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Saturday, March 24, 2007
I think everyone involved in horror fiction fandom has seen the furor over Keene's Hail Saten comments. If not, take a deep breath and try to slog through this:
http://p082.ezboard.com/fshocklinesforumfrm2.showMessageRange?topicID=44914.topic
First off, I wanna clearly state that I like Brian a lot. And I think he's a terrific writer and I know that he cares a hell of a lot about the genre. He has put his heart, soul and guts into it. If he goes too far from time to time, it's just because his passion gets the better of him.
Right up front, I agree with much of the original Rant. But I think that the time devoted to Pachione diluted the main points. I'm one of the people that hate that this guy has reached such a proportion that he is affecting the genre. People should be warned about him, but I don't think the barrage of insults, ridicule and attention heaped on him has been wise. Especially if he is as dangerous as he seems to be. *
Pachione strikes me as one that craves attention above all else. And he's getting bucketfuls. I can only imagine him cackling with glee as he sees longterm friendships and business associates turned asunder in his name. This situation should never have gotten this far. I'm not blaming any one individual or group...it kind of snowballed and grew into the Attack of the Fifty-Foot Would-Be Horror Writer.
I like Matt Schwartz one hell of a lot. And, like I said, Brian Keene. I can't think of any other individuals that have done so much for the small horror press/community than these guys have. Both of them are looking out for their own pockets, of course, but they both care about the genre and have incredibly supportive to almost everyone. I wish they would try to look around their differences and come to some sort of mutual understanding. People can be as stubborn as mules though and often it won't happen.
I guess I'm naive. I've often felt that it was Us, the horror reading community, against Them, the world. A world that all too often looks upon us as trivial or immature, if not outright deviants. We're a family. A dysfunctional one perhaps, but family. We all need each other's support, but in all too many cases there is antagonism. Of course, if you preach for any sort of universal respect and support, you get accused of being of the Kumbaya set. And they can Kum Ba my ass and kiss it too.
A lot of the friction is about message board politics. I've been involved in running message boards for nearly a decade now and I've seen great success at it. My take has always been that the one that pays the bills calls the shots. To me it is not a bit different than entering someone's house. Visitors should wipe their feet at the door and remember their manners. And like in any home, the rules vary wildly. The old saw holds true, When in Rome, do as the Romans do. That's not good enough for some though; they act like they hold some sort of proprietary rights. Or some think it should be the community's property. Isn't this the reason why Communism failed in so many places? It usually doesn't work. If someone comes into your home and behaves in ways that offend you, you throw them out on their ass. And yes, sometimes preferred friends get preferential treatment. It's not always fair or right, but as a Heinlein character once said, "We're dealing with men here, not saints".
And that is NOT about Brian Keene being banned from Shocklines. I'm speaking on general terms. I wish that he WAS back at Shocklines and that all of this mess had never happened. Brian and Matt go way back and I know that they've done lots for each other over the years. It saddens me at a deep and personal level.
Some excellent points were made about small press publishing. Not the least of them was about the potential dangers of putting all our eggs in one basket. I'm a big Shocklines supporter and I do not buy from any other independent bookseller. I do purchase titles direct from the publishers from time to time. Brian is right about this: Should Shocklines fold for some reason (God forbid), it would be a crippling blow to the genre. This store has gotten so big that many of the smaller presses would be devastated if it were to happen. It's making me question my loyalties. I love Matt and I'll always be a customer for him. But maybe I should spread the wealth a bit more.
As for me, I've given as much as I possibly can to the field. More than any sane person should. Ask my wife how much I've spent on small press books and she won't know the answer either. Countless dollars and I've even bought books knowing that I'll probably never read them. Just to support my friends and people I admire. Crazy, right? It's a big reason why I have absolutely no savings and my van just died yesterday and I have nowhere to turn. Yeah, you could say I'm starting to question my loyalties.
Back in the early-mid 90's, when I first began collecting small press books, there weren't all that many out there putting them out. But when CD or Subterranean came out with a book by an unknown writer, I was excited. In most or possibly even all of the cases, the books were well worth my time and money. Excellence across the board. Now I'm extremely cautious about small press writers. Too many, far too many, are being touted as bold new voices in the genre, while fewer of the books satisfy me. I'm turning more into a mass market reader because I'm getting more satisfaction from them. And let's face it folks, most of the writers in the big leagues got there for good reasons.
Of course there are exceptions. Kealan Patrick Burke comes immediately to mind. Harry Shannon. Matthew Warner. These guys and some others deserve a broader audience. And I think they'll get it.
Brian's final point about voting with your wallet holds truest of all. Every purchase is a vote and we all have the power to change the genre. Continue to vote for Shocklines if you wish. Vote for the publishers you believe in and we should buy direct from time to time. If you don't like a publisher, but can't live without some of their books, buy from a secondary seller. And let them know why you won't support some of their decisions in polite, yet pointed posts at message boards. They all haunt the forums to see what customers and potential customers are saying.
No matter what happens, horror won't die. It can't. Should this 'Small Press Apocalypse" occur, the real writers will emerge. Perhaps not unscathed, but intact. Sometimes when things get too big, like with the boom of the 80's, it's essential for an implosion to happen. so the field can redefine itself.
*I can hear it now.."Then why are YOU devoting time here about him? Nyah!" The answer is, because sadly, he and his actions have become a hell of a lot more influential than they should ever have gotten to be and it has become a big deal.
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Monday, March 19, 2007
Joe Hill has become a phenomenon almost overnight. Heart-Shaped Box is already a resounding success and rightfully so. It's one of the best debuts I've ever read.
Honestly, I think Joe is and is going to be the biggest impact on the genre in years. Possibly ever. With Stephen King, the cult grew gradually. Barker also comes to mind, but I think Joe is the better writer and I think he'll be more popular both with critics and readers.
It's funny, the very first book review I ever write for Horror Drive-In was for the Subterranean chapbook, Voluntary Committal. The title was "Who the Hell is Joe Hill?" I was astonished that this marvelous talent had come out of nowhere. Dork that I am, I thought that Little Joe Hill could use some help with publicity from Big Mark Sieber. I ordered the collection, 20th Century Ghosts and when I realized that Voluntary Committal was in that volume, I gave my chapbook away as a contest to help Joe get some attention. That same chap is now going on ebay for many times what I paid for it. What a dunce I am.
This review was posted here on February 11th, 2006.
http://www.horrordrive-in.com/serendipity/index.php?/archives/9-Who-the-Hell-is-Joe-Hill.html
Now I wish I had gotten one of the Sub Press limiteds of Heart-Shaped Box. Yes, to sell later on. I'm not greedy, but I am a working class father with a mortgage and lots of bills. But who could have predicted just how big Joe was going to be?
Am I bitter? Hell NO. I am thrilled for Joe, who I know to be a wonderful human being as well as one of the best writers in the genre. The word 'savior' is being used about him, but I don't think that Horror needs a Messiah. It never hurts, however, that someone as good as he comes along and gets the recognition and acclaim that he deserves. With luck, the success will lead to other deserving writers getting nice contracts.
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Tuesday, March 13, 2007
It is with almost unbearable sadness that I report the death of Robert 'Bob' Groves.
Unbearable sadness? For someone I met exactly twice? Well, yeah.
Bob Groves was the owner and operator of The Starlight Drive-In, in Durham, North Carolina. He owned it for many years, but the screen was destroyed several years ago and though I don't know for sure, I think his heart was broken along with it. However, a good thing came of the destruction of the screen.
Since its inception, the drive-in theater has always been about the community. People congregated there and enjoyed one another's company. And when Bob Groves was in need, the people of Durham pooled together and got the theater rebuilt. Donations and volunteers poured in and a new screen was erected and The Starlight was open once more. To bigger crowds than ever.
One only has to see the name of this site and the layout to know that I love drive-in theaters. Yet I hadn't been to one in many years before this past Summer. In August we traveled to Durham and saw Snakes on a Plane; the perfect movie to see on the big screen. Bob Groves was there and he sold us our tickets and talked to us later on. Bob struck me as one of a dying breed. An old fashioned man that was involved in the screening of movies out of passion. He liked to talk and always seemed to have a joke on his lips.
One of the main attractions of The Starlight was the snack bar. Bob had a funny way of running it. He would sell quality products at reasonable prices, hoping that people would continue to come there to eat. Which they did. And unlike certain other drive-ins I can name, it was not forbidden to bring outside food and beverages into the theater. Bob knew that people are happier customers when there were not a lot of restrictions put upon them. And man were those cheeseburgers tasty.
The crew of The Starlight were always well-mannered and polite when serving us. As nice a guy as Bob appeared to me, he struck me as one that didn't take a lot of crap from his employees. And he shouldn't have had to either. It's becoming increasingly rare to find pleasant help in any food serving establishment. Paying customers shouldn't have to put up with surly or apathetic service and at The Starlight, they didn't.
The Starlight Drive-In was a family-oriented theater and many people complain that today's drive-ins are not like the passion pits of the past. What these people may not know is that the drive-ins were originally places for families to come to. It was only when the bastard upstart called television came along that things began to change. Far too many adults were content to stay home and watch shows with commercial interruptions and eat frozen, prefabricated foods. Instead of getting out and enjoying a real movie under the stars with their neighbors. This is when teens and young adults that lived with their parents began looking for places to get away and party or attempt to have sex.
It may sound crazy, but I like the current drive-in atmosphere. Maybe it's because I'm now a family man, but it's nice to get out among people and their children. And I'm not talking about the mooks you pass in WalMart or the DMV. These are the blessed children of the Earth. The drive-in audiences, by God.
Getting back to Bob Groves, I guess we can suffice to say that he was a good man, doing what he loved. He brought genuine happiness to the people of his community. Harmony and togetherness, amid the chaos of today's turbulent society. Everyone I saw on the two occasions I went to The Starlight was happy and having a great time. And why not? There is no better time to be had than under the stars with a movie. Whether it be with your girl or guy, with your best partying buds, with your kids or showing off your street rod. The drive-in is magic and I could always feel in it the air when I went.
Bob lived the final months of his life doing what he loved. He was clearly happy as hell in his role as host of The Starlight. We should all be so lucky to spend our last days in such joy.
I only wish I had the money to go open it up again and run it myself. That would make me the happiest man alive. That ain't going to happen, so I hope that someone else will open The Starlight. It happened against the odds once before and I think it will happen again.
And once more: If you live in a community where there is a drive-in theater, get out there and show your love as much as you can. You'll start seeing the same faces and making acquaintances. Bring blankets and let the younger children sleep in the back and you won't have to worry about paying for a babysitter, or whether you can trust the ones you have available. Because (and trust me on this) there is nothing worse than regret and when something is dead and gone, chances are it ain't coming back.
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Tuesday, March 06, 2007
This past weekend was the first time that The Horrorfind Convention was held in March. It usually is in August and it still will be this Summer. This was a smaller con. To those that skipped it because they heard that it was smaller and fewer writers would be there...you fucked up. This was one of the best Horrorfinds ever. As genre conventions go, you don't want them too small to the point where there is no one to hang out with, but too big can be a problem too. Intimate is often the best way to go. In this case  it was certainly the case. And for those that held off because of The World Horror Convention, well, judging from the nasty condescending attitude of a certain official there, I'd say that you made the wrong choice.
We arrived in Towson, MD around Noon on Friday. There weren't many conventioneers there at that time, but I did run into my old friend James Newman early on. I've known James since 1999 and we've been incredibly tight ever since. He's a great guy and a hell of a writer to boot. It was nice, too, to meet his wife Glenda at last. And see his son Jamey as well.People began trickling in as the afternoon wore on. It would be futile to try to name everyone that I saw and hung out with. Because despite what you've heard, there were a lot of readers and writers in attendance. I've been asked why I spend so much money to just go to a hotel and stand around talking to people. I love to talk and I love to talk about books even more. It's not rare for me to be able to do so in the so-called real world, it's impossible. So much of the time I spend at cons is merely talking to others in the community...readers and writers. The great thing about Horrorfind is that it is primarily a fan's convention. Yes, numerous professionals congregate there, but there is a refreshing lack of attitude there. Everyone seems to be there to celebrate the genre, not themselves. Sure there's some self-promo, but with very few exeptions over the years, it's kept in check. But the main event of most conventions is the consumption of alcohol. Most of us like it enough to drink to excessive degrees. Some were incredibly intoxicated, but no one got out of hand. At least among the book loving members. There was a panel on Friday Night that dealt with the pros and cons of genre awards. It was peopled by Tom Monteleone, F. Paul Wilson, Mike Laimo, Alexandra Sokoloff and Horrorfind employee Icki Nikki. Gee, I created an award for the horror genre called The Shockers and no-one asked me to be involved. Oh well. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise: the key to any successful panel is lots of alcohol. 
It was a riot and a lot of thoughtful points were made about the question of the importance of awards. Later that night we ended up at the Karaoke bar, of all places. I for one was bored out of my mind by it, but it was worth waiting around to see F. Paul Wilson take the stage to belt out a spirited redition of Elvis's All Shook Up. Jack Ketchum later performed a demented doo-wop number (for lack of a better descriptive term). The next day was a lot more populated and I spent the majority of it in the dealer's room, despite having so little money to spend. I had to buy something while I was there and what better thing to own was the Borderlands Press limited hardcover of F. Paul Wilson's Virgin? I bought it from Tom Monteleone and I talked to him quite a lot over the weekend. We discussed the things we liked about the genre, as well as the things we don't like. I could talk to him for hours on end; about the classic books and stories that we both love, and about everything else under the sun. There is no one in the genre that I have more respect for than Tom. As for the readings, I apologize to all my friends that have them at various cons I attend. I hate sitting through them. I get antsy and want to get up and walk about and talk. The only reading I refuse to miss is Tom Monteleone's. Tom doesn't merely read, he performs his stories. This time he read his story from Peter Crowther's Narrow Houses anthology (and later reprinted in one of the CD Shivers books), The Wager. It's a real favorite of mine and to say that it was a pleasure to experience Tom's animated reading of it was more than a pleasure. I don't spend a whole lot of time in the celebrity rooms, but I did peruse them and I spent a few minutes speaking to the very friendly Lucky McGee. I liked May and Sick Girl a lot and Lucky is a hell of a cool guy. Very personable and unpretentious. Later on we gathered in a room to partake of strong beverage. Here we experienced the glory of TomoView. TomoView is a project by a cool guy that calls himself Tomokato. He gives scathing reviews to the worst the horror genre has to offer. This time he read from a book called Deathbreed. It was written by The Visionary Overlord of American Horror, Todd Tjersland. Tomo read and several of us laughed and gagged. A great discussion followed in which we pondered the question of whether a writer that uses racist characters is himself a racist. Think you know the answer? Don't be too sure until you experience Deathbreed. Me, I don't think so, but I can't be sure. No one in their proper mind could call Deathbreed a good novel, but if Tjersland's goal was to shock and make readers laugh, I'd say he at least partially succeeded. Later came the height of the convention for me: The costume contest. My wife's friend Sasha brought her children and her daughter and ours dressed up as the creepy little girls from Kubrick's The Shining. They were great and they won Best Homemade Children's Costume and also for Most Original Costume. This was the first time ever that a kid won the latter award.
It was one of the proudest moments of my life and our India (on the left) was deliriously happy. They both won numerous prizes and a certificate.
God, what else? Jimster57 is one of the coolest and most well-read person on the planet and he bestowed incredible gifts upon a lot of us. Hanging with Beth Blue and Sarah Schonfeld is never dull and they, above all, know how to have a good time. I saw Allen Richards/B-Independent all too infrequently, I'm afraid to say. I met new friends like Doug Warrick and Scott Ican'trememberhislastnamesorry. KelliwithanI and her sister. Brian Freeman. Nikki. The list goes on and on, it seems.
The hotel was nice, but the staff were a bunch of dicks. Can you believe that they would allow us to carry beer from our rooms around the hotel??? I've been attending conventions for ages and I've never seen this kind of blatant greed before. Of course we got around that, but it was a pain in the ass and very insulting.
I've never been much for goodbyes and I leave the hotel early in the day most of the time. I lead a busy life here at home and I like to beat the traffic and get back as soon as I can. It's always a bittersweet thing to go home to one's routine, but we basked in our memories and looked forward to August when we can do it again. I hope that I see you there.
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