Thomas Ligotti is no longer a secret, says an article in Vulture by Jeff VanderMeer, because of my post last Monday.

Everyone is asking “Who the hell is Thomas Ligotti?”, and he’s now out-selling Ayn Rand.  That’s great — bringing attention to Ligotti was one of my goals.  But if that article kindled (or re-kindled) an interest in weird fiction for you, then keep reading, because here are five more weird fiction authors you should know about.

Jeffrey Thomas – Every time I read Jeff’s work, it’s hard to believe that he’s not famous.  I would love to see his Punktown stories adapted for a movie… there’s a gold mine there.  If you haven’t read Punktown, start there.  Currently I’m reading his latest book, Red Cells.

Joseph S. Pulver, Sr. – Noir.  Darkness.  Hopelessness.  Weird Noir isn’t a new thing — it’s been here for a while, and its name is Joe Pulver.  Start with The Orphan Palace or Blood Will Have Its Season, and go from there.

Simon Strantzas – I’m new to Strantzas, and I can’t believe it took me this long to read him.  I’m currently reading Burnt Black Suns, his newest collection. If you’re a Lovecraft fan and/or a reader of weird fiction, you need to pick this one up.

John Langan – I recently devoured Langan’s collection of short stories The Wide, Carnivorous Sky.  There are stories in that book that disturbed me so much that I had to put them aside and come back to them later.  That doesn’t happen to me often.  John Langan is another name I think you’ll see more and more in the years to come.

Scott Thomas – I’m really not even sure that classifying Scott Thomas as a “weird fiction writer” is accurate.  He writes weird fiction, to be sure, as well as horror and what some might call dark fantasy.  What I can tell you is that his weird fiction novella The Sea of Ash is one of the best stories I have ever read.  Scott’s stories are hauntingly beautiful, and the world he created, Westermead, is a place you won’t soon forget.

Check out the above authors.  You’ll be glad that you did.  Next post: Female weird fiction writers that I recommend.

(Before anyone gets upset at me for not mentioning your favorite author — I’ll be posting more in the future.  If you have a suggestion for a weird fiction writer that more people should know about, email me at lovecraftezine@gmail.com .)