Remembering horror author, James Herbert

It may have been his ghoulish sense of humour, or then again it maybe just that it was just his favourite song, but when horror author James Herbert's coffin was carried into the church for his funeral, Here Comes the Sun by The Beatles was playing. John Lennon's, Working Class Hero would have been just as  appropriate because that's very much what Mr Herbert was. No matter how big the  riches that came his way, he remained to the end that same old East End boy.

The author had died at the relatively young age of 69, but he'd packed a lot into his years. From humble beginnings in London's East End with the Kray Twins counting amongst his neighbours, he came a long way. He had sold over 54 million books worldwide by the time the of his death, was awarded an OBE in 2010 and he left an estate totalling more than £8 million. His first book, The Rats published in 1974 sold out its first 100,000 copies in three weeks. Even now, several years after his death, his works remain in print and are strong sellers.

Herbert was one of the few British novelists to become a multi-millionaire from writing almost exclusively in the horror genre. Stephen King is the only horror writer who has exceeded Herbert’s total sales, but whereas King has received respect from the literary establishment, Herbert never did. King once described Herbert's first novel, The Rats as being like the Sex Pistols, Anarchy in the UK - And maybe King is right, maybe Herbert was too punk for the mainstream. He was adored by the reading public though, and that was enough for Herbert who was as unpretentious a man as one could meet.

“If The Rats, with its scenes of gruesome horror and its blasted East End landscape, is not a literary version of ‘Anarchy in the UK,’ what is?” Stephen King

I used to write to the author whenever he had a new book out, and I always got a letter back - you can't say the same about all of the authors  I've written to over the years. I never met Herbert personally but I did in the pre-Internet days correspond with him a few times a year. This started when I was a book obsessed teenager and it made me feel closer to the author's books. It also felt great to get a letter from such a literary superstar.

I guess Herbert would have known how I felt since as a boy, he was inspired by the American comic book Casey Ruggles, which he found on the market stalls in Petticoat Lane.

"That's where I learned to write. For a cowboy comic, it was incredible. The only time I wrote a fan letter in my life was to [its writer and artist] Warren Tufts and that was when I was 30. I rang up Hanna-Barbera because somebody told me he was working there as an animator and got his address, wrote a letter and got a cautious reply back."  James Herbert.

 That first letter  led to Herbert and Tufts becoming penpals.

“Enough to make a rodent retch, undeniably, and enough to make any human pitch the book aside.” Martin Amis reviewing The Rats

And so to cast aside pretension here, in true tabloid style, are some facts you may now know about James Herbert.

1. Herbert was afraid of the dark as a child, but his only fear in later life was of spiders.

2. He named his youngest daughter Casey, after his comic-book hero "Casey Ruggles", an 1850s Californian cowboy.

3. While never losing his own East End accent, he once commented that his brother John became a “very, very middle-class” broker for Lloyds.

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4. In 2010, he was made Grand Master of Horror by the World Horror Convention. He was presented the award by his friend Stephen King.

5. His favourite party trick was to challenge guests at his Sussex home to sit in two chairs that once belonged to satanist Aleister Crowley.


6. He would finish writing at 6 o’clock each evening in time to pour a large vodka and watch The Simpsons.


7. Fearing that the Krays may read his books in prison, Herbert’s mother once told him off for branding the brothers animals in his fiction. They were childhood neighbours.

8. He grew up around the corner from Petticoat Lane in Whitechapel, once a haunt of Jack the Ripper.

9. He "hit the roof" when his publishers printed his fourth novel Fluke in Times Roman typeface and ordered that it be reprinted in Palantin.

10. His mother arrived in London from Manchester aged 21. The first person she would meet after getting off the tube was his future father.

11. His first novel, Rats, published in 1974, features mutant man-eating rats take over London. It was inspired by the hordes of rats that would attack his parents’ supplies of fruit and vegetables.

12. Although the manuscript was rejected by five out of the six publishers that Herbert sent it to, the first 100 000 copies of Rats sold out within three weeks.

13. In the guise of “Henry Tilney”, Martin Amis was the first critic to review Rats (for the Observer). He was not impressed.

14. He wrote 23 novels which have been published in 34 languages including Russian and Chinese. He has sold over 54m copies worldwide.

15. After school and art college he worked as an art director at an advertising agency alongside Salman Rushdie.

16. He designed many of his own book covers.

17. He abhorred violence and didn’t plan to write horror but he explained that it just poured out of him.

18. In a famous scene in his second novel, The Fog, the entire population of Bournemouth walks into the sea.

19. Five of Herbert’s novels have been adapted for the cinema, television and radio.

9 Books on Writing and Reading

I came across this article HERE which will be of interest to Archive readers.

Hardly anything does one’s mental, spiritual, and creative health more good than resolving to read more and write better. Today’s reading list addresses these parallel aspirations. And since the number of books written about reading and writing likely far exceeds the reading capacity of a single human lifetime, this omnibus couldn’t be — shouldn’t be — an exhaustive list. It is, instead, a collection of timeless texts bound to radically improve your relationship with the written word, from whichever side of the equation you approach it.

Fine the full article and list of books HERE

Porn novelist released from prison

DONGGUAN CITY, China—The arrest of a high school teacher and blogger who wrote a popular internet novel documenting the “hidden pornographic world” in Dongguan, an industrial city located in China’s Pearl River Delta, has galvanized the country’s literary class, according to an article on The EpochTimes.com website.
Yuan Lei, who wrote the 350,000-word In Dongguan, was released by police Wednesday after protests by fellow writers and others, but the fallout left some feeling insecure, especially since Yuan had committed no crime other than to write about an aspect of the city that the authorities would prefer were not publicized.
The novel, said the site, described “Dongguan City's hidden world, around the life of the younger generation and the local sauna and porn industry. China’s popular Tianya.cn forum saw 2.6 million web clicks since the novel was first serially published in June 2009. More than a dozen publishers have approached Yuan, though the novel has not yet passed official scrutiny.”
On Sept. 28, the police caught up with Yuan at his school and arrested him, charging him with the damaging the city’s reputation.
“Following Yuan's arrest, many web users commented that this novel merely reflects reality and should not be called disseminating pornography,” reported The EpochTimes.com. “Some were shocked to discover that writing a novel could even be cause for arrest.”
Another popular web writer, Murong Xuacun, said the arrest left him feeling unsure of his own safety. "If this person could be arrested, the next one to be arrested might be me. Or, if this person is arrested now, I should have been arrested a long time ago.”
Despite those fears, for others the release of Yuan is a sign that China is changing in profound ways, and “an indication of the awakening of Chinese people, and the power of people.”

Riding in the Highlands with western writer Clay More

Keith Souter AKA Clay More, is not a man to let the grass grow beneath his feet. He studied medicince at Dundee University and still works part time as a GP as well as penning medical books and novels in three genres - western, crime and historicals.

It is with the westerns that The Tainted Archive is concerned and so we rounded up Keith in his Clay More persona for a campfire chat.

Keith wear several different writing hats and I wonder what is it about the western that attracts him?

"First of all, thank you for the invitation. And well done for producing this fine window on the world of the western.

The western genre appeals to me because it is a wide open frontier that always delivers on excitement. Whether it is a film or a novel, you can expect to be transported back to another place, another time, when we were not restricted by the multiplicity of rules and regulations that govern modern life.

When I was growing up everyone watched westerns. Eons before videos and DVDs there was a real sense of excitement as one waited for the next episode of 'The Lone Ranger', 'Waggon Train', 'Rawhide,' and my favourite, 'Have Gun, Will Travel'. Everyone seemed to have a holstered six-gun and a battered old hat in those halcyon days.

I like everything about those days of wireless telegraphy, when steam was the great power, and when the horse was man's best friend. Now, as a writer I like the low technology, which means that your characters have to solve problems with their own wits and extricate themselves from tricky situations without gadgetry. "


The western is in something of an upswing at the moment with new readers trying the genre for the first time. People who have been weaned on the cowboy movies and TV programmes are now looking for enjoyable escapist entertainment set in the old West. So how would Keith describe the Clay More books to newcomers?


"My westerns are essentially historical crime novels set in the southwest. I suppose that they are fairly traditional in a way, in that they are full of strong characters and usually there is some love interest. The first three novels are stand-alone stories, but the last two have been woven around one character, Jake Scudder. There is usually a central crime in each one, which has to be solved by the main character. Yet it is never a straight trail. There are a few convolutions on the way and things are never as simple as they may seem at the start. There is always at least one surprise twist before the end. The hero and heroine usually get embroiled in some sort of danger, from which they have to escape through their own endeavours, although that is unlikely to be by shooting their way out! "


The pen name Clay More - is there any significance to this?


"I am glad you asked me that. It is a homage to Clayton Moore, the original TV Lone Ranger. As a Scotsman I thought it would be fun to abbreviate it to Clay More, since a claymore is a traditional Scottish sword."



What upcoming Keith Souter projects can we look forward to? Will there be any more westerns?




"Yes, I am busy on several at the moment. I am just finishing the first draft of a dark mystery novel for youngsters, set in Victorian London. In addition, I am on the third chapter of my fourth crime novel (I like to have two novels to work on at a time, so that I can move over if I am going through a stale patch with one).
My second historical crime novel, The Fool's Folly, set during the Wars of the Roses, comes out in July and I am researching the background of the third, which will be set during the English Civil War. Finally, I have completed the plotting for my next western, again featuring Jake Scudder."



What writers influence Keith in his work?



"It is a big list, since I have eclectic tastes. But if we are specifically thinking of westerns, then the first name out of the hat is Oliver Strange. He wrote a series of novels about a cow-puncher called Jim Green, who was unjustly outlawed, and saddled with the name of 'Sudden.' They were wonderfully atmospheric stories, each one dealing with an adventure as he slowly hunted down the killers who had set him on this strange epic journey to clear himself. There are definite parallels with the later cult TV western series Alias Smith and Jones.

Then of course there was Max Brand, Louis L'Amour and JT Edson.

And finally and most recently, Tex Larrigan. I had already read a couple of Tex's novels when I read an article in a daily newspaper, which 'outed' Tex. It seemed that Tex was actually a grandmother, Irene Ord, who had been a successful romantic novelist before turning to the western. I was fascinated by this, so I ordered and read most of her books. She was actually the western writer who made me think that perhaps I could try my hand at a novel - a western. And that is how I started."



It is indeed an eclectic list but then that's to be expected from a man who can cope with the finer details of several genres. He's done crime, historicals and even children's fiction in his time. Does he find it a problem changing voices?



"Quite easy. I have been writing a weekly newspaper column on health and medicine for over twenty-five years. I never miss! I don't allow myself to agonise about the next copy, I get an idea, work on it and produce an article. That has been of great value to me, because I try to mix them up. I write about the latest medical treatments, scientific trials, the history of medicine and spice them up with an anecdote or two. That trained me to move quickly from one subject to another. As I mentioned earlier, I usually write two novels in tandem. I seem to write them fifty-fifty for a while, until one really takes off then I focus on that until I finish it. But if I hit a rough patch (or have written myself into a corner) I switch to the other. That seems to work for me, since I have usually solved the problem when I return to the main project."




The Clay More westerns have all been well received and with Keith and folk like him penning new adventures set on the American frontier then it ain't going anywhere anytime soon. Where does Keith see the genre going in the future?



"I think it is looking really good. Especially with ventures like this and Wild West Monday, for which you are to be congratulated. There certainly seems to have been a resurgence of interest in western movies and in western novels.

I was actually stopped by a patient in the supermarket the other day. She said that she had been reading an article about there being a move away from all of the 'misery literature of mainstream writing' (as she described it) back to the 'older type of comfort reading'. And the western was cited as an example of such 'comfort reading.' If a western gives someone comfort then I am happy to be a western writer.

We have to be thankful for Robert Hale and their Black Horse line, since they have kept the western alive in the UK. It would be great if we saw them doing larger print runs. And I guess that is where Wild West Monday comes in again."


Never missing a chance to push Wild West Monday - the Archive wonders what Keith will be doing to support the initiative?



"I will be contacting our local library, who have a very good western section. I always donate a copy of each of my books as they come out. I have given a reading of my books there before, so will have a chat with the librarian ahead of the day and see what transpires. "



And finally The Archive goes into tabloid/best of mode and asks for Keith's fave western movie and novel.

"So many films. Stagecoach, True Grit, The Magnificent Seven, The Good, The Bad and the Ugly.

Favourite western book - all of the Sudden books."


Nuff said - check out Keith's website which features links to all his books. Readers may want to check out the crime and historical novels as well as his trailblazing westerns.

Pictured below- Just one of Keith's crime novels written under the name Keith Moray.

BEAT TO A PULP - CREATOR INTERVIEW

I have no doubt that the next generation of big name writers are going to come from the internet. It's happening with music - British group The Artic Monkeys secured a number one song via internet downloads before they even had a record contract.

Novels are published on the net, some have even gone from the screen into conventional print.

So where does this new writing talent start out? Where do they learn their craft?

Webzines, online magazines, are publishing new talent all the time.

One of the better webzines around at the moment is Beat to a Pulp run by writers David Cramer and Elaine Ash.

And so I sat down with the duo to find out what it is they are hoping to achive with their webzine. Why for instance, given that there are so many webzines out there did they decide to start a new one?

"Elaine: I had been working with David in an editor/writer relationship for about a year, on his own short stories, so we knew each other but had never actually met face to face. David ran a successful news blog for several years. Every now and then he would mention starting up a short story site and collecting submissions from writers all over the world, and I thought it was a terrible idea. I told him it would divert his attention from his own writing and he’d run the risk of getting bogged down with the workload, blah blah. Then DZ Allen’s Muzzle Flash closed down, and a few others, at the same time. Online venues were shrinking for short stories, so when David announced that he was really serious about starting a site, I revisited my opinion and came onboard as Editor at Large"

"David: I couldn’t have said it any better!"

And it's been a success - I point out that I strongly believe the next superstar scribe is going to come from the internet. So what do David and Elaine look for in a story?

"Elaine: I think e-zine publishing is a terrific way for unknown writers to establish themselves and for known writers to reach new readers. It’s truly been a renaissance for the short story. Everything old is new again as the saying goes. I eat, sleep and breathe discovering new writers and working with them. It’s hugely satisfying and exciting for me. Then, when comments start coming in, and you can tell when readers are truly jazzed about a piece, it’s a reward all in itself."

"David: Our primary focus is hardboiled crime but we welcome action/adventure, western, sci-fi, fantasy, horror and thrillers. We pass on bigotry and overt political agendas. Elaine looks for an exciting start to a story, the plot kick-off. I’m more patient with a slow start if the story gradually draws me in and ends with a bang."

But would there every be a subject they would turn down?

"

David: We judge each story on its own merit but we’re not interested in publishing overt political pieces or anything that encourages racism. Extreme violence and sex are fine as long it’s central to the story and not just a gratuitous scene."

Both David and Elaine are writers themselves. Will they be publishing any of their own work on Beat to a Pulp?

"Elaine: Yes. "

"David: Yes, I have a story coming up that will be published later in the year. "

And where do they see the webzine being in a year's time.

"Elaine: I just want the quality to stay as consistently good as it is now. I keep saying to David, that’s all we have to do. Just show the world that we can do this week after week, and attract a loyal readership"

Well the policy seems to be paying off big time and I, among many others, make it a part of our online week to read the new story on Beat to a Pulp. I wonder what writers influence David and Elaine's work?

"Elaine: James M. Cain, Thomas Harris, Stephen King, Tom Robbins, Jim Thompson, Janet Fitch, John Barth, John Burdett, Terry Pratchett, just to name a few. Please don’t recoil in horror if your favorite writer isn’t listed here. I could fill an entire page with writers I hugely love and admire."

"David: Ernest Hemingway, Raymond Chandler, Agatha Christie and Stephen King are some of my influences. Recently I’ve started writing a western and I’ve turned to the work of Luke Short, Louis L’Amour and the Longarm novels written by James Reasoner for inspiration."

Is there a backlog of stories waiting to be read?

"David: So far, I’m staying on top of the heap.

So generally how long would a writer wait for a decision when sending a story?

"Elaine: Thirty days, max."

"David: We try to reply within a couple of weeks so authors aren’t waiting too long, but as Elaine says, no more than a month."

So far the zine has published crime and westerns albeit with a slant. In fact one or two of the stories published thus far are hard to catagorise. Are there any other genres lined up? Horror, SF perhaps?

"Elaine: Yes, but not enough in my opinion. One of our goals is to reach out to horror and sci-fi writers, and extend a warm welcome for their submissions. Good writing and good stories can appeal to readers in any genre. BTAP is a great place to get a story read by a fresh readership that might not surf over to a horror site, but will read and enjoy a horror story with gusto on BTAP."

"David: I’ll just add that we have a very eerie horror offering from Chris F. Holm whose work has been featured in Ellery Queen, plus a dark fantasy from Canadian author Barbara Martin."

And finally are there ever times when David and Elaine disagree on a story?

"Elaine: Yes. Vehemently. David is the perfect publisher for me because he remains calm while I passionately argue my case. I took my graduate degree in story critique at Hollywood Screw U, and learned to defend plot points in a series writers’ room. Not for the faint of heart. In Hollywood, it’s just accepted that passionate disagreement and creative negotiation can yield great work. A Hollywood writer that I’ve argued the most with, is one I love and respect tremendously, and we would jump at the chance to work together again. There are never hard feelings about a little creative skirmish. The one who cares the most wins."

"David: Ha! Elaine’s answer cracks me up, though it’s not far from the truth. I come from the O. Henry school of writing and I’m really big on the twist endings. So, occasionally we may differ. For Elaine, as long as the ride in getting to the end is thrilling, the end doesn’t need to tip her out of her seat."

Nuff said

Beat to a pulp

David Cramer

Elaine Ash

Next interview western writer PATRICIA GOTT