Lynda E. Rucker's Blog, page 8

a newsletter and more

I’ve started a newsletter over at Substack, Letter From Somewhere. Originally conceived as being largely about travel (with side trips into my many other interests), life circumstances — that you can read about over there — have morphed it into something different and probably ultimately more interesting. There will still be lots of travel, just not right away, so please subscribe if that’s what you’d like to read about!

It will come out every Wednesday, and while the piece may be long or...

Join me for an online folk horror workshop

On Sunday, June 25, I’ll be teaching a workshop called Keeping it Real: Developing Setting in Folk Horror online as part of the Darkness in the Fields: Midsummer folk horror festival. You can get tickets to the entire event, workshops, interviews, or single days. My workshop runs from 4-5:30 pm BST/11 am -12:30 pm EST/ 8am-9:30 am PST.

This is going to be a fantastic event. Here’s the full lineup:

Those are some absolutely terrific interviews, talks, and workshops. I’m particularly thr...

Great reviews for NOW IT’S DARK and more

A couple more excellent reviews for Now It’s Dark have appeared. The first is by Alexander Glass at IZ Digital and among other things observes that:

The long shadow that lies over the ten pieces assembled here is perhaps that of Robert Aickman: they are stories not of overt horror but of deep and abiding disquiet, with a sense that, upon turning a corner or turning a page, one might stumble upon something unspeakable, something malevolent and beyond comprehension. Rucker holds back from sho...

interviews with me!

I’ve done a couple of interviews recently to promote Now It’s Dark and also just because people asked me and I like to talk.

My fellow writer Steve Duffy interviewed me at the Swan River Press website. As it happens, Steve has a new collection out at the moment too from Sarob Press. There are still some copies left of the hardcover limited edition of The Faces at Your Shoulder, but there won’t be for long.

I also had the pleasure of talking with writers Gemma Files and Simon Bestwick on ...

a book cover and a review

A few years ago, I wrote a story for a book called The Far Tower: Stories for W.B. Yeats. It quickly sold out, so you can’t buy it, but take a look at that gorgeous cover! I adored John Coulthart’s work on it, so during a discussion of the cover for my new collection, I suggested him if he was available and willing. He was both, and he wrote this lovely blog post on how he conceived the cover idea. I’m so in love with the idea of my book as the entrance to a monstrous library!

Second thing, a...

Book Day: NOW IT’S DARK

Book day! Contributor copies of my third short story collection, Now It’s Dark, have arrived, and they are absolute beauties.

I can’t thank cover artist John Coulthart and the Swan River Press team enough for making my stories into such a beautiful physical object.

The terrific writer Robert Shearman also penned a wonderful introduction.

The title Now It’s Dark was inspired by a line uttered in the extraordinarily disturbing David Lynch classic, Blue Velvet.

The boo...

Edge-Lit Appearance

I’m going to be a participating author at Edge-Lit this summer! Edge-Lit is a one day event held in Derby, UK, a festival celebrating horror, fantasy, science fiction and thriller writing, and it offers panels, workshops and readings. There’s plenty of lively conversation and fun to be had outside of the official schedule as well. This is a friendly and–if you live nearby–affordable event, and I highly recommend it to both aspiring writers and passionate readers. See you there?

Guest at Edge-Lit

I’m going to be a guest at Edge-Lit this summer! Edge-Lit is a one day event held in Derby, UK, a festival celebrating horror, fantasy, science fiction and thriller writing, and it offers panels, workshops and readings. There’s plenty of lively conversation and fun to be had outside of the official schedule as well. This is a friendly and–if you live nearby–affordable event, and I highly recommend it to both aspiring writers and passionate readers. See you there?

Guest Critiquer at Your Personal Odyssey Writing Workshop

I will be a guest critiquer at the 2023 Odyssey Writing Workshop, which I attended in person myself waaaay back in the previous century. During the pandemic, this six-week in-person workshop transitioned into an online workshop of varying lengths, tailored to what writers specifically want to work on. This is a wonderful, flexible opportunity wherever you are in the world and whatever other obligations you’re juggling, and it’s a terrific chance to work with former Dell editor Jeanne Cavelos and...

Writing news from 2022

A quick dash through the top writing news of 2022 to bring us up to date:

-My story “The Dead Ways” appeared in the debut issue of the new magazine Nightmare Abbey, edited by Tom English. It’s available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble online. It’s a terrific magazine, and if you miss the small print magazines of the last century, you’ll especially love it.

-In September, my story “Chalk. Sea. Sand. Sky. Stone” appeared in the anthology Isolation, edited by Dan Coxon and published by Titan Bo...