It's for You

by Keith Minnion

Nineteen career-spanning stories (five that are original to this collection) of horror, SF, fantasy and dark suspense ... all of them dark rides, dark speculations ... of people and monsters, and every shadow in between. Profusely illustrated by the author, with an Introduction by Bram Stoker Award winner Norman Prentiss, and extensive Story Notes. "Sharp, powerful stories of ordinary, often sympathetic people caught up in nightmares and fantasies. I love this book!" - Elizabeth Massie, Bram Stoker Award winner and author of Homeplace and Sineater "Moving with ease from horror to science fiction to fantasy and back again, Keith Minnion proves as adept at switching between genres as he is at switching between media. That's right, one of our best illustrators is also a damn good writer. You should despise him for this (I do) but don't let your resentment stop you from reading It's For You, an endlessly fascinating, haunting, and completely absorbing collection." - Jeff Strand, author of Pressure and Dweller "Not only is Keith Minnion one of the industry's best artists, but he'salso one helluva short story writer. It's For You showcases both skillsby combining his amazing artwork with his Dan Simmons-like ability towrite wildly imaginative stories across the horror, suspense, fantasy,and science fiction genres. Simply put, It's For You is a collectionthat can't be missed." - Andrew Monge, The Horror Drive-in About the Author Keith Minnion sold his first short story to Asimov's SF Adventure Magazine in 1979. He has sold over two dozen stories, two novelettes, an art book of his best published illustrations, two story collections, and one novel since. Keith was a book designer and illustrator from the early 1990s to the 2010s, and also did extensive graphic design work for the Department of Defense. He is a former schoolteacher, DOD project manager, and officer in the U.S. Navy. He currently lives in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, pursuing oil and watercolor painting, and sometimes even fiction writing.

Genres: Horror

300 pages

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Keith Minnion sold his first short story to Asimov's SF Adventure Magazine in 1979. He has sold over two dozen stories, two novelettes, an art book of his best published illustrations, two story collections, and one novel since. Keith was a book designer and illustrator from the early 1990s to the 2010s, and also did extensive graphic design work for the Department of Defense. He is a former schoolteacher, DOD project manager, and officer in the U.S. Navy. He currently lives in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, pursuing oil and watercolor painting, and sometimes even fiction writing.

Reviews

[Hal Bodner · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have no idea how I ended up with this book. Usually, I read things by authors I already know or those with whose work I'm familiar. Every so often, I'll pick up a book purely because the cover art attracts me for some reason. And now the disclaimer: I have no idea who Keith Minnion is and, for a guy who's apparently a well known artist, the cover of IT'S FOR YOU leaves a lot to be desired.

Yet this book is like some rare fruit, with an unattractive rind that needs to be peeled back to get at the delicious meat inside. And the meat within IT'S FOR YOU is just luscious.

There is not a single story in this collection that we've seen before. The sheer originality of Minnion's ideas is striking. Every single piece is fresh and, above all, interesting. Even better, Minnion knows how to write. There's a marvelous simplicity to his style, which works beautifully, especially since some of his themes aren't quite as simple as they might at first seem.

Minnion is one of those rare authors whose work you can enjoy upon first reading, but who also will leave you a trifle unsatisfied at times unless you THINK about what you've just read. I'm not talking about earth-shattering ideas of innovative political theory or insightfully deep commentary on the Human Condition. Rather, most of these stories simply possess a sub-textual level other than what's on the surface.

There's also some real emotion here. Don't ask me how but Minnion somehow manages to AFFECT his reader in ways that one cannot quite pin down. Some stories create a sense of ineffable creepiness; others bring the proverbial lump to your throat.

If you shy away from author collections because you're worried about everything being the same, you won't have that experience here. One never knows what's coming next, the more so because Minnion has not confined himself to a single genre. These stories run the gamut from horror, to sci-fi, to O.Henry ironies, and the author seems comfortable no matter what he's writing.

This one is a definite Must Read.

[Monster]

It’s For You by Keith Minnion is a collection of short stories that range from horror, to fantasy, to science fiction. Minnion includes some of his stories that have been previously published. Minnion displays remarkable storytelling skills that keep the reader going from page to page; he creates interesting characters and creative situations that keep the reader engaged. Minnion’s book will hold interest for a wide variety of readers and goes beyond the horror genre. My favorite stories in the collection are "Eats" the tale of Mike who is on a trip with his nagging wife Alice, pulls off at small secluded dinner that will change Mike’s life forever and "Island Funeral" where a grieving husband is following his wife’s wishes to be buried in the family graveyard in up in Maine. It’s For You is a collection that allows Minnion to show off his multiple talents. He offers up the tales, provides beautiful interior illustrations of some of the characters from the stories, and has produced the book himself. Clearly a lot of thought and effort has gone into the book, and it has paid off- it truly makes it worth owning. In the back there are story notes that share what the various influences and inspirations of the stories were and what the history has been behind them.

The book itself is a piece of art.
Highly recommended.
Contains: Violence, murder, gore.

[Karl]

This is copy 146 of 300 signed numbered copies.