Oh boy.

So, recently, I published a book. It’s called Horror Business, and as the title suggests, it’s a horror novel.

The basic plot involves a horror movie-obsessed kid and the weirdness that begins to happen in the small town where he lives. The reason you need to know that is because the setting is very inspired by my own childhood and adolescence growing up in Park City, Utah.

I grew up reading The Park Record, Park City’s local newspaper, and still love reading it when I visit home. I think that it still holds a certain charm—a charm which has disappeared in most media outlets who’ve tried to make their content globally accessible.

Now, imagine my surprise and joy when I found out my mom bought a digital ad on the Park Record‘s online and mobile sites. (If you don’t see it, you may have to refresh a couple/lot of times).

One thing you have to know about my mom: we share the same sense of humor. Combine that with some decent Photoshop skills and this is what you get.

First off, it’s an animated gif, because of course it is.

(Screenshots from mobile site).

First slide

Thought processes: All right, there’s the book cover… good, good… ‘Park City author Ryan Bradford’. Nice local angle…

Wait. “Scarier than Stephen King”?

“Who said that?” I asked.

“I said it!” my mom said. And then after a moment of silence of not knowing how to respond to that, she added: “Scare quotes!… Get it?”

Also, please note her masterful use of the Chiller font.







Second slide

Thought processes:

· Wow.

· Three exclamation points! (!!!)

· My black-dyed, pseudo-goateed senior picture, taken over ten years ago–as if people are running to their PCHS ’03 yearbook to validate it? I dunno.

More Chiller! So much Chiller.

– G-g-g-ghost clip art.

– Why is my mom’s dog Sophie, looking possessed, on there? And what’s she saying? “Scarier than Clive B—” Oh.

Anyway, so much awesome. The book’s pretty good too. Some smart lit people think it’s pretty good. And some very smart people think it’s scarier than Stephen King.