Devilish deeds in dark and dismal rooms

The horror movie I wrote for Chameleon Pictures, THE DEVIL’S ROCK, which went on general release earlier this year, now appears to be doing business on a global scale. The rights to many territories have been sold, but it is also hitting the festival circuit in a big way.

The latest news on that front sees THE DEVIL’S ROCK included in the schedules at the OUTCRY FILM FESTIVAL, Norway (Oct 27-29) and the SAN SEBASTIAN HORROR AND FANTASY FILM FESTIVAL, Spain (Oct 29 - Nov 4). These follow on from its screening at the Icon TLV Fantastic Film Festival in Tel Aviv, Israel, last weekend.

In other news connected to the movie, leading man Craig Hall, who played the conflicted Captain Ben Grogan (and is pictured below during filiming with the film’s director, Paul Campion), has landed a plum role in Peter Jackson’s THE HOBBIT (one of the Elves apparently), so I guess that’s going to keep him busy for a while.

There is also good news for Craig, who’s a finalist in New Zealand’s Aotearoa Film & TV Awards for 2011, in the capacity of Best Supporting Actor for his performances in BLOODLINES, and for one of the movie’s crew-members, Phil Burton, who is up for Best Sound Design for his work on PANIC AT ROCK ISLAND. Good luck to both of those guys. They deserve it.

Meanwhile, the movie’s female star, Gina Varela, pictured right in the sort of pose which shows she can make just about any costume look good, is interviewed in depth along with Paul Campion in the latest edition of NEXUS.

This is a cracking read, and it's worth popping in to have a look.

Folk keep asking me if there will be a follow-up movie, THE DEVIL’S ROCK 2 by any chance? Well … would it be revealing too much to say that I’ve now received my first official set of preliminary notes regarding a possible sequel? I can’t say too much more about it, except that from what I see here, if it goes ahead, it will be a much bigger operation, with more chills, more action and more demons.

On the subject of follow-ups, I can also reveal that I’ve now officially commissioned the second in my TERROR TALES OF … series of anthologies, which are being published by GRAY FRIAR PRESS.

The first one, TERROR TALES OF THE LAKE DISTRICT, did astonishingly well very quickly. An unofficial launch at Fantasycon 2011 – an event attended by an almost unprecedented 500 delegates – provided a great platform for us of course, but the book can now be ordered via AMAZON UK and AMAZON US as well. And the sales are continuing at a healthy rate of knots.

In all honesty, though I’ve got great plans for this series of books, and though I’m a lover of horror stories inspired by folklore and local history, I always had it in the back of my mind that this entire plan was possibly a little over-ambitious. I certainly did not expect to be drawing up the second volume before Christmas, but I’m never one to look a gift-horse in the mouth.

The writers are all now on board, terms have been agreed, and the stories are being written. The cover, I’m told, is already on its way to completion. I hasten to add that the book won’t be published until 2012. You can’t afford to hurry these things too much – so for that reason I’m not going to reveal anything else about the book yet. In the homespun philosophy of my neck of the woods, a closed mouth gathers no foot.

However, just as a mischievous little taster, look at the picture below. if you can identify that room, then it’s likely you'll recollect the truly devilish deed that was done there. And that will tell you all you need to know about the region of Britain which the next book in the series will focus on.

Dark water, evil hags and misty mountains

I learned today that TERROR TALES OF THE LAKE DISTRICT, my first anthology as editor, which was published by GRAY FRIAR PRESS just over two weeks ago, is selling very well indeed.

This is great news, as we fully intend to continue with this series of ‘regional’ horror anthologies for as long as they are able to earn their keep, so thus far there are no complaints.

Needless to say, I’m delighted with some of the writers I’ve attracted to this first book in the series. Names like Adam Nevill, Reggie Oliver, Simon Clark, Ramsey Campbell, and others, ought to be dripping off the tongues of all true horror fans, and I’ve got some equally illustrious names now lining up for the next volume – but no, I’m not going to give anything away just yet (keep watching this space, though).

TERROR TALES OF THE LAKE DISTRICT is now available directly from AMAZON (UK and US), and for those still dithering about whether or not to buy, here – courtesy of the indefatigable Mark West, is a rather nice little YouTube trailer for the book – CHECK IT OUT.

If that doesn’t whet your appetites, what will?

Perhaps this rather nice comment passed on the amazing VAULT OF EVIL message board, one of the most informed 'horror anthology' forums currently online:

Where better to recuperate than the Lake District with its breathtaking views, idyllic villages, quaint customs, bracing fresh air, bone-crushing hags, petrified hikers, mobile monoliths, disquieting gummy ferrymen, ancient witchcraft, black sorcery, and more White Ladies of this or that lake than you can shake a stick at? Keep your wits about you, kids. You're in cagoule country now. They do things different 'round here …

Oh yeees. Couldn’t have put it better myself.

(With special thanks to 'Demonik' for that very cool quote).

The sun, the sea and not-so-silent screams

Well, Fantasycon 2011 was as much of a blast as I expected it to be. It’s a torturous round-trip from Lancashire to Brighton, but it was well worth it for the sun, the beer and the multiple reunions with old friends.

Lasting memories will be the temperature (we were officially hotter on the Saturday than Saudi Arabia), the scorching curry Cath and I shared with Steve Lockley and artist Vinnie Chong, and John Llewellyn Probert and Thana Niveau’s amazing ‘pantomime’ rendition of BLOOD ON SATAN’S CLAW and the 1960s shocker, CORRUPTION. The striptease acts were also quite memorable – the girls were covered with Cthulhu tattoos so that meant it was a horror show rather than a display of sexist objectification (honest!); but I don’t care, I enjoyed it for both reasons.

In terms of official activities,THE DEVIL’S ROCK was screened in the ‘midnight movie’ slot on the Friday. In retrospect, this might not have been a great idea. The screening was well attended, but plenty of people were plastered and, having in many cases driven hundreds of miles to get there that day, were wilting at such a late hour. But the only alternative was an early evening slot on the Friday, and I wasn’t convinced that was ideal either as so many delegates would still be checking in. I handled the Q&A afterwards – and though there are some photos of this event, I haven’t received any yet, so you’ll just have to trust me that it actually happened.

Anyway, many thanks to all those who attended the movie, enjoyed it and asked intelligent questions afterwards, which was just about everyone who was in there.

There was some controversy surrounding the awards ceremony, but that’s been dealt with on other websites and at an official level now, so I won’t dredge up the details here. There was certainly nothing controversial about the results in the categories in which I had high hopes. I had one nomination – SPARROWHAWK – in the Best Novella category, but the prize went to Simon Clark’s HUMPTY’S BONES (pictured above), and two – WALKERS IN THE DARK and ONE MONSTER IS NOT ENOUGH – in the Best Collection category, but the prize went to Stephen King for FULL DARK, NO STARS. It’s certainly no shame to lose out to either of those giants of the genre - in fact it's an honour to be mentioned alongside them - and as Simon in particular is a good friend of mine, I reiterate the hearty congratulations I offered to him at the time. Simon is a worthy winner on any occasion.

I did have one minor success during the event. We unofficially launched TERROR TALES OF THE LAKE DISTRICT, my first anthology as editor, which was published a couple of weeks ago by Gray Friar Press, and it went down great guns. In fact, it sold so many copies in its first weekend (and this is before we even start placing it with Lake District booksellers) that we’ve now been encouraged to move rapidly onto the next volume.

Our long term plan is for this to extend into a full ‘regional’ TERROR TALES OF … series, concentrating initially on the UK, but maybe moving further afield in due course. During the convention I had a lots conversations with top writers whose work I’d like to include, and almost all were keen to get involved. So this is a space you’ll definitely need to keep watching with regard to developments.

I’m unashamed to mention that this idea been strongly influenced by the Fontana ‘Tales of Terror’ series edited by R. Chetwynd-Hayes (sometimes under a pseudonym) back in the 1970s, though most of those books reprinted a lot of existing (albeit little known) horror fiction.
I will be publishing some classic reprints in my series, but for the most part it will be new and original material. One clear similarity between the two series will be the anecdotal ‘true horror stories’ that I’ll be interspersing between the ‘made up’ stories. It’s a bit worrying, actually – you don’t have to dig very deeply into any region’s history of folklore, crime or the occult to find some very bizarre and disturbing events (as those who’ve now read TERROR TALES OF THE LAKE DISTRICT will hopefully attest).


One last item of news, unrelated to any of those which have gone above – my forthcoming short novella from Spectral Press, KING DEATH, has now provisionally sold out. I’m not sure whether that will be received as good news or bad news, but as it’s only officially released in December, I must, as the author, take it as a thumbs-up.

Whether it’s a timely thing to mention here or not, there has already been one online review for this story, on Good Reads. I won't go into too much detail because the whole review can be found HERE, but phrases like "terrific imagery", "excellent story" and "gripped from start to finish" are always music to a writer's ears.

Mixing business and pleasure in Brighton

There won't be too much activity on this blog in the next few day - at least, not from me - as I'll be heading down to FANTASYCON in Brighton, where I have a few items of business to deal with.

First off, on Friday night (Sept 30th), at 11.50pm, I'll be hosting the 'midnight movie slot' by presenting THE DEVIL’S ROCK, which, by all accounts has gone down great guns during its recent New Zealand release.


Pictured is the street poster that accompanied the movie's debut in the Land of the Long White Cloud.

The latest reviews are very favourable.

HORRORNEWS.NET says of us:

THE DEVIL'S ROCK is everything that I love about an effective horror film. Some of the best horror films have been slow burns. They build the tension and suspense through character. When the reveal does make an appearance (though apparent) it still manages to give you a jolt ... This is a film that might fly under the radar but worth your time to seek out.


In addition at FANTASYCON I'll be publicising (and hopefully selling a few copies) of my first ever horror anthology as editor - TERROR TALES OF THE LAKE DISTRICT. This collection from Gray Friar Press presents ten original works of fiction, plus three classic reprints, not to mention numerous anecdotal accounts of real incidents of paranormal terror - all with a Lake District background. Such luminaries as Ramsey Campbell, Reggie Oliver, Adam Nevill, Peter Crowther and others, light up our pages. The amazing artwork (pictured) is by Steve Upham. My aim is to create a new series of regionally-themed British horror anthologies, with this one the first installment.


After this, the other main item on the agenda is the BRITISH FANTASY AWARDS. I have three titles on the final shortlist - ONE MONSTER IS NOT ENOUGH (Gray Friar) and WALKERS IN THE DARK (Ash-Tree) in the capacity of Best Collection By A Single Author and SPARROWHAWK (Pendragon) in the capacity of Best Novella.

This is the most pieces of work I've ever had still in the running at this late stage in the prestigious annual awards. It doesn't mean I've won anything. All three may flunk - after all there is some sterling opposition, but it's very nice to make the final ballot in any shape or form as it means that, if nothing else, my peers regard my output last year as being worth something. Of course, it would be nice to actually win ... but that's in the lap of the gods, as they say.

Familiar faces and a new peril - Hexagora!

I'm rather pleased by the uber-cool trailer for my next Dr Who audio drama from Big Finish, HEXAGORA, which has now been made available. Check it out by following the link.


HEXAGORA, which will be released on November 30th this year, is a four-part adventure for the Fifth Doctor, starring Peter Davison as the venerable Time Lord, Janet Fielding as Tegan, Sarah Sutton as Nyssa, and guest-starring the imcomparable Jacqueline Pearce (of Servalan fame in BLAKE'S SEVEN), as the domineering Zafira.

HEXAGORA was adapted from a storyline called HEX, which was developed by Peter Ling and Hazel Adair and first commissioned by the BBC back in July 1983, though for various reasons it did not progress beyond the basic outline stage. Suffice to say that this modern version, though true to several of the original concepts, is significantly different in many other ways.

One thing I hung onto defiantly was the quasi-romantic subplot, which originally was included to take advantage of Peter Davison being the first youthful looking Dr Who (though of course purists will remember that William Hartnell, who was one of the oldest, also enjoyed a flirtatious adventure in THE AZTECS, way back in 1964). In the modern age, with David Tennant's Doctor an out-and-out romantic hero, and Matt Smith the unwilling gooseberry in the Amy-Rory-Doctor ménage a trois, it probably doesn't seem that big a deal, though it certainly would have been back in the 1980s.

Anyway, if that doesn't ring your bell, not to worry - we've still got lashings of mystery, horror and high concept sci-fi to get you going. It all starts with the Tardis crew following a missing Earthling, possibly an alien abductee, to an uninhabited planet in another galaxy, and there, to their amazement, discovering an exact replica of Tudor London ... and I'm afraid that's as much as your getting at present. Producers aren't too keen on their writers releasing unofficial spoilers shortly before the product is actually released.

Hopefully though, there's enough in our little trailer to get your juices running.

Sex, violence and very hot pizza - suits me!

With only one day to go before THE DEVIL’S ROCK gets its long awaited premiere in its native New Zealand, there's so much excitement down there that I’m damned sorry I’m currently on the other side of the world – director Paul Campion and star Gina Varela are, as we speak, doing an interview with TVNZ at Wright’s Hill Fortress, where many of the exteriors were filmed, while NZ’s TV1 and TV3 will be on the red carpet with the cast and crew at the premiere itself in Wellington.

Though I’m a Brit, I’m proud to have written the script for this New Zealand movie. Of course, originally I never knew it was going to be a New Zealand movie. That came about because Paul Campion, who has dual British and New Zealand nationality, found great interest down there when he was discussing the project with various potential financiers. And once the highly energised New Zealand film producer Leanne Saunders got hold of it, there was no stopping us.

It became a full New Zealand production, complete with New Zealand money, a New Zealand cast, New Zealand facilities, (incredible) new Zealand locations, and who else but those New Zealand-based pioneers of state-of-the-art FX and props, the WETA Workshop, already so famous for the visual miracles they worked on movies like LORD OF THE RINGS and KING KONG.

On the subject of which, the two on-set production stills I’ve included above display WETA technicians doing what they do best – touching up the grue.

To the left is undoubtedly a more aesthetically pleasing picture. You’ll need to forgive my vagueness here – as I said, I'm on the other side of the world at present – but this has something to do with New Zealand's own Hell Pizza chain, who’ve been doing their bit to promote the movie on the Island of the Long White Cloud. Whether this is supposed to be an actual representation of the devilishly sexy Gina Varela, I’m unsure, but the similarities are remarkable.

For the record, I received this image with an assurance from director Paul Campion that “Hell Wrath pizza with extra olives, jalapenos and anchovies with forked tongue double chillies is absolutely my favourite pizza in the world”. Don’t know about you guys, but that got my stomach juices churning.

I was also elated to see the movie’s latest review, via MORE HORROR. It is one of our best to date, and actually gives the writer quite a bit of credit, which certainly makes this a red-letter day when it comes to online reviews. Check out these enjoyable quotes:

The Devil's Rock is a great example of what can be achieved with a great script and a low budget. This is a very tight and claustrophobic film with some great performances from the leads. Paul Finch has produced an excellent script that captures what I think a film about Nazis and demons should be.

In an era when almost every other horror movie is a major dumbfest or a reworking of an older film, it was great to sit and watch an intelligent film that didn’t treat the audience as if it was comprised solely of prepubescent teenage boys.

Speaking as a serious film-writer (as well as a prepubescent boy) that’s the sort of review I like.

I hope the film’s premiere goes as well down in New Zealand as it did in Britain, and that as many get to see it in the cinemas as they did in Canada at the Fantasia Film Festival.

All I can say is that THE DEVIL’S ROCK has been an absolute blast. Not just working on it, but experiencing the excitement and the unique atmosphere of a movie release – which, when it’s a movie you were at the heart of, really takes you to another plain.

I don’t think I’m breaking too much of a confidence if I now reveal that we are engaged in serious discussions about THE DEVIL’S ROCK 2. As always, watch this space for more.

My first anthology as Editor - here it is!

Well … I’ve been waiting with baited breath for several long months to announce this latest project. It is the first ever horror anthology edited by yours truly.

It’s called TERROR TALES OF THE LAKE DISTRICT, and it will be available to pre-order from the tireless GRAY FRIAR PRESS from tomorrow afternoon (Saturday, 17th September).

For those of you who don’t know the UK, the Lake District is a wild, mountainous region in northwest England, famous for its astonishing scenery: towering crags and ridges, and deep, majestic lakes. It is one of the most popular holiday destinations in the whole of Britain, particularly for climbers, hikers, campers and yachtsmen. But some corners of it are extremely remote and even now in the 21st century remain wreathed in superstition and rural mystery. The above cover, which comes to us courtesy of artist Steve Upham, illustrates one such spooky legend – Tom Fool, the demonic jester of Muncaster Castle.

Here, for your interest, is the official back-cover blurb:

The Lake District – land of mountains and megaliths, night-black lakes and fathomless woods filled with spectral mist …

The eerie entity on Striding Edge
The living corpse of Croglin
The demented clown of Muncaster
The winged horror of Langdale
The drowned bride of Windermere
The hairy brute of Beetham
The nightmares on Burnmoor

And many more chilling tales by Ramsey Campbell, Adam Nevill, Simon Clark, Peter Crowther, Reggie Oliver, Gary McMahon and other award-winning masters and mistresses of the macabre.

The book contains ten works of original horror fiction set in the Lake District, and three classic reprints. It also features numerous anecdotal tales concerning supposedly true incidents of Lakeland terror.

In case your appetites haven’t been whetted enough, here is the full table of contents:

Little Mag’s Barrow by Adam L.G. Nevill
The Mad Clown of Muncaster
The Coniston Star Mystery by Simon Clark
The Croglin Vampire
Devils of Lakeland by Paul Finch
The Mumps Hall Murders
The Moraine by Simon Bestwick
The Tawny Boy
The Claife Crier by Carole Johnstone
The Monster of Renwick
Jewels in the Dust by Peter Crowther
The Devil’s Hole
Above the World by Ramsey Campbell
Nightmares of Burnmoor
The Jilted Bride of Windermere by Gary Fry
The Horror at Carlisle Castle
Walk the Last Mile by Steven Savile
The Poltergeist of Walla Crag
Framed by Peter Bell
Fiend’s Fell
Night of the Crone by Anna Taborska
The Tortured Souls of Lord’s Rake
Along Life’s Trail by Gary McMahon
The Black Hound of Shap
Striding Edge by Reggie Oliver

I can’t thank these authors enough for their efforts, not to mention Steve Upham, whose artwork is astonishing, Gary Fry of Gray Friar Press, who has been hugely supportive and helpful throughout, and Steve Lockley for his advice.

This project has been a year in the making and, as such, is very close to my heart. It wasn’t entirely hitch-free, but this is the first anthology I’ve created on my own, and hopefully it won’t be the last. In fact, at the risk of running before my horse to market, I would like this to be the first volume in a brand new series of regionally-themed British horror fiction, but of course we must at least break even with this first book before we can proceed with my other plans. So you guys know what you need to do – get ordering! (You won’t be disappointed).