About the Author |
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Russ
Williams is a native of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and grew up in
Nashville, Tennessee. During the 1970s, he received a bachelor's
degree from the George Peabody College of Vanderbilt University in
Nashville, where he studied English, music and education. In the same
decade, he completed a bachelor's degree in journalism and broadcasting
at Evangel University in Springfield, Missouri. He received a master's
degree in communication from Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois, near
Chicago, in 1981.
While in his 20s, he lived in Appalachia for several years and worked
variously as a school teacher, professional musician, restaurateur, and
bookstore manager. Williams was also lifestyle editor with The News
Chief (daily) in Winter Haven, Florida, during the early 1980s. He
has worked as a technical writer for the computer industry and now does a
variety of free-lance writing.
He was married during the 1970s and has a son, John Mark, who lives with
his wife, Jennifer, and teaches language overseas.
Williams is also the proud grandparent of a delightful baby grandson,
Jake.
Currently, he resides in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, after having lived in
Los Angeles for many years. His favorite pastimes include
music (all kinds, notably classical), film, walking/hiking outdoors,
photography, the natural sciences, religion, and studies in myth and
legend, especially the work of Joseph Campbell.
Williams has published short stories and poetry in regional literary
magazines, Arkenstone, the Ozark Review and The
Epiphany. His teleplay "Shy's Hill," based on a Civil War theme, was
produced in connection with the PBS television station in Springfield,
Missouri.
Williams was a journalism intern with Sojourners magazine in
Washington, D.C., during the summer of 1979. For Sojourners, he
wrote an article on the politics of Pat Robertson that predicted
Robertson's run for the presidency a decade later. The article included
a personal interview with the future candidate.
Also a screenwriter, Williams wrote the script for the independent film The Last
Year (2002), which received select theatrical release and
excellent critical reviews. The film is currently available on DVD.
If you want to buy a copy of The Last Year, through Wolfe Video,
click here.
The Night Hunter is Williams' first published novel, in 1990.
It has since been rereleased by another publisher. He has written four others: The Sword and Chalice (1981),
Fall of the Sparrow (1986), What Gift, Oh Father, Father
(1995), and Past Help and Grief (1998). By popular demand,
The Night Hunter is now still in print, in electronic and paperback
editions.
If you want to buy a copy of The Night Hunter, through
Barnes and Noble,
click here.
Though Williams' stories contain strong elements of horror and suspense,
he calls his writing style "Gothic realism." His
stories are realistic and character-centered. His subject matter,
though rooted in the everyday and ordinary, contains overtones of
other, supernatural worlds. In the course of his narratives, these
alternative realms rapidly collide with and soon dominate ordinary life.
However, in the end, often the reader must determine what is real and
what comes from "beyond."
Williams writes in
the Gothic tradition of such literary figures as Charlotte and Emily Brontë, Edgar Allan Poe, Shirley
Jackson, H.P. Lovecraft, Flannery O'Connor, and William Faulkner.
These are his favorite literary authors. His work also shows
influences from the Latin American "magical realists," especially
Gabriel García Márquez and Miguel Ángel Asturías. Poetic imagery and
rhythm infuse his writing style, so much so that his narratives could easily be called
"poetry in prose." Most likely, this results from his love of
and extensive work in music.
Currently, Williams continues his efforts in creative writing. His home
in Petaling Jaya is near the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur. However, his
primary literary efforts now focus on his poetry, which he is publishing in the
blog on this site (click here for his blog). He
is also seeking the production of his latest horror screenplay, set in
Malaysia, and beginning work on a new novel.
Links
- To access Russ Williams' MySpace page,
click here.
- To access his professional filmmaker page on MySpace, click here.
- To access Russ Williams' Facebook page, click here.
- To access the website of Guardian Pictures and Jeff London, who directed Williams' film The Last Year, click here.
- To access an excellent explanation of Gothic writing and literature, on Wikipedia, including its history and modern examples, plus more links, click here.
- To access a comprehensive history of horror films on Wikipedia, click here.
- To access a useful resource for writers of Gothic and horror literature, click here. This page is the "Horror Fiction" section of the site "Horror Factor."
- To access the "HorrorFind" site with other links to cool stuff and
practically anything
horror or Gothic on the Internet,
click here.
