Joseph Payne Brennan is one of the most effective writers in the horror genre, and he is certainly one of the writers I have patterned my own career upon," declared Stephen King. "In fact," he added, "The Shapes of Midnight could serve as an exercise-book for the young writer who aspires to pen and publish his or her own weird tales." A poet as well as a writer of horror fiction, Brennan worked at Yale's Sterling Memorial Library as an acquisitions assistant for over 40 years. He wrote hundreds of stories for Weird Tales and other pulp magazines. This new edition of his increasingly rare compilation, The Shapes of Midnight, presents 10 of his best stories. Selections include "Diary of a Werewolf," a first-person account of bloody sprees; "The Corpse of Charlie Rull," recounting the rampage of a radioactive zombie; "The Pavilion," which unfolds at an abandoned seaside haunt with something ghastly beneath its pilings; "House of Memory," a wistful look at the past's imaginative grip; "The Willow Platform," featuring the machinations of a self-styled warlock; and other chillingly memorable tales.
Acclaimed by Stephen King as "a master of the unashamed horror tale," Joseph Payne Brennan wrote hundreds of tales of terror, suspense, and fantasy. Collectors and fans will delight in this inexpensive reissue of Brennan's hard-to-find classic, Nine Horrors and a Dream. This collection, originally published by Arkham House in 1958, features stories published by Weird Tales and other pulp magazines of the 1950s — including the much-anthologized "Slime," which inspired the ever-popular thriller The Blob. Less familiar but equally gripping tales include "Levitation," in which a carnival-goer has an unfortunate encounter with a hypnotist; "The Calamander Chest," the story of a low-priced antique that turns out to be no bargain; "Death in Peru," involving a lethal curse; the darkly humorous "On the Elevator"; and "The Green Parrot," which recounts a Good Samaritan's bad timing. Other selections include "Canavan's Back Yard," featuring a property with a gruesome history; "I'm Murdering Mr. Massington," which tells of a bizarre grasp at immortality; "The Hunt," a playfully creepy yarn about an obsessive chase; and "The Mail for Juniper Hill," in which a tipsy but determined postman refuses to let anything — even death — keep him from his appointed rounds.
Joseph Payne Brennan, friend of H.P. Lovecraft and an accomplished horror author in his own right, published this groundbreaking essay on Lovecraft in 1955. It originally appeared in a limited edition of only 75 copies and was rarely seen outside of collector circles.
Joseph Payne Brennan is one of the most effective writers in the horror genre, and he is certainly one of the writers I have patterned my own career upon," declared Stephen King. "In fact," he added, "The Shapes of Midnight could serve as an exercise-book for the young writer who aspires to pen and publish his or her own weird tales." A poet as well as a writer of horror fiction, Brennan worked at Yale's Sterling Memorial Library as an acquisitions assistant for over 40 years. He wrote hundreds of stories for Weird Tales and other pulp magazines. This new edition of his increasingly rare compilation, The Shapes of Midnight, presents 10 of his best stories. Selections include "Diary of a Werewolf," a first-person account of bloody sprees; "The Corpse of Charlie Rull," recounting the rampage of a radioactive zombie; "The Pavilion," which unfolds at an abandoned seaside haunt with something ghastly beneath its pilings; "House of Memory," a wistful look at the past's imaginative grip; "The Willow Platform," featuring the machinations of a self-styled warlock; and other chillingly memorable tales.
Acclaimed by Stephen King as "a master of the unashamed horror tale," Joseph Payne Brennan wrote hundreds of tales of terror, suspense, and fantasy. Collectors and fans will delight in this inexpensive reissue of Brennan's hard-to-find classic, Nine Horrors and a Dream. This collection, originally published by Arkham House in 1958, features stories published by Weird Tales and other pulp magazines of the 1950s — including the much-anthologized "Slime," which inspired the ever-popular thriller The Blob. Less familiar but equally gripping tales include "Levitation," in which a carnival-goer has an unfortunate encounter with a hypnotist; "The Calamander Chest," the story of a low-priced antique that turns out to be no bargain; "Death in Peru," involving a lethal curse; the darkly humorous "On the Elevator"; and "The Green Parrot," which recounts a Good Samaritan's bad timing. Other selections include "Canavan's Back Yard," featuring a property with a gruesome history; "I'm Murdering Mr. Massington," which tells of a bizarre grasp at immortality; "The Hunt," a playfully creepy yarn about an obsessive chase; and "The Mail for Juniper Hill," in which a tipsy but determined postman refuses to let anything — even death — keep him from his appointed rounds.
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