Capsule review of “The Pallbearer’s Club” by Paul Tremblay
2022 – A year of writing-related travel and an award!
2022 saw me traveling to more cons and events. In March, I went to the International Conference of the Fantastic in the Arts in Orlando, Florida. I went to Stokercon in Denver and two weeks later to Balticon. In August, I went to Necronomicon in Providence, followed by the HP Lovecraft Film Festival in October. I went up to Philadelphia for a Halloween reading event, and in November back up to Baltimore for another event. Finally, I went to New York to read at a Burlesque show in early December.
2022 also saw the release of my fifth book, the third collection called The Nectar of Nightmares from Underland Press. “Impz” is a new story I published in Looming Low Volume II. Two anthologies my fiction was in won major awards. Unfettered Hexes: Queer Tales of Insatiable Darkness (ed. dave ring, Neon Hemlock Press) won a Shirley Jackson, and The Year’s Best African Speculative Fiction (ed., Oghenechovwe Donald Epeki, to re-released by Arc Manor Press) won the World Fantasy Award.
I also co-won the Joseph S Pulver Award for Weird Fiction (along with Zin E. Rocklyn).
I met a bunch of people, both readers and authors, and in one case, drag performers, in each city I visited. It was a full and busy year. 2023 is about hunkering down and writing more fiction.
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Social Media Change
The last couple of Tweets by Space Karen were enough to make me pull up my roots and leave the birdapp. In one, he implied a former employee (who’s gay and Jewish) of being a pedophile apologist by taking an excerpt of his PhD thesis paper out of context. In the second tweet, he threw meat to anti-vaxxers and transphobes. I barely have a presence there, but I’m out. (Space Karen has become a proto Proud Boy and is turning the birdapp into his personal KiwiFarms).
I used to like Grimes, (his ex) but I can’t even listen to her anymore. She must have seen what a far right buffoon he is and picked him anyway.
So, I’ve joined Mastodon. Here’s my relevant information — ethereallad@pettingzoo.com
I also signed up for Post, but who knows when I’ll get an invite?
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Scenes from a Drag/Burlesque Show
I participated in the Books & Burlesque show in New York City on December 2, along side authors YZ Chin, Aimée Lutkin and Ricky Tucker. It was easily the most unique reading experience I’ve ever done! The authors read, and burlesque performers interpreted the excerpt. A statuesque performer named Beleza interpreted images from my cosmic horror story set in the Ballroom scene, “Spyder Threads,” using the “Theme to Mahogany” as the background.
Thanks to Fortune Cookie and Rose Tulips for inviting me to the event!
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Books & Burlesque Promotional Photos
On December 2, I will be reading at the Books & Burlesque event in New York City at Caveat Club
From the website:
The December edition of “Books and Burlesque” is hosted by Fortune Cookie and features award-winning authors reading excerpts from their new books: Aimee Lutkin’s nonfiction memoir “The Lonely Hunter: How Our Search for Love Is Broken”; Craig Laurance Gidney’s collection of short stories “The Nectar of Nightmares”; Ricky Tucker’s nonfiction book “And the Category Is… Inside New York’s Vogue, House and Ballroom Community” and YZ Chin’s “Edge Case.”
The burlesque/boylesque/drag performers we are featuring are Rosie Tulips, Fortune Cookie, Beleza and Zebra. Stage Kitten: Ty Valentine.
Tickets and other information about the event is here: (https://caveat.nyc/events/books-and-burlesque-12-2-2022)
Fortune Cookie has provided me with these fabulous promotional images of the performers and the featured books. It promises to be a great time!
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Beyond the Weird StoryBundle
Black Zombies & another Nectar of Nightmares review
I’m currently writing a zombie story for the anthology Blackened Roots, edited by Nicole Givens Kurtz and Tonia Ransom. The anthology is being crowdfunded, and includes many other Black authors of speculative fiction. Nicole’s last anthology, Slay, included my most anthologized story “Dessicant,” which was produced for audio by Tonia. (You know it’s going to be good–Nicole and Tonia have a keen editorial eye). You can contribute to the campaign here, if so inclined!
Last week, the review site Fantasy Literature, did review of The Nectar of Nightmares. Reviewer Marion Deeds, said, “When it comes to shaping the weird and the uncanny, few are doing it as well as Gidney does.” You can read the rest of it here.
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The Nectar Tour Continues
It’s been a busy fall. I was in Portland for the H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival, where I was a part of the reading block there.
Adventures continue!
Oct 29 – I’ll be reading with Stephanie Feldman, Erin A Adams, and Christina Rosso at A Novel Idea Bookstore in Philadelphia
Link: https://anovelideaphilly.com/events/
Novemeber 16 — I’m reading with Stephanie Feldman and Ray Nayler, courtesy of Charm City Spec at the Bird in Hand Bookstore and Cafe in Baltimore
Link: https://www.facebook.com/CharmCitySpec/
Dec 2 — I’ll be reading with Aimee Lutkin and Ricky Tucker for the Books & Burlesque show at Caveat in New York City.
Link: https://caveat.nyc/events/books-and-burlesque-12-2-2022
Also, Locus Magazine did an Author Spotlight (here) and Gabino Iglesais did a wonderful review of Nectar of Nightmares (here)
Hope to see you at one of the events!
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Locus Feature
The October 2022 issue of Locus has a feature on my writing. Thanks to Arley Sorg for making this possible!
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Capclave Schedule — September 30 – Oct 2
Below is my Capclave schedule. Eager to see other authors and fans…..
Saturday 11:30 am
Queer Stories Front and Center: Mainstreaming LGBTQ Voices (Ends at: 12:25 pm)
Participants: Craig Laurance Gidney, Jennifer R. Povey, Joshua Benjamin Palmatier, Kelley Skovron, Steven Piziks (M)
LGBTQ+ stories are among the most successful – and most targeted – works of fiction in recent years. Panelists recognize the important visibility of queer stories and discuss the challenges that make it difficult for LGBTQ+ stories and authors to exist in the mainstream.
Saturday 2:30 pm
In Defense of the Standalone Novel (Ends at: 3:25 pm)
Participants: A.C. Wise (M), Craig Laurance Gidney, Ian Randal Strock, Irene Gallo, Natalie Luhrs, Ursula Vernon
In a sea of book series, the standalone novel can be a breath of fresh air. What are the virtues of the standalone novel and what makes for a good one? Might there be a resurgence of the standalone novel in the near future?
Saturday 4:30 pm
Reading
Craig Laurance Gidney 
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