#j w ocker

[rachel-sylvan-author]

"The United States of Cryptids: A Tour of American Myths and Monsters" by J.W. Ocker

Thank you @thecaseofbooks for the rec! ❤️

[blackpaintedeyes]

had this book for years and its still in great condition, mostly because it keeps fucking vanishing any time i think to actually read about whats in it. popped up again today, taking this so i know i still own it. real interesting stuff on objects like the hope diamond, and places like king tut's tomb.

if i didnt like the read so much i probably would have just gotten rid of it by now, but i get the feeling it'd show back up anyways

[forthegothicheroine]

[Poe's] genius is so inescapable that we find it necessary to introduce stories of madmen, of murder, of exotic torture and obsession with death to our children in school just because we need to show them what great literature is or else fail in our roles as educators, decent people, and apex predators.

J. W. Ocker, Poe-Land: The Hallowed Haunts of Edgar Allan Poe

[goodluckclove]

WRITERS - Read More Nonfiction! (With Recs)

Okay so before I start I'm making it very clear that I don't say this as some generalized statement about how All Online People Aren't Reading Right. I doubt that's true! But based on some of the threads and discourse I see on my corner on Writeblr, it definitely seems like a lot of you would greatly benefit from expanding the scope of what you read.

I think there's probably a big stigma against nonfiction for a lot of people - there was for me for the longest time. Maybe six years ago, though, I stumbled into the genre and found that it can actually be rad as shit. It's been an invaluable form of research from people who definitely know what they're talking about, as well as a way to open myself up to new ideas.

You have chronic writers block? It could potentially be because you're consuming exclusively one genre of media. If that's the case, this will definitely get the gears turning!

Below are a collection of my favorite nonfiction books from my own shelf. The funny thing I immediately learned about suggesting more than like three nonfiction books at a time is that it does paint a kind of intimate picture of who I am. Feel free to tell me if these recommendations surprise you based on who you view me to be.

Clove's Favorite Nonfiction Books!

The Mystery of the Exploding Teeth by Thomas Morris - a collection of historical medical cases back when someone would see a doctor for a gunshot wound and the doctor would treat it with a laxative. WILD stuff.

American Monsters by Linda S. Godfrey - US cryptids! Lots of first person accounts.

Cursed Objects by J. W. Ocker - Famous cursed shit. Quick read but very fun.

The Cloudspotter's Guide by Gavin Prector-Pinney - this was written by the founder of the Cloud Appreciation Society, a real organization. It tells you everything you need to know about clouds. Fascinating.

Gory Details by Erika Englehaupt - stories and studies of more morbid and "gross" aspects of science, like the guys who stung themselves with instincts to measure the pain or that beach that feet kept washing up on for a while. Cool interviews with science people.

Fuzz by Mary Roach - wild animals break the law a lot actually and we still as a species don't really know what to do about that.

Spook by Mary Roach - an account of Ghost Believing from all sides of the argument. There was a guy who measured dying bodies to see if he could see them get lighter as their soul escaped.

Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimberly - an indigenous-influenced look at our relationship as a species to nature around us. Really beautiful prose from someone who I believe is primarily a botanist and activist?

All the Living and the Dead by Hayley Campbell - stories and analysis from different aspects of the death industry! Embalmers to crime scene cleaners! Super interesting!

American Afterlives by Shannon Lee Dawdy - I have. A lot of death culture books. A lot. This one talks about all the neat things people in America do with their bodies after they die in the modern age. It's fun!

Dark Archives by Megan Rosenbloom - so this IS a book on the history of Anthropodermic bibliopegy, or books bound in human skin. I'm actually midway through this now and it's super fascinating and cool. Also my wife refuses to talk to me about this so I'd love someone else to talk to.

The Secret Lives of Color by Cassia St. Clair - I read like four books on color theory and pigment for a novel I wrote a few years ago and this was my favorite. It's a look into a ton of major hues and pigments throughout history as well as a peek into the timeline of color making. Did you know making green fabrics used to be illegal?

Atlas Obscura - a fucking cool look into weird and unique spots across the globe. Every artist who works with places should have access to this. It's awesome.

Every Caitlin Doughty book they're all great. She's a modern mortician and founder of the Order of the Good Death. Just an incredible human being and a super engaging and informative writer.

If someone wants to reblog with their favorite nonfiction books and what they got from them, be my guest! Maybe someone could use a new read to get their next idea or refine what they're currently working on!

[witchyfashion]

Meet the monsters in our midst, from bigfoot to Mothman and beyond! Welcome to the United States of Cryptids, where mysterious monsters lurk in the dark forests, deep lakes, and sticky swamps of all fifty states. From the infamous Jersey Devil to the obscure Snallygaster, travel writer and chronicler of the strange J. W. Ocker uncovers the bizarre stories of these creatures and investigates the ways in which communities embrace and celebrate their local cryptids. Readers will learn about:   • Batsquatch of Washington, a winged bigfoot that is said to have emerged from the eruption of Mount Saint Helens • Nain Rouge of Michigan, a fierce red goblin that has been spotted before every major city disaster in Detroit • Flatwoods Monster of West Virginia, a robotic extraterrestrial that crash-landed in rural Appalachia • Lizard Man of South Carolina, a reptilian mutant that attacked a teenager in the summer of 1988 • Glocester Ghoul of Rhode Island, a fire-breathing dragon that guards a hoard of pirate treasure • And many more!   Whether you believe in bigfoot or not, this fully illustrated compendium is a fun, frightening, fascinating tour through American folklore and history, exploring the stories we tell about monsters and what those stories say about us.

https://amzn.to/3PSMUVE

[statecryptids]

Went to the first annual Glawackus Day at the Historical Society of Glastonbury! Glad to see the town finally celebrating its local cryptid.

Also got some cool cryptid books from the River Bend Bookshop:

Connecticut Cryptids by Patrick Scalisi and Valerie Ruby-Omen

The United States of Cryptids by J. W. Ocker

[haveyoureadthispoll]

An illustrated compendium that reveals the true stories behind the most infamous, creepy, and bizarre real-life cursed objects throughout history. Spanning decades and continents, subjects range from the opulent Hope Diamond to the humble Busby Stoop chair. They're lurking in museums, graveyards, and private homes around the world. Their stories have inspired countless horror movies, reality TV shows, campfire tales, books, and even chain emails. They're cursed objects, and in order to unleash a wave of misfortune, all they need...is you. As a culture, we can't seem to get enough of cursed objects. But never before have the true stories of these infamous real-life items been compiled into a fascinating and chilling volume. Entries include: • Annabelle the Doll, a Raggedy Ann doll which inspired the acclaimed horror franchise The Conjuring • The Tomb of Tutankhamen, the discovery of which kicked-started media hysteria over a rumored "Curse of the Pharaohs" • The Ring of Silvianus, a Roman artifact believed to have inspired J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit • The Hope Diamond, which was owned by kings and inspired the Heart of the Ocean in James Cameron's Titanic • The Dybbuk Box, which was sold on eBay and inspired the horror film The Possession Whether you believe in curses or not, the often tragic and always bizarre stories behind these objects will fascinate you. Many of them have intersected with some of the most notable events and people in history. But beyond Hollywood and beyond the hysteria, author J. W. Ocker suggests that cursed objects are simply objects which have been witness to great human tragedy, and thereafter operate as mechanisms for remembering and retelling those stories. Cursed Objects will be equally appealing to true believers as well as history buffs, horror fans, and anyone who loves a good spine-tingling tale.

[thezombieprostitute]

"I'm going to give you the moral of the story up front for this one: be careful what you dig up in your garden; you may unleash werewolves." - Cursed Objects by J. W. Ocker.

If that's not a story prompt, I don't know what is! 😂

[silelda]

"With dolls, there's often a thin line between cursed and haunted. Dolls personify curses a little bit more than other objects, and when a cursed object can stare back at you, it's a thousand times spookier."

-Cursed Objects by J. W. Ocker

[rudjedet]

I'm reading a book that talks about famous cursed objects, when it sticks to facts it's not bad. But then it veers off with shit like "that's what happens when you touch the stuff of a death obsessed culture like the ancient egyptians" j w ocker is gonna be the death of me

well speaking for me i'm gonna be the death of j w ocker because can you imagine writing that shit in the year of our lord two thousand and twenty, what the fuck

[shitpost-quote]

"“Cursed” is often used synonymously with “haunted” and “possessed”, but these three qualities are distinct. The difference is one of intelligence. Cursed items have none. They're objects that have become bad luck via someone who has purposefully cursed them or by happenstance."

-J. W. Ocker, Cursed Objects: Strange but True Stories of the World's Most Infamous Items

[arg-machine]

Books read recently...

Well, looks like December 2024 is going to be a busy month for machine HQ. Provided he’s not plagued by any problems, arg plans to make public selected sounds, samples and loops from his most recent audio track – the Shock Engine Theme. Before that, however, he’ll be posting previously-unseen material from the Professor Fear chronicles, like those he’s already posted here, here and also here. So as y’all can see, he’s going to be somewhat occupied preparing/readying material for these posts…

…and kicking things off is this latest instalment of Books Read Recently, the second one this year [here’s the first, published a few months ago]. Like all previous instalments, this one also features books he’s either read [since the previous one went online], is currently reading or intends to read in the coming weeks.

End-of-year books! Here they are – books arg has read and enjoyed [or intends to read and hopes to enjoy]. Titles from related genres [or with similar themes] are listed in the Also Recommended sections. Ready? Here we go…

“Have you ever wondered how ordinary people end up enmeshed in extreme cults? Everything you’ve ever wanted to know about history’s most notorious cults – and the people who join them – is packed into this accessible, engaging volume. Walk in the footsteps of those who were lured into such sinister groups as:

Branch Davidians: This cult was waiting out the Apocalypse when the FBI infamously raided their compound in Waco, Texas.

Los Narcosatánicos: This group of drug traffickers in 1980s Mexico committed human sacrifice and believed their leader had magic powers.

Breatharianism: Breatharians believe that humans can live on air alone, and their founder claimed to have gone without food for seventeen years.

NXIVM: This twenty-first-century cult attracted celebrities and engaged in sex trafficking, forced labor, and racketeering under the guise of personal development seminars.

Heaven’s Gate: The Heaven’s Gate UFO cult ended in the suicide of thirty-nine members who believed they would ascent to a spaceship after death.

In this fascinating collection, weird history expert J. W. Ocker sheds light on the terrifying attraction of cults, demonstrating the elasticity of belief, the desperateness of belonging, and the tragedy of trust.”

“Los Angeles, 1916: Photographer Bill Ogden has opened a portrait studio in the seedy noir world of early Hollywood, where he is joined by his granddaughter, Flavia – a woman in need of a fresh start after bludgeoning her drunken, abusive husband to death in Wichita. Though his business is mainly legit, Bill finds himself brushing up against the porn industry growing in the shadows of the motion picture mainstream.

When a series of grisly murders take place across the city, Bill and his capable granddaughter are pulled into events as tricky and tangled as anything this side of The Big Sleep. We meet dreamers, opportunists, washed-up former stars and starry-eyed newcomers, a cast of unforgettable characters living on the margins looking to make a quick buck, launch a career, or just keep their family together.

The Devil Raises His Own is at once a stripped-down noir thriller and a panoramic look at Los Angeles at the beginning of motion pictures – a Boogie Nights set in the era of D.W. Griffith and Charlie Chaplin from one of the best crime novelists working today.”

Also recommended: White City by Dominic Nolan, The Collaborators by Michael Idov and The Rule of Three by Sam Ripley.

“Elemental Forces is the fifth volume in the non-themed horror series of original stories, showcasing the very best short fiction that the genre has to offer, and edited by Mark Morris.

This new anthology contains twenty original horror stories, sixteen of which have been commissioned from some of the top names in horror, and four selected from the many stories sent to Flame Tree during a short open submissions window. A delicious feast of the familiar and the new, the established and the emerging.”

Also recommended: Night Side of the River by Jeanette Winterson and Where the Dead Brides Gather by Nuzo Onoh.

“When a teenager vanishes from her Adirondack summer camp, two worlds collide...

Early morning, August 1975: a camp counselor discovers an empty bunk. Its occupant, Barbara Van Laar, has gone missing. Barbara isn’t just any thirteen-year-old: she’s the daughter of the family that owns the summer camp and employs most of the region’s residents. And this isn’t the first time a Van Laar child has disappeared. Barbara’s older brother similarly vanished fourteen years ago, never to be found.

As a panicked search begins, a thrilling drama unfolds. Chasing down the layered secrets of the Van Laar family and the blue-collar community working in its shadow, Moore’s multi-threaded story invites readers into a rich and gripping dynasty of secrets and second chances. It is Liz Moore’s most ambitious and wide-reaching novel yet.”

Also recommended: The Missing Family by Tim Weaver, I Might Be in Trouble by Daniel Aleman and Think Twice by Harlan Coben.

“A Navajo Ranger’s chilling and clear-eyed memoir of his investigations into bizarre cases of the paranormal and unexplained in Navajoland.

As a Native American with parents of both Navajo and Cherokee descent, Stanley Milford Jr. grew up in a world where the supernatural was both expected and taboo, where shapeshifters roamed, witchcraft was a thing to be feared, and children were taught not to whistle at night.

In his youth, Milford never went looking for the paranormal, but it always seemed to find him. When he joined the fabled Navajo Rangers – a law enforcement branch of the Navajo Nation who are equal parts police officers, archaeological conservationists, and historians – the paranormal became part of his job. Alongside addressing the mundane duties of overseeing the massive 27,000-square-mile reservation, Milford was assigned to utterly bizarre and shockingly frequent cases involving mysterious livestock mutilations, skinwalker and Bigfoot sightings, UFOs, and malicious hauntings.

In The Paranormal Ranger, Milford recounts the stories of these cases from the clinical and deductive perspective of a law enforcement officer. Milford’s Native American worldview and investigative training collide to provide an eerie account of what logic dictates should not be possible.”

“A terrifying tale of supernatural horror set in a cursed Louisiana bayou, from the minds of legendary film maker George Romero and bestselling author Daniel Kraus.

In 2019, while sifting through University of Pittsburgh Library’s George A. Romero Archival Collection, novelist Daniel Kraus turned up a surprise: a half-finished novel called Pay the Piper, a project few had ever heard of. In the years since, Kraus has worked with Romero’s estate to bring this unfinished masterwork to light.

Alligator Point, Louisiana, population 141: Young Renée Pontiac has heard stories of “the Piper” – a murderous swamp entity haunting the bayou – her entire life. But now the legend feels horrifically real: children are being taken and gruesomely slain.

To resist, Pontiac and the town’s desperate denizens will need to acknowledge the sins of their ancestors – the infamous slave traders, the Pirates Lafitte. If they don’t... it’s time to pay the piper.”

Also recommended:The Crows by C. M. Rosens and Sacrificial Animals by Kailee Pedersen.

“In Iran, a curator has gathered foreign journalists for a VIP tour of her latest creation. As the guests wander her museum's halls, she shares the struggles she's faced in bringing together this exhibition of her profession – especially the gender inequity she's battled for her entire career.

But the Sound Museum is no ordinary institution. It is a museum of torture, wrought from the audio recordings pulled from interrogation rooms and prison cells. And the curator – her unbroken monologue drifting through archives, philosophy, and dreams – is only too happy to share her part in this globe-spanning industry.

With sensuous and lyrical prose, Sound Museum bears witness while calling into question the act of witnessing, drawing the reader into the uncomfortable position of confronting one woman’s psyche; evil, yet completely blind to her own depravity.”

Also recommended: Ghost Mother by Kelly Dwyer, Dogs and Wolves by Hervé Le Corre and The Madness by Dawn Kurtagich.

“A woman falls to her death from a London bank’s twenty-fifth-floor roof terrace.

You're arrested for her murder. You tell the police that you had only met the victim the previous night at your office party. She was threatening to jump down from the roof, but you had talked her down. You've got nothing to do with this tragedy. You're clearly being framed…

So why do the police keep picking holes in your story? Even your lawyer doesn't seem to believe you. It soon becomes obvious that you're keeping secrets. But who are you trying to protect? And why?”

Also recommended: The Suspect by Rob Rinder and Such Lovely Skin by Tatiana Schlote-Bonne.

machine HQ's Retro Pick!

Famously adept at telling tall globe-spanning tales of alternate-history/SciFi adventures and at cadging [countless] cigarettes from fellow boarders, Mr Ghanashyam Das [a.k.a Ghanada] is an institution!

There is no corner of the world that he hasn’t set foot in – from darkest interiors of Africa to bleakest Himalayan snowscapes [where, as he claims in a tale, he once battled the Abominable Snowman or the Yeti!], no danger that he has failed to avert [including – again as he claims in his tales – preventing major disasters and wars!] and no villains he has left unpunished [including Nazis, mad scientists and evil warlords!]. Why, he’s even been to… Mars! [if you believe his stories, of course...]

First appearing in the mid-1940s, a few of Ghanada’s famous tales are available in English in Adventures of Ghanada [2006, National Book Trust, India] and in Mosquito and Other Stories [2004, Penguin, India] – great places to make your acquaintance with this classic character!

And that’s it for this Books Read Recently post; visit The Apocalypse Project [on Mastodon, twitter/X and tumblr], check out the machinstagram and stay tuned to machine HQ blog for more funky stuff coming this month!

[sandersstudies]

What does this say about me

Image description, or if the titles aren’t legible,

The Vulcan Academy Murders by Jean Lorrah

Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie

The Long Walk by Stephen King

Confessions by Saint Augustine

Twelve Nights at Rotter House by J. W. Ocker

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

I don’t usually post “what I read in a month” or anything bookblr around here. But I just stacked up everything I read in August and wow this is a weird assortment of books to put together.

[forthegothicheroine]

In the prison that once stood here [in Salem], Dorothy Good spent time before doing nine months in a Boston jail. The accusation of Dorothy Good was when the trials should have ended, just a few weeks after they began. The accusation of Dorothy Good is when everyone should have looked sheepishly at their shoe buckles, the accusers frozen mid-dance, the judges awkwardly clearing their throats, suddenly engrossed in their notes. Dorothy Good should have been a potent antidote to the hysteria. She was four years old when she was chained up.

J. W. Ocker, A Season with the Witch: The Magic and Mayhem of Halloween in Salem, Massachusetts

[aislynndmerricksson]

5 Books to Try if You Like... The United States of Cryptids by J W Ocker

Monsters Among Us by Linda S Godfrey An intriguing look into the world of cryptids and monsters that have been spotted all over the United States. It is filled with unique stories and first-hand accounts of encounters that will leave readers with a sense of wonder and amazement.   Tracking the Man-Beasts by Joe Nickell This book provides an investigative look into people’s claims of sightings of…

[reaganwarren]

I keep running into typos in this book by J. W. Ocker.

I’m enjoying it because I plan to visit next year but the typos should have been easily corrected and makes it difficult to take him too seriously. And I kinda think he’s rude but there’s lots of valuable information in the book.