gothic

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Caution: Contains Small Parts, by Kirstyn McDermott — we have launch!

caution contains small parts by kirstyn mcdermottIt’s a little over two weeks until the launch of Kirstyn’s Caution: Contains Small Parts. Why, yes, I have had a preview read, and yes, it rocks in that unsettling McDermott mode that recently snared an Australian Shadows and an Aurealis Award for best horror novel. The collection is a sharp, four-story title in the ongoing, and quite stunning, Twelfth Planet Press Twelve Planets series.

Also at the launch, we’ll be lifting a belated glass to Kirstyn’s award-winning Perfections and my award-not-wining Blood and Dust, both of which came out very late last year.

Caution: Contains Small Parts launch: Sunday, 9 June, at 6pm, as part of Continuum 9 @ Ether, lower level, 285 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne.

The collection is available for pre-order, or you can get a Twelve Planets subscription deal. The book will be on sale at the launch, naturally, where the author will happily sign copies.

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New year, new home, new books!

website clipping of ballarat

When I’ve told people we’re moving to Ballarat, there are two comments that usually follow: ‘Why?’ and, ‘It’s cold, y’know. Like, freezing.’

To the latter, the simple answer is, y’know, coats. But the former is a bit more long winded, to do with property prices in Melbourne, and how Ballarat is as close as we could get to spitting distance of the big smoke, and how it’s got a uni and a writers’ centre and a literature festival (hey, it’s Victoria: what town doesn’t have a literature festival? or a market…), and so on. I liken it to being on the Sunshine Coast and working in Brissie, without the coast. Or the ranges, for that matter. Okay, so it’s got a train and it’s got two lanes of divided road with a respectable stretch of 110kmh in between, and it takes about same amount of time, traffic (an hour and a bit) and rail gods (90 minutes and a bit) allowing.

Ballarat’s a tidy town, brimming with neat cottages and such, and history oozing out its mine shafts. No river to speak of, but lots of culverts, and a very fine lake with swans. I’m told it has a very good Irish pub, obviously that friend’s first memory of a previous visit, and a very fine bakery, too — my friends have broad tastes, clearly. Plus — OMG — an absinthe bar!

Kirstyn and I are looking forward to exploring the place, and the surrounds — for instance, the Pyrenees wine district, which I’m told does a very drinkable shiraz, which is what I want in a wine region. Oh yes. AND we’ve spotted a cafe with a view of the cemetery from the al freso dining area — w00t!

By the end of February, we’ll be Ballaratians. Some might pronounce the former Ballah-ratt-e-ans, but I’m thinking of going for Bal-ah-ray-shuns. I guess Rats could also come up. B-Rat is just far too street. I’m stopping now.

So, a new address, our own patch of suburban dirt with a line already dotted out for a future chook pen, I believe. Excitements!

To go with the new house, new books (though the books came first, to be honest), one apiece: my outback vampire road-trippin’ blood-lettin’ romp, Blood and Dust, and Kirstyn’s dark tale of family secrets, an amazing game of make believe and how what you wish for can be a tad detrimental, Perfections. Both are available now in digital formats (all of ’em) thanks to the small but passionate team at Xoum.

There will be some kind of ceremony to mark the arrival of these two yarns into the wilds, but it’s been delayed by the move. One thing to be said for e-books — no packing!

house with Hills hoist

A Hills hoist of our own

 

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Oz Horror Con: bloody good fun

oz horror convention 2013 posterMy Sunday was spent at Oz Horror Con, as a guest of the Australian Horror Writers Association, and it was fun, and I hope it happens again next year, bigger and better.

As one might expect from a first event, it had its share of squeaky hinges: a non-accessible venue, for instance, and a touch of confusion in the organisation, and from the outside, an ad hoc marketing campaign. We writer types were largely based in an upstairs room, echoing in its emptiness, a closed door making it even harder for those arriving to be aware of our existence. So that’s some of the negatives that can be easily addressed next time round. The big blow, in having marquee author Ramsey Campbell inability to attend, was unfortunate in the extreme.

The positives largely outweighed what amounted to teething troubles: the venue, the Donkey Wheelhouse, had wine cellars that would make a Hammer Horror stage designer drool. Not so easy if you’re mobility impaired even when the elevator works, but creating the right atmosphere, even if you need a lot of signage to help folks navigate (and find that upstairs room). It also had an excellent pub directly across the street and Spencer Street Station (oops: Southern Cross) nearby, too.

The variety of exhibitors was most excellent: make-up artists, funky sculptors and jewellers, talented graphic artists, purveyors of weird stuff. Throw in a bunch of wonderful cos players and you’ve got atmos coming out the wazoo.

More bodies would’ve added to that atmosphere, and one can only hope that word will spread, attractions will grow, and the audience will increase.

The panels, and they were many and varied, were well attended by an informed and interested audience; occasional zombie screams penetrating the bricks and steel door just added to the fun of it all.

As it was, Oz Horror Con was a very friendly event, a wonderful opportunity to meet other creatives and talk shop, in a relaxed environment. It has laid the foundation for a major cross-platform horror-themed gathering with numerous options for further synergies with filmmakers and other genre and literary events, a night program perhaps; indeed, the AHWA was a noticeable participant in the program this year, and it was pleasing to see its banner (or at least, some posters) flying.

Oz Horror 2014? Bring it on.

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Well, Hello Kitty!

midnight echo 8Midnight Echo is ramping up to the release of Issue 8 at the end of November — herewith, some dirt on my yarn in the magazine, ‘Hello Kitty’. It includes an extract, which makes me stress that the attitudes and opinions of characters therein are not necessarily those of the author …

Other writers in the mag include Joe R Lonsdale, Felicity Dowker, Joanne Anderton, Jason Fischer and Andrew J McKiernan — and MORE!

And Issue 9, with a theme of legends, is open to submissions.

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Blood and Dust on the digital horizon aka Kevin the vampire lives!

blood and dust by jason nahrung

This is the cover for Blood and Dust, my outback vampire novel coming soonish to digital shelves everywhere thanks to Aussie publisher Xoum. I quite like it! (Honestly, the art dept has fkn nailed it, yeah?)

The cat has kind of slipped out of the bag on this one, but it’s nice to be able to share the horror joy. The story’s more than 10 years and four major iterations in the making, and for those who know — this is the story of Kevin, the vampire. And yes, the Monaro is still there …

You might have also noticed recently another lurvly book cover hitting the interwebs:

perfections by kirstyn mcdermott

Why yes, I have read an unedited version of this novel by Kirstyn McDermott, and yes, it is very good. Coming soonish, too!

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From the rabbit hole, a Midnight Echo …

midnight echo 8The cover of Midnight Echo 8 has been released on to the unsuspecting public — it’s rather shiny, ain’t it?

The magazine is due out at the end of November — egads, that’s this month already! — and features some very fine writers, some from overseas even. And there’s me, with a story about a cat.

This story sprang out from behind a bush near a bus shelter and found full form during the heady, sweaty hours of Rabbit Hole at the Emerging Writers Festival earlier this year. There was a tweet at one stage about ‘the cat’s gonna get it’ — this is that story. It’s called ‘Hello, Kitty’. It’s not nice. Not at all.

I almost didn’t finish it, because it’s not nice. At all. But then I thought, ‘what would Haines say?’, and so emboldened, I said fuck it. And wrote it. And the triumvirate of editors of Midnight Echo 8 bought it. And now it’s rubbing shoulders in good company, and you’ve got to be happy about that.

There are a few of my stories that I wish certain people could’ve read, who never got the chance to.

This is one of those.

Fuck that, too.

Midnight Echo 8 is available to order: here.

And I’d be remiss not to point out that Queensland Writers Centre is again running Rabbit Hole, November 9-11. Free. Fun. Get words written. Just watch out for the cat.

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A reading from Salvage at MWF

Twelfth Planet Press held a showcase at Melbourne Writers Festival. Terry Shepherd filmed it. I was first cab off the rank, combining with Talie Helene on simply wonderful musical accompaniment. The reading is the near-drowning scene from Salvage, and things could only go up from there, really! (It was a shame the sound tech was a little slow to turn on our mics; the only glitch in an otherwise awesome effort from the MWF team.)

Terry has also posted video of the other readings, featuring writers of the Twelve Planets series working the audience over with laughs, suspense and intrigue: a wonderful showcase indeed of the range of stories being brought to the page by this remarkable series from Alisa Krasnostein’s press.

Alisa couldn’t be present on the night, having to be in Perth to collect a small business achievement award, so at least now she can see what we got up to!

You can watch Showcase readings from:

  • Deborah Biancotti
  • Narrelle M Harris
  • Rosaleen Love
  • Kirstyn McDermott
  • Cat Sparks
  • Lucy Sussex
  • Kaaron Warren

    • While at Terry’s YouTube channel, check out Terry’s short films and creative advertising.