Category: Short stories

Smile

ArkLight Pictures has released Smile, a short film based on the Robert McCammon short story “On a Beautiful Summer’s Day, He Was.” The story was originally featured in the anthology The Further Adventures of the Joker; it explores the childhood of the notorious enemy of Batman.

ArkLight Pictures was started by college students Aaron Keteyian and Ryan Stratton. Smile was produced by Keteyian, while Stratton wrote the screenplay, composed the music, and directed the film, among other jobs.

You can watch Smile in HD on Vimeo, or you can watch it in the embedded player below.

“Smile” (2013) from ArkLight Pictures on Vimeo.

For more information about Smile, you can visit the following sites:

Thanks to Ryan and Kevin for the film, and congratulations on a job well-done!

 

A Japanese translation of 1989’s anthology Silver Scream, edited by David J. Schow, was released this week. The anthology features Robert McCammon’s short story “Night Calls the Green Falcon.” The anthology was published in two volumes which can be ordered from Amazon Japan, as well as many other online Japanese retailers. The anthology includes many classic stories, including Joe R. Lansdale’s “Night They Missed the Horror Show” and F. Paul Wilson’s “Cuts.” A full table of contents can be found here. “Night Calls the Green Falcon” can be found in volume two.

シルヴァー・スクリーム

Book 1 from Amazon Japan, Book 2 from Amazon Japan

U.S. residents can order the books from YesAsia.com: Book 1, Book 2

 
Robert McCammon with the Bulgarian edition of Boy's Life
Robert McCammon with the Bulgarian edition of Boy’s Life

Just discovered today: Robert McCammon was awarded the Japanese Adventure Fiction Association Prize two years in a row in the 1990s. The prize was awarded to Swan Song in 1994 and to Boy’s Life in 1995. The prizes were presented by the Japanese Adventure Fiction Association from 1982 to 2011 for the best adventure novel published the previous year.

Yet another international edition discovery: Robert McCammon’s short story “Black Boots” was included in a 1993 German anthology, Das große Horror-Lesebuch II (Big Book of Horror II). The cover for the book can be seen here. It has been added to the Book Cover Gallery.

And a roundup of various posts from around the ‘net in the past month:

Finally, the Robert McCammon Goodreads group is reading and discussing Usher’s Passing as their November Group Read.

 

I’ve said it before, and I’m sure it’ll be true again. About the time I think I know about all of the editions of Robert McCammon’s books that have been published around the world, I will stumble over something I never knew existed. This time: books in Thailand! It seems that Thai publishers produced a Thai translation of Baal at some point, as well as two different printings of an anthology called The Creep in the Night, which contained a Thai translation of the short story “Nightcrawlers.” You can see the covers below and in the Book Cover Gallery. Click on a cover to see a larger version of it.

 

One brand-new book is from Turkey: Gölge Oyunu is a Turkish trade paperback translation of Shadow Show: All-New Stories in Celebration of Ray Bradbury. That anthology included Robert McCammon’s “Children of the Bedtime Machine.”

Nightmare_11_August_2013-200x300The August 2013 issue of Nightmare Magazine includes a reprint of Robert McCammon’s classic short story “Nightcrawlers.” It also includes a small Q&A with McCammon about the story. You can purchase a digital copy of Nightmare Magazine from their website, from Amazon, and from B&N. You’ll also be able to read the story for free on August 14 on their website.

Speaks the Nightbird will finally be released as an ebook in October 2013. It should be available in all formats in all countries. It is the last of the McCammon books to be released as an ebook.

Here are a few recent reviews from around the ‘net:

 

Nightmare_09_June_2013-200x300As reported earlier this month, Lisa Morton’s interview with Robert McCammon for Nightmare Magazine is now available to read for free. You can find the interview on the Nightmare Magazine website.

Also now available, Steve Berman’s new anthology Bad Seeds: Evil Progeny contains a reprint of Robert McCammon’s short story “Yellowjacket Summer.” The story previously appeared in the October 1986 issue of Twilight Zone and in the Robert McCammon short story collection Blue World. The trade paperback can be ordered from Amazon here.

The Bram Stoker Awards Weekend 2013 Souvenir Book included an excerpt from The Five, as well as an essay by Joe Lansdale entitled, “Rick McCammon, a True Southern Gentleman.” The cover for the book has been added to the Book Cover Gallery and can be seen here.

The Spring 2013 issue of Dark Discoveries magazine includes a new short story by Stoker Award-winner Joe McKinney entitled “The Woman Who Collected McCammon.” The story was inspired by Robert Bloch’s classic story, “The Man Who Collected Poe.” You can purchase the issue (or subscribe) on their website.

Finally, the goodie bag for the World Horror Convention 2013 included a postcard from Open Road Media, the ebook publisher of many of McCammon’s backlist titles, congratulating him on his Lifetime Achievement Award from the Horror Writers Association. The front and back of the card are shown below.

Open Road Media - McCammon promo card - front

Open Road Media - McCammon promo card - rear

As it has been for the past few years, May is Short Story Month, and to celebrate that, Open Road Media has temporarily lowered the price of Robert McCammon’s short story collection, Blue World. The links below will take you to the various North American ebook vendor sites. The sale ends May 15, 2013.

Open Road Media also has a video about Short Story Month featuring quotes from several authors, including Robert McCammon. You can view the video on their website or watch it below.

Back in January, we mentioned that Robert McCammon’s short story “Yellowjacket Summer” was going to be reprinted in an anthology entitled Bad Seeds: Evil Progeny. The Prime Books trade paperback will be available in July and is pre-orderable from Amazon now. The cover for the book can be seen to the right; it has been added to the Book Cover Gallery.

A couple of great new reviews have shown up on the ‘net in the past few days:

Artist Lia MacLeod posted her design for a book cover and title page for Swan Song on Behance. She graciously allowed me to add it to the Fan Artwork page here. You can click on the image below or click here to see her work.

Swan Song cover by Lia MacLeod

prime-books-logoPublisher Prime Books has announced the Table of Contents for their upcoming anthology Bad Seeds: Evil Progeny. The anthology is edited by Steve Berman and will be published in July 2013. It will include a reprint of Robert McCammon’s “Yellowjacket Summer,” in addition to reprints by Stephen King, Joe Lansdale, Charles Grant, and reprints and original stories by others.

The book is one of four anthologies edited by Steve Berman that Prime Books will be releasing. For the full contents, see the story on the Prime Book site:

Contents Announced for BAD SEEDS: EVIL PROGENY, ed. Steve Berman

The book can be pre-ordered from Amazon here.