WHERE THE DEAD BRIDES GATHER
A Supernatural agreement with the universe and my ancestors
Greetings and Blessings, and welcome to Nuzo’s Nightmare Zone. It’s been over a year since I last posted. There was so much going on in my life at the time which I wanted to share with the world, but somehow, the world was sharing its unremitting turbulence with us instead; and so, everything else just seemed somewhat trite. Even receiving a Bramstoker Lifetime Achievement Award, a BBC TV, feature, and podcast, having two of my books acquired by Titan Books publishers, and having my story in the Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction longlisted by the British Science Fiction Association, amongst so many uncountable blessings, all seemed like things I should share quietly in light of the other awful things going on in the world.
Thankfully, I have come to realise that the world will go on for good or for evil, regardless of my little inconsequential self. So, I guess my life should also go on regardless of the world and its troubles, as long as I don’t add to those troubles by my actions or my careless words. So, here I am again, finally ready to share joyfully with you one of the numerous blessings my awesome ancestors and the universe have bestowed on me and hope that my experiences will encourage you all to reconnect with your ancestors and the universe too. As the famous Chinese proverb goes:
“To forget one’s ancestors is to be a brook without a source, a tree without a root.”
(My mother’s shrine where I commune daily with her)
As I said in a library talk last year, ancestor-remembrance has nothing to do with religion, ethnicity, sexuality or nationality. Same with reverence to our benevolent universe. We all come from somewhere and even those who don’t know their roots, know their racial DNA. Every member of our racial group is our ancestor. Each one of us claim this universe as our home. We just have to call on the benevolent ancestors and the universe to our aid and they will answer. They MUST ANSWER us because they have no other option but to do so. After all, we are the reason for their existence. Our very existence validates their lives and their relevance and ensures they are never forgotten. What is the universe without one of its most-precious creatures, humanity? What are the ancestors without their priceless progenies?
Some amongst us who are adopted or fostered, also know the loving people with whom they’ve formed strong emotional connections that makes them loving ancestors when they finally go into the light. The rest of us lucky to know our roots and ancestors already have our work cut short for us. It becomes a joy and a privilege to call on those loving ancestors to our aid whenever we need them. The universe, its powers and its abundance, are already universally ours to freely claim.
So, without much ado, let me share one of my awesome blessings with you. The prestigious publisher, Titan Books, recently acquired a second work of mine, WHERE THE DEAD BRIDES GATHER, fast on the heels of their first acquisition, THE GHOSTS IN THE MOON. They will be releasing WHERE THE DEAD BRIDES GATHER on 22nd October, 2024. Since that acquisition, I’ve been on an orgy of praise and gratitude at my ancestors’ shrines, namely, my beloved mother and my revered grandfather. On my daily walks, I never fail to shower the universe with my gratitude as I look at the trees, the skies, the birds and the very ground I tread. Gratitude begets more blessings and I intend to drown them all with so much gratitude that they’ll have no option but to continue blessing me.
Now, I’ve asked them to give me a figure for the sales of my book in the first 4 weeks of publication. For some weird reason, the number 48,000 has popped into my head. I don’t know why, since I’m planning on 100,000 sales in my megalomaniac greed. But who am I to question their will? Still, I’ve begged them to round it up to 50,000. I think they’ve agreed; I’m not sure. But whatever the case, they have pledged to give me 48,000 book sales in the first 4 weeks of publication on 22nd October 2024. I’ll take that number and beg for more later. After all, the wheel that squeaks the most gets the grease. So, come 19th November 2024, exactly four weeks after publication, I’ll be pestering Titan Books to give me the figures and prove to me that I hit my ancestors’ and the universe’s target 😊
So, I am now here claiming that figure and that date. I am shouting out this number as I type this—50,000 sold copies of WHERE THE DEAD BRIDES GATHER by 19th November, 2024! I am now publicly holding my ancestors and the universe to account. I will keep reminding them and you all about it every fortnight, so that you all support this goal in your own little ways. You all owe me nothing and I truly expect nothing. But like a beggar who has nothing to lose and everything to gain, I’m holding my Oliver Twist bowl and saying, “Please guys, may I have some more?” Since you can’t give me a bowl of food in your generosity, please feed me some soul-food by getting your copy of WHERE THE DEAD BRIDES GATHER in any format. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!
Alas, like most writers, I’m not the best at self-promotion, so I struggle with social media. Twitter is the only platform I’m active on. So please, those of you active on Facebook, Instagram, BlueSky, TikTok, and other platforms, I’ll be in your eternal debt if you would share this post and my goal with your followers using hashtag #NUZO50,000. Please spread the word to your friends and colleagues and even family. Tell them to pre-order, please, to help me meet this modest target. If you can, also pre-order for yourselves. Join me in this campaign to hold my ancestors and our universe accountable and maybe if I succeed, it just might encourage you to start holding your own ancestors and our universe equally accountable in your lives :) Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Don’t forget to subscribe to this blog if you haven't already done so. THANK YOU SO MUCH!!
Below are the worldwide purchase outlets and links:
1. AFRICA: (Nigeria & South Africa – purchase links soon to follow)
· Jonathan Ball Publishers, South Africa
· Rovingheights Books, Nigeria.
2. ASIA:
· Bookazine (Hong Kong)
· Kino (Thailand/Singapore)
· Sketch (Philippines)
· Periplus (Indonesia)
3. AMAZON UK:
4. AMAZON US
5. PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE, CANADA
7. WATERSTONES
9. WHSmith
APPRECIATION PLEDGE
So, this is my personal appreciation pledge to everyone that pre-orders and sends me the information to my email, (nuzoonoh01@gmail.com) or DMs me on twitter. I shall include your name in a special acknowledgement page in one of my upcoming books, the paperback updated publication of CALL ON YOUR ANCESTORS FOR YOUR SUCCESS & HAPPINESS. It will be a whole lot of pages dedicated to you, but it’s the very least your kindness and generosity demands. There's something else still in the planning stage which I'll share once finalised. Finally, I will also beg the universe to bless you abundantly and tell your ancestors to remember you too if for any reason you’ve forgotten them and they’ve forgotten you😊 Once again, THANK YOU!
Nuzo xx
WHERE THE DEAD BRIDES GATHER is published on 22nd October, 2024 by Titan Books
Remember, do share your thoughts and introduce your friends to Nuzo’s Nightmare Zone. https://nuzo.substack.com/p/coming-soon