SPECTRES OF LOVECRAFTIAN HORROR

David Barker, Esq.

Ye new book has been completed and turned in to our publisher, Dark Renaissance Books--and if they accept it, it shou'd be publish'd in time for World Horror Convention in Portland, Oregon.  The book came as a surprise, after David sent me a number of his Lovecraftian tales, all of which impress'd me.  I wasn't really in the mood to write a new book, feeling that I have had too many collections publish'd in too wee a time.  The big surprise, with this book, is the short novel that David and I collaborated on for it.  I had ye beginning for a story that I grew bored with and discarded.  David asked to look at it to see if he could finish it as a collaboration.  We began to work on it together, and it grew and grew beyond belief.  It was finally completed as a work of over 33,000 words, a tale of Lovecraftian horror set in Arkham.  I then realised that I had a number of things that had been publish'd in ye Lovecraft eZine but had never seen printed form, and so I gather'd those works together, added some tales from anthologies from the past few years--and presto, we had a book!  Ye Contents is:

1.  "Your Ivory Hollow" (3,000 words, Pugmire)

2  "The Camber Horror" (5,400 words, Barker)  (my italics keeps turning on for some weird reason, so I'm just gonna leave it on...)

3.  "A Thousand Smokes (1,060 words, Pugmire)

4.  "The Leering Surf" (2,900 words, Barker)

5.  "An Eidolon of Filth" (3.090 words, Pugmire)

6.  "Among the Ghouls" (2,800 words, Barker)

7.  "Through Sunset's Gate" (1,830 words, Pugmire)

8.  "The Temple of the Worm" (1,900 words, Barker)

9.  "An Unearthly Awakening" (1,130 words, Pugmire)

10. "The Urns" (2,700 words, Barker)

11.  "Within One Ruined Realm" (1,685 words, Pugmire)

12. "The Revenant of Rebecca Pascal" (33,455 words, Barker & Pugmire)

13. "O, Lad of Memory and Shadow" (960 words, Pugmire)

14. "The Recluse" (4,200 words, Barker)

15. "Midnight Mushrumps" (2,460 words, Pugmire)

16. :The Stone of Ubbo-Sathla" (1,300 words, Barker)

17. "Elder Instincts" (1,539 words, Pugmire)

18. "The Crickets" (3,600 words, Barker)

19. "Descent into Shadow and Light" (1,300 words, Pugmire)

20. "Yearbook" (2,200 words, Barker)

21. "The Quickening of Ursula Sphinx" (2,170 words, Pugmire)

22. "Mural" (3,800 words, Barker)

23. "A Presence of the Past" (11,400 words, Pugmire)

I consider this a strong and diverse collection, and am really excited to see it come about.  I have a feeling it may be my last book for many years, unless I find renew'd inspiration & energy.  Too, I am looking for full-time employment, and I find it difficult to write after coming home from a long work day.  I hope, now and then, to write some of my weird vignettes for the Lovecraft eZine; but I simply have no energy or interest, really, in working on a new book of short stories.  Time to take a long, long break, and then return to to refresh'd.

with Jason V Brock at NecronomiCon Providence