I am pleased to finally be able to announce THE END OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT: TALES OF STEPHEN KING’S THE STAND, edited by myself and Christopher Golden – an original short story anthology based on the highly influential and seminal work of apocalyptic fiction and good versus evil; featuring an introduction from Stephen King himself and new fiction from a world ravaged by the virus “Captain Trips” and the minds of Josh Malerman, Paul Tremblay, Richard Chizmar, S. A. Cosby, Tananarive Due, Alma Katsu, Caroline Kepnes, Michael Koryta, Joe R. Lansdale, Maurice Broaddus and Wayne Brady, Bryan Smith, Somer Canon, Hailey Piper, Jonathan Janz, V. Castro, Bev Vincent, David J. Schow, Gabino Iglesias, Meg Gardiner, Usman T. Malik, Cynthia Pelayo, Catriona Ward and many, many, many others. (Chris and I had the idea to make the anthology as big as the novel — I’m not going to list everyone because I want you guys to have more surprises between now and the release).

Thanks to Stephen King for entrusting Chris and I with this task. Honestly, we didn’t think you’d say “Do it!” nor did we think you’d say it so enthusiastically. You rock.

Now, since this announcement there have been many questions. With the understanding that for most of this past year, Chris and I have been working behind the scenes to make this happen, there is still a lot that we can’t say. But I will try to answer some of the more common questions here — from one Constant Reader to the other Constant Readers — and at more length than I have on social media.

Q: Who is the publisher?
A: Gallery Books - a division of Simon & Schuster

Q: When will the book be available?
A: Too early to give a firm date. My best guess is that it will be up for preorder around this time next year, with an early 2025 release date? But that is only my guess and should not be taken as gospel. Could be earlier. Could be later.

Q: If it won’t be out until then, why announce it now, you jerks?
A: Because it’s been a crap year for many, and we thought perhaps horror fans and Stephen King fans could use a little bit of good news to brighten their days. Our apologies for trying to make things better.

Q: Will there be foreign language editions?
A: Almost certainly.

Q: Will there be a signed, limited edition?
A: It is too early to say. Keep in mind, we have not released the full list of contributors, but this is going to be a BIG book. Signature sheets would be a massive undertaking, as would production and printing costs. There are several small presses who could handle that. But that’s not something that is currently in the works. It has taken us most of the year just to get the line-up and the initial contracts sorted out.

Q: Are you open to submissions?
A: We are not. And sadly, for those of you who sent us stuff yesterday when you saw this announcement, those were all deleted unread, for legal reasons. Our sincere apologies.

Q: Will you and Chris have stories in the book?
A: No. Like we did with THE DRIVE-IN: MULTIPLEX, Chris and I don’t want to take up slots and space that could go to one of our peers. As we did on that anthology, we will simply serve as editors, and will guide and shape the overall project. Sure, we’d kill to write a story set in the world of THE STAND, but that wouldn’t be the right thing to do.

Q: Wayne Brady the comedian?
A: Yes, Wayne Brady the comedian.

I think that takes care of most of the common questions. And now you all know why I’ve been singing “Among the Living” by Anthrax for most of 2023…

LEVI STOLTZFUS IS BACK!

Deathrealm: Spirits – on sale today in paperback and for Kindle, features a brand new Levi Stoltzfus story called “Bloody Roots”, which Kirkus calls “a fun, inventive twist on classic haunted-house stories”.

The Map of Lost Places is a forthcoming anthology edited by Sheree Renee Thomas and Lesley Conner and published by Apex. I’ll be contributing a brand-new story set in LeHorn’s Hollow, which will examine the deeper roots and history of that accursed place. You can back it on Kickstarter here.

Heralded by readers, critics, and historians as a seminal work of extreme horror, SURVIVOR by J. F. Gonzalez is back in print for a new generation. This definitive edition includes two bonus tie-in short stories by the author, an essay by Gonzalez on the creation of the novel, a second nearly 10,000-word essay by Gonzalez on the history of Splatterpunk and Extreme Horror, and an Introduction by Brian Keene.

It was supposed to be a romantic weekend getaway for Lisa and Brad. Instead, it becomes a nightmare when Lisa is kidnapped. But her abductors aren’t asking for ransom. They want Lisa to star in a snuff film. What they have in mind for her is horrifying. But even more horrifying is what Lisa will do to survive… and protect her unborn child.

SURVIVOR by J. F. Gonzalez… What Would You Do To Survive?

Available now in the following formats: Paperback - Kindle - Nook - Kobo - Apple

“This novel’s moral compass holds steady even during the worst moments… It is easy to feel repulsed by this novel. yet it’s hard to resist; it pushes your eyes off the page and then pulls them back, forcing the kind of visceral relationship between writer and reader that the best horror fiction can produce.” – The New York Times

“…filled with the most disgusting and vile things you can imagine two humans doing to one another.” – Dread Central

“A work of nihilistic brilliance…” – Hellnotes

Manhattan On Mars Press (owned and operated by Brian Keene) is branching out into publishing the works of other authors. Our first offering is DREAMS AND WHISPERS: SELECTED HORROR AND DARK FANTASY STORIES OF EDWARD LUCSAS WHITE. Selected, compiled, and edited by Mary SanGiovanni (who also provides the Introduction), this is a sampler or primer to the work of a classic weird fiction writer.

Available in the following formats: Paperback - Kindle - Nook - Kobo - Apple*

*(Due to staffing issues, Apple iBooks are experiencing onger processing times than normal. The Apple link may not yet be live, but all other formats are).

The Perfectly Fine Neighborhood is a new anthology of ghost stories featuring Brian’s brand new story “Where The Heart Is”. It also features stories from Jeff Strand, Candace Nola, Shane Burnham, and many more. Available in paperback and for Kindle here.

October Screams is a new anthology featuring a brand-new short story by Brian Keene and Richard Chizmar called “Masks”. It also features stories from Jeremy Bates, Kealan Patrick Burke, Clay McLeod Chapman, Philip Fracassi, Todd Keisling, Gwendolyn Kiste, Red Lagoe, Ronald Malfi, Bridgett Nelson, Rebecca Rowland, Steve Rasnic Tem, TJ Cimfel, Cassandra Daucus, Ryan Van Ells, Patrick Flanagan, Brennan Fredricks, Larry Hinkle, Larry Hodges, Kevin Kangas, Evans Light, Gregory L. Norris, Frank Oreto, Robert Stahl, Cat Voleur and Jacqueline West. Available in paperback and hardcover here.

Christopher Golden’s HOUSE OF LAST RESORT WEEKEND, hosted by Brian Keene.

January 18 - 21, 2024

Sheraton Portsmouth Harborside Hotel
250 Market St
Portsmouth, NH 03801

Spend a weekend with your favorite scary authors in a unique, intimate setting! This one-time-only event features Christopher Golden, Brian Keene, Mary SanGiovanni, Victor LaValle, Owen King, Paul Tremblay, Gretchen Felker-Martin, Eric LaRocca, V. Castro, Cynthia Pelayo, Ronald Malfi, Phillip Fracassi and many more. 

Admission is FREE with weekend hotel room reservation. (Admission for those without a hotel room reservation is $80 per person). Unlike the usual convention scene, the House Of Last Resort Weekend is a more relaxed, personal gathering featuring readings, signings, friendly discussions, and much more. Bring your books from home and get them signed for free! Ask your favorite author about your favorite book by them! Relax and hear a spooky story! Come be among friends, because in a world gone increasingly mad… this is the HOUSE OF LAST RESORT.

Click here to register and recieve your ticket to this FREE one-time event.

Click here to reserve your hotel room.

Regretfully, due to some familial medical concerns which will require Mary and I to stay close to home for most of September, we have had to cancel our September 24th signing at Dark Delicacies. We are heartbroken over this, but family comes first, of course. We will be sending signed book plates to the store next week so that folks can still support the store and proprieters Del and Sue, and get their books signed.

As you may or may not know, I post daily content to Patreon: serialized versions of whatever novel I’m working on (you get to read it before it’s published), short stories, writing advice, nonfiction, poetry, behind the scenes stuff, and much more. I currently have two tiers on Patreon.

$1 per month serves as the tip jar for those who want to support me without access to the content.

$5 per month gives you full and complete access to all daily content – including all serialized novels and novellas, all short stories, all essays, all writing advice, all poetry, and all behind the scenes material. Everything that I have ever posted there is immediately available to you for just five bucks.

Based on your feedback and responses to the Daily Walk video I posted a few weeks ago, I have now added a third tier:

$10 per month gives you – in addition to all of the content unlocked at the $5 tier – access to an exclusive, daily video update where I talk about what I’m working on, my creative process, and more. These videos will be exclusive to Patreon and unavailable on any other platform (including YouTube).

If you are not yet a subscriber to my Patreon, why not give it a try for a month? Click here.

Regardless of which tier you choose, know that I appreciate your support and am grateful for your continued patronage. 

Thanks!

– Brian Keene

I was honored to write the Foreword for DARK CORNERS OF THE OLD DOMINION: A Virginia Horrors Anthology, which is now up for preorder. 

From Edgar Allan Poe’s Ragged Mountains to the shores of Tidewater’s Seven Cities… From the blood-soaked battlegrounds of the Civil War to the shadowy political arena of the D.C. Beltway… We have four hundred years’ worth of ghost stories, folk horrors, small-town terrors, urban legends, backwoods beasts, otherworldly secrets, and down-home Southern Gothic. Within this idyllic landscape, there are many dark corners. Within these pages, Virginia authors explore twenty-three dangerous destinations, myths, and monsters from the Commonwealth’s past, present, and future. Read on, if you dare.

Dark Corners of the Old Dominion is a collaborative project by several Virginia authors including Joesph Maddrey, Michael Rook, Dr. Querus Abuttu, Bryan Nowak, Dee Southerland, D. Alexander Ward, and Red Lagoe. Every author in this anthology has strong ties to Virginia and it is clear in the stories and poems they’ve created. They are steeped in the salty waters of the Chesapeake Bay, pulsing with the thrum of the beltway, and bleeding from old battlefield scars.

Each story and poem was donated by the individual authors, and all proceeds from sales will go to Scares That Care

Available NOW for Preorder

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Kobo

The second of our two special livestreams to benefit the HWA’s Scholarship fund is now available for you to watch. My guests are three living legends — Steve Rasnic Tem, Ellen Datlow, and Linda Addison. We discussed what has changed in publishing and horror fiction over the years… and what hasn’t. It’s free to watch. Tune in here.

If you purchased a personalized Lost Level story from me in May/June, please verify that your last name (or the last name of the person you purchased the story for) is included below. If your last name does NOT appear, please email me at briankeene @ live dot com ASAP.

I will begin writing the stories this week. Each story will take one week to write. A copy will be emailed to you, and the physical manuscript will be mailed to you, signed. The stories will also be published on my Patreon and eventually collected in book form.

LIST OF NAMES:

Naylor
Appleby
Baca
Standwill
Keirce
Morris
Carney
Michaud
Casper
Bird
Palik
Daney
Cobb
Jones
Filizzi
Hager
Bristow
Wagner

Again, if your last name does NOT appear, please email me at briankeene @ live dot com ASAP.

This Sunday evening, July 30th, I’ll be hosting a special Livestream to benefit the HWA’s Scholarship fund. My guests will be four living legends — David J. Schow, John Skipp, Chet Williamson, and Douglas E. Winter. We’ll discuss what has changed in publishing and horror fiction over the years… and what hasn’t. It’s free to watch, and I hope that you will join us. Tune in here.

The Czech language edition of GHOUL is now available in paperback and eBook