mad_docs_of_lit

Greetings, traveller, and welcome to Re-vamp, the home of The Mad Doctors (of Literature)!

Do you long for the good old days of horror? Do you remember Hammer Monsters and Eastern European Folk Legends with fondness and wish that still, just sometimes, zombies wouldn't run and vampires would be a bit less... sparkly? Then you are among friends, dear heart; read on!

The Mad Docs of Lit are otherwise known as authors LC Hu and Die Booth, who regularly terrorise each other from opposite ends of the globe. We dreamed (or should I say, nightmared?) this project up after one too many conversations lamenting the state of modern horror (our shared pet genre). Our idea was to resurrect the good ol' myths one monster at a time, putting aside all the modern cliches and gratuitous gore and either taking them right back to their traditional beginnings or bringing them bang up to date in ways that have not been done before.

Follow our horrific progress as we journey from Halloween to Halloween, tackling a different monster each 'round' and posting original material from both of us as well as exciting guest talents. For those of you unfamiliar with the Livejournal layout, the most recent posts are displayed at the top - so scroll back for earlier entries. There'll be stories, artwork, articles, links, polls and plenty of opportunity for discussion with fellow horror fans. On Halloween 2011 we hope to publish a finished anthology of all the stories we produced during the project, with the chance for a few fellow authors to win a place in the anthology in a competition that will be judged by you, the reader!

Be sure to 'friend' this journal, for extra friends-only content and remember - all we ask from you is that you let us know you're reading (just a simple 'boo!' will suffice!) and please spread the word to all your horror-loving friends and acquaintances because there is nothing we love more than new... blood!

Now all that remains to be said is that we hope that your stay here is a pleasant one, filled with fun and frightening tales. Oh, and whatever you do—don't open that door...!

• The Monster Makeover Short Story Competition


• Nov-Dec = Round 1: Vampires


• Jan-Feb = Round 2: Ghosts


• Mar-April = Round 3: Werewolves


• May-Jun = Round 4: Zombies


• July-Aug = Round 5: Serial Killers


• Sep-Oct = Round 6: Readers' Choice Monster (Fairies)


• Competition entries: vote for your winner - coming soon!

Guest Fiction
+ The Maggot by Michele Rimmer

Discussion
+ Man: the most frightening monster of all?

( Zombie Nana )

Copyright

© 2011, Lock and Key Photography
Self Published
mad.docs.of.lit[at]gmail.com

We asked you to name some ghastly candidates for our Bonus Round monster, and you sent an entire horrible horde our way! But now it's time for your final... heh heh... word. Choose one, carefully... or forever hold your (lovingly gnawed bloody) pieces!


[Poll #1757142]

Earlier today Radio 4 pitted two of our theme monsters against each other in a radio show exploring our fascination with these classic creatures of the night.

Listen to Vampires vs Zombies on i-player here.

(Link expires on 30th June 2011, big thank you to Adrian Benson for alerting us to it!)

It's hard to believe that we're already over half way through Re-Vamp!

The Mad Doctors would like to thank everyone who has supported the project so far - we hope you're enjoying it, and without your contributions and readership, there would be no Re-Vamp!

Special thanks go out to Susan Price for plugging us on her Facebook pages: it's amazing to know that we have the support of such a wonderful and accomplished writer. If you have never read any of Susan's work then I can't recommend it enough: she has over 50 books published, several of them award winning and many based around just the kind of mythology and folklore that we at Re-Vamp are so fond of. Her work often falls into the 'young adult' category, but her engaging storytelling, imaginative twists and beautiful description makes it captivating reading for all ages. Do be warned though: although it may not be 'horror' in the generalised, gore-drenched sense, Susan Price's fairy creatures will stow away in your subconscious and then creep back out to visit you on dark and lonely nights!

• + Susan Price's website
  
• + Susan Price's blog 'A Nennius Blog'
  
• + Visit the Sterkarms page on Facebook
  
• + Buy Susan Price's first book on Kindle 'Overheard in a Graveyard and Other Stories' for less than the price of a pint!

Copyright

© 2011, Milla Galea
Self Published
mad.docs.of.lit[at]gmail.com

Self portrait taken as a digital snap in the reflection of my laptop desktop. I wanted to present a more traditional zombie image. Quite interested in the effects you can get just with shadows and reflected backgrounds, no Photoshop was used!

Copyright

Die Booth

"Mirror"

© 2011, Die Booth
Self Published
die.booth[at]gmail.com

Bidding a fond so-long for now(ooowwwwwwww!) to our third round, it's time for us to shuffle into the clumsy clutches of Round Four. Zombies are one of the Mad Doctors' very favourite monsters, so we can promise you some real reanimated treats in the stories, artwork and photography we have lined up for this round.

Zombies have maybe suffered less from the modern romance angle, but they have certainly undergone quite a cultural transformation, from the mute slaves of Voodoo tradition to the slavering, flesh-eating speed-killers of recent film and television. But what's your favourite zombie? And what's the most imaginative zombie costume you have ever encountered, either yours or someone else's?