[Letters From the Labyrinth] Brian Keene Newsletter 8/7/16
Hello. My name is Brian Keene and this is Letters From the Labyrinth, a weekly email newsletter in which I ramble nonsensically at you for a few minutes. In the comfort of your inbox.
No, don't run away. I brought bourbon!
I've been on tour this summer, ostensibly to promote my latest novels, Pressure and The Complex. I've been writing a weekly column about it over at Cemetery Dance Online. The column is called End of the Road, and I think it's some of the best non-fiction I've done in a long time. Of course, the column is about a month behind where we are in real time, and there is some heavy shit to come. But there are also some funny bits, too, like the fact that in two months, you kind people have given me 58 bottles of bourbon, two six-packs of craft beer, and a bottle of Diet Coke at various signings, as well as countless CDs, albums, t-shirts, and more. It feels less like a farewell tour and more like Christmas and my birthday, all rolled into one.
This past week was my first full week home in over two months. Most of that time was spent playing with my eight-year old, whom listeners to my podcast know as DungeonMaster 77.1. Mary and I also took my oldest son to dinner on Friday night, followed by a trip to a vintage video game arcade. In between the boys, I managed to get some work done, as well. Dave and I recorded this weeks podcast episode. I worked on edits for Return to the Lost Level. I helped Christopher Golden plan a book signing tour that he intends to embark on with James A. Moore and Tim Lebbon next year. And I finished a new short story called "Pages From A Notebook Found Inside A House In The Woods", which takes place in George Romero's Night of the Living Dead universe, and will appear in a forthcoming anthology edited by George and Jonathan Maberry.
The first time I met George, it was at a convention party in Baltimore. This was about a year after The Rising came out, so... 2004, I guess? A bunch of horror industry folks were there: actors like Michael Berryman, Ken Foree, and Reggie Bannister; writers such as J.F. Gonzalez, Tom Piccirilli, and Drew Williams; artists like Chad Savage. And George, wearing that fisherman's vest you've probably seen photos of him in, standing over in the corner, the alpha of the party. At some point in the evening, Greg Nicotero asks me if I want to meet George. I say yes, because what the hell else am I gonna say? Greg takes me over and introduces me, and I'm stammering and sputtering and melting into a pool of fanboy goo in front of everyone, and then George reaches into the pockets of that vest and pulls out a copy of The Rising and a pen and asks me to sign it for him. Hands trembling, I write the longest, most heartfelt inscription I've ever signed in a book. I'm talking a dedication so long that it was almost a second book in and of itself. Then I hand the book and the pen back to him, and he proceeds to gently berate me for ten minutes about fast zombies, and how they're a terrible idea.
I made sure not to put any fast zombies in this new story for him.
Two signings coming up in the next week.
August 13
Books on the Square – Wayland Square
471 Angell Street
Providence, RI 02906
Q&A and Signing 4pm to 7pm
August 14
The Book Nook
136 Main St,
Ludlow, VT 05149
Signing 3:30pm with special guest Asher Ellis
If I did this correctly, you should be able to see the cover of Unearthed above. Unearthed is a surprise chapbook by Richard Chizmar, Ray Garton, and myself, published by Apokrupha. Like many other authors of our generation, Rich and I used to submit to the same magazines back in the day -- New Blood, Grue, Deathrealm, Cabal Asylum, etc. Indeed, before I ever met any of them in person, I was fighting for slots with Bryan Smith, Mary SanGiovanni, J.F. Gonzalez, and Rich. Anyway, Rich was going through his archives and found two unfinished short stories from that time. He asked Ray and I if we wanted to finish them up. We did, and then the three of us added several coats of polish. And that's Unearthed. It's available in paperback and Kindle.
In addition to spending time with my sons and writing a story without fast zombies for George Romero, Mary and I finally got a chance to catch up on our television watching this weekend. (Love is a shared Netflix queue). We watched Green Room, which is the third film by Jeremy Saulniera. We agreed that while we liked it more than his previous effort, Blue Ruin, his first film, Murder Party, remains our favorite. But all three are fantastic movies, and I highly recommend them.
We also binge watched Stranger Things. Since it's debut, many of you have been asking me if I watched it yet, and wondering if I felt "ripped off". No, I don't. Yes, I can see the comparisons to Ghoul and the Labyrinth mythos, but that show is full of other such nods, as well -- Stephen King and the very John Carpenter-esque theme music and the porch swing repeatedly swaying ala Evil Dead. There are also nods to Dean Koontz, Laird Barron, H.P. Lovecraft, Mary SanGiovanni, and Sarah Pinborough, if you want to dig deep into analyzing the show. But understand something -- none of these are the act of an artist ripping off another artist. They are simply tropes. I didn't invent the three boys coming of age in the Eighties trope, anymore than Stephen invented the three boys come of age in the Fifties trope. Dean didn't invent the government agents accidentally unleash a great evil trope. Mary didn't invent the faceless monster trope. Horror writers simply follow in the footsteps of those who came before us. We take those old tropes and put our voice, our stamp, on them. That's what the Duffer Brothers have done with Stranger Things, and they did so masterfully. If you haven't yet watched Stranger Things, do so. Watch the first four episodes. If you're not feeling it after that, then the show isn't for you. But I loved it. I'll offer a much fuller analysis on next week's podcast episode, which will also include an interview with Nick Mamatas.
Every week, I'll end this newsletter with a plug for another author you might enjoy reading. This week, since we were just speaking of Mary, her new novel Chills is up for pre-order in paperback and Kindle. Described as "True Detective meets H.P. Lovecraft, this marks her return to mainstream mass-market horror -- a place she hasn't been to since the collapse of Dorchester.
Thanks for subscribing. Take care of yourself, and I'll see you next week.