"Cold to the Touch" by Simon Strantzas [Archive]

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nomis

06-07-2009, 08:02 AM

Hello fellow travellers.

I know this has been covered in my interview with Phil, but with new information available I thought a clean start was in order.

It's my pleasure to announce that my second collection of weird fiction, COLD TO THE TOUCH, has been scheduled for publication on July 29th, 2009 by Tartarus Press. I'm proud to join the ranks there with some of my brethren like Quentin S Crisp and Mark Samuels ... and of course Robert Aickman.

Though still too early to actually hand over your money, please take a look at the site and bookmark it. It shan't be long now before my beautiful darling is born into the world.

http://www.tartaruspress.com/coldtothetouch.htm

I hope you all enjoy it.

MorganScorpion

06-07-2009, 09:06 AM

Congratulations!

yellowish haze

06-07-2009, 06:26 PM

That's great news, Simon! Tartarus Press remains my favourite publisher and COLD TO THE TOUCH sounds like a book that will fit perfectly among other titles published by them. Congratulations!

nomis

06-07-2009, 07:44 PM

Thank you, all.

Mr Y. Haze, I'll send your copy out as soon as I receive them.

(Tangentially, I'd like to mention that I just realised what the name "G.S. Carnivals" actually means; I feel like such a fool...)

MadsPLP

06-08-2009, 05:35 PM

Great news! (And Tartarus remains my favourite publisher too).

"The Other Village" was one the very best contributions in Strange Tales II. I'm very excited to see a collection, especially since I missed out the first collection (even though that was in a different vein). I'll look over my finances at the end of the week and then, hopefully, preorder.

nomis

06-08-2009, 07:21 PM

Speaking of which, Strange Tales III, due this winter, will also contain a tale by yours truly. I'm taking over, it seems.

starrysothoth

06-08-2009, 08:16 PM

I'm looking forward to this one, especially since I missed Simon's last collection. I plan to put in a good word about it to my local seller of weird fiction as well, who sometimes orders books from Tartarus to sell in store.

nomis

06-12-2009, 11:56 AM

Hello, all,

Just an update: the book is now available for preorder from Tartarus

http://www.tartaruspress.com/coldtothetouch.htm

Dr. Valzer

07-25-2009, 09:15 AM

Bump.

Simon's book is now in stock and shipping from Tartarus. Huzzah!

Richard.

matt cardin

07-27-2009, 11:26 PM

Great news, Simon! Thanks for the continued updates. Sounds like all is proceeding quite well.

Nemonymous

07-28-2009, 03:00 AM

It's a lovely looking book from Tartarus.
It was delivered to me yesterday by a man in a hood.
des

nomis

07-28-2009, 07:01 AM

Thanks, Matt, and as Des suggests the book is arriving in hands already, starting in England and no doubt will radiate out from there.

I anxious to hear its reception!

Odalisque

07-28-2009, 02:40 PM

It's a lovely looking book from Tartarus.
It was delivered to me yesterday by a man in a hood.
des

The postman or the grim reaper? :eek:

Nemonymous

07-28-2009, 02:55 PM

Well, it was genuinely strange. A man in the pouring rain (in a hood) handed it to me, muttering something, and then walked off into the distance. I assumed it was the postman. But the postman came later with something else.

The New Nonsense

07-30-2009, 03:51 PM

My copy just arrived! Like all Tartarus Press books, the quality is top shelf. It's a great looking book. Congrats again, Simon. This book will probably outlast us all.

Nemonymous

07-30-2009, 03:58 PM

Yes it looks really great. I've just started a real-time review of it.

nomis

07-31-2009, 06:09 PM

Thank you both, Kevin and Des.

Nemonymous

08-08-2009, 04:53 AM

I've now finished my detailed review of this book:
http://weirdmonger.blog-city.com/cold_to_the_touch__by_simon_strantzas.htm

nomis

08-08-2009, 05:25 AM

I'm very pleased you enjoyed the book, Des. I hope "Here's to the Good Life" didn't damper your enthusiasm for imbibing!

Nemonymous

10-11-2009, 04:49 PM

Just spotted this review of Simon's book:
http://grimreviews.blogspot.com/2009/10/simon-strantzas-cold-to-touch-reviewed.html (http://grimreviews.blogspot.com/2009/10/simon-strantzas-cold-to-touch-reviewed.html)

I don't know who writes the GRIM REVIEWS blog but it is an excellent blog I look at all the time. It was stated, however, on the blog earlier that he or she is one of the 24 authors who has a story in CERN ZOO!

Julian Karswell

10-11-2009, 05:18 PM

Nemonymous

10-11-2009, 05:27 PM

Spotbowserfido2

10-11-2009, 05:36 PM

Nemonymous

10-11-2009, 05:42 PM

I don't know who writes the GRIM REVIEWS blog but it is an excellent blog I look at all the time. It was stated, however, on the blog earlier that he or she is one of the 24 authors who has a story in CERN ZOO!

The Grim Reviewer is our fellow TLO member starrysothoth. His bloggings are quite astute.

Thanks, Spot. I didn't know that.
I now need to try to relate Starrysothoth to one of the 24 authors somehow!
I think I can guess. But I'm not sure.
des

starrysothoth

10-11-2009, 06:08 PM

Hi guys,

I'm glad you enjoy my blog. I was very impressed with Cold to the Touch, even with high expectations from seeing Simon around here. I'm truly fascinated by the great circle of writers who hang out on TLO, many of whom are (or at least started out) in a Ligottian orbit.

As for Nemonymous, I'll leave it to Des and others to guess which story I have in Cern Zoo until all is revealed in a few more months. ;) I'm glad to be in the collection. I don't ordinarily write much fiction, as non-fiction tracking/observations of the weird is my main focus (as I think Grim Reviews shows).

matt cardin

10-11-2009, 08:04 PM

Neat to find that you're "one of us," Grim Blogger. Like Des, I'm a fan of the blog and have come to consider it (you) one of the best and most astute online horror publications. I especially love your focus upon, and obviously well-developed sensibility for, weird fiction. So I suppose it's not a surprise in the end to find that you're here at TLO.

Your review does an excellent job of whetting my already-whetted appetite for Simon's new collection, btw.

nomis

10-12-2009, 01:31 AM

Thank you very much, starrysothoth, for reviewing the book. I must say, as those above have stated, "The Grim Review" is a must-visit blog, one to whose RSS feed I subscribe so I do not miss an entry. Yours was the one that turned me on to the Lovecraft Literary Podcast, which I enjoy immensely week after week.

I know this reply is the sort of "love-in" JK dislikes, but as you and I have had virtually no contact on- or offline, and that until this moment I had no idea you were the Grim Blogger even if we had, I'm hoping my appreciation of you blog, regardless of the wonderful review you've just posted, is taken as a reflection of my true feelings.

Julian Karswell

10-12-2009, 03:03 AM

Yes, Julian, the writer of the Grim Reviews blog stated a few months ago on that blog that he or she was one of the 24 authors in Nemonymous Nine (Cern Zoo) - but I, for one, don't know who it is.
The Grim Reviews blog I've been following avidly for a long time now. And I'm pleased it has come out with a very strong review of Simon's COLD TO THE TOUCH book.
des (in a simple mood)

No, what I meant is that you seem to namecheck Cern Zoo in every post, which in all honesty, has led me to ignore several of your recent posts, thinking "Uh oh, another plug for Cern Zoo".

I'm in no way slighting SS's new book nor the Grim Review blog. I'm simply making the point that it seems like 100% of your recent posts have been plugs rather than objective comment. Of course, there's nothing wrong with that, but it is the reason why I find myself reading fewer and fewer of them.

You're a man on a mission, that's obvious; I just don't happen to have much patience with missionaries, that's all. Nothing personal but bible-thumping has always given me a headache.

JK

Nemonymous

10-12-2009, 03:19 AM

Chris, I can't recall name-checking 'Cern Zoo' recently in my TLO posts, but I'm sure you will be able to find one! I think I've name-checked your book, though, for genuine reasons. I do look forward to reading it...

I mentioned CZ on this thread because, in my perhaps false wisdom, thinking it a good idea to give a lead to others to guess who Grim Blogger is who wrote the SS review, a CZ poser the GB himself mentioned earlier on that blog.

Why are you affecting this thread with some apparent grievance against me now -- (whether justified or not)?

EDIT: I don't know why I'm spending my time - but I've done a search here for 'Cern Zoo' and the mentions seem very sparsely scattered over time and nothing like 100%!

Julian Karswell

10-12-2009, 08:42 AM

You're being paranoid. No one is picking you or 'affecting' the thread.

I'm simply making the valid observation that you plug Cern Zoo at the drop of a hat. Moderation is all. Well, toleration too.

There seems to be a rather nasty and pernicious tactic sweeping through the horror genre at the moment. We're meant to sit quietly like good little children while people engage in wholesale plugging and sychophancy, and are accused of having some obscure 'hidden agenda' if we disapprove of either the marketing or the quality of the prose. It's Orwellian thought-control, practised by people who want to get their own way, and directed at those who represent obstacles.

It's cheap politicking to accuse your opponents of nurturing a grievance, or indulging in sour grapes, or for being plain contrary. We're all entitled to an opinion. And let's not forget that you and all of the other self-hyping marketeers are, for want of a better cliche, throwing the first stone by hyping yourselves.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think this is the first time I've queried whether it is really necessary to keep on plugging Cern Zoo, and I only do so after having heard you namedrop it hundreds of times. I think I've demonstrated greater tolerance than you have.

And to be brutally frank, I'm not going to mute my criticism just because you're planning to review my forthcoming book. I really couldn't care a less what reviews the books receives, and have even less interest in awards (opinions I share with the publisher and introducer). Of course it will be interesting to see what you think of it, but (with respect) I don't need you to tell me how good a writer I am, and nor will I be coerced into submission for fear of reprisals.

Best of luck with Cern Zoo, but please, do you really have to take it so personally when someone points out that you plug it in every other post?

JK

Nemonymous

10-12-2009, 08:46 AM

I shall tell you where I am.
I'm out.

Nemonymous

10-12-2009, 09:41 AM

Well, having got my Dragon's Den joke off my chest, I thought I should calmly reply to JK's points;

(i) If there is a point to be made about my marketing (I feel JK's point as expressed is unjustified), but even it were justified - then I did not think this the thread to trigger that debate...
(ii) My possible reviewing on JK's book will be done on my strict 'textual' criteria that I've explained here and elsewhere. I have said on another thread, that I feel it is likely to be a good book, based on evidence I've seen before.
(iii) I honestly can't see my comments on this thread as evidence of JK's more general complaints about the Horror genre (some of which I agree with, others I strongly disagree).

des

G. S. Carnivals

10-12-2009, 11:05 AM

Chris, you are greatly overexaggerating des' mention of CERN Zoo here at TLO. Philip K. Dick's Ubik is everywhere, however.

Julian Karswell

10-12-2009, 04:07 PM

Chris, you are greatly overexaggerating des' mention of CERN Zoo here at TLO. Philip K. Dick's Ubik is everywhere, however.

You're probably right, GSC. I am probably thinking of similar posts made elsewhere in forums like Shocklines.

I've just spent an hour plucking and dismembering a pheasant. It had been hanging for three days so the innards smelt very gamey (a pleasantish aroma in moderation in a casserole but rather overpowering when butchering). Yet I approached that task with greater relish than opening this thread, which is probably a pretty good indicator that it's time to bale out.

:D

JK

yellowish haze

10-13-2009, 05:31 AM

I have finished reading Cold to the Touch two weeks ago and enjoyed it greatly. I don't know what it is about this decade but imho it should be considered the first true revival of sophisticated weird fiction and Simon's new collection serves as yet another proof of this. One of the things I liked most about the book is how thematically diverse these stories are. Cold to the Touch is like a travel through a multiverse of disturbing truths.

I'm not sure if it was mentioned here before, but Stephen Jones described Beneath the Surface as "...possibly the most important debut short story collection in the genre since Mark Samuels' 'The White Hands'." and after Cold to the Touch, even though I missed Beneath the Surface, I can only say that this is absolutely no surprise.

nomis

10-13-2009, 12:50 PM

Thank you very much, Mr Haze. I'm very pleased you enjoyed the book.

To your point about this being a good time for weird, if it's true, my suspicion is because of the wealth of reprint material made available over the past decade. Ghost Story Press and the like started bringing the forgotten and unavailable back, allowing many writers to experience them during the formative years of their craft. Raise a writer on unique voices and don't be surprised if he or she generates something different than the King-pastiches that dominated the market.

tartarusrussell

01-24-2010, 11:57 AM

Another great review for Cold to the Touch (http://freepages.pavilion.net/tartarus/coldtothetouch.htm)can be found at Tales from the Black Abyss (http://talesfromtheblackabyss.blogspot.com/)....

"His writing reminds me of Thomas Ligotti but with frequent glimpses of the kind of insecurities and isolation seen in much of Lovecraft's work. Yet all this is achieved with only the lightest supernatural touch."