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For years, Jim Bolone has wanted to publish “Zombie Seagulls and 13 Other Spine-Chilling Tales” (Mission Point Press $13), his collection of horror short stories.
“Many of them began as stories I’d tell my nieces and nephews, my junior high students, and also my own children when they were young,” said Bolone, of Toledo.
He pointed out that each of the 14 stories is quick to read but hard to shake, written with short, varied sentences and accessible vocabulary that make the pages fly by. The nightmares inside are as varied as they are terrifying: Zombie flocks swarming Mackinac Island, cursed caves that swallow the unwary, ghostly mirrors reflecting more than your face, wicked clowns lurking where you least expect them, and spiders far too big for comfort in Detroit.
“Over the years I let particular places, people, and events from Detroit and Mackinac Island inspire me to develop stories around them,” explained Bolone. “Making them scary made them more interesting for me, and I believe for readers. Once I had all the stories written, I thought the next best thing was to put them together into a collection with the intention of appealing to a wide-range of readers, including and especially reluctant readers.”
The youngest of seven, Bolone was born in Detroit and has lived in Toledo since 1995. An alumnus of Wayne State University, the father of three has been an English and creative writing teacher for 30 years. He met Dave McVeigh in the 1970s when the two worked as dockporters on Mackinac Island and became lifelong friends. They co-wrote three novels that occurred on Mackinac Island: “The Dockporter,” “Somewhere in Crime,” and “MisGuided.”
“Mackinac Island, a tiny place rich in history on many levels has for years remained a place steeped in lore, allowing for a wide range of tall and spooky tales. I deliberately wanted to capture some of it, offering a glimpse into some of the landmarks, the points of interest, and popular haunts by weaving short, readable experiences around them.”
It took Bolone nine months to complete the 14 stories.
“Some of them had already found places in my consciousness years ago though,” he said. “I have an affinity for the book’s flagship title, but I have to say ‘Voices Calling at British Landing’ has a soft spot, probably because it originated from a dream I had years ago.”
Bolone spoke about what makes “Zombie Seagulls” stand out from other horror stories.
“I love to write YA fiction and atmospheric horror rooted in real places, where folklore, the landscape, and childhood intersect,” he explained. “My book is distinctive because it turns a real American vacation landmark and the Motor City into ancient, living mythos and it treats horror as a kind of ecology instead of chaos and gore.”
For Bolone, the best part about writing these stories was putting himself in the world of each one.
“It makes the writing process so much fun,” he said. “I wanted to be sure to create something especially appealing for uninterested, reluctant readers by tailoring text and length for enjoyable, easy reading. I’d like ‘Zombie Seagulls’ to be the beginning of a series, maybe with scary stories set in other regions, other states for readers to enjoy. Who knows?”
