Have You a Tamerlane? Down the Rabbit Hole of U.S. Literature’s Black Tulip

Column by Leah Dearborn June 16, 2021
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Have You a Tamerlane? Down the Rabbit Hole of U.S. Literature’s Black Tulip

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“It has been my happiness to start many earnest searchers on the endless trail, and it is my boast that I have disrupted more homes than all the divorce courts in the land,” Vincent Starrett wrote in a 1925 Saturday Evening Post article titled, "Have You a Tamerlane in Your Attic?” 

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What Is Identity Marketing?

Column by Peter Derk June 15, 2021
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What Is Identity Marketing?

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A column about identity is a dangerous thing to write. But identity marketing is something that affects your life, and you need to know about it.

If you’re a writer or bookseller, you might do it intentionally, you might do it unintentionally, or you might have it done for you with no regard for your opinion on it.

If you’re a reader, you’re being sold books (and other stuff) through identity marketing.

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Mary SanGiovanni Makes the Best Monsters

Column by Jay Wilburn June 14, 2021
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Mary SanGiovanni Makes the Best Monsters

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Mary SanGiovanni is by far one of the most talented authors working in horror today. She is a singular creative voice in modern cosmic horror, and her depth of knowledge about the subgenre is incredible. I suspected as much from reading her work, but listening to her Cosmic Shenanigans podcast opened my eyes to the vast library of knowledge she possesses about the many instances of cosmic horror in books, comics, movies, visual art, and more.

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Comics vs. Television: "Invincible" Animates Well

Column by BH Shepherd June 11, 2021
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Comics vs. Television: "Invincible" Animates Well

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Superhero cartoons have always been a real mixed bag. For every truly timeless classic, there are dozens of glorified toy commercials. You always hope for another Batman: The Animated Series, but usually we just get cheaper, uglier versions of our beloved characters having laboriously tame, child-friendly confrontations, while ignoring all of the great storytelling that made the comic book a property worth adapting in the first place.

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Shane Hawk: A Strong New Indigenous Voice in Horror

Interview by Andrew Fowlow June 10, 2021
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Shane Hawk: A Strong New Indigenous Voice in Horror

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Photo courtesy of the author

With 2021 comes a ton of great work to look forward to in the horror genre, but after reading Shane Hawk's debut anthology, Anoka, I am most excited to see his name in collaboration with publisher's like Death's Head Press and Howl Society. Anoka is a collection of shocking and disturbing short stories crafted with the perfect blend of folklore and supernatural horror. I'm going to be keeping my eye on Hawk as he delivers fresh literary frights to unsuspecting readers.

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"Burroughs And Scotland — Dethroning the Ancients: The Commitment of Exile" by Chris Kelso

Review by Gabriel Hart June 9, 2021
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"Burroughs And Scotland — Dethroning the Ancients: The Commitment of Exile" by Chris Kelso

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It’s not as niche as it sounds. Chris Kelso’s Burroughs and Scotland (Beatdom Books) is an exploration of Burroughs’s rarely mentioned but highly-formative era in Scotland, jam packed with broadly hinging historical significance — just when you thought every stone of Uncle Bill had been overturned since his death in 1997.

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A Year Expanding the Canon: Reading Non-WASP Stories

Column by Rob Blair Young June 8, 2021
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A Year Expanding the Canon: Reading Non-WASP Stories

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I had what's considered a traditional education when it comes to literature: The standard curriculum for an English major during my undergrad, further exploration of the literary canon in my MFA program, and independent reading guided by the "classics." What this means is that I am fairly fluent when it comes to the traditional, English-language "canon."

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The Swartzwelder Method: Because Writing Should Be Fun

Column by Peter Derk June 7, 2021
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Tiny Book Battle: Publishing Under a Microscope

Column by Leah Dearborn June 4, 2021
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Tiny Book Battle: Publishing Under a Microscope

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Header image via Pixabay

In case you were wondering (but you probably weren’t), it’s possible to purchase a Bible that is one nanometer (nm) large—that is one billionth, or 10 to the ninth power, of a meter, the comparative size of a marble to Earth. This Bible can only be read with an electron microscope.

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I Wrote A Story Every Day for a Month on Live Stream

Column by Jay Wilburn June 3, 2021
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I Wrote A Story Every Day for a Month on Live Stream

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In a desperate attempt to keep myself relevant and draw undeserved attention to my writing, I keep coming up with gimmicks to try. This time I decided to write a story a day for the entire month of May while livestreaming on Twitch. When I tell this story to other people, I frame it to make me look like an innovator, a thought leader, and worthy of admiration.

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