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Shadows Before the Maiming
*** Featured on TODAY's August 8, 2022 holiday special, "65 Best Halloween Quotes: Short Halloween Quotes from Movies," where in an excerpt from Shadows Before The Maiming, Scott Holstad was attributed with one of the 65 Best (known) Halloween quotes, joining quotes from such authors and celebrities as Ray Bradbury, Stephen King, Oscar Wilde, Sue Grafton, John Steinbeck, Vincent Price, H.P. Lovecraft, William Shakespeare, Anne Rice, Edgar Allen Poe and other notables. This piece was then picked up and published on websites such as Yahoo, Latest Movs and Flipboard. TODAY article URL may be found on Scott Holstad's website.
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I did not intend to set out to write a horror book, but that's essentially what this turned in to. In fact, it sold out so quickly and made such an impact that it's still often mentioned or referred to years later as a quality horror book. Among the publications to point it out was The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror, vol. 11, edited by R Campbell and S Jones, published by Carroll & Graf. So it seemed destined to become a book of horror, even published by Gothic Press.
Even as I state this was not my intent and in fact the works in the book come from a wide period of time, just looking at the acknowledgments seems to provide additional confirmation of its reputation. Nearly everything in the book was published in horror or horror-speculative fiction, etc., magazines, ranging from the virtual unknown to very good commercial magazines found at most bookstores. Some examples include The Harrow, Dark Planet, Wicked Mystic, A Taste for Flesh, Midnight Zoo and others. As a result, a number of these credits allowed me to continue to publish in horror magazines and build a reputation as one who made others distinctly uncomfortable. Some other fitting magazines I appeared in included Bukowski & Serial Killers, Isolation, Virgin Meat, The Nocturnal Lyric, Ghastly and a good horror magazine to come down the road -- Premonitions. Interestingly, I was not new to horror. In addition to reading everything possible since a young boy, I was writing horror pieces during the 1980s and published my first horror work in 1991, so this 1999 book not only continues new, fresh material, but also some that might be considered "Best of" in my efforts in the genre. This book is very hard to find now and it remains one of my personal favorites. That being said, I always felt this was really a lead-up to my (self described) "masterpiece," published at the end of that same year: The Napalmed Soul. It came out in a very limited edition version published by Chiron Review Press, sold out immediately, has been impossible to find every since and the reactions were and remain positive while many readers admitted they couldn't finish it, started sobbing far too early, got sick to the stomachs, were deeply impacted and disturbed, yet for some reason couldn't put it down. Everywhere I went, those were the things I hear while professional reviews made similar comments while giving good reviews and reader reviews on sites like Amazon again were similar. Just looked, and the current top Amazon reader review wrote that her stomach became twisted in knots, she started crying 3 poems into it, because quite ill halfway through, yet couldn't put the book down, likening it to similar in how she felt after reading American Psycho. The secret to its success, and a good part of Shadows, is that I don't go where some of my horror heroes go (like Edward Lee). I find horror enough in everyday life, real life, and have sought to convey that in everything from describing deadly anticipation I felt as I watched a black widow spider creep up my arm in a crappy room in Phoenix to concepts like self mutilation, self-hatred, suicidal/homicidal ideations, the death of relationships, the wonders of total isolation, playing Russian Roulette with two chambers loaded in a dark room with a half empty bottle, living in a dimension lacking reality, offering one's throat up to the blade and more. To me, life is far more horrible than most things my favorite horror writers put together, no matter how much I may like them because often they utilize some form of fantasy elements to make their work darker -- and excel doing it. I only have to recall just one of the heads blown off from a person next to me in a place like North Long Beach or south Phoenix, getting spattered with the real thing, seeing my dog get shot from a drive-by aimed at me -- wishing very much they'd have gotten me and not my dog -- who was not yet dead but screaming in agony. You want to hear something that will make your blood curdle, listen to your child, humor or furry, scream their death screams while you sit beside them helpless. People have sent me fan mail for decades. People are terrified to meet me. But please know I'm not a one trick pony. I write in many genres, successfully, and...
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I did not intend to set out to write a horror book, but that's essentially what this turned in to. In fact, it sold out so quickly and made such an impact that it's still often mentioned or referred to years later as a quality horror book. Among the publications to point it out was The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror, vol. 11, edited by R Campbell and S Jones, published by Carroll & Graf. So it seemed destined to become a book of horror, even published by Gothic Press.
Even as I state this was not my intent and in fact the works in the book come from a wide period of time, just looking at the acknowledgments seems to provide additional confirmation of its reputation. Nearly everything in the book was published in horror or horror-speculative fiction, etc., magazines, ranging from the virtual unknown to very good commercial magazines found at most bookstores. Some examples include The Harrow, Dark Planet, Wicked Mystic, A Taste for Flesh, Midnight Zoo and others. As a result, a number of these credits allowed me to continue to publish in horror magazines and build a reputation as one who made others distinctly uncomfortable. Some other fitting magazines I appeared in included Bukowski & Serial Killers, Isolation, Virgin Meat, The Nocturnal Lyric, Ghastly and a good horror magazine to come down the road -- Premonitions. Interestingly, I was not new to horror. In addition to reading everything possible since a young boy, I was writing horror pieces during the 1980s and published my first horror work in 1991, so this 1999 book not only continues new, fresh material, but also some that might be considered "Best of" in my efforts in the genre. This book is very hard to find now and it remains one of my personal favorites. That being said, I always felt this was really a lead-up to my (self described) "masterpiece," published at the end of that same year: The Napalmed Soul. It came out in a very limited edition version published by Chiron Review Press, sold out immediately, has been impossible to find every since and the reactions were and remain positive while many readers admitted they couldn't finish it, started sobbing far too early, got sick to the stomachs, were deeply impacted and disturbed, yet for some reason couldn't put it down. Everywhere I went, those were the things I hear while professional reviews made similar comments while giving good reviews and reader reviews on sites like Amazon again were similar. Just looked, and the current top Amazon reader review wrote that her stomach became twisted in knots, she started crying 3 poems into it, because quite ill halfway through, yet couldn't put the book down, likening it to similar in how she felt after reading American Psycho. The secret to its success, and a good part of Shadows, is that I don't go where some of my horror heroes go (like Edward Lee). I find horror enough in everyday life, real life, and have sought to convey that in everything from describing deadly anticipation I felt as I watched a black widow spider creep up my arm in a crappy room in Phoenix to concepts like self mutilation, self-hatred, suicidal/homicidal ideations, the death of relationships, the wonders of total isolation, playing Russian Roulette with two chambers loaded in a dark room with a half empty bottle, living in a dimension lacking reality, offering one's throat up to the blade and more. To me, life is far more horrible than most things my favorite horror writers put together, no matter how much I may like them because often they utilize some form of fantasy elements to make their work darker -- and excel doing it. I only have to recall just one of the heads blown off from a person next to me in a place like North Long Beach or south Phoenix, getting spattered with the real thing, seeing my dog get shot from a drive-by aimed at me -- wishing very much they'd have gotten me and not my dog -- who was not yet dead but screaming in agony. You want to hear something that will make your blood curdle, listen to your child, humor or furry, scream their death screams while you sit beside them helpless. People have sent me fan mail for decades. People are terrified to meet me. But please know I'm not a one trick pony. I write in many genres, successfully, and...
50 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published August 1, 1999
1 person want to read
About the author
Scott C. Holstad
132 books98 followersScott C. Holstad is a disabled Pulitzer & BOTN-nominated poet & author with 75+ books to his credit & work in 850+ unique magazines. He is a 33-year member of The Authors Guild & was the founder/publisher of Big Head Press (1990-97), the Tek Thots newsletter (1996-2000) & poetry editor of Ray’s Road Review (2011-2017), as well as a journalist & editor for a variety of commercial publications.
His work has appeared in The Minnesota Review, Exquisite Corpse, Long Shot, Comstock Review, Wormwood Review, Chiron Review, Hawai’I Review, Pacific Review, Southern Review, Sports Illustrated, ;login, the TODAY Show, AIM, Palo Alto Review, Santa Clara Review, Poetry Ireland Review, Flipside, Cyber-Psychos AOD, Fringeware Review, Processed World, Wicked Mystic, Premonitions, Haight-Ashbury Literary Journal, Kerouac Connection, Bouillabaisse, Bukowski & Serial Killers, Nexus, Stand, The Galway Review, Sivullinen, Gangan Verlag, Ink Sweat & Tears, Misfit, Mad Swirl, Libre, Synchronized Chaos, Hidden Peak Review, Bristol Noir, smols, dadakuku, Five Fleas, haiQu fOO, The Argyle, Cosmic Daffodil Journal, Horror Sleaze Trash, Alien Buddha Zine, miniMAG, Blood+Honey & 西洋文學在臺灣研究書目. His newest book, SURVIVING IMMORTALITY AGAIN, was released in 2025 by Alien Buddha Press.
Among those who have praised his work & books are Edward Field, Gerald Locklin, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Marilyn Kallet, Robert Polito, Jeannine Hall Gaiiley, Laurel Speer, Lisa Zaran, Michael Bugeja, Marvin Malone, GP Lainsbury, CL Huth, Jonathan Penton, Robert Peters, Todd Moore, Alan Catlin, Jon Nakapalau, Eric Jennings, Factsheet Five, Hawai’I Review, Asheville Poetry Review, Blue Villa, Ink Sweat & Tears, Wormwood Review, Dusty Dog Reviews, BBR Directory, Library Journal, Flipside, TapRoot Reviews, NewPages, KIRKUS Reviews, US Review of Books & many more.
Scott Holstad holds degrees from the University of Tennessee, California State University Long Beach, UCLA & Queens University of Charlotte. He’s moved 35+ times, currently lives in Pennsylvania & loves geopolitics, good vinyl, books, custom rigs & hockey. Disabled & retired, he currently holds positions of Professor Emeritus at The Royal United Services Institute for Defence & Security Studies (RUSI) & Researcher (Research Scientist) with the American Academy of Neurology (AAN).
https://hankrules2011.com
X: @tangledscott
IG: @scottsmusicshak
His work has appeared in The Minnesota Review, Exquisite Corpse, Long Shot, Comstock Review, Wormwood Review, Chiron Review, Hawai’I Review, Pacific Review, Southern Review, Sports Illustrated, ;login, the TODAY Show, AIM, Palo Alto Review, Santa Clara Review, Poetry Ireland Review, Flipside, Cyber-Psychos AOD, Fringeware Review, Processed World, Wicked Mystic, Premonitions, Haight-Ashbury Literary Journal, Kerouac Connection, Bouillabaisse, Bukowski & Serial Killers, Nexus, Stand, The Galway Review, Sivullinen, Gangan Verlag, Ink Sweat & Tears, Misfit, Mad Swirl, Libre, Synchronized Chaos, Hidden Peak Review, Bristol Noir, smols, dadakuku, Five Fleas, haiQu fOO, The Argyle, Cosmic Daffodil Journal, Horror Sleaze Trash, Alien Buddha Zine, miniMAG, Blood+Honey & 西洋文學在臺灣研究書目. His newest book, SURVIVING IMMORTALITY AGAIN, was released in 2025 by Alien Buddha Press.
Among those who have praised his work & books are Edward Field, Gerald Locklin, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Marilyn Kallet, Robert Polito, Jeannine Hall Gaiiley, Laurel Speer, Lisa Zaran, Michael Bugeja, Marvin Malone, GP Lainsbury, CL Huth, Jonathan Penton, Robert Peters, Todd Moore, Alan Catlin, Jon Nakapalau, Eric Jennings, Factsheet Five, Hawai’I Review, Asheville Poetry Review, Blue Villa, Ink Sweat & Tears, Wormwood Review, Dusty Dog Reviews, BBR Directory, Library Journal, Flipside, TapRoot Reviews, NewPages, KIRKUS Reviews, US Review of Books & many more.
Scott Holstad holds degrees from the University of Tennessee, California State University Long Beach, UCLA & Queens University of Charlotte. He’s moved 35+ times, currently lives in Pennsylvania & loves geopolitics, good vinyl, books, custom rigs & hockey. Disabled & retired, he currently holds positions of Professor Emeritus at The Royal United Services Institute for Defence & Security Studies (RUSI) & Researcher (Research Scientist) with the American Academy of Neurology (AAN).
https://hankrules2011.com
X: @tangledscott
IG: @scottsmusicshak
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