Letters From the Labyrinth 88

I'm Brian Keene and you're reading Letters From the Labyrinth -- a weekly newsletter for fans of my work. Previous issues are archived here.
Friday was spent reading episodes six through eight of THE DOOR, and then having a conference call about them with the rest of the writer's room -- Richard Chizmar, Stephen Kozeniewski, Michelle Garza, Melissa Lason, and SerialBox creative director Lydia Shamah.
Saturday was spent testing the livestream for the forthcoming second annual The Horror Show with Brian Keene Live Telethon, which is now less than two weeks away. We worked out all the echoes and delays, and made sure it's going to sound good.
By May 10th, I have to edit episodes one through nine of THE DOOR, and write the first draft of the season finale. The telethon takes place May 11th and 12th. I'm still writing twenty-four hours of live content for it.
Basically, I've got eleven days to edit 100,000 words, and write another 10,000 words.
Apologies if I'm not responding to your emails or Tweets.
The official reveal for THE DOOR will take place during the telethon. Specifically, it will take place at 7pm (EST). Both Richard Chizmar and Stephen Kozeniewski will be on hand to talk about it with me. Remember, the telethon is a live broadcast, so it's not like you'll be able to play it back later.
The free worldwide livestream will be via the Project Entertainment Network’s YouTube channel.
You can also attend the telethon in person, and be part of our live studio audience. The telethon will be held at Courtyard Marriott 2799 Concord Road, York PA 17402. You will need a ticket to be part of the live studio audience. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased here. Seating is limited to 80 people. (All proceeds raised from ticket sales will go directly to the $20,000 goal). Your ticket guarantees you 24-hour admission to the telethon — come and go (and sleep) as you please. I'll be happy to sign any books you bring, as will Mary SanGiovanni, Jeff Strand, John Urbancik, Richard Chizmar, Dan Padavona, Stephen Kozeniewski, Christian Jensen, Ralph Bieber, Armand Rosamilia, Jay Wilburn, Robert Ford, and so many others.
One of the things I still need to write for the telethon is my rap lyrics. If you're a long-time listener of my podcast then you know that Dan Padavona, son of metal-legend Ronnie James Dio, and I have been wanting to have a rap battle. This week, we decided to use the music of Eric B and Rakim.
Erik B and Rakim's PAID IN FULL and Dio's THE LAST IN LINE are both crucial parts of my musical and artistic development.
THE LAST IN LINE came out between my junior and senior years of High School. It became my favorite of his work. I wore that album out by Christmas and had to buy a replacement copy.
PAID IN FULL came out while I was in the Navy. I first heard it up on the ship's signal bridge. I bought it on cassette when we got back to Norfolk, and much like THE LAST IN LINE, I wore that thing out and had to buy a replacement copy.
If I had a time machine, I would go back to 1984 and 1987, and tell those younger versions of myself that in two weeks, Dio's son and I will be having a rap battle for thousands and thousands of listeners with Eric B and Rakim as the background music.
Life is weird...
END OF THE ROAD IS UP FOR ORDER
“My name is Brian Keene. I’m a writer by trade and a road warrior by heart. Neither of these things are wise career or life choices. The tolls add up. Over the last twenty years, things have changed. Book tours have changed, publishing has changed, bookselling has changed, conventions have changed, horror fiction—and the horror genre—have changed. I’ve changed, too. The only things that haven’t changed are writing and the road. They stay the same. The words we type today are the past tomorrow. Everything is connected like the highways on a map are connected. This holds true for the history of our genre, as well. I rode into town twenty years ago. Now I’m riding out. You’re all coming with me…”
So begins Brian Keene’s END OF THE ROAD—a memoir, travelogue, and post-Danse Macabre examination of modern horror fiction, the people who write it, and the world they live—and die—in. Exhilarating, emotional, heartfelt, and at times hilarious, END OF THE ROAD is a must-read for fans of the horror genre. Introduction by Gabino Iglesias.
Published as a Signed Hardcover Limited Edition:
• Limited to just 750 signed and hand-numbered copies
• Personally signed by the author on a unique signature page
• Retail price just $40!
• Printed on 60# acid-free paper
• Bound in full-cloth with colored head and tail bands
• Featuring hot foil stamping on the front boards and spine
• Printed and bound with full-color endpapers
• Smyth sewn to create a more durable binding
• Wrapped in a full-color dust jacket
• Limited ONE TIME printing of this special edition
• No other editions planned at this time!
SPECIAL BONUS ITEM WITH PURCHASE!
Every copy of this book purchased on CemeteryDance.com will include a FREE special bonus Limited Edition chapbook, On the Road with Brian Keene by John Urbancik. Just reserve End of the Road via this page and we’ll automatically send you the chapbook with your order!
And a reminder that CLICKERS FOREVER: A TRIBUTE TO J.F. GONZALEZ is now available in paperback and Kindle!
Few Millennium-era horror authors left as big an imprint on the genre as J.F. Gonzalez. CLICKERS FOREVER: A TRIBUTE TO J.F. GONZALEZ, edited by Brian Keene, celebrates his rich legacy, featuring some of horror’s biggest names alongside tomorrow’s stars in a massive career-spanning tribute.
Featuring stories set in Gonzalez’s literary worlds of CLICKERS, SURVIVOR, PRIMITIVE, and RESTORE FROM BACK-UP; examinations of his creative process and the lasting impact of his seminal works; personal tributes and anecdotes from those who knew him best; and much more. A must-have for fans of J.F. Gonzalez and horror fiction.
The Authors: J.F. Gonzalez, Brian Keene, Jonathan Maberry, Mary SanGiovanni, David J. Schow, John Skipp, Jeff Strand, Weston Ochse, Wayne Allen Sallee, Kelli Owen, Nick Mamatas, Wrath James White, Jonathan Janz, Robert Swartwood, Kristopher Rufty, Adam Cesare, Gene O’Neill, John Urbancik, Gord Rollo, Gabino Iglesias, Monica O’Rourke, Mike Oliveri, Matt Hayward, Robert Ford, Mike Lombardo, Jeff Burk, Lesley Conner, Matt Serafini, Stephen Kozeniewski, Michael T. Huyck, Jay Wilburn, Geoff Cooper, Charles Rutledge, Wesley Southard, Kyle Lybeck, Amber Fallon, Dave Thomas, and Wile E. Young.
All proceeds benefit the family of J.F. Gonzalez
CLICK HERE TO BUY THE PAPERBACK
The latest installment of Brian Keene’s HISTORY OF HORROR FICTION – is now available for free over at Cemetery Dance. This month, we examine horror fiction of the Elizabethan era, including Shakespeare, Bluebeard, and the dreaded Malleus Maleficarum.
If you missed the previous chapters, click here to get caught up.
I put a bunch of content up on Patreon this past week.
There's a new chapter of THE SEVEN: THE LABYRINTH BOOK ONE in which, while exploring the ruins of Havenbrook National Laboratories (from THE RISING), The Exit encounters a character from the forthcoming RISING-sequel, THE FALL, and learns the fate of Gina and Julie (two characters from THE RISING whose fate has remained unknown...until now. You can read that chapter -- and the rest of the serial -- for just one dollar.
I also put up a new writing advice essay called "What The Hell Am I Writing?" which is all about outlining and how to decide if your idea is a short story, a novella, or a novel. You can read that essay -- and the rest of the writing advice essays and the complete THE SEVEN: THE LABYRINTH BOOK ONE -- for just two dollars.
I also put up a still photograph of that whiteboard that all of you glimpsed in that recent video tour of my office. And explained what each and every mysterious thing written on the whiteboard is. That explanation -- and the rest of the Behind the Scenes stuff -- and all of the writing advice essays and the complete THE SEVEN: THE LABYRINTH BOOK ONE -- for just five dollars.
And tomorrow I'll be putting up a brand-new short story.
Click here and start reading today!
That's it for this week. I've got to get back to work. Again, there will probably be a vast swath of radio silence throughout the next ten days, but I'll see you back here next Sunday.