"The similarities between horror and thrillers are more important than the differences.  Horror is a really broad genre, but people, especially people who have not read much horror, tend to lump everything into a very narrow area.  Personal Demons is an action-packed book written in a noir style, but it's also a horror novel with some fantasy aspects that I couldn't use in a more traditional thriller.

"My goal is to have as many surprises as possible.  I don't want a reader to ever know what direction the book is taking.  I want to appeal to readers who might like a David Morrell thriller and those who read Clive Barker horror novels."

Jake Helman, Lamberson's protagonist, is a New York cop who turns in his badge in disgrace after a shootout goes wrong.  Helman subsequently finds work as a security guard for an international conglomerate, where he discovers illegal medical experiments and a relationship between his new employer and a ghostly serial killer--The Cipher--who eluded him while he was a detective.  Described by Lamberson as a "flawed protagonist whose first instinct is to run," Helman must confront his fears as he comes face-to-face with the supernatural in his quest to solve the riddles posed by his employer and The Cipher.  

Publication of Personal Demons is the culmination of a circuitous journey from unproduced screenplay, to small press novel, to a mass market publisher. 

"The book started life as a screenplay in 1987," Lamberson explained, "then I turned it into a book.  It won a contest sponsored by a small publisher who put out a limited edition hardcover, then a year later a small press paperback came out.  Around that same time I planned to switch completely from low-budget films to novels, because you can tell stories as big as you want in a novel, without worrying about the budget."

 Lamberson's fulltime writing plans were sidetracked when Slime City, his first film, was re-released on CD and quickly developed a cult following.  The sequel, Slime City Massacre, is in post-production.  The author has finished the second book in the Jake Helman series (Desperate Souls, due for release this time next year from Medallion Press) and is working on a third, with at least two others in mind.  He also is the author of the award-winning novel Johnny Gruesome and the non-fiction how-to guide Cheap Scares! Low Budget Horror Filmmakers Shares Their Secrets.      

Lamberson and Medallion Press kicked off publication of Personal Demons in a unique fashion, with a pre-release, on-line book signing.  It worked like this:  Originating at Medallion's office in St. Charles, Illinois, on the evening of Sept. 26, the book signing went live with more than 30 readers signed in to participate.  Readers from several states, Canada, and New Zealand could "talk" to Lamberson through webcam, telephone, or in a chatroom while the author signed copies of Personal Demons on-screen with personalized messages.  Medallion then mailed the signed books free of charge to participants. 

There were a few technical glitches, nothing major, and both Medallion and Lamberson judged the event a success.  The publisher is planning more virtual book signings in the future, with Lamberson scheduled to promote two books on-line in 2010--The Frenzy Way in June and Desperate Souls (the second Jake Helman novel) in October.  

"The event was exciting for me," Lamberson said, "in the way that I imagine live TV was exciting for participants back in the 1950s.  There was a real sense that we were doing something unique." 
 

Milton Toby is an author and attorney who writes from his home in Georgetown, Kentucky.  His long-standing involvement with Thoroughbred racing and the horse business, his representation of Death Row inmates, and years spent in the Third World combine to produce fiction crammed with unique twists and turns.  His short stories have won national awards and he recently completed his first novel.  Milton's essay on Lionel Davidson's THE ROSE OF TIBET will appear in the upcoming THRILLERS: 100 MUST READS.