And after the release of my new book, The Nightmare Cycle, comes a short story of oceanic terror that will leave you at the edge of your seat. I have a story in the latest Skywatcher Press anthology on Amazon, THE DEPTHS UNLEASHED BOOK #2. I know there is a Kindle version, not sure if a print version is in the works. All links will be down below, and book pics off to the side as usual. Skywatcher Press is well known for their bestselling undead anthologies, and similar fare, such as Pandemic Unleashed and The Dead Unleashed. I’m sharing a TOC with some familiar names too, like Jeff Parsons and Gregory Norris, who you might recognize from short story magazines of the 2000s era. The name of my story is: “The Underwater Menace.”
Remember, I’m in BOOK 2. The one with the horrific fishy and diver staring it down.
THE DEPTHS UNLEASHED VOLUME 2
Anthology of Underwater Horror – Featuring my story:“The Underwater Menace”
ORDER ON AMAZON KINDLE (preview below, be redirected):
So today is here. Today is the day of my third official story collection: THE NIGHTMARE CYCLE, from Dark Owl Publishing. It is available in print and digital formats (Paperback and on Amazon Kindle). And as the year goes on, straight thru 2024, will be available at book fairs, from various literary vendors, horror and comic-themed conventions, the odd novelty or specialty store, or wherever other fine horror books or goods are sold. I will keep you updated on this website. The spooky fun starts in Arizona first and New York second.
A short story collection is a book of tales by one single author, where an anthology is a book of stories usually centered around a theme from not one but many authors, from many different states or countries or diverse backgrounds. The Nightmare Cycle was an idea for a book that came to me one day in a dream (go figure), but is not about being in a dream. It gets its title from every single story being “A Nightmarish Scenario,” one warped tale leading into the next (the theme of cycling and unending), and then the one thereafter. There is no finality. Just horrific circumstance after circumstance. Undulated terror. Beginning, middle, end. Think Rod Serling’s The Night Gallery, but modern day, my take.
THE NIGHTMARE CYCLE by Lawrence Dagstine
From Dark Owl Publishing – NOW AVAILABLE worldwide
You have mostly new stories between the pages, but you have some obscure offerings as well. Tales from my humble beginnings as a horror author. The 2000s era. There are stories like Thursday’s Children. Imagine pitting zombie youth against each other the same way people hold backroom cockfights for money. The Adopted, where werewolf adoption in Southeast Asia is more complex than you think. Human Transfer, a very dark and dystopic tale of population control, and betrayal by the people you thought you knew and trusted most.
There are Dark Owl exclusives, tales which are theirs and theirs only, such as The Thing about Eden. Imagine Mars in the future where life under one dark leadership only becomes concerning, overbearing, and darker with the next. The Acrylic Man, about a painter of spectral portraits who captures his love interests with not just grace but permanence. The Show Must Go On, a story about a sharpshooting djinn and her western travels, but also her wretched past.
You have new offerings such as Princely Homecoming, a unique take on Snow White, who longs for her long dead prince. There is Pet, a tale set during the backdrop of the Nixon era, which puts a twist on just “who” or “what” constitutes man’s best friend. Genetically speaking, of course. There is Our Family Awaits, a witch’s tale unlike any other, about foster care and deep dark secrets. This is one which will have you clutching the blankets. And there is so much more; there’s even a novelette within The Nightmare Cycle’s pages.
AMAZON KINDLE “EBOOK” VERSION:
(Sample a few pages below, or shoot for the paperback version)
Here’s the horror convention calendar for Dark Owl Publishing and The Nightmare Cycle. This calendar will obviously grow. I will be away in July (after the 4th), but I will have my netbook with me, keep in touch via social media. Dark Owl will also have some of their horror wares and anthologies available from a talented stable of other authors as well, so be sure to keep tuning in to this link below:
Oh, by the way, the fabulous cover art was done by Fernando JFL (Giotefeli), who is a professional horror illustrator and death metal artist from South America. He takes a rather retro, vintage approach to his work. If you are looking for an artist, might I recommend him: https://www.instagram.com/giotefeli, and https://giotefeli.tumblr.com/
The book is available first on Amazon, then Terror Trader second (Arizona’s Number One Horror Marketplace). Then it will go to the usual vendors and themed cons, and through the usual distribution channels/networks.
It is with great pleasure to announce that I’ve nabbed my fifth “Zombie-themed fiction” acceptance in the last year, and it goes to the new publishing outfit Red Polka Books. The name of the anthology this time is called QUARANTINE, and it is a book of short stories featuring many different authors from many diverse backgrounds. I am headlining the book (I’m actually the first short story as soon as you open it up). And it is a book centered around deadly viruses, pathogens, and pandemics. Even worse than Covid-19. It will be available in the States on platforms such as Lulu (Amazon later), should you want a print or digital copy for your daily commute to work, and will eventually creep its way into other countries such as the UK and India. My story is based off a deadly pathogen, and military scientists have to actually shut down a school with kids inside. Undead children who have become victim to HOS (a hostile pathogen with a science behind it, and yeah, some goofiness as well). Read my short story in Quarantine today, entitled, “Classroom of the Dead.”
QUARANTINE – Anthology of Modern Pandemic/Horror Tales
Featuring Lawrence Dagstine’s: “Classroom of the Dead”
QUARANTINE – DARK LOCKDOWN TALES for the 21st Century
Edited by Simon Dubois & Rasiika Sen – for RED POLKA BOOKS
Pleased to announce I have a flash fiction piece, along with 52 other authors, in the new Wicked Shadow Press anthology: FLASH OF THE DEAD. All the pieces contained within this book are “micro tales” under 1500 words in length. Also known as the short-short, in story form, that is what flash fiction essentially is. Small, QUICK stories, that you can read on the bus or subway on your daily commute to work, especially when you are getting off in a few stops, or from the comfort of bed while drifting off to sleep. My mini tale is zombie-themed (obviously), and it is called, “Saving the Dead.”
My latest credit comes to the dark and doomed romance anthology series, Soulmate Syndrome! Volumes One and Two. My story, a tale about forbidden love (the kind you cherish but can never have), curses, affliction, and lycantrhropy, can be found in Volume One. The name of the story, “The Romance of Vegada.” Just who and what are the Wolves of Caliente? Why is the love in my story, at its core, unobtainable? Find out in Soulmate Syndrome Volume One, along with dark and doomed and paranormal-style romances by a plethora of other great writers. I’ll provide pictures and ordering info (links) down below or to the right-hand side as always. And I’ll be seeing you on the next one.
SOULMATE SYNDROME Volumes 1 & 2 – (read Lawrence in Volume One up above; ordering info below)
published by WICKED SHADOW PRESS
WICKED SHADOW PRESS ORDERING INFO:
Buy a Paperback copy of SOULMATE SYNDROME VOL. 01 from Lulu.com:
Coming Spring 2023. A new collection, with mostly new stories. Along with some of the best and most obscure tales from the author’s earliest years as a horror writer. Thirteen stories that transcend the meaning of sleeplessness. Each story a nightmarish scenario or circumstance, one after the other, from beginning to end. From Dark Owl Publishing. THE NIGHTMARE CYCLE.
Prepare yourself for a LOT of bad dreams and restlessness.
Happy Halloween 2022! I am pleased to announce that I am in yet another anthology this autumn, this time again from Culture Cult Press. And it’s a horror short inspired by “real life events.” The name of the story is: The Nightmare of Bayhurst. And you can find that short story along with 33 other fabulous authors weaving their own little tales of haunted mansions, manors, houses, dwellings, apartments, what-have-you. My story centers around the time I first moved to Brooklyn, New York City between 2000 and 2001. Hard to believe that was so long ago. I was in my twenties, it was my first place, and I had lived in the basement of a few-story walk-up (what some in NYC would call a very small, dinghy six-apartment tenement). It was close to subways, a movie theater, drug stores, a baseball card store, parks, and shopping. The rent was fantastic. I paid around 650 to 700 per month. You’ll never see that kind of rent again in New York. But there was something eerie and ominous coming from the boiler room, which I just happened to live next to. And the super/owner, as well as a few of the tenants knew about it too. Strange sounds, strange occurences. Like a young girl moaning. Well, now you can read a fictional account of those events in the Halloween Book, ‘HAUS: AN ANTHOLOGY OF HAUNTED HOUSE STORIES.’ That is basically the theme, and like my last anthology from Culture Cult Press (I Cast You Out!), this is also edited by Jay Chakravarti. It is available in paperback, and sold in the US, UK, and India. I will put any and all necessary pics, banners, links, book covers below or to the right-hand side for your convenience. It is on Amazon right now, matter of fact.
I am quite pleased to announce that I’ve got a new, exclusive story appearing in the recently-released paperback anthology, “I CAST YOU OUT: Stories of Possession.” Featuring 27 different authors from around the globe (including India), touching down on the psychological and horrifying effects of demonic possession. At this time it is only available on Amazon. I am not sure whether it will see a digital release. So this might be print only. I’ll put all the usual links to the right hand side or pictures in this post, should you be interested. Edited by Jay Chakravarti. 336 Pages.
My tale, which comes in around 5100 words, is called “Trevor’s Nagging.” Location-wise it takes place in a mental hospital with a psychiatrist figure, and a young lad named Trevor…but just what is nagging at him? If you are a fan of movies such as The Exorcist or The Exorcism of Emily Rose, this story and many of the others contained within may be up your alley. Just make sure to read with the lights on.
You can order the anthology DIRECT from Amazon below:
Also, if you would like to follow me on a modern day reader, tablet, or android device, or keep up-to-date whenever a new anthology featuring my works of speculative fiction and horror come out, I have an author page here:
You can also find me on Twitter (my social media of choice the past 13 years), where I not only talk about fiction literature, but talk shop on video games, toys, comic books, pop culture, Doctor Who, and art: http://www.twitter.com/ldagstine
My vampire novelette The Paraplegic has finally found a proper home, and in both print and digital form, in the fairly new pulp fiction publication, SERIAL MAGAZINE. I appear in Issue No. #12, Late August 2019. I believe it is a biweekly. You don’t see too many biweekly publications anymore. Great artwork, great interior layout, has that real gritty 1950s feel to it, the kind of magazine you’d find legends Fritz Leiber and Ray Bradbury hanging out and about with their lurid genre classics. I even made the front cover! It is edited by the very talented Tanya Ferrell. I will leave pictures and links down below so you can order a copy, direct from Serial Publishing (the print version is even discounted for the month of August 2019, so hurry).
I will appear with a werewolf story in the late May digital anthology, CREATURES, by Tell-Tale Press. Edited by Andrea Dawn. There will be two versions to this anthology. A short story edition and a novelette edition. I’m in the short story edition. It will be free to read on the Tell-Tale Press website, then available in ebook format from Amazon in the event you own a Kindle. The book, along with various other titles from Tell-Tale Press, will also be available on May 23-26th at Phoenix Fan Fusion Comic Book Convention. They will have a table there. So if you live in the Arizona area, be on the lookout for CREATURES ANTHO with my story in it, and many other talented authors. I will leave pictures, links, author lineup below. Just click on them (be redirected).
With Horror Stories By: Oreoluwa Arowobusoye, Kenneth Bykerk, Lawrence Dagstine, Danielle Davis, Dan Fields, Eric J. Guignard, A.M. Harte, Isabella Hunter, Jennifer Loring, Nicola Lombardi, Matthew Lyons, Jamie Mason, Jason McCuiston, Gregory L. Norris, P. R. O’Leary, D.C. Phillips, Mark Silcox, Melissa Watkins Starr, T.J. Tranchell, Joseph Walker.
A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I have a BRAND NEW short story for late 2018 in the Left Hand Publishers’ Anthology: ‘Suspense Unimagined.’ Anthology of Suspense, Thrillers, and Nightmares creeping past the boundaries of your imagination. Edited by the very talented Karen T. Newman, and featuring over two-dozen talented authors. The name of my story is “COMPETING FOR ROSES.” It is a dark tale set in World War One, and around roses (the flowers). It is available in paperback. I will add book cover pics and the two links I could find to order it (below), such as Amazon.
You can now find the revised version of my vampire story, Geraldine’s Addiction, in the new issue of Dark Moon Book’s Stoker-nominated horror magazine, Dark Moon Digest. No. 12, July 2013. In a future entry I’ll have a short interview about where I got the inspiration for Geraldine’s Addiction. Available on Amazon or where horror magazines are sold.
Featuring scary fiction by Lawrence Dagstine, Grant Matthew Frazier, Erin K. Coughlin, Arthur Carey, Kaitlyn Travis, Jason Cramblett, Samantha Combs, Aric Sundquist, Ruth Hopkins, Patrick Tumblety, Carie Juettner, and an exclusive piece by Stoker winning novelist, Joe McKinney.
I have a gothic horror story appearing in the 2013 issue, No. 9, of Fortress Publishing’s Cemetery Moon. Nice looking Cthulhu cover art, perfect for this particular edition. I guess it’s themed. Features short fiction by Me, AJ Huffman, Gerald E. Sheagren, Brian Barnett, Larry Hinkle, Dr. Bill deArmond, Allen Koop, Donald C. White, William Andre Sanders, and William Amundsen. If you’d like to order it, just click on the link or pic below. Only available in print; they really should put out a digital version to this.
I had remembered appearing in this particular digest a long time ago, but I couldn’t place when. Then I remembered, I was in the premiere issue with authors Kristine Ong Muslim, Kenneth Goldman, and Barry J. House. Now that publishing is collapsing, with mass publications relying heavily on publicity expenditures and print magazines in the final stages of extinction, I’m going to miss these little pulps from yesteryear. One could step back in time and relive the days of when authors like Ray Bradbury, Fritz Lieber, John Campbell and A.E. Van Vogt were just starting out. I must confess, I’m going to miss it; oddly enough, another part of me isn’t.
This is a reminder post for what is clearly one of the bestdesigned Horror Digests on the market. I believe it’s available in a few bookstores in the lit. journal section, so there’s distribution to my knowledge. It might be available at The Horror Mall, too. Or you can just order direct from their homepage. But at close to 300 pages, you get not one, not two, but THREE ISSUES in ONE! I have a piece in the most recently released edition: Withersin – Arsenic. It’s a bit on the pricey side, but well worth it. If you’re a fan of horror, you’re missing out. Their interviews, reviews, and non-fiction articles get five stars automatically. Their artwork is award-winning. Get your copy today.
WITHERSIN MAGAZINE: Early Spring 2010
*Turpentine – Iodine – Arsenic*
And remember, each thick-filled issue is actually THREE issues in one!
The Adopted–Lawrence R. Dagstine
The Beast Within–Frank Summers
Rise of the Animal–Carl Hose
Twin Moons–Christopher Jacobsmeyer
Grandma, What Big Teeth You Have– Rob Rosen
Exodus–Jessy Marie Roberts
Running With The Pack-Mark Souza
Shilak’s Gift–Scott Sandridge
Roadkill–D. Nathan Hilliard
Forces of Evil–Edward Mckeown
Blood Drops and Mercury–Stephanie Morrell
Arcadia–Donald Jacob Uitvlugt
The Mystery of St. Mary’s Morgue–Matthew Dent
The Werewolf Spell–Kiki Howell
The Trojan Plushy–David Bernstein
The Bane of Existence–Marianne Halbert
Caffeine Fix–Fiona Titchenell
The In Crowd–Patricia Puckett
Uninvited–Kelly Metz
By The Cycle Of The Moon–Dylan J. Morgan
Runaway–J.Leigh Bailey
Once Upon A Crime–Jay Raven
Azieran: The Templar’s Chalice–Christopher Heath
Without Remorse–Ben Langhinrichs
Springing The Wolf–Dale Carothers
Many of you have probably been wondering where the heck I’ve been, blogging two, three times per month. Well, lately I’m going through a very hectic divorce. Yes, I’ve split up and moved away from my now ex-significant other. We shared four wonderful years together as a couple, gave birth to a scifi nut for a toddler, but with a 70% divorce rate in the United States, hey, sometimes these things are not meant to last. On June 10th (and maybe beyond), it’s all about who gets the custody and visitation and when and where (I’ll probably get the kid on the weekends). But New York Court can be a dragging process when it comes to this. I’d like to thank all of my friends I grew up with in Manhattan, my friends in Brooklyn, all of my very supportive friends–all 2,500 of you–on Facebook, for cheering me up, for being there for me. Even though there is more legal stuff ahead, a lot of you took the teary moments and depression away. I’d like to also thank you for your privacy concerning all these family matters at this time. Sometimes love is not meant forever. What this does mean, however, is I need to get my ass writing more when all this is over. I have a roof over my head. It’s a room… cozy… $500 a month with utilities (I know peeps), and for a Native New Yorker and Bohemian like myself it will suit me just fine. I feel as if I’ll get more work done now. Perhaps better work, as I’ll be able to concentrate. Oddly enough though, the way the visitation proceedings are playing out—minus the paranormal elements, of course—they’re roughly 70% similar to my first Amazon Kindle title: Visitation Rights.
VISITATION RIGHTS: by Lawrence Dagstine
for Amazon Kindle and most other Digital Readers/Platforms
Sometimes very small fragments of art imitate life…
…and sometimes very small fragments of life imitate art.
Nurses and babysitters taking care of vampires and werewolves during The Great Depression? President Herbert Hoover striking financial aid deals with monsters? Compassion for a vampire child from another era? Who came first? The monsters or the humans? The year is 1930… and Lawrence Dagstine is just one of your Feature Authors for a very weird novelette. It all takes place in the latest issue of Sam’s Dot Publishing’s digest-sized magazine, Cover of Darkness. Edited by Tyree Campbell. Published semi-annually.
A Time And Place For Monsters – 1930
Written by Lawrence Dagstine
Weaver of the Historical Weird Tale…
COVER OF DARKNESS – MAY 2010
Order Lawrence Dagstine’s novelette in Cover of Darkness:
Also featuring Novelette-length work by Lawrence Dagstine:
COVER OF DARKNESS – NOVEMBER 2009
Get both issues for a discounted postage price at The Genre Mall.
Other Authors & Poets: Mark Anthony Brennan, Tyree Campbell, Virginia Mohlere, Jonathan Wolf, Edward Cox, Ferrel D. Moore, Marc Colten, Lawrence Dagstine, W.K. Tucker, Jennifer Sparlin, Hillary Bartholomew, Eric Obame, Thom Olausson, Marge B. Simon, Peter Layton, K.S. Hardy, Cathy Buburuz, Gary Every, Ash Krafton, and finally, W.C. Roberts.
You can now purchase the PDF version of FRESH BLOOD: Tales from the Speculative Graveyard, downloadable to PC or Macintosh computers, Amazon KINDLE, and Sony eReader among other devices for only $3.50! That’s right, own 160 pages, all short stories for an affordable price. Fresh Blood, my 2009 debut collection, from Sam’s Dot Publishing. Electronic Format! Available at the War Gamer Vault. Link below. Or just click on the picture.
FRESH BLOOD by Lawrence R. Dagstine
Published by Sam’s Dot Publishing – Now a PDF!!
ORDER FRESH BLOOD – PDF for your Computer or Readers:
In other news, certain Sam’s Dot Magazines will not only be available in print on their regularly released basis, but they too will eventually go into PDF format where you can download the publications to your readers (such as Cover of Darkness). I’ll be in a decent number of their pubs this year, so stay tuned for that. Also, I’ve had a lot of luck in the anthology department as of late. Anthologies, which can be found in the Books & Anthos section of this homepage, will now be released under “New Anthology” or “New Antho.” Also, expect “New Releases” and a Dagstine application andimprint. Once again, whatever can be purchased in print will be attainable for reading devices. Nothing overnight, but stay tuned.
Other New Entries: “Books & Anthos” and “eBooks & Kindle”
I’ll be coming your way as a feature authorin Sam’s Dot Publishing’s print, and soon-to-be e-publication too, Cover of Darkness. This would be my second acceptance to the bi-annual anthology magazine. Edited by Tyree Campbell. It’s a big old novelette, one filled with nurses and hospitals and monsters and the truth about humanity. It is also an historical tale. Atmospherically, it takes place during the height of The Great Depression. The year 1930, to be exact.
Lawrence Dagstine: Author 
You must be logged in to post a comment.