Brian Keene's Blog, page 49
October 9, 2019
Midnight Pals
Fact: THE MIDNIGHT PALS is my absolute favorite thing on the Internet. If you are unfamiliar with the Midnight Pals, the premise is simple. The world’s greatest horror writers, both living and dead, sit around a campfire and tell each other stories. The series was created by cartoonist Bitter Karella. It took the form of a Twitter thread, and that thread proceeded to take Twitter by storm.
Midnight Pals is fashioned after the classic television program Are You Afraid of the Dark, which features a group of teenagers who call themselves The Midnight Society. Every episode, one member tells a scary story to the group in the woods at night, beginning with “Submitted for the approval of the Midnight Society, I call this story…” and then the title of the episode. For Midnight Pals, Karella replaced the teenagers with (initially) Stephen King, Anne Rice, Clive Barker, H.P. Lovecraft, Dean Koontz, and Edgar Allan Poe. Ostensibly, these titans of terror take turns telling scary stories (always beginning with that familiar refrain) but then often get sidetracked by bickering and non-sequiturs.
Over time, the cast has grown to include such deceased pinnacles as Shirley Jackson, Clark Ashton Smith, Jack Ketchum, and Robert Bloch; living legends such as Edward Lee, R.L. Stine, and Guy N. Smith; and my generation of horror writers, represented by Wrath James White, Joe Hill, Nick Mamatas, Mary SanGiovanni, Carlton Mellick III, and many others.
Oh, and I’m in it, too. I’m in it a LOT…
Which is why I’m very happy to have contributed to SUBMITTED FOR THE APPROVAL OF THE MIDNIGHT PALS — a new omnibus collection of the best of the series, complete with all-new illustrations, brand-new bonus stories, and much more, including an Introduction by myself.
There is an Indiegogo campaign for it taking place right now. CLICK HERE TO CONTRIBUTE. Of particular interest to you, my readers, is the opportunity to be killed in my next book. That’s right — the first person to pledge $500 will appear in my next book as a character, and will get killed in the story. I’ll work with you to find out what you’d like included about yourself, and your name will live on in infamy as a character in my mythos. But there is only one of these opportunities available, so first come, first served!
Maelstrom 8 On Sale Now
The 2019 Maelstrom set (the 8th in the series) is on sale now. There are two versions of the set available (details at the bottom of this post). This year’s 3-book set includes:
THE TRIANGLE OF BELIEF by Brian Keene
In January 2018, authors Brian Keene and Mary SanGiovanni witnessed a group of unidentified flying objects over their home. That encounter with the unexplained forms the basis for this honest, revealing memoir-styled treatise on faith, religion, the occult, atheism, agnosticism, science, and the supernatural, as Brian Keene takes the reader on a journey through his own belief structure, revealing how it has influenced him as both a person and a writer, impacting everything from his lifestyle choices to the books he’s written.
Regardless of your own individual experience, you’ll find yourself pondering THE TRIANGLE OF BELIEF.
CURSE OF THE BASTARDS by Steven L. Shrewsbury and Brian Keene
Bored with retirement, the aging barbarian Rogan — accompanied by his loyal nephew Javan — returns to the land of his birth and encounters enemies both old and new near the great city-state of Nodd. All he wanted was to be left alone, but now Rogan will have to lay siege to the great metropolis, waging war against its bloodthirsty leader, uncovering the sinister plot of an ancient evil, and learning the truth about his god, Wodan.
This is the third and final book in the Bastards Trilogy.
WORLD’S FARE by Michael T. Huyck Jr.
Darryl sees dead people and the history all around them. It’s a living that has always come with complications, but now Darryl has become a tool exploited by competing powers from different times, different places, and different realities. The struggle eventually lands him and his friend in the middle of New Orleans and the Robert Charles race riots, where the past they select will decide the future the world gets. This world, anyway.
Thunderstorm Books is proud to present WORLD’S FARE, the debut novel by Michael T. Huyck Jr.
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This year, the Maelstrom Sets are available in TWO editions:
1. Get all three signed, limited edition hardcovers for the one low price of $150. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE.
2. Get a deluxe slipcased edition of all three signed, limited edition hardcovers with bound satin ribbon markers and more for $275. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE.
Thank you for your continued support!
