We’re THRILLED to announce our next anthology, Howls from the Scene of the Crime: An Anthology of Crime Horror, coming May 2024. This illustrated anthology of gritty and illicit horror is co-edited by HOWLS members Jessica Peter and Timaeus Bloom, with a foreword written by Bram Stoker Award® winning crime horror author, Cynthia Pelayo. Meet our contributors!
The Kickstarter is live now!
Editors
Above all, Timaeus Bloom considers himself a fantasist. A fan of the strange and imaginative, he spends his free time laboring over just what to do with his free time. You can find his words in Howls from the Wreckage, Cosmic Horror Monthly, and upcoming in Nightlight Podcast and Beyond the Bounds of Infinity. Find him on Twitter @of_ichor if you’re feeling cheeky.
Jessica Peter writes dark, haunted, and sometimes absurd short stories, novels, and poems. She’s a social worker and health researcher who lives in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada with her partner and their two black cats. Her writing can be found in Haven Speculative, Apparition Lit, The NoSleep Podcast, and Cosmic Horror Monthly, among other places. Howls from the Scene of the Crime marks her first time in the editor’s chair. You can find her on Twitter @jessicapeter1, @jessicapeter.bsky.social, or at www.jessicapeter.net.
Foreword Writer
Cynthia Pelayo is a Bram Stoker Award® and International Latino Book Award winning author and poet. She lives in Chicago with her family.
Writers
Ashe Olivier Deng is a Canadian-born Chinese-Jamaican author of dark fantasy and horror. She holds a BSc in biochemistry, specializing her studies toward making accessible the often-cryptic world of science and medicine. When not writing, she is a hobbyist medical/scientific illustrator and spends her spare time overthinking society and culture. Her work has appeared at Nightmare Magazine, Fireside Magazine, Augur Magazine, and others. Her climate horror novella, DEHISCENT, is available from Tenebrous Press. You can find her at ashedeng.ca or on various social media as @ashesandmochi and @baroqueintentions.
C.B. Jones is from somewhere in the middle of America. He is an enrolled citizen of the Cherokee Nation and is the author of The Rules of the Road and Crybaby Bridge. It has been far too long since he’s eaten any crawdads.
Carson Winter is an award-winning author, punker, and raw nerve. His fiction has been featured in Apex, Vastarien, and Tales to Terrify. His novel The Psychographist is coming soon from Apocalypse Party Press. He co-hosts the horror writing craft podcast Dead Languages. You can find Carson under gray skies and a curtain of rain in the Pacific Northwest.
Christopher Buehlman is a novelist, playwright, and performer currently living in Southern Ohio with his aerialist wife and a handful of rescue critters. He spent three decades touring the renaissance festival circuit as Christophe the Insultor, and still pops in to the odd one now and again with his newer comedy acts, Filthy Irish Stories and Fat Shakespeare. Mr. Buehlman speaks okay Spanish, decent French, and enjoys bourbon and primitive archery, though not at the same time.
Christopher O‘Halloran (he/him) is the factory-working, Canadian, actor-turned-author of PUSHING DAISY, his upcoming debut novel from Lethe Press (2025). His shorter work has been published or forthcoming from Kaleidotrope, NoSleep Podcast, Cosmic Horror Monthly, and others. He is editor of the anthology, Howls from the Wreckage. Visit COauthor.ca for stories, reviews, and updates on upcoming novels.
Donyae Coles is a horror author. Her debut novel Midnight Rooms is forthcoming, July 2024. You can follow her on X aka Twitter @okokno. You can also check out her website, www.donyaecoles.com for links to her work and other socials. This is her first foray into crime. She means fiction writing but she might also rob you. Let’s see how the night goes.
Dustin Mendel is a Canadian writer of upsetting fiction. His work has previously appeared in The Maul, and can be found online @NewYorkUgly.
Gwendolyn Kiste is the three-time Bram Stoker Award-winning author of The Rust Maidens, Reluctant Immortals, Boneset & Feathers, Pretty Marys All in a Row, and The Haunting of Velkwood. Her short fiction and nonfiction have appeared in outlets including Lit Hub, Nightmare, Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy, Vastarien, Tor Nightfire, The Lineup, and The Dark. She’s a Lambda Literary Award winner, and her fiction has also received the This Is Horror award for Novel of the Year as well as nominations for the Premios Kelvin, Ignotus, and Dragon Awards. Originally from Ohio, she now resides on an abandoned horse farm outside of Pittsburgh with her husband, their excitable calico cat, and not nearly enough ghosts. Find her online at gwendolynkiste.com.
J.W. Donley—HWA and HOWL Society member—lives with his wife and son in the Pacific Northwest where the Cascade Mountains meet the Salish Sea. In 2021 J.W. published Cats of the Pacific Northwest, a horror chapbook available from your favorite bookseller. J.W.’s short stories have appeared in anthologies from Dim Shores, HOWL Society Press, PIT, and Chuckanut Edition.
Jennifer L. Collins’ first chapbook of poetry, Oil Slick Dreams, was published by Finishing Line Press in 2016, and she’s currently querying a novel. Her poetry has been nominated for Pushcart prizes, and you can also find her short fiction in Cosmic Horror Monthly and the HOWLS anthology Howls from the Wreckage. For her ‘day job’, she works as a ghostwriter, book coach, and editor, specializing in Horror and SFF. She now lives in Cape Coral, Florida with her husband and their six rescues—four very needy cats and two large, goofy mutts. She sometimes wanders on X and BlueSky as @wytwavedarling.
Joseph Andre Thomas is a writer and literature teacher living in Vancouver, British Columbia. He is a graduate of the University of Toronto’s MA in Creative Writing program. A recipient of the Avie Bennett Emerging Writer scholarship and the Canada Master’s scholarship, Joseph’s writing has appeared in the anthologies Howls From Hell, Howls from the Wreckage, Collage Macabre: An Exhibition of Art Horror, Black Cat, and The Darkness Beyond the Stars.
L.T. Williams can’t seem to escape mountains – whether it’s the mountain of his TBR list, the Appalachians where he grew up, or the Ozarks where he now resides. L.T.’s love for horror also started in the mountains, where the folk tales, urban legends, and cryptid stories of Appalachia inspired him to pick up the pen and start creating some of his own. When not writing, L.T. spends his time climbing rocks, hiking, playing board games, and studying planetary science. You can find him at LTWilliamswriter.com or in the nearest body of water looking for frogs.
Lindsey Ragsdale (she/her) is a writer from Chicago, Illinois. She is a fiction editor for Orion’s Belt and is the only writer who has stories in all four Howl Society Press anthologies. Her stories also appear in the anthologies Strange Weeds and Nightmare Sky. She loves reading, writing, cooking, and long walks by the lake. On Twitter, find her @Leviathan15.
M. Halstead is an all-the-time graphic designer and sometimes author. She dabbles in drabbles, short fiction, and comics, and also enjoys traditional printmaking and zinemaking. Her areas of interest include dark fiction and horror, especially through the lens of queerness and transgressive art. She currently resides in North Carolina with her husband and two cats. Find her online at mhalstead.com.
Mary Sanche is a queer writer, illustrator, and museum designer living in Canada. Their work explores the union between science, art, and genre.
Michelle Tang writes speculative fiction from Canada, where she lives with her husband and kids. Her short stories have been published in Cemetery Gates, Escape Pod, and Flame Tree Publishing, among others. When she’s not writing, Michelle enjoys horror movies, video games, and lurking on social media.
Nathan Schuetz is the author of “Selling Drugs to the Funny Kids.” It is his first traditionally published work, a highly respectable work of literature about respectable people who certainly do not resemble him at all. During the day, he works as lead programmer and as a senior designer for Only By Midnight, a small indie game studio in Alberta. He also maintains a SubStack about art and storytelling at www.barbariangrunge.com.
Peter Ong Cook wrote a story in this anthology, and hopes you enjoyed it, sicko. While he thinks up more horrible things, you can find his stories in Spunk: Art & Perspectives and Howls from the Dark Ages. He might post husky videos on his IG: @peterongcook.
Better known as Ryan, R. H. Newfield was born in Tennessee, and then, after only a few days, raised in New York. He is scared of pretty much everything, so much so that when he saw a TRAILER for The Ring as a child, he had nightmares for years. But, in discovering his creative voice through writing, Ryan uses those fears as a great motivator to create engaging stories. His love for landscape paintings, connected universes, epic fantasy, cosmic horror, and short form stories has led to the creation of the weird and fantastical stories he wishes to tell.
RSL (he/they) is a writer and academic of weird, absurd fiction. He is doing a PhD on the importance of New Weird fiction to mental health in marginalised communities. When he isn’t avoiding his PhD work, he’s writing about his nightmares and playing games. He is also an associate editor with Haven Spec magazine. You can find him at @RSLjnr on the blue bird, or read his fiction in CHM and Vastarien.
TJ Price’s corporeal being is currently located in Raleigh, NC, where he lives with his handsome partner of many years, but his ghosts can be found in northeastern Connecticut, southern Maine, and north Brooklyn. He is the author of The Disappearance of Tom Nero, a novelette, and has work published in venues such as Nightmare Magazine, pidgeonholes, The NoSleep Podcast, as well as various anthologies and assorted grimoires. He can be invoked at either tjpricewrites.com, or go to the darkest place you know and whisper his name. Please note: the author is not responsible for what may answer.
Artists & Designers
Joe Radkins is a hockey watching, picture drawing, horror reading creature who lives in the woods of Eastern Pennsylvania. His wife and two little cubs support his dream of being an illustrator. You can reach him for commissions at radkinsjoseph@gmail.com.
M. Halstead (included in writer bios)
Maia Weir’s goal in every medium is to tell a compelling story. Whether the players are human, architectural, or shades of gray, she invites you to explore meticulously created dimensions of narrative. Educated and experienced in applied arts, she is passionate about animation, illustration, installation art, writing, jewelry design, and more. She works to uplift herself and other artists through the matrix of artistic expression.
Mary Sanche (included in writer bios)
Schism is an illustrator working in Cape Town. Her work can be found at www.instagram.com/schism.art.
Solomon Forse is the founder of HOWL Society. When he’s not hanging on the Discord server or handling publisher and audiobook duties, Solomon spends his time role-playing horror with tabletop RPGs like Call of Cthulhu or shredding horror on the guitar in his Lovecraftian metal band Crafteon. Otherwise, he’s busy attaining pilot ratings or pursuing his new career as an aviation accident investigator. Find out about his horror fiction works at solomonforse.com, or Crafteon at https://crafteon.bandcamp.com/
Narrators
Candace McAfee is a Black, queer, non-binary voice actor, TTRPG performer, writer and musician. When they’re not working, Candace enjoys collecting books, critiquing pop culture, spending time with their two cats, and making beautiful things. Learn more about her here: https://linktr.ee/candacethemagnificent.
Cassandra Byrne is a trans author and voice actress who dwells in the shadow of Philadelphia, city of brotherly love. By day, she ministers to cantankerous, foul-humored digital spirits as an IT executive. By night, she explores landscapes of terror found in the twisted wilds of her imagination. You can find her writing on Amazon and in the pages of Tales from the Magician’s Skull, and hear her voice on audiobook anthologies by the HOWL Society. She can be found online posting about trans joy, warhammer 40k (tyranids, ofc), and other nerdy nonsense. Instagram: @valsombra818; Website: www.theironchronicle.com.
Christopher O’Halloran (included in writer bios)
James Takahashi is a Japanese-American voice talent based in Chicago who has lent his voice to various audiobooks, video games, animation, and audio dramas. He has used his years of theatre to bring life to characters as well as his journalism background for measured and informed deliveries of information. When not cultivating his voicework, James enjoys movies, video games, photography, going to pro wrestling shows, and sometimes photographing said pro wrestling shows. James can be found on Twitter @JtVoiceover.
Joe Bierzynski is a lifelong creative and entertainer. He studied classical voice performance at Chicago College of Performing Arts, and is a multifaceted performer with experience as an actor, singer, and writer. His burgeoning dog training business is not a parallel career path, but one that he views as intertwined with his creative endeavors. His experience with domestic canines and wildlife alike serve as the driving force behind his current project: a fantasy novel and an accompanying album of folk songs set in-universe.
Justice Margowski AKA Mildhotsauce is a Native American voice actor and narrator from Minnesota. Animations and video games to audiobooks and commercials, this voice actor does it all! Besides voiceover, he’s an ex-videogame tester and ex-caretaker. If he’s not in the booth, he’s mostly playing games, cooking, or working out! https://linktr.ee/justicemargowski.
Justine Leah Hince is a Japanese American actor currently living in Italy. She has an MFA in Physical Theatre and has studied in the USA, UK, Italy, Germany and Czech Republic. When she’s not working as a Voice Actor, she teaches English to those young in age to young at heart. She also likes to practice her Italian with her cats who are surely bilingual by now! Next up on her to-do list is learning Japanese and becoming a better knitter. Check out her work at justineleahva.com.
Kylie Rutzen is your local, go-to, and enthusiastic voice actress. With a Bachelor of Arts in Acting and an extensive history in voice acting and film work, there’s nothing she won’t put her mind to! When she isn’t giving her all in the booth, she’s streaming her favourite games on Twitch and creating engaging content for the people of the internet! A passionate and creative individual you don’t want to miss. Twitter: @ScarletVA_; Twitch: @scarletva_; YouTube: @ScarletVA.
L. J. Long is an actor and voice actor who got her start in NYC and is now based in the midwest. She holds a BFA in Drama from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, and trained at the Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute. Alongside performing, she also enjoys writing and is currently producing a novel and multi-cast dramatized audiobook titled, “The Year of Jubilee.” To check out more of her work, visit: https://linktr.ee/LJLong.
Lance Lovegood is a voice actor and audiobook narrator based in Tucson, AZ. He has been providing narration for indie video games, YouTube channels, and short stories such as those from HOWL Society Press since 2020 and is always looking forward to his next project. When not recording in the booth, Lance can be found hiking and biking the many beautiful trails of Southern Arizona, practicing his Spanish at local language swap groups, or enjoying a home cooked vegetarian meal at home with his wife Jessica, dogs Archie and Meadow, and cat Hermione. lancelovegoodvo@gmail.com | https://twitter.com/LanceLovegood | https://www.linkedin.com/in/lance-lovegood
Laura Mirsky has been acting forever, mostly on stage, at NYC’s The Public Theatre, Minneapolis’s Guthrie Theatre, The New Jersey Shakespeare Festival and many other venues. COVID instigated her turn to voice acting, from her home studio, working with such companies as Audio Mystery Theatre, Jabberwocky Audio Theater, Narada Radio Company, No Soap Radio Recreations, The Profound Idiots, Spiked Eggs Productions and The Dr Who Audio Dramas. She feels privileged to narrate DEATHBED, a chilling condemnation of capital punishment. Facebook: @laura.mirsky.1; Casting Call Club:@Lammer; Discord:@Lamra; X (Twitter): @LaMirskaya11655.
LKAT is one of the many narrators of HOWLS Society. A voice actor, video editor, aspiring director and gamer looking to create and partake in the creative wonders that can be brought to life from people’s imagination. Instagram: @tabil_king.
Pandora Beatrix has been working professionally as a voice artist since a recent apocalypse made it difficult for immunocompromised folks to continue LARPing. Since then, she has worked commercial projects, performed for phone LARPs, video games, Actual Plays, some still-NDA’d animation pilots, ongoing featured roles in audiodrama (The Modus Files and Once Upon a Wasteland), performed plays and musicals on multiple theater stages, and narrated loads of amazing stories—including selections in the last three HOWL Society anthologies. She shares her Pennsylvania home with an extremely needy cat and talks to herself in mirrors a lot. See: https://doratrix.carrd.co/; https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/anywhere-but-now/id1687880633; https://www.twitch.tv/wouldbeheroes.
Patrick McCook is a rising talent in the Voice Acting world. There’s nothing he loves better than a good story, except perhaps bringing them to life through the spoken word. When he’s not behind the microphone, or terrorizing developers as a software QA engineer, he enjoys reading and spending time with his beautiful wife and three children.
Rich Summers is a professional voice actor from the mountains of Idaho, about an hour north of Boise. He’s voiced commercials, video games, video narrations and audiobooks. His voice and style have been strongly likened to Tommy Lee Jones, Kevin Costner, Tom Selleck, Sam Elliott, and Jeff Bridges. When he’s not in his booth, you might find him at his easel, painting landscapes and wildlife. See: https://www.richsummversvo.com; https://www.richsummersart.net.
Robert “Rein” Ramsay has been creating audiobooks for over 10 years with over 500 hours of content produced. His most notable works to date are productions of the web serials “Worm” and “Ward” by J.C. McCrae (aka Wildbow). When he isn’t creating audiobooks you can usually find him making or playing video games, preparing for his next D&D session, working his day job as a software engineer, or raising his children. Contact – rein@rein-online.org; Audible – Robert “Rein” Ramsay; Worm Audiobook Project – https://audioworm.rein-online.org/; Ward Audiobook Project – https://parahumanaudio.com/.
RSL (included in writer bios)
Torchide is an enjoyer of efficient storytelling, creative mediums and the continuous evolution of narrative immersion. Her voice has been featured in audiobooks, audio dramas, unfiction, web serials, and visual novels. On the side, she enjoys both participating or leading TTRPGs and moving the TTRPG experience off of the tabletop. She is passionate about clever communication techniques and is open to lending a voice to your new ideas! Reach out to her on Twitter (@torchide) or directly via email (torchide@gmail.com).