Synopsis/blurb...
Intelligent writing inspired by rock 'n' roll
Fast brutal fiction from:
Laird Long Al Guthrie
Delphine Lecompte Kevin Cadwallender
and many more .......
Bullet magazine lasted for 7 issues, back in the early to mid 2000s. Conceived and edited by Keith Jeffrey, the magazine progressed from a leaflet style first issue, to a fairly professional looking publication by the time of its last outing.
Issue 3 has an almost DIY feel to it, similar to a student rag mag and looking as if it was run off on a workplace photo copier. That said I don't think I spotted a typo on any page, first to last.
The content consists of 15 short stories (from the UK and much further afield - Belgium, the US, Canada, Australia) as well as a few short articles and reviews. A couple of the contributor names I instantly recognised. Allan Guthrie - I've read loads from him in the past - Two Way Split, Killing Mum, Savage Night and more. Ed Lynskey - Lake Charles, Ask the Dice, Wrong Orbits - sit on the pile.
The short stories are short - each other them either single or double page in length. There's fiction from Delphine Lecompte, Peter McAdam, Allan Guthrie, TK Dan, Elle Ludkin, Ed Lynskey, Shiv Madhaven, Martin Craig, Kevin Cadwallender, Breanda Cross, Liam Sharp, Mike Coombes, E. Smith Gilbert, Pat Lambe and Laird Long.
There's a bit of unevenness with the tales - a few of them I didn't really comprehend and a few I loved - pretty much par for any anthology or collection of shorts I've read. Laird Long's Ghosts of the Past was the pick of the bunch.
On the non-fiction front, there's a homage piece to Robert Beck aka Iceberg Slim, an appreciation of The Ramones, a review of a couple books on Gene Vincent, a hat-tip to some book releases by Point Blank Press and Pulp Originals, some more album reviews, and a top ten album list from Ray Banks.
Overall impression - a couple of hours reading time well spent and a nostalgic reminder of the days when I used to lavishly stalk sites like Plot With Guns, Thug-Lit and others - names escape me - for new crime fiction content and authors to follow. It's my very own UK equivalent.
You can't help but be impressed by the editor's enthusiasm, even if his sign-off has more than a whiff of cheese about it.....keep on rockin'
3 from 5
Read in September, 2018
Published - 2004
Page count - 44
Source - purchased copy
Format - A5 magazine
This does sound entertaining, Col. And I have to admit, I have a weakness for music. Stories with that sort of theme appeal to me. Even if it's not top on your list for the year, it looks like fun.
ReplyDeleteI like a musical back drop to my reading, for starters I get hints on tips and artists and tracks to check out if they aren't instantly recognizable by their title. Some but not all has this as a key part of the story.
DeleteTop ten lists always hold an interest for me to see what I have in common.
I like reading short stories out of a magazine though I have only ever done so online and in the public domain. I'm not familiar with the literary mag scene in India.
ReplyDeletePrashant, I continue to follow a few sites mostly online - Tough, Close to the Bone, Pulpmetal and others. Not religiously just to drop in on now and again. I've more than a few printed magazines on the pile also.
DeleteCol – Nice find. Never heard of this, but recognized a couple of the contributors’ names.
ReplyDeleteElgin, I'm quite keen to revisit some of my old internet print-offs of crime fiction from a dozen or more years ago, so I can see who is still around and writing today. Ed Lynskey is the standout for me here. Allan Guthrie has had a stellar writing career also, but seems to be more involved as an agent and publisher these days as opposed to knocking out his own pulp.
DeleteCol – Those are the two names familiar to me. Let us know what you discover when you look back at those print-offs.
DeleteWill do.
DeleteSounds like a great mag. Dang! Wish I'd known about it back in the day!
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure how well known it became when it was alive. It lasted until 2006 and then no more. It would have been hard to notice it from afar even back then.
DeleteI have often wished I had bought Alfred Hitchcock magazines and Ellery Queen magazines and could go back to some of those. But I have enough short story anthologies to keep me busy for a while.
ReplyDeleteYeah I know what you mean. I have loads of similar publications - Needle Magazine, All Due Respect anthologies, Switchblade, plus numerous internet print offs, before even considering the mainstream author collections and other anthologies. I don't know how I expected to read them all!
DeleteNow this is really obscure! I commend your commitment...
ReplyDeleteCheers, just need to stumble across the other six issues!
Delete