Author: Kevin A. Ranson

Film Critic & Horror Writer. Heeding a macabre calling listening to “Mother Ghost Nursery Rhymes” in kindergarten, Kevin A. Ranson wrote in grade school and filled countless notebooks with story ideas while touring the Mediterranean in the US Navy. Author of The Spooky Chronicles, the thriller series The Matriarch Vampires, and critic for MovieCrypt.com as host Grim D. Reaper #grmdrpr. Sith master of Google-Fu, Bing-Jitsu, and buttered toast (you want some toast?)

The Matriarch – Now in Kindle and Paperback!

On May 1, 2013 By Kevin A. RansonIn Cemetery, Creativity, Existentialism, LiterarianLeave a comment

Supernatural horror thriller, mature content.
A present-day college student becomes the target of an immortal, a killer linked to a century-old ghost story.
279 print pages. Published April 2013. ISBN: 9780615803449
Availability: Kindle – $3.99 and Paperback – $12.95

Vampires don’t believe in ghosts.

Every October, the freshmen at Glenville State College are told stories about Sis Linn, the local ghost who haunts Clark Hall and the graveyard where she’s buried. Murdered in 1919, she was beaten beyond recognition, the target of a brutal killer who was never caught.

Present-day student Janiss Connelly is about to find out that the stories are wrong – and that there are greater things to fear in life and in death than ghosts.

Read more about The Matriarch…

The Proof! Of the Paperback Edition is Available!

On April 30, 2013 By Kevin A. RansonIn Existentialism, Literarian, ParanormalLeave a comment

Get the paperback version on CreateSpace now!

Wanna know what the paperback version of The Matriarch looks like? Got ya covered.

Kind Words from K.L. Nappier, Author of the Full Wolf Moon Trilogy

On April 28, 2013 By Kevin A. RansonIn Acquaintances, Creativity, LiterarianLeave a comment

“Kevin A. Ranson knows sinister entertainment. Cloaked -literally- in his alter ego Grim D. Reaper, he has made it a labor of dark love and his eerie career for many years via his popular movie review site MovieCrypt.com. Now an author of unique YA/children’s books as well as intriguing mainstream dark fiction, Mr. Ranson brings his prodigious knowledge of what chills and thrills us to the literary world. And the shadowy corners of our book shelves are illumined for the better by the spectral glow of his writing.” ~ K.L. Nappier, author of the Full Wolf Moon Trilogy

Why Vampires?

On April 23, 2013 By Kevin A. RansonIn Cemetery, Creativity, Existentialism, Literarian2 Comments

Hasn’t everything been said about vampires already?

Frankly, no.

I love these creatures because they are us and yet they are not us. The most evil forsake their humanity while the noble struggle to retain it, but the idea of becoming the monster – by choice or by fate – and a need to prey on what it once was in order to survive is a very human story: the stuff of legend.

Not to slight any book or movie, but I’ve grown tired of stories about inner city vampire wars against other paranormals that paint the vampire as one among many; they are kings of the night, the ruling class of the darkness. I wanted Dracula-level ubervamps for my own novel, alphas that don’t put up with rivals or need to swear fealty to some Italian governing committee.

A true vampire should be royalty itself and treated as such; I believe this is one of the reasons Bram Stoker’s title character remains so popular today. A modern vampire should be like a Bond super-villain: lairs and minions and secrets and plans. This was the template for my own bloodsuckers, and a castle in the countryside (even if it isn’t recognized as such) is so much cooler than the penthouse of a skyscraper.

Published! The Matriarch is Available on Kindle at Amazon

On April 17, 2013 By Kevin A. RansonIn Creativity, Literarian, ParanormalLeave a comment

WTF Books has published The Matriarch!
Get it now on Amazon Kindle and compatible apps. More options coming soon. Enjoy!

From WTF Books:

“In The Matriarch, Kevin Ranson interweaves real and fictional horror into a tale that is part mystery, part supernatural – and entirely hypnotic. Full of rich characterizations and settings, Ranson draws an original picture of the vampire – one that reveals its secrets as it plays on your senses and sympathies.”

Book Synopsis:

The stories are wrong.

When present-day student Janiss Connelly stumbles upon the truth, she inherits a unique opportunity to end a century of bloodshed… even if it’s already too late for her.

Read more about The Matriarch…

The Matriarch to be Published by WTF Books!

On April 10, 2013 By Kevin A. RansonIn Creativity, Literarian, ParanormalLeave a comment

WTF Books has accepted The Matriarch for publication in the very near future. “WTF” doesn’t mean what you think it means, so check out their site to find out who they are and what they have to offer!

From WTF Books:

Book Synopsis:

The stories are wrong.

When present-day student Janiss Connelly stumbles upon the truth, she inherits a unique opportunity to end a century of bloodshed… even if it’s already too late for her.

“Life Is Beautiful” – The Matriarch Soundtrack (Music to Write By)

On April 5, 2013 By Kevin A. RansonIn Creativity, Existentialism, LiterarianLeave a comment

I use music – often an entire playlist – to create a mindset and mood when I construct a scene.

The acoustic version of “Life Is Beautiful” is a haunting hard rock ballad (from The Heroin Diaries Soundtrack album by Sixx:A.M., a side project of Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx). Any funeral scenes is a great excuse to get characters together that would never appear in the same room, but it’s also a powerful setting for character reflection, and this track works for both instances.

I was waiting for my hearse,
What came next was so much worse,
It took a funeral to make me feel alive.

Continue reading ““Life Is Beautiful” – The Matriarch Soundtrack (Music to Write By)” →

“Temptation Waits” – The Matriarch Soundtrack (Music to Write By)

On April 3, 2013 By Kevin A. RansonIn Creativity, Existentialism, LiterarianLeave a comment

I use music – often an entire playlist – to create a mindset and mood when I construct a scene.

The first time I heard “Temptation Waits” by Garbage was on the Buffy The Vampire Slayer soundtrack. I imagine an urban predator stalking its prey with illicit intent, crossing a bar in full view of patrons that can’t help but take notice; this fit perfectly for the scene I had imagined.

I’ll tell you something…
I am a wolf but… I like to wear sheep’s clothing.
I am a bonfire…
I am a vampire… I’m waiting for my moment.

The target is meant to think that someone is coming to see them, but they’re actually coming for them.

You are a secret… A new possession…
I like to keep you guessing.

“Running Up That Hill” – The Matriarch Soundtrack (Music to Write By)

On April 1, 2013 By Kevin A. RansonIn Creativity, Existentialism, LiterarianLeave a comment

I use music – often an entire playlist – to create a mindset and mood when I construct a scene. It helps me get into the heads of the characters and focus on what is happening.

“Running up That Hill” is a cover by Placebo of a song by Kate Bush. I love both versions, but the Placebo version inexplicably sounds more haunting to me; the echo of a female singer over the male vocals is a key reason. There is a critical scene in my book where the dialogue stops and the action takes over. The song feels intimate yet forbidden, pleasurable but dangerous.

Continue reading ““Running Up That Hill” – The Matriarch Soundtrack (Music to Write By)” →

New Synopsis for The Matriarch (back cover text tease)

On March 27, 2013 By Kevin A. RansonIn Creativity, LiterarianLeave a comment

Vampires don’t believe in ghosts.

When present-day student Janiss Connelly stumbles upon the truth, she inherits a unique opportunity to end a century of bloodshed… even if it’s already too late for her.