Kindle Review: PULP INK, ed. by Nigel Bird & Chris Rhatigan

PULP INK is probably the short story bargain of the year so far, if you consider sheer volume of stories as well as the quality of those stories. It’s jam-packed, and every entry is AT LEAST very good. More than three-fourths are downright brilliant.
But you know, it was bound to be great, wasn’t it? Look at the editors: Nigel Bird and Chris Rhatigan. Two fellas who know a thing or two about what makes good stories work, yeah?
The connecting theme to PULP INK has something to do with the film “Pulp Fiction”—there are allusions to the movie here and there, and several story titles are tied directly to it. But you get the sense that PULP INK quickly outgrew its inspiration. These are all writers who aren’t going to be constrained by the likes of Tarantino, man. Don’t get me wrong; I like “Pulp Fiction” as well as anyone does, but if you wanna compare Tarantino’s vision with the visions conjured by the writers in this anthology, well… Tarantino is left in the dust.
I was ready to do a little bit on each story in this collection that impressed me, but honestly, man, it was damn near every one of them. You’ve got Reed Farrell Coleman. Hilary Davidson. Allan Guthrie. Patricia Abbott, Paul D. Brazill. You’ve got Kate Horsley and Jimmy Calloway and David Cranmer. Matthew C. Funk. Honestly, it’s pointless for me to list each writer in PULP INK who turns in a killer story, because what it comes down to is a sort of “who’s who” of immense genre talents.
It doesn’t matter if you don’t dig Tarantino. If you want the low-down on what noir/dark fiction/hard-boiled writers are shaking things up these days, PULP INK is the collection to get.

THAT DAMNED COYOTE HILL

The cover for my new e-short from Trestle Press, "That Damned Coyote Hill". As usual, put together with the mad skills of Ron Warren. At my request, he took an existing image and combined it with an original photograph of his own to produce a very evocative cover. I think it turned out pretty goddamn good.

Me and My Puritan Streak

I have a very pronounced Puritan streak. Talking about “taboo” subjects like sex makes me uncomfortable, as do people who air their personal issues in public. Watching Jerry Springer or any of his imitators makes me blush and get so fidgety I have to turn it off.
I don’t like garish clothing (most of my wardrobe is in black and grays and blues) and I won’t wear a tie unless it’s a solid color—no hula girls or palm trees for me, thanks. When I see a guy walking around without a shirt on, even if he’s buff and can pull it off, I want desperately to tell him to get some damn clothes on, fer Christ’s. People who feel the need to be the center of attention all the time baffle me.
Have a sense of propriety, please, I’m begging you. Before I die of embarrassment.
Yes, deep in the core of this extremely liberal exterior is a stitched-up Puritan.
I don’t know where it came from. Maybe the Southern Baptist faith I experienced growing up? Maybe from my step-dad, who frowned upon any display of genuine emotion? I don’t know. But it’s there and I can’t pretend otherwise.
This is doubly odd considering the nature of what I write, and of what I like to read.
My stories and novels tend to be intensely personal, and they don’t shy away from sex, religion, or any other taboo subject. The characters are often bombastic and colorful. And once I start into a subject through a story, I believe strongly in not flinching, in taking the truth of the matter as far as possible, often into extremely uncomfortably emotional places.
I’m come to realize in the last couple years that’s the only way I have of talking about that stuff. By writing it down, putting it all into the head of a fictional character, I’m able to address it. And I recognize it in other people’s work as well. The unwavering commitment to telling the hardest emotional truths is a beautiful characteristic that our best writers share.
That’s all I got on that subject. Now put a shirt on, will you, please?

Writers from the Dank, Dark Underbelly

Some stuff worth noting:

Jason Michel, the mad genius behind PULP METAL, has put together a 'best of' from that twisted magazine, and it's now available at Smashwords. It's called LAUGHING AT THE DEATH GRIN!, a title that really sums up Pulp Metal's attitude quite nicely. I have a story in it; so does Paul Brazill, Danny Hogan, Ian Ayris, Chris Rhatigan, B.R. Stateham, and seven other messed-up individuals from the dank underbelly of genre fiction. For the first few weeks, it's gonna be a measly .99 cents.

And coming soon, look for OFF THE RECORD, the new anthology of all-original material being put together by Luca Veste. The premise is stories inspired by rock/pop song titles, and the line-up is a who's who of talent from the Noir and Horror Undergrounds. Some of them: Me, Ray Banks (yeah, I said Ray Banks!), Patti Abbott, Court Merrigan, R. Thomas Brown, Nigel Bird, Paul Brazill, Thomas Pluck, Matthew C. Funk, Helen Fitzgerald, and man, the talent just keeps on coming... all proceeds from OFF THE RECORD will be going to charities on both sides of the Atlantic, so keep your eyes open for it.

Aside from the two anthology appearances, I have a couple short stories coming down the pike very soon, if you're interested. More info about them later...

Audio Story done, Voice also done

I'm so naive. I really thought it would be as easy as recording my audio and... I dunno... just sort of POPPING it up here on Psycho-Noir. Bing-o, bang-o. But no, Blogger makes a big production out of it.

But I pulled it off, at long last. My friend Nat Pike (the amazingly talented fella who did the music in my book trailer for THE BASTARD HAND) gave me the low-down on Soundcloud, and that's what I wound up using.

I decided to go with "Incident on a Rain-Soaked Corner", because halfway through reading "It Will All Be Carried Away", my voice started giving out. "Incident" is much shorter.

Granted, my recording isn't exactly pro quality-- you'll here the occasional clicky sound as I navigate through the story-- but over-all it's not too bad.

Here is is:Incident on a Rain-Soaked Corner, read by Heath Lowrance

The above photo, which as usual has nothing to do with anything, is by the award-winning photographer Dawn Sketch.

READING FOR THE SICK MIND

If you like sharp fiction about bad, bad people doing bad, bad things, man.. there is much to look forward to in the next month or so.

Luca Veste is putting together a new anthology called OFF THE RECORD, a collection of stories inspired by favorite rock'n'roll songs and penned by some of the best underground writers currently working... and me, too.

And Jason Michel, the mad-with-power dictator behind Pulp Metal, has a "best of" in the works called LAUGHING AT THE DEATH GRIN, which will include Paul Brazill, Chris Rhatigan, Ian Ayris, Danny Hogan, and yours truly.

Promises to Keep

Man, you folks really rose to the occasion! My goal was to hit 100 followers total (that would've soothed my fragile writer's ego) but in the last couple of days we got to 103! I'm very grateful for the turn-out; it's like throwing a party and having all your favorite people show up.

So, as promised, this coming week I'll post an audio file of me reading one of my stories. Probably "It Will All Be Carried Away", unless ya'll indicate you'd like to hear a different one.

Until then, comrades, cheers.