[Letters From the Labyrinth] Official Brian Keene Newsletter

I'm Brian Keene, and this is the 132nd issue of Letters From the Labyrinth -- a weekly newsletter for fans of my work. Previous issues are archived here.
So, you remember that photo in last week's newsletter of the blasted, burned, blackened, flooded patch of land? That same blasted, burned, blackened, flooded patch of land that nearly killed me last year?
I went to work on that this past week.
Part of this job involves building a flood-break, so that part of the property can avoid future flooding. There's also new fencing to install, and land to clear of fallen trees, standing-but-dying trees, underbrush, and flood debris.
So, that's mostly what I did last week. This involved a lot of chainsawing and chopping and hauling and dragging. It did not involve fire.
I have always preferred physical labor to mental labor. I enjoy getting outside and working on stuff. And in the space of last week, I managed to clear a good acre of undergrowth, dying trees, and flood debris leftover from last year. But it was a lot easier to do these things at 31 and 41 than it is at 51. By Friday morning, my body ached in ways it never has before. Nothing epsom salt and a little bit of whiskey can't cure...
...but it's taking them longer to kick in these days.
Writing-wise, I mostly worked on THE TRIANGLE OF BELIEF this week, and on Lifetime Subscriber stuff.
Next week, THOR revisions are due. I'm hoping to bang those out Tuesday or Wednesday.
Always stay busy. Always have stuff in the pipeline. Go outside and get your exercise. And have the painkillers on standby for when you are done.
Back in February, I mentioned that in celebration of National Library Lover’s Day, the Horror Writers Association (HWA), in partnership with United for Libraries, Book Riot, and Library Journal/School Library Journal, announced the 1st annual Summer Scares Reading List, which includes titles selected by a panel of authors and librarians, and that my 2005 novel EARTHWORM GODS was one of the books chosen.
The Ladies of the Fright podcast has a new episode up in which they interview Carolyn Ciesla, Dean of Learning Resources and Assessment at Prairie State College and the liaison for the adult Summer Scares picks, and say some nice things about EARTHWORM GODS. Click here to listen.
W.H. PUGMIRE REMEMBRANCE - The Horror Show with Brian Keene - Ep 214
S.T. Joshi, John Pelan, Livia Llewellyn, John Langan, Leeman Kessler and many more offer tributes to author, poet, and essayist Wilum H. Pugmire. Plus Maurice Broaddus's new book deal, changes at Deadite Press, and reviews of Sekiro, Clark Ashton Smith's Emperor of Dreams, and Devin Townsend's Empath.
Listen for free on YouTube – iTunes – Spotify – Project Entertainment – iHeartRadio – Stitcher
My car has a transcription feature, where when somebody sends me a text message, the car's computer (which I've named Pearl) will read the text to me in her sexy robot voice. Mary and I got the giggles over this early on. I found video from last year of the car transcribing a text message from Jonathan Janz. You can giggle along with us here. (It's only 21 seconds long). And while you're there, maybe subscribe to my YouTube channel?
CURRENTLY READING: Inkstains, Series 2 - Carnival and Circus by John Urbancik
CURRENTLY LISTENING: Thunder Island by Jay Ferguson (with Joe Walsh on guitar)
CURRENTLY WATCHING: Shazam
With Shazam, Warner Brothers finally takes a hint from the dominant Marvel Cinematic Universe -- particularly the childlike wonder that imbued Spider-Man: Homecoming.
And as a result, Shazam is easily the best movie in the DC Universe so far. I mean, yes, it's easy to be better than Batman vs. Superman or that turgid Justice League film, but Shazam even tops the better received Wonder Woman and Aquaman.
The property itself seems like a hard one to adapt. The title hero's alter-ego is 14-year old Billy Batson. In the classic comics, his rogue's gallery include a malevolent inchworm and the diminutive Dr. Sivana, and his friends include a talking anthropomorphic tiger and his extended Shazam family. I fully suspected the filmmakers to jettison all of this, but they didn't. Even more impressively, they made it all work for today's audiences.
Shazam is a superhero film for all ages. I was delighted at age 51, and my son was equally delighted at age 11. Indeed, after we left, he told me it was his favorite superhero film that he's seen so far (and for the record, he's seen the entire Marvel and DC output). It beautifully captures the wonder and aw and laughs of those classic 1970s Bronze Age comics I grew up on, but updates them for a modern audience.
Is it okay for younger children? Depends on the child. The demons and monsters are around the level of Ghostbusters, but the opening scene (with Sivana's origin) is intense. And when 14-year old Billy first gets his superpowers (and can pass for an adult) he uses them to buy beer (which he decides tastes like vomit). I'd say age 9 or older will be fine. Younger than that? Depends on how mell they can handle CGI monsters and intense sequences.
That's it for this week. As always:
PATREON - Where I post new short stories, writing advice essays, two serialized ongoing novels, and behind-the-scenes stuff.
TWITTER - The only social media outlet I still use regularly.
YOUTUBE - Where I'm posting free stuff each and every day.
I'll see you back here next week!