Some 25 years ago, in what I call my “dark period,” I was deeply into horror fiction. Of course Stephen King, Dean Koontz, and others lined my shelves, but it was a British author, Ramsey Campbell that truly inspired night chills. Incarnate, his 1983 masterpiece went a long way in defining the genre, and for me, had me sleeping with the light on for a long time.
Ramsey Campbell is considered by most everyone in the horror arena to be one of the best horror writers around. He’s respected and admired by readers and fellow writers alike, with each of his new books eagerly anticipated. Peter Straub considers him to be ‘one of the few real writers in our field. In some ways. . . the best of us all.’ Clive Barker‘s opinion is that ‘Ramsey Campbell writes prose as incisive and elegant as anything the mainstream can offer.,’ His press isn’t bad either, one paper proclaiming him to be ‘generally considered the nearest thing to God’ in horror fiction. His ability to unveil the horrors lurking behind the most innocuous, everyday situations has earned Ramsey Campbell universal critical acclaim and more awards for horror fiction than any other author.
For a couple of years I have been working to get Ramsey Campbell to sign for VJ Books, and am pleased that he consented to our wishes. We have listed a selection of his work on our website, each copy hand signed by the horror master himself.
It has been quite a thrill to connect with a writer of such prominence in the genre, and one that has caused me to walk a little more cautiously in the dark, watching over my shoulder, my heart quickened by every unexplained sound.
Of all the things that ‘go bump in night,’ Ramsey Campbell has followed them into the shadows weaving tales of suspense second to none!
John
I have to concur with the comments about Campbell’s writing skills. The horror genre is blessed by having him here, writing beautiful prose, haunting and chilling and setting scenes like no other.
If you like Campbell, I’d definitely keep an eye on U.K. author Adam Nevill. He too can write in a way that’s almost poetic at times. I read alot of horror (among other genres) and Apartment 16 was one of the best books I read last year, and he has a new book coming out from Pan Macmillian in May this year: Ritual. I can’t wait.
Going back to Campbell – his debut still stands out as a very strong book: The Doll Who Ate His Mother. A creepy, understated and slow-burning horror novel. Ancient Images is another beautifully written book – and though I’ve issues with the ending, at times its writing is close to as flawless as you can get, fullstop.