Krampus: The Yule Lord

On Christmas Eve, Jesse Walker witnesses a group of “devil men” chasing a large man in a red suit—who escapes to the sky in a reindeer-drawn sleigh, leaving behind a magical sack. Down on his luck, Jesse discovers that the curious object can produce any toy imaginable, which delights him to no end—because he can finally give his daughter the gift she desires the most.

But the red sack draws the unwanted attention of the “Belsnickels,” a group of devilish minions of Krampus, the ancient Lord of the Yule. They force Jesse into helping free their master, who was imprisoned by Santa Claus over five hundred years ago. Jesse learns that the jolly red elf is not quite as amicable as he once believed, and after he’s targeted by an evil drug lord, Jesse joins Krampus and his group—because, well, better the devil you know!

New Kickstarter project: Fearful Symmetries

http://kck.st/UatZzY

Ellen Datlow will be editing an unthemed, all original anthology of terror and supernatural fiction for ChiZine Publications. This project will only be funded if at least $25,000 is pledged by Thursday Jan 10, 12:00pm EST.

Goodreads giveaway!

For those who use Goodreads, the amazing social network for book nerds (like me!):

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Un-Dead TV

by Brad Middleton

Giveaway ends January 31, 2013.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Be sure to add me as a friend and/or become a fan! :)

Vampire disco!

Not sure how I ended up coming across these videos on YouTube, but they do need to be shared. I present to you VAMPIRE DISCO!

Hot Blood's "Soul Dracula":

B.J. and the Bear – "A Coffin with a View"

Star International Pictures hires B.J. to transport two coffins recovered from Dracula’s castle in Poenari, which will be used in a promotional stunt to advertise an upcoming vampire movie. Accompanying him is the elderly caretaker of the castle, who warns of dire consequences if the coffins are opened.

After a homicide victim is found with bite marks on his neck and his body drained of blood, B.J. wonders if he should have taken the man more seriously.

Ordering Un-Dead TV

Retailers may order directly from the publisher, By Light Unseen Media. For terms and shipping information, contact sales@bylightunseenmedia.com, call 978 / 433-8866, or visit http://bylightunseenmedia.com/undeadtv.htm

Libraries, schools and non-profit organizations may order directly from By Light Unseen Media using purchase orders. Brodart will fulfill orders through the publisher, or you may order through Ingram. If you have any questions about ordering, please call 978 / 433-8866, contact the publisher at sales@bylightunseenmedia.com, or visit http://bylightunseenmedia.com/undeadtv.htm

It's Movember, and time to make a difference!

Men’s health is a cause I am passionate about but in order to make a difference I need your help. My commitment is to grow a moustache for the month of November and in doing so, raise vital awareness and funds for prostate cancer and male mental health.

I am asking you to help support my personal journey by making a donation. The size of which isn’t important, every little bit helps Movember to continue funding its world class programs.  If you want to know more about what you’ll be helping to fund, you can visit http://ca.movember.com/about/funding-overview/.

To highlight the importance of what I am doing, take a look at these statistics:
•    1 in 7 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime
•    This year 26,500 new cases of the disease will be diagnosed
•    1 in 5 men will experience a mental illness this year

If you’d like to help change these statistics, please donate to me here: 

http://mobro.co/middleton

If you’re interested, here’s a video that will help you better understand the type of programs you’ll be helping to fund by making a donation. For wider details, take a look at the Programs We Fund section on the Movember website:http://ca.movember.com/about/funding-overview/

Thank you in advance for supporting my efforts to change the face of men's health.

Brad Middleton

A musical interlude

Halloween Haunts 2012 @ horror.org

Fan Expo 2012

Julie Benz

Just finished a four-day stint at Fan Expo, Canada's celebration of horror, anime, comics, gaming and sci-fi. It was an incredible weekend; I had a great time volunteering for the Horror Writers Association, and met a lot of great members and horror fans.

Thursday saw limited hours of operation, but it was still quite busy--good to see so many people milling about on a weekday! I attended a Q&A with the lovely and talented Julie Benz (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Dexter); she was friendly, humorous and quite charming.

Le Musee des Vampires

Just outside of central Paris lies a private vampire museum run by author/lecturer Jaques Sirgent. Located in the suburbs (14 Rue Jules David 93260 Les Lilas, France), this unique space holds a number of interesting undead artifacts, from books to memorabilia, to photographs and pop culture pieces--you name it. For a nominal fee, Sirgent hosts a lengthy, engaging chat about vampire folklore, and speaks to specific parts of his collection. (Sirgent is bilingual, and will speak in either English or French, depending on who's in attendance.)

If you're a vampire fan and heading to Paris, you should definitely make this part of your trip. Here's the website for the museum:  http://artclips.free.fr/musee_des_vampires/musee-homepage.html 

Here are some photos from my recent visit:

Review copies available

Reviewers and book bloggers who would like a PDF review copy of the book should send a request to vyrdolak@bylightunseenmedia.com. Please put "Review Copy of Un-Dead TV" in the subject line and include the URLs of your blog or most recent reviews, if they are published online.

Blood & Donuts (Canada, 1995)

Amid inner-city decay, Boya, a centuries old vampire--who went into hibernation during the infamous 1969 moon walk--awakens with a fright. Surprised to be once again joining the land of the living, he bares his fangs longing for blood, but fights his nature and instead sinks his teeth into the comically complicated lives of Molly, a sharp-tongued waitress, and Earl, a lovable but street-dumb cabby who is mixed with the mob. It seems amid the scavengers, streetwalkers and strangers of the night, this bloodsucking creature fits right in.

This quirky vampire film is hard to classify; the character-driven story is more comedy than horror, and fans looking for a lot of blood and gore will be sorely disappointed. However, if you're willing to give it a shot, you should be pleasantly surprised.

Still editing!

Whoops, skipped a month! Lost some time due to a (well deserved!) trip to Europe. I visited the vampire museum in Paris -- highly recommended -- and I'll post more information about this at a later date. In the middle of the final edits now; it won't be long before these are done and the review copies will be made available. So if you are interested in receiving one, please contact the publisher at http://bylightunseenmedia.com/order.htm

Now if only this would happen to the Cullen Clan...

Getting closer!

Haven't posted for a while as I've been feverishly writing. I'm in the final stretch to get the manuscript done for the book -- I'm passing it off to the publisher this Monday!  Have received some great feedback so far; looking forward to the next few months of tweaking here and there, and seeing the final book in print this summer!