As I'm now involved in different (usually minor) ways with three other publications -
Charles Black's Second Black Book of Horror, Justin Marriott's
Paperback Fanatic and, with Steve Goodwin and other contributors,
Filthy Creations, I've decided to enter Des' Lewis's
Zencore author-guessing game. Here's my second attempt, with some reasons given for choices.
The Awful Truth about the Circus is about a small town and a smaller circus, and Nick Jackson has written
Visits to the Flea Circus: "Obsessed with the minutiae of life, Jackson’s characters explore the meaning of self within society’s constraints. Often afraid to take that transformative step they become trapped like insects in amber; caught between decision and indecision, with the reader becoming an uncomfortable, yet fascinated, voyeur."
The Secret Life of the Panda – S D Tullis writes that he’s concerned with “...the ambiguity that exists in people’s relationships with their environment, with each other, and with themselves." For my first attempt, I chose
Fugly in which a woman's threatened inner self appears as an alien creature. Perhaps I should have stuck with that. But now I've gone for
Panda.
Upset Stomach – M P Johnson: I learned at Johnson’s blog that he’s an underground writer “...dealing with a particular subject: the weirderature of fast food muck-spewing.”
Undergrowth – Reggie Oliver – This guy’s interested in theatre (so could have written Red Velvet Dust). He also writes Jamesian stuff (and it has been suggested that The Coughing Coffin is Jamesian, though I disagree with that). But he’s also written a bio on Stella Gibbons, so he has a sense of humour. But after Coughing Coffin in my first attempt, I've now plumped desperately for Undergrowth... which has some humour. So I’ll suggest he wrote it. I still think he might have written Terminus. As you can see, Reggie Oliver has me very confused, but I’ll settle for Undergrowth.
MMM – Delicious – Scot Edelman – when realised Edelman had had a story in one of Stephen Jones’ anthologies, I chose MMM – Delicious as it's well-told horror.
Mary’s Gift, the Stars and Frank’s Pisser – Ursula Pflug wrote “...that my stories often took place in grim environments, their characters facing both inner despair and despair caused by circumstance, but that the miraculous would then enter in, often in small ways, lending grace to both the characters’ lives and their surroundings. I think that’s a fair description of what I do.”
Terminus – Mark Valentine – I read his
Introduction to 'The Book of Jade' (Durtro). Looks fascinating and complex and I forgot entirely what it was about before I'd finished many sentences. Just like Terminus.
The Coughing Coffin – Originally I chose Charles Black as the author of this one as he likes stories like this. The longer I looked at it, the less sure I was. Finally, I settled on Steven Pirie as author as he's written a humorous horror novel, Digging up Donald.
Word Doctor – Daniel Ausema admits a liking for Calvino’s Invisible Cities on his blog, so I can somehow imagine him writing Word Doctor. Sorta metaphysical?
The Plunge – Charles Black – After The Coughing Coffin, this is the only other one that seems similar to his style.
Berrian Winslow and the Stream of Consciousness Storyteller – Tim Nickels. From a review of his latest collection:
“....inventions that never were but should have been, characters absorbed by a not-quite-fully-cracked obsession, jaunty rogues and insouciant bluestockings, the lost golden age of an England that never was. That is where his fertile imagination can work at its finest.”
Red Velvet Dust - Patricia Russo – I found a story or excerpt online and Russo's style seems similar to this.
Blue Raspberries - E Sedia has been co-writing a “magical realist political thriller”.
England and Nowhere – Brian Rappatta – Very tenuous, this. He’s written a book about an alcoholic and the supernatural, I gather. And the viewpoint character here is an alcoholic, possibly. Like I said, tenuous.
FUGLY - Domini Clements has disappeared off the net, apparently. When I found something before, I think I read that he was a Dutch musician and – possibly – that he’d co-written something with D F Lewis. Not too happy about this placing. In my first attempt, I chose
Torsion to put by his name.
The Nightmare Reader – Kek-W – because I’ve almost run out of names and titles...
That leaves
Tosion by Anonymous – and it might have been written by D F Lewis.
That was my second attempt. For the record, my first incomplete attempt is below. I decided to post this when Des sent me a link to this blog by
Jetse de Vries The Awful Truth about the Circus – Nick Jackson
Fugly – S D Tullis
Upset Stomach – M P Johnson
Word Doctor – Tim Nickels
The Coughing Coffin – Charles Black
Terminus – Reggie Oliver
Mary’s Gift, the Stars and Frank’s Pisser – E Sedia
England and Nowhere – Brian Rappatta
Red Velvet Dust – Patricia Russo
Undergrowth – Domini Clements
The Plunge – Kek-W
Reggie Oliver was the biggest problem here. I could link him to three possible stories. Charles Black was the other problem, as I thought I’d sussed his story straight away, then became much less certain of it.