Just when the monstrous threats to the world thought they could breathe a sigh of relief with their venomous discharges, MONSTAAH is now back in operation. You can't keep a good organization down forever, and the torch has now officially been passed to a new generation of intrepid professionals who have dedicated their lives to keeping the innocent people of the world safe from any monstrous threat that may rear its horrific head, all with the blessing of the previous administration formed and run by the inimitable Prof. Chuck Loridans. The official database of all things monstrous is now being recovered after its collapse, Prof. Loridans' classic and indispensable timeline Children of the Night is now once again available for public study with a lot of updated info courtesy of yours truly, and all the invaluable and intriguing case files are going back up.

    Prof. Loridans is now on hiatus, recovering from a devastating battle with monstrous forces that taxed the resources of the original MONSTAAH to its limits, but those who carry on his legacy have little doubt that the good professor will one day be back, and better than ever, ready to re-establish his proper place at the helm. Until that time, however, new managers are carrying on the grand mission begun by Prof. Loridans and his original team, with some old faces rejoining and training the next generation of monster hunters and scholars to face that which humanity has dreaded since our species first evolved. Our connections to great higher educational facilities such as Miskatonic University, Wold Newton University, and Janus University have been re-established, our databases are once again shared with the online world, and in honor of all that which was established by Prof. Loridans and his original entourage of warrior scholars, the organization is once again ready to go medieval on all threats of a monstrous nature to the health and safety of innocent human life, as well as a re-dedication to the study and containment of such horrors. Let all deadly things that go bump in the night prepare to face the pain once more, because MONSTAAH is back!

     Regarding MONSTAAH's classic mission statement, that is best summed up by the original words of our esteemed Prof. Loridans himself:

                                                                                  Hello and welcome to the M*O*N*S*T*A*A*H website.

  Whether you are here to learn more about our organization and help us fight the malign forces that, unbeknownst to the public at large, has been plaguing society since the dawn of life, or if you just have a hankering to learn how all these creature types seem to have a universal connection, we welcome you.

Cool Stuff To Take Note of: 

Check out this way cool tribute to the anniversary of Bram Stoker's passing that Google graced its users with on November 11th, 2012. The graphic artisans working for Google are known for being creative with the design of their page logo to mark special occasions, and their artistic contribution to this particular occasion certainly deserves to be preserved here by MONSTAAH. I think our founding father, Prof. Chuck Loridans, would be proud to have this one displayed on the revival of his classic site :-)

MONSTAAH Recommends:

SHERLOCK HOLMES: THE CROSSOVERS CASEBOOK is hot off the presses of Moonstone Books, edited by the late great Howard Hopkins, and featuring tales of the Great Detective having encounters with fellow literary legends like Auguste Dupin; Prof. George Challenger; Lawrence of Arabia; Sexton Blake; Harry Houdini; and Doc Savage's father, Colonel Savage.  Stories by some of the premiere pulp fiction authors of today, like Win Scott Eckert; Matthew Baugh; Will Murray; and many more!

TALES OF THE SHADOWMEN: AGENTS PROVOCATEURS is the eighth volume of the annually published pulp fiction anthology series by Black Coat Press, and like all the other volumes in the series this installment features great tales of the amazing heroes and villains of French pulp literature and noir cinema by contemporary pulp fiction authors such as Win Scott Eckert; Matthew Baugh; Rick Lai; Micah Harris; Matthew Dennison; Kim Newman; Jean-Marc & Randy Lofficier (also the esteemed editors); and featuring the debut published appearance of yours truly, as I rub literary shoulders with the true giants of the genre.

THE ANNOTATED CARMILLA is the full classic vampire novella by Joseph Le Fanu but fully annotated and explained by over 400 detailed footnotes courtesy of vampire expert D. MacDowell Blue, and includes a new preface about the novella by Andrew M. Boylan and a new introduction about Le Fanu himself by David A. Sutton, both fellow vampire experts.  Make no mistake, there are several different reprintings of this novella with the above title, but this is the only one amongst them that is actually annotated, and thus the only one worth endorsing, so accept no substitutes!

The newest great e-booklet by vampire expert and MONSTAAH contributor David MacDowell Blue, STRIKING A CHORD: A Look At Harry Potter, Twilight and The Hunger Games, is now available on Amazon.com. For a meager cost of 99 cents, you get a lengthy essay detailing the secrets of success shared by these three book-to-movie series, which boils down to an exegesis explaining what elements these three seemingly dissimilar series in the Young Adult horror/fantasy/suspense genres had that enabled them to become such runaway successes, even outside of their intended demographic, for their respective creators - J.K. Rowling, Stephanie Meyer, and Suzanne Collins - despite the equally large amount of admonishment they routinely receive from hate critics of all ages and both genders. David has provided a highly affordable and thoughtful essay that no fan or hater of any or all of these three series should miss, and something all prospective writers should consider when carrying out their own endeavors towards duplicating the success of these three women. As David will also make clear in this detailed analysis, a great fortune can come with an extremely successful book series, but so it also comes at a great cost, as you will inevitably make as many enemies as you do fans.

Now available on Amazon.com is another MONSTAAH-endorsed e-book from our resident vampire expert and site contributor, David MacDowell Blue:  YOUR VAMPIRE STORY (And How to Write It).  For the many horrorphiles out there who have dreamed of writing a successful vampire novel, this 58-page e-tome will give you the skinny on the various tropes and cliches he has seen in the multitude of vampire material he has read throughout his life, what type of formulas have ultimately worked--or not worked--and why in both cases, the various questions one would typically have when planning such a novel and how other writers approached them, and explanations on how to design a unique version of the Undead for your own novel.  At a mere $1.99, this small book is a bargain, and you can stake your un-life on that!

As of today (that's 8/30/12 to those of us who follow linear time), the hard copy version of the new pulp sci-fi anthology ALIENS AMONG US Vol. 1 (don't you dare confuse it with the paranormal study of "walk-ins" by Ruth Montgomery from 1987!) courtesy of Pulp Empire is on sale, so look for it on Amazon.com; an e-book version is now available on Smashwords.com. The theme of this anthology, the latest of many from prominent pulp fiction publisher Nick Ahlhelm, is short stories from multiple authors featuring extraterrestrial beings arriving on Earth in familiar settings of either the past or present, and interacting with humans, both positively and destructively. The first volume of this newest anthology series from Pulp Empire is particularly noteworthy to regular visitors of this site because one of the ten authors whose work it includes is yours truly, with a short story entitled, "A Martian Warrior on Earth." Spinning off from the great sci-fi pulp oeuvre of both Edgar Rice Burroughs and H.G. Wells, the story features a Red Martian law enforcement officer of Barsoom arriving on the dark urban environment of the American Earth city Rochester, New York circa late 1980s, his mission consisting of a clandestine hunt for a genetically modified member of the predatory, fascistic octopoid alien race known as the Sarmaks, who had previously attempted to conquer both the Earth of the Wold Newton Universe and Barsoom of the Edgar Rice Burroughs Universe circa 1898. Fans of both Burroughs' classic "John Carter of Mars" book series (beginning with A PRINCESS OF MARS) and H.G. Wells' classic novel THE WAR OF THE WORLDS may want to check this out, as it features a further progression of both Mars-related mythos, further extrapolating upon the hidden connection between the two literary sci-fi pulp franchises first explored by other authors, including Alan Moore in THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN Vol. 2.

Below is the trailer for my friend and fellow author Lynn Peterson's upcoming novel WICCAN SAMHAIN, which is the first of a trilogy of books that are part of THE WITCHING HOUR series, and it will likely appeal to the visitors of this site. This series is highly recommended by MONSTAAH, and all you need to do to get the full skinny on it is to run the trailer below.  Be sure to get your e-copy when it goes on sale, and let the stars of the book cast a spell over your mind and heart. On sale soon!

For all Kindle readers who happen to be fans of horror fiction looking for a cool but inexpensive treat for Samhain, you can't go wrong with the PSYCHOPOMP HALLOWE'EN SPECIAL (as well as a large bag of candy corn to munch on while reading it, of course). For a single buck, you get a cool little anthology with six great short stories, one of which happens to be courtesy of Kevin T. Heim, a writer and expert on all things horror-oriented whose work and ideas have been a great inspiration to many in the field of creative mythography for over a decade now, including yours truly. You may have read the early online version of this tale of a motorcycle-riding Frankenstein Monster vs. flesh-eating zombies here on MONSTAAH first, but there's nothing like having the official print version of it on your Kindle tablets at all times, plus the five other great stories in this e-tome to boot! If you can't find someone to kill for it since it's in digital format, then just resort to parting with a single mangy buck to acquire such a treat!

Now on sale from Black Coat Press is TALES OF THE SHADOWMEN: LA VIE EN NOIR, the 9th volume of this annual anthology featuring crossover tales of the classic pulp heroes and villains from early 20th century French literature and cinema. The tales are scribed by both promising newcomers and an august body of great contemporary pulp fiction authors, and I'm honored to have one of my stories included in this esteemed line-up for the second time.

The eminently affordable horror anthology PSYCHOPOMP CHRISTMAS SPECIAL is now here, and for just a buck you get seven short stories of titillating terror with a holiday theme. This volume includes among its roster of tales another contribution from MONSTAAH's own Kevin T. Heim, as he brings a very colorful character creation of his to the published page for the first time.  All horrorphiles should do themselves a favor and purchase this e-book as a fine belated Christmas gift to themselves and/or a fellow horror fan whom they respect--or maybe for several such special people in your lives--since at just $1.00 each, you can easily afford to do so!

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  Many thanks and sincere shout outs go to some of my friends and regular or sometimes colleagues whom I never would have reached my current point as a writer if not for the great inspiration their hard work provided for me. These include, but are by no means limited to, Crazy Ivan Schablotski, Jonah Heim, Win Scott Eckert, Henry and Sarah Covert, Dennis Power, Dr. Pete Coogan, Matthew Baugh, Jess Nevins, Gordon Long, Jean-Marc and Randy Lofficier, and of course, Chuck Loridans. This revived site is also dedicated to the memory of Phillip Jose Farmer, the father of creative mythography, and Forrest J. Ackerman, the father of monster fandom as we know it today, along with all of those great actors from the Golden Age of horror, such as Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Lon Chaney Jr., John Carradine, Glenn Strange, and those equally great thespians from a bit more recently who are no longer with us, such as Peter Cushing and Paul Naschy, and some who still are, like Christopher Lee.

 Personal Tributes

Thomas J. Nigro, R.I.P.  1923-2012 -- My grandfather and I may have fought like--well, typical relatives who have more than their share of differences--but he was a very good man when he wanted to be, a better provider could not have been asked for, and a lot of what I am today is owed to him. I regret the numerous times I was impatient with him and so difficult for him to deal with, I will never forget all the good times we had, and the many examples of his generosity for his family members, including me. May he never be forgotten, and may the entirety of my work be dedicated to his memory. My full memorial to him can be found here on my blog.

The MONSTAAH site was created for the sole purposes of entertainment and information.

All rights reserved. The text and design of the original pages, the MONSTAAH banners, and the very concept of the site are ©2002 by the original author, Chuck Loridans. No copying or reproduction of these articles or any portions thereof in any form whatsoever is permitted without prior written permission and consent of the author(s), save for a sparing amount of excerpts for the purpose of review or research in accordance with the law of fair use.  Text in red on this page was originally written by Chuck Loridans, the standard text was written by Christofer Nigro. Additional material added to this 2.0 version of the MONSTAAH site is copyright new site administrator Christofer Nigro ©2011, and the original material that is copyright Chuck Loridans is used here with his permission. Articles or timelines by other authors are copyright the respective authors, and are only hosted by this site with their permission, as are any images created by others which may appear on this site.

The authors claim no interest in, nor ownership of, any images used in the creation of this site, with the exception of the MONSTAAH banners, which are ©2002 by Chuck Loridans.

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