How “Tattooed All In Black” Was Inspired by Pearl Jam
By Mark Matthews, contributing author to In Darkness, Delight: Masters of Midnight
I was happy as hell that my story “Tattooed All In Black” was chosen for the Corpus Press anthology In Darkness, Delight: Masters of Midnight. Corpus Press is in the middle of churning out some incredible, beautiful anthologies. I first landed a spot with Corpus in one of the Bad Apples anthology, and it’s clear the crew is doing this for the love of publishing stories.
“Tattooed All In Black” was inspired by the song Black, by Pearl Jam. From the opening note to the ending of Vedder’s pining wail, Black captures grief, longing, and unrequited love in all its tone and desperation so well I’ve often wanted it to be a soundtrack for a film. Decided to make it a soundtrack for a story. The story is not meant to be an interpretation of the song but inspired by its tone and theme. A character is losing his loved one and expects the power of their love will unite them even after death. He’s confident he’ll still be able to feel her presence in the house, in the tiny creaks the house makes, in the hour at night when traces of spirits dance in the air.
But he’s left alone, swimming in darkness, and in his efforts to force her presence, catastrophe strikes. My hope is the reader will hear the lyrics in the background as if the main character is singing these words himself: “all the love gone bad, turned my world to black, tattooed all I see, all that I am, all I’ll ever be…”
Someday I’d love to write a twin story inspired by Pearl Jam’s song Alive, for along with Black, they have been anthems of my life.
Mark Matthews, Biography – MARK MATTHEWS is a graduate of the University of Michigan and a licensed professional counselor who has worked in behavioral health for over twenty years. He is the author of On the Lips of Children, All Smoke Rises, and Milk-Blood, as well as the editor of Garden of Fiends: Tales of Addiction Horror. He lives near Detroit with his wife and two daughters. His story in this book was inspired by the Pearl Jam song, “Black.”
In Darkness, Delight: Masters of Midnight Available from Corpus Press
In Darkness, Delight is an original anthology series created by Corpus Press. These books reveal the many facets of modern horror— shocking and quiet, pulp and literary, cold-hearted and heart-felt, weird tales of spiraling madness alongside full-throttle thrillers. Open its pages and unleash all-new terrors that consume from without and within.
Information for Volume One –
In Darkness, Delight: Masters of Midnight
Midnight strikes like an invocation,
clock hands joining in prayer to the darkness.
After the twelfth chime, there’s no escaping the nightmare.
Fear reigns supreme.
In Darkness, Delight: Masters of Midnight is the first volume in the exciting new series from Corpus Press, and features all-new horror stories by Josh Malerman, William Meikle, Jason Parent, Ryan C. Thomas, Mark Matthews, Israel Finn, Evans Light, Joanna Koch, Andrew Lennon, John McNee, Patrick Lacey, Espi Kvlt, Paul Michaels, Michael Bray, Lisa Lepovetsky, Billy Chizmar and Monique Youzwa. Learn more about the authors below.
Midnight is here. It’s now time to find . . .
In Darkness, Delight
The concept for the new horror anthology line was co-developed by executive editor Evans Light and managing editor Andrew Lennon, with assistance from Corpus Press editors (and Bad Apples series alumni) Adam Light, Jason Parent, and Gregor Xane. The eye-catching cover was created by artist Mikio Murakami, and the attractive interior layout for all editions was designed by Lori Michelle of The Author’s Alley. Publicity is being handled by Erin Sweet Al-Mehairi of Hook of a Book.
Available Now –
In Darkness, Delight: Masters of Midnight is available!
Available worldwide in paperback, hardback, and e-book editions.
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About Corpus Press
Corpus Press is a publisher of Horror and Weird Fiction, specializing in modern pulp that emphasizes plot over gore. Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, the press has garnered praise from SCREAM Magazine, Cemetery Dance, Horror Novel Reviews and Hellnotes for its Bad Apples: Slices of Halloween Horror series, the anthology Dead Roses: Five Dark Tales of Twisted Love, and for its short story collections and novellas. It also released the well-received Halloween anthology Doorbells at Dusk in 2018.
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How do I get a review copy or request interview or guest article?
Review copies are currently available upon request, as well as scheduling is open for interviews and guest articles with select contributing authors and the editors, by contacting Erin Al-Mehairi, publicist, at hookofabook@hotmail.com
About Contributing Authors –
MICHAEL BRAY is a bestselling author and screenwriter. Influenced from an early age by the suspense horror of authors such as Stephen King, Richard Laymon, Shaun Hutson, James Herbert & Brian Lumley, along with TV shows like Tales from the Crypt and The Twilight Zone, his work touches on the psychological side of horror, teasing the reader’s nerves and willing them to keep turning the pages.
BILLY CHIZMAR’s short stories have been published in various anthologies including Fearful Fathoms and Dead Harvest. His essay, “The Role of God in Stephen King’s Desperation” was published in the non-fiction collection, Reading Stephen King. In 2017, he directed/co-wrote/starred in a short horror film, Gone, which has been screened at numerous film festivals around the country.
ISRAEL FINN is the author of Dreaming At the Top of My Lungs, and a winner of the 80th Annual Writer’s Digest Short Story Competition. He writes dark stories about everyday people in extraordinary circumstances. He lives in southern California.
Author JOANNA KOCH writes literary horror and surrealist trash. Her short stories have been published in journals and anthologies including Doorbells at Dusk. Joanna is a Contemplative Psychotherapy graduate of Naropa University who lives and works near Detroit.
ESPI KVLT is a nonbinary writer who specializes in speculative fiction. They are also an editor in the investigation industry by day and a sex worker by night. They obtained their B.A. in English-Writing from the University of Nevada, Reno in 2016. They have previously been published in Gender Terror, as well as the now tragically ended The Fem. They live with their significant other, three cats, and a snake in California. When not writing, they enjoy playing video games, watching horror movies, and covering themselves in blood for photo shoots. They are also a Mercy main.
PATRICK LACEY was born and raised in a haunted house. He currently spends his nights and weekends writing about things that make the general public uncomfortable. He lives in Massachusetts with his Pomeranian, his over-sized cat, his fiancée, and his muse, who is likely trying to kill him.
ANDREW LENNON is the author of Every Twisted Thought and other books in the horror and thriller genres. He has been featured in various bestselling anthologies, and is becoming a recognized name in the horror and thriller writing community. Andrew is a happily married man living in the North West of England with his wife Hazel & their children.
LISA LEPOVETSKY has published fiction and poetry widely in the small press, professional publications and anthologies. Her work has appeared in Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, Cemetery Dance and many other magazines, and such anthologies as Dark Destiny, Blood Muse, and HORRORS!, among others. She earned her MFA from Penn State, and her most recent book is Voices from Empty Rooms, a collection of dark poetry.
EVANS LIGHT is a writer of horror and suspense, and is the author of Screamscapes: Tales of Terror, Arboreatum, Don’t Need No Water and more. He was editor of the well-received anthology Doorbells at Dusk, and is a co-creator of the Bad Apples Halloween anthology series and Dead Roses: Five Dark Tales of Twisted Love. He lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, surrounded by thousands of vintage horror paperbacks, and is the proud father of fine sons and the lucky husband of a beautiful wife.
JOHN MCNEE is the writer of numerous strange and disturbing horror stories, published in a variety of strange and disturbing anthologies as well as the novel Prince of Nightmares. He is also the creator of Grudgehaven and the author of Grudge Punk, a collection of short stories detailing the lives and deaths of its gruesome inhabitants, plus the sequel, Petroleum Precinct. He lives on the west coast of Scotland, where he is employed as a journalist. He can easily be sought out on Facebook, Goodreads, Twitter and YouTube, where he hosts the horror-themed cooking show A Recipe for Nightmares.
JOSH MALERMAN is an American author and also one of two singer/songwriters for the rock band The High Strung, whose song “The Luck You Got” can be heard as the theme song to the Showtime show “Shameless.” His book Bird Box is also currently being filmed as a feature film starring Sandra Bullock, John Malkovich, and Sarah Paulson. Bird Box was also nominated for the Stoker Award, the Shirley Jackson Award, and the James Herbert Award. His books Black Mad Wheel and Goblin have also been nominated for Stoker Awards.
MARK MATTHEWS is a graduate of the University of Michigan and a licensed professional counselor who has worked in behavioral health for over twenty years. He is the author of On the Lips of Children, All Smoke Rises, and Milk-Blood, as well as the editor of Garden of Fiends: Tales of Addiction Horror. He lives near Detroit with his wife and two daughters. His story in this book was inspired by the Pearl Jam song, “Black”.
WILLIAM MEIKLE is a Scottish writer, now living in Canada, with over thirty novels published in the genre press and more than three hundred short story credits in thirteen countries. He has books available from a variety of publishers including Dark Regions Press and Severed Press and his work has appeared in a large number of professional anthologies and magazines. He lives in Newfoundland with whales, bald eagles and icebergs for company. When he’s not writing he drinks beer, plays guitar, and dreams of fortune and glory.
PAUL MICHAELS is the pseudonym for horror writer Paul M. Feeney. Under his real name (Feeney) he has published numerous short stories in a variety of anthologies, and has had two novellas released, The Last Bus (limited edition paperback now out of print) and Kids. His intention with the Paul Michaels name is to write and publish work on the quiet, literary end of horror, less genre-infused than his other writing. As of this bio, “Angel Wings” (included in this collection) will be the first published story using the Paul Michaels name. Paul currently lives in the north east of England, where he is busy working away on stories under both names. He also contributes an occasional review to THIS IS HORROR, one of the internet’s premier horror resource sites.
In his head, JASON PARENT lives in many places, but in the real world, he calls New England his home. The region offers an abundance of settings for his writing and many wonderful places in which to write them. He currently resides in Rhode Island.
In a prior life, Jason spent most of his time in front of a judge . . . as a civil litigator. When he wanted a change, he traded in his cheap suits for flip flops and designer stubble. The flops got repossessed the next day, and he’s back in the legal field . . . sorta. But that’s another story. When he’s not working, Jason likes to kayak, catch a movie, and travel any place that will let him enter. And read and write, of course–he does that too sometimes.
RYAN C. THOMAS is an award-winning journalist and editor living in San Diego, California. He is the author of thirteen novels (including the cult classic, The Summer I Died), numerous novellas and short stories, and can often be found in the bars around Southern California playing rockabilly guitar. When he is not writing or rocking out, he is at home with his wife, son, daughter, two dogs and cat watching really bad B-movies.
MONIQUE YOUZWA grew up in a small town in Manitoba, Canada. Though she has worked at various jobs, from restaurants to bars to pharmacies, writing has always been a part of her life. A couple years ago she made it her full-time career and has since written hundreds of articles and blogs for a variety of websites. Fiction has always been her passion, though, and recently she has begun submitting her short stories for publication. She is also at work on a novel, which she hopes to complete in the near future.
The Scary Reviews 