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Midnight Echo issue 12
Midnight Echo is the magazine of the Australasian Horror Writers Association.
Issue #12 features over 50,000 words of the finest horror from Australia and New Zealand, including fiction and non-fiction. This issue showcases the winners of the 2015 and 2016 AHWA Short Story and Flash Fiction Competitions.
Issue #12 features over 50,000 words of the finest horror from Australia and New Zealand, including fiction and non-fiction. This issue showcases the winners of the 2015 and 2016 AHWA Short Story and Flash Fiction Competitions.
- GenresHorror
161 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2017
1 person is currently reading
7 people want to read
About the author
Shane Jiraiya Cummings
32 books35 followersShane Jiraiya Cummings has been acknowledged as "one of Australia’s leading voices in dark fantasy". Shane is the author of the forthcoming Yokai Wars series (Circle of Tears, Clockwork Legion, and Blight of the Underworld) and the dark fiction books The Abandonment of Grace and Everything After, Shards, the Apocrypha Sequence (Deviance, Divinity, Insanity, and Inferno), and the Ravenous Gods cycle (Requiem for the Burning God and Dreams of Destruction). He has won the Australian Shadows Award and two Ditmar Awards, and he has been nominated for more than twenty other major awards, including Spain's Premios Ignotus.
Shane is an Active Member of the Horror Writers Association and former Vice President of the Australian Horror Writers Association. When he is not writing, Shane is an editor and journalist by day. By night (and on weekends), he can be found indulging in hobbies such as playing the guitar, photography, sword fighting, and testing the limits of his new cruiser motorcycle.
In his youth, Shane was trained in the deadly arts of the ninja, and the name Jiraiya (lit. "Young Thunder", after the legendary ninja Jiraiya) was bestowed upon him by his sensei.
Shane was born and raised in Sydney, Australia. He lived for many years in Perth, Western Australia, and Wellington, New Zealand, but he recently returned to his old home town to revisit the ghosts of his past.
More information on Shane (including his free fiction) can be found online at www.jiraiya.com.au.
Shane is an Active Member of the Horror Writers Association and former Vice President of the Australian Horror Writers Association. When he is not writing, Shane is an editor and journalist by day. By night (and on weekends), he can be found indulging in hobbies such as playing the guitar, photography, sword fighting, and testing the limits of his new cruiser motorcycle.
In his youth, Shane was trained in the deadly arts of the ninja, and the name Jiraiya (lit. "Young Thunder", after the legendary ninja Jiraiya) was bestowed upon him by his sensei.
Shane was born and raised in Sydney, Australia. He lived for many years in Perth, Western Australia, and Wellington, New Zealand, but he recently returned to his old home town to revisit the ghosts of his past.
More information on Shane (including his free fiction) can be found online at www.jiraiya.com.au.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
January 20, 2018
This issue of mainly short stories contains writing so polished it gleams. All the stories are taut and punchy, and many ooze that essential quality of the entertaining horror story, wit. The magazine is filled with originality composed by authors with suitably twisted minds. Of note is Angela J. Maher’s ‘Effigia Malo”, a gothic tale about images in an old book coming to life; and the bizarre and hilarious ‘Mechanical Cat’ by Rebecca Fung.
Most of the stories in this magazine could have found a home in any literary journal; on the horror spectrum they are soft core. The hint of dread is there in the atmosphere but the reader will find no gore or terror or slasherpunk, there is little to invoke revulsion and the paranormal receives the lightest touch. Many of the tales are set in domestic situations.
Two nonfiction pieces provide some interesting discussion. The first by Anthony Ferguson, ‘Mick Taylor and the Tyranny of Distance’, explores how much Australian horror is rooted in landscape. In the second, ‘A Shared Ambition’, Kyla Lee Ward discusses sources of inspiration in horror and the need for an abundance of ideas.
Overall, the stories set out to disturb rather than shock or revolt. I would recommend this magazine to lovers of literary fiction and appreciators of well-honed and perfectly written compositions as much as I would fans of the refined end of horror shorts.
Most of the stories in this magazine could have found a home in any literary journal; on the horror spectrum they are soft core. The hint of dread is there in the atmosphere but the reader will find no gore or terror or slasherpunk, there is little to invoke revulsion and the paranormal receives the lightest touch. Many of the tales are set in domestic situations.
Two nonfiction pieces provide some interesting discussion. The first by Anthony Ferguson, ‘Mick Taylor and the Tyranny of Distance’, explores how much Australian horror is rooted in landscape. In the second, ‘A Shared Ambition’, Kyla Lee Ward discusses sources of inspiration in horror and the need for an abundance of ideas.
Overall, the stories set out to disturb rather than shock or revolt. I would recommend this magazine to lovers of literary fiction and appreciators of well-honed and perfectly written compositions as much as I would fans of the refined end of horror shorts.
January 22, 2018
Midnight Echo is back. Where's the champagne? Pop! Issue 12 gives us a selection of well-crafted, touching tales. I was already familiar with a number of the contributors, but also discovered some new voices, which is always nice. There were stories that felt so real, so tangible, they could have happened in your street, such as "Jacaranda", and others that explore the psyche in a more abstract way, like "Santuary". By the way, the authors of those two stories were new to me. I hope there's more to come from all these writers, and more Midnight Echo in the air.
August 13, 2018
Following on from his award-winning anthology "Dead of Night: The Best of Midnight Echo", editor Shane Jiraiya Cummings revitalises "Midnight Echo" (the Australasian Horror Writers Association's official magazine) after its two-year hiatus. This is a great mix of fiction and essays with a little bit of something for everyone. I love the cover too!
January 6, 2018
"Brother" and "This Impossible Gift" were very good, the rest were OK too. One of the non-fiction pieces had some weird misspellings in authors' names (like the classic Edgar "Allen" Poe).
February 13, 2018
Review copy
Midnight Echo 12 marks the rebirth of the Australasian Horror Writers Association's signature magazine. Issue 11 was published more than two years ago.
It's nice to see its return, not just because it's an important venue for Aussie writers, but because it represents speculative fiction at its finest.
I'm going to comment on just a few of the standout stories in this issue. Stories like EFFIGIA MALO by Angela J. Maher.
Lydia made a choking noise as she felt a rope tighten around her neck. 'Paul,' she rasped. 'Get out. Run! It’s the book; it’s evil. The illustration is creating a reality. Go, before it gets you too!'
I was also impressed with a delightful little ghost story called, WAR GHOST, and OLD MAN RED GUM, a tale of an ancient tree and its dark history. But, the best of the bunch comes at the end of the magazine as Matthew R. Davis tells the story of lost love. Really lost, as in never existed. But the lead character remembers his love clearly and he even gets a Christmas gift from her. A mixtape made when they were still dating. The rest of the story is told in a series of flashbacks, one for each song on the tape. Terribly clever and then there's the big reveal at the end. Perfectly told. Go read AN IMPOSSIBLE GIFT.
Midnight Echo 12 is a nice blend of fact and fiction and includes several award-winning shorts in this issue. Welcome back and don't stay away so long this time.
Midnight Echo 12 is published by the Australasian Horror Writers Association and is available in Kindle format. If you subscribe to Kindle Unlimited you can read it at no additional charge. Also, if you are an Amazon Prime member you can read it for FREE using the Kindle Owners Lending Library.
Midnight Echo 12 marks the rebirth of the Australasian Horror Writers Association's signature magazine. Issue 11 was published more than two years ago.
It's nice to see its return, not just because it's an important venue for Aussie writers, but because it represents speculative fiction at its finest.
I'm going to comment on just a few of the standout stories in this issue. Stories like EFFIGIA MALO by Angela J. Maher.
Lydia made a choking noise as she felt a rope tighten around her neck. 'Paul,' she rasped. 'Get out. Run! It’s the book; it’s evil. The illustration is creating a reality. Go, before it gets you too!'
I was also impressed with a delightful little ghost story called, WAR GHOST, and OLD MAN RED GUM, a tale of an ancient tree and its dark history. But, the best of the bunch comes at the end of the magazine as Matthew R. Davis tells the story of lost love. Really lost, as in never existed. But the lead character remembers his love clearly and he even gets a Christmas gift from her. A mixtape made when they were still dating. The rest of the story is told in a series of flashbacks, one for each song on the tape. Terribly clever and then there's the big reveal at the end. Perfectly told. Go read AN IMPOSSIBLE GIFT.
Midnight Echo 12 is a nice blend of fact and fiction and includes several award-winning shorts in this issue. Welcome back and don't stay away so long this time.
Midnight Echo 12 is published by the Australasian Horror Writers Association and is available in Kindle format. If you subscribe to Kindle Unlimited you can read it at no additional charge. Also, if you are an Amazon Prime member you can read it for FREE using the Kindle Owners Lending Library.
July 13, 2018
A sizable collection of wonderfully varied tales and articles. I do have a story in here, but genuinely enjoyed reading it as a whole.
February 18, 2018
** Disclaimer 1: One of my stories appears in this issue **
** Disclaimer 2: I also judged on the panel that awarded two of the AHWA winners **
All that aside, Midnight Echo is back!
Editors Anthony Ferguson and Shane Jiraiya Cummings have done a stellar job at resurrecting the flagship magazine for the Australasian Horror Writers Association.
I really enjoyed Angela J. Maher's 'Effigia Malo' and Lauren Butterworth's 'Jacaranda' - the sense of the sinister in both was deliciously creepy. All the AHWA story competition winners from 2015 (for which I was a judge) & 2016 are here. Stand outs, every one.
But by far, my favourite story had to be Matthew R. Davis's 'This Impossible Gift'. I loved the build up (and resolution) of the relationship between Drew and Amber. It felt so heart-breakingly real. And all to the perfect soundtrack.
Here's hoping Midnight Echo continue to uncover the talent of Australasian horror writers for many more years to come.
** Disclaimer 2: I also judged on the panel that awarded two of the AHWA winners **
All that aside, Midnight Echo is back!
Editors Anthony Ferguson and Shane Jiraiya Cummings have done a stellar job at resurrecting the flagship magazine for the Australasian Horror Writers Association.
I really enjoyed Angela J. Maher's 'Effigia Malo' and Lauren Butterworth's 'Jacaranda' - the sense of the sinister in both was deliciously creepy. All the AHWA story competition winners from 2015 (for which I was a judge) & 2016 are here. Stand outs, every one.
But by far, my favourite story had to be Matthew R. Davis's 'This Impossible Gift'. I loved the build up (and resolution) of the relationship between Drew and Amber. It felt so heart-breakingly real. And all to the perfect soundtrack.
Here's hoping Midnight Echo continue to uncover the talent of Australasian horror writers for many more years to come.
September 8, 2023
Rating: 3½ stars.
Midnight Echo is an Australian horror magazine published by the Australasian Horror Writers Association. Issue 12 is an interesting collection of stories, I was pleasantly surprised by the inclusion of two non-fiction essays as well.
This is the first issue of the magazine I've read, and might be the first horror work by Australians I've read that isn't Paul Jennings! Definitely looking to read more homegrown horror in the future.
Midnight Echo is an Australian horror magazine published by the Australasian Horror Writers Association. Issue 12 is an interesting collection of stories, I was pleasantly surprised by the inclusion of two non-fiction essays as well.
This is the first issue of the magazine I've read, and might be the first horror work by Australians I've read that isn't Paul Jennings! Definitely looking to read more homegrown horror in the future.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews