a bed and breakfast during a terrible Midwestern blizzard.

Wait...where’s that blurb when I need it? Hey, here it is!

During one of the worst winter storms in recent history, a handful of people converge at the Dandy Drop Inn, a Midwest bed and breakfast. A courageous woman and her young daughter fleeing for their safety; an immoral accountant with one last plan to make his mark; a happily married hit-man with a code of honor; a psychotically enraged police detective; a germophobic mobster and his nephew; and a young newlywed couple with a very strange honeymoon in mind. Some come out of desperation, some by design, some because the storm gives them no other choice. All of them have secrets. But none of them are as dark as the secret deep within the Dandy Drop Inn.

 I’m also wrapping up the third and final book in my Killers Incorporated saga. Yay!

CC: I love the title and the story sounds great. Thank you so much for being my guest today, Stuart. I'm sure your creative, original and highly entertaining work will soon find a new home

SRW: Thanks for having me on, Cat. It was a gas and a half!

Stuart’s Amazon page: Horror and humor just waiting to be clicked!

Stuart’s blog: Rants, ravings and other fun crap from the Midwest

The Hit List - Hunter Shea

Hunter Shea is one of my favourite authors. He always delivers a scary, suspenseful, rattling good tale and his latest - I Kill in Peace - is no exception. I am proud to welcome him to my blog today. The stage is yours, Hunter:

Some people have a bucket list. 

I have a hit list. 

Maybe not the best thing to say, especially from a guy who studied and practiced Buddhism for 7 years, but I’m trying to be honest here. Now, I’m a laid back guy – a family man with a solid day job and a closet devoid of skeletons (ok, maybe a few stray bones, but nothing you don’t have in your own!). I’m not the type to hold a grudge, write people off, or rant on social media or op-ed pages. 

My list doesn’t contain the names of particular people. For those of you who thought you might be on it, you can exhale now. No, my hit list is more general, and it contains types of people and things. Care to talk a walk down my hit list? Quick, hold my hand. 

Now, I think most of society would agree with the following types that need to go. These types bring nothing to the table but sorrow and anguish and broken lives. I’ll start with an easy one – child predators. These bastards are so reviled, even prisoners hate them. Let’s just get rid of them. Maybe we can colonize Venus and send them there, kinda like an interplanetary Australia, only hotter. And while we’re on the subject, let’s throw in rapists, male and female. Get aboard the shuttle! The inflight movie will be Ernest Scared Stupid on a continuous loop. 

School shooters need to go. Hell, anyone who thinks shooting at masses of people on a campus, movie theater or mall is a good idea gets a one way ticket. 

Bullies, especially punks in middle grade and high school. My kids endured that shit for years. Bye bye. 

I’d like to say politics and politicians, but we need a governing body to kind of hold things together. So let’s whack the political process and straighten things out. And I’m adding political correctness to the list. It’s a coward’s way of thinking and speaking and acting. Dumb idea that’s gone on too long. 

Diseases like cancer, AIDS, diabetes, lupus, you name it. Hit the road. You’ve been axed. No one asked for you. You won’t be missed. 

You see where I’m going with my list? I’ll bet dollars to doughnuts that if you made your own, we’d pretty much mirror one another. 

It was a Christmas break spent thinking of my hit list that inspired my latest novella, I KILL IN PEACE. There’s so much wrong with our society. Wouldn’t it be nice if there was someone who could set things right? Enter Peter Blades, an everyman with a scimitar, fiery red Mustang, and a whole lot of bad things running through his brain.

For every action Peter takes, there’s the inevitable reaction, only he’s not sure what that is. If I did it right, you won’t either until the very end. So scribble down your list and hop in Peter’s muscle car. Sometimes, it’s good to let the Id run free. 

 Killing gets easier…with practice. 

Peter Blades is, in every sense of the word, an ordinary man. Hard worker, father, husband, a man content with small-town life. Except for one small fact—he’s slowly being turned into a ruthless killer.

Compelled by mysterious texts to murder, he’s provided a fiery red Mustang and an ancient sword to carry out an ever-growing hit list. His jerkoff boss is victim number one. You always remember your first.

By the time his sword sings through the air to dispatch a would-be school shooter, taking lives is as easy as breathing. And if the world is going to hell around him, all the better. No one wants to burn alone.

 

Biography

Hunter Shea is the product of a childhood weaned on The Night Stalker, The Twilight Zone and In Search Of. He doesn’t just write about the paranormal – he actively seeks out the things that scare the hell out of people and experiences them for himself.

Publishers' Weekly named The Montauk Monster one of the best reads of the summer in 2014, and his follow up novel,Hell Hole, was named best horror novel of the year on several prestigious horror sites. Cemetery Dance had this to say about his apocalyptic thriller, Tortures of the Damned – “A terrifying read that left me wanting more. I absolutely devoured this book!”

Hunter is an amateur cryptozoologist, having written wild, fictional tales about Bigfoot, The Montauk Monster, The Dover Demon and many new creatures to come. Copies of his books, The Montauk Monster and The Dover Demon, are currently on display in the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, ME.

He wrote his first novel with the express desire to work only with editor Don D’Auria at Dorchester (Leisure Horror). He submitted his novel to Don and only Don, unagented, placed on the slush pile. He is proof that dedicated writers can be rescued from no man’s land. He now works with Don, along with several other agents and publishers, having published over ten books in just four years.

Hunter is proud to be be one half of the Monster Men video podcast, along with his partner in crime, Jack Campisi. It is one of the most watched horror video podcasts in the world. Monster Men is a light-hearted approach to dark subjects. Hunter and Jack explore real life hauntings, monsters, movies, books and everything under the horror sun. They often interview authors, crytid and ghost hunters, directors and anyone else living in the horror lane.

Living with his wonderful family and two cats, he’s happy to be close enough to New York City to get Gray’s Papaya hot dogs when the craving hits. His daughters have also gotten the horror bug, assisting him with research, story ideas and illustrations that can be seen in magazines such as Dark Dossier.

You can follow his travails at www.huntershea.com, sign-up for his newsletter, or follow him on Facebook and Twitter.

Praise for Hunter Shea

“This wholly enthralling hulk of a summer beach read is redolent of sunscreen and nostalgia, recalling mass market horror tales of yore by John Saul, Dean Koontz, and Peter Benchley.” — Publishers' Weekly — Voted one of the best reads of summer, on The Montauk Monster

“Bloody good read!  This guy knows his monsters!”- Eric S Brown, author of Bigfoot War and Boggy Creek: The Legend is True, on Swamp Monster Massacre

“Hunter Shea is a great writer, highly entertaining, and definitely in the upper echelon in the current horror scene. Many other writers mention either loving his work and/or having the man influence their own, and for just cause. His writing suits anyone with a taste for the dark and terrifying!” –Zakk at The Eyes of Madness/The Mouth of Madness Podcast

Purchase Links

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Samhain

 Follow along this tour with the hashtags: #IKillinPeace #HunterShea #evilancientswords

An Author's Early Influences - Matthew Franks

Matthew Franks' new novel The Monster Underneath has been one of my favourite reads so far this year - and with so much great new horror around, that's saying a lot. He's an exciting new talent. Here he talks about his early influences and you can find out more about his latest book:

The year was 1984. I was eight years old and my preferred reading material was Mad Magazine. I discovered many movies through that magazine. For example, the legendary Mort Drucker's famous parody of The Godfather led me to later watch the film and changed my life forever. It was in that same year that I saw two other movies that would also impact me in such a way that they set the stage for a novel I would write thirty years later.

The first film, Dreamscape, introduced me to the idea of someone entering and participating in another person's dreams, a.k.a. dreamwalking. In this classic movie, Dennis Quaid plays a psychic that uses his abilities to assist the great Max Von Sydow in developing a program to help people work through their dreams. This is all good and well until a fellow psychic played by Twin Peaks alumnus David Patrick Kelly enters the picture and conspires in a plot to murder the president in his dreams, thus stopping him from signing a peace treaty with the Soviets that would eliminate the need to produce more nuclear weapons. In the end, the two psychics face off in an epic battle of good versus evil complete with a terrifying snake-man and unresolved father issues. 
 

In retrospect, wrapping such a high concept around my eight-year-old head didn't prove as difficult as actually seeing the movie. Given its "PG-13" rating, I had to prove to my parents that it was okay for me to see five years before the suggested viewing age. Luckily, the poster for the movie looked like an Indiana Jones type adventure (brilliant marketing by the way). Seriously, you could transfer Kate Capshaw’s image to the movie poster for Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom standing behind Harrison Ford and no one would know the difference. But I digress. Since I'd already watched Raiders of the Lost Ark and lived to tell the tale, I was able to watch Dreamscape unhindered by the MPAA.

Seeing the next film I'm going to discuss, however, didn't prove so easy. To see it, I would have to be more tactful, even cunning. I would have to call upon an ancient resource that many a young person went to in times of desperation. I would have to call upon my friend-with-the-permissive-parent and watch it at his house. And that's how A Nightmare on Elm Street came into my life. 

Like Dreamscape, the horror classic incorporated dreamwalking into the story. Only, in this case, there was no good supernatural power to combat the bad. In this case, it was straight up evil in the form of horror icon Freddy Kruger played by the incomparable Robert Englund. For roughly an hour and a half, I witnessed helpless teenagers getting murdered in their dreams and ultimately never stopping their pursuer. After all, horror isn't necessarily about defeating evil. Sometimes evil wins and comes back again and again and again. And then it's a franchise.

Years later, other dreamwalker movies came along. There was The Cell, which was visually stunning and featured Jennifer Lopez in a wetsuit. Then there was the hugely successful Christopher Nolan film, Inception. I enjoyed both films but not as much as Dreamscape and A Nightmare on Elm Street. There was something about seeing them when I was younger that, one day, ignited a spark to create a dreamwalker story of my own. I hope you'll check it out. 

Reality can be the difference between a dream and a nightmare…

Max Crawford isn’t a typical prison therapist. He uses his unusual psychic ability to walk with convicts through their dreams, reliving their unspeakable crimes alongside them to show them the error of their ways.

Max always has to be on his toes to keep himself grounded, but the FBI agent waiting for him in his private office immediately puts him on edge. The bureau wants Max to go way outside his comfort zone to enter the dreams of suspected serial killer William Knox.

To get a confession and secure the future of his prison program, Max must gain Knox’s trust by any means necessary—and survive the minefield of secrets waiting inside a murderer’s mind. Secrets that could turn Max’s reality into a living nightmare. 

Biography of Matthew Franks

Matthew Franks lives in Arlington, Texas with his beautiful wife and children. He studied psychology and creative writing at Louisiana State University then obtained a Master’s Degree in counseling from Texas State University. When he’s not working on his next story, he’s counseling adolescents or trying to keep up with his three highly energetic daughters. You can connect with Matthew at: authormatthewfranks.com.

Praise for The Monster Underneath
“An assured, gripping, totally engaging debut, Matthew Franks will have you burning through the pages of this taut supernatural thriller at breakneck speed. If Christopher Nolan and Stephen King ever teamed up to write a novel, this would be it. Highly recommended!” –Ronald Malfi, author of Little Girls

“What if you could see inside the dreams of anyone you came in contact with? Would you dare to look? Could you handle the things you’d find within? The Monster Underneath is a real nail-biter – one of those ever-spiraling stories that you just can’t put down until you reach the surprising end!” –John Everson, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of Covenant and The Family Tree

“The Monster Underneath is an intense and clever debut in which reality is more terrifying than the nightmares and twisted dreamscapes of a madman. Author Matthew Franks is a name to remember, his stories you won’t soon forget.” –Rena Mason, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of The Evolutionist and East End Girls

“Matthew Franks’ debut novel takes you through the darkest, twisted alleys of a killer’s mind and then drags you several steps further, beyond the status of observer and into the disturbing realm of accomplice. A harrowing tale of murder and delusion and moral ambiguity.” –Hank Schwaeble, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of Damnable, Diabolical, and the dark thriller collection, American Nocturne
 
Purchase Links

Amazon US

Amazon Australia

Amazon UK

Barnes & Noble

Samhain

Follow the tour, using the hashtags: #TheMonsterUnderneath #psychologicalhorror #dreamsvsnightmares