I was contacted by Freddy Morris and was asked to appear on Night of the Living Podcast. Freddy and I had a great talk, mostly about Psycho Sanitarium. Give it a listen — a few secrets might be revealed…
Category Archives: Word on the Street…
Latest News about what I’m up to…new writing, new shows, new projects…
On our way to Psycho Sanitarium!
Some time back I was approached by Brendan Deneen of Macmillan Entertainment, who asked me if I’d be interested in writing the first sequel to Robert Bloch’s classic novel, Psycho, since the two that Bloch himself wrote over twenty years ago. The events of the novel would occur right after Norman’s arrest, when he’s sent to the State Hospital for the Criminally Insane. The agent for the Bloch estate had recommended me, and I quickly agreed. After having grown up on Robert Bloch’s written work, and having been terrified by Hitchcock’s film of the novel, how could I turn down the opportunity to continue the story of a character who has become iconic?
What makes it even more exciting is that the book is set fully in Robert Bloch’s Psycho universe, and has no connection whatsoever to the various film and TV sequels and spinoffs that have appeared over the years. This is Bloch’s Norman Bates, back at last.
I spent most of the past year working on the book, and was delighted to have it approved by the publisher and the Bloch estate. It’ll be published by Thomas Dunne Books in hardcover and ebook next April, and readers can pre-order it right here.
I trust it won’t be too painful to say that I’m rather psyched by the whole experience…
The Night Listener & Others
The Night Listener and Others, my second collection of short stories and novellas, was published in May 2015 by the UK’s PS Publishing. Peter Crowther and his staff did a beautiful job with this limited edition hardcover, with a wraparound dustjacket by Jill Bauman, an introduction by Richard Christian Matheson, and 22 stories, none of which were in my earlier collection. At the back of the book are my own notes and comments on each story. The book is available in a boxed, signed, and numbered edition, as well as a standard hardcover. I can’t resist quoting from RC’s introduction: “For those privileged few, lucky enough to be new to the miraculous Chet Williamson, you are about to enter worlds of glorious and sinister wonder. I envy you.”
The Return of the Williamson…
Just wanted to let all the lovely people who might check out my website know that I have been remiss in keeping it up to date. I’ve been sealed in ice this past year, writing and writing, and have finally thawed out, so expect to see new things (and catching up on old ones) every few days until I’ve returned to the present. New books, new stories, new audiobooks and podcasts…stay tuned! Honest! Really!
SOON! Andrew Vachss Underground: script by Williamson & Richardson…
I’ve spent much of the past year scripting and helping to edit a lengthy graphic novel based on an unpublished screenplay by Andrew Vachss for Dark Horse Comics. Mike Richardson scripted the first 24 pages, which appeared serially in DARK HORSE PRESENTS, and I wrote the remainder of the 144 page book, which will appear as a hardcover, with art by Dominic Reardon, in October.
Though there are similarities between this graphic novel and a four-issue run of UNDERGROUND back in the mid-90s, this is an all new creation and story, and I’m excited to be a part of it. I’ve seen the art at every stage, and it’s going to be killer. I’ll let everyone know when it’s released. For more info, here’s a link to the promo page…
A year’s worth of audiobooks!
Strange as it seems, I haven’t posted on this website for a year. Could this account for my slow website traffic?
…nah. At any rate, since those last posts I’ve narrated fifteen unabridged audiobooks, all of which are available for download on Audible.com. To immediately correct this deficiency in my website, there follows a list of clickable links to all these titles (starting with the most recent), for those of you who prefer to listen to your favorite novels as well as read them. Through the next few months I’ll endeavor to create a separate section which will deal solely with audiobooks. But for now…
The Woman by Jack Ketchum and Lucky McKee
The Monarchs by Stephen Mark Rainey
B. & E.: A Whit Pynchon Mystery by Dave Pedneau
Zombie: A Love Story by Patricia Lee Macomber
The Books of Blood, Volume 1 by Clive Barker
The Black Stiletto: Stars & Stripes by Raymond Benson
A.P.B.: A Whit Pynchon Mystery by Dave Pedneau
Futile Efforts by Tom Piccirilli
Night Brothers by Sidney Williams
Hunters
Hunters is the second of my ebook originals from Crossroad Press. Another dark suspense novel with elements of horror, it’s set in the woods of my own native Pennsylvania. A group of animal rights activists wants to make a bold statement against deer hunting on the first day of the season, but the statement gets a bit too bold — and bloody…
Defenders of the Faith
Defenders of the Faith is my first novel that was an ebook original from Crossroad Press, though the trade paperback followed shortly thereafter. It’s a horror novel crossed with a suspense thriller, and there’s no supernatural element.
The book is an exploration into what happens when one’s religious faith comes up against one’s reason. It’s told from the point of view of a basically good man who crosses the threshold of violence, and discovers that he has inspired a young and even more crazed disciple.
Fearnet said: “This isn’t a simple tale. It is full of contradictions, in the way that life is full of contradictions. There is no distinct line between good and bad and right and wrong. As a study of a truly tragic character, Defenders of the Faith is one of modern horror’s best examples.”
Horror Drive-In added: “Chet Williamson is a complicated writer and Defenders of the Faith is a complicated novel. I’m not saying that it’s stodgy or overly intellectual. This is a lightning-paced thriller. It’s just that Chet doesn’t present right and wrong in clearly defined terms. You won’t find the good guys wearing white hats and the bad guys with black ones on their heads…Defenders of the Faith is a book for the ages.”
Ed Gorman’s THE GIRL IN THE ATTIC — Williamson-read creepiness…
There are times when you just want a good old-fashioned horror/mystery novel to creep you out, and when you do, you can’t do better than Ed Gorman and Patricia Lee Macomber’s The Girl in the Attic. Originally published as Night Caller by “Daniel Ransom” during the horror boom of the 80s, this version has been heavily revised and edited by the authors. I had a blast recording this one… Continue reading Ed Gorman’s THE GIRL IN THE ATTIC — Williamson-read creepiness…
My narration of Neal Barrett’s THE HEREAFTER GANG — a classic novel!
I’d never read Neal Barrett Jr.’s The Hereafter Gang, but had read a lot of Neal’s other work, so didn’t have to think twice when asked to narrate the audiobook. Neal Barrett is a classic writer, one of the finest of our age… Continue reading My narration of Neal Barrett’s THE HEREAFTER GANG — a classic novel!