Castaways Inspirations

Posted by: Loren Coleman on February 14th, 2009

Blogger John Joseph Adams interviewed Castaways novelist and horror author Brian Keene, who mentioned some of his inspirations. What I found surprised me:

“In late 2001, I contributed a short story called ‘Castaways’ to an anthology called In Laymon’s Terms, which was a tribute to Richard Laymon, who had passed away earlier that year,” Keene said in an interview. “The story was inspired by Laymon’s ‘Beast House’ mythos, in which a race of repugnant, savage beings are brought to America from an island off the coast of Australia. ‘Castaways’ was a play on that—what if a reality show like Survivor was unknowingly set on an island inhabited by a sub-human race of creatures? Readers have often asked me to consider turning the short story into a full-length novel. So I did.”

The novel follows the cast of the survival reality series, Castaways, who face peril when it turns out that their uninhabited island isn’t so uninhabited after all. “Think Cannibal Holocaust meets Survivor with a dash of Cryptozoology Today,” Keene said.

Although the island is inhabited by sub-human creatures, Keene said that Castaways is firmly grounded in this world.

“Indeed, the creatures themselves are the sort of thing you’d see featured on In Search Of or in a book by Loren Coleman,” he said. “They’re not so much monsters as they are a degenerate missing link.

To read on with Adams to the end, see here.

Thank you, Brian. I appreciate the mention.

Loren Coleman About Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman is one of the world’s leading cryptozoologists, some say “the” leading living cryptozoologist. Certainly, he is acknowledged as the current living American researcher and writer who has most popularized cryptozoology in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Starting his fieldwork and investigations in 1960, after traveling and trekking extensively in pursuit of cryptozoological mysteries, Coleman began writing to share his experiences in 1969. An honorary member of Ivan T. Sanderson’s Society for the Investigation of the Unexplained in the 1970s, Coleman has been bestowed with similar honorary memberships of the North Idaho College Cryptozoology Club in 1983, and in subsequent years, that of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, CryptoSafari International, and other international organizations. He was also a Life Member and Benefactor of the International Society of Cryptozoology (now-defunct). Loren Coleman’s daily blog, as a member of the Cryptomundo Team, served as an ongoing avenue of communication for the ever-growing body of cryptozoo news from 2005 through 2013. He returned as an infrequent contributor beginning Halloween week of 2015. Coleman is the founder in 2003, and current director of the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, Maine.


4 Responses to “Castaways Inspirations”

  1. AnthroPagan responds:

    My wife, who’s also an author, knows Brian Keene. Excellent writer and nice guy! I have to check out Castaways…love the premise. Good luck to Mr. Keene!

  2. Brian Keene responds:

    The pleasure is all mine, Mr. Coleman. I’ve been a fan for many, many years, and it was a treat to finally write something in which I could give you a nod (one of the characters, Jerry, an amateur cryptozoologist, mentions you as one of his heroes).

    Keep up the good work!

  3. Scrabbydoo responds:

    Sounds great! I’m looking forward to reading it.

  4. Loren Coleman responds:

    Thank you.

    I am humbled and honored.

    Interesting coincidence that, of my two brothers, the youngest, who did follow in my wake with his own take on cryptozoology, is named Jerry.

Sorry. Comments have been closed.

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