The Ghoulish Times | 10/07/23
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The Ghoulish Times | 10/07/23
Banned Books Week - Ghoulish Podcast Network - Saint Grit
Hello and welcome to the latest issue of The Ghoulish Times. My name is Max Booth III and this is my spooky newsletter.
Well, ghouls, once again it is Banned Books Week. If you aren’t hip, “Banned Books Week was launched in 1982 in response to a sudden surge in the number of challenges to books in libraries, bookstores, and schools. [T]he annual event highlights the value of free and open access to information and brings together the entire book community — librarians, educators, authors, publishers, booksellers, and readers of all types — in shared support of the freedom to seek and to express ideas.”
It’s kind of remarkable, but mostly terrifying, that in the year 2023 we are still facing these challenges. We are both a horror publisher and a horror bookstore. Censorship is something we are used to battling. Earlier this year, we wrote the following on our chalkboard sign: BANNING US ONLY MAKES US SCARIER.
This felt like an appropriate message, and it turned out to spark several in-person bookstore conversations about the horror genre and censorship. Eventually, we had the idea to commission artist Luke Spooner to create an illustration that would best coexist with the quote, which you’ll find below:
We are in love with how this turned out, and it felt like a no-brainer to print shirts and other spooky merch containing this artwork.
Beginning right now and ending on the night of October 31st, pre-orders are open for not just limited-edition shirts, but also tank tops, mugs, tote bags, and stickers.
Everything will begin shipping out midway through November. What we print will depend on how many pre-orders we receive. There may be a few items still available after October to purchase, but if you want one we definitely recommend pre-ordering before November.
Check ’em out.
GHOULS NIGHT OUT
It’s been a busy week at the bookstore, aside from Thursday. We didn’t see a single soul on Thursday. But it also stormed in the morning, and we hadn’t seen rain in a long time, so I suspect the change in weather scared away potential customers. Every other day, though, we’ve had a steady flow of traffic, which has been neat. Combine that with the increased interest in our new webstore, and things feel exciting for Ghoulish.
Speaking of the weather—Lori and I have been really curious to see what kind of traffic we start getting once the heat dies down a little. It’s been one of the hottest summers ever this year, and I understand why nobody wants to go anywhere, so our fingers are crossed that as the state somewhat cools down, locals will find a new interest in exploring the weirdo horror bookshop that opened in town last April. Not to pretend that we don’t get traffic now. Honestly, we have gotten more traffic than I originally anticipated. It’s really thrilling, seeing how many creeps and ghouls have found our little shop.
If you happen to be one of those local ghouls, make sure to stop by the shop today (Saturday) at 6pm for an extremely exciting event…GHOULS NIGHT OUT: A CELEBRATION OF SPOOKINESS!!!
Come celebrate everything spooky with us at our bookstore Ghoulish Books in the Greater San Antonio Area. GHOULS NIGHT OUT will include 10+ local horror authors doing live readings & signing books, followed by a FREE MOVIE SCREENING of an infamous 1990s haunted house documentary. More info HERE.
SALE EXPIRING SOON
As a reminder: we’re currently celebrating the launch of GHOULISH.RIP by discounting all book orders by 10%. The sale ends on Sunday.
LTWKOB COMING SOON
E. M. Roy’s Let the Woods Keep Our Bodies comes out this upcoming Tuesday. All webstore pre-orders have officially been mailed out. We still have plenty of signed author stickers left, which can be secured by ordering HERE.
ICYMI, The Lineup featured LTWKOB on a list of “incredible horror books coming to small presses in October”. Read the article HERE.
If you happen to live in the Portland, ME area, please consider joining E. M. Roy at her book launch on Tuesday at Longfellow Books!
SAINT GRIT JACKET REVEAL (NSFW)
Last night on the GHOULBLOG we revealed the full jacket art for Kayli Scholz’s Saint Grit, along with a great blurb by the extremely talented Daniel Kraus. Here is the CENSORED version of the book jacket…
If you’d like to check out the UNCENSORED version, click HERE.
SONIC “MAURICE” HEDGEHOG
The GHOULISH podcast has returned with an episode about Sonic the Hedgehog, for some reason.
Andrew Hilbert is the author of XCRMNTMNTN and DREAMCAST 2. He also knows everything there is to know about Sonic the Hedgehog. So, sit back and relax and let an expert educate you on the history of Sega’s beloved mascot.
Listen to the episode HERE.
MY HORROR CONFESSIONAL
The launch of our new website earlier this week was only one of many, many exciting bits of news we’ve been dying to share with our ghouls. Another announcement we’ve decided to finally reveal has to do with our podcasts. For several years now, we’ve produced and hosted the GHOULISH podcast, which is an interview show focusing on various topics related to the horror genre. That podcast actually predates the name “Ghoulish Books”, believe it or not (why wouldn’t you believe it? what do we gain by lying about this?). Podcasts have always been near and dear to our green, disgusting hearts, which is why it felt like it was time to create what we are calling the GHOULISH Podcast Network—a production company of several podcasts all fitting what we like to describe as “the ghoulish vibe”.
GHOULISH obviously will now have a home on this network, but also several other podcasts we have lined up. The first one we’d like to announce is a pre-existing podcast called My Horror Confessional, hosted by one of my closest friends Miguel Myers. First launched in August 2021, I’ve been both a frequent guest and listener of this podcast, which focuses on classic horror movies—specifically, a classic horror movie the podcast’s guest has for some reason avoided up until now.
More about the show:
Each week in the Confessional we’ll have a guest on who will confess to not having seen a classic horror movie. Join our host, Miguel Myers, as we discuss the movie, why they hadn’t seen it, what their history with horror is and other topics. If, at the end of the show, we feel as if they have truly repented we will absolve them of their horror sin. Join us every week and let’s geek out on the movies we love!
I love this show and I love working with Miguel, and I am stoked to have MHC under the GHOULISH label going forward.
To celebrate, we’ve commissioned Luke Spooner to create new artwork for the show:
Here’s what Miguel had to say about the acquisition at the start of this week’s episode:
Hey everybody, this is Miguel Myers.
I just wanted to pop in real quick to let you sinners in on a confession of mine. I’ve been keeping a secret from y’all.
For the past couple of months I’ve been working behind the scenes with Max Booth III of Ghoulish Books and have agreed to come on board and be a part of a new podcast network that he and his partner Lori are starting. I’m really excited and honored to be joining the team at Ghoulish.
I love absolutely everything they do, the store, the books they publish, Ghoulish Book Festival, everything. Their whole vibe matches really well with mine so I think it’s a match made in hell.
With that said, nothing is going to change content wise. I remain in full creative control of the show and the format will remain the same. But you may hear some ads for Ghoulish in the show, thats really about it..
I believe this is a huge opportunity for both of our brands and am looking forward to seeing what the future holds. None of this would be possible without you guys, the listeners as well as my patrons over on Patreon. Thank you so much and I can’t wait to see YOU in the confessional.
New episodes of My Horror Confessional go live every Friday morning. This week’s episode, featuring Tim Meyer, focuses on Benjamin Christensen’s silent documentary/essay horror film Haxan from 1922.
Listen to the Haxan episode HERE.
RECENTLY ON THE GHOULISH PATREON…
Note: not that long ago, Patreon experienced some kind of glitch that resulted in many, many creators losing hundreds/thousands of patrons. We didn’t lose anywhere near that much, but we still lost some, and the absence definitely stings. Please consider supporting us on Patreon. Here is what you might have missed:
Looking ahead: FRIDAY THE 13TH at GHOULISH BOOKS!
Friday the 13th Horror Book Sale
October 13
Location: Ghoulish Books
This October we are blessed with a rare Friday the 13th! What better way to celebrate than by offering 13% discounts on all purchases in our bookstore? Come on down to Ghoulish Books on the 13th for a fun, generous discount all day long!
Writing Club
October 13 @ 8:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Location: Ghoulish Books
Come join our writing club at Ghoulish Books (the only horror-themed bookstore in the Greater San Antonio Area). This is a free event and anybody is welcome to attend.
The current plan is for everybody to spend the first hour of the night quietly working on their own creative writing projects, then the second hour everybody will get a turn to read something they’ve recently finished or are still working on and receive critiques from the rest of the attendees.
Bring something to write with (notebook, laptop, up to you) and something to read. You do not have to read anything if you do not feel comfortable, but if you do choose to read, please ensure you do not take more than 15 minutes.
Snacks & drinks will be available to purchase in the lobby.
SIGNED HAUNTS
Signed copies of my next book, The Last Haunt, can now be purchased via GHOULISH.RIP.
View our LINKTREE for ways to connect with us and support us elsewhere.