The Generator

by Candace Nola, Eric Butler, M. Ennenbach

Joel DeMasis is an aspiring author. He wants to be a great one, known the world over, adored, worshipped, quoted by the finest scholars. This is his only desire. His greatest desire. But the publishing world seems to have other ideas.

When Joel meets a young hopeful student, his writing becomes invigorated and fresh. An idea hits him and a plan to ensure his continued creative spark. How far would you go to make your dreams come true?

The Generator brings together the creative minds of Candace Nola, Nikolas P. Robinson, Eric Butler, and M Ennenbach

221 pages, Paperback

First published April 8, 2023

About the author

I am Candace Nola, and I am a multiple award-winning author, editor, and publisher. I write poetry, horror, dark fantasy, and extreme horror content. My books include Breach, Beyond the Breach, Hank Flynn, Bishop, Earth vs The Lava Spiders, The Unicorn Killer, Unmasked, The Vet, and Desperate Wishes.

I have short stories in The Baker’s Dozen anthology, Secondhand Creeps, American Cannibal, Just A Girl, The Horror Collection: Lost Edition & The Turquoise Edition, just to name a few.

Beyond the Breach, won the “Novel of the Year” and my Debut Novel, Breach, was nominated for “Debut Novel of the Year”, for the 2021 Horror Authors Guild awards. I am also the publisher and editor of the 2022 Splatterpunk Award Winning Anthology “Uncomfortably Dark Presents: The Baker’s Dozen.”

I am the creator of Uncomfortably Dark, which focuses primarily on promoting indie horror authors and small presses with weekly book reviews, interviews, and special features. Uncomfortably Dark Horror stands behind its mission to “bring you the best in horror, one uncomfortably dark page at a time.”

Find me on Twitter, Instagram, TikTok and Facebook and the website, UncomfortablyDark.com. Sign up for the Patreon for exclusive content, free stories, and more.

Reviews

[Jason Nickey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collaboration was fantastic. Four different authors with different styles that blended together extremely well. With Nola's twisted wraparound, Butler's creepy horror with an old school feel, Ennenbach's existential fever dreams, and Robinson's atmospheric dread, The Generator has something for all horror fans. Flew through this in two sittings.

[Lance Dale · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent collection of stories and the way the wraparound story was setup was brilliant. I loved how each author was introduced and how their unique styles were showcased.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5

*I'm not going to give you the 'what this book is about' blurb - you can read that elsewhere.

1. I’ve been reading a lot of collections/collaborations/anthologies lately, and I have to say this is the most unique concept I’ve had the pleasure of reading! I loved how each author’s story was part of a much larger plot. ‘The Generator’ isn’t just a TOC with a slew of stories lined up with a similar theme, yet completely separate from one another.
2. This is a heavy read. The stories themselves are all really good, but the unsettling part is moreso the overarching plot. It is dark and evil and takes you right up through the very last page. There’s no break in the malevolence. Well done, Candace!
3. The ending is a bit of a cliffhanger – will there be a 2nd installation? Please say yes, please say yes…
4. Honestly, I loved everything about this. I even loved that I loathed the main character – I actually think you need to for the plot to work as well as it does. Joel is absolutely supposed to be hated; pretentious, no talent hack that he is.

[Danielle Yvonne · Rating 5 out of 5]

“He knew his stories were all great. He was NOT the problem. It was industry. It was the editors. It was the readers that were all going ape shit over these new horror authors with more shock than content and their cool swag and merch ideas.”

Just finished buddy reading this with Paige, and I can’t scream how much I loved this one loud enough. 🗣️

How in the world did this book fly under my radar for so long?! It has been recommended me to a couple times, and I know I’m a year late on reading it. But why the hell is this one not talked about more?! Especially in the indie horror community. This is literally the embodiment of what we all see on a daily basis around here. Maybe. 😅 Some of it at least. 😬

This one actually has me effed up for a multitude of reasons. 😅 But these four came together and created a hell of a book that was curated perfectly. It is so freaking unique, I can’t imagine anything like this ever being duplicated. It truly is unmatched. 🤌🏼

Candace Nola — You are an unmatched force around here. Your writing is now some of my favorite. I know I’ve already spent the first quarter of November binge reading your work, and I’m obsessed with it all. Your range is incredible and the way you write is brutally beautiful. Keep slaying, queen. 👑

Eric Butler — I’m quickly learning that I’m obsessed with your writing style. The tone hits every time and I can easily just binge read anything you write. You’re one hell of a story teller, friend. Really delving into your books this month has been a 10/10 and genuine pleasure. My only regret is I didn’t do it sooner. 🫢

Nik Robinson — I do believe this was the first time I’ve read something written by you, but it certainly won’t be my last. The tone, pacing, style, and story were fantastic. Truly. I actually really look forward to reading and reviewing more of your work because I think both will be really fun. This was a great introduction for me to you. 🥳

Mike Ennenbach — I may have some biases when it comes to your writing. It’s at the top of my favorite in the genre. Your poetic and chaotic story telling is unmatched in general. I’m simply obsessed. You’re a creative genius on every level possible and have never written anything I would slap five stars on immediately. 🤩

Overall, this book was yet another easy five stars for me. I highly recommend it to everyone, but especially those who are part of the indie horror community. It’ll hit you in places you didn’t know possible, and like I said earlier, the concept and execution of this story is beyond unique and unmatched.

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

[Lisa Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bibliophilia Templum review at https://bibliophiliatemplum.wordpress.com/2023/05/18/the-generator/

The Generator is a collection of stories within a larger story. I have always enjoyed this style of book, and The Generator is an excellent example of how this concept works and how it should be done. It sounds like it would be convoluted and stilted, but in this one, it’s not. It flows. It’s a fantastic story. Let me tell you why.

The incredible presentation of the story intentionally showcases the unique style of each author rather than trying to blend them, and I love that about this book. I also enjoyed the gradual but continual build of the larger story. It keeps you turning the page because you need to know what’s going to happen next and how this is going to play out (and it doesn’t play out the way you think it will!). And, of course, the internal stories by these authors are not to be missed. They are, as you can imagine, a mix of styles, intensity, and impact.

It’s hard not to spill the beans on this one. It’s the kind of book you want to gab about. It’s wonderfully entertaining, dark and intense, a great story. You really need to check out the story of The Generator.

[Derek Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Generator is a concept that I haven't seen before; it is a novel with individual short stories within it. I love the idea and these authors executed it perfectly. I'll try to explain without giving too much away. We have Joel, a true narcissist and a complete failure as an author. He is rejected at every turn by everyone. His ego cannot grasp this at all. He then befriends a college student and learns that she has great ideas that he can use to be successful. There is nothing he won't do make those ideas his own. He creates several Name de Plumes to pull this off and he is successful. A fun read overall by some authors I love and some new ones I got a chance to learn. Check it out.

[Paige Ray · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Generator
by: Candace Nola, Eric Butler Author, Nikolas P. Robinson and Mike Ennenbach

“Goddamn pussy-ass bitches. At least he has the sense to only mouth that.”

This line absolutely had to make its way into my review. - Thanks for that laugh Eric 🤣

Danielle Yvonne and I decided to buddy read this one together and boy did it deliver and SHOCK us beyond belief. What an original and creative concept! The Generator was published an entire year ago and I’m upset that I’m so late to the game with this one. I can’t say that I’ve seen this story mentioned anywhere either, since I’ve made my way into the indie horror scene last October. This book needs to be talked about more! 🗣️‼️

I’ve read many works from Candace and a handful from Butler but this was my first time reading work from Robinson and Ennenbach and what a great introduction to their work this was! 🙌

This book needs to be added to everyone’s TBR for multiple reasons. Readers and Authors of the Indie Horror Community will find themselves relating to this in some way, shape or form. I promise you that. 🤭

Huge shout out to my book bestie Danielle for bringing this one to my attention and asking me to buddy read with her! I had a blast and look forward to future buddy reads together.

[Deborah Wambsganss · Rating 3 out of 5]

So much about this book I loved! I won't spoil the story for you though. One of the short stories was a slog. I almost gave up, but I spoke with Candace Nola when buying her book and she was so happy with her book and wondering why it hadn't taken off. So, maybe it was that one short story cutting off people's interest and the ending was glorious. I'm very happy I finished the book and enjoyed my time reading. However, for a group of authors that claim to be Uncomfortably Dark Horror and offer a host of services including reviews and editing, I was very disappointed to see so many errors overlooked. Correct the errors and switch out chapter 9 with another short story and I will change my review to 5 stars without hesitation.

[Aaron Lebold · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just finished this one. Super cool way for the authors to collaborate. Great variation in style and story. The Waiting Room by Enninbach was probably one of my favorite shorts that I’ve read this year.

[Amanda Blakely · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cool book and very cool concept. A couple of the shorts sparked an interest in further reading from that author. The ending felt a little too predictable and lazy. I'm not sure if thats the right word but it just felt like it was lacking given all of the creativity within the rest of the book.

[Melinda Baustian · Rating 4 out of 5]

2creepy4me