Cumbrian Cthulhu
‘All new tales of
Cumbrian horror inspired by H.P. Lovecraft's legendary Cthulhu mythos’
Information regarding the Cumbrian Cthulhu charity project and the
upcoming release of anthology volumes one and two
The cover art of Cumbrian Cthulhu
Volumes one and two
Cumbrian Cthulhu aims to encourage and publish stories by
amateur horror writers, celebrating the mystical beauty of Cumbria and the
timeless horror of H.P. Lovecraft.
We will donate 100% of sales profits from each volume
produced to The Lake District Search and Mountain Rescue Association (LDSAMRA).
Both books are
available NOW from LULU.COM, our publishing site. They will be available on
Amazon.com in a few weeks, however we urge everyone to buy from LULU.COM, where
the profit (and therefore charity donation) is substantially higher.
CONTACT DETAILS
Okay, so what on earth is a Cthulhu?
Cthulhu
is an ancient monster created by legendary horror writer H. P. Lovecraft.
Cthulhu lies in a deathly sleep in a sunken city, sending madness to the dreams
of mankind. His cultists on earth seek to expedite the prophecy that when the
stars are correctly aligned, Cthulhu will rise from the ocean to reclaim and
destroy the earth.
Howard
Phillips Lovecraft (1890 - 1937) was an American author whose guiding aesthetic
and philosophical principle was what he termed ‘cosmic horror.’
Although Lovecraft's
readership was limited during his lifetime, his reputation has grown over the decades,
and he is now regarded as one of the most influential horror writers of the
20th century.
During
his life Lovecraft encouraged other writers to use his created worlds and
monsters in their own stories. This tradition continues today, with regular
books being published every year. His stories continue to inspire writers and
artists today, with influences found in music, film and graphic novels. It is
our great hope that our ‘Cumbrian Cthulhu’ books will eventually become a part
of the Lovecraftian fiction legacy.
Where did the idea for Cumbrian Cthulhu
come from?
My
name is Andrew McGuigan and I began the Cumbrian Cthulhu project in 2009. I am a proud Cumbrian myself, born in
Beckermet in 1975 before moving to the North East of England when I was a small
child.
When
growing up I was lucky enough to return every year during holidays. With
caravan and awning my family toured the Lake District, climbing hills, paddling
in lakes and finding pubs for me that served my favourite chicken in a basket
(often the Britannia at Elterwater.)
Today my parents are
retired and living in the beautiful west coast town Maryport. It was during a
visit in 2009 that I read about the excavation of the local Roman fort site at
Senhouse. At the time I was re-reading a Lovecraft anthology which included the
classic ‘Shadows over Innsmouth’ and it gave me the inspiration to try some
writing. The proposed excavations seemed like an interesting situation around
which to base a horror story. By borrowing some local history books from my
parents I constructed a three part horror story set in 1950’s Maryport, using
the geographical references of the time, and bringing in some of Lovecraft’s
better known monsters. I have been a fan of H.P. Lovecraft for several years
and I admire the way that he encouraged his fellow writers to base their
stories on the particular creatures and worlds he had invented. It took a few
months, but finally I finished what would be my first Cumbrian Cthulhu story,
‘The Chamber in the hillside.’
The story takes the form of three warning letters written
by an elderly archaeologist after he reads of proposed plans to excavate the
Roman fort site at Senhouse, Maryport. He states that contrary to popular
belief the area has been dug before, back in 1954 by a team he himself
assembled. The three letters describe the horrors that were found, and the
writer’s subsequent descent into madness.
Having
written the story, I started an online blog so I could publish it there for
friends to easily read. It then occurred to me that other amateur writers might
wish to contribute stories in a similar theme and it may be possible to gather
together a small collection of new Cumbrian Lovecraft fiction.
And
so cumbriancthulhu.blogspot was born.
How did the other writers, artists and
contributors come to the project?
Once
my first story was online I sent out paper copies to several writers groups in
Cumbria and also the Times & Star newspaper. All of the letters included a
card advertising the blog site and an invitation to contribute stories. We were
lucky enough to be featured on the Yog-Sothoth
website, which was encouraging to see in those early days! Take up was very
slow at first, but a big change occurred six months later when I was joined by
our resident artist Andy Paciorek who not only wrote stories, but also
expressed a desire to illustrate each Cumbrian Cthulhu tale. Right from the
beginning I have always been very impressed by Andy’s work. There is no doubt
he has brought a much valued extra dimension to the stories and elevated them
from simple text to a solid unified collection.
The main boost to our
writing force came when I had a small article about the Cumbrian Cthulhu
website published in ‘Pulse’ an internal Civil Service magazine. Several
enthusiastic amateur writers made contact, and our total number of stories went
from eight to twenty within a year, all illustrated by Andy.
It
was mid 2011 that I decided to move forward with an actual printed anthology of
our stories and art. All of our contributors agreed that it would be in line
with the spirit of our project to donate any book sales profits to a Cumbrian
charity and we quickly decided on the Lake District Search and Mountain Rescue
Association. The horrors of our Cumbrian Cthulhu protagonists are nothing but
pure fiction, written for fun. The volunteers of LDSAMRA selflessly assist
those with real injury and placate real fear everyday. They save lives each
year and do their best to ensure that Lakeland walkers are well informed
regarding safety precautions and the potential hazards of the high fells and
elements.
I
have never published a book before and I realized that in order to make the
production as professional as possible I would need further help. I contacted
my old University at Northumbria to see if any creative writing students would
be interested in gaining experience as a proof readers and editors.
Creative
Writing Programme Leader David Stewart was a great help, pleased to pass on our
information and to encourage the involvement of Northumbria students. I
received a reply on the same day of asking and we were pleased to welcome
recent graduate Lucy Collier to the Cumbrian Cthulhu team as our new editor. We
were also fortunate enough to recruit Kate Taylor and Matt Walby giving us much
needed help managing the research of media contacts and social network
promotion respectively. Ben Powell-Jones, a university friend of mine came
aboard as our book cover artist and was able to produce fantastic digital art
and titles to the exact designs I imagined, designs that were frustratingly
well beyond my own ability to realise!
As
Cumbrian Cthulhu has grown, I have been constantly impressed by the generosity
of those giving their time and help freely either for fun, career experience or
just to be a part of a creative project alongside others. Without their
enthusiasm and hard work
there would
be no Cumbrian Cthulhu book, promotion, illustrations or stories at all.
Tell
me about the Cumbrian Cthulhu stories
The stories are a tribute to both the imagination of H.P. Lovecraft and the awesome beauty and rich history of the Cumbrian Lake District. You don’t have to be a Lovecraft fan to understand the stories as each one is self contained with no requirement for additional knowledge. Although the stories feature traditional themes of horror, they do not contain explicit language or sexual content, instead following Lovecraft’s themes of fear of the unknown mixed with discoveries of insanity causing otherworldly creatures and gods. We believe the stories would be of interest to fans of horror in general and fans of Lovecraft specifically, as well as those interested in Cumbrian folklore.
All of our stories are
fiction, but set within the recognised landmarks and history of Cumbria. Two
local tales of Cumbrian folklore have been adapted to fit the Lovecraft Mythos.
We have a version of the famous ‘Croglin Vampire’ story and also ‘The Treasure
of the Moresby Swan.’
Our writers research Cumbrian history back
through the ages, and tales take place in many eras: from Roman soldiers
building forts along the Solway Firth and turning back invading creatures from
the Maryport sea, to cultist villagers living in then wooded fells of
Blencathra during the building of Christian Furness Abbey. There are detective
tales from the 1950’s, treasure seeking crypt robbers in the 1970’s and a
modern Bed and Breakfast that serves some very strange sausages.
Why give the sales profits to charity? Why
choose LDSAMRA?
As a group of amateur writers
and artists completing our first project, we are fully aware that our impact on
the wide world of literature may be very small! If we accomplish nothing else,
this is an opportunity to draw some attention to a good cause in Cumbria and
give something back to a place we all love. While sales will be unpredictable,
we would much prefer to give any and all of our profits to LDSAMRA, with the
relative increased readership being sufficient reward in itself..
We hope that by promoting LDSAMRA alongside
the book at every opportunity, we can at least do our very best to raise
awareness and help to increase donations to a very worthy cause.
Could I write for Cumbrian Cthulhu?
Yes, please do so! cumbriancthulhu.blogspot.com is a home for budding horror writers who wish
to have their short stories published online. We will also publish physical
collections of stories as regularly as we have enough content and spare time!
The only requirements are that
the stories are set somewhere in the Cumbrian region and are based around the
themes of H.P. Lovecraft’s legendary Cthulhu Mythos. There are no grading
systems for your submissions, we all amateur writers here. As long as you are
happy with your final drafts and as long as they fit the criteria above and
have no illegal or libellous content, you are on! Feel free to supply your own
original artwork to complement your story. Cumbrian Cthulhu poetry is welcome
as well. You may revise your work at any time after publication online. The
Cumbrian Cthulhu website will always be a stress free and relaxed project,
ideal for new writers to ‘put themselves out there’ without judgment.
Whilst it is our intention to
avoid editing and censorship, the only caveat we make is for submissions that
contain themes that would be considered deliberately overly extreme or
offensive. Remember that these stories are intended to be a representation of
H.P. Lovecraft's Mythos and always respectful to Cumbria.
Come up with a story idea.
Anthologies of H. P. Lovecraft’s works are available for reference and
collections of new Cthulhu Mythos tales appear regularly.
Research your setting
and era. Use accurate and interesting source material. There are many books
available detailing the history of The Lake District and the North West coast
of England. You can find beautiful photographs and personal accounts from the
villages, towns and industries as they grew throughout the ages. The region is
rich with inspiring vistas and preserved local tradition, fuel for any
overactive imagination! Send your submissions as Word document attachments
including contact information to: Cumbrian.Cthulhu@gmail.com
A plea for additional sales
If
you buy the books, thank you! You have made a group of amateur writers, artists
and production staff very happy. We love you.
Everyone
involved in this project has kindly given their time and work for free. All
profits from Cumbrian Cthulhu sales will be donated directly to LDSAMRA. We
would very much like you to assist us in keeping the sales rolling.
Please recommend the books to at least one other person so
we can continue to make donations. Why not buy someone a copy as a present, or
make them buy you a copy as a present? Nag until a friend or relative gives in.
Use the emotions of guilt, shame or the crimes of bribery and blackmail. Sit
with your victim until you have witnessed the online book sale transaction
completed. If everyone who buys a book gets another person to buy one, we will
sell a copy to the entire population of the world. It’s that easy. Unless of
course someone breaks the chain. I can only imagine the years of bad luck such
a deed would bring upon a person. It really doesn’t bear thinking about.
Anyway,
thanks again for buying the book. Follow our Twitter to check on plans for the
next book. We are always looking for new writers.
PS.
You should probably buy another copy just for yourself so you can keep it in
mint condition. It’s bound to be worth loads in the future, just like those
Harry Potter first editions.
Statement of fiction and disclaimer
All stories and
characters are completely fictitious; this project was created with a great
love and respect for both Cumbria and Lovecraft. We would like to make it very clear that
Cumbrian Cthulhu is completely independent and separate from LDSAMRA and they
have no connection or involvement with the content of our books or
website. As a group of amateur writers
and artists we have merely chosen a slightly different way to make donations,
mainly due to Andrew McGuigan being too fat to do sponsored fell runs and yet
strangely still having no sellable cake or fudge making ability. Neither can he
keep his mouth shut long enough for a sponsored silence and the less said about
the confusion leading to the naked eating of the bath full of baked beans the
better. So if you have any issues with the Cumbrian Cthulhu books, speak to
Andrew. It’s really not LDSAMRA’s fault, or anything to do with them.
About LDSAMRA
The
Lake District Search and Mountain Rescue Association is the umbrella body for
mountain rescue teams in Cumbria (UK). It covers the Lake District and Cumbria
in 12 member teams and is a registered charity solely funded by voluntary
contributions. Teams are largely autonomous, but LDSAMRA coordinates the development
of operational matters such as radio communications and insurance, as well as
the day to day running of an efficient,
voluntary rescue service. All the
teams rely almost totally on donations received from the public. Charitable
gifts are always gratefully received, either to specific teams direct, or to
mountain rescue generally.
WHAT HELP DOES CUMBRIAN CTHULHU REQUIRE NOW?
We need as much exposure and
promotion as possible please!
Feel free to copy any
information from this pack to publish on your website, or in your magazine. Use
any of the images provided alongside.
Link to our LULU.COM page on
Facebook and mention us on Twitter.
We would particularly
appreciate any publication of the poster image advertising the books and the
LDSAMRA donation.
Email me with any specific
ideas for assistance you would like to provide the project.
