Russ Williams
 Official Website

 Novelist, Screenwriter & Poet


Gothic Churchyard

The Night Hunter:
Story of a Community in Chaos

Terrorist Mob Destroys the Town!

“Except for a single wall ... the structure was gone, reduced to its brick foundation.
A lingering glow cast shadows across the churchyard, buzzard shapes stretched taffy-like into a deformed circle about blackened wood and ashes. ...

Changes wrought by flames and shimmering ember light transformed it into an ethereal scene, a window on another world. ...  He remembered … 'Your temple will turn to ashes before you'."

From
The Night Hunter

This novel by Russ Williams presents an apocalyptic view of a small town turned upside-down by a natural disaster. Action and human drama come together to force members of this shaken community to live or die while facing horrific challenges, natural and supernatural. There’s a doctor, a lawyer, a priest, a saloon keeper, a sheriff, a mayor, lovers, young and old, as well as the rich and the poor. All must band together to survive. Here's a preview:

The president's voice crackled over the battery-powered radio: "My fellow Americans, I regret bearing such terrible news, but most of our nation is buried beneath snow left by this monumental blizzard. I have declared a state of emergency and martial law, and moved the Congress and executive branch to a provisional government center in Jacksonville, Florida. Much of the rest of our country is covered with fifty or more feet of snow.

"I have ordered the U.S. armed services to begin digging out our large cities, but I ask those of you in outlying areas to take heart and have courage. We will try to rescue you as soon as we can and return local and national services to normal, whenever possible. Until then, I ask you, please remain calm and conserve your resources. Help is on the way. I repeat, help is on the way."

"But what about us?" the girl screamed. "We're trapped here in the middle of nowhere. How long will it take them to reach us this far up in the mountains? Weeks? Months? Are we all going to die?"

A small band of people gathered around the radio and tried to give her comfort, but they had no answers. All they could do was wait — and hope.

So begins a time of terror in The Night Hunter — a mysterious tale of adventure and romance in an isolated village haunted by the unknown. To survive, these people have to struggle against the winter forces of nature gone wild. Yet, the ones who live must fight the ultimate battle, against their own weakness and desires, as they come face to face with ... the Night Hunter.

To purchase this book now through Amazon.com, click here!

Darkest Night: For more information on Russ' horror film Darkest Night, click here.

For an Important Notice, Please See "Author's Blog" Below ...

Writer With a Vision

Welcome to the dark yet enlightening literary worlds of Russ Williams. Every page of his novels (and other works) springs vibrant with interesting characters, fascinating storylines, and lots of action. Russ writes fiction to entertain. Of course, other writers who fill America's bookstore shelves can do the same thing. So what makes him different?

His work contains a depth of ideas underneath the surface story. This foundation surpasses the "two-dimensionality" of most writers out there today. Can any of you remember the best-selling novel of 1998, just ten years ago, or for that matter, even last year? These stories get "cranked out" at a tremendous pace, acclaimed by critics, selling millions, made into movies, talked about by everyone, then in a few years they're gone. The best-seller of 1998 (whatever it was!) is now in the trash can and landfill, gone to make way for the next best-seller, and the next and the next.

Russ' work will be remembered long after these best-sellers have faded from sight. For example, The Night Hunter was first published in 1990 and now is republished by popular demand. After almost 20 years, this story still speaks to American readers. This popularity is because Russ crafts his writing with more than just a desire to sell. Like his model and historical mentor, William Shakespeare, his primary purpose is to please the public. However, his work also provides real intellectual and emotional nourishment, a banquet for thought, not just stuff to think about for a while.

His writing is layered, like careful architecture. The top layer is a fun story, and you can take it at only that level and be well entertained. The next strata expose live (and lively) characters who are real, vivid, and three-dimensional, not the shallow stereotypes of most bookstore fare. If you read even more, you discover a world of ideas, shown in conflict and expressed passionately, as well as social commentary and satire. Finally, at base, the stories speak to universal themes of human existence, philosophical, moral, and spiritual.

Certainly, university presses will give you thousands of novels that grapple with existential themes and "great ideas." English professors love to write these kinds of novels. They also love to read them, even if few others ever do. So what's the lesson here? American has split into two streams, commercial and academic. For fun, read the best-sellers. If you want to use your brain, read the professors, even if they're often almost unreadable!

The strength in Russ' work is that he's able to combine both streams into a single river of easy-to-read, exciting, and thoughtful stories. You don't need two bookshelves, a popular one for cotton-candy words and an academic one for bitter-pill verbiage. Neither a crowd-pleaser nor an intellectual, Russ deals with true human emotion and passion. His stories are writ large on the epic canvas of real and vibrant life.

Yes, his tales are often dark, Gothic, and tragic. Much of the time, he terrifies, saddens, and even shocks. Even so, the reader who persists will find uplifting affirmations of the human spirit as well. More often than not, there is light at the end of his long, story-built tunnels. He puts his characters through difficult straits because that's what life is about: the worse the trial, the greater the triumph!

So let this website introduce you to the thrilling literary and cinematic work of Russ Williams:

Author's Blog: Important Notice

Russ has changed his Blog, and it now has an exciting new look. Check it out when you can!

Unfortunately, those of you who commented, followed or otherwise linked to his previous Blog must do so all over again. Please feel free to visit the new Blog and give us your comments. Please follow the new blog, or "re-follow" if you want to. Thanks, and we apologize for any inconvenience.

Media & Awards

News and information about awards, upcoming film and book releases, as well as personal appearances by Russ are announced in the author's Blog. These announcements are updated on a regular basis. To access this Blog, including Russ' poetry and commentary, click here.