7 Reasons Christine is the Best Movie Adapted from a Stephen King Novel Luke Romyn is an Australian author and bestselling horror novelist (The Dark Path and Black Listed). During a previous conversation, Luke revealed his past and the transformation of his life from destructive to constructive through his writing. In this portion of the interview with Romyn in the Washington Times, Romyn talks about the fear of such an awesome task as writing a book when you've never written one before, and much more... Misguided attempts at horror fall flat ... here's a look at a few horror movies that just didn't quite live up to their billings. If you need help sleeping tonight, why not curl up and listen to a man with a very proper accent read you a novel based on a video game about men with giant necks shooting monsters in the face: The Well-Spoken Horror of Video Game Novel Audiobooks THQ Inc. and the Random House Publishing Group, announced earlier this week that an original novel set in the Darksiders universe will be published by Random House's Del Rey imprint in May 2012. Darksiders: The Abomination Vault, written by author Ari Marmell, will take place millennia before the events of the first game of the Darksiders series. Random House Worlds, the Random House Publishing Group's intellectual property creation and development group, will also develop the IP bible for the Darksiders universe. Schwartz and Gammell's collection, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark was first published in 1981, and is comprised mostly of traditional ghost stories passed down through folklore. The book was challenged frequently throughout the 1990s and often deemed inappropriate for school libraries or the children's section of bookstores. For the 30th anniversary of their children's horror anthology, publisher HarperCollins gave author Alvin Schwartz and illustrator Stephen Gammell an interesting gift: they sanitized the crap out of it. Blood and Thrills and Chills, Oh My! - The Sacramento Horror Scene Through A Friend Of The Genre David Salkin is a busy man. He serves on the Township Committee, runs a jewelry business and he has just published his fourth novel— his first in the horror genre. Salkin’s latest novel, Forever Hunger, is also an e-book and is available at Amazon.com. Interview with Horror Author Jonathan Janz The Swarm is all about shallow breathing, heavy petting and Xperia smartphones. The short horror film, shot entirely on Sony’s Xperia Arc S phones, follows a group of (mostly) horny teenagers in London who come face to face with an otherworldly terror. For fans of traditional horror movies that value suspense, atmosphere, and dread over empty gore and endless jump scares, Ti West is somewhat of a genre saviour. He first came onto the scene in 2005 with the zero budget bat/zombie romp The Roost and followed that up with the experimental and minimalist hunted humans thriller Trigger Man. This book blends horror with a traditional coming-of-age tale as Jacob must make some tough decisions as he learns about his grandfather, himself and the bizarre events happening all around him - Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children review. Joel M. Andre's latest book is The Black Chronicles: Cry of the Fallen about a dead man who seeks revenge on the woman that tormented him in peaceful Northern Arizona. Catch an interview with Andre on For The Love of Reading... A growing trend in today’s film and television industry is the adaptation of comic books and graphic novels. The horror genre is no exception. So here are some book-to-film comparisons for those of you who may be unfamiliar with one of them. First up: 30 Days of Night. If there’s one thing that a quick look at the current state of television and movies will tell you, it’s that there’s not much need for original ideas when there’s so much out there ready and waiting to be adapted, updated or just outright ripped off. That’s why Comic Book Resources has decided to help in that process with a series which offers up some of the things they’d like to see being brought to big screen or small. This week’s suggestion? A Child Across The Sky. Jeanette Winterson and Helen Dunmore among famous names venturing into the horror genre this year: Women writers turn to the horror story BBC America’s The Fades: Seventeen-year-old high school outcast Paul thinks the only author who could accurately capture the misery of his life would be a mix of Terry Pratchett’s wit, Alan Moore’s soul and Susan Cooper’s plotting. Read more: Horror with the heart of a nerd

SF writer Ardath Mayhar died Wednesday at the age of 81. Here is the text of her obituary from her local newspaper, the Nacogdoches Sentinel: Ardath Frances (Hurst) Mayhar died Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2012, in Nacogdoches, Texas. She was 81. Born Feb. 20, 1930, to Bert Hurst and Ardath Ellington, in Timpson, Texas, Ardath Mayhar is the author of more than 60 books ranging from science fiction, fantasy, horror and young adult to historical and westerns, with some work under the pseudonyms Frank Cannon, Frances Hurst and John Killdeer. She began her writing career as a poet when she was 19 and began publishing science fiction in 1979 after returning with her family to Texas from Oregon. She was nominated for the Mark Twain Readers Award, won the Balrog Award, was nominated for awards in almost every fiction genre, and won many awards for poetry. In 2008, she was chosen by the Science Fiction Writers of America as their author emeritus. Mayhar also owned and operated The View from Orbit Bookstore in Nacogdoches with her husband, Joe, until his death in 1999, after which she sold the store. Mayhar taught writing through the Writer's Digest school, provided book doctoring, and mentored numerous young authors. Until her health declined, Mayhar's reputation was such that she spoke regularly in the area, drawing large crowds to listen to her wit and wisdom. She is survived by two sons, James Mayhar and Frank Mayhar; two stepsons, Robert Mayhar and William Mayhar; grandchildren, Kai Mayhar, and Brad Mayhar; sister, Judy Corley; and brother, Joe Bert Hurst. A memorial service will be held later, with details pending at this time. Online condolences and memories may be offered at the Cason Monk-Metcalf Funeral website.

In August of 2011, the Navy SEAL community suffered its worst single day loss of life in its more than 50-year history when a team of SEALs aboard a special operations helicopter was shot down in Afghanistan. Like everyone with ties to the Naval Special Warfare, writer Jeffrey Wilson was deeply affected by this event. Everyone in the community is connected in some way to the families devastated by this tragedy. Together with JournalStone Publisher Christopher C. Payne, Jeffrey has set out to raise money for the Navy SEAL Foundation, a non-profit organization that provides direct support for wounded SEALs and others from the Special Warfare community, and provides support and comfort for the families left behind when SEALs are killed in the line of duty. For the entire month of February, Jeffrey Wilson will donate 100% of his royalties from his novel The Traiteur's Ring to the Navy SEAL foundation. In an incredible show of generosity and support, Chris Payne at JournalStone has agreed to not only match this donation, but in fact donate 100% of JournalStones' February profits from this book during February. Jeffrey Wilson, a vascular and trauma surgeon, was deployed multiple times supporting the Navy SEALs as a combat surgeon. Although he left active duty in late 2007, he remains an active reserve member. Still assigned to the SEALs, Wilson runs a training program for SEAL medics. In Wilson's novel, Americans confront terrorism; injured soldiers regain their health; sacrifice is rewarded; flashbacks and terrifying childhood memories serve the greater good; ancient (and infallible) wisdom is available to true seekers; and emotional connection binds people together for an eternity. Wilson is currently available for interviews. His publisher, Chris Payne, is also granting interviews. Please let me know if you'd like additional information. Thank you for your time and consideration. Author Bio: Jeffrey Wilson Jeffrey Wilson, the son of a U.S. Air Force fighter pilot who later joined Pan Am as a pilot, spent much of his childhood in Berlin, Germany at the height of the Cold War (1970 - 1975). He has worked as a musician (fife and drum corp) and actor; a firefighter/paramedic; and pilot and flight instructor. That was before he completed his residency in general Surgery and rejoined the Navy. He was a featured physician while the chief resident on trauma in an episode of Trauma: Life and Death in the ER on The Learning Channel during this time. Wilson did a Fellowship in Vascular Surgery at USF from 2002-2004. He reported for duty as a Vascular Surgeon to Portsmouth Naval Medical Center in July 2004. There he was the Director of Vascular Surgery research and director of the Non-invasive vascular Lab. In January 2005, he deployed as a Combat surgeon assigned to a FRSS team (the so-called "Devil Docs" who set up battle field surgical support with the Marines). They were in the Al Anbar province of Iraq for 6 months. Upon his return, he was recruited by Naval Special Warfare to provide surgical support as a combat surgeon with the Navy SEALs. He left active duty in Late 2007 but remains in the reserves, still assigned to the SEALs where he runs a training program for SEAL medics. He works as a Vascular Surgeon at the VA and as a Trauma Surgeon at Tampa General Hospital with the University of South Florida. The Traiteur's Ring is his first published novel, and is part of a three-book contract with his publisher. The Donors is due out next summer and Fade To Black the following year. He is currently working on his fourth book. Publisher Bio: Christopher C. Payne Christopher C. Payne was born in DeSoto, Ill., in January 1967. He received his bachelor's degree in finance from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, graduating in 1990. Currently he lives in San Francisco, Calif. In his spare time, he enjoys biking and snowboarding with his wife and two daughters. Holding down a corporate accounting/finance job, Payne embarked on a literary career, delving into the world of writing with no preconceived idea of what to expect. He wrote three novels and edited an anthology before realizing his calling was more in tune with publishing. JournalStone was established in 2009, became a publishing company in late 2010 and published its first novel in the spring of 2011. Publishing over 10 novels in 2011 was quite an accomplishment for a budding small press but 2012 holds the promise of some enormous potential for JournalStone Publishing. You can pick up the book on Amazon here: The Traiteur's Ring

Readers have a lot of choices today. Between the internet and the massive display cases at book stores, readers can easily become overwhelmed and stay within their comfort genres or at the new releases table of any Barns and Noble. But for those readers that have an interest in reading across genres like crime thrillers, vampire romances, horror, and urban fantasy, David Salkin’s newest novel, Forever Hunger might be exactly what your looking for. According to Deadline, a man passed out during a screening for the found-footage horror film V/H/S, which is directed by David Bruckner, Glenn McQuaid, Radio Silence, Joe Swanberg, Ti West, and Adam Wingard. From the author of Dead Souls, Deep in the Darkness, and Return to Darkness comes this new collection of short stories spanning the 20 year career of Michael Laimo. Rare Cuts is the fourth collection of short stories from Laimo, bringing together all those stories unfitting for his previous collections. 5 Minutes, 5 Questions With ... Michael Laimo Based on Andrea Perron’s non-fiction book House of Darkness, House of Light: The True Story, the 1970s set horror revolves around the problems a couple are facing living in a farmhouse that is being spooked. The book is her recalling of living in a Rhode Island home that was claimed to be a portal for friendly and evil spirits. Good old-fashioned gothic horror is the name of the game in The Woman In Black, an impressively spooky adaptation of Susan Hill’s best-selling novel that delivers plenty of jumps, jolts and thrills. Catch the full Screen Daily Review With this third installment in the Forgotten B&W Horror series, they move beyond the normal confines of their golden age time period to a movie that certainly deserves more credit than it currently receives from horror fans. The Last Man on Earth (1964), starring Vincent Price, is the subject of their latest look at forgotten horror movies. Mark Z. Danielewski’s House of Leaves is a labyrinth of a story that will have you turning your sights to footnotes, appendices, illustrations, sentences running down the sides of pages, sentences found only in little windows in the middle of pages, almost entirely blank pages, interviews, diary-like entries, written letters, secret codes, professional essays, and so much more. 5 Classic Modern Horror Novels — A Recommendation A horror author is achieving success in America with his latest novel – a tale of flesh-eating zombies set in the Gwent town of Usk. Craig Jones, 41, began writing novels two years ago as something to do while his wife completed her Master’s dissertation. Whereas Alan Wake was more like a Stephen King horror novel — with influences from Twin Peaks and Alfred Hitchcock — Alan Wake’s American Nightmare is more like Quentin Tarantino’s From Dusk ‘Til Dawn or Grindhouse, only on Route 66 in Arizona with a lot of cactus around. Alan Wake’s American Nightmare kicks off high-quality game releases on Xbox Live Arcade A.J. Coleman, author of the first novel in a planned zombie trilogy titled Undead Season, thinks zombies are a good basis for horror fiction because they tap into an innate, psychological fear of other people. "I'm the first to admit I don't like people," she said. "It's just so against human nature to want to be in large crowds." You have to feel sorry for horror writers. Stephen King casts a long, cold shadow that is guaranteed to send a chill up your spine and the blanket up to your chin. Yet Dean Koontz is one author who has stepped out of the shadow with such earlier work as Phantoms and Whispers enjoying substantial success. His latest bid to stay in the sun is 77 Shadow Street. Catch the review from Express.co.uk F. Paul Wilson thinks he's a publisher now. Sort of. He's got a bunch of digital titles in print in various formats, and even a couple available as POD (that's Print On Demand for the non-cognoscenti). Even has a name for his company: Wilsongs. Book Review: Chain Letter by Christopher Pike "I'm deep into a new horror novel but don't want to say yet who is in it. I need to be farther along before I am confident. Sometimes plans just don't work. I had to stop work on my Atlantis novel for a while because the science side of it defeated me," says Anne Rice in this interview on Examiner.com Award-winning Maine author Ben Marcus wastes no time prepping readers for the surreal assault he's about to launch. On the first page of his dazzling doomsday novel The Flame Alphabet, we meet the narrator, Sam, who's packing his car with an array of survival gear. Book review: Doomsday tale's eerie vision pulls you into nightmare Dick Smith, who did the masterful make-up jobs on The Godfather and The Exorcist, has won an Academy Award.

Anne Rice, iconic author of over 25 novels, including Interview With The Vampire, The Vampire Lestat, The Lives of the Mayfair Witches and The Songs of Seraphim series goes back to her gothic/horror roots with the release of her new novel, The Wolf Gift, scheduled for release on February 14th, 2012 - An Interview with Anne Rice about The Wolf Gift Pt.I This week, 30 Days of Night creator Steve Niles took to Twitter to post an intriguing teaser image by artist Menton3. Titled The Nosferatu Wars, nothing else was revealed about the project - until now. Daniel Radcliffe is making his first post-Potter debut on February 3rd. He’ll star as Arthur Kipp, a London lawyer circa the Victorian-era, in the film The Woman in Black based on the 1983 novel by Susan Hill (and additionally, a revival of the 1989 TV adaptation) of the same name. In anticipation of the upcoming horror-thriller, Amanda Sieradzki got her hands on a copy of the novel to see what audiences have to look forward to. When Westport hypnotist, motivational speaker and author James Mapes did one of his popular public performances at Central Connecticut State University 21 years ago, he never dreamed that it would lead to a role in the sequel to one of the biggest cult films of all time. Students at Thomas Hardye School got an insight into horror writing with a visit from an award-winning author. Marcus Sedgwick, whose dark stories of ghosts and horrors are aimed at a young adult audience, dropped into the Dorchester school to talk to students and offer tips. StudioCanal, Germany’s Anolis Entertainment, U.K. studio facility Pinewood and illuminate Hollywood fka HTV are among the partners coming together to breathe new life into the library of titles from legendary British horror production house and label Hammer. Edgar Allan Poe is most famous as a horror mastermind, with his claim to fame being poems like "The Raven" and stories like "The Tell-Tale Heart." Poe is a master in the art of terror and a magician when it came to creating the macabre. But there's more to Edgar Allen Poe than you know... "We Need to Talk About Kevin is a tough watch and it’s really unpleasant, so I don’t know if I liked it, but in a world where nobody is thinking of it as a horror movie, it’s totally a horror movie." - House of the Devil director Ti West via an upcoming interview. Last year, first-time feature director Eli Craig and his writing partner Morgan Jurgenson released a small but interesting horror-comedy entitled Tucker and Dale Vs. Evil, which provided a refreshing and funny new perspective on the well-worn slasher film subgenre. Find out more about this one... Ken Brosky may not bear the official title of “Hardest-Working Writer in Madison,” but if such an award existed, he’d definitely be a contender. While working two other jobs and maintaining an active Web presence both on his own site and for Milwaukee alternative-weekly the Shepherd Express, Brosky manages a steady stream of published short stories, 10 of which are collected along with one nonfiction essay in his provocatively titled book, “The Unauthorized Biography of Michele Bachmann (and Other Stories)” (Brew City Press). The Golden Age of radio is a nearly forgotten era, which makes it all the cooler that writer/artist Ernie Colon has brought it back in graphic-novel form. Following the slight slide from its original late January release, Silent Hill HD Collection will be joining original entries Silent Hill: Downpour and Silent Hill: Book of Memories in March. The last is actually the venerable survivor horror franchise's first foray onto the new Playstation Vita hardware while Downpour is the first true sequel in the series since Silent Hill: Homecoming back in 2008. Taking Submissions: Psycho Cinema Hey, remember that R.L. Stine children’s horror novel series Goosebumps? Columbia Pictures certainly does, and it’s hoping you do, too. Back in 2008, the studio acquired the rights to over 50 of Stine’s books with the intention of bringing the stories to the big screen, but is still struggling to get the project off the ground after several failed attempts. Now the latest writer set to take a crack at the screenplay is Darren Lemke, whose previous credits include Shrek Forever After and the upcoming Jack the Giant Killer. Premiered on BBC America on 14 January, The Fades is a perfect follow up to that most sinister happenstance, Friday the 13th. A spooky supernatural teen drama, it pulls off humor, atmosphere, and genuine frights. While it recalls both Attack the Block and AMC’s The Walking Dead (the opening credits sequence is an almost identical knockoff), The Fades stands on its own merits. Jokers Club had been in the closet since 1986. Count 'em. Twenty-five years. About a year and half ago its author, Gregory Bastianelli, decided to have one last, final, concentrated go at his novel.

Got a little time to kill? Looking for a little fun online? Welcome to 77 Shadow Street. A Beautiful Place to Die. You are about to enter the world of the Pendleton, a Gilded Age palace built in the late 1800s. Almost from the beginning, its grandeur has been scarred by episodes of madness, murder, and whispers of things far worse. Yet since its re-christening in the 1970s as a luxury apartment building, the Pendleton has been at peace, its dark past all but forgotten. But now, with each passing hour, a terrifying certainty grows: whatever drove the Pendleton’s past occupants to their unspeakable fates is at work again. You may hear strange voices. You may see shadows — or what seem like shadows. Tread carefully ... Here there may be monsters ... and there may be no escape. You have been warned. It's a 360-degree immersive online experience where YOU are part of the terror. Based on the Dean Koontz novel, 77 Shadow Street, this online game has you searching through the Pendleton house for clues. Give it a try: 77 Shadow Street Have fun and don't let the shadows bother you.

Join Steel City Zombies at the Eat Your Heart Out Zombie Valentine’s Day Party to raise funds to save the Evans City Cemetery Chapel, an iconic filming location in George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead. This Pittsburgh area filmed movie was the founding pillar in American zombie pop culture. Get zombied up and come enjoy the rock melodies of Overland, and party with a fun crowd. The Zombie Valentine’s Party is a great place to meet other people (& zombies) and have a good time. There will be raffles of zombie and chapel related items, shot specials, contests and prizes, and more! The special event is being held at the Oakmont Tavern, 814 Allegheny River Boulevard, Oakmont, PA 15139, from 8:30pm till close on Saturday, February 11, 2012. Most door proceeds, as well as shot specials, raffles, etc. will be donated directly to the Fix the Chapel efforts to save the Evans City Cemetery Chapel. The goal is to raise $1,000 during this event, and you can make it happen. Event Details Who: Steel City Zombies What: Eat Your Heart Out Zombie Valentine’s Party Where: The Oakmont Tavern, Oakmont, PA When: February 11, 2012, 8:30pm