The moment you’ve all been emailing and messaging us about has arrived! Preorders are now live for John Langan’s new collection Corpsemouth and Other Autobiographies, as well as the new Word Horde edition of his long out-of-print debut collection Mr. Gaunt and Other Uneasy Encounters.
Preorder your copies today from Word Horde, and you’ll also receive signed bookplates from John Langan, and free eBooks in your preferred format.
It’s been a fantastic year for Word Horde books (and their striking covers) so far—from Christine Morgan’s Vikings to Molly Tanzer’s Decadents—but we’re just getting started!
We’ve also got a pair of collections from John Langan coming late summer/early fall. A reissue of John’s long out-of-print first collection, Mr. Gaunt and Other Uneasy Encounters will be released in August, and a brand new collection, Corpsemouth and Other Autobiographies will wrap up our production year in October. Both will feature more amazing art from Children of the Fang cover artist Matthew Jaffe. Keep watching this space for cover reveals and preorders!
We’re super excited to tell you about our first two titles acquired for 2022!
First up is a new collection from World Fantasy Award-winning author Scott Nicolay. Dropping in February (2.22.22!), And at My Back I Always Hear is a sizeable collection of stories and novellas from the always erudite and provocative Nicolay.
Following in April will be the debut novel from S. L. Edwards, In the Devil’s Cradle, a captivating haunted house novel where the house is an entire country, a nation coming apart due to influences both internal and external, both natural and supernatural.
Why follow the herd? Join the Horde!
Word Horde is proud to present a collaboration with StoryBundle, curated by Molly Tanzer. Here’s Molly:
We are fortunate enough to be witnessing a lush flowering of horror. From New Weird to throwback splatterpunk, the modes and expressions of the genre these days are as diverse as its writers. Whether you’re intimately familiar with the contemporary horror field, or just looking to dip your toe in a very deep—and monster-infested—pond, this bundle of horror novels and collections from sensational independent publisher Word Horde is not to be missed. You’re sure to find something strange, something scary, something transgressive, something that jumps out at you and demands to be reckoned with.
Word Horde’s list is eclectic, in the best way. Readers will find plenty of cosmic horror here, such as Brian Hauser’s Memento Mori, nestled alongside literary works such as John Langan’s The Fisherman, and lighter fare such as my own weird western Vermilion. You’ll also find a lot of music-inspired horror such as David Peak’s Corpsepaint, Tony McMillen’s An Augmented Fourth, and Carrie Laben’s A Hawk in the Woods. If you like your horror shorter, if not necessarily sweeter, we have a few stand-out collections, too. Orrin Grey’s Guignol & Other Sardonic Tales will dazzle you, Nadia Bulkin’s She Said Destroy will rebuke you, and Livia Llewellyn’s Furnace will incinerate you from within. As you can see, every book in this bundle has been selected because it’s essential reading for the up-to-date reader of modern horror fiction.
Like all speculative fiction, horror serves as a lens; as a mirror, really. When we read horror, we read about ourselves. That’s why it makes us shiver and squirm. So, enjoy seeing yourself reflected throughout the Horror Bundle from Word Horde. Only you’ll know if you’re seeing yourself in the heroes—or the monsters.
–Molly Tanzer
For StoryBundle, you decide what price you want to pay. For $5 (or more, if you’re feeling generous), you’ll get the basic bundle of five books in any ebook format—WORLDWIDE.
• Corpsepaint by David Peak
• A Sick Gray Laugh by Nicole Cushing
• A Hawk in the Woods by Carrie Laben
• The Fisherman by John Langan
• She Said Destroy by Nadia Bulkin
If you pay at least the bonus price of just $15, you get all five of the regular books, plus TEN more books, for a total of fifteen!
• Beneath by Kristi DeMeester
• An Augmented Fourth by Tony McMillen
• Memento Mori – The Fathomless Shadows by Brian Hauser
• Stonefish by Scott R. Jones
• Furnace by Livia Llewellyn
• Guignol & Other Sardonic Tales by Orrin Grey
• The Human Alchemy by Michael Griffin
• The Raven’s Table by Christine Morgan
• The Unnamed Country by Jeffrey Thomas
• Vermilion by Molly Tanzer
This bundle is available only for a limited time via http://www.storybundle.com
John Langan, author of the Bram Stoker Award-winning novel The Fisherman, returns August 18, 2020 with a new book of stories: Children of the Fang and Other Genealogies
An aspiring actress goes to an audition with a mysterious director. An editor receives the last manuscript of his murdered friend. A young lawyer learns the terrible connection between her grandfather and an ancient race of creatures. A bodyguard drives her employer across a frozen road toward an immense hole in the earth. In these stories and others, John Langan maps the branches of his literary family tree, tracing his connections to the writers whose dark fictions have inspired his own.
Introduction by Stephen Graham Jones
Cover Art by Matthew Jaffe
Cover Design by Scott R. Jones
Pub Date: August 18, 2020
Preorder your copy today!
Happy Book Birthday to Kristi DeMeester, whose debut novel Beneath hits the streets today. If your Walpurgisnacht weekend reading includes Beneath, please help us spread the word by posting a photo on your social media feed, and posting a review at Goodreads and/or Amazon once you’ve finished the book. Here’s just a bit of the critical acclaim Beneath has received so far:
“This novel is going to propel DeMeester onto that list of authors you’ll want to follow.” —John Boden, Ginger Nuts of Horror
“…one of the most upsetting and horrifying tomes of dark fiction in recent memory.” —This Is Horror
“…genuinely shudderworthy […], and the sweaty, gritty Appalachian setting is full of religious fervor and salacious secrets…” —Publishers Weekly
Order your copy of Beneath from Word Horde today, or ask for it by name wherever better books are sold.
And congratulations to John Langan, whose novel The Fisherman took the Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a Novel at last night’s StokerCon awards ceremony. It was an amazing pack of nominees this year, and an incredible honor just to see The Fisherman nominated. Thank you to everyone who recommended the book. Thank you to everyone who voted.
This morning, the 2016 This Is Horror Awards were announced, and we at Word Horde are proud to have received awards in three categories:
THIS IS HORROR PUBLISHER OF THE YEAR 2016
Word Horde
“Thank you for selecting Word Horde as This is Horror’s Publisher of the Year for the second year in a row. We are honored by your recognition of our hard work and commitment to publishing awesome authors. We plan to celebrate by continuing to publish books that challenge the status quo and tell irresistible, human stories.”
—Ross E. Lockhart, Word Horde Publisher & Editor-in-Chief
THIS IS HORROR NOVEL OF THE YEAR 2016
The Fisherman, by John Langan
“I’m thrilled and humbled that the voters have selected The Fisherman as Novel of the Year. To have been nominated alongside the other novels in this category was already an honor, and the ballot as a whole is a reminder of the talent flourishing in the horror field. I’m grateful to everyone who sat down with my book and gave it a chance, and I’m thankful to everyone who cast a vote for it. The Fisherman owes its publication to Ross Lockhart, for which, many, many thanks. It owes its composition to my lovely wife, Fiona, for which all, all of my love.”
—John Langan, author of The Fisherman
THIS IS HORROR SHORT STORY COLLECTION OF THE YEAR 2016
Furnace, by Livia Llewellyn
“In twelve years of writing, this is the first award I’ve ever won—I am absolutely thrilled! Thank you to This is Horror and to everyone who voted for me, and to Word Horde Press for publishing the collection. I promise I won’t go mad with my new award powers—or I can, if that’s what everyone wants. Either way works for me.”
—Livia Llewellyn, author of Furnace
Congratulations to all the winners! Check out the full list of winners and their statements at this link.
John Langan’s stunning novel The Fisherman has been nominated for the Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a Novel. Congratulations, John! Thanks to all the H.W.A. members and Stoker jurors who recommended The Fisherman, and congratulations to all the nominees. Read the full ballot at this link.
Experience The Fisherman for yourself! Order today!
Our first book of 2017, Christine Morgan’s Viking-themed collection The Raven’s Table, just received a starred review in Publisher’s Weekly. “These original stories of Viking adventure ring with historical glory and drama, rising and falling in the rhythms of legends and myths passed down over the generations. Thriller and fantasy author Morgan (Murder Girls) taps into the power of fireside tales in a collection that is steeped in tradition and yet completely fresh. […] These works have the sure, solid feel of a talented author deeply engaged with her source material and genre. They’re an excellent read for those who enjoy myths and legends of all kinds.” Read the full review at this link.
Listen…
The furious clangor of battle. The harrowing singing of steel. The desperate cries of wounded animals. The gasps of bleeding, dying men. The slow, deep breathing of terrible things–trolls, giants, draugr–waiting in the darkness. The wolf’s wind howling, stalking like death itself. The carrion-crows, avaricious and impatient, circling the battle-ground, the Raven’s Table.
Listen…
The skald’s voice, low, canting, weaving tales of fate and heroism, battle and revelry. Of gods and monsters, and of the women and men that stand against them. Of stormy Scandinavian skies and settlements upon strange continents. Of mead-hall victories, funeral pyres, dragon-prowed ships, and gold-laden tombs. Of Ragnarok. Of Valhalla.
For a decade, author Christine Morgan’s Viking stories have delighted readers and critics alike, standing apart from the anthologies they appeared in. Now, Word Horde brings you The Raven’s Table, the first-ever collection of Christine Morgan’s Vikings, from “The Barrow-Maid” to “Aerkheim’s Horror” and beyond. These tales of adventure, fantasy, and horror will rouse your inner Viking.
Preorder The Raven’s Table today!
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In other news, we are quite pleased to see John Langan’s The Fisherman and Livia Llewellyn’s Furnace on the Locus Recommended Reading List, alongside a bunch of other great books. Check out the full list at this link.
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And we also note that author Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley died on this day in 1851. Check out our tribute to her: Eternal Frankenstein.
As we mentioned a few weeks ago, it’s Awards Season in the genre fiction community. This is your chance to suggest, nominate, and vote for your favorite books of the year. And if a 2016 Word Horde title made your list of favorites, we’d like to encourage you to suggest, nominate, and vote for it in the appropriate venues.
Last year, we were honored with wins in the Anthology of the Year (Cthulhu Fhtagn!) and Publisher of the Year categories of the This Is Horror Awards. This year, the This Is Horror Awards have recognized Word Horde in five categories:
Nominated for the 2016 This Is Horror Award for Novel of the Year:
The Fisherman, John Langan
Nominated for the 2016 This is Horror Award for Short Story Collection of the Year:
Furnace, Livia Llewellyn
The Lure of Devouring Light, Michael Griffin
Nominated for the 2016 This is Horror Award for Anthology of the Year:
Eternal Frankenstein, edited by Ross E. Lockhart
Nominated for the 2016 This is Horror Award for Publisher of the Year:
Word Horde
We’d like to encourage you to visit the This Is Horror Awards website and VOTE for your favorite books of 2016. It only takes an email!
Another prestigious award that has just opened up for nominations is the David Gemmell Award for Fantasy. Please consider dropping by their website and nominating John Langan’s The Fisherman for The Legend Award for best fantasy novel. We’d love to see John win an axe. And once again, it only takes an email!
As we come to the end of another year, it is traditional to look back through the last 365 days and take stock of one’s accomplishments. In 2016, Word Horde published five books: Furnace, by Livia Llewellyn; The Lure of Devouring Light, by Michael Griffin; The Fisherman, by John Langan; A Brutal Chill in August, by Alan M. Clark, and Eternal Frankenstein, edited by Ross E. Lockhart.
If you read and enjoyed any (or all) of these Word Horde books in 2016, we ask that you consider nominating those books in their respective categories in the Hugos, Locus Awards, Nebulas, Bram Stoker Awards, or similar awards. Likewise, the Novellas, Novelettes, and Short Stories we published this year that are eligible for your awards consideration. Plus, we’ve included a list of Related Works you may have otherwise missed. Thanks for your consideration, it means the world to us!
Best Collection:
Furnace, by Livia Llewellyn
The Lure of Devouring Light, by Michael Griffin
Best Novel:
The Fisherman, by John Langan
A Brutal Chill in August, by Alan M. Clark
Best Anthology:
Eternal Frankenstein, edited by Ross E. Lockhart
Best Novella:
“The New Soviet Man”, by G. D. Falksen (10738 words, Eternal Frankenstein)
“The Black Vein Runs Deep”, by Michael Griffin (38620 words, The Lure of Devouring Light)
“The Human Alchemy”, by Michael Griffin (11043 words, Eternal Frankenstein)
“The Un-Bride; or, No Gods and Marxists”, by Anya Martin (11669 words, Eternal Frankenstein)
“Mary Shelley’s Body”, by David Templeton (27611 words, Eternal Frankenstein)
Best Novelette:
“Wither on the Vine, or Strickfadden’s Monster”, by Nathan Carson (9342 words, Eternal Frankenstein)
“The Jewel in the Eye”, by Michael Griffin (8862 words, The Lure of Devouring Light)
Best Short Story:
“Thermidor”, by Siobhan Carroll (3490 words, Eternal Frankenstein)
“Sewn Into Her Fingers”, by Autumn Christian (5540 words, Eternal Frankenstein)
“Orchids by the Sea”, by Rios de la Luz (1772 words, Eternal Frankenstein)
“The Beautiful Thing We Will Becone”, by Kristi DeMeester (4010 words, Eternal Frankenstein)
“Baron von Werewolf Presents: Frankenstein Against the Phantom Planet”, by Orrin Grey (5874 words, Eternal Frankenstein)
“Dreaming Awake in the Tree of the World”, by Michael Griffin (4248 words, The Lure of Devouring Light)
“The Accident of Survival”, by Michael Griffin (3609 words, The Lure of Devouring Light)
“The Book of Shattered Mornings”, by Michael Griffin (3948 words, The Lure of Devouring Light)
“Living”, by Scott R Jones (2759 words, Eternal Frankenstein)
“In the Court of King Cupressaceae, 1982”, by Livia Llewellyn (6256 words, Furnace)
“Frankenstein Triptych”, by Edward Morris (3180 words, Eternal Frankenstein)
“Postpartum”, by Betty Rocksteady (6649 words, Eternal Frankenstein)
“Torso Heart Head”, by Amber-Rose Reed (1312 words, Eternal Frankenstein)
“They Call Me Monster”, by Tiffany Scandal (3233 words, Eternal Frankenstein)
“Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice”, by Damien Angelica Walters (4900 words, Eternal Frankenstein)
Best Publisher:
Word Horde
Best Editor, Short Form:
Ross E. Lockhart
Best Editor, Long Form:
Ross E. Lockhart
Best Original Cover Art:
A Brutal Chill in August, Alan M. Clark
Eternal Frankenstein, Matthew Revert
Best Related Work:
Word Horde Presents John Langan, interview by Sean M. Thompson
“The Soul of You” Music Video, (“The Soul of You” as sung by the Bonehill Ghost in the novel A Brutal Chill in August by Alan M. Clark. Song produced by Matt Hayward. Lyrics by Alan m. Clark. Music by Michael Green. Vocals by Gerard Smith. Piano by Anna Muhlbach.)
Facebook Live: Eternal Frankenstein Launch Party at Copperfield’s Books
Live-Blogging Jack London’s The People of the Abyss, Alan M. Clark
REVIEWERS: If you missed any of these books, drop us a line and we’ll be happy to send you an electronic reading copy for consideration. publicity[at]wordhorde[dot]com.