Note: The WMG offices are closed Monday in observance of the US Independence Day, so I’m writing this blog on Friday, July 2.
This is going to be a strange Fourth of July here in Lincoln City. And given everything that’s happened in the world the past year and a half, that’s saying something.
One of the main ways people in the US celebrate our Independence Day is with fireworks. And here on the beach, that usually means lots and lots of fireworks. With the exception of the big ones, fireworks are fully legal in Oregon in the weeks surrounding July 4, and we usually have fireworks stands pop up all along the length of the city.
But not this year.
You might remember from my blog last September that most of the residents of Lincoln City had to flee their homes because of a rapidly moving wildfire. Almost 300 homes in nearby Otis were destroyed.
And we are now in the middle of a pretty significant drought (much of Oregon is in extreme drought).
I’m not overstating it to say locals are terrified of the fire potential.
So, while the City is still planning to put on its annual display, which has always been more for tourists, most residents are skipping even the personal fireworks this year. Us included.
Seems like another holiday in which staying home and reading a book is the best idea.
There, I’m happy to help.
As you might recall, we had a very busy June. Well, July is shaping up to be another busy month,
To kick it off, we’re publishing three special Pulphouse books. One features a slate of original stories, while the other two are a real blast from the past.
In Stories from Pulphouse: The Hardback Magazine and Stories from the Original Pulphouse: A Fiction Magazine, editors Kristine Kathryn Rusch and Dean Wesley Smith reprint some of the best stories from those original Pulphouse magazines.
Here are the synopses:
Stories from Pulphouse: The Hardback Magazine, edited by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Pulphouse: The Hardback Magazine changed the publishing landscape when the anthology series first appeared in 1988. The series won the World Fantasy Award as a recognition of the power of its fiction and the transformative nature of the publication. From the beginning, award-winning author and editor Kristine Kathryn Rusch demonstrated her talent for publishing the cutting edge of late 20th century short fiction—and much of it still slices pretty deep.
The stories in this volume still resonate in the 2020s. While some stories no longer define the cutting edge, they show how the short fiction field followed the template that Pulphouse laid out in its years of publication. Powerful, thought-provoking, well-told, these stories from Pulphouse: The Hardback Magazine will keep readers breathless on the edge of their seats.
Includes:
“While She Was Out,” by Edward Bryant
“The Murderer Chooses Sterility,” by Bradley Denton
“The Two-Headed Man,” by Nancy A. Collins
“Savage Breasts,” by Nina Kiriki Hoffman
“Bits and Pieces,” by Lisa Tuttle
“Willie of the Jungle,” by Steve Perry
“Clearance to Land,” by Adam-Troy Castro
“Soft Whisper of Midnight Snow,” by Charles de Lint
“Offerings,” by Susan Palwick
“On a Phantom Tide,” by William F. Wu
Stories from the Original Pulphouse: A Fiction Magazine, edited by Dean Wesley Smith
The original Pulphouse: A Fiction Magazine published stories in a twisted, Twilight Zone style. Sort of a half-beat off kilter, yet still high-quality fiction and great stories. And most of all highly entertaining.
This collection showcases some of the best from the original magazine, with stories from some of the top fiction writers working today.
Includes:
“Spud Wrangler” by Kent Patterson
“Cooties” by J. Steven York
“There is Danger” by Ray Vukcevich
“Nanoturds” by Ray Vukcevich
“Women Are Like Streetcars” by O’Neil De Noux
“Shadows on the Moon” by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
“One Last Gift” by Jerry Oltion
“The Ghost in the Machine” by Jerry Oltion
“Group” by Ray Vukcevich
Both books are available in ebook and trade paperback. Click here to learn more about Stories from Pulphouse: The Hardback Magazine, edited by Kristine Kathryn Rusch, and here to learn more about Stories from the Original Pulphouse: A Fiction Magazine, edited by Dean Wesley Smith.
Our third Pulphouse book of the month, That’s Really Messed Up, features a slate of new stories that are, well, pretty whacked out. Just like we like them in Pulphouse.
Here’s the synopsis:
That’s Really Messed Up, edited by Dean Wesley Smith
A crazy collection of twisted stories in the tradition of Pulphouse Fiction Magazine, from the editor of Pulphouse, Dean Wesley Smith.
Head-shaking stories such as the one about a cop with a rose for a head in search of the evil murderer The Pruner. Or the one about sentient boogers, or the tale of those pesky Martians…
A truly hilarious batch of stories from some of the best writers working today.
Includes:
“Resolutions ’R Us” by Annie Reed
“The Birth of Booger Nation” by David H. Hendrickson
“A Menagerie of Messed Up Shorts” by Mark Leslie
“Sniff the Source” by Stephannie Tallent
“In which Dean Wesley Smith Is Forced to Buy a Story about a Queen for Pulphouse Magazine” by Brigid Collins
“Fatal Plot Device” by Kelly Washington
“Goddamn Martians” by Ezekiel James Boston
“Killing Confucius” by Tina Back
“Bodacious Billy and the Bazooms of Droom” by Jason A. Adams
“Why the Cop with a Rose for a Head Wears a Rose-Head Mask” by Robert Jeschonek
That’s Really Messed Up, which is available in ebook and trade paperback, publishes on Thursday, July 8. Click here for more information.
These are just the latest additions to our Pulphouse Books line. To see them all, click here.
And to find out how to subscribe to Pulphouse Fiction Magazine, click here.
I hope your holiday was as festive and safe and you wished it could be.
Allyson Longueira is publisher of WMG Publishing. She is an award-winning writer, editor and designer, working mother, and brain tumor survivor.