VIVA SANTIAGO

Ever first seeing Santiago Caruso's magnificent illustrations for a Spanish edition of "The Dunwich Horror," I have been obsess'd with ye idea of him illustrating one of my books.  I am happy to announce that Santiago will be creating the jacket illustration for the Dark Regions Press book that Jeffrey Thomas and I have just completed writing, Encounters with Enoch Coffin.  I cannot praise highly enough the enormous effect that Santiago's art has had on my -- I bought the hardcover Spanish edition of THE DUNWICH HORROR and return to it often, just to look at those amazing atmospheric illustrations that so evoke the perverse potency of Lovecraft's powerful tale.  

So this has made Jeff and I ecstatic!  I chose Jeff to write this book with me because he is a talented artist as well as a fine writer, and I wanted a collaborator who understood the techniques of art, the experience of being an artist, aspects of which are of vital importance to our portrayal of this sinister New England artist of our invention, Enoch Coffin.  With our combined twelve tales, the book is 77,000 words, and I firmly feel that the stories we have written for this book are among the finest, most original and certainly most Lovecraftian work that Jeff and I have composed.  Jeff's stories are so brilliant, and we have played off of each other's portrayal of our hypnotic and dangerous artist, thus creating what we both feel is a character of intense energy and originality.  Encounters with Enoch Coffin will be published initially in hardcover some time next year.

S. T. Joshi and the gang will be bringing mother and me some rocking Thai food this Saturday, ye 10th, and I will drag Sunand before my webcam and do another wee video interview with him.  He has so many projects forthcoming, including a new edition of Arthur Machen from Penguin Classics for which film-maker Guillermo del Toro has written a Foreward.  And check out the awesome cover illustration!

S. T. will also have his first book published by The Library of America, an edition of Ambrose Bierce!  So, we have much to talk about.  Gawd, it is so incredibly cool, to have the world's leading Lovecraft scholar living here in Seattle.  I have enter'd a wonderful phase of life (despite the sad situation of my home life) in which I feel such aesthetic fulfillment, as I sit here in my wonderful seclusion and write book after book.  Because of the magickal support of my beloved patrons, I have been able to write full-time, & this has enabled me to grow exponentially as an artist, learned how to write more and more stories of length, to write rapidly, to find more and more the value of H. P. LOVECRAFT as Mine Eternal Muse.  This is simply the best time of my life, the best time of my existence as an obsess'd Lovecraftian freak.  I love it to death.

And now my buddy, that remarkable writer Jeffrey Thomas, has written an excellent book with me, & now this MAGNIFICENT artist, SANTIAGO CARUSO, will be drawing the jacket illustration.  Great Yuggoth -- what an eldrtich joy!