Letters From the Labyrinth 90

I'm Brian Keene and this is Letters From the Labyrinth -- a weekly newsletter for fans of my work. Previous issues are archived here.

As you know, the second annual Horror Show with Brian Keene telethon was this past weekend. We broadcast live for 24-hours. As a result, I'm tired. Also, THE DOOR was announced Friday night so my email is blowing up with that.

So how about we talk telethon and THE DOOR? Cool?

The 2nd annual The Horror Show with Brian Keene Telethon, sponsored by Serial Box, ran from noon Friday to noon this past Saturday. Our goal was to raise $20,000 in 24 hours for the Scares That Care 501c3 charity. This year, Scares That Care is helping SAWYER (an 8-year old girl who is on her second relapse of Anaplastic Ependymoma), BRIAN (a little boy who was burned in a household accident), and HOPE (a Navy veteran and a single mother of two who is battling Stage IV breast cancer).

At the end of the 24-hour live broadcast, we had raised $21,591.

However, there are still donations coming in so that final tally will be even higher. We’ll announce it later today.

The broadcast itself is a haze, and it's impossible to recap everything that happened in that 24 hour period. Some of my personal favorite moments were:

1. Mary SanGiovanni getting to use Type O Negative singer Peter Steele's microphone to sing a duet with Disciple Theory.

2. My son "DungeonMaster 77.1's" reaction upon learning that his Swear Jar idea raised $200 -- and his expression when he saw me in my leggings and Mike Lombardo in his ridiculous Wheel of Lombardo outfit.

3. The early morning interview with Jay Wilburn. I don't think we've ever had a more honset, heartfelt, and heartbreaking interview than that -- and yes, we will replay it on the show in coming weeks.

4. The rap battle with Dan Padavona. Yes, I got my ass thoroughly kicked...and I loved every minute of it.

5. Hitting the goal, of course.

Thank you to the staff of The Horror Show with Brian Keene and Scares That Care for their hard work both behind the microphones and behind the scenes.

Thank you to Serial Box for sponsoring it.

Thank you to my fellow Project Entertainment Network hosts for pitching in and helping out.

Thank you to Joe R. Lansdale, Calrton Mellick III, Jeff Strand, Lynne Hansen, Dan Padavona, Patrick Kennedy, Scott Edelman, Chet Williamson, Laurie Williamson, Ralph Beiber, Cheryl Beiber, Somer Canon, Jessie Canon, Brian W. Picard, Christine Picard, Robert Ford, Stephen Kozeniewski, Discipline Theory, M. Stephen Lukac, Drew Williams, John urbancik, Christian Jensen, Jay Wilburn, and Kelli Owen for donating their involvment.

Thanks to all the folks who promoted it online.

Thanks to both our studio audience and our worldwide audience.

And thanks to everyone who donated.

Serial Box in partnership with BlackBoxTV proudly presents SILVERWOOD: THE DOOR from Brian Keene, Richard Chizmar, Stephen Kozeniewski, Michelle Garza, and Melissa Lason. Based on the web series by Director Tony E. Valenzuela.

Deep within the forest of Silverwood, California a dark force is working to open the door between dimensions—bad news for a Boy Scout troop and employees on a company retreat nearby. As their darkest fears and impulses feed the mysterious force, their bonding exercises take a deadly turn. Will anyone be able to keep their minds long enough to close the door before our world is torn apart?

Coming this October as a weekly prose and audiobook series.

CLICK HERE TO PRE-ORDER THE ENTIRE SEASON FOR JUST $13.99

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE TRAILER ON YOUTUBE

***

So, that’s the official press release and trailer. Now I’ll answer some questions I’m sure will be frequent:

Q: What is Serial Box?
A: Serial Box is the HBO for readers. They publish weekly serials in prose and audiobook formats. The time it takes to read or listen to an episode is about 49 minutes, the same as an episode of a television show (without commercials).

Q: Is this a TV series?
A: No. It’s a prose and audiobook series. Each episode is 10,000 words (a short novella).

Q: So what am I pre-ordering?
A: You are preordering the entire series. When it launches, you can read it on your Kindle or other device, listen to it on your phone or other device, etc. Even better, you can toggle back and forth between the two. Read on the way to work, listen while at work, etc.

Q: How much is the first season?
A: $13. That’s 10 episodes for 13 dollars.

Q: Who all is involved?
A: I’m the showrunner, and I wrote the first and last episodes and one episode in the middle (just like in television). Richard Chizmar, Steven Kozeniewski, and The Sisters of Slaughter wrote multiple episodes each (also just like in television). Our producer is Lydia Shamah. Silverwood creator Tony E. Valenzuela is our spirit guide.

Q: Do I need to be familiar with SILVERWOOD before this?
A: Not at all. This series has been specifically crafted for readers who are not familiar with Silverwood. However, long-time Silverwood fans will find PLENTY to get them excited! (If you watched the trailer, then it’s not a spoiler that Kristina is involved… and if she’s there, can her bear be far behind)?

Q: Okay, cool. But I’d still like to check out SILVERWOOD between now and then. How can I do that?
A: Oh, that’s easy. You can watch Season One for free on YouTube by clicking here. You can watch Season Two for free on YouTube by clicking here. And you can read the graphic novel for free by clicking here.

Q: Where can I learn more?
A: By clicking this link.

That's it for this week. As always:

PATREON - Where I post new short stories, writing advice essays, a serialized ongoing novel, and behind-the-scenes stuff.

TWITTER - The only social media outlet I still use regularly.

See you back here next week.