"The best horror convention since its inception, folksy, laid-back, and an all-around good time."
— Stephen King

"Some people have lives. We have Necon."
— Stanley Wiater

The Big Book of Necon
edited by Bob Booth

Featuring contributions by Stephen King, Peter Straub, Neil Gaiman, Jack Ketchum, Rick Hautala, Thomas Tessier, Chet Williamson, Douglas Clegg, Brian Keene, Ramsey Campbell, Douglas Winter, Thomas Monteleone, Gahan Wilson, Jonathan Carroll, John Coyne, Alan Ryan, Lucius Shepard, Graham Joyce, Tim Lebbon, and over 30 other artists and authors who have made Necon the most popular convention of the horror genre over the last three decades!

Bob and Mary Booth invented The Northeast Regional Fantasy and Horror Convention (Necon) in 1980 after they ran the 1979 World Fantasy Convention. Attendance at Necon has always been capped at 200 participants, which adds to the convention's close-knit atmosphere—but also creates a high demand for tickets. If you've never been able to attend this incredible summer gathering, The Big Book of Necon will give you a glimpse into what makes that convention so special. And if you're already a Necon regular, this generous volume will bring back a lot of fond memories.

Featuring works from over 50 contributors, The Big Book of Necon provides hours of great horror/dark fantasy reading from some of the most important names in modern horror. Many of the short stories, essays, poems, and artwork originally appeared in the annual program booklet, which is exclusively printed for the attendees each year—and in the case of the Necon XX volume, with its rare appearance of Stephen King's "The Old Dude's Ticker," now sells for as much as $250-$500 on eBay.

Other highlights include:

• fiction by writers from horror's golden age (Stephen King, Peter Straub, F. Paul Wilson, Alan Ryan, Jack Ketchum), by the genre's newer stars (Christopher Golden, Brian Keene, and many others), and by visitors from the British Isles (Neil Gaiman, Ramsey Campbell, Tim Lebbon)

• essays by Charles L. Grant and Thomas F. Monteleone, defining the Necon experience for the uninitiated

• artwork by Gahan Wilson, Glenn Chadbourne, Richard Sardina, and Cortney Skinner

As eclectic and entertaining as the convention itself, The Big Book of Necon gathers together horror's finest authors in a rare celebration of what's unique and exciting about the genre. A once-in-a-lifetime event, this massive anthology is certain to be one of the most talked about books of the year!

Table of Contents:
"Bob Goes To Necon" by Charles Lang (artwork)
"Introduction" by Bob Booth
"Live To Write / Write To Live" by Glenn Chadbourne (artwork)
"Saugies, Valuable Prizes and Hawaiian Shirts" by Douglas E. Winter
"Necon: What It Is?" by Charles L. Grant
"The Dark Campers" by Linda Addison
"View From The Bottom" by Matt Bechtel
"Four Views Of Necon" by Ginjer Buchanan
"Conning At Roger Williams On A Summer's Evening" by Elizabeth Massie
"My Favorite Necon Moment" by Thomas Monteleone
"Necon X" by Yvonne Navarro
"Untitled" by Holly Newstein
"Camper Activity Page" by Cortney Skinner (artwork)
"Valuable Prizes" by Gahan Wilson (artwork)
"Necon" by Hank Wagner
"Report On Necon '82" by Stanley Wiater
"Ketchum Kabobs" by Glenn Chadbourne (artwork)
"Red Paint" by Jill Bauman
"A Death In The Day Of" by Gary A. Braunbeck
"The Hustler, Smoking" by Jonathan Carroll
"Unexpected Attraction" by Matthew Costello
"End Of The Line" by John Coyne
"Loser" by Les Daniels
"Kisses From Auntie" by Craig Shaw Gardner
"Little Brother" by Rick Hautala
"Sundays" by Jack Ketchum
"Illustration For The Old Dude's Ticker" by Richard Sardinha (artwork)
"The Old Dude's Ticker" by Stephen King
"Freddy And Rita" by G. Wayne Miller
"Lake" by Kathryn Ptacek
"Last Performance Of Kobo Daishi" by Alan Ryan
"On The Last Night Of The Festival Of The Dead" by Darrell Schweitzer
"Exercise Of Faith" by Lucius Shepard
"Erotorium" by Stephen Spruill
"Response From A Surprised But Pleased Recipient" by Peter Straub
"Nocturne" by Thomas Tessier
"Night Deposits" by Chet Williamson
"Demonsong" by F. Paul Wilson
"Necon Proceedings" by Cortney Skinner (artwork)
"And We'll Be Jolly Friends For Ever More" by P.D. Cacek
"Becoming Men" by Douglas Clegg
"Tryptich" by David Cram
"Somebody Put Me Together" by Sephera Giron
"Runaway" by Christopher Golden
"Undercover" by Nancy Holder
"I Am An Exit" by Brian Keene
"Virtually Perfect" by James Moore
"Necon Bat Camper" by Gahan Wilson (artwork)
"Burning" by Ramsey Campbell
"Clearly Dead" by Simon Clark
"Days Of The Wheel" by Peter Crowther
"Fifteen Painted Cards From A Vampire Tarot" by Neil Gaiman
"Partial Eclipse" by Graham Joyce
"Recipe For Disaster" by Tim Lebbon
"Memories Of Lydia, Leaving" by Phil Nutman
"Camp Necon Skeleton" by Gahan Wilson (artwork)

About the Editor:
Bob Booth and his wife Mary are best known for founding Necon, which, according to Stephen King, "has been the best horror convention since its inception, folksy, laid-back, and an all-around good time." Bob likes to bring people and stories together, and although he has published both horror fiction and non-fiction relating to the horror genre, his main contribution to the larger horror community has been behind the scenes.

As a student at a small state teacher's college (Rhode Island College) he organized a speakers series that, over two years, brought in a number of fantasists to speak to students. The list included Bloch, Sturgeon, Leiber and Ellison, among others. He worked for Donald M. Grant Books as a free-lancer for nearly twenty years and in fact succeeded Don at his day job (as Associate Publications Director at Providence College). He helped bring Stephen King to that campus in the early 1980s.

He was a founding member of the World Fantasy Convention (1975) and further served that convention as Chairman (1979), Program Director (1986), Awards Judge (1983), Consultant (1982 & 1984) and board member (1975-1990). His Necon committee helped run the World Horror Convention in 1993.

Bob has ghost-edited all of the Necon program books and anniversary volumes as well as several World Fantasy Convention program books. The Big Book of Necon will be the first book to actually have his name on the spine.

A "friend to the stars," the number of horror novels in which he is a character or which have been dedicated to him approaches twenty. Friend Les Daniels likes to refer to Bob as one of the "nine unknown," a shadow government that brokers deals in the horror/dark fantasy community. Dave Hartwell once referred to Bob as one of the "secret masters of fantasy."

Out of Print Waiting List:
To join the waiting list for the Deluxe Artist Edition or the Lettered Edition, please send an email to info@cemeterydance.com with your complete contact information (real name, email address, mailing address, and phone number) and the correct subject line:

The Big Book of Necon ARTIST EDITION Waiting List
The Big Book of Necon LETTERED EDITION Waiting List

If you want to join both waiting lists, please send two separate emails. The correct subject line will allow the staff to file your request accordingly. If any copies become available, the customers on the waiting list will be the first to be notified.

Production Status:
Bob Booth is overseeing the design of this project and handling much of the work himself: from the signature sheets to the interior design to the cover, he will be crafting the look and feel of every aspect of the book. Bob Booth and his designer are working hard on the interior design right now. All of the signature sheets have been printed and are beginning to circulate among the contributors. With 50+ people needing to sign these, though, it will take a while.

(Please note: Due to the low print runs, we cannot accept orders for the signed editions that are placed using store credit, coupons, savings certificates, or gift certificates. Limit of one copy of the Limited Edition, one copy of the Deluxe Artist Edition, and one copy of the Lettered Edition per person, household, mailing address, or credit card.)

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