1. Stephen King - I know we're supposed to not list him here, being his website and all it's an obvious choice, but I had to anyway. He's pretty much the author that really got me into reading. The first author I ever followed based on name recognition; had I not been introduced to King books as young as I was, I probably wouldn't have been much of a reader at all. I was an avid horror movie fan from the time I was very young and my mother turned me onto King using the old "Yeah, the movie was okay but the book was better" routine and passing me the novels. Nuff said.
2. Clive Barker - My 2nd favorite Horror/Fantasy Author, been reading his stuff almost as long as Kings. I had seen the "Hellraiser" and "Nightbreed" movies and loved them so my mother bought me "Cabal" and "Books of Blood 1-3" for a birthday or Christmas or something. Been a fan ever since. I wish he would hurry up and finish the "Scarlett Gospels" thing already, been promising it for a decade if not more.
3. Donald Goines - Urban Crime fiction writer. Most of his stuff was written during the early 70's with a civil rights era 60's mentality and it's really a raw no holds barred look into that time period. I got into him when I was at a friends house and saw "Swamp Man" sitting on a coffee table. Great writer, died too young His career only lasted less then a decade but he released about 2 books a year while he was active. He and his wife were both murdered in 1974 and the urban legend is that some of the real life gangsters who he based his characters on were not flattered and took revenge. He lived a pretty sad life full of drugs and crime, spent some time in prison. Much of his stuff was based on first hand experiences.
4. Chuck Palahniuk - Satirical writer most known for writing "Fight Club". If you've seen the movie, you basically know everything you need to know about his style of writing. Very Cynical and in some ways Nihilistic but I have a dark sense of humor and he appeals to that side of my personality. I wouldn't recommend his work to most people though, it's extremely offensive to pretty much anybody. My Mother borrowed "Haunted" from me a few years ago and when she brought it back I asked her if she liked it, she just replied "What the hell is wrong with you" and gave it back without finishing it .
5. Joe Hill - Newest author on my list. I've read all 3 of his novels, his short story collection and a couple of his loose short stories floating around the internet like "Thumbprint". He has many of the same qualities as his old man, a good sense of humor, well written characters, not afraid to be brutal when he needs to be but never looses the ability to make you laugh. I see a bright future for him.
