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Tuesday, April 24, 2007
By the late 1990's, something was happening in horror fiction. Some called it a revolution. Maybe it was a reinvention. Or perhaps a renovation. However you want to label it, the community was taking matters into its own hands. Publishing matters, that is. Following the path made by Cemetery Dance, small publishers began popping up in an attempt to get the word out to the people. Some succeeded and grew to magnificent heights. Others didn't. A nice one that sadly didn't pass the trial by fire was DarkTales Publications.
I didn't like all of what DarkTales put out, but they were an admirable company that tried to meet the readers' needs. My favorite of all of them was a cool book called Clickers.
Like the title might lead one to believe, Clickers was an homage to the cool old giant bug movies that most of us oldsters fondly remember. But it was more than that. Where most of those giant creature movies are guilty pleasures at best, Clickers is a cracking good story. It was very well-written and in a fairer world, it would have seen a larger publication than DarkTales could ever give it.
I was familiar with the collaborators of Clickers. J.F. Gonzalez was one of the guys behind the sadly short-lived cutting edge horror magazine, Iniquities. The other writer was Mark Williams, an makeup effects man that I knew from my days of reading Fangoria and Gorezone Magazines.
Clickers is one of those books where it seems that everyone that read it has loved it. It really is like the biggest, boldest, most kickass giant monster movie, or comic book, of all time. It's lightning-paced and bites like a rattlesnake. Or, more appropriately, pinches like a blue crab. And doesn't let go. This novel has attained genuine cult status as the double oh years have progressed. It remains a highly sought-after title and one of its authors, J. F. Gonzalez, has become one of today's hottest talents in the field.
Clickers had been out of print for a while, until Delirium Books reprinted it in a deluxe hardback edition. As of this writing, there are a few copies to be had at Shocklines. Should you desire to own one, I would not wait.
http://shocklines.stores.yahoo.net/clbyjgoandma.html
There are still some old copies of Clickers at reasonable prices at abebooks.com and it is also available from Hard Shell Word Factory as an ebook.
And now, eight years after its original publication, it seems apt that the head instigator of the revolution of modern horror fiction, Brian Keene, has collaborated with J. F. Gonzalez on an all-new sequel to Clickers. I think both of these guys are fantastic writers and I can't wait to see what they've cooked up together. Brian Keene and J.F. Gonzalez might well be the most exciting 'new' writers that we have and this is a highly anticipated publishing event.
Clickers 2: The Next Wave is due to ship from Delirium very soon and as with the limited edition of Clickers, there are very few remaining copies. At this point I have no idea of whether another, cheaper edition is forthcoming. This is not a book that you'll want to miss and I think you'll be kicking yourself, or paying scalper's prices on ebay later, if you pass it up.
http://shocklines.stores.yahoo.net/cliinewabjfg.html
Addendum: My friend Jan Darga informed me that the original Clickers is alive and in print and well in trade paperback. Check it out:
http://www.amazon.com/Clickers-J-F-Gonzalez/dp/0759900140/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-8668735-5451809?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1177502541&sr=1-1
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Saturday, April 14, 2007
I only read half of the anthology, Masques V up until today. I liked most of the stories, but as I always say, I suck at reading short fiction. But I work on that.
So I was reading on and still enjoying it. I found some typos along the way. It was annoying. Then I got to Ed Gorman's story.
You know, I love Gorman. I count him as one of my VERY favorite writers. And his story, Intent To Deceive, is wonderful. Well, as much of it as I could stand to read.
I have never. NEVER. EVER seen so many damned typos in a book in my life. WHOLE CHUNKS of sentences appear to me missing from Gorman's story. Misspelled words abound and there is grammar that a grade school kid should know better than to use. I literally could not continue on reading it. And THAT, my friends, truly sucks asshole.
I'm pretty ignorant when it comes to the process of the publication of a book. But I'll say this: I don't blame the authors for the typos. I don't blame the editors. I DO blame the publisher. GAUNTLET is the name on the spine of this book and it it they who I assign the blame for this wretched presentation.
And yes, I do hold the small press up to higher scrutiny. When you pay twice the amount for a book as you would for a mass market release, you are paying for QUALITY. Quality that is supposed to be twice (or more) as high as from the bigger publishers. Gauntlet charged 50 BUCKS for Masques V. I don't really give much of a squat about the signatures, even though they are nice. I want, for my money, an excellent product. And I'm not talking about an odd typo here and there. This thing is rife with them. And Masques is one of the most revered anthology series in the genre's history. This isn't some trade paperback from a young, not well known up-and-comer or a dime store paperback, but a series that deserves a dignified release.
Gauntlet shit upon J.N. Williamson's legacy and reputation with this shoddy release. They should apologize to his family, to the other authors in the book and to every customer that was ripped off when they bought it.
I hear stories of how the small press is suffering of late. Nothing will kill it quicker than sloppy product turned out from the publishers. Putting out a bad piece of fiction is one thing. That's merely a matter of opinion. This is quite another.
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Friday, April 13, 2007
I love to be able to step up and advise you to support various companies. Those that provide invaluable resources to the horror community. Publishers, bookstores, DVD companies, etc. It's my pleasure to do so and I make absolutely nothing for doing it. Sadly, I can't always praise every company that brings horror to our doors.
I'm used to poor releases from Shriek Show, but at least you can watch most of them. My copy of the recent re-release of A Lizard in a Woman's Skin is another case altogether. I was really getting into this psychedelic giallo, when the DVD just crapped out. The disc was clean and free of scratches; an obvious defective item.
So I wrote a polite email to Shriek Show and asked if I could return it for a good copy. This was over two weeks ago. Guess what?
NO REPLY. Nothing.
Fuck Shriek Show and their lack of care and professionalism. We, the fans, do not need this shit. Why give our hard-won dollars to hucksters that care no more for their product than they do their customers? Synapse, Blue Underground, Anchor Bay, Dark Sky and certain others deserve our patronage. They not only deserve it, they NEED it. These people care about the movies they release as much as we do. Yes, Shit Show puts out some tasty stuff and they have some killer deals with their three-packs, but why line their pockets when they can't even provide any sort of customer service?
From now on I lump Shit Show with charlatans like Deep Discount. Complete and total boycott.
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Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Everyone seems to be talking about it. There's been some somewhat heated conversations about Grindhouse at Shocklines. Certain parties actually seem to be gloating that it has thus far failed. And these are supposed to be HORROR FANS! One reasonable individual (who hadn't seen it) made the clear-minded observation that 'only an imbecile would release it'. Another proudly claims to be 'not a fan' of the film, but also admits that he hasn't seen it. He went on to say that Grindhouse deserved to flop.
Astonishing, isn't it?
Then some are making the claim that Grindhouse movies are all terribly made and they cite MST3K as proof. "Look how bad those movies are!". Grindh...I mean EXPLOITATION FILMS (a term I prefer) are as varied as anything else. Many are indeed terrible motion pictures. Yet the best of them have a primal vitality that most mainstream movies can't and won't attain.
The game ain't over yet, though things look bad right now. PLEASE, get out and see it. If you already saw it, please, please see it again. If you haven't, please do so. If you hate seeing movies in the theater, can you make an exception? This once?
Grindhouse is the movie of the decade as far as I'm concerned and if it continues to flop, it will be a sore blow to us, the fans. This is OUR picture. Made by fans, for the fans. I think both filmmakers are at the top of their games with this movie and it breaks my heart to see it underperform.
And yes, I know that Grindhouse will make its money easily enough. International showings and home video will ensure that. But a lot of the influential people...the ones that pull the money strings...look at the domestic grosses in the theatrical run. A quick turnaround of the investment, in other words.
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Sunday, April 08, 2007
Ask me who my favorite writer is and you'd get different answers at various points of my life. The most common one is Joe R. Lansdale. But there was also Robert A. Heinlein, Richard Matheson, Fredric Brown, Harlan Ellison, Philip Jose Farmer, Frederik Pohl, Stephen King, Peter Straub, Robert R. McCammon and Bill Pronzini. However, in contemplation, the one that might well be my all-time favorite is Robert Cormier. The first Cormier I read wasn't his debut novel, but it was the first he wrote for young readers. It was The Chocolate War. I found it to be a realistic, frightening and breathtaking piece of fiction. Then I read I am the Cheese and I was hooked. For life. Robert Cormier did indeed write for young readers. But unlike a lot of the YA fiction available, not only were his novels beautifully written, he never spoke down to his audience. Never patronized and he never bullshitted them. The stories he wrote often dealt with terrible things: Abusive parents. Teenage alcoholism. Anger and destructive behavior from high school students. Violence. Death. Racism and ugly, merciless hate. The malignant things were never there for exploitative or sensational reasons. They represented truisms of society and the perils that awaited the young and innocent.
 During the 80's and 90's, there was a new Cormier out every year or so. Each time was a special occasion for me. I'd try to save them for holidays or other special occasions. The year 1990 saw the publication of a book that was not meant for teens, but for younger readers. It was called Other Bells for Us to Ring. I was just a bit hesitant, as it appeared to be suited for very young readers, but I got it nonetheless. I saved it for Easter Sunday. I read Other Bells for Us to Ring in one sitting and it literally changed me. Even though I'm not a religious person at all, this story of faith, miracles and tragedy touched my heart in ways that very few other books have before or since. The only ones that even come close are McCammon's Boy's Life, David Martin's Crazy Love and Don Robertson's Praise the Human Season. Other Bells for Us to Ring is brilliant and at times funny, but it is also unbearably sad. I was a wreck after reading its last several pages. It took the wind out of me and continues to inspire me and help me to remember the most important things in life. Robert Cormier passed away on November 2nd, 2000. I was deeply saddened, even if my depression was somewhat assuaged by the posthumous publication of one final novel, the unnerving The Rag and Bone Shop. To the end Cormier was writing uncompromising, scary cautionary tales for young readers. On this Easter Sunday, seven years after Robert Cormier's death, I still mourn and I still ache that there will be no more books by him. But he was a devout Catholic and he lived a long life and he produced an unparallelled body of work that continues to astonish, move and maybe even help some souls in this world. And maybe Robert Cormier is now with God, looking down at our sad society and wishing he could have done more for us.
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