Me, I've had my ups and downs. Maybe a little heavy on the 'down' side of the up/down ratio, although I've grown to suspect that the 'downs' are actually just the natural order of things. Life is, has been and always will be one big, long-ass DOWN, and it's only that faint promise of a brief reprieve in the form of some small, fleeting triumph that drives us to keep slogging on. But those little moments in the sun are nice, aren't they? It's not much, but it's enough to keep you going until the next time.
Six years ago, I self-published a novel that did okay out there in the world. It has a fairly high rating on Amazon (not so much on Goodreads, where the user base tends to have a more critical eye) despite the fact that I, personally, consider it to be a fluff piece that's riddled with flaws. I'm not even going to bother mentioning its name. Since then, I've published several books, novellas and short stories that I'm at least moderately proud to call my own. Unfortunately, I'm not a much of a self-promoter, nor am I very prolific; as a result, not many people know that these newer things exist. So, in the interest of becoming an unstoppable publicity hype machine, I compiled a short list of my recent (and not-so-recent) works below for your perusal.
Tripping Over Twilight
This is a collection of short stories and novellas I wrote in the two years that followed the publication of The Book That Shall Not be Named. Overall, it's a decent book; one of my personal favorites is in there, a novella called Snow Devils. It also includes my novella New Fish, a story-within-a-story-within-another-story about a creature who haunts a maximum-security penitentiary. There's also a poem about everyone's favorite Christmas ghoul, the Krampus, so you know that this one is a winner. Available in eBook or paperback.Tripping Over Twilight
When the Stars Fall
Much of 2016 through 2018 was spent writing this, a bleak novel about how we're all really shitty people beneath our carefully-constructed public facade. It's a morality play with a backdrop of monsters, snipers and paranoia. It's also the best thing I've ever written, hands down.When the Stars Fall
The Promises We Make in December
This one's a stand-alone novella, and it's a bit different in that it's more of a coming-of-age story/thriller than a horror story. Promises examines the subject of grief and loss, and to be honest, it's kind of a downer. Read it if you feel like being sad.The Promises We Make in December
And now for something a little different - a YouTube narration of a tale that remains unpublished, an apocalyptic horror story told from the perspective of a middle-aged suburban couple. I'll get around to publishing it in print form some day, but until then, you can listen to it here (the other two parts will be kicking around in the 'Up Next' links):
Chestnut Street, Part 1
So, if you've wondered where I've been and what I've been up to, there's the bulk of it (not counting pieces I've sold for use in other anthologies - I'll get around to talking about those some other time). I'm still producing new books and stories, and I've got a ton of stuff lined up in the not-so-distant future. I want to say thank you to the handful of people who've stuck with me over the years; keep hanging in there, because there's lots more to come!
