David Moody's Blog, page 87

AUTUMN: HORROR IN THE EAST

I’m planning a lot of events for the latter half of 2012, but this is one I’m particularly looking forward to.

Earlier this week I posted about a new edition of THEM OR US (see here). You might remember that the book is set in Lowestoft, the most easterly town in the UK, and a place that I have family connections with. Cast your mind back even further, and you might recall that when the book was launched last November, we held an event in the town (and subsequently destroyed the place courtesy of some great post-apocalyptic artwork – click here for a slideshow).

As a result of the success of the event last year, co-conspirators Jo Wilde and Emma Bunn have organised a new horror convention to take place in Lowestoft this November – AUTUMN: HORROR IN THE EAST.

Details are just beginning to emerge, but here are the important facts: 1. The event will be FREE to attend, and 2. Loads of excellent authors have already signed up including Adam Baker, Jasper Bark, Conrad Williams, Wayne Simmons, Simon Bestwick, Iain McKinnon and myself.

Come and join us for a weekend full of horror and Haters down by the sea! Keep an eye on the official website and Facebook page for more information as and when it’s announced.

AUTUMN: HORROR IN THE EAST is a post from: David Moody - author of HATER, DOG BLOOD and the AUTUMN series

Events round-up

I’ve been a guest at a couple of cracking events over the last few weeks. Here’s a brief recap.

On Friday 22nd June, I appeared alongside Joseph D’Lacey, Simon Bestwick and host Jasper Bark in the Writers’ Room at the University of Warwick to officially launch the This is Horror chapbook series. As you know, I was honoured to be asked to write the first chapbook, and Joe & Me has been exceptionally well received. We’ve had very positive reviews from Rue Morgue, Dread Central, Snakebite Horror, the British Fantasy Society, Shadowlocked, and more. The evening was a lot of fun, with readings from the three of us, followed by a Q&A session. The picture below was lifted without permission from fellow author Adam Millard (thanks Adam!), and shows (from left to right), myself (in my Fix the Chapel shirt, please note!), Jasper, Simon and Joseph.

To get hold of a copy of Joe & Me (and you’ll need to be quick as they’re very limited and disappearing fast…) visit www.thisishorror.co.uk.

On Sunday 8th July I was at the Shock and Gore horror festival at the Electric Cinema in Birmingham – a hometown event for once! After a reading and Q&A alongside Sam Stone and John L Probert – again hosted by the inimitable Jasper Bark – I had the privilege of introducing a screening of Tod Browning’s 1932 classic, FREAKS.

Have you seen FREAKS? If not, can I recommend that you do. For a film that’s eighty years old and barely sixty-five minutes long, it still packs a hell of a punch.

Thanks to everyone involved in these events – Michael Wilson and the This is Horror team; David Baldwin and all at the Electric; Simon, Joseph, Sam, John and, of course, Jasper; and everyone who came along to watch/listen/contribute.

Details of another new horror event coming later today…

Events round-up is a post from: David Moody - author of HATER, DOG BLOOD and the AUTUMN series

Fix the Chapel

I’m guessing that if you’re reading this blog, you’ve almost certainly seen Romero’s original NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, probably many times. And if you’ve seen NOTLD, you’ll no doubt recall the classic opening scene featuring Barbara and Johnny encountering the first ghoul in a cemetery: ‘They’re coming to get you Barbara…’

The Evans City Cemetery, where that iconic movie moment was filmed, has fallen into disrepair. A group of dedicated horror fans have started a campaign to save the chapel, and I urge you to support them. You can learn more about the campaign, make donations to the cause, and buy official ‘save the chapel’ merchandise at www.fixthechapel.com. I have a cracking T-shirt (courtesy of Jami Sroka – thank you Jami!) which I’m doing my best to wear to as many horror events as I can this year.

I was also asked to write the forward to a new Kindle book – STORIES FROM THE CHAPEL – which was coordinated by Alfredo Torres. The book’s a lot of fun, and I enjoyed it immensely. Each tale takes the cemetery and the zombie apocalypse as its inspiration, and each writer’s passion for the project really shines through. All profits go to saving the chapel.

Fix the Chapel is a post from: David Moody - author of HATER, DOG BLOOD and the AUTUMN series

UK Zombie Festival

There are a growing number of horror events springing up around the UK, and here’s another one for the calendar. On October 21st and 22nd, at Billing Aquadome in Northampton, the inaugural UK ZOMBIE FEST will take place. The event name just sells itself, doesn’t it?! I’m definitely planning to be there.

In order to make the event viable, they needed to hit 2000 Likes on their Facebook event page: www.facebook.com/UkZombieFest. When I last was able to check, they’d only had a few hundred, but it seems they’ve already smashed 2000 now. Please head on over and add your ‘like’ to the cause.

By the way, I was told about the festival by the good folks behind the magnificent SCREAM MAGAZINE and, as is customary, I’ll now spend a few seconds promoting their latest issue which includes…

An exclusive interview with Tony Todd on the set of the upcoming “Dead of the Nite”, an exclusive interview with Mexican director Alejandro Brugues who tells us all about “Juan Of The Dead” (Cuba’s first Zombie movie!), There’s also an exclusive on-location report from up-coming nazi-zombie-horror “OUTPOST 3?, Elvira: Mistress of the Dark sits down with us and give us an exclusive Career Interview, Director Eduardo Sanchez talks “The Blair Witch Project” & his latest horror “Lovely Molly”, Steve Niles Talks “30 Days of Night” and Vampire Comics: PLUS: Books, Games, Comics, Festival Reports, Photography, DVD/Blu-rays, News, Reviews, Previews, Competitions & much more!

The next time I’ll get to a computer (hopefully tomorrow), I’ll report back on a couple of events I was involved with recently, and I’ll also tell you about another debut horror festival taking place this November in a place very close to my heart…

UK Zombie Festival is a post from: David Moody - author of HATER, DOG BLOOD and the AUTUMN series

Recommended Reading – SURVIVORS

The zombie community was shocked back in December 2009 when Z A Recht – author of Plague of the Dead and its sequel Thunder and Ashes – passed away unexpectedly. I’d only been corresponding with Z a week or so earlier, and his death shook me to the core. I was really pleased, therefore, when Permuted Press and author Thom Brannan completed the final book in the series – SURVIVORS – using the notes and drafts Z had left behind. When they asked me to provide a blurb, I didn’t hesitate. I said: “Taut and thrilling… brutal and unforgiving… Zombie fans will love this book”, and I stand by those comments. Here’s the back copy:

“THE MORNINGSTAR STRAIN WAS THE END OF THE WORLD.

In the wake of the zombie apocalypse, two separate bands of survivors journey across a decimated America, each with the desperate goal of finding the cure for the virulent plague that threatens the existence of humankind—or what’s left of it. Now it’s up to these inheritors of the future to outlive their waking nightmare, any way they can.

BUT FOR THESE SURVIVORS, IT IS JUST THE BEGINNING.

One group includes a brilliant virologist; for the other, an immune soldier proves invaluable. Battling infected and marauding raiders at every turn, the teams soon uncover the devious plans of Sawyer, an agent of the Chairman of the Reunited States of America, who believes that Dr. Anna Demilio already has the cure, and he will stop at nothing to find her. Now, with the salvation of the world and their own souls on the line, how far will the survivors go to emerge victorious?”

Recommended Reading – SURVIVORS is a post from: David Moody - author of HATER, DOG BLOOD and the AUTUMN series

Mammoth Book of Body Horror released in the US

As a result of my house move and lack of broadband connection, I wasn’t able to post about the US edition of the MAMMOTH BOOK OF BODY HORROR when it was released by Running Press last month.

Edited by Paul Kane and Marie O’Regan, BODY HORROR is an excellent anthology which I was very pleased to be involved with. Featuring some genuinely classic shorts alongside new stories from myself, Simon Clark, Conrad Williams and many others, the book received a great reaction when it was launched here in the UK earlier this year, including a coveted 10 out of 10 review from Starburst.

There’s more information about the anthology here, and the US edition can be picked up from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and wherever else you buy your books!

Mammoth Book of Body Horror released in the US is a post from: David Moody - author of HATER, DOG BLOOD and the AUTUMN series

THEM OR US – US paperback out today

Thanks to the ineptitude of a certain British Telecommunications company I won’t name, I’m currently offline and probably will continue to be so for the next few weeks. I’ve got a lot of posts to share, so I’m currently doing the rounds of relatives’ homes and local Starbucks trying to schedule them all in without outstaying my welcome anywhere…

First off, today sees the release of the mass market paperback edition of THEM OR US in the US from Thomas Dunne Books/St Martin’s Griffin. The longer I have to reflect on the HATER trilogy, the prouder I feel of the story as a whole. I’ll be putting together a retrospective on the series at some point in the next couple of months. ()

The paperback is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, The Book Depository, and all the usual places, and for those of you who’ve not yet read it, here’s the blurb:

“The war that has torn the human race apart is finally nearing its end. With most towns and cities now uninhabitable, and with the country in the grip of a savage nuclear winter, both Hater and Unchanged alike struggle to survive.

Hundreds of Hater fighters have settled on the East Coast in the abandoned remains of a relatively undamaged town under the command of Hinchcliffe—who’ll stop at nothing to eradicate the last few Unchanged and consolidate his position at the top of this new world order. This fledgling society is harsh and unforgiving—your place in the ranks is decided by how long and how hard you’re prepared to fight.

Danny McCoyne is the exception to the rule. His ability to hold the Hate and to use it to hunt out the remaining Unchanged has given him a unique position in Hinchcliffe’s army of fighters. As the enemy’s numbers reduce, so the pressure on McCoyne increases, until he finds himself at the very center of a pivotal confrontation, the outcome of which will have repercussions on the future of everyone who is left alive.”

THEM OR US – US paperback out today is a post from: David Moody - author of HATER, DOG BLOOD and the AUTUMN series

Goodbye! (For a short while)

I know I’ve not posted here with much regularity recently, but I wanted to let you know I’ll be around even less for the next couple of weeks. I’m moving house tomorrow and, as I work from home, I’m moving offices too. It’ll be at least a week before I’m back online.

I’ll be able to keep a cursory eye on my emails, so please do keep sending stuff through, though it’ll take me longer than usual to reply. And if you’re in Birmingham on 8th July, don’t forget I’ll be at the Shock and Gore festival at the Electric Cinema (see the poster below and click here for more information).

Plenty to let you know about when I get back, including a few new releases and some long overdue ISOLATION news. Of course, then it’ll almost be time for the launch of TRUST, and pre-orders for the limited edition hardback version will be opening.

Right. Got to turn off the computer and get shifting. See you on the other side.

Goodbye! (For a short while) is a post from: David Moody - author of HATER, DOG BLOOD and the AUTUMN series

Joe & Me is released today – free launch event in Warwick this Friday!

Just a very quick post to plug the fact a). that JOE & ME – the first in This is Horror’s chapbook series – is out today, and b). that I’ll be appearing at Warwick University on Friday 22nd June to launch the series along with Jasper Bark, Simon Bestwick, and Joseph D’Lacey. To order a copy of JOE & ME click here, and to book your free tickets for Friday night, click here.

Joe & Me is released today – free launch event in Warwick this Friday! is a post from: David Moody - author of HATER, DOG BLOOD and the AUTUMN series

Autumn: Aftermath UK edition

The UK edition of AFTERMATH is still a few months away (unfortunately). I’m working on arranging a number of signings around the country to mark the release in November. Until then, here’s a look at the cover art courtesy of Gollancz.

There are a few more AUTUMN-related releases planned… As well as the German edition of AFTERMATH, the mass-market UK paperback version of DISINTEGRATION will be out in October. I’m also tentatively planning to release a free ebook version of THE HUMAN CONDITION later this year (i.e. an easier way for people to access all the free stories from www.lastoftheliving.net). Finally – and you’ll hear more about this next week – don’t forget that www.thisishorror.co.uk will be releasing the JOE AND ME chapbook on Monday, and as I’ve already said, there’s a very definite connection between that story and AUTUMN…

Autumn: Aftermath UK edition is a post from: David Moody - author of HATER, DOG BLOOD and the AUTUMN series