Hi. I’m Kit Power - author, blogger, podcaster, reviewer, and all-around genre freak. You're receiving this email because you signed up to my newsletter. Thank you for that.
The plan is simple; a monthly one-stop shop where you can find out what I’ve been up to in the past month, what my plans are for the month ahead, and, most importantly, pictures of my frankly adorable pets. Really glad to have you here. Let’s get to it.
Ziggy and I face the morning snow. No metaphor intended.
What happened From September
As the last newsletter discussed, October saw the launch of the My Life In Horror Volume II crowdfunder. Long story short - it funded. Thanks to everyone reading this that supported the campaign, either with your money or via social media promotion (or both, which I know many of you did). That is, of course, awesome, but the main consequence is that running the campaign, and then completing the work following that success has swallowed up all my available time. This is the best problem in the world to have, to be clear; still, I’ve had to pause Patreon payments for December, as I’ve been unable to produce weekly content there, podcast recordings have been postponed, and I still have the final round of edits outstanding on the co-authored novel.
All that said, the work on Volume II is going great guns; backers who purchased digital copies have had them sent out, and the ebook edition went on general sale today (more on that later). Typesetting for the print edition is underway, as is work on the limited edition covers. It’s very, very exciting, and I can’t wait to get this one out into the world. With that said, here’s a roundup of what else got done in the back half of 2022.
Written:
Quite a bit, actually, looking back. Last time I did a crowdfunder, the manuscript was finished and assembled. This time out, realising I wanted to hit a December release (to be eligible for the 2023 award season), I set the ball rolling knowing I had essays in the series still to write. I also knew I wanted to write some guest posts for other blogs; Run Along The Shelves were kind enough to grant me an interview, and Happy Goat Horror ran a piece where I reflected on what eight years of My Life In Horror had taught me about writing non-fiction. The plan was for those final essays to come out alongside these guest posts as the campaign was running, to help build buzz.
Well, you know what they say about plans.
It started well, with the piece I talked about back in the September newsletter on the 50’s biker movie The Wild One. And the essay about Eminem’s ‘The Marshal Mathers LP’ went up on the 17th October.
At that point, the process hit a snag. The penultimate essay in the series, The Ghost, covered a difficult and unpleasant period of my life, and the publication of it had potential implications and impact on other people. There was a lot of back and forth, and it nearly didn’t go out at all. Then some beyond-last-minute changes meant it could after all, and so it did, and here it is. Take the content warnings to heart.
The final full essay, on Robert Bloch's short story That Hellbound Train, went up on 15th November, and then a very special joint essay covering Poppy Z Brites Exquisite Corpse - that last was also broadcast as a live reading, the recording of which I really recommend you check out here, because it was brilliant and fun. And there was also an afterparty that happened here.
And, just like that, my run on My Life In Horror is done. There’ll be promotion for Volume II in the new year, of course, but there will be no more essays from me reminiscing about horrors past. It’s been unexpectedly saddening for me, but I’m very proud of what I’ve achieved, I’m keen to get stuck into some new challenges… and the series is in very good hands :)
Recorded:
Again, a surprising amount - no wonder I felt busy! George and I recorded a third episode in our Books Of Blood series, and all three episodes are now up on YouTube. We’ve got guests lined up for the next three shows, and I’m looking forward to recording them; I’m really enjoying recording my first-time experience with such a beloved and influential collection, and the interplay with Geroge’s familiarity makes for good audio.
Seasons of the Crow is a limited series taking on US biker TV show Sons of Anarchy, one episode per season (hence the name - not just a pretty face, folks) The first two episodes are live, and feature George, myself, and SoA superfan Steve Shaw in conversation, with more recordings planned for the new year. It’s a fun project, and we’re likely to take on some other shows in a similar fashion at some point.
Writeopolis saw out Season 4 in style, with shows featuring Peter McLean, Eddie Robson, Tendai Huchu, Kallie Marie, and the mighty CC Adams. A reminder that all these podcast recordings are free, though Patreon backers do get early access. Also, I’m slowly but surely releasing the archived recordings in podcast from, so if you want to listen to the show from the beginning, you can subscribe here - or search your podcast catcher or YouTube for Writeopolis. Eventually, that feed will be up to date, but there’s a lot of great episodes coming down the pike to get caught up on in the meantime :)
Lastly, I recorded and released an interview with editor, author, and genre fanatic Johnny Mains via my YouTube channel, talking about his new novel A Man At War. It was a gigantic amount of fun and, again, something I may well do more of in 2023. You can check that out here.
Published:
In addition to the above, my review of Johnny’s A Man At War went live on Gingernuts (SPOILERS: I think it’s really, properly brilliant). And the next three episodes of The Backer Street Irregulars, covering The Noble Batchelor, The Beryl Coronet, and The Copper Beeches went up over on Patreon. Really looking forward to getting into the second collection of short stories in the new year. A reminder that this show will remain a Patreon exclusive for the foreseeable future, and just $1 a month will get you instant access to all shows in the series.
Rocky, the King of Winter, is judging you.
Reading:
Not a lot. I have over half a dozen titles on the go, but I can’t seem to finish anything. Frustrating, but on the plus side, when I do get through them, there should be a flurry of reviews for Patreon backers. Sorry to anyone waiting on a review. I haven’t forgotten.
Watching:
Too much to recall. Highlights have included:
Andor - I almost bailed after the first episode, but boy am I glad I went back. There’s a reason everyone is banging on about it. A Star Wars show about the difficult moral choices people face as their ‘democracy’ crumbles into fascism? Yeah, this is the good stuff.
The English - people have been complaining about how ridiculously good-looking this show is, which I find odd - apparently, it’s bad to be stylish, for some reason - especially as it’s also got some of the best dialogue I’ve heard in a TV show this year. The writing takes minimalism to a new level, in the best possible way. Cracking story, too.
Gulped down both seasons of White Lotus, which left an appropriately bitter aftertaste. Deplorable people being deplorable with razor-sharp writing and acting; not sure if the show was meant as a manifesto for Burning It All down, but if so, mission accomplished.
Handmaid’s Tale - this shows commitment to really trying to think it through I find deeply admirable, and at least once an episode I’m left knocked down by a scene, piece of dialogue, or performance choice. Pivoting to themes of refugees and national identity this season feels like a prescient decision. Just astounding telly.
Currently watching King of Tulsa - I suspect it’s kinda Not Very Good, really, but it makes me laugh like a drain at least once an episode, and Stallone may actually be one of the most underrated actors in the business; at least once an episode, his performance turns on a dime and he delivers an emotional gut punch. I love it and I will not be shamed :D
Playing:
With Kiddo, Hotwheels Unleased on thee PS4. Local splitscreen is just a ton of fun. And on mobile, absolutely obsessed with Marvel Snap - 3 minute matches, deck building, amazing depth, a slow drip unlock system and exquisite balance that effectively prevents pay-to-win. Kinda the perfect game for me, right now.
Rocky and Ziggy. Still Not Friends
Book of the month: My Life in Horror Volume II
Following the success of the crowdfunder, and pulling together the final five years of my run on the My Life In Horror series for Gingernuts of Horror, Volume II is out TODAY on Kindle, with paperback and hardback releases coming in early 2023. Every essay has been revisited and revised, including a new essay covering my young teen obsession with the Elm Street franchise and related concerns. This one goes bigger, deeper, and more personal than Volume I. I’m proud as hell of it, and I really think you’ll dig it. You can grab your copy right here, right now; and I’ll let you know when the hard copies drop in January.
2023 plans:
Well, lots, obviously. I plan on using the break to finally finish my long-overdue edits on the co-authored novel, to move that project to the next stage. Fiction wise, I have a couple of short stories at various stages of completion/gestation, a novella that will effectively form part 3 of my MK apocalypse trilogy (the first 8K was written back in 2019), and after that, a standalone-with-series-potential dystopian near-future thriller that I really can’t wait to get to.
On the non-fiction side, I’d really like to get to an essay a month on the Keene project, now My Life In Horror is no longer vying for my attention. And there’s two other essay projects - one 2023-specific, crime drama related, and one (very) long form music project I’d like to pitch (if you know anyone paying for essays in either of these areas, hit me up).
As for the podcasting, alongside Books of Blood, Seasons of the Crow and Backer Street, there’s a new, short-story related project coming in 2023, with a brilliant author and dear friend, and a music related show with RJ Barker and Scott K Andrews - kind of a Writeopolis spinoff show.
Do I have serious concerns about my capacity to do all this? Frankly, yes. Managing all the things I want to do and that bring me joy alongside a day job and family (who also bring me joy, just to be clear) is a massive challenge. But I want it, and so I’ll figure it out.
Ziggy, exhausted just thinking about it all
Song of the Month Year:
Keeping with my proud tradition of not listening to new music ever, my song for the year is a 2003 release from Drive By Truckers. No, really. Scott Andrews (Writeopolis co-host) took me to see ex DBT man Jason Isbell at Hammersmith toward the end of the year, and it was everything I hadn’t known I’d needed. So here’s the song he played for the encore, that sent me back down a rabbit hole with one of the greatest bands to ever do it. World class storytelling. Enjoy.
And hey, well done. You made it. 2023 beckons. Thanks for choosing to hang with me and my work. Let’s raise a glass to better days… and then, lets roll up our sleeves and get to building them.
Cheers.