Locus Awards and sundry updates
Jun 01, 2026 5:06 pm
Dear Friends,
Happy Pride! I hope that you are all well. Please take care of yourselves. It's important. It's finally nice enough here that I can sit out and have a coffee. And a think. Or, as is often the case, a moment of grace and contemplation.
With that in mind, and before I get on with this newsletter — which, as you've discovered is rather sporadic — I thought I'd mention a few things I've enjoyed/am enjoying, lately.
BOOKS
Diving Board: Stories, by Tomás Downey. Translated by Sarah Moses. (Invisible Publishing)
Argentinian author Downey's first English-language book. As I mentioned elsewhere it's both realist and irreal. Spare and dense and surreal. Echoes of Julio Cortázar, and Mariana Enríquez but with a unique sensibility and tension. It's not all genre, to be sure, but Downey's facility for economical world-building is masterful.
How Black Music Took Over the World, by Melvin Gibbs. (Basic Books)
Gibbs is an accomplished world-class composer, songwriter, and musician. Part biography, part theory, this book examines the societal and cultural influences and history of black music. The music theory presented is extensive, and is often beyond my ken, but it's a fascinating exploration and look at music, art, dance, literature, and more.
TV
Katla (Netflix)
This Icelandic series from 2021 is a supernatural mystery that didn't get much notice, but I found it riveting. If you're into genre material, the story will likely be familiar to you. It concerns a volcano, Katla, that erupts every 23 years or so, and its affect on the town. It's bleak and moody. Everything is ash-caked: the town, the snow, the people. But it's so wonderfully wrought and shot that you won't be able to look away.
Widow's Bay (Apple)
Just a delight. Funny, a bit scary, serious, comic. A quirky and unique small-town horror comedy.
FILMS
Hokum (Theaters)
I've enjoyed all of Damien McCarthy's films, and Hokum is one of his best. (Though it doesn't quite, imo, reach the greatness of Oddity. There are some genuine discomfiting and tense scenes and it is extremely well-shot.
MUSIC
Bywater Call
A seven-piece soul, roots, blues, and rock band out of Toronto that transcends genre. Give them a listen:
Cardinals
Very promising new band out of Ireland. I like the grit, the vocals, the smeary guitars.
We are so happy to announce that Thomas Ha's collection "Uncertain Sons and Other Stories" has won the Locus Award. Thomas also garnered a Locus Award for his story "In My Country." (Clarkesworld.) Congratulations, Thomas! Well deserved. We are thrilled for you. Congrats to all the nominees and winners.
In celebration we have discounted the eBook by 50% (just $4), and the paperback by 10% for a short time.
Speaking of Thomas Ha, the Bram Stoker Awards® will be presented June 6. 2 stories we published last year have made the final ballot. Huge congratulations to Thomas Ha for his novelette "Uncertain Sons" placing in the Long Fiction category, and to Jocelyn Szczepaniak-Gillece for her story "St. Dymphna's School for Borderland Girls" in the Short Fiction category. Well done! Congratulations and good luck to ALL the nominees.
Locus magazine recommends 4 stories from Weird Horror #12. You can read the whole issue free, here:
You can also support us by buying a copy of the print or digital editions, or donating a few bucks via our Ko-Fi.
Our friends at Weightless Books also offer a 2-issue digital subscription. If you'd like a digital subscription this is the only way to get one. 2 issues for just $10. A 30% savings. And while you're over at Weightless take a browse of all their offerings.
Thank you!
Work continues on both Weird Horror #13, and volume 2 of The Best Weird Fiction of the Year.
As you may have noticed, we've changed the cover to The Best Weird Fiction of the Year, Vol. 2. I hope to announce the contents very soon, and then have it up for pre-order.
Finally, in a personal vein, on occasion I write. I have recent stories in The Dark, Bourbon Penn, and Nightmare Abbey. Another forthcoming this Fall in Supernatural Tales. Locus magazine was enthusiastic of the pieces in The Dark, and Bourbon Penn. Paula Guran said of my story "Hunger": “...and it is a dark one indeed. This jaded reader is seldom surprised by an ending, but Kelly does it.”
If you'd like to, you can read the stories here:
That's all the news for now. Thank you all for your continued support, and your good graces.
Warm Wishes,
Michael (and the Undertow team)
Undertow Publications