[Newsgroup-test] Newsletter No. 9
Doom
doom at guynsmith.com
Fri Aug 29 12:58:04 BST 2025
Official Newsletter No. 9
Celebrating the Life and Works of Guy N Smith 1939-2020
Guy N. Smith
Greetings Fans, Friends and Fiends!
Welcome! We have details of the imminent GNS Fan Convention 2025 (still
time to sign up, the more the merrier) plus current and future projects
by Black Hill Books. We’ve been busy with re-releases and audio! Recent
highlights include the *Night of the Crabs* audiobook and new
ebook/paperback editions of *Crabs on the Rampage*, *Crabs’ Moon*,
*Crabs: The Human Sacrifice*, *Werewolf by Moonlight*, *Return of the
Werewolf*, and *Son of the Werewolf*. Don’t miss this newsletter’s
heartwarming Last Word article by Chris Hall of DLS Reviews.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Guy N. Smith Fan Convention 2025
Located at Knighton Community Centre, Powys, the GNS fan convention this
year, on Sunday September 7th, will begin at 12.30pm (doors open 12:15).
*Highlights*:
* *Win* exclusive Smith-themed merchandise in the raffle
* *Meet* award-winning Welsh comedian *Bennett Arron* (see below),
who’ll lighten the darkness with his take on our world of crabbery
and werewolfery
* *Listen* to Mickey Lewis read from /Werewolf by Moonlight/
* *Enjoy* a reading from David Owain Hughes’ cannibal story /Dacchus/
* *Grab* a signed limited edition of the Fan Con chapbook
* *Test* your knowledge in our /Were-Crab Quiz/
* *Snack* on a free buffet by Borders Bites
* *Watch* a horribly ghoulish GNS-related film clip…
* *Save* with fan-con prices (£8 /each/ or three for £22)
* *Bid* in our auction for GNS rarities
* *Forget* your cares with blood, guts and jump-scares!
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Bennett Arron
Bennett Arron (writer, actor, award-winning comedian)
Bennett Arron is an award-winning writer, comedian and actor who starred
in all four series of the Radio 4 Sitcom /ALONE/. He has written and
starred in two radio series, Bennett Arron is Jewelsh, and /Bennett
Arron Worries About…/ both of which were nominated for the Celtic Media
Awards, and he was a presenter on BBC Three Counties Radio. He has
performed around the UK and internationally (Italy, Australia, Germany,
Poland, South Africa and Hong Kong). Bennett presented the BBC
documentary /The Kosher Comedian/ and was BAFTA-shortlisted for
presenting and directing the Channel 4 documentary /How To Steal An
Identity/. He is a past winner of both the TAPS Comedy Writer of the
Year Award and the BBC New Writer's Award and is a past finalist of the
BBC New Comedy Awards. However his proudest moment was coming third in
an International Disco Dancing Championship in Tenerife.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
And now for a sneaky peek at some of the goodies…
Song of the South AOTC The Sucking Pit The Slime Beast Crabs on the
Rampage Postcard Checklist
You’ve got to be there to get something rare!
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Latest Releases
Crabs on the Rampage Crabs' Moon Crabs: The Human Sacrifice
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Robin Ince
Robin Ince – Crabs on the Rampage Foreword Writer
A multi award winning comedian, author, broadcaster, bibliomaniac and
populariser of scientific ideas, Robin Ince is perhaps best known as the
co-host and co-creator of the Sony Gold Award winning BBC Radio 4 series
/The Infinite Monkey Cage/ with Professor Brian Cox. As a stand-up,
Robin has toured the world and as an author he has written four
acclaimed books, including /Bibliomaniac/, which earned him the
prestigious Booksellers Association Author of the Year award. His fifth,
/Normally Weird and Weirdly Normal/ is published in May 2025. He
co-created the Cosmic Shambles Network and created the groundbreaking
science variety night /Nine Lessons and Carols for Curious People/ which
has been adapted worldwide. He has received an Honorary Fellowship of
UCL, an honorary doctorate from Royal Holloway College (University of
London), and is a fellow of the British Science Association.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Simon Clark
Simon Clark – Crabs’ Moon Foreword Writer
Simon, born in Wakefield and a denizen of Yorkshire, adapted his
award-winning novel /The Night of the Triffids/ as a two-hour full-cast
audio drama for Big Finish, leading to BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcasting
the production in 2016. Simon is also the author of dozens of short
stories and more than thirty novels, including /Vampyrrhic/, /Blood
Crazy/, and /Darker/, many of which have been published worldwide in
Japanese, Italian, Greek, Estonian, Spanish, Czech, Polish, French,
German and Dutch. Recently, Simon co-scripted /The Protos Experiment/, a
dystopian sci-fi/horror feature film, which premiered at the Cannes Film
Festival in 2024, and went on general release last summer.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Woodlice
Graham Holden (G. P. Nedloh) – Crabs: The Human Sacrifice Foreword
Writer
Graham (G. P. Nedloh) grew up in rural Sussex, and after some time away
finds himself back in the county he is most fond of, with the Southdowns
on his doorstep. Inspired by the writing of Guy N. Smith he's taken the
plunge to attempt to do more writing. He recently published his first
novella /The Woodlice/, very much a 1980s British pulp-horror
inspiration, and is currently finishing an entirely different novella
called /mindNet/, a 1990s-inspired cyber-thriller that will have an
accompanied music release.
Pepper
/Graham’s dog Pepper appears as Molly in The Woodlice/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Listen up! Night of the Crabs audiobook
Night of the Crabs audiobook
Narrated by Pete Gold. Released May 2025, available on Spotify, Audible
and all well-known platforms. /Killer Crabs/ audiobook is in production…
Listen on Audible: Night of the Crabs (Audiobook)
<https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/Night-of-the-Crabs-Audiobook/B0FCG6J8X8>
Also available on Libro, Storytel, Audiobook, Booktopia, Chirp, Kobo,
Google Play and more.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
More new releases: Return of the Werewolf, Son of the Werewolf
Following on from our new edition of /Werewolf by Moonlight/, we have
now released /Return of the Werewolf/ (with foreword by J.R. Park) and
/Son of the Werewolf/ (with foreword by Chris Elphick)!
Return of the Werewolf Son of the Werewolf
------------------------------------------------------------------------
J.R. Park
J.R. Park – Return of the Werewolf Foreword Writer
J. R. Park is a horror author based in South Wales, UK. His works have
featured in /Year's Best Hardcore Horror/ and the award-winning
/Splatterpunk Forever/ anthology. Described by /Scream/ magazine as
having “the darkest imagination in the universe,” his stories take the
pulp-horror template, twisting and mashing them into new forms. As well
as his own books such as /Upon Waking/ and /Punch/, Park has co-authored
with extreme-horror maestro Matt Shaw (/Postal/) and even Guy N. Smith
himself (/Beheaded/). Park is honoured to write the foreword to /Return
of the Werewolf/, himself a werewolf-fiction fan, penning his own
lycanthropic book /Mad Dog/.
Beheaded Mad Dog
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chris Elphick
Chris Elphick – Son of the Werewolf Foreword Writer
Chris Elphick is a writer and photographer from South Wales. He has
published nine pulp horror novels, along with several guidebooks
celebrating the Gower Peninsula—his beloved childhood playground. In
addition, he produces a range of photozines and has a second visitor's
guide to Glastonbury, /Avalon/, slated for publication in August 2025. A
lifelong fan of Guy N. Smith, Chris has admired the horror author for
nearly half a century. Recently, he dedicated an entire year to reading
and exploring Smith's work. This deep dive inspired his first fan-based
zine, /GNS – 50 Years of Pulp Horror/, a personal and passionate
exploration of collecting Guy N. Smith books and ephemera, and
discovering new ways to celebrate the author’s wildly imaginative legacy.
GNS Zine 2
Chris Elphick is about to release his long-anticipated GNS zine Number
2! The book contains several GNS-inspired shorts by author-fans of Our
Great Scribbler and also the introduction to /Nightmares from the Black
Hill/, Guy’s /London Mystery Selection/ short story anthology (2017),
and a special republication of “The Mummy” from that publication.
Available on Amazon.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
All the F*cks
On the way: Cannibals
The re-release of Smith’s /Cannibals/ ebook and paperback is now in
production, timed to (nearly) coincide with author and GNS fan David
Owain Hughes’ special 10th anniversary limited edition of his own
cannibals-themed horror oeuvre, /All the F*cks/. The book includes a
novel, a novella, a comic strip, two short stories, a foreword by Guy’s
daughter Tara and an introduction by Chris Hall of DLS Reviews!
In 2016, Hughes wrote a Smith-inspired short story called Dacchas which
picks up where /Cannibals/ stops, first published in /Hell of a Guy/, a
limited-edition tribute anthology to Smith, compiled and edited by J.R.
Park and Chris Hall to mark the 25th Fan Convention. Dacchas is in fact
this year’s special Fan Con Chapbook, limited to just 100 numbered
copies, published by Black Hill Books and illustrated by Tara.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
David Owain Hughes
David Owain Hughes
David Owain Hughes is an ink-slinger of sick, perverse horror and filth
who grew up on cheap beer, lewd ’80s horror, and sticky skin mags he’d
find in the woods behind his childhood home. The aforementioned porn was
usually always rescued from in between used, come-filled rubbers, broken
needles and shit-stained underwear. Hughes will tell you that Sybil
Danning awoke his sexuality, although, truth be told, it was probably
Danny DeVito. Hughes has had multiple short stories published in various
online magazines and anthologies, along with articles, reviews and
interviews. He’s written for /This Is Horror/, /Blood Magazine/, and
/Horror Geeks Magazine/, with a one-off review appearing in /Rue Morgue/
Magazine. He is the author of six horror novels, four short story
collections and a plethora of novellas. When he’s not writing B
movie-like rubbish and daydreaming about Ingrid Pitt’s tits, he can be
found penning crime fiction, having carved out a superb series of
crime/noir thrillers under the umbrella title of /South by Southwest
Wales/. Hughes is a forty-something manchild who lives with an epic
housemate and three cats in the Rhondda Valleys, South Wales, Wales.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thanking you kindly…
There’s always a touch of GNS in the industry – here are a couple of
instances we've spotted since the last newsletter. Thanks Justin and
Trevor!
1/Phantasmogoria Issue #25 Winter 24/25, edited by Trevor Kennedy/
Phantasmagoria #25
/Paperback Fanatic #50, edited by Justin Marriott/
Paperback Fanatic #50
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiends with Benefits (well, blogs…)
Guy’s stories have always thrived on word of mouth, whispered praise,
and bloody good recommendations. Fortunately, there are fiends out there
spreading the gospel of pulp horror across the internet. Here’s a
selection of sites and blogs keeping the Great Scribbler alive:
* Gavin Kendall <https://kendallreviews.com/>
* Paul Ebbs on Facebook
<https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100013056722227>
* Chris Hall / DLS Reviews <https://www.dlsreviews.com/guy-n-smith.php>
* Mike Howlett <https://hitmewithyourbookreview.blogspot.com/>
* Hal C. F. Astell's The Nameless Zine <https://www.thenamelesszine.org/>
* Hal C. F. Astell's Apocalypse Later Empire
<https://books.apocalypselaterempire.com/>
* The Monster Librarian Interview With Guy N. Smith
<https://www.monsterlibrarian.com/TheCirculationDesk/a-look-back-the-monster-librarian-interview-with-guy-n-smith/>
* Lord Sampers Library (@lordsamper on X)
* Chris Elphick <https://www.pixie-led.co.uk/p/1.html>
* Meet Guy N. Smith on Boing Boing
<https://boingboing.net/2021/09/06/meet-guy-n-smith-the-guy-who-gave-the-world-7-novels-worth-of-crabs.html>
And if you’re hunting physical treasures, our Official UK Seller, Paul
Evans, keeps a stash of hard-to-find titles on AbeBooks
<https://www.abebooks.com/books-for-collectors-lancashire/742557/sf>.
/Know of another den of horrors where Guy’s name is praised? Send word
to doom at guynsmith.com and we’ll add it to the roll of honour. /
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Website
Website
In the run-up to the Fan Convention 2025, our digital crypt at
guynsmith.com <https://guynsmith.com> is growing fast! It already holds
past newsletters, /Mystery Man/ Diary instalments, a biography of Guy,
and a large slice of the back catalogue.
But the site is very much a work-in-progress. With more than *150 pages*
(and still not a complete list of Guy’s books), there are bound to be
gaps and the occasional error. We’d love fans to help us shape and
expand it.
How you can help:
* Submit reviews of your favourite GNS books or chapbooks
* Spot a mistake? Let us know so we can correct it
* Know of missing editions, cover art, or interviews? Send them in
* Want to get hands-on? We’re even happy for fans to edit pages directly
This is bigger than any one person’s project. With the help of the
community we can build the most complete, living archive of the Great
Scribbler’s work. So please, drop by, browse, and contribute — your
input keeps Guy’s legacy alive online.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Guy N. Smith Patreon Membership
In October 2024 we opened a Patreon to help fund ongoing GNS
restoration, re-releases, and community projects. For just *$4/month*
you can keep the Great Scribbler’s legacy alive — and get a little
something back for your devotion.
*Why join?*
# *Sneak peeks* at covers, layouts, and works-in-progress before public
release
# *Behind-the-scenes notes* from the archive and reprint process
# *Patron polls* to help prioritise future re-releases and features
# *Digital extras* (e.g., hi-res artwork, desktop wallpapers)
# *Shout-outs* in the newsletter / site (optional)
Every pledge goes directly into editing, typesetting, cover restoration,
audiobook production, and hosting costs. Cancel any time.
Become a Patron → patreon.com/greatscribbler
<https://www.patreon.com/greatscribbler>
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Amazon Author Page
Guy at Desk
Guy’s official Amazon page gathers together all available titles —
paperbacks, ebooks, and audiobooks — in one place. By following the
page, you’ll be notified when new reprints or editions are released.
→ Follow Guy’s Amazon Author Page
<https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/author/B0034NE89E?ingress=0>
Every follow helps boost Guy’s visibility on Amazon, keeping the Great
Scribbler in front of new readers — and ensuring the crabs, werewolves,
and pulp horrors never fade away.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Last Word by Chris Hall
Chris Hall
Okay, so I first came across Guy N Smith’s work after picking up a copy
of ‘Satan’s Snowdrop’ from a second hand bookshop probably around 1996 –
1998. At the time I was churning through Barker, Hutson and Herbert
novels, but with a seemingly unquenchable thirst for more tales of
macabre. The stark and bold cover of ‘Snowdrop’ instantly grabbed my
attention, whilst reminding me of the cover for Herbert’s ‘The Survivor’
– so I absolutely had to add it to my TBR pile.
For some reason it was a little while before I read my next GNS book.
Probably a combination of spending my time gigging (I was in a grunge
rock band at the time) and heading off to uni, plus gurls, booze and all
the shenanigans life as a later teen offers.
Anyway, roll on a handful of years and I made friends with a fella at a
beer festival (Adrian Walsh) and for some reason we got talking about
Guy’s pulp horror. Turns out he was a big fan of Guy’s work. The next
thing I know, he’d lent me ‘Night of The Crabs’, ‘The Sucking Pit’ and a
whole host of other GNS titles. Over the next few weeks, I lapped up
each one like a proverbial pig with its nose in the trough. And from
that moment I was hooked.
Of course, this is still very much the early days of the internet, so
establishing quite how many GNS titles were actually out there, was a
tad tricky. As such, it became a mission of mine to try to unearth them
all. And so I began avidly collecting GNS books, constantly adding them
to my ever-increasing stack, and flaunting any new discoveries to the
aforementioned Adrian.
Over the next twenty or so years, GNS became a huge part of my life.
I’ve attended every annual GNS Fan Convention since 2010. Guy and his
wonderful family have also become good friends. I’ve also been lucky
enough to be killed at the claws of the giant crabs within the novella
‘Killer Crabs 2: The Return’. I’m the proud owner of a deer skull which
Guy found in the Blackhill woodland, which he swore blind was the result
of a Big Cat kill. For the GNS geeks out there, this exact skull
appeared on the covers for both Shane Agnew’s insanely informative
Bibliography, as well as the ‘Dangerous Wild Animals In Britain’ chapbook.
Chris & Guy
Following Guy’s sad passing, the annual GNS Fan Conventions have
continued, organised by Guy’s hard-working daughter – Tara. If you’ve
not attended one before, then I strongly urge you to! Just being around
so many passionate fans, sharing in our love and admiration for Guy, is
something truly special. In fact, over the years I’ve formed so many
wonderful friendships which will undoubtedly last a lifetime.
So yeah, because of how special these conventions have always been, in
2016 Justin Park and I put together a (now highly sought-after)
anthology of GNS inspired fan fiction, which was presented to Guy at
that year’s Fan Convention, to celebrate 25 years of the conventions. A
wonderful chapter in the GNS world that I and all the contributors are
immensely proud of.
As anyone who spends five-minutes in my company will no doubt testify,
preserving the legacy of GNS is very important to me. To this day I’ve
continually done what I can to promote Guy’s work and document what was
published. My website – DLS Reviews – an openly verbose labour of love,
is where I continually add more in-depth reviews of GNS’s work, more to
provide an online reference for those wanting to find out more about
Guy’s back catalogue, than anything else.
Anyway, I love that we have these fan Newsletters. That we get to see
all the work Tara and numerous others are putting in, to keep Guy’s
legacy alive and well. I urge anyone who has found something special in
Guy’s books and his life, to continue to support the mission, in
whatever way you can. Whether it’s through monthly contributions to the
GNS Patreon account, through purchasing the rereleases that keep coming
out, through reviews, word of mouth, or from attending the Fan Conventions.
And if you do come to a convention, please do come say hi to me. I love
chatting to fans and making new GNS friends. The GNS community is
amazing and I wouldn’t change it for the world.
Chris Hall
(dlsreviews.com <https://dlsreviews.com>)
Chris & Guy 2
------------------------------------------------------------------------
And Last But Not Least - “Mystery Man” Diary 1957
Mystery Man
Here is the seventh instalment of Guy’s secret teenage diary, originally
handwritten, and published in our GNS newsletters for the first time.
Guy would have been just 18 years old when he wrote it and was already
working in the Midland Bank. Enjoy!
*Thursday April 4th*
We were bit slacker today. Mum & Grandma came to B’ham & got me a new
raincoat. I went down to Powell’s & got a box of cartridges. I had a
hectic race up Corporation St & Bull St to get the bus. Just caught it
at Grey’s. I walked home from Mile Oak. I weeded a path & had a short
chat with Billy. Helen Brewster came & gave me a book-keeping lesson.
*Friday April 5th*
Just a normal routine day. We were moderately busy though. When i came
up the road tonight. I saw Billy was watering his front garden with the
hose so I stopped & gave him a hand. He said, “Give him a penny rattle
and he’ll play for hours.” Rev. Shufflebottom called to see Dad &
interrupted the last 10 minutes of “Dragnet.”
*Saturday April 6th*
Felt ill when I got up. Went to the office. I felt sick & dizzy most of
the morning but was O.K. by lunchtime. I walked back from Mile Oak. I
did a lot of gardening. I went to see Billy & Nellie. He wants me to put
a notice up outside Coles saying “No Refuse. Offenders will be
prosecuted. Penalty £5.” I went shooting but didn’t get anything. Very
tired. Went to bed early.
*Sunday April 7th*
Went to church in the morning. A man fainted at the altar & had to be
left there for the rest of the service. I did a lot of gardening today &
I have now only the front drive & I have now only the front drive to
weed & then I’ve finished. I saw Billy & Nellie. Tonight I did that
notice for him. Mum says he can put it up himself. I felt much better
today.
*Monday April 8th*
A busy day. I got the 5.40pm bus home. We lost the batch sheets. I hope
I didn’t put them in the Head Office Sack! I put a bucket and a half of
lime on the garden tonight. I finished off the notice I was making to
fool old Dale. It Reads “NO REFUSE (red). OFFENDERS WILL BE PROSECUTED
(black). BY ORDER (silver).” What a laugh.
*Tuesday April 9th*
Quite a good day. Got the 5.15 train home. I went down to Grandma & sat
on an “invisible chair.” Very humiliating. Went up to Mrs Winfield’s
with Sam Loughead. I got plenty of dancing if not anything else. I’d got
my eye on one dame & I thought of asking her in the last waltz but she
said she was hoping her ex-boyfriend was going to make it up with her.
*Wednesday April 10th*
Another good day. I came back on the bus (5.5pm) with Mr & Mrs Davis. He
is out of Burntwood now & getting better. I weeded the drive tonight.
There was a meeting at our house tonight of Dad, Mr. Price & the Vicar
of Tamworth. The reason was the Vicar was trying to claim the collection
at Hopwas on Easter Sunday for himself while the priest-in-charge should
really have it. Dad and Mr. Price talked him round and made him see reason.
*Thursday April 11th*
I got the 4.42 train back but it was late & didn’t get into Tamworth
until 5.15pm. I went & had a chat to Jack Marriott & got the 5.40pm bus
up. I finished weeding the drive. When I took the dog for a walk down
the road last thing, I met P.C. Windsor. I introduced myself & we had a
friendly chat. He seems a decent sort of chap.
*Friday April 12th *
We had a nasty £10 difference in the ‘Midland’ listing tonight. A cheque
was finally discovered for that amount stuck in the Recordak. I got the
5.50pm bus home. Walked from Mile Oak. Home at 7 o/c. I did not do any
gardening. Jack Marriott got my record of Victor Silvester playing
“Alabama Jubilee.” A reasonable “Dragnet” on T.V.
*Saturday April 13th*
Back home at 2pm. I limed the fruit trees, put weedkiller on the paths &
cut & edged the front lawn. Had a cup of tea & a chat with Billy &
Nellie. I went shooting in Hopwas wood. Had a bit of trouble with
Tregaskiss again. He was narked because I was down by Pearce’s when I
“had been told” to keep to the top plantation.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Newsletter written and compiled by Tara Paulsson. Black Hill Books would
like to say a big thank you to all our guest contributors.
Black Hill Books
©️2024 Black Hill Books Ltd. <https://blackhillbooks.co.uk>
[GNS News] Newsletter No. 9
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