Violent Advents, Ghost Stories for Christmas, Signed Books, and Free Audiobooks

Welcome to my November newsletter. It’s been a crazy month. I turned 45 on November 13th and, as COVID ruined my 40th birthday plans, I decided to have a proper party for the first time in fifteen years. I went over to London, had a day of tourism in what used to be my home last Friday with the missus, then met up with loads of my friends at a craft beer pub in southeast London on Saturday. It was so great to see lots of people but, as these things tend to, time flew by and it felt like it was over before it started. Still glad I did it, though. It’s nice to mark our laps around the sun once in a while.

But enough blathering, there’s lots to be going on with. And let’s start with a quick word about Violent Advents.

So, for the last couple of months, I’ve mentioned the charity anthology, Violent Advents, which features my story, ‘What you had.’ Here’s a little preview blurb of what my story is about. It’s a modern take on the classic Christmas ghost story which became famous in the UK during the Victorian period and still retains its following today. As mentioned before, all royalties from this one are going to UK and US-based heart health charities, so do pick it up if you can spare the pennies.

And speaking of Christmas ghost stories, my face to face writing group here in Lisbon are doing a Christmas ghost story event on Friday 13th. Taking place at Ma Lingua (Bad Tongue, in Portuguese) in the Graça neighbourhood of the city, various members of the group will be reading ghost stories they’ve written - some spooky, some more comedic - and we’ll be taking donations for the CPR (Conselho Português para os Refugiados - a refugee charity here in Lisbon). If you are local, and would like to come along, you can see the event details and RSVP on meetup, here. Or on Facebook, here. There will be mulled wine, as well as usual bar fare, so come along and get some spooky December chills, if you can.

And, as it’s Christmas, some of you maybe looking for presents for the bookish horror fans in your lives. If so, I just wanted to remind you that you can order signed, personalised copies of some of my books directly from me via my Ko-Fi shop. At present, I only have copies of Shadow of the Hidden, Below, and Paths Best Left Untrodden available, but they’re usually cheaper from me than from Amazon and other bookstores, and I do discounts for people who order multiple books. So, if you know someone who would like some signed horror reads for the darker months, take a look at my store, here. There are only a few copies left of Shadow of the Hidden, especially, and remember, if you want books in time for Christmas, do consider delivery times from Portugal to where you are (about 10 days to the USA, 5 days to the UK and Europe).

Last night, I had the pleasure of participating in the book launch party, online for Beverley Lee and Keith Anthony Baird’s new vampire novella, A Light of Little Radiance. Also there for the event were Heather and Steve Vassallo of Brigids Gate Press, fellow authors Stephanie Ellis and Nicole Eigener, and the amazing book cover artist (and artist in general) Daniella Batsheva. It was great to hear more about the story behind the book and just to talk with some of my fellow creatives and friends about books, what horror means to us and more. If you want to check it out, you can watch the whole thing on YouTube.

On to the writing updates, then. My new novella, The Siren Of Armorique, has finished its first edit pass. There are some motivations for some characters which my editor questioned and I now have to go in and make some changes to ensure they all make sense. It’s going to be hard work, but will definitely ensure it’s a better book when it hits the shelves early next year.

The book I’m drafting, working title Pyres, is in its last scene. I should finish the draft this coming week. Then it will sit on my hard drive for a couple weeks, before I read through, tweak and get it ready for beta readers. Hopefully it will go to them in the early new year, before more tweaks in response to their thoughts, and submission to a few publishing houses, to see where it lands.

Then, for the first time in about ten months, I’ll be able to say I’m starting something new. How exciting!

Recommendations

Reading - Nothing But The Willows and Other Things That Are Not There by J. D. Buffington

I was offered a copy of this collection by the author for a possible review and went in more or less blind. I honestly think it was the best way to enjoy it. Starting off with a haunting story like no other, it continued with head spinning, fresh approaches to various tropes, but also trod new ground with nods to philosophy, sci-fi, among other styles/genres. Everything was knitted together with this recurrent theme of existential dread, but also punctuated with humorous elements, and tons of heart. It reminded me of Kurt Vonnegut more than once, which is as high praise as I can think of. Check it out here. 

Listening - Instant Rewards by Tides From Nebula

The main writing music for this month has been this latest and, perhaps, best album yet from Polish post-rockers, Tides from Nebula. Instrumental, hence the suitability as writing music, this album is melodic, ebbing and flowing from the more tranquil moments to heavier sections. There are more synths here than on previous records, or at least, they’re more prominent in the mix, and it gives it a more ethereal, atmospheric edge. Check it out on your chosen streaming service, here.

Watching - The Subtance

I saw one of my mutuals on social media describe this as a film that was made for the 90s, just thirty years too late. I’d agree with that, but also add the caveat that the social commentary aspects are bang up to date with today. Demi Moore is fantastic throughout, as is the absolutely loathesome Dennis Quaid. The camera work, particularly, was amazing in this film. The showing up of the grotesque, yet ignored flaws of the ageing men in the film, while the women were of course subject to microscopic scrutiny was superbly achieved without it ever feeling like the story was secondary. See this one on the big screen if you can. It’s a dayglo, lurid two hours you won’t soon forget. Check out the trailer here.

Bargains and Freebies

Writer Gomery Kimber has compiled this set of almost twenty occult and paranormal horror and thriller books, including my own, Shadow of the Hidden. Check out the full list.  

Writer and editor Robin Knabel has set up this list of more than eighty horrifying reads to spook up your Christmas holidays. Running right through to the new year, you can find dozens of bargain books here to ensure you spend the darkest month with the darkest lit. You can view the full list here.

And finally, for your free book list this month, we’ve got some Dark Reads for you, from authors like me, Isaac Thorne, Querus Abuttu, Jack Rollins and Carson Winter. It’s a great line-up, so grab your freebies, here.

Oh, one last thing, a quick mention for my buddy Ross Jeffery whose new book, Metamorphosis, is coming from Truborn Press very soon. The cover reveal will be everywhere on social media in a few days. I’ve seen it, and it looks as horrifying as I’m led to believe the content of the book is. It’s high up my TBR, and you can pre-order it now.

Well, that’s it for November. I’ve had some great reviews in for Shadow of the Hidden over the last week or so, which I really appreciate. Hopefully the algorithms will keep pushing the book to more and more potential readers as they keep coming in. Thanks to anyone and everyone who has taken the time to read or review any of my work.

Finally, if you’ve been following me on Twitter/X, you may see some of my activity there scaling down as it is increasingly ghost town-like. But, no fear, I will be continuing with my limited character text socials on Bluesky. Give me a follow and say hello if you’re over that way!

Oh and last last last thing - I have some free audiobook codes for my novella, The Balance on Spotify. If you’d like one, reply to this email and I’ll send one over, post haste.

Until December, keep warm, check in on your closest folks as things get chilly and dark - it’s not the easiest time of the year for some - and keep reading the scary stuff.

Kev