If you're an avid reader, you've probably come across some fiction anthologies before. Some of these are pretty good, though many of them are downright awful. 19 Spooky Tales OF TERROR, compiled by Bob Schwinkendorf, Editor of... THE DEAD, or Zombies! Somehow We Found EVEN MORE Stories About Them! or some such thing. The cover artwork frequently looks like a high school student's first Photoshop project, and things get even worse when you crack the book open. Copy errors left and right, poor formatting, and writing so bad it induces nausea.
That's not the case here.
Oh sure, I'm biased because I have the privilege of my story Hitching Post leading the collection—a curious little oddity of which I'm quite proud—but I really believe in the rest of these stories too. I had the honor of being a part of the selection and editing process for Spooklights. Jonathan Raab, Colin Scharf, and myself pored over a heaping pile of submissions, separated the wheat from the chaff, then worked with the authors to polish up the stories. What we ended up with is, I think, a very solid collection of some genuinely creepy stuff from a handful of talented writers.
It's $1.99 for the Kindle eBook on Amazon, and for that reasonable price you'll get nine tales of quality horror with a literary bent. Please consider supporting these authors and enjoying some great new fiction! Soon to be available on iBooks and the Nook store, as well as in print later this month.
To persuade thee further, here is an excerpt from my brand new story, Hitching Post, that appears in the collection:
Angus Root strolled through the ranch at an easy, lumbering pace, and Mitchell and Stacy followed a few steps behind. Though it was quite warm, Stacy hugged her arms and wore a constant smile that wanted to insist that this destination she had chosen for them was just right, even if she was no longer sure.
“I notice your horse corral is a little on the empty side there, Angus,” Mitchell remarked as they passed it.
Angus whirled and blinked at Mitchell, confused. Mitchell nodded to the fenced-in area overgrown with weeds.
“Oh, that’s not a horse corral,” Angus said, “it’s something else made up to look like a bunch of weeds. I wouldn’t recommend you cross over that fence either, no-o-o sir.”
“Oh, right right, of course. How silly of me,” Mitchell joked, and winked at Stacy.
Angus kept walking, then suddenly threw his head back and guffawed. “Hoo, horses! What a thought. No, we couldn’t keep horses here. Cats maybe, but good heavens, not horses. At least, if we did, they sure wouldn’t stay horses for long, I can tell you that.”
Mitchell looked over his shoulder and gave Stacy a big, crazy grin. He was enjoying the old man’s quirkiness more and more. Stacy wore a look of pity, or concern.
“Maybe he’s just a little senile,” Stacy whispered to Mitchell.
“Maybe he’s just a little hilarious!” Mitchell whispered back.
“Horses… imagine that,” Angus chuckled.
To find out what happens next—things get a whole lot stranger from there, believe me—go grab Spooklights for just $1.99. Thanks guys!
-D.G.