Blood, Bones and Bullets
by Tim Curran
review by Robert Essig
Tim Curran weaves a story like he's touching the souls of his
characters and bringing forth the very essence of their lives, as is
exemplified in the three novellas that are collected in the Darkfuse release of
Blood, Bones and Bullets.
The first story (my personal favorite), entitled "Puppet
Graveyard" follows Kitty Seevers as she becomes wrapped up in the bizarre
world of ventriloquist Ronny McBane and his dummy Piggy. It's hard to tell who
the real dummy is, and that Piggy has a mouth on him. Not just a horror story, but a
mystery that brings the reader into the trappings of twisted minds and madness.
"The Underdwelling" takes us on a journey beneath the
earth into the caverns of Hobart Mine. Boyd is the new guy and a bit nervous
about an eight-hour day underground. When a new shaft opens up on the lowest
level of the mines Boyd is included in the exploration party. What they find is
a prehistoric world unseen by human eyes. After the opening is collapsed their
fears become real. This story comes alive through the boisterous banter of the men as they
navigate the mines. Curran has a gift with realistic and believable dialogue
that effortlessly carries the story.
The trilogy is capped off with a stint behind the bars of Shaddock
Valley maximum security prison in a story called "Fear Me". You think
prison is rough and tough and scary as hell, just add something that stalks at
night, something that cannot be restricted my mere steel bars and concrete
walls and you've got yourself one hell of a horror story.
Tim Curran is about as prolific as they come, as anyone will see
just perusing his books on Amazon. He has a true talent for telling a story.
Through Tim's prose I had a glimpse into three unique tragedies and I look
forward to relishing in more of his horrific visions.
An interview with the Corpse King himself:
Robert Essig: Hello, Tim! Welcome to my blog. I've got the bone saw and
forceps out, so let's pick your brain a bit. I'll have you stitched up and out
of here in no time. Why don't you begin by telling us a little bit about
yourself?
Tim Curran: Not much to tell. I work in a factory and write fiction as a hobby
that's probably almost an obsession. It's all I really do. It's taken over
everything. It's a great, hungering beast that allows me no social life or
friends. It's too jealous for that.
RE: My favorite story in Blood, Bones and Bullets is "Puppet
Graveyard". Piggy, the ventriloquist dummy in the story, steals the show.
There were some amazing scenes with Ronny and Piggy that created palpable
tension between the two. Where did the inspiration for Piggy come from?
TC: Ventriloquist dolls are weird and creepy. We know they're just wood and plastic and
what not...yet we do not trust them. Like puppets or mannequins, they seem to
have a morbid half-life all their own. They are like us...but grotesque and
exaggerated. There seems to be something behind their shining glass eyes, a
malignant anti-human sort of sentience as if they know something we don't and
have glimpsed things we wouldn't care to see. That's the inspiration for
Piggy--the idea that there might some diabolic, spectral intelligence behind
those eyes, plotting and scheming.
RE: Do you have any rituals that you perform before, during, or
after the process of writing a novel?
TC: No, none. I have a very practical work ethic--I think of an idea
and I let it form in my mind for days or weeks, sometimes months or years. When
it's ready, it floats to the surface. Then I look for the opening sentence that
intrigues me and might grab a reader and I build that into a paragraph. That
first paragraph is important. Whether it's a story, novella, or a novel, it
doesn't matter. The first paragraph sets tone, pacing, atmosphere, everything.
If I have a good first line and first paragraph, I can make things happen.
RE: One of the elements that stood out in "The
Underdwelling" was the dialogue. The banter between the miners made me
feel like I was right there conversing with them. In the story "Fear
Me" the dialogue is important in weaving a realistic look at life behind
bars including prison slang. How do you approach dialogue?
TC: Every occupation and walk of life has it's own banter. In doing a
story, I research the way the people in it talk, the jargon they use, the lives
they lead. Realistic dialogue is very important. If you lack that, your
characters seem hollow.
RE: What kind of stories do you enjoy reading?
TC: I read just about everything, save for fluff like paranormal
romances. I like horror, of course, but I also devour science fiction. I'm not
so much interested in the genre as I am in the story. If the story grabs me,
I'll read it whether it's mainstream or genre or literary. The storyline is
always the thing. I enjoy history, too. Especially dark history like the Black
Death or the European witchcraft persecutions. Anything like that.
RE: Most of your books are stand-alones at a time when trilogies
and sequels seem to be so popular (particularly when it comes to zombie
fiction). Do you prefer stand-alone stories over a series or sequels and if so,
why?
TC: Sequels are fine, but I rarely think any character is that
fascinating that I want to write (or read) book after book after book about
them. The problem with series is that they run dry pretty fast and part of the
fun of any character is letting/watching them develop. You don't know who they
are in the beginning, you find out a little at a time. In a series, you already
know who they are and what they will and won't do so that takes a lot of the
fun away from it. And if there's a sequel, well, you know somebody's going to
survive so that steals a lot of the narrative tension away. The problem with
zombie series is that 99% of them follow the same tired plot--a group of people
get their hands on machine guns and what not and spend the entire book blowing
away dead people. None of it is scary. They're really not horror novels, but
action-adventure potboilers that throw in a some monsters so there's something
to shoot. You'll find very few that don't have gun plots, ex-military or
special forces type characters. The influence of first-person shooter games is
obvious. And that's too bad because REAL people surviving a zombie pandemic has
potential, but most of it tends to have very thin characterizations or comic
book type hero and villain characters who are more preposterous than the
walking dead themselves.
RE: So you're stranded on a desert island and, I dunno, maybe you
have an old arm crank Victrola. Which three records and which three books would
you like to bide your time.
TC: I would take The White Album by the Beatles because it's weird, catchy,
and creative. Paranoid by Black Sabbath for those days I needed to be a
doom-laden badass. And maybe a
collection of classical music so I could get some culture. I would choose fat
books that would keep me going awhile. The Complete Short Stories of H.G. Wells
because it's fat and the stories are great. War and Peace because it's huge and
I think you can read it five or six times and discover a new novel every time.
My third book would probably be a collection by Thomas Ligotti...although being
alone and reading stories about lonely, alienated, and possibly insane
outsiders might not be a good idea when you're alone on an island. So scratch
that and give me Robinson Crusoe.
RE: Maybe someone is reading this who hasn't sampled your work yet.
Which one of your books is a good place to start?
TC: Actually, I think Blood, Bones and Bullets is a perfect place to
sample my stuff.
RE: Describe your writing style in a few words.
TC: I try not to let the dust settle.
RE: Anything coming out soon that you would like to plug?
TC: Next thing I have coming out will probably be Afterburn from
Severed Press. There's also a novel from DarkFuse called Doll Face. Not sure
when that one will be out, though.
I want to thank Tim for doing this interview. I am becoming a rapid fan of his work and will be reading more very soon. I suggest you do the same. Purchase Blood, Bones and Bullets HERE. Visit Tim Curran's website HERE.
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