Posts Tagged ‘entertainment’

“Symphony for Walpurgis:” One Year Since Release!!!

Posted: May 1, 2026 in Living and Life, Novelette, Progress Report, Scary Stuff, Writing
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
2

Happy Walpurgisnacht! Today, May 1st, is Witches Night (and day, apparently), as well as the Feast Day of Saint Walpurga. It’s a day where witches are at their most powerful, and where a saint with a reputation for fighting wishes gives people her protection. And, not coincidentally, it is the one-year release anniversary of Symphony for Walpurgis, my latest collection.*

Now, for those of you who don’t know, let’s do a little recap: back in 2023 or 2024, I could already feel the desire to write another collection of short stories, even though Hannah had just come out. And, because my shorter stories tend to be novelette length and novelettes are harder to find homes for, I decided to create a whole collection of novelettes! (For those unaware, novelettes are stories between 7,500 and 17,500 words.) I gathered some previously published novelettes, wrote some new ones for the collection, and, after changing the name and theme a thousand times, decided to name the book Symphony for Walpurgis and release it on Walpurgisnacht.

And yes, I’m pretty sure I named it that way just so I could release it on Walpurgisnacht.

And since the book was released, a number of people have picked it up, and some of those readers have even left reviews! Here are what some of those readers have said on the book:

All these stories are so very different, but they’re linked (in my mind anyway) by one common theme… that is, all these stories start out a certain way, but a turn of events during the narrative delivers a quite different story.

None of these stories are especially weak, but I have some stand out favourites: The House of Lafayette Square, Mother of Spiders, The Little Goddess of Horror, and Natural Predators. Even those I weren’t so keen on were solid, just a matter of personal taste.

Not my first outing reading this author, and it certainly won’t be my last.

M.G. Mason, author of Residents of the James Hotel, Goodreads

The best thing about this collection of stories is that I couldn’t predict what would happen next. For that, I give the book 5 stars. I enjoyed all of the stories, but it’s the “I didn’t think this was going to happen” fact that pushed them over the top.

Ruth Ann Nordin, author of The Earl’s Inconvenient Wife, Amazon

Bravo! This might just be Rami Ungar’s best work yet. Offering tales of unearthly retribution, dark mysteries, vampires re-imagined and blood curdling entities, Symphony is a gloriously ghoulish anthology with something for almost every kind of horror fan.

I absolutely adored the introduction; it creates a spooky atmosphere straight away and is so much fun, putting you in exactly the right mood for the horrors ahead. Each story is creative and the characters are so vivid and well crafted– Rami has done an incredible job of filling every page with witty prose, clever descriptions and emotions which pulled me right into the characters’ minds…100% recommend!

Louise Conway, Goodreads

That’s some lovely praise! And I’m especially touched, because these stories were a lot of fun to write and I feel they represent some of my best work. One of the best feelings I get as a writer is knowing people are reading and enjoying my work, and seeing the proof here just makes me want to write more and entertain those readers even more. With any luck, I’ll be doing that with new releases and acceptances this year.

Speaking of which, for the coming year, I’ve got high hopes for between now and May 1, 2027. Not only to get more people reading Symphony, but also to maybe produce an audiobook. Nothing concrete at the moment, but there might be an opportunity for it in the near future. I’ll keep you posted.

In the meantime, if you’re curious to check out Symphony, I’ll include links below. Like I said, it’s a collection filled with some of my best work (including a story featuring a Jewish exorcism, of all things), so I’d be really happy if you chose to celebrate with me and got a copy. And if you like what you read, I would be most honored if you wrote a review online somewhere. Positive or negative, I appreciate reader feedback. And not only do your reviews help me, but you help out other readers as well!

Amazon
Apple Books
Barnes & Noble
Goodreads
Kobo

Also, be sure to check out the book trailer for Symphony for Walpurgis. I worked really hard on it and think it totally gets to what I was going for with this book.

*Hannah and Other Stories was re-released last year in September, but it was originally released in September 2023. So, it’s not the latest, even though at times it feels like it. Just saying.

One more thing before I sign off, my Followers of Fear: tomorrow starts Columbus Horror Con! This is looking to be a fun con right here in my hometown, with celebrity guests, a film festival, and plenty of vendors. Plus, a scary karaoke afterparty on the first day! I will be there signing books and doing Tarot readings (as well as singing at the karaoke party). So, if you’re free and in Columbus tomorrow and Sunday, please stop by. I would love to see you.

You can purchase tickets here.

I’ll Be Teaching a Class at StokerCon!!!

Posted: April 30, 2026 in Living and Life, Scary Stuff, Writing
Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
2

I already announced this over on my social media, but I wanted to make sure you guys heard about it here as well. So, as you know, I’ll be at StokerCon in June. And earlier this week, they announced the Horror University classes that will occur during the con. For those of you who don’t know, Horror University is a series of classes taught by members of the Horror Writers Association on the art of writing and horror. The subjects can range from Disability in Horror, to Scripting a Haunted House (yes, those attractions have scripts), to tone and word choice in your horror poetry. These classes can be held throughout the year, but many of them are held at StokerCon each year.

If you can’t tell from the title and preamble, I am teaching one of those classes. One of nine classes that will be occurring at StokerCon this year. And I will be teaching “Vending 101; Or, How to Successfully Vend at a Convention.” As you all know, I do several events a year, and have been doing so since 2020. Through trial and error, I’ve picked up a lot of experience and have figured out what works and what doesn’t work with these conventions, as well as how to find them.

With that in mind, I will be imparting my years of wisdom and experience to whoever decides to take the class. I’m sure many horror authors would like to try vending at a con or an expo but aren’t sure where to start or what they need to succeed in their goals. Perhaps I can help them with that and have successful experiences as con vendors without making the same mistakes I did.

So, what’s next? Well, I will put together a slideshow and some worksheets. I’ll also talk about this topic with a friend/colleague who is working on something similar. And I’ll see about practicing with one or more friends so I can be prepared for the actual class. And when the class date and time are set in stone, I’ll be sure to let people know so they can sign up. Hopefully a lot of people will show up. I’ll make sure to let you guys know when I know.

Oh, and just so you know, the classes aren’t included with the StokerCon tickets. You will have to pay extra for it. However, I like to think that price will be worth it. Also, I’m one of three horror authors from Ohio teaching Horror University classes this year, meaning a third of the classes will be taught by Ohio authors! I wonder if there’s something in the water that makes us Ohio horror authors both very scary and very good teachers?

Anyway, that’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’ll be back with another blog post very soon, believe me. So, until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares.

I’ve Written My First New Story of 2026!!!

Posted: April 28, 2026 in Novelette, Scary Stuff, Writing
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
2

Pour a celebratory drink–in my case, a rum and cherry cola–and ululate in terror and excitement! It may have taken nearly two months, but I have written my first new story of 2026!

“He Always Comes Back” is a novelette about a guy who says his stepfather is a real-life Sweeney Todd. Sitting in a police interrogation room, he tells his story to his defense lawyer, leading to a horrible and very bloody conclusion. (With a story like this, though, is there any other kind?) It’s told in the first person, with the narrator/protagonist addressing his lawyer as he tells his story.

Honestly, it’s been a while since a story challenged me this much. Most stories I write feel like I’m a god who has set the whole story out and I’m just putting it down to paper. Perhaps the characters will change things around a bit, but usually everything stays the way I intended. However, while this story followed the basic plot I outlined, it felt more like a collaboration with the main character, and I was working with him to record his story in a way that would satisfy us both. In fact, at the very beginning, I heard him shouting at me through the story to turn the police officer interrogating him into his defense lawyer. And you know what? I’m glad I listened!

Between that and how busy I am these days, it took me much longer than expected to finish this story. But thank God, I’m done with the first draft at 51 pages and 16,693 words (plus seven for the title and byline). And how is it? Well, I think it’s quite rough. Which is a first draft in a nutshell, isn’t it? But I think with a few more drafts, I think it would make a great story. Hell, I think it would also make a great two-act play. Maybe I should make that a future project. Write the script and then see if I can find a company who would adapt it.

Well, for now, I’m going to put the story aside. I’ll let my critique group see an early part of it and get their feedback in the near future. After that, I’ll hopefully get some more feedback and then I’ll have what I need to get it in a state ready for publication.

For now, though, I have another project I need to work on (more on that in another blog post that I’ll write and review very soon), and then I’m doing another draft of The Shape of Evil, AKA the 3D Printer from Hell novel. Also, I want to take a day to just relax and restore my creative energies. You know how it is. (Plus, I have a movie or two from the library I need to watch before they run out of renewals.)

But for now, I’m heading to bed. After all, I would like to go into work tomorrow feeling somewhat well-rested.

So, until next time, my Followers of Fear, good night, pleasant nightmares, and are you sure the meat you’re eating is actually animal meat? After all, stranger things have been found inside a bit of beef or chicken.

That Time I Was Accused of Using AI

Posted: April 22, 2026 in Living and Life, Reflections, Writing
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
2

I’ve already written posts about this across my social media, but I know everyone doesn’t follow me on Facebook and whatnot. So, I’m writing this blog post to update you all. Plus, let’s face it, I can do the long-form thing a bit easier here than on Threads or BlueSky.

So, not too long ago, I posted an ad for Hannah and Other Stories on social media. And someone commented, basically saying, “Because of this and that, I think this cover is AI. I bet the stories inside are AI-generated as well.”

For reference, here’s the cover of Hannah and Other Stories.

Now, full disclosure: I did experiment with AI image and story generators when they first became available to the public. Not because I planned to use them for my career, but just to see what the big fuss was about and to see if they had any deficits. This blog has a few posts containing AI images, just to show how overrated and unhelpful AI-generated art is. However, I no longer try out those generators, not even to experiment. They cause too much damage to communities and environments and are usually trained on stolen works.

And I have never used AI to write stories or create images I use for my writing career. Especially not for Hannah and Other Stories! In fact, the stories themselves were written between 2016 and 2021, well before AI story generators were available to the public. And after I got the rights back to Hannah and decided to re-release it, I used GetCovers, a company that designs book covers for cheap, to achieve the vision for the new cover I had in mind.

I explained this all to the commenter, and they seemed to accept that. However, they told me that some authors have raised concerns about GetCovers using AI images as assets. I took it under advisement, but assured them that I didn’t think AI was used in the creation of the cover at all, and left it at that.

Okay, that’s not true. I spent the next twenty-four hours slightly anxious that people would latch onto that accusation, believe it, and things would snowball from there, leading to me being canceled.

Which sounds like a silly thing to worry about, except something similar happened to another horror author. For those of you who don’t know, horror author Mia Ballard self-published a novel called Shy Girl, and it became popular enough that it was picked up for a traditional publishing deal by Hachette Book Group. However, rumors started spreading that AI was used in writing the book. And there was apparently enough to the rumors that Hachette canceled the book’s new US release and stopped printing it in the UK. Ballard herself said that she didn’t use AI to write the book, but that she believes that an editor she used may have used AI instead of editing it themselves. Ballard is now pursuing legal action against the editor in question.

Now, I have not read Shy Girl, so I don’t know if the book reads like a computer wrote it. And while I would like to write a post just on the incident, I have already said enough on social media, so I won’t. However, it did spur me to cover my ass and make sure there wasn’t any AI in the cover GetCovers made for me. I got in contact with them and they sent me the assets they used for the cover.

Here’s the link to the horse asset.

And here’s the link for the background.

GetCovers also assured me that the assets were not made by AI and that all they did was use a common filter and other normal editing tricks with the cover. No AI involved.

That was good enough for me, and armed with the assets, I posted about it on social media. No surprise, everyone found that easy to believe. One friend/colleague even said he ran the cover through an AI detector to help back me up, and it showed as “no AI used.” And another friend/colleague mentioned that since AI programs learned by stealing other people’s work, it’s no wonder someone would think it was AI!

Honestly, I’m just glad that I wasn’t deceived and I’m not going to be canceled over a case of mistaken AI. And now that I’ve gotten through it, I’d like to say one thing: I will never use generative AI in my writing, and beyond what I’ve previously used in my posts to illustrate the failures of AI, I won’t use AI-generated imagery. I love the creative process. I love the sense of accomplishment I get when I finish a new story, and when, after lots of edits and searching, I find it a home. I love collaborating with editors and artists to get the story right and the covers attractive. And I especially love it when readers tell me they read my stories and enjoyed them or even were frightened by them!

Besides, I pride myself on telling weird horror stories with off-the-wall pitches and wild elements thrown in for fun. I doubt an AI program, which looks for recognizable patterns, would be able to reproduce those kinds of stories. Even if it were trained on all my published work! (And if anyone tries, I will consider it copyright infringement.)

So yeah. If you ever read a Rami Ungar story, you can be assured it’s 100% human created (or whatever the hell I am) and not from a computer program.

And that’s all for now. Until next time, my Followers of Fear, good night and pleasant nightmares.

Just a Quick Reminder…

Posted: April 17, 2026 in Living and Life, Writing
Tags: , , , , , ,
0

Normally, I put these reminders at the bottom of other posts. However, I haven’t been able to write a post where I can conveniently add this reminder. Believe me, I’ve tried. So, before too much time passes, I’m going to put out this reminder.

So, as you know, I’m going to be at BookBash 2026 on Saturday, April 25th, 2026 from 1-7 PM. It will be taking place at the New Leaf Event Center in Conneaut, Ohio, and will feature authors, crafts, panels, food trucks, and so much more! I will even be on the World of Horror panel, and when I’m not on the panel, I’ll be signing books and doing Tarot readings.

And I will likely be wearing my “Let’s Summon Demons” T-shirt. Which is hilarious, because the event center is owned by a Methodist church, but they’re not putting any limits on what sort of materials we’ll be selling or what we wear or whatever. So, guess who’s taking full advantage of that in his horror author fashion?

Anyway, I hope you can join us there. It’s going to be a huge event, and did I mention it’s absolutely free to get in? I didn’t? Okay, let’s fix that: IT’S ABSOLUTELY FREE TO GET IN! And if you would like to know more, you can find out on the event’s Facebook page.

And if you can’t attend but would like to support me, or if you’re looking for a spooky book to read, I’ll include a link to my books page below. From plant/human hybrids and strange gods to Mafia-hunting serial killers and carnivorous horses, I have something for every horror fan. And if you like what you read, please leave a review for me so I know what you thought. Positive or negative, I love reader feedback, and it helps your fellow readers out in the long run.

Rami Ungar’s Books

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’ll hopefully have a proper blog post out at some point in the next week or two. No guarantees, but I’ll try. And until next time, good night, pleasant nightmares, and have a restful weekend. I know I plan to.

“Hannah and Other Stories:” Six Months Since Re-Release!!!

Posted: March 23, 2026 in Progress Report, Scary Stuff, short story, Writing
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
2

Wait, six months? It’s only been six months? Let’s see, this released in September, and it’s March…holy crap, it has been six months! So much has happened since then, it feels like a lot longer.

Anyway, if you’re not familiar, back in 2023 I released a book called Hannah and Other Stories through BSC Publishing Group. It was a collection of short stories that featured tales of ghosts, budding serial killers, and carnivorous horses (among other things). Sadly, however, BSC and I went our separate ways at the end of 2024, and the book went out of print as well (these things happen). I decided to re-release the book on the two-year anniversary of its original release, September 23, 2025, with a new edit and a new cover.

Now, we’re celebrating six months since the book was re-released. And I’m happy to say that people have been reading the collection and enjoying it. Hell, one of the supervisors at work even read it and enjoyed it. As he said, “I wasn’t bored with any of the stories.” Honestly, I was floating on air for the rest of that day!

And here are some of the other reviews that have come out since the book released:

Ended 2025 & Started 2026 with a good one! I had been waiting a while for “Hannah & Other Stories” by Rami Unger to be available in paperback & when it finally happened… hurrah! It was as good as I had hoped! Unger has such unique ideas & executes them wonderfully. Will definitely picking up more of his work as I am able.

Pamela A Parish, Amazon

I have read Ungar’s other books and enjoyed reading this one while on vacation. Each story is quite different, but the author has a real talent for setting up a believable scenario and characters to care about. I wished some of the stories had been a little longer!
My favorite was Autopsy Kid and Doctor Sarah. Nothing supernatural, just real creepy.

Gefilte, Barnes & Noble.com

4.5 stars out of 5.

I always love reading about a new type or creature or monster, and this collection has a few new ones, but this is not just a one horse book (pun intended) there is a wide range of horrors and story types, It’s got creepy ghosts, unnerving budding serial killers, carnivorous horses, and something that was once human, something for everyone.

The writing is smooth and easy to read, with well-developed and diverse characters, I liked how some of the stories had layers to them, giving them a complexity and depth that you don’t often see in short stories.

blatdriver, Barnes & Noble.com

Talk about some positive feedback! And from some people with some fun usernames off Barnes & Noble’s website.

But most of all, I’m glad that people are enjoying these stories. They were all originals when I first published them, and ran the gamut from ghost stories (“Hannah”) to cosmic horror (“The Red Bursts,” “What Errour Awoke,” “Poor Unfortunate Souls”) to just plain old psychological with hints of splatterpunk/slasher (“The Autopsy Kid and Doctor Sarah”). Oh, and there’s one with carnivorous horses. Can’t forget about that one. It tends to be popular.

Anyway, I’m really hopeful that, during the next six months, I’ll be able to get more people to read the book. After all, that’s why I wrote it: so people would read it! Of course, I’ll be selling it at events, but I have some other avenues I’m exploring that will hopefully lead to more readers. If they lead to anything, I may or may not announce it here on the blog.

And then, when we reach the three-year publishing anniversary/one-year re-release anniversary, I’ll be able to celebrate lots of good news with you. I would love that more than anything else.

Anyway, if you’re at all interested in reading Hannah; if you’re looking for a book of spooky stories; or if you want to support/celebrate with me, I’ll include links to where it’s available down below. And if you like what you read, please leave a review online. Positive or negative, I love reader feedback, and it helps both me and your fellow readers out in the long run.

Plus, doing so might keep the carnivorous horses at bay.

And that’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’ve got a full day ahead of me and I’m planning to do a little celebrating tonight. So, until next time, good night, pleasant nightmares, and LOOK OUT! THERE’S A CARNIVOROUS HORSE BEHIND YOU!!!

Amazon
Apple Books
Barnes & Noble
Goodreads
Kobo

Events in 2026

Posted: March 21, 2026 in Living and Life, Progress Report
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
2

I know, the last events update post wasn’t even a month ago. But I’ve already announced the new event on my social media, and it would be wrong of me not to update the folks who primarily keep up with me through this blog. So, without further ado (and so I can hopefully fit in some writing tonight), let’s talk about the events I’ll be at in 2026.

First, in just over a month, I’ll be one of the attending authors at BookBash 2026. This event will take place at the New Leaf Convention Center in Conneaut, Ohio on April 25, 2026 from 1 PM to 7 PM. This is a convention that will be hosting self-published and indie authors from all over the place (a few of my author friends will be there along with me). I’ll be there signing books, doing Tarot readings, and sitting on the horror panel. I would love to see you if you can stop by. You can find out more on the convention’s Facebook page.

(Fun fact: the convention center where BookBash will take place at is owned by a local Methodist church. However, we’re not being restricted on what kind of books we’re allowed to sell or what services we provide in their space. So, as well as doing the Tarot readings and selling books with rather unholy covers, I’ll be wearing my LET’S SUMMON DEMONS tee if the weather is nice enough.)

The weekend after that will be closer to home and just as close to my heart. Columbus Horror Con will be taking place on May 2-3, 2026 at the Crowne Plaza Columbus North-Worthington here in Columbus (times vary depending on which day you’re there). It’ll be a horror convention with celebrity guests, a film festival, and all sorts of vendors. And by the way, I’m among the group of vendors. I know you love me, but I’m hardly a celebrity at this point! Anyway, you can find out more on the convention’s website.

Next, StokerCon will be taking place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania at the Westin Pittsburgh on June 4-7!, 2026 I love going to StokerCon, and I’m looking forward to seeing all my horror writing friends. Plus, there’s the awards ceremony, all the panels, and plenty of chances to find new reads. I’m hoping to be on a few panels and maybe even sell some books, so it’ll be a very exciting time for me. If you can go, you can grab tickets from this website.

And finally, the new one. My friends and I at the Ohio chapter of the Horror Writers Association, also known as the Ohio Horror Writers Association and HWA Ohio, will have a booth at the Columbus Book Festival again! This year, the festival will take place on July 11 and 12, 2026 at the Columbus Metropolitan Library’s Main Branch and Topiary Park (which is right behind the library). This is a major event for us, and we love doing it every year, even when it rains or gets super hot and humid. I hope you can join us there. You can find out more from the festival’s website.

And that’s all for now. With any luck, I’ll be able to do one more event this year, but after that, I’ll probably cut back (God knows these events are expensive enough without all these tariffs and wars and oil prices). Still, I’m sure I’ll enjoy the events I do go to. Especially if any of you Followers of Fear are able to join me.

And if you can’t but would still like to support me, or if you’re looking for a scary book to read, you can always purchase one of my books online. From plant/human hybrids and strange gods to Mafia-hunting serial killers and carnivorous horses, I have plenty for every horror fan (including some free stuff). I’ll include links to my work below.

And if you end up reading my stories, I hope you’ll leave a review somewhere. Positive or negative, I love reader feedback. And it helps me and your fellow readers out in the long run.

Until next time, my Followers of Fear, good night and pleasant nightmares.

Rami Ungar’s Books

Review: “Coffin Moon” by Keith Rosson

Posted: March 12, 2026 in Novel, Review, Scary Stuff
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
2

Recently, Coffin Moon has been getting A LOT of mentions in a Facebook group I’m part of. What I’d heard sounded very interesting. Like that movie Near Dark, but good. So, when I had some saved credits on Audible, I got the audio book. And boy, was I not prepared for what I got.

Set in the mid-to-late 1970s, Coffin Moon follows Dwayne Miner, a Vietnam veteran who is trying to stay sober despite both PTSD and working in the bar owned by his in-laws. He’s also trying to be a good guardian to his wife’s niece, who is living with them after her own family is torn apart. And he’s holding onto secrets that could ruin more lives than just his. All this changes, though, when a couple of bikers try selling drugs through the bar…with Miner’s mother-in-law’s permission! When he objects, it sets off a chain of events that will change the course of Miner’s destiny, and throw him headlong into a world he never knew existed.

So, if you’re familiar with Near Dark, you’re aware that this is about vampires. Though honestly, the vampires feel closer to the ones from Sinners than from that weird-ass film. The main vampire, John Varley, is pure evil. He’s impulsive, incredibly selfish, and enjoys the violence and the chaos he causes. Even when he feels love, it’s twisted on so many levels. You’re at once both fascinated by him and repulsed by him, which, from a writer’s perspective, I just admire.

I also like the other characters. You really come to feel for both Dwayne and his niece, Julia. Both have been through the ringer during their short lives, and the events of the novel do not help. It really helps you empathize and want to root for them.

As for the story, the best way to describe it is twisty and unexpected. Several times, especially during the first third of the novel, I was surprised by the directions the story took, which I did not see coming. I think at one point, while I was listening in the car, my mouth fell open and I literally shouted, “What?!” I was that surprised.

Plus, the worldbuilding is done very lightly but effectively, and the stakes remain epic in a number of scenes (pun not intended).

My only criticisms are that when we finally find out the full details of the dark secret Dwight’s been holding onto the whole book, it’s told more as a story than as a flashback, which I would have expected. That, and I thought the final battle could’ve been drawn out a bit more. It just went too quickly for me.

However, as far as vampire stories go, this is definitely one I’m glad I read. On a scale of 1 to 5, I’m giving Coffin Moon by Keith Rosson a 4.5. Unexpected, full of pathos and masterful storytelling. Grab your red wine or tomato juice, and sit down with it today. You might find yourself, like a vampire, staying up all night long with it.

I’ve Received My First Acceptance of 2026 (And It Is Special)

Posted: March 2, 2026 in Scary Stuff, short story, Writing
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
4

I’ve been sitting on this news for a month. I had to wait until it was official and all the paperwork was signed. Now, it’s time to let it all out.

As many of you remember, my friend Matt Mason, AKA the author MG Mason, died of cancer back in November (you can read my full post written in his memory here). He built a thriving community online around “Horror Writers Chat,” a weekly get-together on BlueSky where we all talked about horror and writing through questions and reposts and supporting each other. His death affected us greatly, and we still miss him.

One of our members, William Beck, who owns his own publishing press, organized a charity anthology in Matt’s memory, The Shadows That We Carry. He invited all of us to write stories to contribute to the anthology. If it’s not obvious, I wrote a story that would hopefully be included in the anthology and would honor Matt’s memory.

I can now say with both honor and humility that my contribution, “The Static Man,” will appear in The Shadows That We Carry.

I’m so happy to be in this anthology. The writers who participate in Horror Writers Chat every week are amazing storytellers, and I’m looking forward to being in an anthology with them. Especially one that will not only honor Matt’s memory, but help others. You see, proceeds from sales of The Shadows That We Carry will go towards Macmillan Cancer Support, a British charity that was dear to Matt. The charity supports people with cancer through medical, informational, and financial support. They are one of the largest charities in Britain, and seek to improve the lives of all in the UK affected by cancer. You can find out more about them here.

Honestly, that seems like a wonderful mission and I’m happy to do my part to help.

As for my story, “The Static Man,” I think you’re going to enjoy it. It’s the story of a college co-ed who is being stalked by an entity made entirely of what appears to be TV static. One of the other authors participating in the anthology, Louise Conway, read it and gave it some positive feedback, so I think plenty more horror fans will enjoy it as well. I tried to make it as claustrophobic and unnerving as possible.

Anyway, the release date for The Shadows That We Carry has yet to be announced, so I’ll be sure to let you know once it has. I hope you’re excited to read it, as well as my short story “The Static Man.” And in the meantime, if you’re looking for something to spooky to read, you know I have quite the catalog already available.

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’m off to celebrate with some reading and maybe a cocktail. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares.

Something New is in the Works

Posted: February 15, 2026 in Progress Report, Writing
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
4

So, for a couple of years now, I’ve had a few novellas lying around. Half of them were edited extensively and had even been sent out to publishers. The other half had only been edited so much and needed a lot more. And on-and-off, between The Shape of Evil and multiple short projects, I’ve edited and rewritten these novellas and even sent them off once or twice.

When did I decide to just turn them into a four-novella collection?

Honestly, I can’t remember. All I know is, I find something very special and prestigious about four-novella collections. It’s not a collection of multiple short stories or a full-length novel, but something in-between. Not to mention there’s been some really good ones over the years, like Four Past Midnight or Different Seasons, both by Stephen King. Or Ronald Malfi’s Ghostwritten (that one is so good!). And the idea of taking these novellas and making a collection out of them just took hold of me.

And some time last year, I started editing the two novellas that needed more editing with the goal of getting them edited to the point where I wanted to show them to others. I gave each of them another draft, then sent them off to beta readers. Once the beta readers finished with the stories and sent me their notes, I gave them both another round of edits. Which I finished doing last night.

So, now the collection of novellas is complete. And I’ve already sent it off to a publishing house. With any luck, they’ll want to publish it. If not, I’ll try elsewhere, though I have a good feeling about the place I sent it to in the first place (why else would I send it there?). Whatever happens, I’ll keep you guys posted. After all, you know how much I love letting people know when I have stories coming out.

For now, though, I have a couple of short stories to edit before I send them off to potential publishers. And after that, I’ll do something short and new for my critique group, followed by another draft of The Shape of Evil (still trying to find a home for that, but I think there are some ways to improve it while I’m waiting to hear back from a few places). In other words, I’m going to be busy.

But hey, I feel like all this is leading me closer to being able to write full time, which would be my dream come true. And if my Tarot readings lately are anything to go by, I might be on the cusp of realizing that dream (or opening up the path towards it). So, better keep busy and get it done.

Being busy and getting lots of stories out there is how I’m going to make my dreams come true.

And in the meantime, if you’re looking for something spooky to read, I already have six books and a few short stories out (including some that are free to download). From plant/human hybrids and strange gods to Mafia-hunting serial killers and carnivorous horses, I have something for every horror fan, so why not give it a try? I’ll include a link to my books page below. And if you like what you read, please consider giving what you read a review online. Positive or negative, I love reader feedback, and it helps me and your fellow readers in the long run.

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’ll try to tune in again some time later this week. Until then, good night and pleasant nightmares.

Rami Ungar’s Books
Older Entries