It’s Cyber Monday, my friends! You know where you’ll be. You know where I will, too. Lurking Behind the Shadows with a hearty thank you for your order!

There just may be some evil truths to a real-time haunted covered bridge in Kingsville, Maryland.  Count Dracula is dead, and one of his cavern-bound brides is following in his dastardly footsteps, prowling Victorian London in search of a coven of her own.  Young Jessica and her Vietnam-surviving father share a sordid secret; little does Jessica’s dad know she has one more that’s about to root its ugly head.  

There’s something about that carnelian-colored guitar pick which turns the average player into a fret god, but is the cost of its power worth murder?  The Death of Superman is all the rage of 1992 and Hell is about to rain from the skies upon geeks in line for second print comic books. Professional baseball player Jake Puzzella committed a crime in the name of love; the paycheck’s come due in the bottom of the sixth.  Music junkie Evan is at the end of the rope in his marriage; in the heat of passion, he fails to heed David Bowie’s caveat about Lady Grinning Soul being one’s living end.

These are some of the frights skulking inside Ray Van Horn, Jr.’s new horror collection, Behind the Shadows. Stephen King, EC horror comics, Saturday night ghost hosts, Bram Stoker, The Twilight Zone, ’80s splatter films.  All the beloved genre elements thrown into the meat grinder of Van Horn’s ten tales of terror with some contemporary twists.  Behind the Shadows is coming for you from Raw Earth Ink, Van Horn, Jr.’s third book with the imprint.  

“Van Horn, Jr. takes your fondest memories, cuts the steaming hearts out of them, and feeds them to you perforce.”  So declares New York Times best-selling author Michael Jan Friedman about Behind the Shadows.  None other than Chasing the Boogeyman, Becoming the Boogeyman and Memorials best-selling author, Richard Chizmar glows, “Had a blast with Behind the Shadows!  Scary, smart and entertaining!” 

–Ray Van Horn, Jr.

Today is the book birthday for Behind the Shadows! Much love to those of you who ordered copies from me yesterday. Mega thank you to the one and only New York Times bestselling author, Richard Chizmar (Chasing the Boogeyman, Becoming the Boogeyman, Memorials, The Girl on the Porch and the “Gwendy” trilogy), who dropped these kind words last night: “Had a blast with BEHIND THE SHADOWS! Scary, smart and entertaining!”

Richard’s son, Billy Chizmar (pen name of W.H. Chizmar and readily following in his dad’s footsteps as a damned fine author himself), graciously says about Behind the Shadows: “Evocative and enchanting, Ray Van Horn, Jr.’s Behind the Shadows transforms contemporary America into something nostalgic and terrifying.”

If that’s not incredible enough, another of my favorite horror writers on the scene, Snarl, Jedi Summer and The Etiquette of Booby Traps author John Boden says: “You wanna know what’s Behind the Shadows? Ray Van Horn, Jr. is more than happy to show you. Fractured families and frothing creatures. Endless nights and pulsing darkness. It’s a nostalgic ride back to the horrors of your youth. Logic isn’t always logical, and the horrors don’t always end when the lights come on. But it’s a damn good time!”

You can’t ask for a better launch day than this, my friends.

Grab your paperback or digital copy of “Behind the Shadows,” from Raw Earth Ink at Amazon and Kindle.

–Ray Van Horn, Jr.

This weekend, Friday, November 22nd through Sunday, November 24th, I am honored to be a part of the 2024 Philcon at the Doubletree by Hilton in Cherry Hill, NJ. I will be on panels (moderating two of them) focusing on DC Comics films vs. t.v. shows, the films of horror austere, Jordan Peele, the 70th anniversary of Creature From the Black Lagoon and the 10th anniversary of Kelly Sue DeConnick’s radical comic series, Bitch Planet. I’ll also be reading excerpts from my new horror anthology, Behind the Shadows and you can find me signing books at some point.

See…you…therrrrrrrre!

–Ray Van Horn, Jr.

Raw Earth Ink has advanced the release date of my ten story horror anthology, Behind the Shadows, from late December to November 26th. Check out this INCREDIBLE review of BTS from New York Times best-selling author (and one of the funniest dudes I’ve ever met), Dayton Ward:

“Ray Van Horn’s obvious love for the movies, music, comics, and – yes – the horror fiction of the 1980s bleeds through every page of Behind the Shadows. It’s the sort of thing my mother would’ve grounded me for reading back then, the same way she did after learning I’d been sneaking into R-rated splatter flicks at the local theater or discovering those odd issues of Creepy or Heavy Metal magazines in my room (we won’t talk about those other magazines). You know…the good stuff. Ray’s got the good stuff here, folks.”

Behind the Shadows will be available soon at Amazon, Barnes and Noble.com and Lulu, digitally at Kindle, Nook and Kobo.

–Ray Van Horn, Jr.

LET’S GO!!!!

–Ray Van Horn, Jr.

Yes, I’m still spinning Carpenter’s Halloween film scores this morning out of protest. Until next year, boils and ghouls…

The writing life…when the words burst most days, dam up on occasion. When you cheer on your colleagues, study the masters intently and chew on a healthy curd of envy you learn to eat in moderation lest it eats you in return. You gnaw through your failures and avoid temptation to respond to rejections. More often than not, there’s a growth opportunity in turndowns.

When format becomes as important as content. When you take a sip of your favorite drink to hide the sighs during comeuppance. When the marketing and networking supercedes your creative time. Giving your loved ones their just dues, even when you lose a day or night of work.

Rejoicing when you get that publication notice, dropping humble, fun, engaging interaction when being invited to be interviewed. Knowing how damn lucky you are even on a slow sales day when a reader travels far to buy your work based on name, or if you’re really lucky, newly vested friendship. Knowing an autograph is a sacred bond with someone who cares enough about your work to seek you out.

I love this chase as much as it pains me at times. I’m on my way up, however long it takes. I have felt both lonely and well in-arms with a wide world of fellow scribes who get me and vice versa. I pray my desire stays true until I have nothing left to give, having left my mark I some fashion that says I am a writer.

–Ray Van Horn, Jr.

I’ve been champing at the bit for this. At last, the cover reveal for my new horror collection, Behind the Shadows, snaggly artwork by the brilliant Matt Slay. 10 tales of terror culled from my love of Stephen King, EC horror comics, Bram Stoker, Saturday night ghost hosts, baseball and 80s horror with a few contemporary twists. Coming for ya soon!

–Ray Van Horn, Jr.

Happiness is approving the final edits to the cover of Behind the Shadows and having a gem of a testimonial from NY Times Best-Selling author Michael Jan Friedman behind it: “Van Horn, Jr. takes your fondest memories, cuts the steaming hearts out of them, and feeds them to you perforce. Behind the Shadows is entertaining as hell.”

Thank you so much for this, my friend.

–Ray Van Horn, Jr.