IDW Publishing Unveils New Mash-Up Series: Classics Mutilated
Steve Barton
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“Dread Island”, the title of the debut novella from IDW Publishing’s Classics Mutilated collection, caught our eye for obvious reasons. After learning that it was written by Joe R. Lansdale and doing a little more digging into what Classics Mutilated is all about, we’re even more intrigued.
From the Press Relesae:
CLASSICS MUTILATED offers a different take on the current monster-lit trend by challenging a coterie of major talents to twist fantasy and horror elements with classic tales and icons, creating all-new stories. Lansdale’s “Dread Island” showcases the collection’s unique tone by featuring Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer in a new adventure, with bizarre fantasy and supernatural elements out of both H. P. Lovecraft and Uncle Remus.
“I wrote ‘Dread Island’ based on my love for Mark Twain,” reveals Lansdale, “which collided with my interest in Lovecraft, and the fact that the Uncle Remus tales may have been the first stories I ever read. And then there were comics. I always saw ‘Dread Island’ as a kind of comic book in prose, the old Classics Illustrated look. That’s how it played out in my head.”
Available in October, the full CLASSICS MUTILATED collection will feature fifteen stories from writers such as Nancy Collins, John Shirley, Thomas Tessier, Kristine Katheryn Rusch, Chris Ryall, Rick Hautala, John Skipp and Cody Goodfellow. It will also feature a painted, wrap-around cover by Menton Matthews III.
To promote the upcoming CLASSICS MUTILATED, “Dread Island” will be available in four different editions, beginning with the trade paperback version, limited to 500 copies and available only at conventions. Beginning in August, IDW will offer a 400-copy signed hardcover edition and a 100-copy signed and numbered leatherbound edition exclusively through the company’s website. A fourth, “retailer only” configuration will be available to stores for an October release, alongside CLASSICS MUTILATED.
“CLASSICS MUTILATED is our take on this so-called monster-lit trend,” explains Jeff Conner, the collection’s editor. “Rather than foisting zombies and the like onto beloved literary classics or unsuspecting historic figures, we’re approaching the concept from the other end, challenging an unholy cabal of fantasy and horror writers to use their dark arts on genre-blending. The results have been remarkable, as lucky readers of Lansdale’s ‘Dread Island’ preview edition will get to see.”
If you’ll be at the next week’s San Diego Comic-Con, Lansdale will be featured at special autograph sessions at the IDW booth (#2643) throughout the convention along with lots of other creators, exclusive items, and key executives.
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