| Author | Message | ||
     Nathaniel Tapley (Natt) Username: Natt Registered: 11-2009 Posted From: 84.13.161.14 |
Saw that Johnny Mains got a namecheck in Charlie Higson's list of Top Ten Horror books at The Guardian site: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/sep/08/charlie-higson-top-10-horror-books?u tm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter The article itself is pretty dismissive of the genre, and lots of the books listed aren't actually books at all. A poor effort, but good to see Johnny's projects getting some attention. (As a sidenote and unrelated plug which I didn't want to give a thread of its own, In The Gloaming just won a Parsec Award for Best New Speculative Fiction Podcaster, had a lovely review of the live show http://bit.ly/bDy2li, and have just announced two new dates in London at Theatre Souk on the 22nd and 23rd September at 10 pm http://www.theatredelicatessen.co.uk/theatre-souk/. End plug.) | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 195.166.117.210 |
Way to network, Johnny!  Congrats on the award, Nat. | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 195.166.117.210 |
As a side note, isn't it lovely to see another dickhead celebrity sticking his toe into the water of a genre he clearly doesn't understand or have any true affection for? Sigh. | ||
| Johnny_mains (Johnny_mains) Username: Johnny_mains Registered: 04-2010 Posted From: 82.22.75.99 |
Congrats on the award Natt - will chat to you soon about BFTD. May have some good news for you! | ||
| Joel (Joel) Username: Joel Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 217.37.199.45 |
A little harsh, both, as Higson is a fine writer (I read his first novel) and these are all books except for one series of books and a pair of short stories that have appeared in the same book. And how many UK horror enthusiasts have read The Drive-In? | ||
| Weber (Weber_gregston) Username: Weber_gregston Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 194.176.105.55 |
I have!!! and the sequel... they're great books and up there with the absolute best that lansdale's written. | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 78.32.132.24 |
I've seen worse lists, but he does appear ill-read in indie horror. Where's Ramsey? If King's there, Ramsey should be. Where's Blackwood? Machen? Are the Pan books really the best representative of anthology horror? And he says Poe only wrote a couple of scary stories?! WTF. | ||
| Weber (Weber_gregston) Username: Weber_gregston Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 194.176.105.55 |
To be fair, Poe did write some shit as well - 'Four beasts in one - the homocameleopard' is a particularly bad story. 'Diddling considered as one of the exact sciences' is actually a very funny story. I would agree that the majority of Poe's stories that I've read aren't particularly scary. When they are scary, they really do work but you can't say that all his stories either work or scare. | ||
| Carolinec (Carolinec) Username: Carolinec Registered: 06-2009 Posted From: 82.38.75.85 |
>>Are the Pan books really the best representative of anthology horror?<< Well, in Higson's opinion they are - and it is, after all, just *his* list, his own opinion. The Pan Horrors have a special place in many people's hearts - mine included, as they were my first introduction to horror. OK they're not classics as such, but they're still very important because they introduced so many people to the genre. Note that Higson talks in the article about works which cross genre too - his suggestions are not necessarily "pure horror", whatever that might be. So I don't think it's really fair to criticise his breadth of reading. Though saying that Poe only wrote a couple of scary stories does indicate a level of ignorance which made me cringe. Anyway, congrats to Johnny and Natt - great work in furthering the cause of horror, lads!  | ||
| Carolinec (Carolinec) Username: Carolinec Registered: 06-2009 Posted From: 82.38.75.85 |
Ooops, crossed posts with you Weber. Now it looks like I consider you to be ignorant too for not thinking that Poe wrote many scary stories. That's not what I meant at all.  "Horses for courses", as the saying goes - ie. each to their own, we all have our own opinions. Are we still friends, Weber?  | ||
| Kate (Kathleen) Username: Kathleen Registered: 09-2009 Posted From: 81.152.74.159 |
Well done Johnny and Nat!  | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 78.32.132.24 |
Aickman? Oh, why am I arguing about a list? It's pointless. | ||
| Carolinec (Carolinec) Username: Carolinec Registered: 06-2009 Posted From: 82.38.75.85 |
That's the thing about list, Gary - they're personal. [I'm still worrying about whether I've upset Weber above] | ||
| Carolinec (Carolinec) Username: Carolinec Registered: 06-2009 Posted From: 82.38.75.85 |
Oh bugger - I meant "listS" | ||
| Weber (Weber_gregston) Username: Weber_gregston Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 194.176.105.55 |
I'm so upset with you caroline. i'll never speak to you again. Don't be such a silly sausage. | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 78.32.132.24 |
Don't worry about upsetting Weber. It's my hobby. | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 195.166.117.210 |
Joel - my comment to Johnny is a little in-joke from facebook. As for Higson: I stand by my opinion, I'm afraid. That artcile reads as if he knows very little about the genre and is jumping on both the zombie and YA bandwagons. And The Drive-in was very well marketed; it used to be in every book shop in the UK back when we had book shops in the UK. | ||
| Stevie Walsh (Stephenw) Username: Stephenw Registered: 03-2009 Posted From: 194.32.31.1 |
Top 10 Classic Horror Novels I have read to date: 1. 'Dracula' by Bram Stoker 2. 'Melmoth The Wanderer' by Charles Robert Maturin 3. 'At The Mountains Of Madness' by H.P. Lovecraft 4. 'The House On The Borderland' by William Hope Hodgson 5. 'The Strange Case Of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde' by Robert Louis Stevenson 6. 'The Turn Of The Screw' by Henry James 7. 'The Narrative Of Arthur Gordon Pym Of Nantucket' by Edgar Allan Poe 8. 'Frankenstein' by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley 9. 'The Monk' by Matthew Lewis 10. 'The Private Memoirs And Confessions Of A Justified Sinner' by James Hogg Top 10 Modern Horror Novels I have read to date: 1. 'The Ceremonies' by T.E.D. Klein 2. 'The Exorcist'/'Legion' by William Peter Blatty 3. 'The Haunting Of Hill House' by Shirley Jackson 4. 'The Religion' by Nicholas Conde 5. 'Harvest Home' by Thomas Tryon 6. 'Ghost Story' by Peter Straub 7. 'The Shining' by Stephen King 8. 'Voice Of Our Shadow' by Jonathan Carroll 9. 'The Long Lost' by Ramsey Campbell 10. 'I Am Legend' by Richard Matheson Top 10 Horror Novels I have read to date: 1. 'Dracula' by Bram Stoker 2. 'The Ceremonies' by T.E.D. Klein 3. 'Melmoth The Wanderer' by Charles Robert Maturin 4. 'The Exorcist'/'Legion' by William Peter Blatty 5. 'At The Mountains Of Madness' by H.P. Lovecraft 6. 'The House On The Borderland' by William Hope Hodgson 7. 'The Haunting Of Hill House' by Shirley Jackson 8. 'The Strange Case Of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde' by Robert Louis Stevenson 9. 'The Turn Of The Screw' by Henry James 10. 'The Narrative Of Arthur Gordon Pym Of Nantucket' by Edgar Allan Poe Take that Charlie Higson... | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
Steve - I was only thinking about where people would put 'The Shining' and 'Ghost Story' on a list such as this. And I agree with you. I found that both Ghost Story and Salem's Lot followed a lot of the same narrative trajectory, though perhaps this has something to do with the template than anything else. | ||
| Stevie Walsh (Stephenw) Username: Stephenw Registered: 03-2009 Posted From: 194.32.31.1 |
Sorry I haven't got back to you yet on your great story collection, Frank. Just been wild busy, and engrossed in too many classic books this summer to have any spare time, but I have it printed out and ring-bound and one of these days I'll get round to writing up my thoughts properly. | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
Steve - mate, relax, pal, I'm just glad you enjoyed some of the stories. Did my last message read as if I was prodding you for feedback. Sorry, if seemed that way, mate, but I REALLY was wondering about your thoughts on Ghost Story versus The Shining (to put it crudely). I love The Shining, but Ghost Story just edges it for me. BUT, I do think Lisey's Story is one of King's most perfect novels. I'm also a big big fan of Christine, Dolores Claiborne, Buick 8 and Salem's Lot. | ||
| Stevie Walsh (Stephenw) Username: Stephenw Registered: 03-2009 Posted From: 194.32.31.1 |
I have a kind of love/hate relationship with Stephen King. I unequivocally loved, and still do, all his early works, roughly up until 'It', but since then I've found him a bit hit-and-miss and increasingly self-indulgent. There's still no one can spin a gripping narrative like him in modern horror - I loved 'From A Buick 8' - but I do think he lost a bit of his edge around the mid-late 80s. Compare any of his early short story collections to any of his recent ones and this artistic mellowing becomes starkly apparent imho. 'The Shining' remains his horror masterpiece while my own personal favourite is still 'The Stand' - some day I must read the expanded edition! As for Peter Straub, he is much the better and more original horror author imo - his style exists somewhere half-way between the irresistible popularism of King and the unbending artistry of Ramsey Campbell. | ||
| Johnny_mains (Johnny_mains) Username: Johnny_mains Registered: 04-2010 Posted From: 82.22.75.99 |
Cheers folks! I did put on the Guardian website that I thought William Sansom should get more of a mention; he appears to be an author that's sadly faded into obscurity... | ||
| Stevie Walsh (Stephenw) Username: Stephenw Registered: 03-2009 Posted From: 194.32.31.1 |
Not with me, Johnny, not with me... several of his stories would still make it into any "Best Of Pan Series" I would edit. 'The Vertical Ladder' most of all... | ||
| Carolinec (Carolinec) Username: Carolinec Registered: 06-2009 Posted From: 82.38.75.85 |
>>'The Vertical Ladder' most of all...<< Oh yes! That was the story in Pan #2 which got me hooked on horror in the first place. | ||
| Joel (Joel) Username: Joel Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 91.110.156.38 |
Sansom is a great short story writer. 'A Woman Seldom Found' is a masterful weird tale. | ||
| Mark_samuels (Mark_samuels) Username: Mark_samuels Registered: 04-2010 Posted From: 81.159.8.178 |
Great to see some love for Johnny's recommendation for Sansom here. Mark S. | ||
| Simon Bestwick (Simon_b) Username: Simon_b Registered: 10-2008 Posted From: 86.24.209.217 |
Johnny- Sansom's very well recognised among a lot of weird fiction lovers. Tartarus did a bumper volume of his short fiction, if I recall. And yes, 'A Woman Seldom Found' is brilliant. Sounds like a shaggy dog story in summation, but when you actually read the damn thing, it gets more disturbing every time. | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
I agree with Gary about the absurdity of Higson's list. I have scoured it thoroughly and can find no trace whatsoever of my name. Scandalous.  | ||
| Johnny_mains (Johnny_mains) Username: Johnny_mains Registered: 04-2010 Posted From: 82.22.75.99 |
*Johnny- Sansom's very well recognised among a lot of weird fiction lovers. Tartarus did a bumper volume of his short fiction, if I recall.* That maybe - but outside of our little goldfish bowl, he probably doesn't get the credit he deserves... | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
You could say that about thousands of writers in all areas of literature. I've lost count of the number of writers I adore whom most other people have never heard of, even inside the genre. That's life, I guess. BUT, better to have accomplished something, whether widely read or not, to be admired on a small scale by other writers, than not. The fact that 'we' recognize and remember is more than most people could ever hope for. | ||
| Tom_alaerts (Tom_alaerts) Username: Tom_alaerts Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 194.78.35.185 |
I had no issues with the top 10 list in the Guardian. It's a personal opinion, and sometimes, like here, an invitation to explore more. Meanwhile I did check out a more extensive review of The Watcher and while it seems original, it is probably not my cup of tea. On the other hand, "The Killer inside me" is a book that tempted me already before. Did anyone here read it? Opinions? | ||
| Joel (Joel) Username: Joel Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 217.37.199.45 |
Very fine novel, Tom. And a photographically accurate portrait of Dubya before he was even born (or just a year or two after). | ||
| Stevie Walsh (Stephenw) Username: Stephenw Registered: 03-2009 Posted From: 82.17.252.126 |
I read 'The Killer Inside Me' a few months back and wrote up my thoughts on the "What Are You Reading" thread. On the strength of it, and 'The Getaway', Jim Thompson is an author I now can't get enough of... bleakness personified and a magnificent writer of rare psychological insight and intensity, with a knack for presenting casual brutality, with almost a shrug, that is devastating - the Ramsey Campbell of crime no less!! |