Beauty and the Brute - two horny devils!

First of all, on a vastly more reverential note than the headline would suggest, happy Easter to everyone - even if the weather is a little strange here in the UK. After a relatively mild Christmas by the standards of previous years, we've now been hit by an Arctic April. As I look from my study window, instead of the normal spring cherry-blossom and sun-kissed grass, snow is blizzarding across a frozen wilderness. But never mind. Most of the people I know tend to live inside their own heads anyway, so what the heck?

Now onto the nitty gritty - a few items of news before we all kick back for a couple of days' holiday.

First of all, on the movie front, it's a case of Beauty and the Brute. Those of you who remember the last movie I wrote - THE DEVIL’S ROCK - will recall Gina Varela (left) as our pert and sensual demoness. Well, the first piece of casting has been made for the next film, DARK HOLLOW - an adaptation of Brian Keene's best-selling novel, and the object of evil in this one could not be more different. Shane Rangi is a muscular, 6ft 9ins Maori he-man, and followers of sdword and sorcery action movies will remember him, first of all, as the ferocious elephant-rider in LORD OF THE RINGS and, secondly, as Dagan, the gigantic gladiator in SPARTACUS: GODS OF THE ARENA.

It's now been officially announced that Shane (right) will play Hylinus, the horny monstrosity who in DARK HOLLOW is summoned from the Pennsylvania backwoods to indulge in some extremely nefarious goings-on.

I won't say more except draw your attention to the DARK HOLLOW FACEBOOK PAGE, where director, Paul Campion, who also directed THE DEVIL’S ROCK, posts regular updates (and I even chip in myself, with the occasional pearl of wisdom).

For that small but fortunate band who are interested in what I have to say generally, you might want to look up an extensive interview with me in the latest edition of the online horror magazine, MORPHEUS TALES. I wax lyrical for several pages about myself, my interests and my views on the art of writing and writing as a career.

I don't think anyone's going to actually learn anything from it apart from how much I can waffle, but I'm reassured by those who love me that it's a compulsive read. If you're so inclined, get in there and check it out.

on the subject of projects of mine, a few folk have been in touch recently, asking where TERROR TALES OF THE COTSWOLDS has got to. Well ... all I can say is chill the XXXX out!

Though we mentioned that it was available for pre-order several weeks ago, those with even longer memories may recall that we said it would actually be published around Easter-time. We'll actually beat that by a couple of days. I'm led to believe by a reliable source (i.e. the publisher) that TERROR TALES OF THE COTSWOLDS is now shipping.

Those who've already placed orders should be receiving it very soon. For those who haven't yet bought, here are a handful of extra enticements:

... the green hillside, where a four-footed horror dines on children ...

... the walled-off basement where ancient pictographs tell a twisted tale ...

... the country house where baronets rub shoulders with gangsters and demons ...

... the lonely cottage in the secluded wood, and the thing that came knocking at its door ...

Go on, admit it - there's no resisting that lot, is there? Keep watching this space, meanwhile, for the next one in this series - TERROR TALES OF EAST ANGLIA. We're aiming for a June release with that one, so it's already in the works.