For every book that sees the light of day, finding itself in the hands of voracious readers, hundreds—or, if we’re being honest, thousands—of manuscripts remain unpublished. Some may have been fully written, edited, and cover art designed, only to be axed last minute. Others may only be a burning ember. A spark. An idea.
Terrorcore Publishing has released three books over three years, with the fourth (Doors of Darkness III: The Mall) coming soon. We have a massive slate planned for next year (more on that coming later this year), but we have also had a few projects fall through the cracks.
Doors of Darkness II: The Hospital
After the success of Doors of Darkness, we immediately jumped into planning the sequel. The original concept for Doors of Darkness II was to take place during the night shift of a rural hospital (à la Halloween II). The plan was to publish an anthology of short stories around the doctors, nurses, and patients roaming the hospital at night—surgeries, recovery, and even death would be the topic of conversation. We were close to pulling the trigger and making the announcement in preparation for a fall 2024 release. So, what happened?
Ultimately, we felt that Doors of Darkness II: The Hospital was too grim. Would anybody want to read an anthology about sickness? In the end, we scrapped the concept and immediately went with Doors of Darkness II: Trick or Treat. The Halloween setting allowed our writers to explore the candy-coated Pike Street on the night of October 31st—witches, ghosts, and goblins a plenty. Keep your eyes peeled, though, as a hospital-like setting may make an appearance in Terrorcore’s future.
The House on Sorority Row
This one hurts… We reached out to writer and director Mark Rosman to write an official novelization for the 1982 slasher movie The House on Sorority Row earlier this year. At Terrorcore, we are huge fans of the film and were excited to give it a new life in novel form. So, what happened? Initially, conversations went well, but the movie business is a complicated one, and it ultimately came down to a rights issue. We tried to make it work. Everyone was onboard, except the studio, that is. So, the project was dead in the water.
A few follow-up emails went unanswered, so we, to put it honestly, gave up. It’s a project we would love to have seen happen, but in the end, the stars did not align. Never fear, as Slaughter High, the official novelization of the 1986 slasher, releases early next year. We also have a few surprises on the horizon…