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  Erik T. Johnson: Fiction, Poetry, Songwriting, Singing, Illustration, & Lowly High Priest of the Alphabet Gods (Praise The 26!)

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N O W. . . 

On November 17, 2012 I wrote: "As of November 17, 2012 reviews, noteworthy news, updates, &c. will be found on my Blog page. Eventually this will be more of a bibliography."

On January 16, 2016, I am writing that I have no time to make this page anything than what it is. Which is to say, this page is bereft of Eventually.

​

As of November 17, 2012 reviews, noteworthy news, updates, &c. will be found on my Blog page. Eventually this will be more of a bibliography.

November 16, 2012: First Chiral Mad review is in, and it's a good one!
At Hellnotes.

Check out John F.D. Taff's incredibly generous post, "And Now More
than a Few Words About Author Erik T. Johnson
", where this awesome horror writer (Go buy Little Deaths!) and fine overall guy tells the story of how our explorations in auctorial consanguinity began, as well as some most kind little snippets/reviews of several of my available stories. John is a real writer, and those of you who know what I mean, know what I mean.

My Amazon Author Page may not be very complete, but nonetheless
it is here and here, and also here.


The Apologies in Michael Bailey's Chiral Mad anthology, available as of
10-11-12 (All proceeds to Downs Syndrome Charities!), featuring Jack Ketchum, Gene O'Neill, Gary McMahon, AJ French, and a host of other brilliant writers.  

The Leaf in Hugo-Award winning
Electric Velocipede #24,
September 24, 2012.

[The awesome Jeffrey Ford recommends EV #24 in his blog here. He says "I don't usually post notice of magazines here, but this issue of
Electric Velocipede is exceptional."
]

[Lois Tilton
 gave EV #24 a good review at Locus Online. She calls my piece, The Leaf, "a funhouse experience." Check it out here.]

[Thank you to Robert E. Stutts to mentioning The Leaf on his October list of good, free online stories worth reading. Check out his recommendations here.]


Water Buried is included in the Honorable Mention list for Best New Horror of the Year 2011, edited by the esteemed and amazing Ellen Datlow! This story originally appeared in the British Fantasy Society Journal, Winter 2010 (as described somewhere below . . .) Congratulations to everyone on the list, and I'm happy to see that many of my fellow contributors were recognized.

Chiral Mad book trailer is here!
This book is going to be amazing and has a fantastic list of contributors into which I have somehow slipped.


The Ballad of the Bullet Holes in
Polluto, April 2012

Brain Scram in
Space and Time Magazine #116 , March 2012

[Glowing review of the entire, great issue #116 in
SFRevu. I am
very honored by Sam Tomaino's praise of Brain Scram, such as: "you get to a couple of paragraphs you'll read again just because you'll wonder, "Did I just read that?" He says other nice things about it and my fellow contributors' fantastic work, as well. Entire review
here.] 

Some Things Aren't Anything in
Black  Ink Horror #7, available at Amazon, March 2012

The Black Tree's Box in the
Box of Delights anthology by Aeon Press,
November 2011. As of May 2012, also available for Kindle at
Amazon.

The Red Jumpsuit Conspiracy in the WTF?! Anthology from Pink Narcissus
Press, coming out in December 2011 and now available 
here. As PNP puts it: "Featuring 37 original stories by A.A. Balaskovits,
James S. Dorr, A.A. Garrison, Erik T. Johnson, K.J. Kabza, D.C. McMillen,
Douglas J. Ogurek, D. Harlan Wilson and a whole bunch of other writers
who don't use initials in their pen names."
            

[
Midwest Book Review raves that "WTF?! is an original and much
recommended pick for fiction collections that want to wander far off the
beaten path."
]

Krug's Pen has placed 3rd in the
British Fantasy Society's 2011 Short Story
Competition
. This is a great honor as there were 167 entries this year.
The story will also mark my second appearance in 
The British Fantasy
Society Journal
, in an as-yet-to-be determined future issue.  

The Depopulation Syndrome in
Dead But Dreaming 2 anthology 
from Miskatonic River Press, June 2011 

[Mike Davis at the awesome
Lovecraft eZine listed Dead But Dreaming 2
among his recent recommended Lovecraftian reads. Check out his list

here.]  

[March, 2012:Very nice review of Dead But Dreaming 2 at
Horror World.] 

[The pre-eminent Lovecraft biographer, scholar, anthologist, etc., the
excellently illuminating
S.T. Joshi, gives an in-depth, overall positive
review of Dead But Dreaming 2 in an article called "The Return of Cosmic
Horror" in the Journal
Dead Reckonings.]  

[
Grim Reviews has the following to say: "Miskatonic River Press has 
finally published its long awaited follow up to one of the best
Lovecraftian anthologies in recent memory. 
Dead But Dreaming 2  
picks up where the first book left off, plunging readers into territory
where  the traditional Cthulhu Mythos rarely tread. Like its predecessor,
editor Kevin  Ross has managed to line up some of Lovecraftiana's best
writers. Readers can  look forward to stories by: Scott David Aniolowski,
David  Annandale, Donald R. Burleson, John Goodrich, Cody Goodfellow, 
T.E. Grau, Rick  Hautala, Walt Jarvis, Erik T. Johnson, William Meikle, 
Will Murray, Daniel W.  Powell, Wilum Pugmire, Joseph S. Pulver Sr, 
Pete Rawlik, Kevin Ross, Brian  Sammons, Darrell Schweitzer, 
Adrian Tchaikovsky, Michael Tice, and Don  Webb."
]

[
Alex Lugo
has a great review of Dead but Dreaming 2 here, at fellow 
DBD2 author
T.E. Grau's website, The Cosminomicon. A fragment:
"Dead but Dreaming 2 is the second  installment in a series of 
wonderful, Lovecraftian anthologies published by  Miskatonic River Press. 
The first Dead but Dreaming was a cult hit,  considered by many to be the 
finest collection of Lovecraftian and  Cthulhu Mythos tales ever published.
 Knowing that, you can probably assume that Dead but Dreaming 2 has 
quite a lot of expectation to live up to, and it  does. But, I'm very happy to
report that it delivers on every single promise,  and then some. Within the pages of this eldritch tome are 22 tales written by the modern
masters of horror. Every single story evoked the power and the horror of
Lovecraft’s mind bending realms, while also shining with  originality."
]  


Blumenkrank (Revised) in The Shadow of the Unknown  anthology,
September 2011

[The Shadow of the Unknown joins Dead But Dreaming 2 on the coveted list of recommended Lovecraftian books at the Lovecraft Ezine]

[In September, 2012, the eximious Orrin Grey wrote a great, thoughtful review of The Shadow of the Unknown at Innsmouth Free Press, and was kind enough to single out my Blumenkrank as "wonderfully decadent."]

[Hellnotes has published a stellar review of
The Shadow of the Unknown.
Shelia M. Merrit begins:
“Because Brother hung himself from our
chandelier with fine silk ties, Mother and I had to take in a boarder.”  This is the first line of a short story entitled “
Blumenkrank
” written by Erik T. Johnson. It is one of many excellent tales assembled in
The Shadow of the Unknown edited by A.J. French, and somehow distills
the emphasis of the anthology: Individuals confronting surreal   circumstances."
 Read the rest of her thoughtful, extensive review here.
]

[Morpheus Tales calls The Shadow of the Unknown "
an inspired
collection
" in their Review Supplement #15.
] 


The Invention of the Umbrella in Sein und  Werden, July 2011

Labrusca Cognatus in Shimmer, April 2011
There's also a little interview with me about this story
here.

[Sam Tomaino's review of the excellent Shimmer #13 kindly includes
this about Labrusca Cognatus: 
" . . . a brief story consisting of a man
telling his son about his grandfather. Grandpa has strange ideas about the
universe and his death was equally strange. I could tell you more but 
that  might ruin the beautiful way the story was told."
Check out the full
review of all the great stories in this issue at SFRevu
.]

[Locus Online
has also posted a good review of Shimmer # 13.
You can read the entire piece by Lois Tilton here, where
she calls Labrusca Cognatus a
"short short piece with a jolt at the
end, a very weird tale."
]
             
[
The Portal has printed a good review of Shimmer #13. I don't
fare the best, though. Jessica Barnes says "The writing is haunting, the imagery evocative." Check out her reviews about all the blooming great stories
here-- and then read them.]


Some Things Aren't Anything in Morpheus Tales #13, June 2011.

[Peter Schwotzer at Horrornews.net on Morpheus Tales # 13
:
"I thought every story was strong and I particularly loved this issue’s artwork. As per Morpheus Tales usual quality, this group of stories is varied, well written and packed with enough frights, mayhem and bloodshed to appeal to a wide audience of horror lovers." The whole review is
here.]

The Peculiar People in Crossed Genres, in the Mystery Issue: Online April 5, 2011 and now in the print Quartery, Nook, and other formats as of
June 2011.
Click here to choose and order. Or go to Amazon.

The Purple Word in Best New Zombie Tales #3 anthology, 
 in
Amazon Kindle format May 2011 and hardcopy here.

Wed Man Walking in the
Darker than Noir anthology, in Kindle Format July
2011 and in a lovely paperback,
here. An Amazon.com reviewer called
my story "mind-blowingly good" for which I am grateful.
             
[There's a nice review of Darker than Noir at
Horror World.] 

Things Found in a 4th Floor Room in 
Anthology of Ichor III: Gears of
Damnation
, April 2011

Water Buried in the
British Fantasy Society's Winter 2010 Journal, January
2011 

[Water Buried is included in Ellen Datlow's  
Honorable Mention list for 
Best New Horror of the Year 2011
, posted in April 2012.]

[
D.F. Lewis has honored me by calling this story "perfect" and
a "privilege to read." His full review of Water Buried is below, and
you can also
read his reviews of the other great stories and poems
in the BFS Journal
.

Water Buried
by Erik T Johnson 
  
“From those windows he could catch the first raindrop of a storm in a
spoon, and snowflakes with almost anything.”


A perfect story, in my eyes. Continuing tellingly the variation on death
theme of ‘Jetsam‘, here we have the flotsam from an initial intense 
claustrophobic vision radiating outwards to woods and clock-tower …  a vision that one needs to piece together – and the prose begs
out for several readings – each time harvesting more upon its tides of
attic smells and the autonomous feedback of the text’s own props and
a genuine sense of nothingness as somethingness (and vice versa). 

”boxes of not sure what that is” – “bottles of traces of nothing” –
“sandalwood scent of not-the-attic.”
Poignant and haunting. 
A privilege to read.]

The Inconsolable Key Company in the
Pellucid Lunacy anthology, 
October 2010  

[
Shroud Magazine's review of Pellucid Lunacy: "There is
something for every taste in this book. The stories run the
gamut from speculative horror to the more traditional to 
mind-melting guilt. I read the entire book in a couple of hours 
and was quite sorry when I turned the final page."
You can 
read Carson Buckingham's entire review
here.] 

[
Suspense Magazine declares that "every story in Pellucid Lunacy, 
however, is a gem, and the diversity of voices and styles is impressive. 
If you love stories focused on madness and twisted humanity, be sure to
put this anthology on your 'must-read' list.”
 
]

[I am also pleased to report Pellucid Lunacy is the
International Book
Awards Anthology winner for 2011
. Congraulations to Michael
Bailey
, the editor (and fine author).]

The Drama God
in
The Ampersand Review, Volume 6, March 2011 
(This story is only available in the print edition.)

[
Newspages.com says that this issue of The Ampersand Review
is "
quirky, enjoyable, and a quick read. The language-focus is there, 
which is often overlooked, and makes it that much stronger."
]
  
The Invention of the Mask in
Gigantic Sequins 2.1, November 2010

Keeper of the Block in Structo magazine #4, June 2010

Le Rire in Clarion #14, May 2010.
(This is a story I wrote years ago to see if I could write something that a purely "literary" magazine would publish. Vindication!)

The Man Without Wings in
Bosley Gravel's Cavalcade of Terror,   
November 2010  (Audio reading of this story also available at the site
January 7, 2011)

[Editor
Bosley Gravel graciously tweets: "A brilliant bit of flash. Loved it."]

A Bedtime Story for the Oblivious Fish
in the Stoker-nominated 

Midnighter's Club anthology, 2001 

[Back in 2002, Garrett Peck called Midnighter's Club "a little Gem" in
his Hellnotes review.]

A Few Leaves From the Travelogue of Doctor Julius Jonsson, Cryptobotanist and Hylesoprotolist: Bay Ridge, or, The Belief in The Undead Still Exists in New York, reprinted in 
Sein und Werden "Bauhaus Issue", 2010
 
[Nick Jackson at
Neon Magazine kindly says: "It's a chaotic romp of a
story with not so much as a Bauhaus teapot in sight but
breathlessly entertaining nonetheless."
]

("A Few Leaves..." is also available as a free PDF at: 

Trunk Stories#1  Originally published in 2003.) 

[
Ray Wallace at Chi Zine wrote of Trunk Stories #1o: "This is  a publication that, from a content standpoint, is trying to do something a
little different, something slightly unclassifiable. Fans of D. Harlan 
Wilson's strange and surreal stories should enjoy this magazine as they 
will feel right at home... "
 Regarding my story "A Few Leaves...", he
beatifically indicated that 
"This is a story that warns of the danger of 
searching out rare plants in an unfamiliar town, especially one where the
citizens are hysterical over the possibility that a vampire exists in their
midst. An appropriate finale to the collection of offbeat tales presented
here."
]

[
The highly esteemed Rich Horton wrote a (very) brief summary of Trunk Stories #1, stating that"A Few Leaves . . ." was probably one of the best stories in the magazine. Full summary at the
Speculative Literature Foundation, and Tangent Online's Steven H. Silver graciously stated that "Johnson does an excellent job in presenting his slightly skewed version of Brooklyn . . . making for a strong finish to the premiere issue."]

Blumenkrank (Earlier Version) in
Golden Visions, July 2010. The definitve version of this story appeas in the Shadow of the Unknown anthology.

The Growth in the Flash! anthology, June 2010  available at Amazon


W H E N . . .

The Drama God in Tales of the  Unanticipated, their silver anniversary issue #31 (sometime in 2013)

Krug's Pen in the Mortis Operandi anthology from The Harrow Press, 
2013

Martin Was Here in Divertir Publishing's Noir Anthology, sometime in the 21st Century     

Maybee Mann Versus the Infinite will appear in the Song Stories
Anthology
, publication date sometime in 2013, and full list of contributors TBD.            
                

T H E N . . .

A Bedtime Story for the Oblivious Fish in EOTU Ezine, February 2001

Boys with Bowling Bags in 1000delights.com in October 2001

Feminist Theory in The Absinthe Literary Review, 2001

The Invention of the Mask in Saucytooth's Webthology, Issue 2, September 2009

Ghostmoth in 12-Gauge Review#5, 1997

Maybee Mann Versus The Infinite in New York Stories, 2001

The Purple Word at Fictionwise eBooks, January 2004

The Sleeping Room at Rotten Leaves, October 2009

The Purple Word in The Zombie Chronicles anthology, September 2010

The Racists in Underworlds Magazine, December 2002

The Rock at the End of the World in Necrotic Tissue, July 2010

Brooklyn, NY, August 14, 2003 in Trunk Stories #4, 2008                              
                                                                     

 
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Erik T Johnson
​is a proud member of ...

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"They all think I'm mad! My ideas crazy! Well . . . it would do well for them to remember they laughed at Groucho Marx, too!" 
            --Louis-Ferdinand Céline
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