Ken MacGregor writes stuff.

He has three story collections: AN ABERRANT MIND, SEX, GORE & MILLIPEDES, and LIONS & TIGERS & WERES, a young adult novella: DEVIL’S BANE, a co-written (with Kerry Lipp), novel: HEADCASE. His work has also appeared in dozens of other publications. He is an Active Member of the Horror Writer's Association (HWA) and is a member of the Great Lakes Association of Horror Writers (GLAHW). He has also written TV commercials, sketch comedy, a music video, a smattering of poetry, and a zombie movie. He is the Managing Editor of Collections and Anthologies for LVP Publications, and he curated two anthologies: BURNT FUR for Blood Bound Books, and the Shirley Jackson award-nominated STITCHED LIPS for Dragon's Roost Press. He will be co-editing the Midnight Zone series (beginning in 2023) with Douglas Gwilym also with Dragon's Roost Press.

When not writing, Ken drives the bookmobile for his local library. He lives with his kids, two cats, and the ashes of his wife.

You can find him at https://www.kenmacgregor.com/.

Since its founding in August 2012, Crystal Lake Publishing has quickly become one of the world’s leading publishers of Dark Fiction and Horror books in print, eBook, and audio formats.

While we strive to present only the highest quality fiction and entertainment, we also endeavour to support authors along their writing journey. We offer our time and experience in non-fiction projects, as well as author mentoring and services, at competitive prices.

With several Bram Stoker Award wins and many other wins and nominations, Crystal Lake Publishing puts integrity, honor, and respect at the forefront of our publishing operations.

We strive for each book and outreach program we spearhead to not only entertain and touch or comment on issues that affect our readers, but also to strengthen and support the Dark Fiction field and its authors.

Not only do we find and publish authors we believe are destined for greatness, but we strive to work with men and woman who endeavour to be decent human beings who care more for others than themselves, while still being hard working, driven, and passionate artists and storytellers.

Crystal Lake Publishing is and will always be a beacon of what passion and dedication, combined with overwhelming teamwork and respect, can accomplish. We endeavour to know each and every one of our readers, while building personal relationships with our authors, reviewers, bloggers, podcasters, bookstores, and libraries.

We will be as trustworthy, forthright, and transparent as any business can be, while also keeping most of the headaches away from our authors, since it’s our job to solve the problems so they can stay in a creative mind. Which of course also means paying our authors.

We do not just publish books, we present to you worlds within your world, doors within your mind, from talented authors who sacrifice so much for a moment of your time.

There are some amazing small presses out there, and through collaboration and open forums we will continue to support other presses in the goal of helping authors and showing the world what quality small presses are capable of accomplishing. No one wins when a small press goes down, so we will always be there to support hardworking, legitimate presses and their authors. We don’t see Crystal Lake as the best press out there, but we will always strive to be the best, strive to be the most interactive and grateful, and even blessed press around. No matter what happens over time, we will also take our mission very seriously while appreciating where we are and enjoying the journey.

What do we offer our authors that they can’t do for themselves through self-publishing?

We are big supporters of self-publishing (especially hybrid publishing), if done with care, patience, and planning. However, not every author has the time or inclination to do market research, advertise, and set up book launch strategies. Although a lot of authors are successful in doing it all, strong small presses will always be there for the authors who just want to do what they do best: write.

What we offer is experience, industry knowledge, contacts and trust built up over years. And due to our strong brand and trusting fanbase, every Crystal Lake Publishing book comes with weight of respect. In time our fans begin to trust our judgment and will try a new author purely based on our support of said author.

To date we’ve published around 100 books, and with each launch we strive to fine-tune our approach, learn from our mistakes, and increase our reach. We continue to assure our authors that we’re here for them and that we’ll carry the weight of the launch and dealing with third parties while they focus on their strengths—be it writing, interviews, blogs, signings, etc.

We also offer several mentoring packages to authors that include knowledge and skills they can use in both traditional and self-publishing endeavours.

We look forward to launching many new careers.

This is what we believe in. What we stand for. This will be our legacy.

Welcome to Crystal Lake Publishing—Tales from the Darkest Depths.

Francesca Maria writes dark fiction surrounded by cats near the Pacific Ocean. She is the creator of the Black Cat Chronicles, a true horror comic book series narrated by a mystical black cat. Her short story collection They Hide: Short Stories to Tell in the Dark from Brigid Gate Press debuted as an Amazon #1 Best Seller. Her short stories and essays can be found in various anthologies and publications including Crystal Lake Publishing's Shallow Waters, Death’s Garden Revisited and Under the Stairs. You can find her at francescamaria.com.

Karen Bayly is the author of several novels, novellas and short stories. She began telling stories as a child when she wrote soap operas for her dolls to perform under her creative direction. These days it’s her zoology PhD, research background, and general dismay at the state of the world that informs her writing, an eclectic mix of speculative fiction, alternative history, noir and mystery. Her tales are often garnished with a touch of horror. She also writes the occasional dark fantasy story for younger folk.

Born in Australia, she works in IT and resides in Sydney with two cats, two ukuleles, two guitars and a DSLR camera.

Matt Bliss is a writer living and working in Las Vegas, Nevada with his family and way too many pets. He is an avid reader who writes about almost everything, but prefers to focus on the eerie things that keep him up at night. When he is not haunting the used book section of the local thrift store, you can find him on twitter at, @MattJBliss.

TAYLOR GRANT is a two-time Bram Stoker Award Finalist, professional screenwriter, and award-winning filmmaker. His work has been seen on network television, the big screen, the stage, the web, newspapers, comic books, national magazines, anthologies, and heard on the radio.

As an author, he has shared pages with Stephen King, Neil Gaiman, Clive Barker, Kelley Armstrong, Joe R. Lansdale, Peter Straub, Bentley Little, and many of the top writers in speculative fiction. Taylor's comic adaptation of "Rot & Ruin" has nearly 14 million reads and was consistently the #1 horror comic at WEBTOON, the world's largest digital comic platform during its run.

His first book, "The Dark at the End of the Tunnel" was nominated for the prestigious Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a Collection.

His critically-acclaimed collection "The Many Deaths of Cole Parker" was reviewed by Kirkus Reviews as "Acute horror tales that are as enthralling as they are outright scary."

Here are his most recent story appearances:

- "Red Christmas" can be found in: "Shallow Waters: Special Christmas Edition" published in Dec, 2023,

- "Don't Open Your Eyes" appeared in issue #47 of the classic magazine "Weirdbook," published in Jan, 2024.

- "Glimmergrim" was featured in "To Hell and Back", an anthology published by Hellbound Books Feb, 2024.

- "The Painted Unseen" appears in the legendary "Weird Tales" Magazine in April, 2024.

-"Prey" appears in Sirens Call Magazine April 2024.

Upcoming works include a story in "Hotel Macabre" a new anthology releasing Oct 2024, and a graphic novel based on one of the biggest horror franchises coming in 2025. His third collection will be released in May 2025 by Crystal Lake Publishing, and includes science fiction, suspense, horror, and crime fiction.

Taylor is an Active Member of the International Thriller Writers and the Horror Writers Association.

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read book recommendations and more.

Kenneth W. Cain is an author of horror and dark fiction, and a Splatterpunk Award nominated freelance editor. He is also the publisher and editor-in-chief at Crystal Lake: Torrid Waters. Cain is an Active member of the HWA and a Full member of the SFWA. To date, he has had over one hundred short stories and thirteen novels/novellas, as well as a handful each of nonfiction pieces, books for children, and poems released by many great publishers such as Crystal Lake Publishing, JournalStone, and Cemetery Gates Media. He has also edited ten anthologies, with a new one coming in 2024. Cain suffers from chronic pain, and as such, likes to keep busy. He lives in Chester County PA with his family and two furbabies, Butterbean and Bodhi. His full publishing history is available on his website.

Trish Wilson's short fiction has appeared in "Zippered Flesh 3", "Wicked Women: An Anthology of the New England Horror Writers", "Teeming Terrors," "The Black Stone: Stories for Lovecraftian Summonings", "Dancing in the Shadows: A Tribute to Anne Rice", "Death's Garden Revisited", "The Horror Zine's Book of Ghost Stories", "The Horror Zine's Book of Werewolf Stories", and more. She has interviewed numerous horror writers for The Horror Zine, including Josh Malerman, Kathe Koja, Ray Garton, and Ramsey Campbell. Her podcast guests include Jack Ketchum, Billie Sue Mosiman, Joe Lansdale, and more. She sometimes writes as E. A. Black and Elizabeth Black. In addition to writing horror, she is the Media Director for The Horror Zine. Friend her on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/elizabethablack