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Wrapping things up for For the Night is Dark

Tue, 07 May 2013 15:55:55 +0100

This will probably be my last post about For the Night is Dark, my very first outing as the publisher of Crystal Lake Publishing.

After one month on sale, things are winding down now. And it’s time for me to concentrate on the next project. Or should I say projects? Unfortunately I can’t share everything with you yet, but I promise to do so as soon as possible.

So before I leave you, I’d like to share with you an audio introduction, written by Editor Ross Warren and read by the talented Lawrence Santoro (You can listen to it on our ‘Books’ page or on YouTube.

If you’ve never listened to Lawrence’s Santoro’s Tales to Terrify, you’re in for a treat: great stories (old and new) read with amazing skill, up-to-date horror info and lessons on the horror writing craft. Kevin Lucia (who’s also in this collection) is on the show at times, sharing his Horror101 course with the listeners.

And thanks to the multi-talented Mark West (who has a very popular story in this collection), we now also have our very first YouTube trailer. You can check it out here.

I also received my batch of copies today. It really looks amazing on my shelf. I might just have to read it again.

Thanks to everyone who’s supported me and Crystal Lake Publishing over the last few months. It’s been an amazing ride and promises to be even better in the future. For those who are able or just can’t say no to an amazing collection of horror stories, please support us by buying, reviewing or just sharing the news with your friends. You can get your copy (print or eBook) right here.

All the best,
Joe Mynhardt

Should this be capitalised?

Thu, 04 Apr 2013 15:37:45 +0100

I’ve asked myself that question a lot recently.

During the last several months, I’ve read and edited a lot of stories, and one thing problem that keeps popping its head out is which words should be capitalized, and when.

Of course there are the normal ones we all know of, but then there are the smaller ones we tend to forget or mix up. Some authors prefer one way over another one, writing it up as a matter of style. I got so confused after a while that I had to write down the rules for myself, with examples. I checked on it almost every day.

So, to make things easier for myself and others, I’ve decided to blog about it here, so I can always have a reference. Yes, my memory sucks when it comes to certain things.

Special thanks to Siobhan McKinney for the following link. Let’s just scan through the basics here:
http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/capitals.htm

The one I struggled with was:

“Names of relationships only when they are a part of or a substitute for a person's name. Often this means that when there is a modifier, such as a possessive pronoun, in front of such a word, we do not capitalize it.”

and

“This also means that we don't normally capitalize the name of a ‘vocative’ or term of endearment . . .”

Which means the following sentences are all correct:

“Your grandfather is ill, honey.”

“But Grandfather was fine yesterday.”

“My mommy is pretty. Right, Daddy?”
(Here the father is being talked to directly. His name can replace the ‘daddy’ word. The same can not be said for ‘mommy’, therefor the mommy is not capitalised.)

“Check out my hot cousin.”

“I love my Aunt Hilda.”
(Although there is a possessive noun, ‘aunt’ is still capitalised, since it’s part of Hilda’s title. It’s who she is.)

“Our general is strict.”

“He can’t be as bad as General Smith.”
(When it’s a nickname, like Sarge, it needs to be capitalised as well.)

“Excuse me, sir.”
(For common usage in the civilian population.)

“Excuse me, Sir.”
(When addressing a superior rank.)

Hope this helps you as much as it’ll help me. Feel free to comment extra examples or questions.

All the best,
Joe

For the Night is Dark - April 1st 2013

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 15:21:11 +0100

I can’t believe it’s been almost 8 months since I originally came up with the idea for For the Night is Dark.

Monday, the first of April, sees the long awaited release of For the Night is Dark. It’s been a great pleasure to work with all these talented writers, and I can’t wait to do it again.

The stories are exactly what you’d expect from such an amazing TOC. So if you’re not scared of the dark, or love being scared of the dark (like me), then you shouldn’t miss out on this.

The book will be available on Amazon in print and Kindle format. ePub versions will also be available at various eBook outlets online.

My story, Till Death, is about a man trapped in a very unusual prison. Lost in his memories and the darkness of his prison, he’s forced to bond with his fellow prisoners and forget about his previous life. This transition, of course, does not go smoothly.

Thank you to everyone who accompanied me on this publishing journey, from the authors and the editor, to the proof-readers and reviewers. I’m sure readers will enjoy it even more.

All the best,
Joe

Joe's Most Haunted

Sun, 20 Jan 2013 08:07:04 +0100

I recently realised that most of my blog visitors are haunted house enthusiasts, which of course is a good thing, since I’m a horror writer and enthusiast myself. I’m also getting a lot more traffic on this website because of it.

So first of all, I’d like to say hi. Thanks for reading my blog. And to say thanks, I decided to start a new page on my website, specifically for haunted houses. Joe’s Most Haunted will take you to the thin line between reality and fiction. Every now and then I’ll choose one of the scariest places I’ve ever visited, write a story about it, and post it (with photos) on my website. And it won’t cost you a cent to read. It’s just to say thanks. If you want to share it with your friends on Facebook and Twitter, or buy one of my books, who am I to say no.

Once you’re on the page, just click on the photo of a haunted building to read its story. I’ll also add links to all the blog posts I did for each location, just in case you haven’t read up on all the history and ghosts connected to it.

I’m also open to suggestions for other haunted spots in South Africa (if you can fly me in and lend me a bed, I’ll be open to international locations as well. Just kidding. Maybe). Just email me at joemynhardt@yahoo.com or find me on Facebook. I love meeting new people.

All the best,
Joe

The Haunting of the Old Presidency (Ou Presidensie)

Tue, 08 Jan 2013 16:48:36 +0100

So what do ghosts and dead presidents have in common?

Apparently they all stay here:

Built in 1885, it’s no wonder the place is haunted.

It’s been quite a while since I last went on a ghost tour or visited the regular haunted spots around Bloemfontein, South Africa. I’ve been so busy writing and editing lately, that I sometimes forget about my other interests. Which of course is something we should all be watching out for.

So last weekend, when the opportunity to visit a place I’ve always dreamt about came along, I immediately jumped at it. When I first arrived in Bloemfontein as a first year University student (that would have been 1999), I went on a historic tour through the Old Presidential residence, known to locals as the ‘Ou Presidensie’. For the purpose of this blog, I’ll refer to it as the Old Presidency.

The Old Presidency was designed by Lennox Canning. President J.H. Brand himself laid one of the corner stones. A cattle farmer named Johan Nicolaas Brits sold the land in 1860. The house we see now replaced the original presidential house in 1885. President Brand stayed there till his death in 1888. After him Presidents F.W. Reitz and M.T. Steyn lived there.

I was lucky enough to journey through the historic building with my older sister’s son Tinus Engelbrecht from Namibia. We arrived before eight pm that Saturday night, just in time to take a few shots of the building before it got too dark. I couldn’t help but think about how many eyes were staring at me from the dozens of shadowy windows. I felt like Dr. John Markway before he ventured into Hill House.

I immediately thought back of the rumours surrounding the house. The horse stables in the back are believed to be one of the most haunted spots around (I’ll get a few shots of that at a later date. Perhaps even spend the night). A lot of people have heard horse carriages moving across the gravel. Voices are also constantly heard throughout the huge building. There’s believed to be the ghost of a dog on the premises, as well. A lot of people have heard the dog’s bark coming from inside the house. As long as it doesn’t ghostbite me in the butt, I’ll keep loving dogs.

Almost forgot, the legendary President Paul Kruger and Lord Alfred Milner have stayed over at the Presidency. During the British occupation of Bloemfontein, Lord Roberts used the building as his headquarters.

Anyway, once it became too dark to take photos outside (the building is so huge, my flash hardly reached the corners) I took a few preliminary shots of the rooms, but the real action only started when the lights went off. Normally I can immediately feel when a presence is with me in a room, but at the Presidency I could hardly feel an increase in paranormal activity. The reason being the consistency of paranormal activity in the building. They’re all over the place.

It was quite creepy when we started entering the rooms. Each room had a glass barricade to keep people away from the old furniture, so we weren’t allowed to enter all the rooms. Some of the furniture really freaked me out, like the old pianos, mirrors and portraits. And there’s not a lot of thing creepier than an ugly porcelain doll.

The building is believed to be haunted by quite a few children and caretakers, seeing how the building was used as a school hostel after the presidents no longer stayed in the building. They moved to Cape Town and Johannesburg. Some people have even heard the voices of a few old presidents asking us to take care of our country. The building was used as a girl’s hostel till 1940. After that it was used as government offices, a couple of stage performances, and now a museum.

The above photos shows the scene of two deaths. One was a girl who was either hanged by others or hanged herself when it became public that she was pregnant. Back then it was a pretty big thing. Another woman\girl died there when a couple of boys snuck into the hostel and shoved her over the railing. She probably threatened to expose their exploits. Emotional and quick deaths have a way of creating supernatural manifestations. Some ghosts tend to search for their killers, while others don’t even know they’re dead yet. One of the female ghosts does answer to the name Esmeralda, who was a caretaker for the girls. She’s believed to be the first one to approach the ballroom when the piano’s being played. The dog is also seen with her a lot.

The building was restored and furnished in 1983, but because there weren’t a lot of photos available to show what the inside exactly looked like, it was decided to model it after the late Victorian era. Only a few original pieces of furniture are still inside the mansion, including President Brand’s closet and a chair. A few Presidential families did however donate a few original furniture pieces to fill the rooms.

A lot of the furniture does seem to give of certain vibes, like the gloves in the photos below. You can feel a strange energy seep into your hands when you’re not even touching it yet.

A few people have reported feeling and hearing the presence of a former president on the bed below.

It was on the staircase below that I felt a presence so strong it made me dizzy. I kept quiet, thinking it was just a coincidence, only to hear another member of our group experiencing the exact same symptoms on that exact step. If you look carefully, you can see some blood spatter on the wall and steps further down. Must’ve been one hell of a spider. I hope it was just a spider.

The highlight of the evening actually occurred quite early on. We were in one of the parlour rooms (picture above), where a lot of presidential decrees were signed in the old days, when someone heard a noise from one of the neighbouring rooms. I immediately felt a very strong presence as I entered the dark room, and I nudged Tinus to start taking photos. We couldn’t enter the room, since the glass barrier was locked, so the photo was taken through the glass.

Here’s the photo Tinus took:

Here’s a photo of Tinus (with his sister Jenica), just so you know it wasn’t him:

You can easily see the boy/girl in the photo isn’t holding a camera. I immediately checked the photo and showed it to the rest of the group, just to make sure it wasn’t one of us. A few people see a girl, where I tend to see a boy. You can even make out what appears to be a school uniform with a tie. If it's a girl, it might be one of the girls I mentioned earlier. We all do however agree it wasn’t one of us. If it was a reflection, why aren’t there any other reflections? We were all standing shoulder to shoulder at that moment. No other photo taken that evening gave a reflection like that.

It was a great evening. Loved spending time with my sister’s kid, as we hardly ever see each other. I also managed to sell two books and hand out a bunch of business cards (if you enjoy my blog, perhaps you'd enjoy my even scarier short stories). Not a bad way to spend an evening. I almost forgot, we heard weird noises coming form beyond the door in the picture above (yes, that's me). For some reason the room wasn't open for viewing. The room beside it had a door which we believe should lead into this room, but there was no other door inside this room. The door was unfortunately locked. Who knows what world waits beyond it.

All the best,
Joe

Dam of Tears and Source of Remembrance (Dam van Trane en Bron van Herinneringe)

Fri, 28 Dec 2012 13:47:55 +0100

It’s been a while since I’ve blogged about haunted spots in Bloemfontein, South Africa, but since there is now an increased interest among the locals and a few new spots available, you can expect to read a lot more of my haunted experiences in the months to come.

Today’s blog is about two spots very close together, and their names are actually Afrikaans, so I hope my direct English translations will suffice. The reason these two spots are so close together is because they both stood on a concentration camp for women and children during the Boer War more than a century ago.

If you ever find yourself traveling down Nelson Mandela Avenue into Bloemfontein, you’ll spot a small dam or pond to your left. Believe it or not, but because there wasn’t any place for the Boer woman to wash their clothes, they dug this dam with their tin cups to catch rain water. Some people believe a supernatural element is at play here, since the dam never runs empty, while other believe there is a natural spring beneath the dam. Which ever one it is, I still believe it’s a miracle that they were able to do it and that they knew where to dig. It is called the Dam of Tears or ‘Dam van Trane’ to reference the pain and suffering these women went through during that time.

Thousands of women and children were imprisoned here, and there was only one source of water for all of them. Every now and then a British truck would bring water to the camp and dump it into a well. One well for thousands. Although I don’t have specific numbers, a couple thousand women and children are believed to have died here.

The well still stands today, and the Source of Remembrance, about 1km from the dam, is now built around it to honour all those women and children.

I visited the site at night with a few curious ghost adventurers, and a few people did report hearing distant sobbing. I did feel quite uncomfortable standing next to the dam, but that might just be because of my fear of dark water – you never know what might be waiting down there to grab hold of you.

Although I was overwhelmed with emotion and curiosity, and a fear for what lay beneath the shiny surface of the water, I didn’t feel anything supernatural about the place at all. And except for a few orbs that could easily have been dust, I didn’t capture any evidence of the supernatural on my camera, either. It’s still worth the visit if you’re a history nut like me.

That said, I wouldn’t want to walk around there alone at night.

Anyway, perhaps it’s better to believe the area isn’t haunted. It’s a great comfort to know all those women and children are at rest. There’s quite a peaceful atmosphere present. The opportunity to stand in such a historic place, while a city and highways bustle around you, is not found every day.

I’d like to thank a local Blogger for the use of the photos taken during the day, whose blog can be read at http://turksvy.wordpress.com in Afrikaans.

Next time I’ll visit a really scary place, so make sure you check back in.

All the best,
Joe

When a charity hits close to home.

Sun, 25 Nov 2012 18:48:46 +0100

Every year MyWritersCircle.com, a writers’ forum I help moderate (also where I started my writing journey in 2008), publishes an anthology for charity. This year it was my great pleasure to choose the charity that would receive 100% of all the money collected from sales.

Tales from the Circle is written by the members of MyWritersCircle, and includes stories in various genres, including of course horror. Seriously, what book couldn’t do with a bit of horror? The book is available here at a very reasonable price, in both print and eBook.

Seeing how the books are sold in dollars and pounds, and that I’m living in South Africa, the exchange rate will be really beneficial as well. So my choice was a local care centre called The Sunflower House, a project of the St. Nicholas Children’s Hospice.

The Sunflower House has twenty-two beds for children requiring end-of-life care, anti-retroviral therapy, as well as TB and cancer treatment. Each child who passes away has his or her name placed onto a painted sunflower on the Wall of Remembrance.

Click here for more info on their website, or you can take a look at some more photos here.

I call on everyone to please buy a copy of this wonderful book, knowing how much your money will help these kids. As a teacher, I work with kids every day, and it breaks my heart to see what an unhealthy child looks like.

You can buy the print or eBook on Lulu.com. Buy some for your friends as well. Please.

All the best,
Joe

'The Next Big Thing' blog tour

Wed, 21 Nov 2012 13:45:24 +0100

Last week I was tagged into ‘The Next Big Thing’ blog tour by Carole Johnstone, where each writer answers the same questions about their next book, then tags another couple of writers to do the same the following week. Since my next book is a collection of short stories I’ll be editing, I altered the questions just a little bit. Hopefully the secret society behind this ‘Next Big Thing’ wont put a hit out on me.

So here it is:

1) What is the working title of your next anthology?
Fear the Reaper

2) Where did the idea come from for the book?
Every now and then a writer recognizes a central theme in his writing, one that they never intended to be there, and mine has always been death. I won’t say I’m scared of death, but I just can’t stop thinking about it. Perhaps because it is the one thing in life you can’t escape. You just can’t ignore its existence. I can’t even play with my dogs without thinking about their eventual demise. Since this anthology will be my first editorial gig, what better theme than death.

3) What genre does this book fall under?
Definitely horror. Some of the stories will be full out horror, others more psychological or just plain weird and creepy.

4) What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?
SIMON PEGG, JOHNNY DEPP, JOHN CUSACK and BRUCE CAMPBELL. Enough said.

5) What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
You may run, kick, scream, argue, fight or barter, but these stories will make you fear the reaper.

6) Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency? This anthology, just like its predecessor, For The Night Is Dark, will be a huge stepping stone for Crystal Lake Publishing in the horror short story industry. If you know your horror classics, you’ll know where the name Crystal Lake originated from.

7) How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?
Not really applicable here, but the writers have till the end of June 2013 to submit their stories. That’ll give me enough time to edit all the stories, format it for the kindle and print editions and get the book out by Halloween 2013.

8) What other books would you compare this collection to within your genre?
Think of the best short story collection you’ve ever read, and prepare yourself to blown away. Just check out the line-up again if you need more convincing.

9) Who or what inspired you to compile this book?
Pretty much the same answer as in number two. As owner and operator of Crystal Lake Publishing, I want to help writers get your work out into the world and connect them with the fans.

10) What else about the book might pique the reader's interest?
Let’s see: The cover by Ben Baldwin, the line-up, the amazing stories by some of the best horror writers you’ll want to follow. The introduction, just like anything written by Gary McMahon, should not be missed.

And there it is. Hope you’ll all support the book. Till then, please follow Crystal Lake Publishing’s blog, or like us on Facebook.

For next week’s ‘The Next Big Thing’ I’m tagging Richard Thomas and Ross Warren. Be sure to check out their interviews on 28 November.

All the best,
Joe

My very first award

Sun, 18 Nov 2012 04:48:45 +0100

After dozens of successes and failures since I started writing in 2008, I can’t say I wasn’t pleasantly surprised when I received my very first writing award just the other day. It was a small trophy from a local writers’ association here in Bloemfontein, South Africa.

It isn’t much, compared to some of the prestigious and often controversial awards out there, but for a South African second language horror writer, it means quite a lot, especially since I put in almost the same number of hours into my writing than I do into my day job. Man, how’s that even possible? But it is.

I received this trophy for being such a productive writer throughout 2012.

Hopefully, this will be the first of many.

All the best,
Joe

Fear the Reaper. My first editing gig

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 09:47:54 +0100

As a writer, every day has so many possibilities in store. And what a privilege it is to work with amazing authors. I wonder if anyone knows exactly why horror authors are such friendly people.

Anyway, next year I’ll have the great privilege of editing my very first anthology, Fear the Reaper. The cover was done by the amazingly talented Ben Baldwin, and the introduction will be written by Gary McMahon.

And what an amazing TOC:

Gary Fry
Jeff Strand
Rick Hautala
Joe McKinney
Taylor Grant
Dean M Drinkel
Stephen Bacon
Richard Thomas
Sam Stone
Eric S Brown
Mark Sheldon
Steve Lockley
Ross Warren
Marty Young
Robert Shane Wilson
Jeremy C Shipp
Lawrence Santoro
Rena Mason
Feo Amante
John Kenny
Gary A. Braunbeck

Fear the Reaper is scheduled for Halloween 2013 (unless the Mayan’s really were serious about the end of the world). Yes, there’s a lot of work still to be done.

All the best,
Joe Mynhardt