October turns the northern hemisphere mind toward Halloween. It must be strange to receive northern media while living in the global south—Halloween occurs just as spring is getting underway. I guess that’s what May Day’s for. In any case, in the United States Halloween thinking is in nearly full swing. My last two books, while not Halloween themed, look at horror films which, in keeping with October, are on everyone’s mind this season. And it’s been quite a week for interviews. The second half of my podcast interview on The Incarcerated Christian was posted yesterday. If you want to hear more fun Q & A with Robin and Debra, click here. I’ll post more about this Friday, but tomorrow my interview with Eric Ziolkowski of Lafayette College will air as part of the Easton Book Festival. The festival’s going on right now, so be sure to check out the offerings online.
One bit of advice that I give as an editor: if you want to make it as an author you need to promote your own work. Some of us were reared to believe that it’s in poor taste to do this, but in the internetted world it’s pretty much a requirement. Something I learned from political activism is that every election is local. Getting noticed also has to start in your own backyard. I love doing interviews. It’s always flattering to know that someone’s read your book and wants to know more about it. I’ve started to explore the newish area of religion and horror. From what we see in the news, it seems like it’s an area that’s likely to take off. But only if those who work in it get their stuff out there where it can be seen. (Or heard.)
Neither Holy Horror nor Nightmares with the Bible have sold very well. They’re expensive, and academics, who will spend money on books, are still trying to decide if this area’s worth exploring. I admit that there’s a puerile kind of naughtiness to taking monsters and “low brow” entertainment as a subject of study. Horror, however, has lots of fans. Perhaps not in the academy, but in the real world. I like to think such marginal areas bring people together. Horror, like demons, isn’t going away any time soon. Instead of running away from what you fear, why not try embracing it? If not even that, please consider the free content available on The Incarcerated Christian and the Easton Book Festival. After all, Halloween’s just about here…
