A Quote That Will Help You Understand Me:
"Never regret thy fall, O Icarus of the fearless flight, For the greatest tragedy of them all, Is never to feel the burning light." - Attributed to Oscar Wilde
First, let us set an expectation when coming to this substack. A little more about where I’m coming from:
Inside the heart of every person is a story. Their story. A story filled with characters, settings, a plot. And love and loss and betrayal and triumph and trauma and heartache and wild, life-long chase for joy and elusive purpose. In this way, every life is a masterpiece in fiction lived out in reality. Each and every one, if we were to turn the years over of any person’s life like so many pages, hides that story. It has a beginning, a middle, and for all of us, an end.
And every single one of them precious, none of them replaceable.
All of that said, here’s what I’m reading, listening to, what you can read of mine, and what’s coming down the pipe.
What I’m Reading:
Homer’s - The Iliad
It’s been a long time since I read the classic, and I need it’s meter and tone for a secret project I am working on. A dark fantasy project that’s likely years away. This indelible classic has endured for so long because of its lush description and unforgettable characterizations of complex people pushed and pulled on the river of fate by fickle gods with their own desires. It’s tremendous for writers looking to expand their vocabulary — essential to being able to find the “right” word over the “almost right” word.
What I’m Listening To:
Howard Shore’s: The Lord of the Rings Original Soundtrack
Again, for the project I’m working on I like to listen to epic scores that fill me with a sense of scope. Not Hobbiton or Orthanc or black Mordor where the shadows lie specifically, but music with emotional density. Soundtracks for impactful films are perfect for this, I find. So easily transporting us to far away places that are only accessible by bridges of great and indeterminable working stretching the long, invisible gap between the mind and the heart.
What You Can Read From Me:
WELCOME TO BLACK WELLS, COLORADO.
ALL THESE SUBTLE DECEITS, is BOOK ONE in the Black Wells Series via Dark Hart Books.
Lauren Saunders moved to Black Wells, Colorado to escape a toxic relationship that stole three years of her life. But her hopeful optimism of a fresh start is dashed after a brutal, supernatural attack sends her screaming from a nightclub into the cold, winter night. Her journey toward recovery leads her to the doorstep of William Daniels—a professional spiritual intercessor and occult consultant. Together they will descend into an occult labyrinth of dark forces and oppressive spirits.
“With his thriller-horror novel All These Subtle Deceits, C. S. Humble demonstrates the benefit of combined genres in the hands of a shockingly talented author: Brisk pacing with fully realized characters in a brilliantly conceived setting. This is seamless hybrid fiction at its very best. My recommendation: Follow this author to new ground in the horror universe.”
– S.P. Miskowski, author of I Wish I Was Like You
ALL THE PROSPECT AROUND US, is BOOK TWO in the Black Wells Series.
Upon their arrival to Black Wells, a mysterious symbol seen on the sign of a homeless panhandler leads two young men down into the town's darkest secrets and toward a harrowing, supernatural event that will threaten the soul of one and the life of the other.
"All the Prospect Around Us proves that cosmic and religious horror are just two windows into the same dark house. In it, C. S. Humble treats both Christianity and close male friendships with generosity and insight, an approach I found as refreshing as its unconventional narrative structure. All this while slowly dropping the thermostat to sub-zero levels. I'll be looking forward to my next trip to Black Wells."
-Nathan Ballingrud, author of The Silence and North American Lake Monsters
That Light Sublime Trilogy
THE MASSACRE AT YELLOW HILL is BOOK ONE in That Light Sublime Trilogy, via Cemetery Dance
The Miller and Ptolemy families are pitted against mundane and supernatural forces in this Weird West adventure. Family struggles, heart-stopping gunfights, and nightmare creatures from dark realms abound in this award-winning novel from C.S. Humble.
"Like if Stephen King, Joe R. Lansdale, McMurtry, Tolkien, and Lewis smashed their voices together to write a horror Western." - Sadie “Mother Horror” Hartmann
“Humble writes with rare passion in the tradition of Robert E. Howard and a young Stephen King." - Laird Barron, author of The Beautiful Thing That Awaits Us All
What’s Coming Down The Pipe:
Edits on A RED WINTER IN THE WEST (Book Two of That Light Sublime) which is set to be published in July
Edits on ALL THAT MANKIND FAILS TO BEAR (Book Three in Black Wells)
Continuing to draft ALL OUR STRANGE GLORY (Book Four in Black Wells)
Top Secret Book project that I’m not ready to talk about.
As always and forever, thanks so much for your support and subscription to this channel
Deepest Regard,
