by D.L. Snell
"I started reading horror stories at work to escape the boredom," says Paul Fry, editor of Hellbound Books' latest zombie anthology, Cold Flesh. "Once I'd found my favourite author, Richard Laymon, I was hooked!"
Born in 1971 in Birmingham, England, Paul Fry has since edited several anthologies. His first project, Cold Storage, began with a suggestion: "I'd made some great friends through my website, Short, Scary Tales, and I mentioned to them about doing an e-book. Everyone was really into the idea, so we started to put together a horror anthology." Paul and his team collected several short stories featuring zombies, ghosts, psychos, etc., and they even garnered an introduction by horror great Graham Masterton. "I was especially excited," says Paul, "because Graham's short story, 'Rococo,' is my favourite of all time. Graham's a great guy!"
After a fallout with their e-book publisher, Paul and his team eventually submitted Cold Storage to a print publisher, Booklocker.com. "They accepted it," Paul says, "and the book was published."
Since then, Paul has founded an erotic horror magazine titled Peep Show, and he has edited titles such as Blasphemy, Sometimes Women Are so Cold, and Peep Show, Volume 1, which sold out quickly. Due to his love of short stories, Paul publishes mainly anthologies. "If you buy an anthology and you're reading a story you don't like," he explains, "you can skip it and move to the next one. But if you're reading a novel and you don't like it, you've had it!"
When reading submissions for his publications, Paul looks for a certain type of writing: "I like stories that grab me straight away. If I'm bored after the first couple of pages, then I lose interest and stop reading. I don't like anything that's too complex or badly written." Paul leans toward direct writing, a la Richard Laymon. "Richard's writing style and use of humour along with the nasty stuff his characters do is brilliant. I just love the plain-to-the-point way he describes his stories." Paul also prefers the violent, the demented, and the erotic, all qualities exhibited in his latest endeavor, Cold Flesh.
As a follow-up to Cold Storage, Cold Flesh is, as Paul describes it, "pure zombie fiction." The anthology contains twenty-five short stories by some of today's most talented writers, veterans and newcomers alike. "To be completely honest," Paul declares, "I hadn't heard of most of the authors that I accepted. But I don't just go for stories by well-known authors because there are some brilliant up-and-comers who need a chance to be read." Some of the more recognizable names include the author of Survivor J.F. Gonzalez, Tim Curran, and John Everson, who recently won a Bram Stoker Award for his first novel Covenant. New blood includes Neil McAdams, Rebecca Brock, and D.L. Snell.
As for zombies, the anthology incorporates the entire spectrum, from the 28 Days Later brand to the shamblers found in Romero's Day of the Dead. "In 'Camille Smiled' by John Everson," Paul explains, "the zombie is quite intelligent (as far as zombies go). But in Ron Shiflet's story, 'Incident at Hell Creek,' the zombies are as thick as shit!"
Despite varying degrees of zombification, all twenty-five stories share one quality: "They're very graphic and violent and full of gore. They're dark, creepy and some are a bit sick--which I like." Storylines include a starving vampire, an undead Hitler, a slaughterhouse hospital, and millions upon millions of meat-eating corpses. "So if that's the kind of fiction you like," says Paul, "then you're going to love Cold Flesh!"
Now that the anthology has debuted, Paul plans to zombify and to vegetate. "I'm going to have a bit of a break from editing," he admits. Also, due to time constraints and expenses, Paul will no longer publish through Short, Scary Tales. "If I do edit any more collections, I'll try and get them accepted by another publisher, which is a lot easier said than done."
Overall, Paul hopes that audiences will savor Cold Flesh and appreciate the blood, sweat, and time put into the anthology. He would like to thank Walt Hicks, the publisher, and Mike Bohatch, the cover artist. "And I thank everyone who buys a copy," he says. "I hope you enjoy it!"
So the next time you are bored at work or just looking for a quick horror fix, pick up a copy of Cold Flesh. Chew on a story. Feast. Eat your guts out and enjoy.
D.L. Snell has written horror stories for anthologies such as The Undead and Chimeraworld #3. For more information, such as free articles and free ad space for your own work, visit Snell's website, Exit66.net.
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