Alan M. Clark
Author of The Halloween Mouse
About the Author
Image credit: Self portrait by Alan M. Clark
Works by Alan M. Clark
Pain & Other Petty Plots to Keep You in Stitches (2003) — Editor; Contributor; Cover artist — 5 copies
A Brutal Chill in August: A Novel of Polly Nichols, the First Victim of Jack the Ripper (Jack the Ripper Victims) (2016) 5 copies
The Blood of Father Time: The New Cut (Five Star Science Fiction and Fantasy Series) (2007) 3 copies
Not Broken, Not Belonging 1 copy
The Tao of Flynn 1 copy
Associated Works
The Thackery T. Lambshead Pocket Guide to Eccentric and Discredited Diseases (2003) — Contributor — 809 copies, 20 reviews
Stephen King's The Dark Tower: The Complete Concordance (2003) — Illustrator, some editions — 269 copies, 2 reviews
Undead: Night of the Living Dead / Return of the Living Dead (2012) — Cover artist, some editions — 87 copies, 2 reviews
Really, Really, Really, Really Weird Stories (2005) — Cover artist, some editions — 67 copies, 1 review
Only the Thunder Knows / East End Girls (2013) — Cover artist, some editions — 63 copies, 37 reviews
Time Travelers, Ghosts, and Other Visitors (2003) — Cover artist, some editions — 61 copies, 4 reviews
Earthworm Gods: Selected Scenes from the End of the World (2008) — Cover artist, some editions — 56 copies, 2 reviews
The Century's Best Horror Fiction: Volume One, 1901-1950 (2011) — Cover artist, some editions — 51 copies, 1 review
The Century's Best Horror Fiction: Volume Two, 1951-2000 (2011) — Cover artist, some editions — 50 copies, 1 review
Stephen King: A Primary Bibliography of the World's Most Popular Author, 2013 Revised Edition (2006) — Illustrator, some editions — 35 copies, 2 reviews
Welcome to the Show: 17 Horror Stories - One Legendary Venue (2018) — Contributor — 34 copies, 1 review
Last Drink Bird Head : A Flash Fiction Anthology for Charity (2009) — Contributor — 33 copies, 1 review
Trick or Treat: A Collection of Halloween Novellas (Anthology) (2001) — Illustrator, some editions — 23 copies
Analog Science Fiction and Fact: Vol. CXII, No. 15 (Mid-December 1992) (1992) — Illustrator — 19 copies
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction November/December 2018, Vol. 135, Nos. 5 & 6 (2018) — Cover artist — 14 copies, 1 review
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction May/June 2018, Vol. 134, Nos. 5 & 6 (2018) — Cover artist — 14 copies, 1 review
Dead on Demand : The Best of Ghost Story Weekend (2001) — Contributor; Cover artist — 7 copies, 1 review
Five Star Science Fiction/Fantasy - All the Gold of Ophir (2005) — Cover artist, some editions — 5 copies
Five Star Science Fiction/Fantasy - Scarab (Five Star Science Fiction/Fantasy) (2004) — Cover artist, some editions — 4 copies
A Bright Winter Sun (2004) — Cover artist, some editions; Cover artist, some editions — 4 copies, 1 review
Pax Dakota (Five Star Science Fiction and Fantasy Series) (2008) — Cover artist, some editions — 3 copies
Narcissus (Five Star Science Fiction and Fantasy Series) (2007) — Cover artist, some editions — 2 copies, 1 review
Quietly Now: An Anthology in Tribute to Charles L. Grant (2004) — Cover artist, some editions — 2 copies
The House Inside — Illustrator — 2 copies
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Birthdate
- 1957-05-10
- Gender
- male
- Education
- Bachelor of Fine Arts
- Occupations
- illustrator (freelance)
writer (freelance) - Awards and honors
- World Fantasy Award
Chesley Award (4 times) - Short biography
- Alan M. Clark grew up in Tennessee. His illustration work has appeared in books of fiction, non-fiction, textbooks, young adult fiction and children's books. Awards for his illustrations include the World Fantasy Award and four Chesley Awards. His short fiction has appeared in magazines and anthologies. SIIREN PROMISED, his Bram Stoker Award-nominated novel, written with Jeremy Robert Johnson, was released in 2005. His two book series with Stephen C. Merritt and Lorelei Shannon, THE BLOOD OF FATHER TIME, Books 1 & 2, a dark, time-travel fantasy, was released by Five Star Books in 2007. Raw Dog Screaming Press released his new novel, D.D. MURPHRY, SECRET POLICEMAN, written with Elizabeth Massie, in October of 2009. Lazy Fascist Press published his collection, BONEYARD BABIES in 2010, and his novel, OF THIMBLE AND THREAT: THE LIFE OF A RIPPER VICTIM in 2011. Clark's publishing company, IFD Publishing, has released six traditional books and eight ebooks. He and his wife, Melody, live in Oregon. www.alanmclark.com
- Nationality
- USA
- Places of residence
- Eugene, Oregon, USA
- Associated Place (for map)
- Oregon, USA
Members
Reviews
Angie is a drug addict. Thanks to her sadistic, drug dealing boyfriend she's spent most of the last decade hooked on various narcotics and hallucinogens. She ran away from the bastard long enough to clean up her act so that she can get home to her daughter, Kaya. Angie dreams about her constantly. Unfortunately, the dreams always end in Kaya's death.
Angie's friend wants her to celebrate by attending a rave. Although afraid that this one last party may tempt her to slip back into drugs, she show more reluctantly agrees.
Big Mistake.
Angie gets separated from her friend and, while searching for her, runs into her ex. He's not happy with Angie. With no one to help her, he slips Angie some bad acid. After the drug kicks in, leaving her helpless, he attacks her. She manages to injure him in the groin and make her escape. She runs blindly into the forest trying to put as much distance between her and her ex as possible where she stumbles into a dark grotto. The forest comes alive in a rather sinister fashion but Angie can't figure out if it's the acid or reality.
All that in chapter 1.
Meanwhile, Curtis Loew has moved in across the street from Angie's mother, Colleen, and Kaya. He grew up in a foster home, desperate to be part of a family. That burning need has gotten out of hand more that once, sending him packing under cover of darkness. But this time, he feels like he's finally found a family that he can be a part of. He searches genealogical websites to track down enough information about them to become "Uncle" Curtis.
The book isn't for the squeamish. The characters suffer, though it isn't gratuitous. The authors don't take any delight in their characters' pain, having experienced some of it themselves. The characters are people who have very screwed up lives on account of very poor choices. Redemption is a long, hard road where every step along the way must be earned. Sugar coating it would be an insult to the reader.
The authors manage to perfectly mesh their styles, seemingly with little effort. Even if the book wasn't filled with Mr. Clark's haunting illustrations (which will make you long for the full color version), you wouldn't have any difficulty envisioning the world around the characters. You'll sweat as the mist from the dank forest coats Angie's skin. Your nose will scrunch up in disgust as Curtis offers you an olfactory tour of Colleen's house. And you'll swear your ears heard someone stepping on broken glass, trying to creep up behind Angie in The Courtyard.
Find out what "Siren Promised" and then be thankful that you haven't heard its call. show less
Angie's friend wants her to celebrate by attending a rave. Although afraid that this one last party may tempt her to slip back into drugs, she show more reluctantly agrees.
Big Mistake.
Angie gets separated from her friend and, while searching for her, runs into her ex. He's not happy with Angie. With no one to help her, he slips Angie some bad acid. After the drug kicks in, leaving her helpless, he attacks her. She manages to injure him in the groin and make her escape. She runs blindly into the forest trying to put as much distance between her and her ex as possible where she stumbles into a dark grotto. The forest comes alive in a rather sinister fashion but Angie can't figure out if it's the acid or reality.
All that in chapter 1.
Meanwhile, Curtis Loew has moved in across the street from Angie's mother, Colleen, and Kaya. He grew up in a foster home, desperate to be part of a family. That burning need has gotten out of hand more that once, sending him packing under cover of darkness. But this time, he feels like he's finally found a family that he can be a part of. He searches genealogical websites to track down enough information about them to become "Uncle" Curtis.
The book isn't for the squeamish. The characters suffer, though it isn't gratuitous. The authors don't take any delight in their characters' pain, having experienced some of it themselves. The characters are people who have very screwed up lives on account of very poor choices. Redemption is a long, hard road where every step along the way must be earned. Sugar coating it would be an insult to the reader.
The authors manage to perfectly mesh their styles, seemingly with little effort. Even if the book wasn't filled with Mr. Clark's haunting illustrations (which will make you long for the full color version), you wouldn't have any difficulty envisioning the world around the characters. You'll sweat as the mist from the dank forest coats Angie's skin. Your nose will scrunch up in disgust as Curtis offers you an olfactory tour of Colleen's house. And you'll swear your ears heard someone stepping on broken glass, trying to creep up behind Angie in The Courtyard.
Find out what "Siren Promised" and then be thankful that you haven't heard its call. show less
This is an excellent book in every respect - highly recommended. You can read my entire discussion here: http://ireadoddbooks.com/d-d-murphry-secret-policeman-by-alan-m-clark-and-elizab...
Review snippet: It is impossible to discuss the structure and plot of this book in much depth because to do so would utterly spoil the book. So I plan to give a bare-bones plot synopsis and then discuss the parts of chapter one that resonate with me. D.D. Murphry is a mentally ill, mostly homeless man. When show more a social worker helped him get on disability or some sort of Social Security, he interpreted that as having been hired by the “True Government” to spy on and take action against the “False Government.” His interpretations of various situations, as filtered through his damaged mind, range from the hilarious to the deeply disturbing, often depending on how it is he decides to react. He believes a librarian named Kate, who fears and loathes him, is his secret bride, given to him by the “True Government.” He believes her nasty reaction to him is a facade assumed to throw off others and he longs for the day he can finally consummate their marriage. Kate inadvertently provided a large source of fuel for Murphry’s delusions, as she taught him to use a computer and access e-mail. Murphry sees spam as secret communications from the True Government and Clark and Massie really shine when they show how he manages to find real life corollaries in the simplest things that match the messages he thinks he received in the e-mails. Murphry careens from humorous misinterpretation to grave acts of utter mayhem as he tries to make the world a better place for the True Government and foil the actions of the False Government. show less
Review snippet: It is impossible to discuss the structure and plot of this book in much depth because to do so would utterly spoil the book. So I plan to give a bare-bones plot synopsis and then discuss the parts of chapter one that resonate with me. D.D. Murphry is a mentally ill, mostly homeless man. When show more a social worker helped him get on disability or some sort of Social Security, he interpreted that as having been hired by the “True Government” to spy on and take action against the “False Government.” His interpretations of various situations, as filtered through his damaged mind, range from the hilarious to the deeply disturbing, often depending on how it is he decides to react. He believes a librarian named Kate, who fears and loathes him, is his secret bride, given to him by the “True Government.” He believes her nasty reaction to him is a facade assumed to throw off others and he longs for the day he can finally consummate their marriage. Kate inadvertently provided a large source of fuel for Murphry’s delusions, as she taught him to use a computer and access e-mail. Murphry sees spam as secret communications from the True Government and Clark and Massie really shine when they show how he manages to find real life corollaries in the simplest things that match the messages he thinks he received in the e-mails. Murphry careens from humorous misinterpretation to grave acts of utter mayhem as he tries to make the world a better place for the True Government and foil the actions of the False Government. show less
Awards
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Statistics
- Works
- 25
- Also by
- 212
- Members
- 112
- Popularity
- #174,305
- Rating
- 3.8
- Reviews
- 2
- ISBNs
- 29
- Favorited
- 1
