From the Desk of William Pauley III
In December of 2023, I didn’t do much writing. This is partly due to the typical hustle and bustle of the holiday season, however it’s not solely responsible. The real thing that’s kept me from writing is ideas. I’ve been bursting with them. I can hardly write them down fast enough.
It’s hard to say what’s sparked this particular busting of the floodgates, so I won’t waste any time in analyzing it. The ideas are here, that’s what’s important, and there’s enough of them to fill an entire volume of new stories. Specifically Eighth Block stories.
This is partly infuriating, because I have several books/stories that have been on the backburner for waaayyyy too long, dying to be written. It seems I won’t be getting to those stories this year either.
Now, I don’t want to seem ungrateful for this new batch of ideas. Obviously, I’m excited by the flood. It’s new, unbridled energy! There’s real strength in these stories, even here at their inception. If I can manage to sit and write the damn things, I have no doubt it’ll at least be interesting.
This new project looks like it’ll be 12 books. Fucking 12. My palms are sweating. I have a permanent headache. I don’t have enough coffee for this.
Seriously, my heart trembles just thinking of that number. Not in a good way either. This thing fucking terrifies me.
These ideas are some of the wildest I’ve ever had. I’m pushing deep into the void and finding all sorts of weirdness to work with there. I have fairly detailed [loose] outlines of each book/story, but instead of sharing all of those things with you at once (it’s too overwhelming, believe me), I’ll just share a few details about the first book in this series… for now, anyway.
First things first, this new volume of work will be called THE BEDLAM BIBLE: NEW TESTAMENT. Like the New Testament of the Christian Holy Bible, this work will focus primarily on a Messiah-type figure who aims to save the residents of Eighth Block Tower.
Unlike the Holy Bible, however… well… everything else.
The first book in this series will be called Staticmouth/Bloodbuzz. Dedicated readers of my work will immediately notice a similarity to another story of mine, Nosebleed/Cablejuice, found within my second novel, Automated Daydreaming. This is no coincidence. This new volume of stories are directly connected to it. Both Gordon and Bricker play significant roles in the New Testament, and you’ll find out exactly how they fit into the narrative within the prologue of Staticmouth/Bloodbuzz.
Here’s a look at the table of contents:
THE BEDLAM BIBLE: NEW TESTAMENT
Book One: Staticmouth/Bloodbuzz
— Prologue: PRELUDE TO A DREAM
— STRANGE WEATHER
— CHILDREN OF THE CONSTANT HUM
— BLOODY HOLLY
— TRANSFIGURATION B.C.
All story titles are subject to change, but at the moment I’m pretty pleased with them. They may stick around. The order in which they appear may also change. You know how it goes.
As you’ve probably already assumed, this first volume will be a collection of short stories. Just like previous volumes of The Bedlam Bible, some of these new ones will be story collections and others will be novellas (hopefully no novels this time though!).
Paid subscribers will get to read these stories immediately after they are written!
VIP subscribers will be given exclusive access to a behind-the-scenes look into how the story was written—including all notes, outlines, scribbles, etc!
“BLOODY HOLLY” will be the first I share with you. It’ll be posted on Thursday, January 18th. You won’t want to miss it!
Crabs (1976)
Last Week / This Week
Last week, on Storytime!, we changed it up a bit by giving you a free preview of my novella “White Fuzz.” Haven’t had a chance to listen to it yet? No worries! It’ll be available to stream for free for the rest of the weekend. Check it out here.
On this Monday’s episode of Storytime!, we’ll be on the hunt for a creep who stalks along coastlines. Be sure to tune in to “Autumn” when it drops on Monday! By subscribing, you’ll never miss an update!
Check out this excellent reader review of Automated Daydreaming! Thanks, Bradley! Pick up a signed copy here.
I subscribe to Third-Eye LASIK (Bradley’s Substack) and, coincidentally, I also recently purchased one of his books. I’m excited to check it out! He’s a great writer with a vivid imagination. Check out his Substack. You won’t be disappointed.
You know, I’ve been doing this gig for about 20 years now and I’m only just realizing it might be possible to make a living off of these weird little stories. If you enjoy these posts every week, *please* consider a monthly subscription. It’s only $5 and it gives you instant access to the Doom Fiction library. Tons of audiobooks, short stories, exclusive articles, art projects, you name it. All for the price of a cup of coffee! Once I have enough subscribers, I’ll have all the time in the world to create even more weirdness for you. So, save the weird! Become a paid subscriber today!
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Oddities Theater
The King of Comedy is a 1982 American satirical black comedy film directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Robert De Niro (in his fifth collaboration with Scorsese), Jerry Lewis and Sandra Bernhard. The film focuses on themes such as celebrity worship and American media culture. (Wikipedia)
Synopsis: Rupert Pupkin is a passionate yet unsuccessful comic who craves nothing more than to be in the spotlight and to achieve this, he stalks and kidnaps his idol to take the spotlight for himself. (IMDB)
Resident #2
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