Derek Austin Johnson's Blog

“Twilight Zone”, Golden Earring
“Time Warp”, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Richard O’Brien
“Heroes”, David Bowie
“Bittersweet Symphony”, The Verve
“Der Kommissar”, After the Fire
“Let’s Go Crazy”, Prince and the Revolution
“Burning Down the House”, Talking Heads
“Steppin’ Out”, Joe Jackson
“Blue”, Mai Yamane
“Bang A Gong (Get It On)”, T. Rex 

A warning to the curious:

ArmadilloCon 2026 has released its programming schedule. Taking place on September 11-13, it includes a writer's workshop and abundance of programming . My schedule (five panel discussions and one reading) is below. Hope to see you there.

Friday, September 11, 2026
We Keep Rediscovering Low Budget Horror
9pm - 9:55pm
Derek Austin Johnson (moderator), Usman T. Malik, Mariana Colín, Micaiah Johnson, Johnny Compton
Low budget horror movies have always existed, and its the genre that lends itself best to creative storytelling and filmcraft choices driven by having little money.  This has been the case since the beginning of film as a medium.  But every few years we get a surge of New Horror Movies (this year with Obsession and Backrooms) that costed nothing but do big business, and the media responds like this is something new and unexpected.


Saturday, September 12, 2026

What You Should Have Watched This Year
11:30am - 12:25pm
A. T. Campbell, III (moderator), Aaron de Orive, Jeremy Brett, Derek Austin Johnson, Robin Alvarez
So many genre movies and shows! Which are worth talking about? Our panelists have opinions.

Liminal Spaces in Horror
1pm - 1:55pm
Randee Dawn (moderator), Aaron de Orive, Usman T. Malik, Derek Austin Johnson, Johnny Compton
From The Shining to Silent Hill to Exit 8 and the Backrooms, the transitional and impersonal space has always held fascination for horror in print and film, to name only two. This panel discussion tries to discuss why the trend for liminal horror has become so prevalent and why it speaks to modern horror audiences. 

Reading - Derek Austin Johnson
3pm - 3:25pm
Derek Austin Johnson
Reading - Derek Austin Johnson

Psychological Horror: It's All in the Mind
8pm - 8:55pm
K.D. Blade (moderator), Usman T. Malik, Tonia Ransom, Derek Austin Johnson, Johnny Compton
The panel considers the difference between the supernatural and psychological horror, and if horror might *all* be psychological.

Stephen King's Parks and Rec: A Trip to Widow's Bay
9pm - 9:55pm
Beth Anderson / A.E. Dethlefsen (moderator), Aaron de Orive, A. Lee Martinez, Marshall Ryan Maresca, Derek Austin Johnson, Mariana Colín
This panel discusses Apple TV's horror comedy gem, from its unusual premise (imagine Parks and Recreation set in the Stephen King universe) to how it approaches standard horror tropes. ArmadilloCon 2026

I’ll be at NecronomiCon Providence this August. 
NecronomiCon Providence 2026 The schedule has not been posted yet. However, I can confirm I’ll be on the following panels:Mucho Mojo Storyteller: Joe R. Lansdale. With tales of an interdimensional creature obsessed with razors, apocalyptic drive-ins, and an elderly Elvis Presley facing down a soul-sucking mummy, Texas based author Joe R. Lansdale (American, 1951 -) has created his own distinct space in the world of speculative fiction. Join our panelists as they examine Lansdale’s lengthy career in both print and film, the one-of-a-kind narrative voice used in his stories, and the way he merges different genres, from mysteries to Westerns to horror, in unique and surprising ways with an emphasis on his contributions to the Weird.The Electric Nightmares of Philip K Dick. Exploring themes of identity, surveillance, paranoia and technology, Philip K. Dick (American, 1928 - 1982) was prolific as a writer of science fiction short stories and novels, but his tales frequently contained elements of the Weird. From the alternate history horrors of The Man in the High Castle to the various realities and unrealities in The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, our panel will delve into the strange and unforgiving worlds that sprung from Dick’s imagination.The Pale Song of the Butterfly Collector: Nabokov as Weird Fiction. Author, critic, and scholar Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov (Russian, 1899 - 1977) is famous as the author of Lolita and Pale Fire. His fiction is known for rich character studies and prose, but is it weird? In addition to his explicitly secondary world work Ada, our panelists describe how, beneath the surface, his work is pervaded with hints of the otherworldly and strange. Arguably, the most famous weird fiction author you’ve never heard of!Tales from the Crypt: EC Comics. A cackling, cloaked figure opens a dusty tome and reads to their audience stories featuring the supernatural, twist endings, and comeuppance. Welcome to the world of EC Comics, who specialized in gruesome titles like Vault of Horror, Weird Science, The Haunt of Fear and, of course, Tales from the Crypt. Unfortunately, EC’s run of horror, sci-fi, and crime stories was short-lived due to their comics being used as a scapegoat by politicians and psychiatrists for cases of juvenile delinquency in the 1950s. But much like the Crypt Keeper, EC refused to stay dead. Our panelists discuss the writers and artists who contributed to EC’s unique tone, the relationship of EC to the Pulp Era Weird, and how film adaptations, comic revivals and a certain beloved HBO series have kept EC’s legacy alive to this day. I’ll provide more information as it becomes available.

This was nice to wake up to. Inkd Publishing has nominated my story "Day of the Devilfish for the Pushcart Prize. The story is my attempt to answer the question of what John Steinbeck's fiction would have looked like if it had been published by Weird Tales. The book also includes stories by Rachel Roth, Armand Rosamilia, A. M. Sutter, Ross Baxter, and Kelli Dianne Rule, among many others. You can pick up physical copies here, here, and here.

Out now. My story "Day of the Devilfish" is in Cthulhu Dreams edited by A. Balsamo and released by Inkd Publishing. It is my attempt to answer the question of what John Steinbeck's fiction would have looked like if it had been published by Weird Tales. The book also includes stories by Rachel Roth, Armand Rosamilia, A. M. Sutter, Ross Baxter, and Kelli Dianne Rule, among many others. You can pick up physical copies here, here, and here.

Out now. My story “Jellies” is in the latest issue of Midnight Tales, along with stories by Terry Alexander, Maxwell Shepherd, John Monsees, Stetson Ray, and others, with gorgeous art by Allen Koszowski, Gerrod General, and Steve Bejma. You can pick up your copy here.

Recently I attended the Con-Tinual Panel Room with Gini Koch, Marx Pyle, Fraser Sherman, Carole M Stokes/Ellis Colton, and host James P. Nettles III as we looked at Lovecraft stories, adaptations, inspired works, and the themes driving cosmic horror.  You can find the discussion on the Book of Faces as well as YouTube.

Via Mr. Midnight Eric Wright's Facebook page.

Midnight Tales #9 is now at the printers. Once we review the proof copy and approve it, the presses will be rolling! This issue will be the best yet.
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Here is the cover reveal, and you can't go wrong with the legendary Allen K.!

I can guarantee you'll want a copy.

StokerCon 2025 is now two weeks behind me, and I now feel comfortable writing about what was, for me, my personal high point.

I was at the Joyce Carol Oates signing table, where she sat with writer and editor Rebecca Rowland (who is president of the Boston HWA chapter, and edited my story “Movie Call” for the anthology Generation X-Ed ). As she signed my copies of Night-Side and Haunted: Tales of the Grotesque, she spotted my nametag and said, “Oh, are you a writer?”

My mind blanked.

Look, part of the reason I became interested in horror fiction was reading her story “The Bingo Master.” I picked up a copy of Night-Side almost immediately, and continued to read her work steadily. I’ve learned much by studying her work, though I’m hardly a completist. This was one of the great women of American letters acknowledging me as an actual writer.

“Oh, are you a writer?” My mind was bereft of a single thought. And then suddenly, my mouth made sounds, even as my brain waved at it and shouted, “Dude, don’t do that!”

“Uh,” I uhhed, “not a good one.”

And Rebecca Rowland proffered a kindness I can never repay.

She leaned to Ms. Oates’s ear and said, “He’s being extremely modest. He’s an outstanding writer.”

I managed to mouth a thank-you to her, then collected my books.

I was paid a compliment by an amazing writer and editor to Joyce Carol Oates. I’m going to live with that for a long time.

I received an email response to a query stating that I've sold a story to one of my favorite venues. Details to follow.