To say that Stephen Graham Jones is the next Stephen King is to ignore how singular and uniquely striking his writing is. But in terms of impact, he's well on his way.
A New York Times bestselling author of hundreds of short stories and dozens of novels, you may be most familiar with works like The Only Good Indians, Mongrels, and My Heart is a Chainsaw.
But Jones has even more excitement brewing with the re-publication of six of his previously out-of-print titles.
Currently available for pre-order, Zombie Bake-Off, It Came From Del Rio, The Long Trial of Nolan Dugatti, After the People Lights Have Gone Off, Three Miles Past, and Sterling City will be delivered straight to your e-readers on October 1st.
And fans of Jones and his work have quite the celebration planned to honor the occasion.
A loyal fanbase of readers, booksellers, podcasters, and book influencers has come together to declare October 1st as Stephen Graham Jones Day.
Branding the excitement with #SGJday, there is plenty of fun to follow.
The Beautiful Sinners launch a campaign to celebrate Stephen Graham Jones Day on October 1, 2024.
“So thrilled to have Open Road bringing these out-of-print books back, making them available again." —Stephen Graham Jones
The organizers of SGJ Day have given themselves the name “The Beautiful Sinners,” pulling inspiration from Jones's incredible novel All the Beautiful Sinners.
Of the forthcoming re-releases, Stephen Graham Jones said, “Nothing but an honor for readers to look back along the bookshelf to who I used to be, how I used to write—to how I wish I could still write, really.”
To get Jones's name trending on X, Instagram, and TikTok, “The Beautiful Sinners” are asking that on October 1st you post about your favorite Stephen Graham Jones book using #SGJday.
If you want to celebrate in style or represent your favorite horror author year round, artists Justin McElroy and Jason Ragosta designed a set of three spooky buttons.
Are you feeling lucky? On October 1st, enter the Saga Press giveaway and take home a signed galley proof of Stephen Graham Jones's upcoming new novel Buffalo Hunter Hunter.
“One thing I've learned, doing this all these years, is that your muscles and your eye and your fascinations change across the years. Each book is a snapshot of who you were when you wrote it,” Jones said.
"And then, next book, you're someone else. It's scary, but I think it's natural, too? I think if we ever stop changing, it's because we've stopped moving, and not moving, man, that's not so great.”
And of course, stay tuned for a special video message on October 1 from the horror icon himself, Stephen Graham Jones!
#SGJday participants include:
Robb Olson (host of The ARC Party podcast), Greg Greene (influencer & leader of SGJ Day), Heather Jane (influencer & book reviewer), Amber Reu (influencer & creator of the Novel Nightmares book club), Lorin Elise (influencer), Jesse Lawrence ("Knows more about SGJ than SGJ himself."), Matt Morris (online reviewer & cohost of the SGJ Club), Tony Petro (online reviewer & cohost of the SGJ Club), Marguerite Turley (bookseller at Doylestown/Lahaska), Cat Delani (influencer & writer for Fandomentals), Lisa Dolbow (bookseller & influencer), Michael Robinson (influencer & Mayor of Burkittsville, MD), Billy Stratton ( President of The Stephen Graham Jones Society), Unstable Books (influencer & member of Saga Says Crew), and Anna Dupre (influencer, Bookstagrammer, and reviewer for fanfiaddict.com).
Celebrate #SGJDay!
Stephen Graham Jones Day acknowledges the legacy of a modern horror great, not only paying homage to what has come before, but anticipating all the wonderful things to come. Be sure to share in the love on October 1st.
"With these re-releases, I mostly just hope that people find something there to laugh about, to cringe away from, something to let them feel less alone for a few pages. That's all I ever want, really." —Stephen Graham Jones
And we at The Lineup are keen to keep the fun going.
We're further celebrating Stephen Graham Jones with the launch of our brand new Fable book club, featuring his re-published novel It Came From Del Rio.
Join the book club now and read along with us, starting October 4th.
Looking for something fun to do in person?
If you have tickets to New York Comic Con, join us for The Lineup's Horror Cosplay Meetup.
This event will be held Friday, October 18th at 8 p.m. at Javits Center's Inner Roadway Meetups. Beyond a group cosplay photo, we'll also be doing a giveaway for each of Stephen Graham Jones's re-published titles!
How will you be celebrating our favorite author?