Bits & Pieces

Copyright 2010 by Gary L. Pullman

Today, Chillers and Thrillers introduces a new column, Bits and Pieces, which will largely replace the essays that I have written to date concerning various aspects of the theory and practice of writing horror fiction. These items will be more topical and informative--and much shorter--rather than pedagogical or critical. On occasion, however, I will offer the essays that have been the main focus of this blog until now.

I kick off Bits and Pieces with announcements concerning horror maestro Stephen King, gleaned from USA Today's September 29, 2010 issue.

According to Brian Truitt, King puts the teeth--or fangs--back into vampires with his back story concerning Vertigo/DC Comics’ American Vampire comic book. In an attenpt to visualize "U. S. history through the eyes of a newly immortal bloodsucker," Truitt writes, King, who has been charged with writing "the origin of the. . . outlaw Skinner Sweet," has Sweet "killed in the 1880s-era Old West" so that Sweet can experience firsthand much of American history since then

King explains that "a traditional vampire is always a taker, and that's the story of American expansion and laissez-faire and the rise of industrialism." One may or may not agree with King's assessment of the character of the nation's history, but, in any case, most are likely to welcome the horror maestro's contribution to the comic.

Meanwhile, King is expected to release Full Dark, No Stars, "a collection of four novellas with retribution themes" on November 9, 2010, "and he is toying with another comic book idea called Afterlife"--either that or becoming a "gourmet cook" ("King bites back with 'American Vampire,' 2D).