The Inspiration Behind “The Lady With Teeth Like Knives”

It’s pretty cool when you get to a point in your career where publishers invite you to anthologies. The days of blindly subbing a story to an anthology are dwindling, but with getting an invite, added pressure mounts. The publishers trusts you to deliver them a good story, and believe me there is nothing more embarrassing than being invited to participate in a book (usually with names much bigger than yourself) and then getting that rejection letter in the mail. Ouch.

Stuff of nightmares! 

I’ve come to admire the awesome people of Blood Bound Books. Marc, Theresa, and Joe are some of the nicest people in the business. However, much like the way I conduct business, friendship comes second when dealing with stories and books to be published. In fact, I received a very kind rejection from them for one story, and while it sucked because I wanted in the book so bad, it was the right thing to do. (Remember, when writing for an extreme horror anthology, make your story gross.)

I received an email from them for their new anthology titled Blood Rites. I’m not really into short fiction so much, so when tasked to write a story, I try to think of something a little unique and original. I had just watched the movie Insidious, and there is a part where it focuses on this horrific ghost lady, smiling with a row of sharp teeth. That image stuck with me the most from the movie, and I decided to make a story around it. In fact, I wrote the entire story while sitting in my truck at work one day. Just penned it out quick on a yellow paper tablet, went home, and then typed it up. Don’t you love it when inspiration strikes?

The tale is simple, and follows the story of a man who thinks he got away with murder. However, he finds himself haunted by the sinister ghoul, a lady whose teeth resemble knives. To my delight, the Blood Bound Staff thought enough of it to include it in their anthology, and what an anthology it is! I highly recommend getting it and adding it to your collection.

Buy this book, seriously!

Authors include: Brian Lumley, Joe McKinney, Nathan Crowder, Lisa Morton, Daniel O'Connor, Jeff Strand, John McNee, K. Trap Jones, Maria Alexander, Ed Kurtz, Desmond Warzel, Mark C. Scioneaux, Brad C. Hodson, Gregory L. Norris, Monique Bos, Aric Sundquist, Christopher Hawkins, Chad McKee, Adrian Ludens, Bryan Oftedahl, Angela Bodine, Matt Moore, and Douglas J. Lane. 

Visit the Publisher: Blood Bound Book Website

Buy the Book: Blood Rites