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The Dark Game
Group Reads: Guest Author Invite
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June 2019 Group Read with Guest Author, Jonathan Janz
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Kimberly wrote: "Jonathan wrote: "Kimberly wrote: "Jonathan wrote: "One thing I love about horror is how incredibly diverse its sub-genres are. Brian Keene and I talked about this briefly on his show recently, and ..."I love it!
Halfway through the book and absolutely loving it. This is not a writing "retreat" I would want to go on. Can't wait to find out how it ends. You've done it again, Jonathan!
Michelle wrote: "Halfway through the book and absolutely loving it. This is not a writing "retreat" I would want to go on. Can't wait to find out how it ends. You've done it again, Jonathan!"
You. Rock. THANK YOU SO MUCH, MICHELLE! :-)
Jonathan wrote: "Elke wrote: "Jonathan wrote: "Just out of curiosity, and I swear I'm not giving you the hard sell here, because that's the opposite of my style, but have you read CHILDREN OF THE DARK? Because that's a coming-of-age creature feature. :-) "Uh-oh, got me! That one sits on my TBR shelf for some time now (like too many other books)...I also added it to my (summer) holiday shelf now, it sounds like a perfect read for that time.
Jonathan wrote: "One part of the fun of a novel like this is trying to figure out who's going to get picked off first, who's going to win, etc. For those of you who've read it or are reading it, did the order of the deaths go according to what you anticipated?"I didn't really think about it much beforehand, but every time someone wandered off on their own I expected them to be next, but of course that would have been to easy.The only one who's fate I figured correctly was Lucy, lucky guess ;)
Jonathan wrote: "Michelle wrote: "Halfway through the book and absolutely loving it. This is not a writing "retreat" I would want to go on. Can't wait to find out how it ends. You've done it again, Jonathan!"
Yo..."
Thank YOU for the hours of enjoyment. :-)
The novel features several authors who behave badly. Do any of you have turn-offs when it comes to authors? I mean, aside from bad writing.Personally, I don't like it when authors bash each other to make themselves look and feel better. We see that from Anna, Bryan, and to a lesser degree, Elaine and Evan.
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Personally, I don't like it when authors bash each other..."
Unfortunately I've seen too much of this lately on social media--an author who isn't doing as well as "they think they should be", or one who feels that they are THE BEST out there, and takes to criticizing others to try and "convince" other readers to turn to their work... :'(
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Jonathan wrote: "The novel features several authors who behave badly. Do any of you have turn-offs when it comes to authors? I mean, aside from bad writing.Personally, I don't like it when authors bash each other..."
A certain author's books (not horror) where someone always dies at the end. Depressing, and very formulaic, in my opinion. Don't read them, don't see the movies. Also, his bragging about his own writing years ago, acting like he's the only one doing what he does AND comparing his writing to none other than Shakespeare, Austen and Hemingway. This, along with some current nefarious controversy, makes him a definite turn-off for me.
This books looks great and the discussion is fantastic. Coming in late to the game but should have my copy of the book in a day or two.Love the frank, open discussion.
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Love the frank, open discussion."
I hope you love this book, Katy!!
Kimberly wrote: "Jonathan wrote: "The novel features several authors who behave badly. Do any of you have turn-offs when it comes to authors? I mean, aside from bad writing.Personally, I don't like it when author..."
Yeah, well said, Kimberly. I'm guessing that's brought on by insecurity. We all feel it, but expressing it that way and being unnecessarily unpleasant is not a good look.
Ken wrote: "I agree. Another turn off is when an author turns every conversation hostage and makes it about them or their book. It reeks of used car salesman or carnival barker. Now, understand, I’m all about ..."Oh, man, the Huckster Syndrome. I reaaaaallllly don't like that. When I'm at a convention, I always pimp my neighbor's/table mate's book as much or nearly as much as I do. I don't like the in-your-face approach.
Obviously, online, it's just as bad.
Michelle wrote: "Jonathan wrote: "The novel features several authors who behave badly. Do any of you have turn-offs when it comes to authors? I mean, aside from bad writing.Personally, I don't like it when author..."
Hmmm...that's interesting. I don't know who that is, but it does sound unpleasant for sure.
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You know what’s funny? When I was at StokerCon, I didn’t see that once. Every single one of you were amazingly gracious and generous with your time. I never felt like I was looked at as dollar signs. To me, that’s the REAL horror community. The ones that lift each other up and make everyone feel like they’re a part of one big family.
Ken wrote: "Jonathan wrote: "Ken wrote: "I agree. Another turn off is when an author turns every conversation hostage and makes it about them or their book. It reeks of used car salesman or carnival barker. No..."That's great to hear! You see it more at conventions that are mainly about selling books. When authors sit at tables for hours at a time, you see how they operate.
Katy wrote: "This books looks great and the discussion is fantastic. Coming in late to the game but should have my copy of the book in a day or two.Love the frank, open discussion."
It's great to have you, Katy! :-)
Jonathan wrote: "From where in Germany are you from?Regarding that legend, if I'm remembering right, I had to research a good while to find that one. I have quite a few reference books on mythology and legends, and I go to my old MAN, MYTH, & MAGIC encyclopedias quite a bit, so it might have been in there."
Oh, sorry for the late answer - last few weeks were a bit too eventful and I didn't check on the forum. I currently live in Hamburg but I'm originally from Hannover and have lived in several other cities in Germany.
I actually know Man, Myth & Magic but didn't realize it had the Nachzehrer in it - also, I haven't looked into it in a while. Just cool to see such an obscure folk tale being referenced :)
Jonathan wrote: " Oh, man, the Huckster Syndrome. I reaaaaallllly don't like that. When I'm at a convention, I always pimp my neighbor's/table mate's book as much or nearly as much as I do. I don't like the in-your-face approach.
I feel like somewhere in this concept is another horror novel :P
Jannik wrote: "Jonathan wrote: "From where in Germany are you from?Regarding that legend, if I'm remembering right, I had to research a good while to find that one. I have quite a few reference books on mytholo..."
I just googled the Nachzehrer legend as I was not familiar with this particular kind of legend. I think it especially creepy that the Nachzehrer doesn't have to leave the grave to harm other people.
Jannik wrote: "Jonathan wrote: "From where in Germany are you from?Regarding that legend, if I'm remembering right, I had to research a good while to find that one. I have quite a few reference books on mytholo..."
I'm not sure that the Nachzehrer is in M, M, &M, but that's where I do get the seeds for some of my ideas. Now you've got me wondering where I got the idea! :-)
Jannik wrote: "Jonathan wrote: "From where in Germany are you from?Regarding that legend, if I'm remembering right, I had to research a good while to find that one. I have quite a few reference books on mytholo..."
Yep. I agree with the horror novel idea. :-)
Elke wrote: "Jannik wrote: "Jonathan wrote: "From where in Germany are you from?Regarding that legend, if I'm remembering right, I had to research a good while to find that one. I have quite a few reference b..."
Totally agree!
Got to go coach my son's baseball game tonight, so in that vein, you might notice I mention the Chicago Cubs shirt Will Church is wearing when he first arrives. I hadn't even thought about it, but I mention baseball quite a bit in my books. --In CHILDREN OF THE DARK, the opening scene is a baseball game.
--Also in CHILDREN OF THE DARK, a character is named Terry Schwarber, which is partially because of Kyle Schwarber, one of the Cubs outfielders.
--In WOLF LAND, one of the main characters (at least early on) was drafted in the first round by the Cubs.
--David Caine, the protagonist of THE SIREN AND THE SPECTER, rues the fact that he can't get Cubs games on TV or radio when he comes to Virginia.
Gotta get back to my work-in-progress--friends, I cannot WAIT to let you know what I'm working on--but before I do, I want to ask you this...Have you ever had a teacher like Roderick Wells? A coach? A boss? I mean, I know he/she wouldn't be EXACTLY like Wells, but have you met someone in authority who's more destructive than constructive? I have, and a lot of that went into this character.
Indeed I have, Jonathan. I had a boss - couldn't possibly mention his name here, of course, but he was the most negative and divisive individual. He did get something of his just desserts in the end - and it was pretty humiliating for him. I, on the other hand, had to wait a few more years before I could wreak my own vengeance on him and I did so the way any self respecting horror writer would - he came to an exceptionally sticky end in a book I wrote! Job done! :) Looking forward to reading the new book :)
Jonathan wrote: "Got to go coach my son's baseball game tonight, so in that vein, you might notice I mention the Chicago Cubs shirt Will Church is wearing when he first arrives. I hadn't even thought about it, but I mention baseball quite a bit in my books..."You and I have discussed our love of the Cubs a few times, so you know how much I enjoy this (especially now that they're actually relevant again after a lifetime of being the doormats). :-) That and the small-town setting of many of your books are examples of the things that really help me connect with your work. The great writing helps too! :-)
Jonathan wrote: "Have you ever had a teacher like Roderick Wells? A coach? A boss? I mean, I know he/she wouldn't be EXACTLY like Wells, but have you met someone in authority who's more destructive than constructive? I have, and a lot of that went into this character...."I'm pretty lucky not to have encountered many teachers quite as extreme as him, but I think sadly a number of people who gravitate towards coaching have that mentality, which is part of why when I coached my kids' sports teams I made a conscious effort to go as far in the other direction as I could. I've also had bosses like that, but again, fortunately very few. I think it's less common in the technical field.
Random recommendation, the movie "Whiplash" deals with this subject (in a music context), and while it is very difficult to watch, it's brilliant, IMO.
Catherine wrote: "Indeed I have, Jonathan. I had a boss - couldn't possibly mention his name here, of course, but he was the most negative and divisive individual. He did get something of his just desserts in the en..."I'm sorry to hear about your encounter with that...individual, but I love that he got his comeuppance in your book. Isn't that one of the grandest and most satisfying forms of revenge? I love it when an author gets justice that way!
Robert wrote: "Jonathan wrote: "Got to go coach my son's baseball game tonight, so in that vein, you might notice I mention the Chicago Cubs shirt Will Church is wearing when he first arrives. I hadn't even thoug..."Thank you so much for this, Robert. Cubs fans unite! :-)
Robert wrote: "Jonathan wrote: "Have you ever had a teacher like Roderick Wells? A coach? A boss? I mean, I know he/she wouldn't be EXACTLY like Wells, but have you met someone in authority who's more destructive..."Oh man, WHIPLASH is one of my favorite movies this decade. I still can't believe what was accomplished with that movie. I love that you love it!
Horror Aficionados
Books mentioned in this topic
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Great thoughts, particularly what you say about Jack Ketchum. He was basically his own genre, and as you said, a kinder and gentler person you will never meet. What an amazing person. And writer.