November 27, 2009
A few, cool things to report:
ABANDON was selected for the "Four Corners: One Book" KSUT Community Book Club for November!
Here's an interview I just did with Ryan Warner, the host of Colorado Matters about my very Colorado book, ABANDON.
Finally, I just found out that my next novel, SNOWBOUND, has a publication date of June 22, 2010. I'll post an excerpt and jacket art after the 1st of the year.
Happy Thanksgiving!
October 13, 2009
BIG NEWS... as just reported in Publishers Marketplace:
Blake Crouch's DESERT PLACES, about a crime novelist drawn into a nightmare as terrifying as the books he writes, optioned to German director Marc Wilkins' Storm Films, with Crouch adapting, by Anna Cottle and Mary Alice Kier at Cine/Lit Representation on behalf of the Linda Allen Literary Agency.
Marc came out to Colorado for several days last month, and through the course of his visit, I got to know him and to see a clear picture of the kind of film he wants to make out of my first novel. Needless to say, I'm thrilled with Marc's vision for DESERT PLACES, and have pushed a couple projects aside to turn my attention toward writing a killer screenplay. Wish us luck!
Bouchercon begins in two days. If you're going and you want to track me down, I'll be signing at 11:00 a.m. on Friday at the Bouchercon 2010/2011 table.
Also, here are the details for my panel:
Friday, October, 16, 4:00 -- 4:55 pm
AT THE EITELIJORG MUSEUM:
THE ART OF THE WESTERN MYSTERY
A museum dedicated to art of the American West hosts a discussion of mysteries set in its territories
Scott Montgomery (M), Craig Johnson, C.J. Box, Blake Crouch, Steve Hockensmith, Ann Parker
I'll also be in the signing room immediately following the panel. Hope to see you there!
Finally, my interview with Vince A. Liaguno at Dark Scribe Magazine just went live.
October 5, 2009
Morsels of news:
The Durango Telegraph, my local independent paper, conducted what we're calling a narrative interview about writing violence.
Here's my comprehensive interview with Hank Wagner, which appeared in the last issue of Crimespree Magazine.
The Charlotte Observer ran a great review of ABANDON.
Finally, I'm off to Bouchercon in a couple of weeks. It's in Indianapolis this year, and I hope to see you there!
August 28, 2009
Some spatterings of news...
Over at Nasty-Brutish-Short, I did an interview with Steven Torres about writing short fiction, and Steven also had some nice things to say about my recent story, "Shining Rock".
At Patti Abbott's Friday's Forgotten Books, I got the chance to talk about one of my all-time favorites, David Morrell's TESTAMENT.
JC Patterson of the Madison County Herald, Steven B. Beach of the Winston-Salem Journal, and Joseph Hartlaub of Bookreporter have all published very thoughtful reviews of ABANDON. Thanks, gents!
For those of you making the trek to Bouchercon in Indianapolis this year, my panel looks to be superb. Craig Johnson will be moderating Ann Parker, C.J. Box, Steve Hockensmith, and me in a discussion entitled, "The Art of the Western Mystery". This panel will be held offsite, a few blocks from the Bouchercon hotel at the Eitelijorg Museum, which is dedicated to the art of the American West.Finally, ever heard of "hint fiction"? I just sold my shortest story ever to a fascinating anthology edited by Robert Swartwood and slated for publication by W.W. Norton in the fall of 2010. My story, like the 100+ others in this collection, is only 25 words.
July 27, 2009
UNCAGE ME is now available! Edited by the lovely and supremely talented Jen Jordan, here are the details of this new crime fiction anthology...
The follow-up to 2007's EXPLETIVE DELETED. New stories from Scott Phillips, Allan Guthrie, Christa Faust, Victor Gischler, J.A. Konrath, J.D. Rhoades, Declan Burke, Brian Azzarello, Steven Torres, Stewart Macbride, Simon Kernick, Patrick Shawn Bagley, Greg Bardsley, Stephen Blackmore, Tim Maleeny, Nick Stone, Martyn Waites, Talia Berliner, Maxim Jakubowski, Gregg Hurwitz, Blake Crouch, and more! As if all of that wasn't enough, there's an introduction by New York Times bestselling author John Connolly.
For more information, including the back-story and excerpt of my contribution, "*69," check out the stories page on my website. I've read most of the shorts in this anthology, and the collection is unlike anything I've ever read. Absolutely mind-blowingly fun. And dark. Quite dark. There's no way you won't love it. Unless you're a bad person.
UPDATE: BSCReview loves UNCAGE ME, offering what has to be the all-time best review snippet ever [WARNING - ADULT CONTENT AHEAD]: "The range in this motherfucker is simply from rock-solid to fucking brilliant."
On a much smaller note, I added to the ABANDON page a collection of suggestions for how one might make a trip to see the locales where ABANDON is set and have a reasonable amount of fun in the process.
And on an even smaller and more distant note, the engines of the machine that will crank out my next book, SNOWBOUND, are beginning to rumble. I'll have more on that in the not-too-distant.
Bookseller, bookbuyer, reviewer, and flyfisherman extraordinare Joe Foster picked ABANDON for his top summer read on Colorado Matters.
Finally, ABANDON had the chance to sit for The Page 69 Test, which is a component of Marshal Zeringue's superb Campaign for the American Reader.
July 14, 2009
We have a winner for the recent contest to win signed copies of ABANDON and SERIAL. (You didn't hear about the contest? That means you aren't signed up for my newsletter! Correct this horrible oversight immediately!)
Anyway, I threw down the gauntlet thusly: "Email me what you think caused every resident in the mining town of Abandon to disappear on Christmas Day in 1893."
You answered:
"Abducted by aliens, they were aliens and had to leave, caught in a time-warp, cult mass suicide, everyone went home for the holidays, a tornado, the town and its inhabitants were actually a figment of someone's imagination, which never really existed at all and was just created on paper for a 19th century investment scam, zombies, cannibals, cats (wtf?), ancestors of Luther Kite did the town in, transiting Saturn applied a square to the 1851 natal Pluto Uranus conjunction of certain key players, whilst transiting Mars was applying an inconjunct to same..." and one very creative and brilliantly written entry nearly guessed the whole thing so of course they can't win or even be acknowledged.
But the winner is Steve Young who suggested that the reason Abandon disappeared off the face of the Earth... was because its mayor was Sarah Palin. 'Nuff said. Steve wins. Good job, Steve.
Other cool stuff...
A recent interview with the great Don Ermen of the Sun Media Group.
I have another interview appearing later this month in Crimespree Magazine with Hank Wagner which was a blast. Hopefully I'll get to post that one in the next few weeks. It's my most in-depth discussion on the writing of ABANDON to date.
Meantime, here's a link to a very fun and twisted radio gig I did with JA Konrath and filmmaker Krist Rufty of Diabolical Radio. We talk about our writing process, favorite books and films, and our infamous collaboration on SERIAL.
And finally, in Other Heartwarming News, ABANDON has been listed as an August 2009 Indie Next List Notable Book. A huge thank you to all the booksellers who submitted ABANDON. It's deeply appreciated.
July 7, 2009
Publication day for ABANDON!My third novel is now available everywhere books are sold, in hardcover from Minotaur Books and unabridged audio (CD and MP3) from Brilliance Audio.
I've done a number of interviews in advance of publication and here are the first two, one with the inimitable Ted Holteen of the Durango Herald, my local newspaper, and the other with the lovely Stephanie Padilla of New Mystery Reader Magazine.
Links are:June 1, 2009
Happy 5th birthday to Crimespree Magazine and congrats to its founders, Jon and Ruth Jordan! Crimespree's 30th issue is out this month, and I've contributed an article which is essentially the transcript of a conversation I had with paranormal photographer Michael Richard during the research phase of ABANDON. Crimespree is the ultimate clearinghouse for all things crime-fiction related. It would be a good idea to get yourself subscribed.
With their permission, I've made the article I wrote for Crimespree Magazine, "Shooting the Dead: Interview With a Paranormal Photographer," available on this site. Check it out here.
May 26, 2009
THRILLER 2: STORIES YOU JUST CAN'T PUT DOWN publishes today! Edited by the quintessential thriller writer, Clive Cussler, here are the details...
When some of the top thriller writers in the world came together in THRILLER: STORIES TO KEEP YOU UP ALL NIGHT, they became a part of one of the most successful short story anthologies ever published. The highly anticipated THRILLER 2: STORIES YOU JUST CAN'T PUT DOWN, will be even bigger. From Jeffery Deaver's tale of international terrorism to Lisa Jackson's dysfunctional family in the California wine country to Ridley Pearson's horrifying serial killer, this collection has something for everyone. Twenty-three bestselling and hot new authors in the genre have submitted original stories to make up this unforgettable blockbuster.
Turn off your phone
Shut down your computer
Say goodbye to your friends and family
Be prepared to read for days
Featuring stories by Kathleen Antrim, Gary Braver, Sean Chercover, Blake Crouch, Jeffery Deaver, Robert Ferrigno, Joe Hartlaub, David Hewson, Harry Hunsicker, Lisa Jackson, Joan Johnston, Jon Land, Lawrence Light, Tim Maleeny, Phillip Margolin, David J. Montgomery, Carla Neggers, Ridley Pearson, Marcus Sakey, Javier Sierra, Mariah Stewart, R.L. Stine, and Simon Wood.
For more information, including the back-story and excerpt of my contribution, "Remaking," check out the stories page on my website.
May 12, 2009
I've been writing short fiction in earnest for the last two years, and since my stories are starting to accumulate, I've created a page on the website solely devoted to them, which has excerpts, story descriptions, and lots of other cool stuff.
On that note, here's a real treat for all you lovers of dark and demented stories-a free horror novella written by Jack Kilborn (aka JA Konrath) and myself, designed by Jeroen ten Berge, and published with the overwhelming support of Kilborn's publisher, Grand Central Publishing and my publisher, Minotaur Books.
The jacket copy says it all:
Remember the twin golden rules of hitchhiking?
# 1: Don't go hitchhiking, because the driver who picks you up could be certifiably crazy.
# 2: Don't pick up hitchhikers, because the traveler you pick up could be a raving nutcase.
So what if, on some dark, isolated road, Crazy #1 offered a ride to Nutcase #2?
When two of the most twisted minds in the world of horror fiction face off, the result is SERIAL, a terrifying tale of hitchhiking gone terribly wrong. Like a deeply twisted version of an "After School Special," SERIAL is the single most persuasive public service announcement on the hazards of free car rides.
Beyond a thrilling piece of horrifying suspense, SERIAL is also a groundbreaking experiment in literary collaboration. Kilborn wrote the first part. Crouch wrote the second. And they wrote the third together over email in 100-word exchanges, not aware of each other's opening section. All bets were off, and may the best psycho win.
"SERIAL reads just like a Crouch or Kilborn novel: Full speed ahead, no flinching, no blinking, no brakes." - F. Paul Wilson.
SERIAL contains the novella, SERIAL, a Q&A with Kilborn and Crouch, author bibliographies, and excerpts from their most recent and forthcoming works: Kilborn's AFRAID and Crouch's ABANDON.
And finally, a note from the authors:
SERIAL is a horror novella written by Blake Crouch (author of ABANDON) and Jack Kilborn (author of AFRAID).
But just because it is 100% free doesn't mean you should automatically download it.
This is disturbing stuff. Perhaps too disturbing.
If you can handle horrific thrills, proceed at your own risk.
But if you suffer from anxiety attacks, nervous disorders, insomnia, nightmares or night terrors, heart palpitations, stomach problems, or are of an overly sensitive nature, you should read something else instead.
The authors are in no way responsible for any lost sleep, missed work, failed relationships, or difficulty in coping with life after you have read SERIAL. They will not pay for any therapy you may require as a result of reading SERIAL. They will not cradle you in their arms, rock you back and forth, and speak in soothing tones while you unsuccessfully try to forget SERIAL.
Yes, it's free. But free has its price.
You have been warned.
Jack Kilborn & Blake Crouch
March 26, 2009
Two items of news. First, ABANDON has been selected for Mystery Guild, Literary Guild, Doubleday Book Club, and Book-of-the-Month Club.
Also, here comes the first early review, courtesy of the Durango Herald.
March 9, 2009
When I was a boy, I did a lot of backpacking with my parents and younger brother, and one of our favorite places to go was Shining Rock Wilderness in the North Carolina Mountains. One summer evening as we were setting up camp in a remote area of the wilderness called Beech Spring Gap, a gentleman came over to our camp and introduced himself. He was a burly fellow in his fifties wearing blue shorts and a vest brimming with camping accessories and various patches. He also had a machete lashed to his back and mentioned in the course of small-talk that he'd fought in Vietnam. The interaction was unsettling and more than a little awkward. I was twelve at the time but found out years later from my father that he'd been terrified, so much in fact that he and my mom had whispered in their tent late that night, debating leaving because they were afraid this man was going to come back and murder all of us while we slept. Obviously, that didn't happen. My family struck up a friendship with the man (who turned out to be a gentle soul) and we accompanied him on future backpacking trips. But the strangeness of that initial encounter and the fear my parents must have felt never left me.
The experience inspired a short story called "Shining Rock." This is my first published piece of short fiction, and it's appearing in the May issue of Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, which is hitting newsstands as I write this. I hope you'll check it out.
February 26, 2009
I recently got a new blurb for ABANDON from the uber-talented Michael Koryta:
"A bold, ambitious novel of two haunting times in one haunting place. It's full of gunplay and violence, adventure and action, but at its core ABANDON is a novel of faith, family, greed and redemption." Michael Koryta, Edgar-finalist and author of ENVY THE NIGHT.
If you don't know his stuff, Michael is an amazing writer, and his most recent, ENVY THE NIGHT, is a killer of a book, well worth picking up.
January 20, 2009.
Publication for ABANDON has been slated for July 7, 2009.