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Songs of a Dead Dreamer is a 1985 horror short story collection by American writer Thomas Ligotti. It has been acknowledged as one of the seminal collections of modern weird horror fiction by Ligotti's peers, such as Ramsey Campbell. Many of its stories show the influence of Ligotti's literary idols of horror such as H.P. Lovecraft and Edgar Allan Poe.
The first edition of Ligotti's book was produced in paperback by Silver Scarab Press, limited to 300 copies. It was re-released in an expanded and revised edition in 1989 by Carroll and Graf. Both editions of the book contain an introduction by Ramsey Campbell. In 2010, Subterranean Press republished the book with author revisions, making it the definitive edition. [1]
The serial killer story "The Frolic" was filmed in 2007 (directed by Jacob Cooney, based on a screenplay co-authored by Brandon Trenz and Ligotti). Wonder Entertainment has released The Frolic Collector's Edition DVD and Book set, which contains the short film adaptation of the story, and also commentary tracks and behind-the-scenes by Cooney, producer Jane Kelly Kosek, and actor Maury Sterling; a new interview with screenwriters Ligotti and Trenz; a newly revised version of the short story, with a new introduction by Ligotti; and the screenplay, with a new introduction by Trenz. Only 1,000 copies of the collector's edition were released. The book containing the revised text of "The Frolic," was exclusive to this set.
1. Dreams for Sleepwalkers
2. Dreams for Insomniacs
3. Dreams for the Dead
Robert Albert Bloch was an American fiction writer, primarily of crime, psychological horror and fantasy, much of which has been dramatized for radio, cinema and television. He also wrote a relatively small amount of science fiction. His writing career lasted 60 years, including more than 30 years in television and film. He began his professional writing career immediately after graduation from high school, aged 17. Best known as the writer of Psycho (1959), the basis for the film of the same name by Alfred Hitchcock, Bloch wrote hundreds of short stories and over 30 novels. He was a protégé of H. P. Lovecraft, who was the first to seriously encourage his talent. However, while he started emulating Lovecraft and his brand of cosmic horror, he later specialized in crime and horror stories working with a more psychological approach.
Ramsey Campbell is an English horror fiction writer, editor and critic who has been writing for well over fifty years. He is the author of over 30 novels and hundreds of short stories, many of them winners of literary awards. Three of his novels have been adapted into films.
Arkham House was an American publishing house specializing in weird fiction. It was founded in Sauk City, Wisconsin, in 1939 by August Derleth and Donald Wandrei to publish hardcover collections of H. P. Lovecraft's best works, which had previously been published only in pulp magazines. The company's name is derived from Lovecraft's fictional New England city, Arkham, Massachusetts. Arkham House editions are noted for the quality of their printing and binding. The colophon for Arkham House was designed by Frank Utpatel.
Azathoth is a deity in the Cthulhu Mythos and Dream Cycle stories of writer H. P. Lovecraft and other authors. He is the ruler of the Outer Gods, and may be seen as a symbol for primordial chaos.
Thomas Ligotti is an American horror writer. His writings are rooted in several literary genres – most prominently weird fiction – and have been described by critics as works of philosophical horror, often formed into short stories and novellas in the tradition of gothic fiction. The worldview espoused by Ligotti in his fiction and non-fiction has been described as pessimistic and nihilistic. The Washington Post called him "the best kept secret in contemporary horror fiction."
Frank Belknap Long Jr. was an American writer of horror fiction, fantasy, science fiction, poetry, gothic romance, comic books, and non-fiction. Though his writing career spanned seven decades, he is best known for his horror and science fiction short stories, including contributions to the Cthulhu Mythos alongside his friend, H. P. Lovecraft. During his life, Long received the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement, the Bram Stoker Award for Lifetime Achievement, and the First Fandom Hall of Fame Award (1977).
Karl Edward Wagner was an American writer, poet, editor, and publisher of horror, science fiction, and heroic fantasy, who was born in Knoxville, Tennessee and originally trained as a psychiatrist. He wrote numerous dark fantasy and horror stories. As an editor, he created a three-volume set of Robert E. Howard's Conan the Barbarian fiction restored to its original form as written, and edited the long-running and genre-defining The Year's Best Horror Stories series for DAW Books. His Carcosa publishing company issued four volumes of the best stories by some of the major authors of the so-called Golden Age pulp magazines. He is possibly best known for his creation of a series of stories featuring the character Kane, the Mystic Swordsman.
Glenn Chadbourne is an American artist. He lives in Newcastle, Maine. He is best known for his work in the horror and fantasy genres, having created covers and illustrated books and magazines for publishers such as Cemetery Dance Publications, Subterranean Press, and Earthling Publications. Mr. Chadbourne is known for his sense of humour and down to earth manner, as well as the stark honesty of his work.
Subterranean Press is a small press publisher in Burton, Michigan. Subterranean is best known for publishing genre fiction, primarily horror, suspense and dark mystery, fantasy, and science fiction. In addition to publishing novels, short story collections and chapbooks, Subterranean also produced a quarterly publication called Subterranean Magazine from 2005 to 2014, specialising in short fiction and edited by William Schafer; it had also an online direct seller. In addition to trade editions, the company produces collector's and limited editions. These books are issued with author signatures, in both numbered and lettered states, and are produced using high-grade book papers and bindings with matching slipcases and traycases.
A Cthulhu Mythos anthology is a type of short story collection that contains stories written in, or related to, the Cthulhu Mythos genre of horror fiction launched by H. P. Lovecraft. Such anthologies have helped to define and popularize the genre.
John Skipp is a splatterpunk horror and fantasy author and anthology editor, as well as a songwriter, screenwriter, film director, and film producer. He collaborated with Craig Spector on multiple novels, and has also collaborated with Marc Levinthal and Cody Goodfellow. He worked as editor-in-chief of both Fungasm Press and Ravenous Shadows.
Dark Mind, Dark Heart is an anthology of horror stories edited by American writer August Derleth. It was released in 1962 by Arkham House in an edition of 2,493 copies. The anthology was conceived as a collection of new stories by old Arkham House authors. The anthology is also notable for including the first Cthulhu Mythos story by Ramsey Campbell.
The Inhabitant of the Lake and Less Welcome Tenants is a collection of fantasy and horror short stories by British author J. Ramsey Campbell, who dropped the initial from his name in subsequent publications. It was released in 1964 by Arkham House in an edition of 2,009 copies and was the author's first book. The stories are part of the Cthulhu Mythos. Campbell had originally written his introduction to be included in the book The Dark Brotherhood and Other Pieces under the title "Cthulhu in Britain". However, Arkham's editor, August Derleth, decided to use it here.
Demons by Daylight is a collection of stories by English author Ramsey Campbell. Released in 1973, it was the author's second short story collection, after The Inhabitant of the Lake and Less Welcome Tenants. Like the earlier book, it was published by Arkham House.
The Height of the Scream is a collection of horror stories by author Ramsey Campbell. Released in 1976 in an edition of 4,348 copies, it was the author's third collection of stories to be published by Arkham House.
Alone with the Horrors: The Great Short Fiction of Ramsey Campbell 1961–1991 is a collection of fantasy and horror stories by British author Ramsey Campbell. Released in 1993 in an edition of 3,834 copies, it was the author's fourth collection of stories to be published by Arkham House. The contents consist of 39 of Campbell's previously uncollected tales along with a selection of works drawn from each of Campbell's Arkham collections as well as the mass-market collections Dark Companions (1982), Scared Stiff (1986) and Waking Nightmares (1991).
999: New Stories of Horror and Suspense is a collection of short stories and novellas published in 1999 and edited by Al Sarrantonio. The title is a contraction of the year as well as 666 upside-down. All twenty-nine stories had never been published before. The book won the Bram Stoker Award for best original anthology and was on the final ballot for both the World Fantasy Award and the British Fantasy Award.
Joseph S. Pulver Sr. was an author and poet, much of whose work falls within the horror fiction, noir fiction / hardboiled, and dark fantasy genres. He lived in Germany, and died from COPD and other issues in a German hospital on April 24, 2020.
The Thomas Ligotti Reader: Essays and Explorations is a collection of essays on American horror writer Thomas Ligotti and his works, edited by Darrell Schweitzer. It was first published in trade paperback in April 2003 by Wildside Press, with a hardcover edition from the same publisher following in July of the same year.
Grimscribe: His Lives and Works is a 1991 collection of short stories in the horror genre by American author Thomas Ligotti. The book was Ligotti's second short story collection to be published, following Songs of a Dead Dreamer. In 2015, Penguin Classics republished Songs of a Dead Dreamer and Grimscribe together in one volume, making Ligotti one of just 10 living authors to be published by the imprint.
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