Centipede Press is an American independent book and periodical publisher focusing on horror,
weird tales
''Weird Tales'' is an American fantasy and horror fiction pulp magazine founded by J. C. Henneberger and J. M. Lansinger in late 1922. The first issue, dated March 1923, appeared on newsstands February 18. The first editor, Edwin Baird, prin ...
, crime narratives, science fiction, gothic novels, fantasy art, and studies of literature, music and film. Its earliest imprints were Cocytus Press and Millipede Press.
Background
Centipede Press was founded in 2001 in Lakewood, Colorado by Jerad Walters. Since inception, it has published over two hundred volumes including currently well-known authors (including
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels. Described as the "King of Horror", a play on his surname and a reference to his high s ...
,
Peter Straub
Peter may refer to:
People
* List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name
* Peter (given name)
** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church
* Peter (surname), a sur ...
,
Richard Adams
Richard George Adams (9 May 1920 – 24 December 2016) was an English novelist and writer of the books ''Watership Down'', ''Maia'', ''Shardik'' and ''The Plague Dogs''. He studied modern history at university before serving in the British Army ...
,
John Fowles
John Robert Fowles (; 31 March 1926 – 5 November 2005) was an English novelist of international renown, critically positioned between modernism and postmodernism. His work was influenced by Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus, among others.
Aft ...
,
Neil Gaiman
Neil Richard MacKinnon GaimanBorn as Neil Richard Gaiman, with "MacKinnon" added on the occasion of his marriage to Amanda Palmer. ; ( Neil Richard Gaiman; born 10 November 1960) is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, gr ...
, and
Patrick McGrath), as well as resurrecting out-of-print works of past genre writers. As of 2018, the press releases two to three new books a month, principally in luxury or oversized, signed or traycased hardback editions aimed toward the collector's market.
Centipede Press received the Horror Writers Association Specialty Press Award in 2013, with its other volumes being named finalists in other years for the Bram Stoker Award in Non-fiction twice and once for Fiction Collection, the Locus award for Single-Author Story Collection, and World Fantasy Award for Best Multiple-Author Anthology (from its first released book, World Fantasy Award for ''Stigmata'' in 2001). In 2018, the World Fantasy Convention presented three "Special Award--Professional" trophies to the writer, artist, and editor behind its volume on Patrick McGrath, ''Writing Madness''.
Noting this press's novel treatments and presentations of the fiction of Stephen King, Thomas Ligotti, and Patrick McGrath at the Stoker Awards presentations in New Orleans on 15 June 2013, the Board of the 1,300 member-World Horror Association lauded how Centipede "specializes in horror, crime, and science fiction", yet also regularly produces important "art books, career retrospectives, and critical studies on horror films". As the award presenter put it: "Centipede Press titles strive to be excellent examples of bookmaking, with superior design, page layout, and dust jackets."
Critical reception
The Press's new fiction is included regularly in annual print retrospectives, including ''The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy'', ''
The Year's Best Science Fiction
''The Year's Best Science Fiction'' was a series of science fiction anthology, anthologies edited by American Gardner Dozois until his death in 2018. The series, which is unrelated to the similarly titled and themed ''Year's Best SF'', was publish ...
'', ''
'', ''
The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror
''Year's Best Fantasy and Horror'' was a reprint anthology published annually by St. Martin's Press from 1987 to 2008. In addition to the short stories, supplemented by a list of honorable mentions, each edition included a number of retrospective e ...
'', and ''
The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror''.
In an article from the leading trade journal on rare volumes, ''Fine Books & Collections'', Richard Goodman contends that Centipede Press's major contribution is to show how the "weird and upsetting" are alluring or how "the ugly is beautiful" through the commissioned pen and ink drawings, paintings, photography, and woodcuts that accompany texts.
In 2010, Centipede Press also launched a periodical, ''The Weird Fiction Review'', a yearly color print journal ranging from 300-400 pages that discusses the eerie, monstrous, and decadent in film, literature, comics, and magazines. The journal is edited by
S. T. Joshi and features articles, essays, original fiction, poetry, and interviews.
References
{{reflist, 30em
External links
Centipede Press
Small press publishing companies
Horror book publishing companies