Chaosynthesis: Sequence #1.77

Mar 7, 2023

“Hey, man.”

A young man in a red hoodie spoke to me. He sat on the ground with his back to the exterior wall of a gas station off highway 69, near Muskogee, Oklahoma. On my way out of the station, he repeated himself.

“Hey, man.” Then he went on to ask, “Where’s the tree?”

I responded, “The money tree? I wish I knew.”

I hit the highway again, heading south on a long, windy stretch of road surrounded by gobs of trees. Everywhere, trees, and the road ahead, until the Muskogee Turnpike redirected my course to the fortress of six cats and an afternoon of editing on the latest work-in-progress, capped by an evening beverage.

Welcome to the Chaos Synthesizer.

Oblivion’s Child

The new book has landed in paperback, and in a timely fashion as the year’s schedule of events prepares to unfold.

Steve Stred, author of Mastodon, has this to say of Oblivion’s Child: “If you like storm-based/portal-horror with fantastic set pieces and really intriguing lore, look no further. Smith does such a phenomenal job of setting and atmosphere that you’ll be pulled into the world and will love being within. Really well done.”

The new book is available in both digital and physical form, and you can order yours here.

Women in Horror 2023

March is Women’s History Month, and accordingly, also Women in Horror month. The occasion deserves far more than a mention. Why shouldn’t the women of horror receive due accolades for the endeavors they’ve fought to deliver to the world?

Consider that a woman in horror penned one of the greatest tales not only of horror, but of all time. Her name was Mary Shelley.

Countless others pursued the dark, smoky path through the nineteenth century, from Ann Radcliffe to Charlotte Riddel and a handful of others who found the proclivity for darker prose, and into the twentieth century with Daphne du Maurier, Shirley Jackson, and onward to the likes of Anne Rice and beyond.

Here in the twenty-first century, a score of phenomenally talented women in horror have attained their own unique platforms to share their stories with us, bringing new depth and dimension to this dark, twisted, and beloved genre we call horror. A few of those voices have caught my attention of late, and I wouldn’t miss this opportunity to shed some light upon their unique brands of darkness.

I’ve recently finished the new collection from Kenzie Jennings, Always Listen to Her Hurt. An emotionally charged, sharp-edged smattering of quirky fiction, this is one to watch.

On the topic of short story collections, the latest release from Laurel Hightower is out, Every Woman Knows This. Knowing the caliber of the author’s previous work with releases such as Crossroads and last year’s Below, this is a must for the horror connoisseur’s reading list.

Of Every Woman Knows This, Laurel Hightower herself offers a few words. “I haven't always been confident in my short fiction, or confident I could say what I needed to. But these stories feel right—they feel like a connection to all the other women in the world, a thread that offers recognition and support. I hope readers can see themselves on these pages, and maybe feel a little more connected with the rest of the world.”

Another new release to watch is Judith Sonnet’s Toxic—another collection, as it happens. A recent review touts the book as a fantastic example of Judith Sonnet’s broad range as an author, but be warned: these tales are not for the squeamish.

I’ve also been made aware of Ruthann Jagge and Natasha Sinclair’s Delevan House, released only last month, which has been described as gothic folklore-terror.

Keep reading, friends, fiends, for the year is young and the horrors shall abound all year long.

Events

Book touring resumes in support of the Black Carmenia series. With Oblivion’s Child fresh off the press, I have several events and appearances scheduled for 2023, with new dates added and more to come.

March 1-April 2, 2023: AuthorCon II, presented by Scares That Care in Williamsburg, VA.

June 3-4, 2023: Fort Smith Comic Con in Fort Smith, AR.

June 15-18, 2023: StokerCon in Pittsburgh, PA.

June 30-July 2, 2023: SoonerCon in Norman, OK.

July 14-16, 2023: Imaginarium in Louisville, KY.

August 5-6, 2023: Oklahoma City’s Horror Con in Oklahoma City, OK.

August 11-13, 2023: KillerCon in Austin, TX.

For more updates, watch http://tommybsmith.net.

And of course, if you:

If you like, you can also follow me on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/penofchaos

And/or Facebook, via my author page: http://www.facebook.com/authortommybsmith

Until the next.

Love and Destruction,

Tommy B.