Mastodawn

This Story Hour, K.C. Mead-Brewer and Wendy N. Wagner read creeeeeeeepy tales of expectations. Even Wendy's cat got in on the fun! You can still watch! #Horror #HorrorFiction #KCMeadBrewer #WendyNWagner #Bookstodon #StoryHour2020 #ShortStories #ShortFiction #AuthorReading @kcmeadbrewer @wendynwagner
youtu.be/n86rFuExoXw

Laura Blackwell (she/her)5d ago

Did you miss the spooky stories? They’re ba-ack! K.C. Mead-Brewer and Wendy N. Wagner read us their own thrilling tales! Turn up the lights and join us Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. PDT! #Bookstodon #StoryHour2020 #ShortStories #ShortFiction #AuthorReading #Horror #HorrorFiction #KCMeadBrewer #WendyNWagner https://www.storyhour2020.com/

John Griogair Bell 5d ago

“No.” It was whisper-thin, barely an exhale, her throat long unused for this sort of sound. And then again, louder, “No.” https://library.hrmtc.com/2026/06/09/no-it-was-whisper-thin-barely-an-exhale-her-throat-long-unused-for-this-sort-of-sound-and-then-again-louder-no/ #again #AmitiéRomansNouvellesEtc #AutonomieRomansNouvellesEtc #AutonomyFiction #BarFridmanTell #barely #book #CollegesAndUniversitiesFiction #Contes #exhale #fantasy #FantasyFiction #fiction #FICTIONFairyTalesFolkTalesLegendsMythology #FictionFantasyMythologyAndSciFi #FictionLiterary #fictionGeneralGenre #FICTIONFantasyDarkFantasy #FleursRomansNouvellesEtc #FlowersFiction #folkTales #folklore #FolkloreWalesFiction #FriendshipFiction #GothicFiction #HorrorFiction #literaryFiction #LonelinessFiction #longUnused #louder #LoveFiction #MagicFiction #ManWomanRelationshipsFiction #no #PopularFiction #quote #Roman #SiblingsFiction #SolitudeRomansNouvellesEtc #sound #thisSortOf #throat #whisperThin

November Grau Jun 4

I've just finished number 8 in Black Shuck's Great British Horror series, Something Peculiar. Earlier numbers were themed, but this one is more just "any colour as long as it's weird". It must have done well because two more Something Peculiars have since come out, and in fact I began with the second one (Great British Horror Volume 9, do keep up) by accident. That was a fantastic book but I've already lathered about that all over Bluesky so won't go into it again.

This Something Peculiar was a bit of a disappointment after the second one. The GBH series has had its blips in the past, mainly caused by the inclusion of stories by writers who are obviously not quite ready for publication, and that applies here too. With the colossal magnanimity for which I am justly revered I will refrain from naming any of these rookies, but I don't know what Maxim Jakubowski's excuse is for his inability to string a sentence together properly after all these years (as showcased in "The Book Collector" here.) I remember my Dad bitching about him nearly thirty years ago and have no idea how he keeps getting published.

But on to the good. Ally Wilkes is a fairly new writer who I've come to associate with quality, and her tale of online horror "Black-Eye" lives up to her usual standard. It's written as a series of transcripts of influencer videos with a bit of concise description to link things up, and in addition to holding your attention well it also makes you think about the psychological burdens faced by influencers, many of whom are hardworking young people acting under harsh financial pressures and exposed like coalmine canaries to the noxious fumes of today's putrid internet, often with no support from either their elders or the platforms that make money off their backs. Wilkes doesn't labour the point but her characters are treated with a sympathy and lack of mockery that does her credit. And while there is quite a body of horror fiction about the internet now, Wilkes' in-depth use of a wide variety of user interface features to generate unease is a cut above average. Comment panes, emojis, mic effects and the interplay between a main window and smaller secondary windows (perfect for those corner-of-the-retina scares)...there's a lot going on here.

My other pick of the book is "Fell Creatures" by Reggie Oliver, a slow-burning piece of dollshouse-cum-body-horror that also sees this most sophisticated of horror authors wielding his literary scalpel on the class system. Again, this story benefits from likeable characters, and for me the ability to make characters come to life within a short word count will often make the difference between an okay story and a really good one.

There are other decent stories from the likes of Gemma Files, Stephen Gallagher, Verity Holloway and Steve Toase, and in terms of variety of theme and style this anthology scores well. I've already got the third Something Peculiar on my shelf waiting to be read, though I'm going to take a detour via M John Harrison first with a re-read of his splendid collection The Ice Monkey.

https://blackshuckbooks.co.uk/gbh8/

#WeirdFiction #HorrorFiction #Horror #ReggieOliver #AllyWilkes

JZ Murdock Jun 4

He tends the tree. The tree tends to others.
Jaonny's 18, lives alone. He can't leave home.
His alien "apple tree" his parents planted the day he was born is still thriving. Still fruiting. Still beautiful. Still terrifying.
His parents disappeared when he was young. He doesn't talk about how.
From "Jaonny's Apple Tree" — dark speculative fiction by JZ Murdock.
https://character.ai/character/deSFEya2
#CharacterAI #SciFi #Horror #DarkFiction #SpeculativeFiction #AlienFiction #HorrorFiction #IndieAuthor #Murdockverse

Artemis Jun 3

Recommendation time!

After devouring Chuck Tingle's horror novels, I think I need more horror fiction in my life.

As another reference point: I also really like T. Kingfisher's horror novels. I'm not *at all* into Stephen King or other mainstream horror authors I have tried. The vibes are never right. I find a lot of popular horror (both novels & films, actually) pretty bland in a way I can't quite put my finger on.

Queer-centric horror is a plus but not a must!

#QueerHorror #HorrorFiction