Saturday, November 17, 2007

'Dark City 2' promises a disturbing read

Dark City 2, published by Midnight Press of Venton Publishing, is a spicy anthology of short stories by writers ranging from well-known ones such as Xeus, Tunku Halim, Lydia Teh and John Ling to emerging ones such as Jennifer Wan, Chua Kok Yee and Bissme S.


You can buy the book from the MPH megastore at Mid-Valley, Kuala Lumpur, and Kinokuniya, according to bloggers residing in Kuala Lumpur.

My story in it is named "Till Death". It's about a couple who is harbouring thoughts of murdering each other, but just who kills whom in the end?


As advised by Xeus, I'm posting an SMS review sent to me by a newspaper editor:

"Just read 'Till Death' and wanted to say how much I enjoyed it. Ally McBeal meets Norman Bates. A true black comedy on one level; an exploration of parental poisoning; a look at how murderous fantasies are translated into reality."


I would like to thank Xeus and Venton Publishing for letting me edit DC2 for grammar, just as they had engaged me to edit the original Dark City, an anthology of stories all penned by Xeus.

42 comments:

Artemis Hunt said...

I loved your story, Argus! So did quite a lot of people. Do post any mini reviews you might have gotten for your story from people who have read it already! (Dances up and down)

Argus Lou said...

Thanks much, Xeus. Have done as advised.

Artemis Hunt said...

Wow, that's a great sms review! Can you ask her if we can use it as a blurb? (hee hee, she will have to give her name if it doesn't come out in press.)

Argus Lou said...

Thank you. Yes, it was very nice of the ed. We'll see how things go, and then I might ask if we could attach a name to it and use it as a blurb.

KellytheCulinarian said...

I am in journalism school, actually, at Northwestern University. I'm in the graduate program in Washington, D.C., and my undergraduate is in journalism from Bradley University. My concentration is writing and reporting.

Argus Lou said...

Hi, Kelly. Thanks for answering my question posed on your blog. Looks like you're enjoying the wonderful and mostly carefree life of a student. All the best!

Have you tried your hand at writing fiction, too?

wonda said...

Don't let your other half's imagination run wild with your thrilling, chilling story, ok? Again congratulations to you and Xeus.

Argus Lou said...

Thanks, Wonda. My other half's imagination can go as wild as he likes, heh heh. The possibilities evoked in the story might keep him on his toes. ^_^

Artemis Hunt said...

Dear Wonda, thank you so much. It's a joint, not just my own. Basically me and Argus edited.

gRaCe said...

Now i cant wait to go get the book.. must find time to hop on over to the bookstores now. ;o)

Artemis Hunt said...

Grace, it's available now at MPH Midvalley and as of yesterday, 1 Utama has it on display (they ordered 50 copies). It's also available at Kino. It usually takes a month for distribution. But I'm afraid the stories may not be your cup of tea:)

Lyrical Lemongrass said...

Goodie...I'm going to scoot over to Mid Valley to get my copy! Can't wait to read it. BE is gonna feel quite neglected until I'm done reading. :-P

Argus Lou said...

Grace, thank you ever so much for your support and friendship. Hope you'll like it - at least a bit. ;-)

Xeus, it might be Spiffy's cup of coffee instead - to keep her up for half an hour before bedtime?!

Lyrical Zitroengras, thank you very much! It would be a 'good review' if Bald Eagle gets a tad jealous. ^_^

Artemis Hunt said...

Hee hee, Argus, Spiffy did mention she doesn't like scary, depressing stories!

Argus Lou said...

In that case, Xeus, she might enjoy 'Signature Spa', 'Maid to Order' and 'The Neighbour'.

gRaCe said...

eh eh..talking bout me without me around? heheh...

err...xeus' is right, i dun really favor scary stories..but i will still read them tho... not anytime when the sun's gone to sleep. will read during the day..not so scary.. but still will scare myself out. hahah..

hmm..Argus, i shall look out for the few stories tht u mentioned then. =P

Argus Lou said...

O hai, Spiffy! "Till Death" is not scary; a bit funny, in fact, according to one friend.
I hope the sun will set late on the days you wanna read in the evening...
^_^

Lyrical Lemongrass said...

I GOT THE BOOK!!!

Argus Lou said...

Wow, Lyrical! Hope you enjoy it. ^_^
Thanks for your support.

Artemis Hunt said...

Lyrical Lemograss, Kenny tells me you might be at the LitBlogger's this Sat! Hope to finally meet you :)

Grace, it's not really scary, not Tunku Halim scary, at least :)

Cynthia said...

Congrats Agrus! I'll definitely look out for this. Hope it gets to the Caribbean

Argus Lou said...

Thanks, Cynthia. Only if it gets on Amazon or some other online bookseller that serves the Caribbean.

gRaCe said...

ok ok...i'm so gonna go get the book. havent got the time to drop by at the malls lately..

Argus Lou said...

Much appreciate your support, Spiffy. ;-D

Kenny Mah said...

Wow... there's an entire discussion here on the book... how did I miss all of this? :P

And Argus, I like the idea of Ally McBeal meets Norman Bates, hehe...

Argus Lou said...

Hi, Kenny. Long time no hop! If Norman met Ally, she'd talk so much and so quickly that he'd knife himself in the ears without killing anyone else first. ;-)

Lyrical Lemongrass said...

Wow Argus...I love your story!! You should write more. Seriously.

Xeus, sorry, wasn't able to drop by on Sat. Will definitely catch the next BC featuring DC in hmmm....Jan?

Lady Gargle said...

Sounds like a must-read :)

By the way, you've been tagged by moi ;)

http://frankensteina.blogspot.com/2007/11/tag-tagging-tagged.html

Artemis Hunt said...

Lyrical Lemongrass, yes, please do come in Jan! Who knows, Argus might be back too!

Argus Lou said...

Dear Lyrical, you're serious?! Thanks much for the encouragement. Will try to get into the upcoming MPH collections, Urban Odyssey and Chinese Stories.

Frankensteina, sure, will check it out. Thanks!

Xeus, I'll only be back sometime between May and September; haven't decided yet.

Kenny Mah said...

Oh that's a hilarious description of Ally Meets Norman... so true too! :D You know we're getting older when I meet younger folks these days who don't even know who Ally McBeal is, much less Norman Bates! Sacrilege!

And I'm looking forward to meeting you again when you return to Malaysia next year and spending more time chatting with you. Our last meeting was far too brief... I was so sorry to leave so early. :(

Argus Lou said...

Ya lah! You're so right, Kenny. We show our age when our pop references are alien to the teenagers. My niece asks me sometimes, "Have you heard this (insert name of latest non-mainstream rock) band?" And I'd have to sheepishly say no.

See you again then sometime between May and September next year. This time we'll take you 'Japanising' or at least sushi-ing. ^_^

Tunku Halim said...

Argus,

Congrats on the publication of your story. I've just only started DC2 but I reckon I'm going to jump straight to your tale!

Argus Lou said...

Thanks, TH. Hope you like it at least a bit, and enjoy the whole book, too.

Tunku Halim said...

Argus - I loved "He pulled out the knife and freed his father's intestines with a slicing motion". I'm looking forward to reading more of your stories!

Kenny Mah said...

Ooh, definitely looking forward to the Japanising or sushi-ing... I love it when a bevy of ladies take me out to dine, haha. (I sound so spoiled, don't I?)

Argus Lou said...

Thanks, TH. Of all the lines. The Gory Man can!

Kenny, maybe we like spoiling men. When they're thoroughly spoiled, can we then bin them?! ;-P

Lyrical Lemongrass said...

Oooh Argus...we're binning men or sushiing them now, are we? I like the sound of it. Could be an idea for DC3, dontcha think?

Argus Lou said...

Lyrical, that sounds even more disturbing than DC2. You're tagged to write the story for DC3. Yes?!

WokandSpoon said...

Hello there! How are you??

Argus Lou said...

Hi there, WokandSpoon! Long time no hop... are you back in Blogoland?
;-)

Recently I ate 4 packs (one of them a huge share-pack) of Tim-Tams my sister and my other half's Aussie colleague gave us. (Oh, OK, my other half had a few, too...) I love the latte flavour. Do you?

Lyrical Lemongrass said...

Argus, you want me to write a scary story ar? hahaha. I write about food ler. But I guess human sushi is food...somewhat. Okies...will crank up my machinery (translated: dead brain cells and gnarled stiff fingers) but it'll probably still sound like a food review. :-P

My old living-room

My old living-room
In Petaling Jaya, Malaysia

A cherished dream

A cherished dream
To live on a pale beach by a crystal clear sea. (This was taken on the east coast of Johor state, Malaysia.)

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