EXTRA! EXTRA! Issue No. 4 is HERE!

Hello, all! What excitement! What bliss! Issue No. 4 of Black Lantern is at last here and in beautiful glossy, print format!  That's right, impress your friends and purchase your very own papery copy today from our online store! But hurry! We only have a limited number of print copies available, so grab yours today before it's too late! And remember to keep your eyes peeled for CROW Magazine's October issue, coming soon, and Issue No. 5 of Black Lantern, available in November! 

Have a ghoulish Monday!

BLP, Issue No. 4 PDF!

Hello, again all! I must apologize for the extended sabbatical, but I was in the wild brush of Africa with my good friend and colleague, Gyles Preston, on one of his exciting safaris.  I've only now stepped in, to find a rather peculiar, yet deliciously scrumptious magazine awaiting my arrival--the new issue of Black Lantern! How exciting, indeed! My master printer, Jamison W. Teefers III, promises the print edition will follow shortly, and will be available for purchase in just a few short days at our online store! Thrilling, indeed! I hardly think the Cape buffalo I bagged can measure up to the excitement of uncovering this new volume of BLP!  Again, I must apologize for my brevity, but a storm is brewing and the hot cocoa is on, and Byron has just informed me that a lovely fire awaits me in the den.  I shall be curling up tonight with my copy of BLP and encourage you to do the same! You can buy your copy here.  Until then, farewell dear friends!

CROW Magazine

It's here at last! Our little press, Black Lantern Publishing, is proud to present CROW Magazine, our latest and greatest imprint for middle and young readers. This lovely little magazine features fiction and non-fiction by old and new writers, as well as some wonderful features for parents, teachers, and students.  Issue No. 1 is available now for FREE! Show your support for BLP's latest imprint, and purchase your subscription today and our online store!

Who is the Writer Responsible for this Filth...

Welcome!  If you've stumbled on this page by mistake and are now asking yourself, "Who in the world is R.A.R. Huggins?" it's quite alright; you may make your inconspicuous escape without my knowledge (and I won't charge you a penny for the error).  If, however, you are at all interested, then please make yourself at home!

I'd like to think that I am a writer, though there are some days when I doubt that seriously, but I have written a few stories and published a few more, and if your teacher sent you here on an assignment to find out more about the author, then I apologize; there's not much to me.  But, I will say that I don't look anything like my picture; I am in fact six feet tall, with huge, dangling ears, and fur all over my face. (I once considered joining the circus as the bearded lady, but they said the position was already filled.) 

Of course, if that's not enough information for you, feel free to click on the above links.  Thanks for stopping by!

Along came a spider...

Hello, hello all! It has been (regrettably) a while since I cleared off the cobwebs on this old thing and sat down to tell you a thing or two about myself.  Of course, things have not been entirely interesting, as I've spent the last few months staring out a window and only realized I was in this deep trance when  a spider came and bit me on the very tip of my nose. (It was an awful creature, with great red spots and a large, bulbous posterior, but they make such incredible snacks on toast, that I did not have the heart to scream).

Black Lantern's seemingly unending hiatus is at long last coming to a close, and I can happily say that this upcoming issue (which will be available in early August) will be EXCEPTIONAL! I am planning all sorts of sinister things to do with the magazine, but primarily we hope to sell a few copies.  That's right! You will actually be able to own a PRINTED copy! But for those of you computer wizards who prefer the sound of mouse clicks, may download a .PDF file.  Either way, it promises to be a very exciting read.  The website will be entirely redone, and will feature an online store where you can purchase yourself as many copies of our delightful little magazine as you please!

The biggest change will be with our artwork, as the magazine will feature illustrations for our short stories.  We are collaborating with some wonderful artists to create a truly dazzling edition, and I've got to say, I'm pretty darned excited.  Now if this all just works out, I think I'll be THRILLED.

In other news, I stumbled across this little magazine today, The Red Penny Papers and am glad to see that another little quirky, dark magazine exists in the world.  I shall have to send them something truly ghoulish to publish...

Now that you all have heard my many--though really only a few--updates, I shall like a long nap and a delicious cup of hot cocoa before I continue staring out my window.  Unfortunately, the thing is damnably filthy; I can  barely see the tops of the crooked, dead trees in my horrible forest from where I am sitting.  I shall have to get Boris up here to scrub them.  Until next time, dear readers...

Crow Toes Quarterly: The New Face of Children's Lit, 15th Issue

At last, at last, it's here! It's shiny, and pretty, and colorful, and darn it, my story is in it! Crow Toes Quarterly's 15th issue is now available in their E-Zine, along with my little piece, Waiting.  You can download a copy of the issue or you can purchase a nice, printed, sweet smelling limited edition here.  I must say, I'm pretty darn pleased.  And if you don't click on one of the above links and read the story for yourselves, than I shall have to send a nasty little Walliumpus your way.  And if you don't know what a Walliumpus is, than I should not think you would be quite eager to find out as they are nasty, hairy, yucky things that tend to have a lot of very sharp teeth and not such good eating habits.  

Enjoy, enjoy! I know that I shall!

Beatrix Black and the Lake of Mirrors

Well, you can't say I didn't warn you.  But for those of you who still want to know more about Beatrix Black and the Lake of Mirrors, you've come to the right place.

There was nothing very exciting about Beatrix Black’s big, old, dusty mansion with the fat, juicy spiders lurking in the corners; nor was there much exciting about Beatrix Black, whose hair was just a little too black and whose eyes were uncommonly dark, and who didn’t quite fit in at Lost Souls Elementary School.  Fortunately for Beatrix, she had Mimsy—her big, fat, black cat—and her books.  Piles, upon piles of books—not of the excruciatingly dreary variety—but books that would allow Beatrix to momentarily escape the dull and dusty life she led at Black Mansion. 

Then one day, Aunt Narcissa brings home a new book, Synonymous—a decisively odd book—which has some strikingly peculiar similarities to Beatrix Black’s dull and dusty life. So imagine how surprised Beatrix becomes when she discovers that the main character is a girl by the name of Beatrix Baleful, who has also become positively bored with her own dull and dusty life; she’s bored of the Black Mansion, the Wishing Witch, even of the Bat Family, and now she seeks a new adventure, a decisively more dangerous adventure, in which Beatrix Black has become dangerously intertwined.

If you would like to know more about Beatrix Black, or if you're a publisher and are interested in contacting the author, please feel free to do so (though I can't see why you would want to) at rarhuggins@gmail.com. 

Artwork © Benjamin Lacombe.  All rights reserved.