Nightlight: The Black Horror Podcast

Zombies that whisper. Memories that haunt. Sean Demory gives us a zombie story with so many feels. Check out Sean's publishing company: Pine Float Press Read Slow Boat to Fast City Read or listen to The Ballad of Black Tom Read or listen to Lovecraft Country Buy Victor LaValle's Destroyer, Issue #1 or read for free via ComiXology Help us pay Black writers and get bonus content by joining the NIGHTLIGHT Legion on Patreon or supporting us on PayPal

Visit Aigner's Blog: https://loveundergroundblog.wordpress.com/ Published Work: Mythcreants The Five-2 Become a member of the NIGHTLIGHT Legion on Patreon. You can also contribute via PayPal.me/NightlightPodcast, or by listening to the podcast via the RadioPublic app.

Thanks to librivox.org for the narration audio for this episode, and Jen Zink of the Skiffy and Fanty Show for the audio production. You can read more of Chesnutt’s work on Project Gutenberg. If you’d like to keep this podcast alive, you can join the NIGHTLIGHT Legion by going to patreon.com/nightlightpod.You can also make a one-time donation to the podcast via Paypal.

“Sweet Justice” was previously published in Black Magic Women: Terrifying Tales by Scary Sisters. You can learn more about Kenesha Williams on Amazon and by checking out Black Girl Magic Lit Mag. If you’d like to keep this podcast alive, you can join the NIGHTLIGHT Legion by going to patreon.com/nightlightpod.You can also make a one-time donation to the podcast via Paypal.

You can read Alicia’s YA sci-fi thrillers, "The Underminers" and its sequel, "Cellblock Earth" on Kindle or paperback. Members of Kindle Unlimited can read both novels for free. Thanks to members of the NIGHTLIGHT Legion, we were able to pay this Black author or her work. If you’d like to contribute, you can join us at patreon.com/nightlightpod or make a one-time donation at paypal.me/NightlightPodcast. This week’s episode is partially brought to you by Audible. Try Audible today by going to nightlightpod.com/audible to get 30 days and 2 books free! This week’s recommendation is THE CHANGELING by Victor LaValle.

Nothing good can come of two girls playing with conjure magic. This week's episode comes to us from Linda D. Addison, who tells us what it means to have power in your blood without respecting it. Linda D. Addison is an award-winning author of four collections, including How To Recognize A Demon Has Become Your Friend, and the first African-American recipient of the HWA Bram Stoker Award®. Her story, “The Power” was originally published in the 2004 anthology Dark Dreams. Addison is a co-editor of Sycorax’s Daughters (Cedar Grove Publishing), an anthology of horror fiction/poetry by African-American women. You can catch her work in the anthologies Dark Voices (Lycan Valley Press), Cosmic Underground (Cedar Grove Publishing), Scary Out There (Simon Schuster), and The Beauty of Death (Independent Legions Publishing). Her site: www.lindaaddisonpoet.com. This week's episode is brought to you in part by our patrons. You can become a member of the NIGHTLIGHT Legion for as little as $1 and get access to perks such as behind-the-scenes updates, bonus stories, and extended interviews with our authors. All patrons also get ad-free episodes. If you prefer to make a one-time donation to help us pay Black writers, go to PayPal.Me/NightlightPodcast. This week’s episode is also brought to you by Audible. Try Audible today by going to nightlightpod.com/audible to get 30 days and 2 books free! This week, I recommend FRESH INK, an anthology of stories that features an author aired on NIGHTLIGHT: Lamar Giles, who wrote Wilson’s Pawn and Lawn, one of our most popular episodes so far.

In this dystopian tale, W.E.B. Du Bois explores the color line and its political implications after a catastrophic event. It is a work of fiction reminiscent of the Twilight Zone, almost 20 years before Rod Serling was born. Read The Comet on Project Gutenberg: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/15210/15210-h/15210-h.htm#Chapter_X This story is narrated by Hollis Monroe, and the audio is used by permission of Escape Artists Inc. and Pseudopod, who have been active and vocal supporters of NIGHTLIGHT since day one. As always, we appreciate your support. If you like this podcast, you can join us on Patreon at patreon.com/nightlightpod. Reviews on iTunes are immensely helpful, as are shares on social media and in real life with friends.

We interview Danny Lore and learn about her inspiration for The Nasty at Bellua, how she views werewolves in stories, and about her floral apocalyptic comic series, The Wilds, out right now. To purchase issues of The Wilds, go to https://www.comixology.com/The-Wilds-1/digital-comic/654264?ref=c2VhcmNoL2luZGV4L2Rlc2t0b3Avc2xpZGVyTGlzdC9pdGVtU2xpZGVy You can also call up your local comic shop or library and ask to purchase the upcoming collection of the first series. You can read Danny's story, The Last Exorcist, in Issue #3 of FIYAH Literary Magazine: https://www.fiyahlitmag.com/issues/issue-3-sundown-towns/ Follow Danny on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/weredawgz

You can read more of Danny's work on EFNIKS.com: http://efniks.com/fiction-pages/2018/3/14/the-moon-and-other-beasts-i-keep-with-me Or in FIYAH Literary Magazine: http://www.fiyahlitmag.com/product/issue-three-sundown-towns/ We've got 2 episodes of Season 2 funded and if you want more NIGHTLIGHT we need your help. To support NIGHTLIGHT so we can continue to #PayBlackWriters, go to http://www.patreon.com/nightlightpod or http://paypal.me/NightlightPodcast. Don't forget to rate us and leave a review. Our interview with Danny will air later this week.

This week we hear a story from Sharon Cullars. Sharon tells us what happens when the dead can't rest. You can learn more about Sharon via her website at www.sharoncullars.com or follow her on Twitter at https://twitter.com/SharonCullars You can read the issue of Weirdbook Magazine with Sharon's story on Kindle or paperback: https://amzn.to/2mXQgIB You can also support us by joining our Patreon: http://patreon.com/nightlightpod. All patrons get ad-free episodes and lots of other membership perks!

You can read more of Charles Chesnutt's stories from The Conjure Woman for free on Project Gutenberg https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/11666 or via Amazon: https://amzn.to/2uKbJsA As always, we appreciate your support. If you like this podcast, you can join us on Patreon at patreon.com/nightlightpod. Reviews on iTunes are immensely helpful, as are shares on social media on in real life with friends.

You can follow Nicole on her blog: www.nicolesconiers.com/blog Buy her book, Escape From Beckyville: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/69733 Sycorax’s Daughters: https://amzn.to/2ur2UE2 Please follow our wonderful narrator for this episode: Cherrae Stuart at www.cherraelstuart.com or @ActorOnTheEdge on Twitter. You can also check out her podcast at @TCADPodcast and @GoodMorningAntioch You can buy Shadowshaper by Daniel José Older: https://amzn.to/2Lo7xFe The sequel (Shadowhouse Fall) is also amazing.

Remember, tweet with hashtag #HiddenLove to win a Pretty Deadly print from Good For Her: https://www.etsy.com/shop/goodforher?ref=shop_sugg&section_id=24056240 And to win a NIGHTLIGHT t-shirt, leave us a review on iTunes or Podchaser: https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/nightlight-691229. Email your review to merch@nightlightpod.com to enter. For more of Monique's work, follow her on Twitter @MoniqueDesir or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/MoniqueDesirsOfficialAuthorPage/ She also blogs at https://adaratrosclair.wordpress.com/. You can also buy her books: Forbidden (urban fantasy for adults) https://www.amazon.com/Forbidden-Book-One-Gabriel-Lennox-ebook/dp/B06XWJMSP1/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1531454055&sr=8-1&keywords=forbidden+m.l.+desir Moonstruck (middle grade dark fantasy) https://www.amazon.com/Moonstruck-Book-One-Waking-Dream-ebook/dp/B06XPK6GBH/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1531453814&sr=8-1&keywords=moonstruck+desir

What happens when the devil comes to collect on a soul he was promised? This week’s story is from author Lamar Giles. Narrated by Rodney Blu. Download transcript You can find more of Lamar’s work by visiting lamargiles.com. If you want to pre-order his YA mystery, SPIN, visit https://amzn.to/2u3yebR To pre-order his YA anthology, Fresh Ink, go to https://amzn.to/2NEmR21 And if you’re like us, and can’t wait to read more of Lamar’s work, why not grab a copy of Fake ID, his YA Thriller? https://amzn.to/2L6x2ep

Hi! I’m Tonia Thompson—horror writer and creator of NIGHTLIGHT: The Black Horror Podcast. This week we have a story from the amazing Eden Royce. I’m a huge fan of Eden’s, maybe because her stories tend toward the darker side, maybe because of the gothic feel of them, but probably because her words haunt you long after you’ve left the world she created. Eden is a full-time writer living in the UK, and as you’ll hear in her interview after the story, a fan of Edgar Allan Poe. Here’s her story, Basque of the Red Death, a tale of vengeance, corsets, and magic. Content Warning: sexual predators, objectification of women ======== Basque of the Red Death By Eden Royce She looked like death, but the harsh Carolina sunshine made her look more attractive than she really was. Helen’s gait faltered as she looked up at the woman peering down on her with appraisal and undisguised distaste. Old…so old. Deep lines whittled themselves into her face, causing the chalky powder to rise to the surface of her sandpaper skin. But the woman’s gaze was sharp, even weighty, and it caused Helen to stumble. Her mother seized her arm in a mousetrap grip. “Remember what I tol’ you,” she growled close to the girl’s ear. Her breath was loaded, sour with the potent smells of dry peanut shells and day-old coffee. “Yas’m.” The sun beat down on both of them during the walk to Miss Maggie’s and sweat gathered in the girl’s armpits and between her heavy thighs. It coursed down her back under the worn muslin of her dress like teasing fingers. Gnats taunted them, flying in their soaked faces, then deftly avoiding their clumsy fingers as the pair trudged along the hardpack dirt. After that journey, the shaded porch was almost cool. No sun reached it through the dense overhang of ancient oaks. But there was plenty enough light for Miss Maggie to pass her judgment. “Gal ain’t nowhere near pretty,” she said, tilting her head left then right like a bird considering a crust of bread. “No figure. And this here.” Miss Maggie leaned over the porch railing and ran a finger over the angry, inflamed pustules covering Helen’s doughy white cheek. Helen flinched. Partly from the pain as several of the imbedded pimples pressed deeper into her skin and partly from the way the soft, cool fingers seemed to slide around in their thin casings of flesh. Her mother grabbed a wedge of skin at her sow-like waist and twisted it. Hot fire shot through her side, eclipsing the pain in her face, and she froze. “Not a sound.” This she muttered through compressed lips, but the dusty smell of sun baked peanuts and battery acid coffee hung in the sticky air. Helen sank her teeth into her lower lip. “Bumps, bad skin is a problem,” Maggie continued, pressing in Helen’s forehead and chin. “They’re deep.” “How much?” the mother asked. Maggie wiped her hands on a starched handkerchief and tossed the soiled fabric on the rocking chair behind her. A frail-looking girl, no more than eight or ten, dashed out of nowhere to provide a new cloth and remove the old one. “Not much.” Helen watched the girl scurry away, as silent as she had come. “She might not help you with no mens, but she can do just as good at cleanin’ and such. Better than that lil’ darky, I bet. Oh…” Her mother’s jaw went slack as though she remembered she’d left washing on the line. “Um…’scuse me, miss.” If she was offended, Miss Maggie didn’t show it. “I already got two for cleaning and tidying and such. Twins, in fact. Enough trouble.” “I don’ need a lot. Just need to put food on the table for the young ones. We hardly got nothin’ no more.” Maggie sniffed. Helen wondered if she was smelling the raw grain alcohol scent that clung to her mama. It leaked from her pores, mixing with nervous perspiration to make a rank cocktail. She’d heard the jokes about her mama when people thought she was too stupid to unders...