Mike Thorn's Blog, page 35

Mike Thorn returns to Kendall Reviews to share his favourite horror films from the 2000s

"Mike Thorn returns to Kendall Reviews with another fascinating discussion piece on horror cinema. The response to Mike’s first contribution which detailed his 10 favourite horror films from the 2010s was incredible. I’m delighted to welcome Mike back, this time to offer you chronologically his favourite horror films released between 2000 – 2009.

Mike Thorn is the author of the short story collection Darkest Hours. He completed his M.A. in English literature at the University of Calgary. His fiction has been published in numerous magazines and anthologies, including Dark Moon Digest, Behind the Mask – Tales from the Id and Straylight Literary Arts Magazine. His film criticism has appeared recently in MUBI Notebook, The Seventh Row and The Film Stage.

See the list and read the full article on Kendall Reviews.

Ranking Stephen King's Story/Novella Collections

Like countless others, I started reading Stephen King's work when I was very young (eleven or twelve, I think). By the end of 2018, I'm planning to get through all the books in his bibliography that I've missed.

I just finished Everything's Eventual, the last of his collections I had left to read.

My personal ranking of his short story/novella collections:

01. Skeleton Crew (1985)
02. Full Dark, No Stars (2010)
03. Hearts in Atlantis (1999)
04. Night Shift (1978)
05. Just After Sunset (2008)
06. Different Seasons (1982)
07. Everything's Eventual (2002)
08. Nightmares & Dreamscapes (1993)
09. The Bazaar of Bad Dreams (2015)
10. Four Past Midnight (1990)

*Note: I like all of these to varying degrees

Mike Thorn Reading from Darkest Hours on CJSW Writer’s Block

I read from my weird academic-in-distress story "Mired" (included in Darkest Hours) for the latest episode of Writer's Block. Listen to the reading.

Writer's Block is CJSW’s monthly foray into literature. Hosted and produced by Dymphny Dronyk and sound engineered by Cody Dronyk, the program is focused on local events, writers, poets and publishers, while keeping an eye on the bigger literary picture across the country and around the world! Writer’s Block airs at 90.9 on the FM dial in Calgary on the third Tuesday of every month at 11 a.m. and 8 p.m.

Darkest Hours - Bizarre Book Review on YouTube

Darkest Hours just got its first YouTube review courtesy of BLURB.

Watch the video here.

New Review of Darkest Hours in The Grim Reader

"There is more than enough talent showcased within these pages to suggest that Mike Thorn’s journey has only just begun. I look forward to seeing where he goes from here."

Read the full review.

Shake Things Up: A Conversation with Mike Thorn in WORDS Zine's April Issue (Hex Publishers)

Alvaro Zinos-Amaro asked me thoughtful, personal questions for April's issue of WORDS (an online zine through Hex Publishers). Among other things, we touch on transgressive art, John Carpenter's Prince of Darkness, Catholic school, philosophy and Kanye West.

Read the full interview.

Darkest Hours Reviewed on HorrorTalk

"The author of Darkest Hours, a collection of short stories, has truly impeccable taste. Not only did Mike Thorn complete a master’s degree thesis on John Carpenter’s Prince of Darkness, the endnotes mention his love of the influential industrial metal band Godflesh. If Mike and I ever met up for coffee, we would have a grand old time reminiscing about the mighty Godflesh, whom I haven’t seen in concert for a few years, but remain one of my personal favourite noise bands."

Read the full review.

Music for a Brutal, Contemporary Planet: A Selective Alice Cooper Retrospective

It is difficult to pinpoint any individual album in Alice Cooper’s massive, eclectic discography as “summative” or “trademark.” Certainly, his original band enjoyed an inspired and singular run from 1971 (Love It to Death) to 1973 (Billion Dollar Babies), and his first official solo album Welcome to My Nightmare announced a fully realized vision of conceptual horror rock, complete with a guest appearance by Vincent Price and accompanied by a lavish, theatrical tour production. However, Cooper the solo artist is perhaps best characterized by his entire oeuvre in all its shifting, diverse and ambivalent forms — this singer-songwriter is the progenitor of shock rock as vaudevillian grand guignol; he is a meta-reflective and identity-shifting social satirist, and he is an artist of far-reaching, sophisticated conceptual range who proudly inhabits (and often embodies) that which some might call “low art.”

Read the full article in Vague Visages.

Darkest Hours Review on Sci-Fi and Fantasy Reviewer

"This is a fantastic collection of horror short stories, to be frank. The ability of the author to move through so many different kinds of horror scenarios, and to invoke so many different emotional responses in such a short space of time, is surely the mark of someone who ‘gets’ horror as a genre. Mr Thorn has certainly made his mark on the genre as a whole, and also on me: I look forward to reading more horror stories, and especially any more that come from his pen. I can only hope that we see more of his fiction in the near-future, and whole-heartedly recommend that you pick up this anthology."

Read the full review here.

New Review of Darkest Hours on The Horror Bookshelf

“One of the best things about running a blog dedicated to horror fiction – and hell, just being a reader in general – is discovering new writers. One of the best and most rewarding feelings as a horror fan is reading a new author’s work and being blown away by their talent and the awe of discovering something cool. That is the exact feeling I got when I first sat down to crack open Mike Thorn’s debut story collection, Darkest Hours.”

Read the full review on The Horror Bookshelf.