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 "...when you find a book that has both a good story and good words, treasure that book." - Stephen King, Hearts in Atlantis |
News & Information Upcoming & Current Releases
February 1, 2010
Foggy At Night In the City is the first collection of verse and poetry by novelist and critic (and webmaster) Kevin Quigley. Inside you will find stories of love and hate, of airships and footraces, of life and death. Alternately light and dark, sunshine and shadows, Foggy At Night In the City is an eclectic anthology that will pique your curiosity and challenge your perceptions. Folks, this new collection of poetry and verse represents nearly two decades of work. The poems might have come hard for me, and some of them take you to dark, dark places, but I think you'll like them. To reiterate: Foggy At Night In the City is an actual book, one that you hold in your hand and whose pages you physically flip through. Two Ways To Get It
Bonus Material: Six Poems The first 50 purchasers of Foggy At Night In the City will receive a bonus PDF from me - a small collection titled Six Poems, featuring six pieces I didn't feel fit in the main volume. "Fantasies Of A Maniac," "No Show," "There Must Be Something Good for Dinner Tonight," "A Place With Picnic Tables," and "Fissure" represent the best work from my earliest days of writing through my more inward-looking recent poetry. Three of these poems are flat-out horror stories, including the award-winning "Fantasies Of a Maniac." I've stayed away from horror verse in later years; it's a pleasure to share it now. If you have purchased Foggy At Night In the City, email me here, and I will send you Six Poems. Sorry, Six Poems does not come separately. The Foggy Future As we roll out publication on this book, there's still more to come. In the upcoming weeks and months, I will hopefully be publishing Foggy At Night In the City on several ebook platforms. The Kindle is the first, with the Sony Reader, the Nook, and of course the iPad - I am in negotiations now to get this book in the hands of electronic readers as soon as possible. Keep an eye out! The Final Word Foggy At Night In the City is available from both the publisher and Amazon for the amazing price of $7.95. It is a large-sized paperback, also known as "trade" or "quality" paperback, and features thirty-five pieces of poetry and verse, along with an introduction. And that's not to mention the bonus PDF, bringing the total number of pieces up to forty-one works. Even if you generally aren't a poetry reader, I urge you to give Foggy a try - quite a few of these pieces read more like prose. I have tried to make this volume as accessible as possible, without sacrificing the work. Thank you for your time and consideration, and thank you for taking a chance on pioneering authorship.
January 28, 2010 January 27, 2010 In AudioBook News: "Ur," the ebook previously only available for the Kindle and iPhone, will soon be available on audiobook! Read by Holter Graham, this story is due out on February 16th on both CD and digital download. Visit the official website here or read my review of the story here. But that's not all! A source I can't disclose (Borders.com) has revealed that a whole passel of new audiobooks is on its way - and some of the choices are amazing. Different Seasons (as four separate works), Roadwork, Firestarter, Cujo, The Running Man, and The Long Walk are scheduled for release in April, while The Dark Half, Christine, The Eyes of the Dragon, The Tommyknockers, and It - yes, It! - are coming in May. To which I say WHEE! No news as to whether the Different Seasons stuff is going to be the original Frank Muller recordings, but I hope so. Because those were boss. And finally! Today, King's message board reported that Stephen King has already finished two new books. Yes, TWO. Based on King's prior statements that neither The Wind Through the Keyhole nor Doctor Sleep have even begun - and that the third Talisman book is still a ways off - these are likely two books we have never heard of before. And that, Constant Readers, excites me to my core. More as it comes, kids. More as it comes.
January 14, 2010 One exciting bit of news for those of you with bad backs and weak wrists: Under the Dome will be released in trade paperback (aka "quality" or "large" paperback) this August! No news on a mass-market release as yet, but we here at the House are researching like ferrets. Ferrets who research. August! August! August! And speaking of trade paperbacks: it seems as if Scribner now has the rights to Danse Macabre. It's coming back in trade form on February 23rd, with a cover reminiscent of that of On Writing. No news on new content, but one can hope! Check it out!
December 19, 2009
December 5, 2009
December 1, 2009 Hey, you guys--I saw a lot of you Constant Readers while I was touring for Under the Dome, and I must say you're looking good. Thanks for turning out in such numbers, and thanks for all the nice things you've said about Under the Dome. There'll be another book next year. It's a good one, I think, but that's not why I'm writing. I mentioned two potential projects while I was on the road, one a new Mid-World book (not directly about Roland Deschain, but yes, he and his friend Cuthbert are in it, hunting a skin-man, which are what werewolves are called in that lost kingdom) and a sequel to The Shining called Doctor Sleep. Are you interested in reading either of these? If so, which one turns your dials more? Ms. Mod will be counting your votes (and of course it all means nothing if the muse doesn't speak). Meanwhile, thanks again for 2009. So what say you? Head to King's main site and cast your votes (the poll is near the bottom under the heading Visitor's Poll). I'm not suggesting you choose one book over the other, but I am saying that we last had a Dark Tower book in the 2000s, and The Shining came out so long ago. I mean, aren't you just a LITTLE curious as to what's happened to Danny? Just a smidge!? In other news, Under the Dome dropped to #2 in its second week on the New York Times bestseller chart, just below "James Patterson's" I, Alex Cross. The only consolation is that King actually writes the books that get him to #1. Oh, snap. November 25, 2009 And more on King's possible upcoming sequel to The Shining, a tentative book whose tentative title is Doctor Sleep. books.torontoist.com reports:
Last night at Toronto’s packed Canon Theatre, fans of Stephen King were treated to a 15-minute reading from the author’s new novel, Under the Dome, and nearly an hour’s worth of typically funny anecdotes and keen observations during an on-stage interview with director David Cronenberg. Then King dropped a fan bombshell on the crowd by casually describing a novel idea he began working on last summer. Seems King was wondering whatever happened to Danny Torrance of The Shining, who when readers last saw him was recovering from his ordeal at the Overlook Hotel at a resort in Maine with fellow survivors Wendy Torrance and chef Dick Halloran (who dies in the Kubrick film version). King remarked that though he ended his 1977 novel on a positive note, the Overlook was bound to have left young Danny with a lifetime’s worth of emotional scars. What Danny made of those traumatic experiences, and with the psychic powers that saved him from his father at the Overlook, is a question that King believes might make a damn fine sequel.
So what would a sequel to one of King’s most beloved novels look like? In King’s still tentative plan for the novel, Danny is now 40 years old and living in upstate New York, where he works as the equivalent of an orderly at a hospice for the terminally ill. Danny’s real job is to visit with patients who are just about to pass on to the other side, and to help them make that journey with the aid of his mysterious powers. Danny also has a sideline in betting on the horses, a trick he learned from his buddy Dick Hallorann.
The title for King’s proposed sequel? Doctor Sleep.
Perhaps sensing that he’d let the cat out of the plot bag a little early, King then told Cronenberg and the audience that he wasn’t completely committed to the new novel, going so far as to say, “Maybe if I keep talking about it I won’t have to write it.”
Let’s hope King doesn’t have too many interviews booked in the next six months. It's interesting that all the books we've heard rumblings on are all sequels, prequels, or midquels: with talk of The Talisman III resurging, the news of The Wind Through the Keyhole (a Dark Tower book set in between the events of Wizard and Glass and Wolves of the Calla) and now Doctor Sleep, it's looking to be a pretty interesting near future for King and his fans. Also interesting: the official reports are that none of these projects have yet begun ... yet King has continued writing steadily since completing Under the Dome. Just what he's been writing remains a mystery.
November 22, 2009
November 12, 2009
This last is huge news for Tower freaks. The mod on King's message board shed some clarity, stating that "Stephen has given me permission to pass along that he has an idea for a new Dark Tower book, the working title of which will be THE WIND THROUGH THE KEYHOLE. He has not yet started this book and anticipates that it will be a minimum of eight months before he is able to begin writing it." According to Zach Dionne at GQ, the book is a "mid-quel," focusing on minor characters and events that take place between Wizard & Glass and Wolves of the Calla. Which I, for one, am all for. Updates as I get them! Until them, watch the book signing!
November 10, 2009 Under the Dome is released TODAY! Stephen King's newest novel - his third longest - hits stores and online retailers today. Watch this space for a review SOON. In the meantime, check out this terrific short interview with King from Borders.com. DOME DAY IS HERE!!! Run! Buy! Read! Hooray!
November 9, 2009
November 6, 2009 Hans-Ake Lilja has written a terrific new book on Stephen King, titled Lilja's Library: The World of Stephen King. Charnel House is proud to present one of its first reviews, written by Stephen King expert George Beahm (author of The Stephen King Companion). Please check out this glowing guest review of Lilja's Library, and then pre-order your own copy! When you're done there, check out Lilja's Library, the website, which now features a review of Lilja's book by King expert Stephen Spignesi. We're jam-packed with experts today!
November 2, 2009 "Premium Harmony," King's new short story appearing in The New Yorker is ready to read online NOW. Hooray!
October 29, 2009
October 28, 2009 Thanks to KingdomSearch on Twitter for the info - if you are not following him, you should: @KingdomSearch! October 21, 2009 We've also stumbled across a map of the town actually under the dome:
Click on the picture to bring up a much bigger and clearer image! Also! Today at 3:00, there will be new interactive content over at the Under the Dome widget area. Full details to come! And lastly: we here at Charnel House mainly focus on King's major arcana - novels, short stories, poetry, produced screenplays, and nonfiction. A movie review section is planned for 2010, but that's still off in the future. We're basically concerned here with the stuff that flows out of King's own pen. But! If you are not reading the comic-book adaptation of The Stand, you really, really should start. The essential information:
October 16, 2009
October 15, 2009 An interactive approach to King's greatest works, The Stephen King Illustrated Companion features a wealth of unseen memorabilia from the author's desk and insightful text that reads between the lines to uncover King's own compelling biography. Supplemented with rare and previously unpublished ephemera from King's archives, such as hand-edited manuscript drafts, revealing letters between King and his editor, and personal mementos from his career, this unique companion volume tangibly illuminates the writer's works and life in a way never done before. The Stephen King Illustrated Companion is out NOW! And let's not forget our friend Lilja's Lilja's Library book, which is essentially his masterful website (my favorite King site) in book form. That will be coming later this year (and I will be supplying a review!). Pre-Order your copy here! And last but CERTAINLY not least: Knowing Darkness: Artists Inspired By Stephen King. Folks, I can't overstate how important this book is to King enthusiasts. And art enthusiasts. And horror enthusiasts. Pretty much anyone who would read this site NEEDS this book. It fills a niche in the realm of books about King, and fills it so comprehensively that it is impossible to imagine any book doing it better. It's gigantic, stuffed with illustration both old and new, and features amazing interviews with the artists who have been inspired by Stephen King. This book is worth every penny. Check it out and place your order here. You may have noticed a new section at the top of the page, under the listing for new King books. I've decided to focus on important upcoming books about King, as well, featuring links to places to find out more or purchase. I hope you like!
A short but revealing interview with King about Under the Dome has been published by the Science Fiction Book Club. Have fun!
October 10, 2009
October 05, 2009
And you can click on it, to see it major huge! MAJOR HUGE! I am severely impressed by this cover. Oh man, why can't November be here now!??! You (and I) asked for it; here it is: An additional 60 pages of The Cannibals. Download and read for free! It's AWESOME! October 04, 2009
See what I mean? This sucker weighs THIRTEEN POUNDS! It's awesome and you need it. Here's how you get it!
September 21
This is all terrifically exciting stuff. If I weren't already super thrilled for this book, I am now. Check back on the 25th for more information. Dome Day draws near! Happy birthday, Stephen King!!! King turns a sprightly 62 today, and we here at Charnel House wish him the very best day and year to follow! Don't forget also: the first aspect of the cover art for Under the Dome will be released today. Further information as it comes in!
September 16, 2009 I don't know what King's recent resurgence in the art of poetry is coming from, but I'm in. It seems that in recent years, he's been taking on old forms and playing interestingly with them, and I applaud him for it. Bring it on!
September 15, 2009 September 07, 2009 We here at Charnel House were fortunate enough to get our hands on the new Centipede Press publication, Knowing Darkness: Artists Inspired By Stephen King. A big part of me wants to say that I have no words, because it's so hard to describe something like this. There has been a gap so big in the world of Stephen King criticism and appreciation that one scarcely knew it existed. Books almost without number have been written about King's novels and short stories, and the film and television adaptations they've spawned. But no book has ever taken an in-depth look at the art inspired by King, and I am here to tell you that the wait has been worth it. There will be a much more in-depth review to come, but my first impressions are overwhelmingly positive. This book is packed with pictures - illustrations from King's hardcovers and paperbacks, limited and foreign editions. There are illuminating interviews with King mainstays such as Berni Wrightson, who delves into depths about his art and the stories behind when it spins from King's text. There are extended looks at lauded artists such as Michael Whelan and Ned Dameron (whose beautiful illustrations for The Waste Lands are reprinted here in full color), but it also focuses on far more unsung heroes such as Bob Giusti (whose cover art for It and Misery remain striking and memorable) and Rob Wood (who did the covers for Gerald's Game and Dolores Claiborne, two covers I personally love.) And all the art is here. All of it. Folks, a book like this is rare and special. It's terrific for collectors who buy limited editions for the art within, but it's also made for folks who simply like the books they buy at the store. The paperback images that invited me in when I was a teenager and just getting into King are all here, present and accounted for, and flipping through this book is like looking at a timeline of my own past. This book is an unqualified success, one of the very best ever written about the phenomenon of Stephen King. Take a look at the website and learn more ... but I urge you to pre-order if you haven't already. I can guarantee you, it's worth it.
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It's here.
Foggy At Night In the City: It's midnight, but the hunched, frightened clocks refuse to strike. Cold rain has blasted the hot asphalt where lovers scramble and madmen skulk. It's foggy tonight in the city, outside curtains where lust meets violence, where indulgence becomes addiction, and where dreamers explore the dark terrain of the heart.
