In the very early 80's I was growing weary of being a science fiction fan. The genre had changed so much by then. The work I loved from the 40's and 50's was being thought of as quaint, and the genre was thick with Tolkien, Roddenbery, and Lucas clones. Either that or the hard, nuts-and-bolts SF that was on the rise. I had no interest in any of it. Sure, good things were still coming out, regularly, but I needed something different.
I fount it in a collection of novellas called Nightmare Seasons. The author was named Charles L. Grant. Immediately I was no longer a science fiction fan. Nightmare Seasons was beautifully written, atmospheric, suspenseful, and full of great characters. From then on I was a horror fan, as well as a fan of the work of Charles L. Grant.
Grant had already amassed an enviable amount of fiction by then, both in novel and short story form. I read as much of it as I could get my hands on, and I liked it all.
But in addition to being one of the most talented horror writers of his time, Grant was also a prolific editor. He did plenty of anthologies over the years: Horrors, Fears, Greystone Bay, and After Midnight were among the titles he did, but Charles Grant is best known, and revered, as the editor of a series of anthologies called Shadows.
The Shadows books, like Grant's own fiction, specialized in what became known as "Quiet Horror". The stories Charles Grant bought and published were designed to give readers chills up the spine, rather than bile rising in the throat. Grant knew that a whisper could be more effective than a scream, if done by a talented writer. And Grant used the best-of the-best the genre had to offer.
One great thing about the Shadows books is, Grant never simply played The Name Game. Sure, he used many of the best-known writers in the field. But he also published plenty of works by unknown writers. Some of whom went on to become illustrious authors in the genre.
I loved the Shadows books. Bought 'em all in hardcover, and the spit-and-toilet paper Doubleday editions didn't even bother me. The books are all classic and should be read by anyone even remotely interested in horror fiction.
As the 1980's progressed, something began to happen to horror. Young writers were turning the genre on its head by writing hyper-violent, cinematic fiction that seemed to be more influenced by rock and roll and exploitation movies than by Poe, Lovecraft, or Bloch. Skipp and Spector, David J. Schow, Ray Garton, and many others revolutionized the genre, and a new era was ushered in. It was sometimes jokingly refereed to as "Splatterpunk". This wasn't good for writers like Charles Grant.
Fewer readers were interested in subtle chills. They wanted gouts of blood, lurid sex, hard rock, and horror movie sensibilities.
Hey, I'm not pointing fingers. I loved that shit. And while I never stopped reading people like Charles Grant or T.M. Wright, I favored the newer breed of horror.
Years and years have passed. It almost seems like Charles L. Grant is being forgotten. None of his books are in print, with the exception of very high end collectibles, and an impending e-book collection of his stories. Who remembers now that Grant sold a crapload of books? The used bookstores shelves were always filled with Grant titles. It all seems like such a long time ago.
As unimaginable as it may seem, the year is 2011. We've seen it all. Endless stories of outrageous sex and violence. A whacked out subgenre called Bizarro, which is exactly what you think it is. Endless zombies and vampires. Maybe it's time we went back.
Enter Al Sarrantonio. You all know his name, or at least you should know it. Sarrantonio is a legendary writer and anthologist in his own right. His credits are distinguished and unimpeachable. Mr. Sarrantonio has started his own publishing company called Flying Fox. Not only that, Sarrantonio has started an all-new series of anthologies called Portents. Portents strives to continue the tradition of excellence that was started by Charles L. Grant.
Portents is available now. I just received my copy and I'm thrilled with it already. This is a deluxe limited edition, and the quality is equal to that of books by Cemetery Dance or Subterranean Press. Best of all, Sarrantonio has kept the price at a reasonable level. Portents costs $30.00, plus five bucks shipping, which as you know is much cheaper than what the others are charging. Hell, I see books coming out that only contain one novella that cost nearly twice as much as Sarrantonio is charging for Portents.
Still not sold? Well, check out the roster of talent that Al Sarrantonio has assembled for this project: Gene Wolfe, Joyce Carol Oates, Ramsey Campbell, Joe R. Lansdale, Kit Reed, Tia V. Travis, Melanie Tem, Steve Rasnic Tem, Kealan Patrick Burke, Neal Barrett, Jr., Christopher Fowler, Elizabeth Massie, Nina Kiriki Hoffman, Kim Newman, Michael Laimo, Jeffrey Ford, Brian Keene, and Tom Piccirilli. The splendid cover art, which reminds me of an old Night Visions book, is by Alan M. Clark.
Portents is limited to 1000 hardcover copies, which are numbered and signed by the editor.
C'mon y'all. Haven't we had enough gallons of blood? Shambling zombie tedium? If we want the horror genre to be taken seriously, we need to support serious fiction. And don't get me wrong, I'll still read Edward Lee and other over-the-top fiction now and then. But I think it's time for me, and the rest of the genre, to go back and listen to what Charles L. Grant was whispering to us so long ago.
Please click on the cover image of Portents and order a copy. Though I haven't read it, I'm pretty sure you won't be disappointed.
I fount it in a collection of novellas called Nightmare Seasons. The author was named Charles L. Grant. Immediately I was no longer a science fiction fan. Nightmare Seasons was beautifully written, atmospheric, suspenseful, and full of great characters. From then on I was a horror fan, as well as a fan of the work of Charles L. Grant.
Grant had already amassed an enviable amount of fiction by then, both in novel and short story form. I read as much of it as I could get my hands on, and I liked it all.
But in addition to being one of the most talented horror writers of his time, Grant was also a prolific editor. He did plenty of anthologies over the years: Horrors, Fears, Greystone Bay, and After Midnight were among the titles he did, but Charles Grant is best known, and revered, as the editor of a series of anthologies called Shadows.
The Shadows books, like Grant's own fiction, specialized in what became known as "Quiet Horror". The stories Charles Grant bought and published were designed to give readers chills up the spine, rather than bile rising in the throat. Grant knew that a whisper could be more effective than a scream, if done by a talented writer. And Grant used the best-of the-best the genre had to offer.
One great thing about the Shadows books is, Grant never simply played The Name Game. Sure, he used many of the best-known writers in the field. But he also published plenty of works by unknown writers. Some of whom went on to become illustrious authors in the genre.
I loved the Shadows books. Bought 'em all in hardcover, and the spit-and-toilet paper Doubleday editions didn't even bother me. The books are all classic and should be read by anyone even remotely interested in horror fiction.
As the 1980's progressed, something began to happen to horror. Young writers were turning the genre on its head by writing hyper-violent, cinematic fiction that seemed to be more influenced by rock and roll and exploitation movies than by Poe, Lovecraft, or Bloch. Skipp and Spector, David J. Schow, Ray Garton, and many others revolutionized the genre, and a new era was ushered in. It was sometimes jokingly refereed to as "Splatterpunk". This wasn't good for writers like Charles Grant.
Fewer readers were interested in subtle chills. They wanted gouts of blood, lurid sex, hard rock, and horror movie sensibilities.
Hey, I'm not pointing fingers. I loved that shit. And while I never stopped reading people like Charles Grant or T.M. Wright, I favored the newer breed of horror.
Years and years have passed. It almost seems like Charles L. Grant is being forgotten. None of his books are in print, with the exception of very high end collectibles, and an impending e-book collection of his stories. Who remembers now that Grant sold a crapload of books? The used bookstores shelves were always filled with Grant titles. It all seems like such a long time ago.
As unimaginable as it may seem, the year is 2011. We've seen it all. Endless stories of outrageous sex and violence. A whacked out subgenre called Bizarro, which is exactly what you think it is. Endless zombies and vampires. Maybe it's time we went back.
Enter Al Sarrantonio. You all know his name, or at least you should know it. Sarrantonio is a legendary writer and anthologist in his own right. His credits are distinguished and unimpeachable. Mr. Sarrantonio has started his own publishing company called Flying Fox. Not only that, Sarrantonio has started an all-new series of anthologies called Portents. Portents strives to continue the tradition of excellence that was started by Charles L. Grant.
Portents is available now. I just received my copy and I'm thrilled with it already. This is a deluxe limited edition, and the quality is equal to that of books by Cemetery Dance or Subterranean Press. Best of all, Sarrantonio has kept the price at a reasonable level. Portents costs $30.00, plus five bucks shipping, which as you know is much cheaper than what the others are charging. Hell, I see books coming out that only contain one novella that cost nearly twice as much as Sarrantonio is charging for Portents.
Still not sold? Well, check out the roster of talent that Al Sarrantonio has assembled for this project: Gene Wolfe, Joyce Carol Oates, Ramsey Campbell, Joe R. Lansdale, Kit Reed, Tia V. Travis, Melanie Tem, Steve Rasnic Tem, Kealan Patrick Burke, Neal Barrett, Jr., Christopher Fowler, Elizabeth Massie, Nina Kiriki Hoffman, Kim Newman, Michael Laimo, Jeffrey Ford, Brian Keene, and Tom Piccirilli. The splendid cover art, which reminds me of an old Night Visions book, is by Alan M. Clark.
Portents is limited to 1000 hardcover copies, which are numbered and signed by the editor.
C'mon y'all. Haven't we had enough gallons of blood? Shambling zombie tedium? If we want the horror genre to be taken seriously, we need to support serious fiction. And don't get me wrong, I'll still read Edward Lee and other over-the-top fiction now and then. But I think it's time for me, and the rest of the genre, to go back and listen to what Charles L. Grant was whispering to us so long ago.
Please click on the cover image of Portents and order a copy. Though I haven't read it, I'm pretty sure you won't be disappointed.
The author does not allow comments to this entry
No comments