[Letters From the Labyrinth] Official Brian Keene Newsletter 6/24/17
My name's Brian Keene. This is Letters From the Labyrinth, a weekly newsletter for fans of my work. If you're a new subscriber, previous issues are archived here.
"Nobody knows where you are,
How near or how far.
Shine on you crazy diamond.
Pile on many more layers
And I'll be joining you there.
Shine on you crazy diamond.
And we'll bask in the shadow
Of yesterday's triumph,
And sail on the steel breeze.
Come on you boy child,
You winner and loser,
Come on you miner for truth and delusion, and shine!"
-- Pink Floyd, Shine On You Crazy Diamond
Due to a family crisis, I was MIA for the first half of the week. The second half of the week was spent full bore working on the estate of J.F. Gonzalez (referred to herein as Jesus).
I made this new website: www.jfgonzalez.org
Whether you are a fan of his work or have never read him, take a moment to have a look, because I think I did okay for a guy who can barely send an email, let alone do HTML.
I also worked on CLICKERS FOREVER: A TRIBUTE TO J.F. GONZALEZ. At this point, I'm just waiting for the final two contributions, and then it will be ready to send off to the publisher.
Mostly, though, I worked on his Bibliography. That's going to be included at the end of the book. It's a difficult task, because Jesus had a good twenty-year career, and wrote over a dozen novels and over two-hundred short stories, and used at least seven pseudonyms over the years (mostly for his erotica work, although he had a few pseudonyms for his horror and thriller works, as well). Since I will not be satisfied unless the Bibliography is absolutely complete and definitive (because I feel he'd want that for his fans, as would I), a lot of time was spent tracking down each publication credit for each story, and each edition of each novel. Many times, I had to refer back to Jesus's manuscripts, which -- like most of us -- are actually Microsoft Word documents.
The trouble is, Jesus sucked at naming Word documents with any sort of useful title that would, in fact, tell you what was in the Word document before you clicked on it.
For example: in his journals, I found mention of a story called "Donald's Nickname". He'd also written a brief plot synopsis. To the best of my knowledge, this is an unpublished short story. There are roughly four dozen such unpublished short stories. When I come across one of these, I have several things to consider:
1. Where to include it in the Bibliography.
2. Determine whether or not a manuscript exists.
3. Determine whether or not it's publishable.
4. Get it published and make sure the money goes to his estate.
So, I stumble across this allusion to "Donald's Nickname". But Jesus can't just have a Word document called "Donald's Nickname". No. That would be too easy. Instead, I finally find one called "Donald". I click on that. The story opens. But the story is titled "Mansion of the Daddy Long Legs". I read it, compare it to the synopsis in his journal, and determine that this is indeed "Donald's Nickname". I also determine that there is neither a mansion or a Daddy long Legs spider anywhere in the fucking story.
I have convinced myself that, in the few days he was home from the hospital before going back again (and never returning home) that jesus did this just to fuck with me. After all, we played pranks on one another constantly. As I wrote in last year's END OF THE ROAD (which will be published in book form later this year by Cemetery Dance): 'When it comes to politics, I’m a middle-of-the-road centrist. Jesus was a card-carrying liberal. Among the things he despised with a passion was FOX News. Now, I don’t care for FOX News either (or CNN or MSNBC for that matter). But I don’t actively loathe them the way Jesus did. The last practical joke I ever played on him (and we played jokes on each other all the time) was two days before he died. I’d gone to the hospital to visit him. He couldn’t talk, because he had a breathing tube down his throat, but he could write (his wife, Cathy, had gotten him a dry erase board to use to communicate with everyone), and he was alert, and able to see the television. When it was time for me to leave, I squeezed his hand and told him that I loved him. He squeezed my hand back and his eyes said the same. Those eyes were droopy and heavy-lidded I knew he’d probably be asleep before I even made it to the ground floor. As it turned out, it didn’t even take that long. He was asleep before I’d left the room. Upon seeing this, I turned around, crept back inside, and turned his television to the FOX News Channel, so it would be on when he woke up. I remember grinning and giggling at this grand practical joke. That was the last time I ever saw him.'
I figure this week's misadventures with compiling his complete Bibliography were his last prank. I think he changed the title of "Donald's Nickname" to "Mansion of the Motherfucking Daddy Fucking Long Fucking Legs" just to fuck with me. I believe this because it's not the only example. There are many more.
At this rate, I should have the Bibliography finished by July...of 2069.
Today, I stopped by his family's house, and hauled two large boxes and several tote bags filled with books from his brag shelves -- editions of his novels I didn't have listed, small press fanzines with stories by him that were never reprinted -- things of that nature. I also found a short story collection that he'd apparently self-published in 2004, and never told anyone about. That was a really nice surprise. His wife, daughter, our friend Meghan, and I all got a good laugh out of it.
I miss my friend, but I like that he can still surprise me, and make me laugh -- and still get a rise out of me. I won't lie, though. This part of the process has been stressful and emotionally grueling. Between this and the family situation, I reckon I've been closer to a heart attack this week than at any time since I had one. Nobody knows where you are. How near or how far. Pile on many more layers, and I'll be joining you there.
But that would be okay? Roger Waters wrote that lyric about Syd Barrett, but it applies here. But yeah, there's a certain grim siren song to joining him there and basking in the shadow of yesterday's triumph, and sailing on that steel breeze...
I guess, subconsciously, that's why this has become my driving focus this week. Because I've been reminded once again of how short life really is. ANd because Jesus was 50 when he passed. And because I'll be 50 in three months. And I'd like to get all this finished before then, so that all the estate has to do is hit 'PUBLISH' on the reissues and unpublished works, and then I can start working on finishing up my own legacy before I'm gone.
Which I guess means I'll have to compile a Bibliography for myself, as well.
Shit...
Did you enjoy the above? Do you like the non-fiction parts of this newsletter every week? Well then, this next part will excite you...
OTHER WORDS by Brian Keene
In Stock and On Sale Now - Limited Collectors Edition
OTHER WORDS collects — for the first time anywhere — Brian Keene’s non-fiction about other writers and books, including Brian Hodge, John Skipp, Richard Laymon, Tom Piccirilli, Mary SanGiovanni, Weston Ochse, David B. Silva, Tim Lebbon, James A. Moore, Gene O’Neill, C. Robert Cargill, the World Horror Convention, a history of occult detectives, and much more, as well as rare, in-depth essays on his own works such as THE RISING series, DARK HOLLOW, the EARTHWORM GODS saga, and others. A must read for any fan of horror fiction, Thunderstorm Books is proud to present Brian Keene’s OTHER WORDS.
But wait...there's more!
EVIL’S INFLUENCE by Brian Keene, Brett McBean, Nate Southard, Ronald Kelly, and Bryan Smith
In Stock and On Sale Now - Limited Collectors Edition
Since its creation, Thunderstorm Books has offered the discerning horror fan collectible pieces of art and provided authors both new and old, unknown and celebrated, a showcase for their unique voices.
An integral part of that creation was the wisdom and guidance of Don Koish, who helped pave the way for quality works of horror with his much beloved Necessary Evil Press. Now, in celebration of a nearly decade of publishing, as well as honoring the influence of Necessary Evil, Thunderstorm Books offers a collection from its first five published writers.
Featuring both Thunderstorm Books and Necessary Evil Press classics by Brian Keene, Brett McBean, Bryan Smith, Nate Southard, and Ronald Kelly. Five authors. Five novellas. Five short stories. Sure to sell out soon.
Table of Contents:
Take the Long Way Home by Brian Keene
House Call by Brian Keene
The Familiar Stranger by Brett McBean
Amanda’s Gift by Brett McBean
Just Like Hell by Nate Southard
Working the Bag by Nate Southard
A Shiny Can of Whoop Ass by Ronald Kelly
Diary by Ronald Kelly
The Halloween Bride by Bryan Smith
Standing in Line for the Death Machine by Bryan Smith
CURRENTLY WATCHING: Nothing
CURRENTLY READING: My departed friend's manuscripts
CURRENTLY LISTENING: Pink Floyd's Wish You Were Here and Alice In Chains' Jar of Flies
"It's okay
Had a bad day
Hands are bruised from
Breaking rocks all day
Drained and blue
I bleed for you
You think it's funny, well
You're drowning in it too.."
Alice In Chains, No Excuses
That's it for this week. I should have a brand new short story, set in the world of my novel DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN, up on Patreon tomorrow evening. Link below.
PATREON - Where I post new short stories, a serialized ongoing novel, and behind-the-scenes stuff.
TWITTER - The only social media outlet I still use regularly.
Take care.