Wellman News and Updates

Fall 2011

Coming Soon: Sequential Pulp to Publish Silver John Graphic Novel

From Sequential Pulp's Facebook page comes news from Jim Beard:

"SILVER JOHN, Manly Wade Wellman's backwoods occult-buster in a graphic novel adaptation by writers Jim and BeckyBeard, and gorgeous art by Thomas Boatwright."

Sequential Pulp, distributed by Dark Horse Comics, intends to translate pulp classics to graphic novel form. Boatwright's intentions on adapting John to comics has been in the news here previously. It's great to see that this project is now on its way to fruition. We'll hopefully have more information on this intriguing project soon!

Haffner Press to collect John Thunstone
This collection seems to still be early on, with an unknown page count and no cover art, but Haffner Press intends to collect all of the John Thunstone short stories and two novels in one definitive edition. Keep your eyes peeled for more information as it comes in!
The previous collections of Thunstone appeared in Carcosa Press' LONELY VIGILS and most recently in Night Shade Books' THIRD CRY TO LEGBA And Other Invocations.

Summer 2011

New From Paizo! Battle in the Dawn: The Complete Hok the Mighty
(Trade Paperback) Paizo Publishing, LLC
By Manly Wade Wellman with an introduction by David Drake

In the 1930s, an unusual tale appeared in the influential Amazing Stories magazine. Unlike the usual yarns of robots and interstellartravel, “Battle in the Dawn” featured the brutal exploits of Hok, humanity’s first hero. Written by Pulitzer Prize-nominee Manly Wade Wellman (Who Fears the Devil?), who would later achieve fame for his American folktales of Silver John and beat out William Faulkner for a prestigious writing award, this hit story spawned several additional adventures, in which Hok battles unrelenting cavemen, explores lost Atlantis, discovers new technology, and charts a new destiny for humanity.

Now, for the first time ever, Planet Stories presents a complete authorized collection of all of Wellman’s rare Hok the Mighty tales, including an unfinished story fragment and a brand-new introduction by Wellman’s longtime friend, fantasy author David Drake.

Full stories include:
* Battle in the Dawn * Hok Goes to Atlantis * Hok Draws the Bow * Hok and the Gift of Heaven * Hok Visits the Land of Legends * Day of the Conquerors

272-page softcover trade paperback ISBN-13: 978-1-60125-289-0

Summer - 2010

Life Imitates Art in Filming Up Under The Roof
CLICK HERE for a new article written for manlywadewellman.com by Producer and co-writer Danielle Stallings about getting the film started and the spooky happenings on set.

Spring - 2010

Wellman Short "Up Under The Roof" Adapted To Film

Short Film Hits The Festival Circuits

Darin states at the website http://www.upundertheroof.com "We’ve all had those experiences. There are many undefined but malevolent psychic forces that afflict children growing up. These terrors must be faced or they’ll stay with us as we mature, creeping inside the darkest depths of our subconscious, evolving into even more malignant fears and insecurities that will paralyze us as adults. Then, we will truly become haunted. That’s the point of our film. UP UNDER THE ROOF is about facing that which we fear the most. It’s about trusting our instincts, letting go of reason and embracing the unknown. There’s still a ten-year-old in each one of us looking to overcome the fears that almost broke us. The lonely places still need to be conquered."

So far UP UNDER THE ROOF has won Best Picture, Best Director, Best Editor at the Film Outside the Frame Festival - 2009. It is continuing to make the festival rouns. We will have more info from Darin on this project soon!

Music in the Key of Wellman
Michael Futreal Brings A New Spin To An Old Vibe In DEVIL'S STOMPING GROUND

Michael Futreal brings his multiple talents to bear in creating an instrumental music CD that has a modern take on the old time folk aesthetic. I asked Michael for a few words on the creation of his music and this is what he has to say:

devils playground "I grew up in eastern NC, but the whole state was full of mystery and story as far as I could tell. We used to go up to the western NC mountains almost every summer and tour about a variety of locations. In those parts -- and at the yearly state fair in Raleigh -- I became aware of the folk music of the area, including the most fascinating Appalachian dulcimer. You can read more about how I came to play dulcimer and other instruments at http://michael.futreal.com/about

"I discovered your Wellman bestiary early on in the recording sessions for Devil's Stomping Ground (I didn't know it'd be called that yet, though). I immediately ordered up a used copy of Who Fears the Devil. As I dug into the short stories, it wasn't long before I'd ordered all the Silver John material I could could lay hold of. I've always loved stories of lore-masters and John delivered in a North Carolina style that rekindled interest in the region and its supernatural undercurrents.

"These stories were wonderfully dark in places, with John's music and folksy wisdom cutting a path through it, especially as he picked out his own tunes here and there. Somehow this resonated with my own musical thoughts at the time, and I enjoyed taking the folksy dulcimer into darker, more mysterious territory than it usually ventures. The twangy, reverb-drenched electric guitar that abounds on the album literally amplified the secret sense I had of being brushed by stories like these -- like I'd passed by John many times without knowing it, just on the edge of these dangerous stories."

You can listen to all the tracks and also buy this CD along with his previous work at his website http://michael.futreal.com

John Back In Print Again
Who Fears the Devil?—The Complete Silver John (Trade Paperback)
from Paizo Publishing, LLC

Possibly a re-issue of Arkham House's original John anthology. By Manly Wade Wellman, with an who fears the devil

introduction by Mike Resnick

From Paizo's website: There’s a traveling man that the Carolina mountain folk call Silver John for the silver strings strung on his guitar. In his wanderings, John encounters a parade of benighted forest creatures, mountain spirits, and shapeless horrors from the void of history with only his enduring spirit, playful wit, and the magic of his guitar to preserve him.

Manly Wade Wellman’s Silver John is one of the most beloved figures in fantasy, a true American folk hero of the literary age. The Planet Stories edition of Who Fears the Devil? collects—for the first time—all of John’s adventures published throughout Wellman’s life, including two stories about John before he got his silver-stringed guitar that have never previously appeared in a Silver John collection. Lost, out-of-print, or buried in expensive hardcover editions, the seminal, unforgettable tales of Who Fears the Devil? stand ready for a new generation to continue the folk tradition of Silver John!

Introduction by Mike Resnick (Stalking the Unicorn, Starship: Mutiny).

208-page softcover trade paperback ISBN-13: 978-1-60125-188-6

Silver John Comics?

Harvey Award nominated illustrator Thomas Boatwright started tinkering with the idea of adapting Wellman's John the Balladeer back in 2007. Lately he's been working on Zeke Deadwood, Zombie Lawman and has an ongoing comic in Cemetery Blues. If you'd like to see Thomas pick his Wellman adaptation back up, you might drop him a line at his blog.
http://boatwrightartwork.blogspot.com/

You can check out his Silver John ideas here.

Winter - 2008