Because he is mentioned a few times in past entries here and because he is also named in my debut novel’s acknowledgments (and boy howdy, would I like to undo that), let me be clear: I do not in any way, shape, or form condone Thomas Monteleone’s racist, bigoted comments, including but not limited to the ones he recently made on Facebook and in a recent podcast appearance. Dude’s lost the plot, if he ever had it. With everything he’s accomplished, I have no idea why he decided “Lashing out at writers from diverse and marginalized backgrounds and trying to make everyone doubt their talent, their accomplishments, and their places in the industry” should be his legacy.

If I’d been aware of those beliefs back in 2018, I’d never have signed up for the Borderlands Writers Boot Camp. My personal impression of the man is irrelevant but if you’re wondering, no—he didn’t say any of this shit there, or at least not while I was around to hear it. I applaud the Horror Writers Association for showing him the door, and I support Brian Keene and Mary Sangiovanni rebranding the Borderlands Boot Camp with the Scares that Care name. I also appreciated Camp Necon’s statement, especially this part:

The legendary Charles L. Grant, often called “The Godfather of Camp Necon,” consistently championed new voices in horror and always insisted that, “By growing the pie, we all eat more.” It is in Charlie’s spirit and tradition that we’d like to state that by championing not just new, but diverse voices within the genre we believe we all eat BETTER.

Very well said.

And I’m genuinely sorry to any marginalized writers who’ve had to see Tom’s hateful bilge RTed into their social media.