Coming Up...

Every so often I remember that one of the original purposes of this blog was to keep readers updated on developments over at The Sleaze. So, in addition to have recently posted a new story on the site Changing Times, you might have noticed that I've also disinterred four older stories from the vaults (trust me, trying to access anything on the hard drive of my old PC is very much like venturing into some musty old mausoleum), and installed them in the archive. They're very much a mixed bunch - Burglar's Banquet is pretty much a companion piece to the recent I Buried Paul, a piece of swinging sixties frippery, this time concentrating on the Rolling Stones rather than The Beatles. Di Hard is a story I've kept locked away for several years, feeling it might be too offensive to revive. But then I thought, 'What the hell, you've insulted just about everybody else, and there are at least three other Princess Di stories on the site already, what difference will another one make?' Anecdotal diversion time here - a version of this story which appeared, many years ago, in a previous incarnation of The Sleaze was described as 'Grossly offensive' by a senior member of Britain's intelligence community. How's that for trivia?

The other two resurrected stories, Mad Scientists and Mad Doctors are in support of The Sleaze's traditional October celebration of Halloween. I've got into the habit of putting out vaguely supernatural or horror-related stories in this month every year. Often the link is pretty tenuous and I usually extend the 'theme' to include UFOs and other Forteana. The first of this year's themed stories is now written and will be posted at the weekend (probably). This is provisionally titled True Blue Voodoo and started life as a rewrite of an older story that I'd never archived. However, when I reread the story in question, I thought it was bloody awful and started again from scratch, writing a completely new story on the same theme. The other two stories for October are still very much at the planning stage. I've long wanted to do a story about mediums and spiritualism, so that could be the next story up, if I can find a suitable angle. For the other story I'm toying with the idea of something related to cryptozoology - big cats and ape men wandering around Britain, that sort of thing. Maybe I could do something about the 'Steve Irwin' of cryptozoology? Always wrestling with Yetis, that sort of thing. Hmm, it's an idea...

I also have tentative plans for a special Halloween version of the main page banner, incorporating images from 1960s and 1970s horror paperbacks, to run during the last week of October. Actually, whilst researching possible sources for such images, I came across a really superb site I'd recommend to anyone interested in that type of publication - The Groovy Age of Horror. Not only does the guy running this site have lots of great scans of 1960s and 1970s paperback covers, but he's actually read most of them and provides some very informative reviews. As I say, recommended reading! And, before I forget, I'll also be returning to editorial duty for Issue 43 (indeed, writing that is next up for me).