T. M. Wright
Encyclopedia
Terrance Michael Wright is best known as a writer of horror fiction
, speculative fiction
, and poetry
. He has written over 25 novel
s, novella
s, and short stories
over the last 40 years. His first novel, 1978's Strange Seed, was nominated for a World Fantasy Award
, and his 2003 novel Cold House was nominated for a Bram Stoker Award
. His novels have been translated into many different languages around the world. His works have been reviewed by Kirkus Reviews
, Publishers Weekly
, Library Journal
, Booklist
, and many genre magazines.
T.M. Wright's first publication
was the non-fiction
study of unidentified flying object
s, entitled The Intelligent Man's Guide to Flying Saucers in 1968 for AS Barnes. Strange Seed had five foreign editions.
His seventh novel, A Manhattan Ghost Story, has had 14 foreign editions and was optioned to be filmed in the 1980s. A screenplay was written by Ronald Bass
for which he was paid two million US dollars, a record breaking amount for an adaptation of a novel to the screen. The option was taken over by Robert Lawrence Productions in 1991, and then exercised
in 1993. Many actors and directors have been attached to the project over the years including Wayne Wang
, Julia Roberts
, and Sharon Stone
(who received five million US dollars because of her pay or play contract). The film is currently in development at Touchstone Pictures
.
T. M. Wright has written over 40 short stories that have appeared in several magazines including Twilight Zone Magazine, PostScripts
, Cemetery Dance, Flesh and Blood Magazine, UpState, and Brutarian.
T. M. Wright has also painted book cover
s and done illustration
s for magazines including Brutarian. He did the artwork for his own book covers of two foreign editions of Cold House (German
and Italian language
editions), The Eyes of the Carp from Cemetery Dance Publications
in 2005, Blue Canoe from PS Publishing
, Sleepeasy (from Leisure Books
), and his forthcoming collection Bone Soup from Cemetery Dance Publications.
In 2004, T. M. Wright was given the honor to be judge for the inaugural Anubis Awards by Jeff Schwaner (owner of Broken Umbrella Press). He currently lives in Honeoye, New York
.
Horror fiction
Horror fiction also Horror fantasy is a philosophy of literature, which is intended to, or has the capacity to frighten its readers, inducing feelings of horror and terror. It creates an eerie atmosphere. Horror can be either supernatural or non-supernatural...
, speculative fiction
Speculative fiction
Speculative fiction is an umbrella term encompassing the more fantastical fiction genres, specifically science fiction, fantasy, horror, supernatural fiction, superhero fiction, utopian and dystopian fiction, apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, and alternate history in literature as well as...
, and poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
. He has written over 25 novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
s, novella
Novella
A novella is a written, fictional, prose narrative usually longer than a novelette but shorter than a novel. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Nebula Awards for science fiction define the novella as having a word count between 17,500 and 40,000...
s, and short stories
Short Stories
Short Stories may refer to:*A plural for Short story*Short Stories , an American pulp magazine published from 1890-1959*Short Stories, a 1954 collection by O. E...
over the last 40 years. His first novel, 1978's Strange Seed, was nominated for a World Fantasy Award
World Fantasy Award
The World Fantasy Awards are annual, international awards given to authors and artists who have demonstrated outstanding achievement in the field of fantasy...
, and his 2003 novel Cold House was nominated for a Bram Stoker Award
Bram Stoker Award
The Bram Stoker Award is a recognition presented by the Horror Writers Association for "superior achievement" in horror writing. The awards have been presented annually since 1987, and the winners are selected by ballot of the Active members of the HWA...
. His novels have been translated into many different languages around the world. His works have been reviewed by Kirkus Reviews
Kirkus Reviews
Kirkus Reviews is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus . Kirkus serves the book and literary trade sector, including libraries, publishers, literary and film agents, film and TV producers and booksellers. Kirkus Reviews is published on the first and 15th of each month...
, Publishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly, aka PW, is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers and literary agents...
, Library Journal
Library Journal
Library Journal is a trade publication for librarians. It was founded in 1876 by Melvil Dewey . It reports news about the library world, emphasizing public libraries, and offers feature articles about aspects of professional practice...
, Booklist
Booklist
Booklist is a publication of the American Library Association that provides critical reviews of books and audiovisual materials for all ages. It is geared toward libraries and booksellers and is available in print or online...
, and many genre magazines.
T.M. Wright's first publication
Publication
To publish is to make content available to the public. While specific use of the term may vary among countries, it is usually applied to text, images, or other audio-visual content on any medium, including paper or electronic publishing forms such as websites, e-books, Compact Discs and MP3s...
was the non-fiction
Non-fiction
Non-fiction is the form of any narrative, account, or other communicative work whose assertions and descriptions are understood to be fact...
study of unidentified flying object
Unidentified flying object
A term originally coined by the military, an unidentified flying object is an unusual apparent anomaly in the sky that is not readily identifiable to the observer as any known object...
s, entitled The Intelligent Man's Guide to Flying Saucers in 1968 for AS Barnes. Strange Seed had five foreign editions.
His seventh novel, A Manhattan Ghost Story, has had 14 foreign editions and was optioned to be filmed in the 1980s. A screenplay was written by Ronald Bass
Ronald Bass
Ronald Jay Bass , sometimes credited as Ron Bass, is an American screenwriter. Also a film producer, Bass's work is characterized as being highly in demand, and he is thought to be among the most highly paid writers in Hollywood. He is often called the "King of the Pitches"...
for which he was paid two million US dollars, a record breaking amount for an adaptation of a novel to the screen. The option was taken over by Robert Lawrence Productions in 1991, and then exercised
Exercise (options)
The owner of an option contract may exercise it, indicating that the financial transaction specified by the contract is to be enacted immediately between the two parties, and the contract itself is terminated...
in 1993. Many actors and directors have been attached to the project over the years including Wayne Wang
Wayne Wang
Wayne Wang is a Chinese American film director.-Biography:Wang was born and raised in Hong Kong, and named after his father's favorite movie star, John Wayne...
, Julia Roberts
Julia Roberts
Julia Fiona Roberts is an American actress. She became a Hollywood star after headlining the romantic comedy Pretty Woman , which grossed $464 million worldwide...
, and Sharon Stone
Sharon Stone
Sharon Vonne Stone is an American actress, film producer, and former fashion model. She achieved international recognition for her role in the erotic thriller Basic Instinct...
(who received five million US dollars because of her pay or play contract). The film is currently in development at Touchstone Pictures
Touchstone Pictures
Touchstone Pictures is an American film production label and is one of several film labels of the Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group. Established in 1984, its releases typically feature more mature themes and darker tones than those that are released under the Walt Disney Pictures banner.Touchstone...
.
T. M. Wright has written over 40 short stories that have appeared in several magazines including Twilight Zone Magazine, PostScripts
Postscripts
Postscripts is a quarterly Britishmagazine of science fiction, fantasy, horror and crime fiction, first published in June 2004.Each issue is published in two editions: a regular newsstand-type edition and a signed, numbered, 150-copy hardcover edition. Beginning with Postscripts #14, it is a...
, Cemetery Dance, Flesh and Blood Magazine, UpState, and Brutarian.
T. M. Wright has also painted book cover
Book cover
A book cover is any protective covering used to bind together the pages of a book. Beyond the familiar distinction between hardcovers and paperbacks, there are further alternatives and additions, such as dust jackets, ring-binding, and older forms such as the nineteenth-century "paper-boards" and...
s and done illustration
Illustration
An illustration is a displayed visualization form presented as a drawing, painting, photograph or other work of art that is created to elucidate or dictate sensual information by providing a visual representation graphically.- Early history :The earliest forms of illustration were prehistoric...
s for magazines including Brutarian. He did the artwork for his own book covers of two foreign editions of Cold House (German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
and Italian language
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
editions), The Eyes of the Carp from Cemetery Dance Publications
Cemetery Dance Publications
Cemetery Dance Publications is a specialty press publisher of horror and dark suspense. Cemetery Dance was founded by Richard Chizmar, a horror author, while he was in college. It is associated with Cemetery Dance magazine, which was founded in 1988. They began to publish books in 1992.Cemetery...
in 2005, Blue Canoe from PS Publishing
PS Publishing
PS Publishing is a Hornsea based publisher founded in 1999 by Peter Crowther. They specialise in novella length fiction from the fantasy, science fiction and horror genres. It has quickly become established as one of Britain's premier small presses...
, Sleepeasy (from Leisure Books
Leisure Books
Leisure Books is an imprint of Dorchester Publishing specializing in Horror and Thriller mass market paperbacks. As of 2000, Leisure Books was the only U.S. publisher with a line of horror books...
), and his forthcoming collection Bone Soup from Cemetery Dance Publications.
In 2004, T. M. Wright was given the honor to be judge for the inaugural Anubis Awards by Jeff Schwaner (owner of Broken Umbrella Press). He currently lives in Honeoye, New York
Honeoye, New York
Honeoye is a hamlet in the town of Richmond, county of Ontario, New York, 33 miles south of downtown Rochester, New York. The community is at the north end of Honeoye Lake, one of the minor Finger Lakes. It is primarily situated along U.S. Route 20A between Ontario County Roads 33 and 37...
.
Novels and Novellas
- The Woman Next Door (Playboy Press, 1981 and Tor BooksTor BooksTor Books is one of two imprints of Tom Doherty Associates LLC, based in New York City. It is noted for its science fiction and fantasy titles. Tom Doherty Associates also publishes mainstream fiction, mystery, and occasional military history titles under its Forge imprint. The company was founded...
, 1990) - The Playground (Tor Books, 1982)
- Carlisle Street (1983)
- The Island (1988)
- The Place (1989)
- The School (1990)
- Boundaries (1990)
- The Last Vampire (1991)
- Little Boy Lost (1992)
- The Ascending (1994)
- Cold House (Catalyst Press, 2003) (featuring an introduction by Jack KetchumJack KetchumJack Ketchum is the pseudonym for American author Dallas Mayr . He is the recipient of four Bram Stoker Awards and three further nominations. Many of his novels have been adapted to film, including The Girl Next Door and Red...
) - The House on Orchid Street (2003)
- Visiting the Edge (2004) (a collection)
- The Eyes of the Carp (Cemetery Dance PublicationsCemetery Dance PublicationsCemetery Dance Publications is a specialty press publisher of horror and dark suspense. Cemetery Dance was founded by Richard Chizmar, a horror author, while he was in college. It is associated with Cemetery Dance magazine, which was founded in 1988. They began to publish books in 1992.Cemetery...
, 2005) (a novella) ISBN 1-58767-111-5 - I Am the Bird (2006) (a novella)
- Blue Canoe (2008)
- Sally Pinup (2010) (a novella)
Ryerson Biergarten series
Series of novels featuring a detective named Ryerson Biergarten:- The Changing (as F. W. Armstrong) (Tor Books, 1985)
- The Devouring (as F. W. Armstrong) (Tor Books, 1987)
- Goodlow's Ghosts (1992)
- The Ascending (1994)
- Sleepeasy (Victor GollanczVictor GollanczSir Victor Gollancz was a British publisher, socialist, and humanitarian.-Early life:Born in Maida Vale, London, he was the son of a wholesale jeweller and nephew of Rabbi Professor Sir Hermann Gollancz and Professor Sir Israel Gollancz; after being educated at St Paul's School, London and taking...
1993, Leisure, 2001) (connected, but not a direct sequel)
- Sleepeasy (Victor Gollancz
Strange Seed series
- Strange Seed (Everest House, NYC, 1978) (revised in 2005 for a limited hardcover re-release by Etwisted Publishing)
- Nursery Tale (Playboy Press, 1982)
- Children of the Island (Jove, 1983)
- The People of the Dark (1984)
- Erthmun / Laughing Man (1995/2005) (originally released as Erthmun in 1995)
A Manhattan Ghost Story series
- A Manhattan Ghost Story (1984, revised for Telos Publishing Ltd.Telos Publishing Ltd.Telos Publishing Ltd. is a publishing company, originally established by David J. Howe and Stephen James Walker, with their first publication being a horror anthology based on the television series Urban Gothic in 2001...
in 2006) - The Waiting Room (1986)
- A Spider on My Tongue (Nyx Books, 2006)
Short stories
- "His Mother’s Eyes," published in Twilight Zone Magazine, June, 1988) and The Sterling Web (Winter, 1991)
- "The House Under the Street" AKA "A World Without Toys," Upstate magazine (October 26, 1986), Shadows #10, edited by Charles L. GrantCharles L. GrantCharles Lewis Grant was a novelist and short story writer specializing in what he called "dark fantasy" and "quiet horror." He also wrote under the pseudonyms of Geoffrey Marsh, Lionel Fenn, Simon Lake, Felicia Andrews, and Deborah Lewis.Grant won a World Fantasy Award for his novella collection...
(Doubleday, 1987), The Year's Best Fantasy: First Annual CollectionYear's Best Fantasy and HorrorYear's Best Fantasy and Horror is a reprint anthology published annually by St. Martin's Press. In addition to the short stories, supplemented by a list of honorable mentions, each edition includes a number of retrospective essays by the editors and others....
, edited by Ellen DatlowEllen DatlowEllen Datlow is an American science fiction, fantasy, and horror editor and anthologist.-Biography:Datlow was the fiction editor of Omni magazine and Omni Online from 1981 through 1998, and edited the ten associated Omni anthologies...
and Terri WindlingTerri WindlingTerri Windling is an American editor, artist, essayist, and the author of books for both children and adults. Windling has won nine World Fantasy Awards, the Mythopoeic Award, the Bram Stoker Award, and her collection The Armless Maiden appeared on the short-list for the James Tiptree, Jr. Award...
(St. Martin's PressSt. Martin's PressSt. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in the Flatiron Building in New York City. Currently, St. Martin's Press is one of the United States' largest publishers, bringing to the public some 700 titles a year under eight imprints, which include St. Martin's Press , St...
, 1988), Demons and Dreams, edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling (LegendLegendA legend is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude...
, 1989) - "Circularity," Cemetery Dance (#37, 2002)
- "The Marybell Women," Cemetery Dance (#47, 2003)
- "The Screamers at the Window," Shivers IV (anthology) edited by Richard ChizmarRichard ChizmarRichard Thomas Chizmar is best known as the publisher and editor of Cemetery Dance magazine and the owner of Cemetery Dance Publications...
(May 2006, Cemetery Dance PublicationsCemetery Dance PublicationsCemetery Dance Publications is a specialty press publisher of horror and dark suspense. Cemetery Dance was founded by Richard Chizmar, a horror author, while he was in college. It is associated with Cemetery Dance magazine, which was founded in 1988. They began to publish books in 1992.Cemetery...
) - "Murder Victim," Midnight Premiere (anthology) edited by Tom Piccirilli (June 2007, Cemetery Dance PublicationsCemetery Dance PublicationsCemetery Dance Publications is a specialty press publisher of horror and dark suspense. Cemetery Dance was founded by Richard Chizmar, a horror author, while he was in college. It is associated with Cemetery Dance magazine, which was founded in 1988. They began to publish books in 1992.Cemetery...
) - "Rainy Day People" PostscriptsPostscriptsPostscripts is a quarterly Britishmagazine of science fiction, fantasy, horror and crime fiction, first published in June 2004.Each issue is published in two editions: a regular newsstand-type edition and a signed, numbered, 150-copy hardcover edition. Beginning with Postscripts #14, it is a...
#10 (2007)
Chapbooks
- "The People on the Island" (Bandersnatch Books, 2010)
- unnamed release (Bandersnatch Books, 2010)
- unnamed release (Bandersnatch Books, 2010)
Short Story collections
- Bone Soup (a collection of short stories, art, poems, and revised version of the novel Cold House) (Cemetery Dance Publications, scheduled 2010) Featuring:
- Cold House (a revised version of the novel of the same name)
- "The People on the Island"
- "His Mother's Eyes"
- "Rainy Day People"
- "Tower Man"
- poems
- artwork
- and more...
Other publications
- "Stuff of Horror, or Gray Matter All Over the Inside of Your Skull", article for American Fantasy (Summer, 1987)
- By Reason of Darkness (2004), by William P. Simmons (contains an afterwordAfterwordAn afterword is a literary device that is often found at the end of a piece of literature. It generally covers the story of how the book came into being, or of how the idea for the book was developed....
by T. M. Wright)
Interviews
- "A Conversation with T. M. Wright," interview by Douglas A. AndersonDouglas A. AndersonDouglas Allen Anderson is an author and editor on the subjects of fantasy and medieval literature, specializing in textual analysis of the works of J. R. R...
for 2AM (Summer, 1989) - "Tall Tales from a Master," interview by Susan M. Burdorf for The Sterling Web (Winter, 1991)
- "A Conversation with T. M. Wright" interview by William P. Simmons for Cemetery Dance (#37, 2002)
- "An Interview with T. M. Wright" interview by James R. Beach for Dark Discoveries #9 (Winter, 2007)