I Make a Concerted Effort to Avoid Politix on This, But This is Near and Dear to Me...
Current mood: ashamed
For years, the Administration (not just Bush et al, across the board and aisle) has been trying hard to not talk about the second wave of 9/11 victims: the people who survived the attacks, and the first responders who went in with no protection, to do the right thing. And now, like those who've been serving in the military, they've been shoved off. This issue hits very close to home, because I know more than a few that are dying, for no reason at all except that the money earmarked for their health is being used to fight their medical claims. For me, these aren't some strange faces. They're people, brilliant people who need oxygen masks, who have pulmonary fibrosis, who have mysterious blood diseases. And literally no money to pay their bills. This is not a partisan issue, this is about not abandoning the brave people who did the right thing (running in when everyone was running out). Give what you can:
More news articles: http://www.newsday.com/news/local/suffolk/ny-us911295555769jan29,0,1503856.story http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/27/AR2008012701629.html?hpid=moreheadlines About 9/11 health funds being cut by 77%: http://www.qgazette.com/news/2008/0206/features/012.html
Never Give Up the Fight for Truly Independent Cinema (On the Newest Troma)
Current mood: busy
We went to the screening of Troma's newest, Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead. I never promote other endeavors on here, so needless to say, it ruled. Go see it when it hits your town. I was simultaneously laughing my ass off and completely grossed out. www.poultrygeistmovie.com Watch the trailer:
Dead on Blurb Recommending Sex, Blood and Rock’n’Roll as a Halloween Read!
Sex, Blood and Rock 'n' Roll by Kimberly Warner-Cohen
Kimberly Warner-Cohen's debut novel is a dark novel from the whole other end of the erotica-horror spectrum. Midwesterner Cassie Chambers is having a blast living in the swiftly-gentrifying East Village of the 1990s, with a cute longhaired musician boyfriend and plenty of nightspots at which to wet her whistle. But there's a dark side to her under that pierced and tattooed exterior, and when she gets pregnant and becomes a dominatrix to help with the bills, she starts to tap into that dark side. Bad luck for all involved that one of her clients behaves badly, and in the attack Cassie loses her unborn child. Ooops. Her underlying misanthropy -- and particularly her hatred of men -- turns into a rampant viciousness that tears her through a revenge scenario that's half I Spit On Your Grave and half American Psycho.
Sex, Blood and Rock 'n' Roll is not a light read nor is it erotica; it's visceral, violent sexual horror as powerful and scary as anything that came out of the horror literature boom of the early 1990s. If you read this book on Halloween, do not say "Bloody Mary" into the mirror with the lights out. Not even once. Source Buy it here: Buy It Here!
Currently
listening
:
Rocket to Russia
By
The Ramones
Release date: 19 June, 2001
Reading for a Spooky/Scary Series &Party on Halloween (NYC)!
Current mood: busy
On Wednesday, October 31, I'll be reading at McNally Robinson in Soho(some of you remember this place as where my first reading took place) along with, among others, Helen Oyeyemi and Jonathan Mayberry. I'll be reading some time between 7:30 and 8:30. Aside from the readings, there will be a costume contest, silent projections from horror comic anthology Nightmare Factory. There's a bunch of other stuff going on. Find it all out here:
McNally Robinson McNally Robinson 52 Prince St. (between Lafayette and Mulberry) New York, NY 10012 (212) 274-1160
For Those In/Around NYC Who's Asked When I'm Reading Again..
Being showcased by Ig Publishing, who are taking part in the Small Press Center's Emerging Writers Series along with Evan Mandery, author of the hilarious Dreaming Of Gwen Stefani. I'll be reading from my novel, Sex, Blood and Rock'n'Roll, a current finalist in Nerve.com's Henry Miller Award for hottest sex scene and which the infamous Jerry Stahl has written, "Good clean fun. They should stick Sex, Blood and Rock'n'Roll beside the plastic-wrapped cups in every hotel room. What's more American than S&M and sexy serial killers? A novel that would make Roger Corman and Roman Polanski both drool."
Thursday May 24 6:30 The Small Press Center is located at: 20 West Forty-Fourth Street New York, NY 10036
Excellent Atrocities Cinema Interview with Yours Truly
Current mood: busy
So, I was wandering through the dealer's room at the 2006 Horrorfind Weekend in Baltimore, Maryland. You know, soaking in the sights, spending too much money, hob-nobbing with the plethora of celebrities, writers, vendors, and what have you. I turned a corner, and a small, highly attractive, and genuinely interesting looking woman caught my eye. I had never heard of Kimberly Warner-Cohen, and when I picked up the book she was hawking, her novel "Sex, Blood, and Rock & Roll", I wasn't too sure what to think. After a brief conversation with her at her table, it was clear that she's not your typical writer. Clearly, there's something more to Kimberly Warner-Cohen than meets the eye. There's something...I don't know...aged about her eyes...as if she's, through whatever machinations, seen too many sights in too little time, and only been able to truly enjoy some of them properly. Intrigued, I asked her to autograph her book for me, and I gave her my card. About a week or so ago, Kimberly sent me an email. Following up on my offer to interview her, you see. So, I did more reseach, read a chunk of her book, asked her to recommend some hotels in NYC, and proceeded with our interview. Here it is, folks...I hope you glean from it what you will, and that it's as fun and fascinating to read as it was to reseach and conduct.
Matthew Dean Hill: Thanks for joining us, Kimberly! Now, I've seen some biographical information about you from various sources. It seems you've led quite an interesting life. Would you care to give me a run-down of your life so far? What has brought you to the point you're at presently?
Kimberly Warner-Cohen: I'm lifelong New Yorker, started writing at eight, and gore at thirteen as a reaction to getting picked on. I started hanging around the Lower East Side pretty young and at sixteen I was a junkie and (more or less) cleaned up by eighteen. At nineteen I was a pro-domme, which is where the concept of my first novel germinated.
After that I lived in London for a little while, and moved back in late 2001. Since then I've been working more seriously than previously on my writing career.
MDH: Wow. Just wow. So, would you say that New York has been kind to you? Your career?
KWC: I don't think NYC has been kind or unkind, its just been. As to my career, there are definitely some advantages. However, in the day and age of the internet, I don't think living in a publishing meccas is as important as it once was.
MDH: I guess NYC has a kind of history of "just being", doesn't it. Your book, "Sex, Blood, and Rock 'n' Roll" paints a very specific kind of picture of the city. In the tradition of Scorcese, and perhaps to a lesser extent, Brett Easton Ellis, the city seems to be a character in your book. In any event, it definitely plays an integral role to the story. Care to confirm or deny? Elaborate?
KWC: NYC is just as much of a character in Sex,Blood and Rock'n'Roll as Cassie or Dev. I tried to pay homage to the New York I knew and loved. Events that transpire in the novel couldn't have happened the same way in any other city.
MDH: So, since we've established that you're a to-the-core New Yawker, and that New York is an integral part of your book, why don't we take a minute and let you explain how you see the more, shall we say, "tangible" characters in "Sex, Blood and Rock 'n' Roll". Obviously, there are similarities between you and certain characters in the book. How much of what happens on the page is translated, more or less, directly from "real-life" events? Yes, I know you're not a serial killer, but really...
KWC: Cassie's experiences in the dungeon are taken directly from real life. The secondary characters are amalgams of people I've known. However, Dev is meant to be the stereotypical "cool rock'n'roll boyfriend", just as Cassie is the "Every Person" escaping the suburbs for NYC.
MDH: Obviously, "Sex, Blood, and Rock 'n' Roll" is a highly personal novel. Is it scary for you putting yourself onto the page like that? Or, as it is for me to one extent or another, is it somehow liberating and/or therapeutic?
KWC: Everything I've written has a huge piece of me in it; they're each my creation. SBRR is my first piece of fiction published because I was terrified of people reading my work. Up until then, only my instructors at university had seen my writing; and that was because I had to show it to them. The only way to get over that fear was to just do it. Writing itself, however, is very therapeutic.
MDH: On that level, I've certainly heard that from other writers. As a writer myself, I'll be the first to admit that the mere act of writing, as therapy goes, is pretty effective. To extend that logic one step further, certain filmmakers I've talked to (who will go unnamed) have said that the simple act of filming a particularly gruesome or sadistic scene is something of a "release". I think it was Plato who said (paraphrasing) that the wicked man does what the virtuous man only dreams. So, were there any parts of your book that were particularly liberating to write...in lieu of actually performing in reality?
KWC: Absoloutely. Writing is both therapy and more of a drug than heroin ever was. If I don't write for a few days, I get very cranky. While it is a release to explore the side of human psyche people generally don't want to face, there's no particular part of the book that was any more liberating to write. It is all pieces of the same puzzle.
MDH: That said, you have a unique perspective, shall we say, into human nature, stemming somewhat, I imagine, from your days as a pro-domme. What did that experience teach you about people? I imagine it's easy to be cynical about humanity, but please, tell me how you feel about the needs and desires of people.
KWC: Working as a pro-domme made me extremely cynical about human interaction, which is why I quit. I don't think I feel any different about people's needs and desires- so long as it is "SSC" (safe, sane and consensual), what goes on behind closed doors isn't my business. That being said, there were some clients who I was less delighted to get than others.
MDH: Safe, sane, and consensual...ideally, that works for "real life" and certainly for sexual and/or sensual encounters, but in the world of horror, things don't always work out that way. What's your ideal approach to horror? Is it, "the more realistic, the better", or is it more akin to, "the bloodier and more over-the-top, the better"? What about in horror movies (vis-a-vis literature or at least the written word)?
KWC: I think that horror is best when the story grabs your brain and shakes it a little bit; keeps you up a little at night. Violence can be realistic and over-the-top. Events in history that have actually transpired are way bloodier than anything that could ever come out of my imagination.
Similarly, The Birds and The Shining are far more terrifying to me than any slasher flick. Don't get me wrong, I love them, but I don't find 'em scary.
MDH: Since you're speaking of specific horror movies, I wonder if you'd enlighten us with, say, your top five favorite horror films of all time. What about your top five favorite genre books?
KWC: My five favorite genre books are "Dante's Inferno" (it was the first and is still the most influential), Poe's "Tales of Mystery and Imagination", just about any of [Stephen] King's early work, Shirley Jackson's "The Haunting of Hill House", and [Whitley] Streiber's "Wolfen".
My favorite horror movies are the original [Kubrick's] The Shining (the little girls get me every time), [Christophe Gans'] Brotherhood of the Wolf, [Romero's] Dawn of the Dead, Murnau's Faust, and [Meir Zarchi's] I Spit on Your Grave. Although the original The Stepford Wives should get an honorable mention.
MDH: I've got to agree with you on I Spit On Your Grave (aka "Day of the Woman"). I think a lot of people have far too difficult a time seeing past the (allegedly) "exploitative" elements of the film. It's one of the true underrated wonders of horror cinema.
I guess I'll wrap this up, Kimberly, by giving you the chance to be encouraging and wise. Do you have any advice for would-be writers, filmmakers, makeup artists, or anyone else who wants...no, needs to get into this industry on one level or another?
KWC: No matter what anyone around you says, don't give up. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. Don't worry if you're "marketable", and don't be deterred by rejection. Everyone has gotten those awful form letters.
MDH: Well, thanks for taking the time to speak with me, Kimberly! You've shed some light on the creative process, as well as on your own life! I'm sure I speak for all of my readers when I wish you the best of luck! Keep me posted on your upcoming projects, won't you?
KWC: Of course! I'm glad you enjoyed this as much as I did!
See What Richard Perez (The Loser's Club) and Jerry Stahl Have to Say About My Novel!
"Good clean fun. They should stick Sex, Blood and Rock'n'Roll beside the plastic-wrapped cups in every hotel room. What's more American than S&M and sexy serial killers? A novel that would make Roger Corman and Roman Polanski both drool." -Jerry Stahl ... Just finished your novel, Kimberly. It totally rules. Everyone should buy this book. Keep up the great work!... Take no prisoners.... -Richard Perez
I'm also on Perez's myspace page as Authors to Support. So what're you waiting for?
Monday, August 28, 2006 Sex, Blood and Rock 'n' Roll. Horrorfind weekend has come and gone, and, once again, I am riddled with new authors.
I love Horrorfind. It's the only time of year I can completely dork out, and it's acceptable. Not that I have any problem dorking out any other time of the year.
I've been turned on to some pretty amazing authors at HF: Brian Keene, Jack Ketchum and JF Gonzalez, among others. And let's not forget awesome book companies like Cemetery Dance.
Well, this year I helped run the table for Timewarp Films, and at the table right next to Timewarp's was a woman pimping her first novel, "Sex, Blood and Rock 'n' Roll." Always one to support new authors (and always looking for any excuse to talk to hot women), I asked her about the book. Well, first I asked her if it was any good, then I told her to disregard the question before she answered. She laughed.
"It's about a dominatrix who becomes a serial killer..."
"Sold."
From Amazon:
Cassie Chambers, refugee from Middle America to New York's East Village, is a typical young woman, until she decides to become a professional dominatrix. When she is attacked by one of her customers and suffers a miscarriage, she decides to exact revenge on her male clients, enacting the murderous fantasies that have haunted her sleepless nights. In the tradition of American Psycho, Sex, Blood and Rock 'n' Roll is a shockingly graphic novel about the psychological development of a female serial killer, and a biting commentary on gender.
Now, that's just a little misleading.
Yes, there is a female serial killer in this book, but she doesn't really get her groove on until towards the end of the book.
But that's cool and the gang, because the rest of the book is so well written -- and uniquely written -- that I didn't feel cheated in the least.
Kimberly Warner-Cohen's style is one I've not read before. But her style really works, it's almost poetic.
Check this...
He's sitting alone on a worn brocade couch in Cafeggio, the place right off Bleecher with the hundred-year-old espresso machine. Shaggy black hair, green eyes haunted by his own shadows, looking like he survives on a deli coffee and Ramen noodles. Get my double espresso and pretend to look around though there are enough seats, slowly walk over. Illumination is coming from the fake gaslights, and the air is moist and sweet though it hasn't been raining out. Sit on the other end of the couch and rummage through my bag, pull out a wrinkled copy of On the Road. Ignore him and scan the pages, wait for it. When I put down the book to take a sip, he turns.
The majority of the book has this flavor, and it's a flavor, while admittedly takes a bit to get used to, really, really worked for me.
So, what is it about, if not a female serial killer -- as the back promised.
In a nutshell:
Girl takes job as dominatrix, starts to change, has a life-changing moment, starts killing men.
Good times.
The strength of this book is Warner-Cohen really manages to change the character believably. There was a natural transition from cool chick (pre-dominatrix gig) to fucked-up bitch. Well, natural as can be expected when someone starts to slaughter people. But it's, as mentioned, believable. And that's key.
If there's a weakness in the writing, it's that Warner-Cohen is almost too good with the gore. She is obviously not a wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am type of author. She'll sit her victim in front of you, and slowly and methodically dismember, maim, penetrate and torture him. Admittedly, there were parts I had to skim over because, fuck, man, I was too pussy to really read it. Last time that happened, Gonzales was fucking with a baby in "Survivor." And, like "Survivor," "Sex, Blood and Rock 'n' Roll" is not over-the-top gore. Yes, it's there. Yes, it's hard to read. But it's also well written and fits with the book. But, that said, if Warner-Cohen would ease up just abit, she will reach a much broader audience.
Now, that said, there aren't that many parts in the book I had to glaze over. Maybe two or three. And, admittedly, it's hard for me to read about a guy getting raped by a dildo. But it's never "hey look how gross I can be!" It always fits the story, and it never felt forced or contrived.
But, on the flipside, Warner-Cohen can write a mean sex scene. Intense and erotic. And fucking hot.
I'm looking forward to her next novel. Her style isn't for everyone, but those who dig it will really love it.
I'm buying it for some friends. http://metroreading.blogspot.com/
ashamed
busy
