I’m continuing my look at Manly Wade Wellman’s pulp hero Silver John, the roaming singer and guitarist who fights supernatural forces in the Appalachian Mountains of long ago, sort of like a countrified Orpheus meets Kolchak. He’s called Silver John because of the silver strings on his guitar and the silver coins he carries in his pockets. For more details click here: https://glitternight.com/pulp-heroes/
YOU KNOW THE TALE OF HOPH – (No, it’s not a story about David Hasselhoff) In this Silver John vignette our hero plans to end the reign of terror of Hoph, a werewolf/ vampire hybrid who lives on the blood of sacrificial “brides” that are offered up to him once a year. When Hoph targets a female writer investigating his legend Silver John sets out to kill him with a silver bullet made by melting down some of the silver coins he carries with him.
SHIVER IN THE PINES – John finds himself part of a small expedition to Black Pine Hollow, the location of a mine supposedly dug by an ancient race pre-dating even the Native American tribes of the Appalachians. Complications arise from the sinister machinations of an evil defrocked minister and from the fact that the treasure is still being guarded by representatives of the ancient race that found it: a race of beings with horns, tails, webbed hands and dark secrets that shatter the human soul.
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Shiver in the pines sounds cool. I wonder what the dark secrets were.
You make the stories sound so good! I can’t find them at my library. Are they worth the money?
Thanks! In my opinion they are. Such unique use of language and such imaginative monsters.
I didn’t want to offer spoilers
Well, I don’t want to spoil anything in case you ever read the story.
By the way, I sent you your completed Saga for Frontierado. Did you get it? With so much of my stuff getting intercepted as spam right now for some reason I want to make sure you got it.
Yeah, I got it and it is totaly cool. I love it! Ill be doing something public with it in a few days. Im super impressed!
I’m glad you liked it! I was beginning to worry that maybe you were offended by some of the content.
Thanks for any help you can give in spreading the word about Frontierado! Since Sagas like the one I did for you are an essential part of it I’ll be glad to write ones for anybody willing to fill out that questionnaire.
haha no, the only thing it did was get me slightly paranoid as you seemed to nail me to a T with almost perfect accuracy.
Ha! Well, those questionnaires I send out are a big help!
Awesome stuff! Sounds like I’d like silver John better than Twilight.
Thanks! But, hey, who wouldn’t? (I’m kidding)
I want to read these … NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Well, I know Amazon.com at least is still selling them.
Shiver in the Pines definitely sounds Lovecraft-influenced!
Yes, I agree! Thank you for the comment!
These stories sound so kewl! You should contact the estate and do a screenplay!
Well, thank you! I’ll think it over. Thanks for commenting !
I’m not sure if you knew but apparently Wellman’s most recent publisher is Baen Books. Baen has released a collection of the Silver John stories as a free ebook. It can be found at the Fifth Imperium website on the CD When The Tide Rises. This is totally legit so everyone who thinks these stories sound cool should head over and check them out.
Great news, Irisclara! Thanks for passing it along and thanks for stopping by.
Can you turn those into a link maybe?
How do you mean? I linked to them on my Pulp Heroes page, but is that what you are referring to?
Fifth Imperium website on the CD When The Tide Rises <–that a link. For those of us who are lazy. 🙂 But you don't have to if you dont want to. As you say.. the info is shared here.
Oh, I see, thanks! Yeah, that’s a good idea.
I enjoyed Hoph but Shiver in the Pines sounds too Lovecraft.
Yeah, Wellman was a noted Lovecraft fan.
Hoph and the Hoff joke made me laugh!
Glad to hear it!