Let's Build
Art by Paul Stavroulakis
I feel like LA is finally beginning to embrace me, but it took a long time just to get here and we’re not even done yet. I’m pulling the arrows out from past battles, healing old trauma, learning to put my shield down, and rising up from the bullshit. Opportunities on deck and the "let's build" texts have come thru. And I’m back in the gym, hitting the heavy bag, running, and throwing kettlebells.
I’ve come to win, not to play.
Welcome back to a new edition of Literary Loud. I’m your esteemed host Grant Wamack and I write dope books.
YSL is bringing on a slew of directors to help promote their 23’ spring/summer line and I’m here for it. They must know what’s up, since they brought my boy David Cronenberg onboard. No, I don’t know him in real life, but he’s had a massive influence on my writing, particularly my body horror-inspired works so we’re spiritually connected in a sense.
I imagine Young Thug would have loved seeing this come to fruition. Free Big Slime.
This stop-motion samurai film pilot HIDARI is visceral and engrossing. The creators plan to make this into a full-length feature film via Kickstarter. You can contribute here.
Dream report: I had a dream that Rick Rubin wrote a book about his detest for fame. He said “what if I could be a sharp knife that could be used to serve up audible food? An instrument for artists to cut through the riff-raff? Then the book proceeds to explore this concept further.
Some of the greatest sorrows I ever experienced were thanks to dreams about books that never existed in this world.
The first installment of The Louis Vuitton Diaries dropped earlier this week. The author of Ghosts of East Baltimore gave his stamp of approval and that’s high praise in my book. You can read it for FREE here.
Future installments will be for paid subscribers, but keep in mind this will eventually be part of a much larger work in the future future.
Christine Morgan, a splatterpunk phenom, whipped up a positive review for God’s Leftovers here.
Also, E. Rathke’s fantastic lofi cyberpunk adventure Howl is a free for a limited time and you can download it here. Fantastic book. You should read it so you can discover the wonders of Lady Agova.
I wish more writers would be more confident online and be proud of the work they produce. I don’t know how many times I had a bad taste in my mouth hearing a huge writer whine on social media. Enough is enough.
I’m going crazy on these edits and I’m confident Project Hum will be one of the best horror-themed collections to drop in 2023.
What do those emojis mean?!? It mean’s my pen game is sick in every aspect of the word. Can’t wait for y’all to crack this book open later this spring. It’s a nice range of dark horror vibes, cosmic horror, weird fiction, etc.
Currently Watching: Love, Death & Robots Season 3 & The Last of Us Season 1
I watched Creed 2 in preparation for Creed 3. I forgot how much I love the Rocky franchise. This sequel had me in tears multiple times and hit all the right beats for me personally. When the Rocky theme music comes in, waterfalls come out of me instantly. Apollo Creed’s son vs. Ivan Drago’s son is such a loaded yet appealing matchup. Loved it.
Also, watched After Midnight. It has some endearing qualities, but I think there’s an identity crisis going on. At one point it wants to be a rom com, then it wants to be a horror comedy film, then it wants to be a pulpy monster flick, but struggles to maintain a consistent tone. Ending almost gave me blue balls somehow, but the vulnerable aspects are where this flick shines.
Currently Reading: Sing Behemoth Sing by K.E. Wolfe & Blame! by Tsutomu Nihei & Gleipnir by Sun Takeda
Currently Smoking: Pink Zushi
Currently Listening: Black Tapes Podcast & The Danny Brown Podcast
“Yes mama, I’mma eat you like Jeff Dahmer/say she on her period, let’s make a mess mama…”
Lil Wayne proving once again how he is the best rapper alive with “Kant Nobody” in 2023. I feel like maybe all he really needed was a haunting Swizz beat with a DMX sample because this is fire, and the fact that he was able to flip a new bar about eating pussy is incredible (considering the plethora of eating pussy bars in past songs).
Young Nudy, one of 21 Savage and Offset’s cousins, glides over this trap beat. I never really could get into his music in the past, but this single just hits the right way.
It’s nice seeing Jim Jones having this second wind in the rap game and connecting with HitMaka for an entire album. Maybe I’m an oldhead now trying to reconnect with my dipset youth. Either way, I’m feeling inspired.
“They say I got a founding father name, my pocket full of em…”
As an unspoken rule of rap, you need to drop something super hard after you get out of jail. BabyTron was locked up one night for a controlled substance, but proceeded to record an entire EP to captilize on the moment. Sharp lyrics, clever wordplay, and a step up in intensity for the Detroit native.
Until next time…
So entertaining!!
Those Creed movies are so good. Definitely gonna watch the third in the theater.