Stalker of the Wild Wind

What you see above is a painting, by artist J. B. Lee, inspired by my World War I historical drama-slash-Lovecraftian (or perhaps Derlethian, if one must) horror tale, "Stalker of the Wild Wind," which appeared in the 1999 Chaosium anthology, The Ithaqua Cycle, edited by Robert M. Price. Mr. Lee posted the reproduction of the art on Facebook and graciously allowed me to share it here. I think it perfectly captures the spirit of the story, which — unlike much Lovecraftian fiction — is very much about the human characters, the monster being a catalyst for events rather than the focus of the events. I look forward to seeing more of Mr. Lee's work, wherever it appears.

"Stalker of the Wild Wind" was a precursor to my novel, Blue Devil Island, which takes both the war drama and the supernatural menace to a whole new level. (My short tales "Children of Burma" and "Epiphany: A Flying Tiger's Story" also belong to the same cycle.)

The Ithaqua Cycle is still available on Amazon.com for $15.95. Check it out here.

"Rainey's story ("Stalker of the Wild Wind") is, to me, a modern weird story classic that should be mandatory reading, and if it had published during the fifties it would be constantly in print. Derleth would have loved this story. I read this when it was first published, when it was republished in this anthology, and when I re-read it again for this review, and I've never forgotten it, and it never ceases to entertain."—Mark Louis Baumgart

The Summer of Lovecraft

I has a happy! My story, "Short Wave," has been accepted for the upcoming anthology, The Summer of Lovecraft, edited by Brian Sammons and Glynn Owen Barrass. It's a collection of stories set in the 1960s, which, needless to say, is the decade of my most formative years. My story is set in July 1969, just after the Apollo 11 moon landing. As a fun coincidence, my acceptance note came on the exact date — plus 45 years — that the events take place in the tale.

Table of Contents:
"Night Trippers" — Lois H. Gresh
"Crystal Blue Persuasion" — Jeffrey Thomas
"Being for the Benefit of Mr. Sullivan" — Lee Clark Zumpe
"Dreamland" — David Dunwoody
"Lost In the Poppy-Fields of Flesh" — Konstantine Paradias
"Five To One" — Edward M. Erdelac
"Keeping the Faith" — Sam Stone
"Mud Men" — Sean Hoade
"Misconception" — Jamie D. Jenkins
"No Colors Anymore" — Joe L. Murr
"Operation Alice" — Pete Rawlik
"Shimmer and Sway" — Jayaprakash Satyamurthy
"Short Wave" — Stephen Mark Rainey
"Project AZAZEL" — Christopher Slatsky
"The Song that Crystal Sang" — Tom Lynch
"Through a Looking Glass Darkly" — Glynn Owen Barrass & Brian M. Sammons
"The Color from the Deep" — William Meikle
"The Long Fine Flash" — Edward Morris
"The Summer of Love" — C. J. Henderson
"Wonder and Glory Forever" — Scott R Jones
"Just Another Afternoon in Arkham, Brought to You in Living Color" — Mark McLaughlin & Michael Sheehan, Jr.

The book is slated to be published by Chaosium in 2015. Stay tuned.