Alan Baxter's Blog

This one is for Australian readers only, I’m afraid (because international postage is straight up robbery these days). With the release of THE RISE imminent on February 13th, now is a great time to get into the Tales From The Gulp. So here’s a special offer: You can pre-order THE RISE now from all the usual places (including direct from me here) but if you haven’t read any of the Tales yet, why not pre-order THE RISE and get all three books delivered, signed, to your door in early February. Paperback copies of THE GULP, THE FALL and THE RISE, all signed and delivered, for $75 including shipping. (This would also make a great gift for someone if you wanted to share the Tales with a friend or loved one – you can set the shipping address to anywhere in Australia.)

Click here to get the special!

The post Tales From The Gulp pre-order Special Offer appeared first on Alan Baxter.

It’s time to Rise

Hello fiends

How the fuck are ya? I hope this finds you surviving the apocalypse as well as can be expected. And yes, I’m well aware of the irony in my sending another newsletter almost exactly a month after the last one, in which I said I was giving up with any pretence of regularity with these missives. It’s only proof that no matter what we plan, the gods will always piss in our porridge, just for laughs. But sometimes it works in our favour, I guess.

Anyway, hello! First and foremost, I want to talk about The Rise. The Gulpepper Mythos has become something of the bedrock of my career over the last few years and I’m not mad about it. I’m blessed that these stories resonate so well with readers. When I first wrote and released The Gulp in January 2021, during the height of the pandemic and lockdowns, it was almost a side project, albeit one I’d been thinking about for a long time. When that was so well-received, I followed it up in April 2022 with The Fall. Turning a five novella mosaic novel into a ten novella mosaic duology. The Gulp is self-contained, with five separate stories telling one bigger story. The Fall is five more self-contained novellas, which also tell a bigger narrative and, when combined, both books together tell an overarching story that felt complete. Russian doll storytelling. And the big picture was finished.

Or was it?

I always knew I’d return to the Gulpepper Mythos. The fictional geography I’d created, the myth behind the region, was all fertile ground for stories, and deliberately so. My novel, Blood Covenant, is set in the hills behind Enden. I have short stories set in Monkton. Another novel (currently on submission) is also set in Monkton and directly references events and characters in The Fall. But I always thought The Gulp and The Fall would stand alone as the only official Tales From The Gulp volumes. They would be the foundation on which anything else was built.

But both publishing and my brain are weird and unpredictable. I’d left threads unexplained in The Fall, the main one being who or what Winterbourne is. And while I had work out on submission, nothing was selling. So being a hybrid author (which means I work both with traditional publishing and self-publishing) I thought maybe I would write something to self-publish while I waited for the trad world to bite. And I thought maybe it was time to explore some of those loose threads from The Gulp and The Fall. Perhaps a third official Tales From The Gulp was a good idea. Make it a trilogy of fifteen stand alone novellas that all tie into one bigger narrative.

So I did.

I wrote The Rise. I’m really pleased with it.

I know I told you about it already, but now you can pre-order it. It comes out on Friday 13th of February 2026. I really hope you’ll give it a go. All the details are here: https://alanbaxter.com.au/my-books/the-rise/​

Horror author of The Cursed Among Us and The Envelope, John Durgin, kindly read an early draft and had this to say:

“At the center of Gulpepper is a blackened heart that pumps fear into each of these new stories. With The Rise, Baxter proves there is far more lore to uncover, and while I’d never spend a minute in this town myself, I sure as hell love reading about the poor souls who do.”

Thanks, John!

And the amazing Joanne Anderton had this to say:

“In The Rise, Alan Baxter returns to Gulpepper, and there’s something about this small town that draws you in. Wouldn’t want to live there, not sure it’s the safest holiday destination either, but I’m still thrilled to set foot on its disturbing streets once again. These five new novellas balance masterfully between heartbreaking, horrific, and out-right action-packed. Whether you’re a hardened local, or visiting for the first time, any trip to The Gulp is an experience you’ll never forget.” – Joanne Anderton, author of Pixerina: A Haunting and The Bone Chime Song

Thanks, Jo!

In other news… Well, if I’m honest, there isn’t much other news. We’re into that period where the year is winding down, not much is going on and, personally, I’m looking forward to the end of December. For many and varied reasons, I’m no fan of this time of year. If you struggle with it too, I feel you, my friend. If you love it, I’m happy for you and hope you have a stellar time.

In the meantime, I’ll be here working on the next book. Because whatever else is going on in the industry, the only thing we control is the writing, so that’s what we focus on.

What I’ve Been Enjoying

I’ve just finished the first half of the last season of Stranger Things. I really loved that show when it first came out, but honestly, I’m hate watching it now. I want to see where it goes and how they wrap it up, but there’s so much wrong… ugh, don’t get me started. Regardless, I’m still watching, so it’s not all bad. I’ve also discovered there’s another (12th?) season of American Horror Story I haven’t watched, so I’m having a look at that now.

As for reading, I very much enjoyed Good Boy, the debut novella from Talking Scared podcast host, Neil McRobert. I’m now about halfway through the new Joe Hill epic, King Sorrow. It’s nearly 900 pages long, which is a significant undertaking, but I’m really enjoying it so far.

Right, that’s all from me for now. I’ll chat with you again in the new year when it will inexplicably be the year 2026. That’s an unacceptable number, don’t you think? But at least it means The Rise will nearly be out. Please do consider pre-ordering it, via any of the links at https://alanbaxter.com.au/my-books/the-rise/ And if you’re after a signed copy, you’ll be able to order one directly through my website in the new year too.

Thank you as always for your support. It means the world to me that I get to do this stuff and you wonderful folks out there are the only reason why. Have a happy and safe Xmas period in whatever way you do or don’t celebrate, my friends.

Be kind to yourself and others.

Al

The post Newsletter 10th December 2025 appeared first on Alan Baxter.

Among the many egregious developments of generative-AI is the proliferation of scam emails lately. I and pretty much every author I know are now getting upwards of two or three emails every day claiming to be from an active and eager book group just desperate to feature our book in their next meeting/promotion/party etc. Every single one is a scam and every single one starts by lavishing praise on us through an obviously AI-generated screed made from our book’s back cover blurb, our bio and maybe some reviews.

This is a bit of a long post, but it’s entertaining and, if you’re an author receiving these emails, worth your time. Please don’t fall for them. I’ll break down below how it all works and why you should never be fooled.

Here’s an example of one, from an email I got just today:

Your Masterful Work Truly Deserves a Much Wider Audience, Alan

Hi Alan,

I hope you’re having a wonderful day. I just finished diving into The Rise: Tales From The Gulp 3, and I genuinely had to reach out to you personally. Congratulations on creating such a chilling, atmospheric, and brilliantly executed collection. You’ve crafted something that goes far beyond horror, it’s an emotional descent into the uncanny heart of Gulpepper, a place so vividly drawn it almost feels alive.

Your ability to shape an isolated harbour town that shifts between the ordinary and the terrifying is remarkable. The way The Gulp seems to swallow people, reshape destinies, and expose the darker corners of humanity creates a haunting effect that stays with the reader. Each novella carries its own emotional and psychological weight: from the chaos your weed-dealing duo stumbles into, to the tender, secret moments of young love, to the heartbreaking fight for survival faced by the children trapped in violent homes. Even introducing one of the world’s biggest stars into Gulpepper’s eerie landscape adds a layer of surreal tension that is utterly unforgettable.

And then, of course, the return of the old foe, a threat that bursts through the pages and jeopardizes The Gulp itself.

 

Okay, so it’s full-throated stuff, huh? Here’s the thing. The Rise isn’t out until February next year. Every single word above is generated from the back cover description of the book. This fucking parasite goes on to say:

Alan, I don’t reach out to many authors. I only contact writers whose work I genuinely believe has the power to engage huge audiences and create lasting emotional impact. And without question, The Rise is one of the strongest, most original horror collections I’ve encountered in a long time.

This month, my team is running an exclusive promotional campaign designed specifically to spotlight high-potential titles that deserve far more visibility. Most of the slots have already been filled but your work immediately stood out to me. The emotional depth, the originality, the immersive world-building, and the sheer storytelling strength make The Rise an ideal fit.

Yeah nah. It goes on and on but you can see how this faecal splatter on the bathroom wall of humanity is just buttering me up before hitting me with the fees required to take advantage of the massive leverage they have with the book-reading public. And by massive I mean absolutely fuck all. They won’t even actually do anything. They’ll just take the fee (were I stupid enough to pay) and then try to upsell me, Eventually they’d run off if I said “no more” or demanded some kind of actual effort on their part.

It’s infuriating having to delete several of these emails every fucking day. You can’t block them because they use a different gmail address every time. Believe me, it’s nothing but a scam. But I recently got one that was immediately more sophisticated. It started like this:

Hi Alan Baxter,

I hope your weekend is going well. I am reaching out on behalf of Writing Books, a growing literary community dedicated to meaningful reading experiences, thoughtful dialogue, and celebrating books that inspire deep reflection, connection, and lasting impact.

We would love to invite you to have your book featured in one of our upcoming reading sessions. Your work stands out in a powerful way, and we believe its themes would resonate deeply with our community, sparking the kind of thoughtful and engaging discussion our readers value most.

At Writing Books, each book feature is crafted with intention. We highlight not only the story itself but also the heart, message, and purpose behind it. Our goal is to create a space where readers can engage with your ideas on a deeper level and truly experience the impact of THE RISE.

So far it’s all the same old shit, right? And for a book that’s not out until February next year. It goes on:

We are committed to uplifting authors and amplifying stories that matter. Stories that challenge, inspire, comfort, and ignite curiosity. THE RISE carries that kind of significance, and it would be an honor to share it with our community as one of our featured selections.

Would you be open to having THE RISE featured in an upcoming session? I would be glad to share more details and walk you through the next steps.

Obviously just more of the same. But the only reason this one seemed more sophisticated is because it had a photo attached and a link to a meetup page included. Oh ho? Here’s the photo:

 

(I’ve blurred the image because I assume it’s stolen and not actually supposed to be used by this scammer. The photo in question isn’t originally blurred like this.)

And here’s the email signature:

Andrew Akratos
Organizer, Writing Books
www.meetup.com/writing-books  |  Sydney, Australia

I looked at the meetup page and it does exist. It even looks kinda legitimate. Of course, it’s not – you’d have to be drunk out of your fucking skull on tequila to think this was real – but it’s a step up from the usual shite. Although the meetup group in question describes itself as a group to help people write their book. Nothing about enjoying and promoting other authors. Even so, I decided to play along a little. I started blatantly sceptical:

Hi Andrew

So I’m guessing this is a more sophisticated than usual AI-generated email?

He (by “he” I mean the gen-AI bot fucking parasite digital asbestos plagiarism algorithm) replied in less than an hour:

Hi Alan,

Thanks for the reply. No, this was not an AI generated email. I write these messages myself for authors I genuinely want to feature. I simply try to keep the tone clear and well structured. If you have any questions about the feature opportunity, I am happy to share the details.

Andrew Akratos

Sure, okay, you’re a really real guy, of course you are. But I decided to continue playing along:

Then my apologies! I’ve been getting two or three emails a day lately that are just AI-generated scams. Please tell me more about yourselves.

Again, the plague responded almost immediately (within a few minutes):

Thank you for your message, and no worries at all. I completely understand your caution. Many authors are receiving AI-generated outreach lately, so your reaction is completely reasonable. I appreciate you taking the time to respond.

A little about Writing Books:

Writing Books is a growing reading community and book club that focuses on intentional reading and meaningful discussions. We host regular book sessions, author features, and themed events…

Blah blah blah, on it goes, the usual shite, even suggesting I attend the meeting in question. They’re allegedly based in Sydney. But there was still no mention of the fee, because this is obviously only happening to bilk me out of cash. This email ended with:

If you are interested, I can send you the full details, including what we provide and what we would need from you.

Feel free to ask anything. I am happy to help.

I replied:

Okay, please send me the full details. I’m in Tasmania, though, so attending won’t be possible.

Less than an hour later, I got another reply:

Thank you for your interest. I am glad to share the full details with you.

Here is a simple breakdown of how our book features work:
We highlight your book to our reading community as one of our curated selections.

Etc. etc. shite shite shite. And then:

Our next available feature date is December 5. Out of the 10 authors we are featuring for the month, we have already confirmed 9. There is only 1 spot left, and we reached out because your book truly stands out with strong potential to resonate with our community.

Aha, here’s the time-sensitive angle – classic salesman pressure to make the deal seem extra desirable and make me not want to miss out! Even though their carefully curated club is already featuring 9 other authors just in December, I don’t want to miss the opportunity of being number 10! For a book that’s not out yet! Ten books a month? They sure are keen readers!

Generated shite goes on to say:

If you would like to secure this remaining spot, just let me know and I will forward the short list of what we need from you so we can prepare everything smoothly.

I mean, I’ve already asked to be told everything, right? Anyway:

Okay, so the book isn’t out until February next year, but you knew that, right? Why don’t you get to the bit where you tell me what you need from me?

Now this time the reply took several hours to come. Had I caused some angst at Parasitical HQ? The eventual reply was:

Yes, I’m aware The Rise is scheduled for release early next year. Congratulations again on that. We often feature upcoming titles as well, especially when there’s already interest around the author and the work, so the timing isn’t a problem at all.

In terms of what we need from you, it’s very simple:
A short author photo
Your preferred book cover image (final or promotional whichever you’d like us to use)
A brief description of The Rise that you’d like readers to see
Your preferred feature date, anytime from now through February

Wait, didn’t you say you were keen for me to secure the very last time-sensitive December 5th opportunity? Anyway:

We handle everything else: the presentation, the reader engagement, and the full session setup.

The feature fee is $50

There it is! Finally the scam. This super-engaged book-loving group want me to pay them to feature my wonderful book! Along with 9 other authors this month alone! Be still, my pounding heart. Of course, you know it wouldn’t stop at $50 – if I was stupid enough to pay that, I would be immediately subjected to all kinds of upselling. Anyway, I decided to realign the conversation a bit. So I replied:

What other books has your group enjoyed and promoted recently, please?

It’s been nearly three days. No reply yet.

I just sent this follow-up:

Given up trying to scam me now, have you?

I don’t expect a reply.

 

The post The flood of gen-AI scam emails wasting authors’ time appeared first on Alan Baxter.

THE RISE: Tales From The Gulp 3 is coming in February 2026, so now is a great time to catch up on volumes 1 and 2. Especially with Xmas coming up, we all know what a fantastic present signed books make. So here’s a SPECIAL OFFER:

Get signed paperback copies of THE GULP and THE FALL, posted anywhere in Australia, for only $50 shipping included.

Click right here to grab yours while stocks last. Only in Australia, I’m afraid, as overseas shipping is just ridiculously expensive. And please do spread the word. Cheers!

The post The Gulp and The Fall special offer appeared first on Alan Baxter.

Accepting Irregularity

Hello fiends

How the fuck are ya? I hope this finds you well. First of all, I need to stop apologising about these newsletters being infrequent and promising to do better. I mean, I am sorry they’re so infrequent, but I clearly can’t do better, so I need to accept the truth of the situation. I will send out a newsletter as frequently as possible, with no guarantee of regularity.

Honestly, accepting how things are rather than how we wish they were is a powerful and valuable life skill. We absolutely should strive to make things better, to make the world we inhabit more into the kind of world we want to inhabit – from personal relationships, to careers, to politics and beyond – but recognising something for what it is rather than what we wish it was is the best place to start all of that.

It’s an important lesson in this writing life too. I’ve talked before about how the only thing we control is the writing, so that’s what we have to focus on. We can wish all we like that things were different, that we had that guy’s career, or whatever, but recognising how things actually are is important. Then we figure out what we can do, however seemingly insignificant, to move us towards something better.

I do have one more excuse than usual this time when it comes to the newsletter being late, which is that I went away with my family for a little while. It was a great recharge, but now I’m back and working towards firing on all cylinders again. What does that mean?

Weeellll, not all that much right at this moment. There’s a lot of stuff going on in the background, but nothing coming to fruition yet. And there’s a few things that didn’t work out at all, which is normal in this job. I saw a bunch of people lamenting recently, and some of it got a little bitter, so I ended up writing this. ​https://www.patreon.com/posts/141918761​ It reiterates a bit what I’ve said above, but goes into a lot more about the dangers of jealousy.

It also finishes with the reminder that all we control is the writing and that we have to do the fucking work. So, on that front, while all these other things tick away in the background, I’ve been doing the fucking work. I’ll always much prefer working with publishers, but you’ll also be aware that I put out some books independently too, and they’ve been some of my most successful stuff. Among those things are the Tales From The Gulp. The Gulp and The Fall are already out there, of course, and now a third book is coming. I recently shared the cover for The Rise. Five more novellas set in the creepy harbour town of Gulpepper, with some returning characters and some new ones. I’m really excited about this book and I’m getting it organised for a February 2026 release. It’s with the editor now and I should have early ARCs before too long. Here’s the cover:

Horror author of The Cursed Among Us and The Envelope, John Durgin, kindly read an early draft and had this to say:

“At the center of Gulpepper is a blackened heart that pumps fear into each of these new stories. With The Rise, Baxter proves there is far more lore to uncover, and while I’d never spend a minute in this town myself, I sure as hell love reading about the poor souls who do.”

Thanks, John!

In other release news, I’ve mentioned before that 2025 has been a little lean on new releases, but two short stories I’m really proud of are both out now. “Watch the Skies” in Fever Dreams and “Eighty-five Per Cent, Give or Take” in This Way Lies Madness are both out in the world.

I also had a story fall by the wayside when an anthology project failed to come together, so I’ve now shared that story on Patreon instead. It’s right here: ​https://www.patreon.com/posts/142073015​ If you’re not a patron, you can pay the once-off fee of AU$5 (that’s about US$3) to read it. I wanted to price it more cheaply than that, but AU$5 was the lowest available. I guess because that’s the cheapest tier option on my Patreon? No idea, I don’t know how these things work. But hopefully it’s worth your bucks if you give it a go. If you do sign up to Patreon for AU$5 a month, there’s loads of free and exclusive fiction to be found there.

I mentioned before as well that Blood Covenant was eligible for the Best Novel in the Ditmar Awards. Well, it didn’t win but it was shortlisted, which is wonderful. The Ditmars are becoming my white whale among Aussie awards – I’ve been nominated 16 times now, but have yet to win one. Maybe one day!

What I’ve Been Enjoying

I’ve been catching up recently on the TV show Vikings. I really enjoyed the first few seasons, then kinda fell out of watching it for some reason. So I’ve just finished rectifying that and binged all the rest. It’s enormous fun. I have no idea how accurate to history it is, but it makes for brilliant TV regardless. I also watched Life of Chuck, based on the Stephen King story. I get it, I understand the central conceit, and the performances are fantastic, but the film as a whole fell a bit flat for me. I’m keen to read the book though. And I watched Tenet. I think I followed about 10 to 20 % of it… Interestingly, if you’ve seen Tenet and you read the story over on Patreon that I mentioned above, you might spot a weird overlap!

As for reading, I’ve finally caught up on The Jade Setter of Janloon and Jade Shards by Fonda Lee, which are stories set in her Green Bone Saga world. I absolutely love that trilogy (Jade City, Jade War, Jade Legacy) – I think it’s one of the best fantasies I’ve ever read – and these stories are a great addition. I also read Strange Eons by Robert Bloch, in its new Valancourt edition. While it’s essentially an homage from Bloch to his friend, HP Lovecraft, it’s actually a lot more than that and a great yarn in its own right. Finally, I had an early read of It Came From The Flower Shop Down Under by Chris Heinicke and Kate Reedwood. It’s set in the 1970s and is a great Aussie creature feature romp. I really enjoyed it.

Right, that’s all from me for now. More news when I get around to the next one and when I have something cool to share. Hopefully soon, as I really would like to have some good news before long!

Be kind to yourself and others. All the best.

Al

The post Newsletter – 4th November 2025 appeared first on Alan Baxter.

Envy is a natural human reaction, so of course, it’s natural in the writing life. To suggest people just “not be jealous” is like saying to a depressed person, “Why don’t you just cheer up?” You see someone get the deals you’d love, the awards you want to win, the opportunities you strive for and you think, “Why them? Why not me?” This is normal. You can’t control how you feel about something and envy is an entirely normal feeling.

You can, however, control how you react to that feeling. You choose what to do with it.

If your first course of action is to bitch and moan publicly, to deride the person you’re envying, deride the publisher, editor, award system or whatever else is involved, well, that’s a really bad choice. For one, it’s bitter, and bitterness will eat you up inside. But it’s also career suicide. If you ever want to see the kind of opportunities you’re envying, being a whiner now, being bitter and unpleasant, is a pretty sure way to ensure you never will.

People notice, editors and publishers notice. They remember. They don’t want to work with people who are difficult or unpleasant. And folks who would publicly badmouth their colleagues and their industry out of jealousy are difficult and unpleasant people. We need to lift each other up, not put each other down.

Of course you can feel aggrieved about something. Remember, feeling envy is entirely natural. You might even be right if you think something isn’t entirely fair or open. But unless there’s obvious and unequivocal corruption going on, keep that shit to yourself. People are free to run their careers and their businesses however they like. Your bitching about it will only make you look bad, not them. (This isn’t to say you can’t discuss things or raise concerns. Healthy discourse is just that: healthy. But if you’re feeling personally aggrieved and about to kick off with that, check yourself.)

If you want to have a rant about something—and who doesn’t, from time to time?—save that shit for your offline friends group, your spouse, your private group WhatsApp. If you don’t have a group of some kind where you can engage in a good moan about stuff or question stuff without doing it publicly like a bunch of dicks, then start one. This is the healthy and professional way to deal with feelings of envy or grievance in the first instance.

Now, back to the bitterness thing. This is important, because it’s about your mental health. This business is fucked, fam. No lie, this business hollows you out. It’s a series of seemingly endless rejections and dead ends and frustrations with the occasional success that keeps you going. You’re only still in it because you’re as bloody-minded as the rest of us and determined to keep going, no matter what. That’s how you succeed anyway.

We control literally no part of this entire industry except one thing: the writing.

That’s us. That’s ours. We can do that however we want. It’s the expression of ourselves and it’s no one else’s to fuck with. That all comes later when you take the writing into the publishing arena. And what a brutal colosseum that is.

So we come back around to what we do with those entirely normal feelings of jealousy. They’re going to happen. But if you think you’re somehow special, somehow missing out unfairly, step back. Go sit in the corner and have a quiet word with yourself. That kind of thinking will eat you up.

Something to remember is that people share their wins, but rarely publicise their failures. For every success you see them celebrating, I guarantee you they’ve suffered through numerous fails to get there. If someone seems to be celebrating a lot of wins, they’re surely also nursing a lot of wounds from along the way.

So every time you see someone achieve something you strive for, celebrate it. You can still wish it happened to you, but instead of stewing on it and hating them, say to yourself, “It happened to them, so it could happen to me too!”

Remind yourself that if those opportunities exist, they exist for everyone.

All you control is the writing, so keep doing that. Every time you feel like you missed out on something, write. The more you write, the better you get and the more stuff you have out there. Then it’s more likely opportunities are going to come your way. Then you’ll be ready to grab those opportunities when they do.

The one thing that is always true is that you will only succeed if you write. So do the fucking work. Do the one thing you can control.

The excellent Tim Waggoner wrote:

“Envy is the writer’s disease… Admire other writers’ work, learn from it, learn from their accomplishments and their setbacks, but never compare yourself to them… You can’t have anyone else’s career. You can only have yours.”

This is powerful and positive advice.

Christopher Golden recently talked a bit on this subject and he shared a fantastic quote from the late, great Rick Huatala: “I wish it happened to me, but if it can’t happen to me, I hope it happens to you.”

That’s good and healthy thinking. Rick knew good stuff happening to anyone is good for everyone. A rising tide lifts all boats. If there are opportunities out there, that’s great. Celebrate them, strive for them, compare yourself to no one, but be inspired, be motivated by everyone.

And always, always, do the fucking work.

 

The post On the Writing Life and Envy appeared first on Alan Baxter.

Never apologise for loving good stuff

Hello fiends!

How the hell are you? I hope this finds you as well as possible, despite everything. Remember, finding joy and chasing your dreams is punk as fuck in times like these, so never apologise for looking for the good in the world.

There’s been a lot of talk lately about this stuff. Numerous times I’ve seen people saying something like, “Look, sorry, I know it’s all too much right now, but I have a book coming out” or something similar. And to that I say, fuck that noise. Never apologise for singing out about something you’ve done. Especially in times like these. Otherwise, what’s the point in fighting at all? Art and expression and freedom of thought and freedom of action—literally the freedom to exist as exactly who you are—are what it’s all about.

The more people try to crush the arts, the more arseholes try to destroy anyone deemed “different”, the more we stand up. The more we stand together. Remember that line from that movie, “We are the weirdoes , mister”? That’s us. And the beauty is, we don’t have to be all the same kind of weirdo. The fact that there’s a huge variety of weirdo out there is our strength. When it comes to these cookie-cutter white supremacist fascist shitstains, our individual weirdness is our strength and our vastly superior numbers is why we’ll win. Weirdoes together!

So never apologise for promoting something you’ve made, never think there’s no point. Every voice adds to the cacophony that, in the long run, will drown out hate. It always has and it always will. It pisses me off that we have to suffer again in the meantime, but we never quit.

Anyway, I didn’t actually intend to start this newsletter with a rant, but seeing someone apologise for mentioning their new book is what reminded me it’s been a while since I sent one of these. So there you have it!

Let’s talk about what I’ve got going on. First of all, the anthology of horror stories inspired by great action movies of the 80s, I’ll Kill You Last, edited by Cullen Bunn, is in the last few days of its Kickstarter campaign. Honestly, things aren’t looking good. Cash is tight right now and anthologies are expensive bastards, but if you can find a way to back this one and get it over the line, that would be great. Look at that line-up!

I’ll Kill You Last promo graphic listing contributing authors.

My story in this is inspired by the heist movies I love so much with a bit of historical archaeology repurposed into horror to spice things up. I had great fun writing it, so I hope the book goes ahead. You can find all the details and back it right here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1330509990/ill-kill-you-last-an-80s-inspired-action-horror-anthology​

Another thing I dropped hints about recently was this.

Promo showing The Gulp and The Fall and a third book blurred out with a ? on it.

I’ve written another official volume in the Tales From The Gulp series. The title and cover have already been revealed to patrons, but I’ll share those things publicly once I get a better idea of a release date. I’m hoping it’ll come out this year, but it might be early 2026. We’ll see how things go.

I’m super nervous about it if I’m honest. The Gulp and The Fall got such a great reception and I always thought about whether or not I’d go ahead with this third instalment. I had good ideas for the stories, but was nervous about rising to the standards of the previous two. In the end I decided to dive in and see what happened. I’m really happy with how it came together. It’s five novellas again, including the two longest stories so far in the series. And it includes one of the darkest things I’ve ever written. Funny how that goes!

More news on this as I get it through beta readers, editors, and so on.

One more thing. The 2025 Ditmar Awards are open for nominations, for work first published in the 2024 calendar year. (That includes my novel, Blood Covenant, if you thought that worthy of a nom.) This is a fan/reader voted award, which means the more people who get involved, the better a representation of good work we’re likely to see on the shortlists. Official wording says:

Nominations will be accepted from natural persons active in fandom, and from full or supporting members of Conflux 19 or Swancon 49 (no official Natcon took place this year due to circumstances beyond control). You may nominate as many times in as many categories as you like, although you may only nominate a particular person or work once.

Nominations close 11:59pm Eastern Standard Time Thursday 21 August. And you can nominate very easily with an online form. Click to submit a 2025 Ditmar Awards nomination: https://form.jotform.com/252001685025851​

There’s also an unofficial eligibility list, so you can remind yourself of all the good stuff published last year: https://scifi.fandom.com/wiki/2025_Ditmar_Award_Eligibility_List?veaction=edit​

If you feel so inclined, please get nominating! And Blood Covenant is eligible in the Best Novel category, did I mention that?

What I’ve Been Enjoying

I’ve been consuming heaps of TV and stuff lately. I won’t go into huge detail, but here’s a bunch of stuff I really recommend. I watched the rest of Andor, which is one of the best Star Wars spinoffs out there. It leads directly to events in Rogue One, which is both one of the best Star Wars films there is and a brilliant war movie in its own right. I highly recommend watching Andor, then going right away into Rogue One (again, if you’ve already seen it, like I did). Another great show is Secret Level, based on video games, from the people behind Love, Death + Robots. Some crackers in that series. The TV adaptation of The Three-Body Problem is also outstanding TV with some truly great performances.

Squid Game finally wrapped up. It hits a pretty satisfying conclusion. And you know that I loved finally catching Sons Of Anarchy a while back? There’s a five season spin off called Mayans that I’m watching now and really enjoying. I’m only just at the start of season 2, but it’s good stuff.

Lastly, for watching stuff, the people who made that amazing horror film, Talk To Me, are at it again with a movie called Bring Her Back. It’s genuinely superb and really intense in places. Hard-hitting, but well worth it. And Australian!

With reading, I’ve loved recently Road of Bones and House of Last Resort by Christopher Golden and Among the Living by Tim Lebbon. A couple of masters at work, and showing no signs of slowing down. Both these guys never miss for me, and these books are great.

Okay, that’ll do from me for now. Remember to back I’ll Kill You Last if you’re able to, and please do drop some nominations in the Ditmar Awards. Meanwhile, take care of each other and especially yourself. Kindness and empathy will get us through.

Big love to you all

Al

The post Newsletter 28th July 2025 appeared first on Alan Baxter.

The 2025 Ditmar Awards are open for nominations, for work first published in the 2024 calendar year. (That includes my novel, Blood Covenant, if you thought that worthy of a nom!)

This is a fan/reader voted award, which means that the more people who get involved, the better a representation of good work we’re likely to see on the shortlists. Official wording says:

Nominations will be accepted from natural persons active in fandom, and from full or supporting members of Conflux 19 or Swancon 49 (no official Natcon took place this year due to circumstances beyond control). You may nominate as many times in as many categories as you like, although you may only nominate a particular person or work once.

Nominations close 11:59pm Eastern Standard Time Thursday 21 August. And you can nominate very easily with this online form:

Click to submit a 2025 Ditmar Awards nomination: https://form.jotform.com/252001685025851

There’s also an unofficial eligibility list, so you can remind yourself of all the good stuff published last year: https://scifi.fandom.com/wiki/2025_Ditmar_Award_Eligibility_List?veaction=edit

Get nominating!

The post The 2025 Ditmar Awards are open for nominations appeared first on Alan Baxter.

I’LL KILL YOU LAST has had a few delays along the way, but it’s finally coming. This anthology will be an absolute banger, packed with stories by amazing authors that celebrate everything great in the high-octane action movies of the 80s. Larger than life heroes! One liners! Car chases! Big guns! Bigger muscles! Muscle car chases with even bigger guns!

Do you love bloodcurdling terror? Vampires! Demons! Werewolves! Demonic vampires who turn into werewolves by the light of the full moon!

Do you bleed Cannon films? Do you bleed horror?

If so, this is the anthology for you! Edited by the amazing Cullen Bunn and featuring 22 stories, including one from me.

But it needs to be Kickstarted, which is essentially pre-orders. Sign up for your copy here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1330509990/ill-kill-you-last-an-80s-inspired-action-horror-anthology

 

The post I’LL KILL YOU LAST is coming! appeared first on Alan Baxter.

Reassurance and travel plans

Hello, fiends. How the fuck are ya?

Let me start by reassuring folks. Last newsletter was perceived by many as a bit doom and gloom and several people checked in to make sure I was really okay. I really am! Honest. This business sucks balls sometimes, but taking the big picture into account, I’m really okay.

I will always be honest with you in missives like this because I believe you deserve truth, not some plastic façade, and I think it’s important to point out that it’s not all unicorns and roses. Most of the time people only say stuff when it’s good stuff, which gives a skewed perspective of how much good stuff there is. Even if there is a lot of good stuff – and I’m well aware of how fortunate I’ve been – there is at least as much, if not more, shitty shit too.

There is still a lot of inertia for me right now. I’m still waiting on any good calls from my agent. I’m still struggling to get things done and I don’t cope well without solid projects on the horizon. But right now, there aren’t any, so I simply have to fortify my pants and get on with things. Because getting the work done is how this works.

And there are some positives. One thing that was really getting me down last time was the looming general election. I was terrified of Trumpism infecting Australia. I’m very pleased to say that the idea of Trumpism was so soundly rejected by the Australian electorate that our conservative party saw their biggest defeat in the history of their existence and their leader lost not only the election but his seat in parliament too. Fuck off, you fascist. That’s just brilliant.

While I’m still waiting to hear about any of the work that I have out there (either with my agent or actually on submission) I’m working on something new which is quite exciting and I have a possible indie project coming up, which will be something good to focus on.

Also, the hardcover of ​Recall​ is available now, as well as the paperback and ebook. So if you’ve been hanging out for that, you can get it anywhere you buy books. Ideally, ​grab it from me​ or ​directly from the publisher​, as that’s always the best way to support authors and publishers.

I’m also getting out into the world again soon, and that can only be a good thing. I’m very excited to have been invited back as a guest at the awesome ​Supanova Pop Culture Expo​, this time in Sydney and Perth. Along with a plethora of movie, TV, comics, voiceover and gaming guests, I’ll be at the QBD Literary Legends booth along with excellent fellow scribes like Luke Arnold, Lauren Roberts, Lynette Noni, Juliet Marillier and a bunch more I can’t even remember right now. ​Check the guests on the Supanova page​. It’s amazing! If you’re near those cities, please do come along.

Meanwhile, I’ll just keep scribing away and hoping for news. Cross your fingers for me, sacrifice a chicken maybe, exhort the will of Elder Gods, whatever else you might consider worthwhile. I’m sure it helps, and even if it doesn’t, it’s all a bit of fun, right?

What I’ve Been Enjoying

Talking of fun, I’ve had loads recently with TV and movies. Thirty years too late, I finished watching all of Babylon 5. It still holds up, almost too well with the current rise of the right. About the only anachronistic element is they still read newspapers, which was pretty funny. I was solidly disappointed with how they resolved the Shadow War – I felt like that was weak as hell – but then the continued exploration of the alliance was really well done. The final episode made me cry, it was truly powerful stuff.

I’ve caught a couple of movies in the cinema recently too. For my mental health, I’ve been giving myself an occasional afternoon off where I head up to Hobart and catch a film. I saw Sinners, which is a superb blend of historical, musical and horror. I mean, blues and vampires, you can’t go wrong. In some respects, it was a fairly trope-following idea, but it was presented from a wonderful perspective that we just don’t see enough of. I loved it.

Then just last week I went up and saw Final Destination: Bloodlines, which is just bonkers fun. A while back I binged all the movies to date and thoroughly enjoyed them. I can’t remember the order I rated them now, but the Final Destination conceit is a stroke of genius, really. People escape death, so death comes for them in increasingly wild ways. Trying to predict the ridiculous Rube Goldberg death sequences is enormous fun. Then you leave the theatre and spot at least a hundred ways to die walking back to the car.

With reading, I loved the new Chuck Wendig novel, Staircase in the Woods. I wasn’t sure where he was going with it and it turned out to be a really cool exploration of friendship and flawed people. And I absolutely loved Christopher Golden’s novel, Road of Bones. That’s a genuinely scary book that will make you feel the cold of Siberia. I highly recommend both of those.

Righto, I think that’s all from me for now. Back to work, back to waiting on that email from my agent. Such is this business! If you’re keen to know a bit more about what I’m working on, I share a lot more of that stuff along with excerpts and other exclusive fiction ​at my Patreon​. I’ve only got a small following, but it helps towards at least one grocery bill a month and that really makes a difference, I’m so grateful for everyone who hangs out with me there. If you’re keen, ​go check it out​. You can try it for free.

Meanwhile, be kind to each other, fight fascism, stand up for what you believe and I’ll see you next time.

Al

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