Matt Rogerson (business)

UPDATE! Absolutely under zero circumstances will we accept any submissions, either at Abstract stage or in drafting essays, that have used (or we suspect have used) Generative AI. FULL STOP. CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS! Embracing the Abject: Exploring abjection in cinema (edited by Dr Megan Kenny @monstrous_meg ) This is a call for proposals for an upcoming title from 1428 Publishing titled Embracing the Abject: Exploring abjection in cinema. Abjection, as defined by Julia Kristeva is “[...]the human reaction (horror, vomit) to a threatened breakdown in meaning caused by the loss of the distinction between subject and object or between self and other”. The abject is a liminal space, a place between the stable, orderly Self and the dangerous Other. In art, the abject is a powerful tool for rejecting that which is socially acceptable and destabilising conventional aesthetics. Abject art leans into that which is dirty, vile or shameful and seeks to provoke feelings of discomfort and unease in the viewer. It often relates to the body, with body horror providing a clear example of the abject (think of Jeff Goldblum in The Fly). But abject art can also reflect social conditioning and challenge social norms (think of Tracy Emin’s My Bed). To experience the abject is to have a visceral response. Examples of the abject can take many forms, but some examples include: Visual – blood, excrement, vomit, urine, flies, maggots Auditory – squelching, gagging, buzzing insects, dental tools, knives sharpening, splattering Touch – dirty sink water, sewage, picking scabs, ripping off fingernails, rotting food, swallowing foreign objects Pain – broken skin, broken bones, childbirth, bites, surgery, popped zits These examples are not universal, some of you may love dirty sink water and trips to the dentist, but they serve to highlight that the abject can manifest in a range of sensory experiences. As a result of this, the abject is often explored in relation to horror cinema, and you can feel free to submit ideas that explore films in the horror genre but also take the opportunity to think beyond this, if the mood takes you. (cont. in comments)

A message from Matt: As Editor and Publisher of #DarkestMargins , and the owner of 1428 Publishing, today is a very special day. I have worked tirelessly on this project for the last 18 months...to see it bear fruit, to hold copies in my hand, I could cry. But today is also about the contributors, without whom none of this would be possible: @kim_a_tron @zombie.queen @horrornonna @alexsecilmis @_aaminamahmood @arachleaa @bansheec @sal_campbells @david.bamford @jayjayrose7 @the_hellbound_heart @whatascream @wewhowalkhere @monstrous_meg @drgaine @nosfemmeatu @momoshaty @killer_horror_critic @r4v3nr0s3 @myroslava.halushka @rachaelnisbet @johnkleindesign @sleightsofheart @ashe.woodward @commedesgargoyles @monstrous_flesh @alienmeloooooooooon Today is for YOU. Cherish it. Praise yourselves. Treat yourselves. You have each made an outstanding contribution to Darkest Margins, and the finished book is yours. My thanks, my praise, my sheer PRIDE to you all. ~Matt Matt Rogerson Editor in Chief 1428 Publishing Ltd

We at 1428 could not be happier at the news that @momoshaty 's essay 'Haunted Thresholds: Liminal Horror and the Psychological Disintegration of Women from Post-Partum, Grief, Trauma and Religious Fanaticism' has been nominated for a Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in Short Non-Fiction. We are proud of every single contribution to Darkest Margins, a truly incredible book which you need on your shelves! Mo's chapter covers horror films, literature and video games and the plight of women across the whole genre. It is an absolute fucking banger, and Mo is long overdue this recognition for her work. Auguri, amica mia!

Adspace for #DarkestMargins in @screamhorrormag . The new issue promises some A Nightmare on Elm Street content, which of course gets our seal of approval!

DEAD PRETTY PERK SPOTLIGHT! Our friends at @1428publishing have very kindly given us 5 copies of Darkest Margins for the DEAD PRETTY Crowdfunder. And there are now only 2 left! This is a collection of 24* essays on liminality and liminal spaces in horror, written by leading and up-and-coming genre writers, with a foreword by the incredible @horrornonna . And with the term "liminal horror" being chucked about absolutely everywhere right now, consider this your essential handbook. More than empty hallways and weird little rooms, this book explores psychological liminality and anthropological liminality, as well as architectural. Grab one along with your copy of DEAD PRETTY as a Crowdfunder perk while you can! 🚪

Fantastic event @greenhousebooks_ last night to promote #DarkestMargins with guest speakers @bavalamp @the_hellbound_heart @monstrous_meg @drgaine Huge thanks to Janet and Jonathan, and to everyone who came down, listened to us discuss those physical thresholds, rites of passage, psychological transitions, seaside towns, cotton mills, and children caked in blood!

Enjoyed participating in the most recent Darkest Margins book event in Stockport this evening! I read a little from my chapter on the soil as a liminal space: there was also some thought-provoking and engaging material on Lynch, Los Angeles and the liminal, and the Blade franchise (and its liminal lead character) as a Freudian push/pull between Thanatos and Eros. Massive thanks to @bavalamp for all the amazing work putting this book and all the events together! Lovely to meet the other authors too! If this sounds like your thing (and obviously it should) then head to @1428publishing to find out more about this collection of 24 essays on liminality. The weirder shit gets, the more threshold spaces seem to hold an appeal, so there's no better time than now to grab a copy...

📚🍷 A huge thanks to everyone who came to the launch of @1428publishing 's 'DARKEST MARGINS' this week at @treadwellsbooks ! What a privilege to share the stage with @bavalamp , @momoshaty of @nighttidemag , and @sal_campbells as we delved into liminal horror and the female body. Special thanks to Dr Christina Oakley-Harrington and the team for making this candlelit evening of free-flowing wine so special. Photos by @moshografia

David Lynch, Dead Empire, vampires and more. 1428 Press with Matt Rogerson and his fellow writers. Pick up his book before they all go if you weren’t able to make the event.

❗️SOLD OUT❗️ Friends, enemies! I’m speaking at beloved @treadwellsbooks next Thursday (30/04). It’s my first public event since my career change, and I’m a little nervous. Would love to see some familiar faces! 💗 This is the London launch of the ‘Darkest Margins’ collection, to which I contributed an essay on HR Giger and birth trauma through his outrageous ‘PASSAGEN’ series. Speaking alongside @bavalamp of @1428publishing , @momoshaty of @nighttidemag , and @sal_campbells — unmissable! 🌚💫📚 🎟️Tickets in bio.

If you are thinking of submitting to Embracing the Abject, my exciting new project with 1428 publishing, but aren't sure what embracing the abject looks like, here's a few films that fit the bill. Also a glimpse into my film preferences... This isn't an exhaustive list but should give a flavour of what it looks like to go willingly into abjection, to revel in transgression and find the power that lies in breaking boundaries. Possession (1981) Der Fan (1982) Witches of Eastwick (1984) Singapore Sling (1990) Serial Mom (1994) Dans Ma Peau (2002) May (2002) Bones and All (2022)

RE: EMBRACING THE ABJECT Call for Submissions If you have submitted an abstract for 1428's forthcoming collection, or are thinking of submitting, please consider: The thrust of this collection is to move beyond the notion of Creed and the idea of abjection as something Monstrous, something to be feared, something that causes harm. It is to consider the abject as something to be accepted, EMBRACED, revelled in, even. Think about properties and characters that embrace abjection, for whom their embrace of the abject drives their narrative arc. Consider AMERICAN MARY (2012) or CRIMES OF THE FUTURE (2022), and embracing the extremes of body modification. Consider Julia from HELLRAISER (1987) and her willingness to embrace infidelity, murder, the undead, even Hell itself to be with her love, Frank. Consider the vampire, who embraces the abject, transgressive existence of the undead in order to gain immortality. Consider witch films, and the women who, in a patriarchal society that seeks only to subjugate and harm them, embrace the abject so that they may realise power, beauty, and more. There are many examples in horror of characters narratives and themes that EMBRACE abjection, as opposed to mourning it. If your abstract covers such, it is much more likely to make the cut. If you've already submitted and are wondering if revising your submission might be beneficial, please do contact @monstrous_meg to discuss further. Thank you! Matt - 1428 Publishing.