Letters From the Labyrinth 397

M-O-O-N. That Spells Reveal.

Maybe a decade and a half ago, Mark Sylva had a vanity license plate that read OB_RULZ, which was very cool. (Ob, of course, being the main villain in my novels THE RISING and CITY OF THE DEAD and a surprising protagonist in THE LABYRINTH series).

A reader here in St Louis this weekend (who I won’t name because I’m not sure he wants his identity out there) showed me his vanity plate, which is also very cool.

Nodens, of course, being the main overarching villain in the multiversal context of my works. If you’re a reader, you know what happens if you say his name out loud. I never set rules for what happens if you drive around with it on your car, though.

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Good morning. I’m Brian Keene and this is Letters From the Labyrinth, a weekly newsletter for fans, friends, and family.

Previously, it was announced that Christopher Golden and I were editing an anthology full of brand-new stories set in the world of Stephen King’s seminal novel, The Stand. This is a first — a book of other authors playing with Steve’s toys, as it were.

Last Sunday, I told you that we’d be unveiling the line-up the cover, the publication date, and the preorder date here this week. But I’ve since been told that the publisher now wants to hold off on some of that, so I’m only allowed to show you the line-up. The rest will be unveiled before the end of this month, but not today.

So, without further ado, here is the final Table of Contents for THE END OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT: TALES OF STEPHEN KING’S THE STAND.

Foreword by Christopher Golden
Introduction by Stephen King

PART ONE: DOWN WITH THE SICKNESS

Room 24 by Caroline Kepnes
The Tripps by Wrath James White
Bright Light City by Meg Gardiner
Every Dog Has Its Day by Bryan Smith
Lockdown by Bev Vincent
In A Pig’s Eye by Joe R. Lansdale
Lenora by Jonathan Janz
The Hope Boat by Gabino Iglesias
Wrong Fucking Place, Wrong Fucking Time by C. Robert Cargill
Prey Instinct by Hailey Piper
Grace by Tim Lebbon
Moving Day by Richard Chizmar
La Mala Horla by Alex Segura
The African Painted Dog by Catriona Ward
Till Human Voices Wake Us, And We Drown by Poppy Z. Brite
Kovach’s Last Case by Michael Koryta
Make Your Own Way by Alma Katsu

PART TWO: THE LONG WALK

I Love The Dead by Josh Malerman
Milagros by Cynthia Pelayo
The Legion of Swine by S.A. Cosby
Keep The Devil Down by Rio Youers
Across The Pond by V Castro
The Boat Man by Tananarive Due and Steven Barnes
The Story I Tell Is the Story of Some of Us by Paul Tremblay
The Mosque at the End of the World by Usman T. Malik
Abigail’s Gethsemane by Wayne Brady and Maurice Broaddus

PART THREE: LIFE WAS SUCH A WHEEL

He’s A Righteous Man by Ronald Malfi
Awaiting Orders In Flaggston by Somer Canon
Grand Junction by Chuck Wendig
Hunted to Extinction by Premee Mohamed
Came The Last Night of Sadness by Catherynne M. Valente
The Devil’s Children by Sarah Langan

PART FOUR: OTHER WORLDS THAN THESE

Walk On Gilded Splinters by David J. Schow
The Unfortunate Convalescence of the SuperLawyer by Nat Cassidy

Afterword by Brian Keene

Part One takes place during the initial spread of Captain Trips and the dreams.

Part Two takes place between the migrations to Boulder and Las Vegas and the Hand of God moment.

Part Three takes place after the conclusion of the novel, detailing the world in the decades that follow.

And Part Four takes place… well, that would involve major spoilers. I think we’ll wait and let you find out where David J. Schow and Nat Cassidy’s stories take place.

So, there you have it. That’s the final line-up. Cover reveal and preorder link coming this month (possibly as early as next week).

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If you bought and enjoyed my latest releases — LOVE AND HATE IN THE TIME OF COVID or the FRAGILE anthology — please consider leaving a review! Here are some handy links:

LOVE AND HATE IN THE TIME OF COVID:
Signed Paperback: Vortex Books
Paperback: Amazon
eBook: Kindle - Nook - Kobo - Apple

FRAGILE:
Paperback: Amazon
eBook: Kindle

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"Boy," Jeff Strand said, grinning that sly grin he grins when he's being mischievous (which is often), "the Brian Keene I've known for twenty years wouldn't have bothered making a plea like that. He would have just cracked skulls."

We were standing in my bookstore, and Jeff was referring to a post I'd made on social media, pleading with the HWA membership to be patient while the organization's officers and trustees worked through the vagaries of making an all-encompassing statement regarding Artificial Intelligence. I'd been of a mind that we should just quickly and easily release a statement that embodied "SCREW A.I." but I was just one person and one Trustee, and things are structured -- as they should be -- so that no one person has all the power. And particularly when you are registered as a nonprofit, the way HWA is -- there are standards and practices that you have to follow. You can't just "crack skulls", particularly if you like and respect the folks you're working with.

If you look back at my 25+ year career, I've always been about helping my fellow writers. I'm a big believer in what Robert DeNiro says in Brazil: "We're all in this together." But I'm better at doing that from the outside, with my own tools. And that toolbox is quite busy these days. Between my obligations to Scares That Care (which supports our community while helping others), Vortex Books & Comics (which supports our community), and the soon-returning The Horror Show with Brian Keene, my dance card is full when it comes to helping my fellow writers. Add to that my own writing career, and my obligations to my wife, my sons, and my step-daughter, and to my aging parents... there's a lot to juggle.

It is clear to me that I am much better at helping from the outside than I am from the inside. HWA, and any similar organization, is only as good as its volunteers, and such a role requires focus and devotion -- something that's hard to pledge if one is also doing a million other things. I can better serve you, my peers, by focusing my energies and talents into those things. Including this.

And so, while it's been an honor to serve as an HWA Trustee, I'm stepping down due to those other obligations and commitments. My thanks and respect to the other Trustees and officers, and to the membership for allowing me to serve.

Keep writing, and Screw A.I.

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We had a great signing at Vortex last weekend, and it was great to stay up late talking shop with friends every night. in many ways, it was like a mini-convention, albeit smaller and more intimate. Alas, I got no pictures, so here are two from others.

L to R: Hailey Piper, Jonathan Lees, Kenneth W. Cain, Laurel Hightower, Todd Keisling, Mary, me, Kevin Kangas, Red Lagoe (Photo by John Urbancik)

Me and Laurel (Photo by Laurel Hightower)

Substack has fooled around with the editing tools and I no longer know how to resize these pictures and make them smaller. Anybody want to walk me through it in the comments below?

I feel very old whenever I have to ask for help with these things. “Hey kid, teach me how to post this TikTok. But first, explain to me exactly what a TikTok is…”

But that first pic above? That’s me helping my fellow authors. Sure, the bookstore is a money-making endeavor for me, but it’s also a safe place for authors to come and mee their readers and make new readers and sell books, and thus, it’s a money-making endeavor for them, as well. And I’m better focusing my energies on that than I am spreading them too thin with debates and discussions and more debates and discussions.

And none of it involves cracking skulls, Jeff. We’re too old for that now. ;-)

Ronald Malfi was giving me crap last night because I only drank two beers in 4 hours. But I’m awake this morning here at AuthorCon IV, and he and Jeff Strand are still asleep, so I win the Which One Of Us Feels Younger sweepstakes.

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Currently Listening: “Comfortably Numb” by Body Count (featuring David Gilmour)

Currently Reading: The Better To Eat You With by Wesley Southard, When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chodron, and The Green Round by Arthur Machen

Currently Watching: Lilyhammer season 2 (Netflix), Survivor season 47 (Paramount Plus), and Tulsa King season 2 (Paramount Plus)

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And that does it for this week. Thanks, as always, for reading. Be kind to each other and tell the people you love that you love them. I’ll see you back here again next Sunday.

— Brian Keene