One thing I love about traveling and being part of reenactment and living history events is (aside from the retelling an reliving of history) getting to reconnect with friends and make some new ones! This year, I had the pleasure of meeting so many awesome people that I hope to run into again at future events.
One such person I met this year - at Fort Niagara to be exact - was author William P. Robertson. The story goes as follows. I was sitting in the castle cooling off and contemplating where I was going to explore next to get more photos and video. I had a couple artists (painters) ask to take my photo to serve as possible inspiration for their future art pieces. Robertson also approached me as I fanned myself with one of my many hand fans (seriously, I'm obtaining quite the collection) asking for my photo as he was seeking out inspiration, but for this future books.
William Roberston writes French and Indian War era novels and has accumulated quite a number of titles under his belt. But imagine my delight when he told me that he also writes in the horror genre. Of course, I was interested in checking out some of his works and he was nice enough to send a little care package. It included his dark poetry book, Icicles - Chilling Poems & Photos and a CD of music titled Until Death Do Impart that he collaborated on with a band called ShadowFox (I will be reviewing this in a future post). But it was fun getting to know Robertson as a writer through Icicles.
FROM THE BACK COVER OF ICICLES:
From the 1980's through 2002, William P. Robertson was a prominent voice of the small press horror scene. Adept with both rhymed and free verse styles, his Gothic, Medieval, and dark humor poetry appeared in over 500 magazines worldwide. In addition, he released the audio book, Gasp, on which he rapped, recited, and rhymed his way through his best-known poems. The CD drew rave reviews. Jim Lee of "Scavenger's Newsletter" called it "an uproarious, standalone success" while reviewer, T. M. Gray, said, "There aren't enough superlatives in the English language to express how awesome Gasp is!" Containing ninety-nine chilling poems, Icicles is written in the same haunting fashion that impressed critics and made William's work so popular in Canada, Australia, the US, and the UK.
The poems range from rhyme to (verse, and horrifying and cringeworthy (and I mean that in a good way) to more humorous. I would not, however, recommend this book to the squeamish or if you think you might be offended by gore or content that teeters on a more explicit side.
I would say that this writing (at least in the horror genre) definitely has an elegant flair while also tilting toward the more twisted side. There are definitely hints of Gothic romanticism within the verse, while others give me a sort of Grindhouse vibe. Poems like What Do You Do? give nods to the great Edgar Allan Poe while Mini Marts Attract Monsters are reminiscent of the lower budget horror films of the 1980s. And while none of the poems are that long, even the shortest ones might stir up a bit of dread within the reader.
With the Halloween season and autumn equinox approaching, this is a great book to pick up and chill (ha ha! :P ) out with on a dark autumn night with a pumpkin spice latte, tea, wine (Merlot is what I personally recommend) or whatever you want.
Now that I've experienced a little of William Robertson's horror writings, I look forward to reading his historical fiction!
Check out his works at the following links:
William P. Robertson's Historical Fiction
bucktailsandbroomsticks.com
William P. Robertson's Horror Fiction
thehorrorhaven.com
One such person I met this year - at Fort Niagara to be exact - was author William P. Robertson. The story goes as follows. I was sitting in the castle cooling off and contemplating where I was going to explore next to get more photos and video. I had a couple artists (painters) ask to take my photo to serve as possible inspiration for their future art pieces. Robertson also approached me as I fanned myself with one of my many hand fans (seriously, I'm obtaining quite the collection) asking for my photo as he was seeking out inspiration, but for this future books.
William Roberston writes French and Indian War era novels and has accumulated quite a number of titles under his belt. But imagine my delight when he told me that he also writes in the horror genre. Of course, I was interested in checking out some of his works and he was nice enough to send a little care package. It included his dark poetry book, Icicles - Chilling Poems & Photos and a CD of music titled Until Death Do Impart that he collaborated on with a band called ShadowFox (I will be reviewing this in a future post). But it was fun getting to know Robertson as a writer through Icicles.
FROM THE BACK COVER OF ICICLES:
From the 1980's through 2002, William P. Robertson was a prominent voice of the small press horror scene. Adept with both rhymed and free verse styles, his Gothic, Medieval, and dark humor poetry appeared in over 500 magazines worldwide. In addition, he released the audio book, Gasp, on which he rapped, recited, and rhymed his way through his best-known poems. The CD drew rave reviews. Jim Lee of "Scavenger's Newsletter" called it "an uproarious, standalone success" while reviewer, T. M. Gray, said, "There aren't enough superlatives in the English language to express how awesome Gasp is!" Containing ninety-nine chilling poems, Icicles is written in the same haunting fashion that impressed critics and made William's work so popular in Canada, Australia, the US, and the UK.
The poems range from rhyme to (verse, and horrifying and cringeworthy (and I mean that in a good way) to more humorous. I would not, however, recommend this book to the squeamish or if you think you might be offended by gore or content that teeters on a more explicit side.
I would say that this writing (at least in the horror genre) definitely has an elegant flair while also tilting toward the more twisted side. There are definitely hints of Gothic romanticism within the verse, while others give me a sort of Grindhouse vibe. Poems like What Do You Do? give nods to the great Edgar Allan Poe while Mini Marts Attract Monsters are reminiscent of the lower budget horror films of the 1980s. And while none of the poems are that long, even the shortest ones might stir up a bit of dread within the reader.
With the Halloween season and autumn equinox approaching, this is a great book to pick up and chill (ha ha! :P ) out with on a dark autumn night with a pumpkin spice latte, tea, wine (Merlot is what I personally recommend) or whatever you want.
Now that I've experienced a little of William Robertson's horror writings, I look forward to reading his historical fiction!
Check out his works at the following links:
William P. Robertson's Historical Fiction
bucktailsandbroomsticks.com
William P. Robertson's Horror Fiction
thehorrorhaven.com
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