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wiltking · 2 years ago

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finished The Stark Divide by j. scott coatsworth

i liked it, but i wish i could have liked it more. conceptually there are a lot of really cool things going on. how many scifis about generational ships have horses? AIs with organic hearts? a heavy focus on natural elements and primitive survival skills as a safeguard against disastrous over-reliance on tech? not to mention the author's whole deal of casually (but firmly) queerifiying scifi.

but this whole thing really could have used a better editor. not only to fix continuity issues like a character's hair color changing from dark to inexplicably blond, a completely wrong name on the map, and the wrong form of a slavic character's name, but to help shape it into something better overall because there's so much potential here. and it had such a strong start! but parts 2 + 3 felt like they took massive steps back, mostly in terms of dialogue. a lot of it felt generic and even unnecessary. it was clean and idealized, almost characterless, which is unfortunate when the first part felt so (problematically, messily, interestingly) human.

now i need to dip into spoiler territory for this paragraph because it bothered me that we barely knew anything about colin's lifelong gay lover. even without any romance i would have liked to know more about the guy instead of having him as an extremely distant and vague presence the entire time. probably my biggest issue however is the instance where a character refers to a refugee camp as a literal "cancer on the land, the virgin territory of [ship's name]", when the entire reason for the camp's inhumane state is a direct result of governmental neglect. it's a bit. tonedeaf? especially coming from the 'good savior' character sent to sort out the camp. especially when, later, hundreds of other emergency colonists are suddenly forced into the same system, they're given instant access to communal mess halls and temp housing programs that were available all along but never repurposed to help with the refugee influx. like, okay. sure buddy. and we're never going to talk about the disconnect there? not even going to address it? not even going to have a list of the refugees' names after weeks of mismanagement? cool. you could frame this in a way that comments on how real refugee camps are run and how migrants from different origins are treated vastly different, but it blows my mind that there is none of that. it's all given at face value with zero narrative legwork and this presentation doesn't sit well with me.

overall i think coatsworth has good intentions with this story, and some genuinely fascinating ideas. but man looking at the downward slope of my enjoyment makes me sad.

#will probably still read the next book at the very least but i need detox with something better #i started one of gemma file's horror story collections and that has been. a dark and disturbing ride so far <3 #the stark divide #book thoughts #long post

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tanmath3-blog · 7 years ago

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Kenneth W. Cain first got the itch for storytelling during his formative years in the suburbs of Chicago, where he got to listen to his grandfather spin tales by the glow of a barrel fire. But it was a reading of Baba Yaga that grew his desire for dark fiction. Shows like The Twilight Zone, The Outer Limits, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, and One Step Beyond furthered that sense of wonder for the unknown, and he’s been writing ever since.

Cain is the author of The Saga of I trilogy, United States of the Dead, the short story collections These Old Tales and Fresh Cut Tales, and his latest Embers: A Collection of Dark Fiction. Writing, reading, fine art, graphic design, and Cardinals baseball are but a few of his passions. Cain now resides in Chester County, Pennsylvania with his wife and two children.

1. How old were you when you wrote your first story?

Five or six, I believe. It was an awful rendition of the whole Baba Yaga thing.

2. How many books have you written?

Written or published? Written, I would say, so far: 6 novels, 5 novellas, 4 collections of short stories, and maybe a hundred stories that aren’t in those books that will likely end up in other collections. As well as a bunch of poetry, a lot of which is in a themed collection, most of which is still unpublished. The most recent releases will be a novella titled A Season in Hell (due out September 7th) and my next collection, Darker Days (due out December 7th).

3. Anything you won’t write about?

No, I don’t believe in taboos. There are stories in every taboo. They say not to kill the dog, but there’s a story there as well. It’s been done, too. I have to tell the story I have to tell. If it’s in me, it’s going to get out, like it or not.

4. Tell me about you. Age (if you don’t mind answering), married, kids, do you have another job etc…

I’m 48, married to a wonderful woman with two kids. I write pretty much full-time, other than keeping up chores around the house and coaching my son’s baseball teams.

5. What’s your favorite book you have written?

It has to be A Season in Hell. This short book tackles many modern issues, things that matter to me. It’s hard-hitting, and a love story for the game of baseball.

6. Who or what inspired you to write?

If I had to put he onus on just one person, it would have to be my mom. She loved horror, and growing up, I saw several movies (The Omen, Psycho, etc). They fueled my passion, but so did discovering the stories in the various Writer’s Digest books my parents kept on their shelves. It’s there I discovered Poe. Or perhaps it was hearing that Baby Yaga story for the first time.

7. What do you like to do for fun?

Read. That’s fun for me. I also like to check out an original series now and then. Nothing that’s been rehashed or rebooted but something really original. Like Dark on Netflix. I also like gardening, fishing, coaching baseball, trying to play my guitars, drawing and painting, hanging with my family, and enjoying the beauty of this world.

8. Any traditions you do when you finish a book?

Wine! A bottle of Merlot, something like Smoking Loon.

9. Where do you write? Quiet or music?

I have an office…now, with a desk and all, though it’s more like a dungeon to me. As for music, it varies. Sometimes it’s music, which can be anything from Pink Floyd to Metallica to Sinatra. Other times, I listen to baseball games or baseball chat. Then there are the podcasts I listen to, sometimes chat about the craft and other times stories. My brain is usually able to separate the two, so I can write a story and still hear what I’m listening and process it. Kind of weird. But there’s also times I need silence.

10. Anything you would change about your writing?

Well, I would have started much earlier for one. I don’t know why I started so late, but it often feels like it’s too late. And I’d be far more patient, not taking the first offer, honing my craft before I rushed out there. I likely wouldn’t have hurried to get so much out there.

11. What is your dream? Famous writer?

I’m living my dream. At least I think I am. I get to write a lot, read a lot, do all the things I enjoy. I married an awesome woman who is SO supportive of all my endeavors and two really bright children who are blossoming into great adults. And sometimes, once in a very great while, someone will leave a kind review or contact me or make a post about something I wrote, and it will touch my heart deeply. Who could ask for more?

12. Where do you live?

Chester County, Pennsylvania.

13. Pets?

I recently got rid of all my reef tanks, but I’ve had several over the years, as well as many, many birds. Right now, though, I have two dogs, a Catahoula leopard mix named Iggy and a Labradoodle named Kady. They’re both sweet, loving dogs.

14. What’s your favorite thing about writing?

Getting it all out of my head. It’s cathartic; helps me sort my thoughts and feelings in a way I can deal with them. I’m putting myself out there for my readers, getting naked with my feelings. Hopefully they get something from my stories that elicits a similar feeling.

15. What is coming next for you?

A young adult novella entitled Shadows in the Storm where Nita faces off with Shade, leader of the Shadow People. Though I still have to work on finding a publisher for the book.

16. Where do you get your ideas?

My inspiration typically starts with a seed from something I know quite well. For instance, with A Season in Hell (due out September 7th from Crystal Lake Publishing) I drew from my long career playing baseball, as well as coaching. The story is about a woman playing baseball in the minor leagues back in the nineties and what she must endure just to play the game she loves. For that story I took from my own personal experience, even down to the smallest details like taping up a torn muscle with duct tape just so I could play the next game.

There’s another element to the process, what I call the “what if” moment. You’ll see a lot of that in my shorter work. For instance, there’s this story in my collection Fresh Cut Tales entitled “Split Ends.” I was sitting at a pool while on vacation watching a mother furiously brush the knots out of her daughter’s hair and thinking about the “what if.” In this case, what came to mind was a disease, one the mother and daughter thought was very real, and it was but only mentally in this case. So that story is about the struggle of a mother not to succumb to that mental disease.

Additional info:

I have three books coming out this year (all three through Crystal Lake Publishing). Details for all three books follow

The first is a novella entitled A Season in Hell. Due out September 7th. 

“Kenneth W. Cain takes timely social topics and explores them against the backdrop of America’s pastime. What begins as a baseball story quickly delves into something rich, deep, and dark.” – Mercedes M. Yardley, author of Pretty Little Dead Girls

Synopsis:

When Dillon Peterson is honored for his baseball career, he must face a ghost that has long haunted him. He is transported back through his memories to a single season in the nineties that broke his heart. That was the season he met Keisha Green, the first and only woman to play baseball in the minor leagues. He sees what she goes through, what she must endure just to play the game both of them love, and this struggle leads to their friendship. As matters escalate, Dillon finds himself regretting his role in it all, as well as his career in baseball.

“A Season in Hell is a gut-wrenching, heartbreaking story. You won’t soon forget Dillon or Keisha. Her struggle is as timely today as ever. A Season in Hell is also a love letter to baseball and how, despite everything, the game can still heal and bring people together who seemed impossibly far apart, and can do so through intimidating odds. A timeless story of true humanity.” —John Palisano, Vice President of the Horror Writers Association and Bram Stoker Award-Winning Author of Night of 1,000 Beasts

The second is Tales From The Lake Volume 5. Due out November 2nd.

Poetry:

“From the Mouths of Plague-Mongers” – Stephanie M. Wytovich

“Malign and Chronic Recreation” – Bruce Boston

“Final Passage” – Bruce Boston

Short stories: 

TBD – Gemma Files 

“In the Family” – Lucy A. Snyder 

“Voices Like Barbed Wire” – Tim Waggoner 

“The Flutter of Silent Wings” – Gene O’Neill 

“Guardian” – Paul Michael Anderson

 “Farewell Valencia” – Craig Wallwork

 “A Dream Most Ancient and Alone” – Allison Pang

 “The Monster Told Me To” – Stephanie M. Wytovich

 “Dead Bodies Don’t Scream” – Michelle Ann King 

“The Boy” – Cory Cone

 “Starve a Fever” – Jonah Buck 

“Umbilicus” – Lucy Taylor 

“Nonpareil” – Laura Blackwell 

“The Midland Hotel” – Marge Simon

 “The Weeds and the Wildness Yet” – Robert Stahl 

“The Color of Loss and Money” – Jason Sizemore

 “The Loudest Silence” – Meghan Arcuri 

“The Followers” – Peter Mark May 

“A Bathtub at the End of the World” – Lane Waldman

 “Twelve by Noon” – Joanna Parypinski 

“Hollow Skulls” – Samuel Marzioli 

“Maggie” – Andi Rawson

The third is my fourth collection, Darker Days. Due out December 7th. 

“Darker Days, the latest collection of short stories by Kenneth W. Cain, delivers on its title’s promise. From the very first story readers are dragged into seemingly ordinary situations that serve as cover for dark secrets. Ranging from subtle horror to downright terror, from science fiction to weird fantasy, Cain demonstrates a breadth of styles that keeps you off-balance as you move from one story to the next. There is something for everyone in this collection–as long as you don’t want to sleep at night!” – JG Faherty, author of The Cure, Carnival of Fear, and The Burning Time.

Now that you’ve warmed by the embers, submerge in darker days.

The author of the short story collections These Old Tales, Fresh Cut Tales, and Embers presents Darker Days: A Collection of Dark Fiction. In his youth Cain developed a sense of wonderment owed in part to TV shows like The Twilight Zone, The Outer Limits, One Step Beyond andAlfred Hitchcock Presents. Now Cain seeks the same dark overtones in his writing.

There’s a little something for every reader within this collection. These 26 short speculative stories arise from a void, escaping shadows that ebb and weave through minds like worms, planting the larvae that live just under the skin, thriving upon fear. These are Cain’s darker days.

In this collection, Cain features stories from the Old West, of past lives and future days, the living and the dead, new and unique monsters as well as fresh takes on those of lore. Once more he tackles themes of loss and grief, and the afterlife, always exploring the greater unknown. In “The Sanguine Wars,” Cain takes us to a future where soldiers are made to endure the horrors of war. He explores the complexities of global warming and what lengths men and women alike sink to in “The Reassignment Project.” And, as often is the case, he ends on a lighter note, with “Lenny’s New Eyes” and “A Very Different Sort of Apocalypse.”

When the darkness comes, embrace it. Let it wrap you up in cold. Don’t worry, it’s not your time…yet.

INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING STORIES:

▪“A Ring For His Own”

▪“Heirloom”

▪“Rust Colored Rain”

▪“Prey”

▪“Passing Time”

▪“What Mama Needs”

▪“My Brother Bit Your Honor Roll Student”

▪“Outcasts: The Sick and Dying 1 – Henry Wentworth”

▪“The Sanguine Wars”

▪“The Hunted”

▪“Her Living Corals”

▪“Puppet Strings”

▪“The Trying of Master William”

▪“By The Crescent Moon”

▪“Mantid”

▪“The Underside of Time and Space”

▪“Outcasts: The Sick and Dying 2 – Gemma Nyle”

▪“The Griffon”

▪“Adaptable”

▪“When They Come”

▪“The Reassignment Project”

▪“Presage”

▪“One Hopeless Night by a Clan Fire”

▪“Lenny’s New Eyes”

▪“Outcasts: The Sick and Dying 3 – Anna Kilpatrick”

▪“A Very Different Sort of Apocalypse”

You can connect with Kenneth W. Cain here:

Website: https://kennethwcain.com

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorKennethWCain/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KennethWCain

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kennethwcain/

Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.com/Kenneth-W.-Cain/e/B004HHALF6/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

Some of Kenneth W. Cain’s books:

Getting personal with Kenneth W. Cain Kenneth W. Cain first got the itch for storytelling during his formative years in the suburbs of Chicago, where he got to listen to his grandfather spin tales by the glow of a barrel fire.

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nightmareonfilmstreet · 7 years ago

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[Exclusive] A Conversation with Adam Nevill, Author of THE RITUAL

New Post has been published on https://nofspodcast.com/exclusive-conversation-adam-nevill-author-ritual/

[Exclusive] A Conversation with Adam Nevill, Author of THE RITUAL

Now you scream. Into the darkness. Above, behind, forward and below. Scream until your throat rubs to rust. Scream at the futility because there is no one to hear. -Adam Nevill, The Ritual

Not everyone can say that they love what they do, and that’s especially true for those of us lucky enough to work in retail. It can be a withering experience, wearing on your soul and your mind until you become a jaded husk of who you were at the start. The good news is that there are ways to combat this mental deterioration, and one of the tricks that I have found is to find a position selling a product that you love and believe in. In my two years in the business, there are few artists that I have come to love and believe in more than Adam Nevill.

Working in a bookstore is a dream come true. Every day is an opportunity to expose someone new to the filmmakers, recording artists and authors that are important to you. Many of your customers come in without a specific title or author in mind, looking to be inspired by what’s on the shelves and tables. The retail-jargon for this is “Serendipitous Discovery”. Over the past year or so, I have tried to be an Agent of Serendipity by handing a copy of The Ritual by Adam Nevill to as many customers as I can. This is easier than it sounds because his books appeal to so many different types of readers. Nevill’s novels offer everything for a reader to enjoy; technical proficiency, beautiful prose, character development and pants-wetting horror.

If you’re unfamiliar with The Ritual, here‘s a synopsis to whet your appetite:

When four old University friends set off into the Scandinavian wilderness of the Arctic Circle, they aim to briefly escape the problems of their lives and reconnect with one another. But when Luke, the only man still single and living a precarious existence, finds he has little left in common with his well-heeled friends, tensions rise. With limited experience between them, a shortcut meant to ease their hike turns into a nightmare scenario that could cost them their lives. Lost, hungry, and surrounded by forest untouched for millennia, Luke figures things couldn’t possibly get any worse. But then they stumble across an old habitation. Ancient artifacts decorate the walls and there are bones scattered upon the dry floors. The residue of old rites and pagan sacrifice for something that still exists in the forest. Something responsible for the bestial presence that follows their every step. As the four friends stagger in the direction of salvation, they learn that death doesn’t come easy among these ancient trees

Rafe Spall Stars as Luke in The Ritual, Based on the Novel by Adam Nevill

The Ritual was the first book of Adam’s that I read and I can understand why it was turned into a feature film. The novel is dark, atmospheric, foreboding and so well paced that you find it difficult to set it down. It’s not a short read by any means, sitting at 430 pages or so, but I have had several customers and co-workers approach me and say that they flew through it in only one, or two sittings. I’ve experienced that same feeling with each of Adam’s novels, oftentimes staying up until dawn to finish them. I have to stay up, for if I were to stop reading, then I would be forced to turn off the lights and face the nightmares that he conjured inside my head.

With the release and promotion of The Ritual film, down-time in not a concept Adam has much familiarity with these days. He was gracious enough to answer a few questions for us at Nightmare on Film Street about the film making process he went through with his novel and the artists that inspire him to write the incredible tales that he does.

Tyler Liston for Nightmare on Film Street: What inspired you to start writing horror fiction?

Adam Nevill: My Dad reading books to me as a child. James Joyce’s Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man sealed the deal. I read that at 16.

NOFS: Have you had time to read lately? If so, who are some current horror authors that you recommend? (NOTE: Book titles in parentheses added by the interviewer)

AN: I never stop reading. Vital for my own writing, inspiration, concentration, the endless discourse of considered imaginative language that I need around my own work. [As] for Recs: Nathan Ballingrud (North American Lake Monsters: Stories), Gemma Files (Experimental Film), John Langan (The Fisherman), Aliya Whiteley (The Beauty), Catriona Ward (Rawblood), Josh Malerman (Bird Box), Stephen J. Clark (In Delerium‘s Circle), Reggie Oliver (Mrs. Midnight: And Other Stories), F.R. Tallis (The Sleep Room)…all doing such interesting things in the field. Great time for new horror right now.

NOFS: What are a few horror films that scare and inspire you?

AN: Of late, Kill List, The Ghoul, The Borderlands, Mother, It Comes at Night, The Autopsy of Jane Doe, The Visit and A Dark Song.

NOFS: The Guardian once called you “Britain’s answer to Stephen King”… Is this comparison a motivator for you?

AN: It’s tempting to be flattered as I love The King’s books, but it’s mainly a handy phrase for mainstream reviews of new horror fiction. Who else are we ever compared to? So I never let it go to my head and his die-hard fans have given me grief as if I claim to be some sort of answer. I’m just a minion giving horror my best shot.

NOFS: How would you describe adapting The Ritual for the big screen?

AN: My experience of page-to-screen was very favorable: a great production company packed with very talented people kept me in the loop and treated me like a pagan deity. They invited me out to the shoot on a mountain in Romania and threw a great cast and crew screening. Top people who made me want more film action as they did such a terrific job of adapting the book.

NOFS: What type of feedback have you personally heard about the film?

AN: Nearly all positive, from what I’ve read and heard. Plenty of mixed reviews exist, too, but I’ve only read three who found nothing at all to enjoy or praise about the film. And it was extensively and widely reviewed, so a very positive experience (against all odds for an indie horror film).

NOFS: There are few novels that have truly frightened me like Last Days, and I feel like it would make an amazing horror film. Which of your titles do you feel would make the best film?

AN: I would love to see Last Days made, then No One Gets Out Alive next. Lost Girl is also begging for an adaptation! The Ritual was the one that was imagined as a film at the novel stage, and that’s been done now.

NOFS: So, what’s next for Adam Nevill?

AN: My second collection of short stories is just out- Hasty for the Dark– which completed 20 years of my choice of my short fiction with the companion volume Some Will Not Sleep that was published last Halloween. And I am currently writing draft five of a new novel. I hope it’ll be in better shape by Christmas, and maybe completely done by early next year. I began last November but it still needs work.

If you haven’t already, pick up a copy of The Ritual and experience one of the world’s finest horror authors for yourself. While you’re at it, you might as well pick up a copy of Last Days at the same time, because I guarantee that The Ritual will not last long on your nightstand. I would like to again thank Mr. Nevill for taking the time to answer a few of our questions and for being an inspiration to so many that love the horror genre.

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Kim and Jon saw The Ritual at TIFF (LUCKY FACES). Read Kim’s review HERE and let us know what you think! What is your favorite Adam Nevill novel? What other horror novels are begging for a film adaptation? Hit us up on Twitter or our Facebook Group Page and let us know.

#adam nevill #horror #horror author #horror books #horror fiction #last days #new horror #new horror film #official tiff selection #Stephen King #the ritual #tiff #tiff 2017 #tiff horror