Category Archives: Publishing

“Ring” author’s new horror story to be printed on toilet paper

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Yes, you read that right. Japanese horror author Koji Suzuki is printing his new novella on toilet paper (taking a stab at potty horror, following in the footsteps of Stephen King’s Dreamcatcher).

Suzuki’s new story is aptly titled Drop, and has the evil spirits inhabiting the…toilet. This bit from the Telegraph.co.uk:

(Suzuki’s) latest work is set in a public toilet and plays on Japanese superstitions that ghosts and evil spirits inhabit the smallest room in the house, which is why they were traditionally relegated to the most distant part of the home. Parents still tell naughty children that a hairy hand will seize them when they have their pants around their ankles if they misbehave and drag them down into the dark water below.

Ewww…

Suzuki’s other novels include Dark Water and Spiral.

So the question remains: on what kind of toilet paper will the story be printed? The same company who once printed TP with information on what to do in the event of a natural disaster — the Hayashi Paper Corporation. This time, in blue with the occasional bloody splatter.

Another Horror writer goes Kindle only

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Following Stephen King, another Horror writer is skipping print and going Kindle only. At least as a short-story primer for a novel. In a nice bit of promotion, author Tom Upton is releasing a four-story Kindle download for under a buck, as a teaser for his upcoming horror novel. Here’s a bit on the deal, from PRlog.com:

Tom Upton, author of Just Plain Weird and Morning Doves, said there are no plans to release a hardcopy issue of “Four by Horror“. “‘Four by Horror’ is really just a sampler,” Upton explained. “I think it’s only fair to offer readers a low cost example of what I’m doing in the horror genre. As a reader, I’ve always hated paying a lot of money for a book only to discover that I didn’t particularly like the book for one reason or another.”

The idea is getting quick traction across the internet. The Kindle-only release is in advance of Upton’s new horror novel, Scarecrows, to be out in spring ’09. According to PRlog, Four by Horror reached Amazon Kindle 17th in Short Stories sales, and 82nd in Horror.

Twitter writer horror list (say that 10 times fast)

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If you’re in the mindset to look for some friendly neighborhood horror tweets, then begin by looking no further than this Greententacles.com listing of horror twitters.

The list could save you some time blind searching for horror, fantasy and scif fi twitters. John Joseph Adams is there, Cory Doctorow, as well as editors, columnists and the like. Even a few publishers. The list is worth a few minutes of perusing, to lengthen that list of following…

Borderlands Writers Boot Camp 2010

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Borderlands Press Writers Boot Camp is now accepting submissions for 2010. The 8th Writers Boot Camp will take 40 ‘grunts’ (20 in short fiction and 20 in novel). Past instructors have included: David Morrell, F. Paul Wilson, Gary Braunbeck, Doug Clegg and Richard Chizmar to name a few. From the Borderlands Press site:

In addition, you will receive a general understanding of the state of modern publishing—that is where and to whom to submit your material, the real deal on editors and agents, the characteristics of the genres, the perception of the difference between mainstream and literary fiction, and even a few words on marketing and publicity. Have your questions ready. You will learn all the basic elements of writing and the processes needed to finish your manuscript and have it ready for submission to the market place. But more importantly you will get the much needed FEEDBACK that is often the missing factor which contributes to the success (or failure) of many writers. Each instructor has a specific area they will be emphasizing. If you’ve never experienced a piece of fiction deconstructed (especially your own) and analyzed in a high-intensity workshop setting, be prepared to learn things about you, your writing, and your ability to tell a good story.

The Boot Camp with run from January 29—31, 2010 at the Marriott Burkshire Hotel in Towson, MD. You can get more information here.

Star Wars horror novel: “Deathtroopers”

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Joe Schreiber’s upcoming Star Wars horror novel finally has a title: Deathtroopers. The novel happens between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back. You can read more about the book on Schreiber’s blog. Here’s a quote:

Earlier today, Lucasfilm announced that my forthcoming Star Wars horror novel will be called Deathtroopers, and that it will take place immediately before A New Hope. So there you go. I had the time of my life on this one, I have to say. I’m doing the final edits now, and I’ve tried to make it into exactly the kind of book you’d want to read if you were a child of the 70s who grew up with the original Star Wars trilogy and really digs horror in the vein of The Shining and Alien, with a little dose of William Gibson mixed in.

Deathtroopers is due out in November.