Author Archives: Brian Bixby

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About Brian Bixby

I enjoy history because it helps me understand people. I'm writing fiction for much the same reason.

Pterodactyl Taxidermy

Posted on November 4, 2019 by Brian Bixby

Pterodactyl Taxidermy Do YOU have a specimen of an extinct species you would like to have stuffed? Is your old stuffed dodo losing feathers? Does the arsenic and formaldehyde in your old stuffed animals give you headaches or cardiac arrest? … Continue reading →

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The Halloween read: the horror of Adrian Ross

Posted on October 31, 2019 by Brian Bixby

It’s my custom around Halloween to dredge up and read a “moldy oldie,” a story of horror or the supernatural written many years ago, which is mostly forgotten today. This year, my choice was the two horror stories written by … Continue reading →

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The story of a chess game

Posted on May 7, 2019 by Brian Bixby

Games are something like stories. In role-playing games, the connection is obvious, but it’s true even of board games. So I want to tell the story of one such game, a game of chess. I was on my high school’s … Continue reading →

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A report on the state of my health

Posted on January 27, 2019 by Brian Bixby

I had a cold. It was a promiscuous cold; others had had it before me. And yet it clung to me like an unpaid student loan. I tried to use whiskey as an antibiotic. It went viral. I tried to … Continue reading →

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Review: The Curse of the Werewolf (1961)

Posted on November 1, 2018 by Brian Bixby

Having just read and reviewed The Werewolf of Paris, I decide to tackle its movie version, The Curse of the Werewolf, for my Halloween evening entertainment. In short, read the book. It’s interesting and unusual. The movie is a run-of-the-mill horror flick, … Continue reading →

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Horror for Halloween: The Werewolf of Paris by Guy Endore

Posted on October 31, 2018 by Brian Bixby

One of the standard criticisms of supernatural horror literature is that it is unreal. Why this isn’t a criticism of all literature is a good question, but supernatural horror literature is condemned for presenting us with unreal horrors when so … Continue reading →

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Review: The Disciples of Cthulhu (1976)

Posted on September 16, 2018 by Brian Bixby

So let me describe to you the typical Cthulhu Mythos story formula. Adult male comes across hints of evil. He does research, uncovering various writings that point to an alien evil that could destroy Mankind. Finally, he confronts the alien … Continue reading →

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Dead authors, live horrors: anthologies by Aickman and Matheson

Posted on July 25, 2018 by Brian Bixby

Of the two men, an American is more likely to recognize the works, if not the name, of Richard Matheson (1926 – 2013), because so many have been adapted to the screen. For example, there is that classic Twilight Zone episode, … Continue reading →

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The Coldest City for an Atomic Blonde

Posted on July 22, 2018 by Brian Bixby

My partner is a cartoonist. So we take a particular interest in movies that are based on comics. For example, no sooner did we see The Death of Stalin, then she was on the phone to France, asking a friend to … Continue reading →

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The arrival of summer

Posted on June 29, 2018 by Brian Bixby

People argue about when summer begins. Is it when school lets out? Memorial Day? The summer solstice? The Fourth of July? No doubt in other parts of the world (especially in the southern hemisphere!), other dates are considered as well. … Continue reading →

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