Quad Cities Pair Partners on Spooky New Book, “Eerie Iowa”
Just in time for spooky season, local author Michael McCarty and artist Bruce Walters have partnered to produce “Eerie Iowa,” with haunted tales and places all about the Hawkeye State.
The 176-page book (published by The History Press) paints a haunting portrait of the farmlands and rural areas of Iowa, which are no stranger to the weird, dark and mysterious. Learn about a terrestrial sighting from 1903, a creepy cryptid that terrorized the town of Van Meter. Find out about Bigfoot sightings in Calhoun County. Peer under the waters of Lake Okoboji to find a huge lake monster.
Read the history of a frightening sculpture based on a story by Franz Kafka and hear a premonition that predicted a devastating fire. Five-time Bram Stoker Finalist author Michael McCarty and Professor Emeritus Bruce Walters forge a twisted path through shadowy, Gothic Iowa, according to the book synopsis.
The cover of the new book, “Eerie Iowa” by Michael McCarty and Bruce Walters.
“It was an incredible journey, criss-crossing Iowa from the Mississippi to the Missouri rivers, from border to border -traveling throughout Iowa-walking amidst ghost towns, cemeteries, jails, asylums, hotels, churches, murder sites,” Walters said. “Michael and I delved deeply into these haunted locations — our research and interviews unearthed information previously unpublished.”
Walters, of Davenport, retired from Western Illinois University in 2021 and was conferred with the title, Professor Emeritus. His artwork has been included in more than 100 solo, invitational, and competitive exhibitions: in the Midwest at the Des Moines Art Center, Madison Museum of Contemporary Art and numerous university museums; internationally as a contributing artist at Ulster University, Belfast; University of Dundee, Scotland; and Tate Modern, London.
Two recent short films by Walters have been broadcast on Midwest PBS stations. He also had two columns “Buried Stories” and “Art in Plain Sight” that ran in the River Cities’ Reader from 2010-2024.
McCarty, of Rock Island, has been a professional writer since 1983 and is the author of over 50 books of fiction and nonfiction. His nonfiction includes “Ghosts of the Quad Cities” (with Mark McLaughlin), “Eerie Quad Cities” (with John Brassard Jr.), “Quad Cities Beer: A History” (with Kristin DeMarr), “Estoria-Land,” “Modern Mythmakers: 35 Interviews with Horror and Science Fiction Writers and Filmmakers” and “More Modern Mythmakers.”
Michael McCarty (left) of Rock Island and Bruce Walters of Davenport, with the 2019 book “Ghosts of the Quad Cities,” which Walters collaborated on with McCarty and author Mark McLaughlin.
His fiction includes “Frankenstein’s Mistress: Tales of Love & Monsters”; “Dracula Transformed and Other Bloodthirsty Tales”; “Dark Duets, Dark Cities: Dark Tales”; “A Little Help From My Fiends”; “Liquid Diet & Midnight Snack”; “Lost Girl of the Lake”; “Biters: Tales of Zombies & Vampires”; “Laughing In The Dark,” “I Kissed A Ghoul,” “Waiting For The Night” and the science fiction children’s book “Rusty The Robot’s Holiday Adventures.”
McCarty is a five-time Bram Stoker Finalist and in 2008 won the David R. Collins’ Literary Achievement Award from the Midwest Writing Center. His blog site is http://monstermikeyaauthor.wordpress.com, and his official Facebook page is www.facebook.com/michaelmccarty.horror.
You can buy a copy of “Eerie Iowa” ($24.97 paperback) from McCarty and Walters this Saturday from 2 to 5 p.m. at Barnes & Noble at NorthPark Mall, 320 W. Kimberly Rd., Davenport, or on Nov. 1 (with McCarty only) from 1 to 3 p.m. at The Brewed Book, 1524 N. Harrison St., Davenport. The pair will also do a signing and talk Nov. 20 at 1:30 p.m. at the Bettendorf Public Library, 2950 Learning Campus Drive.
You can also order “Eerie Iowa” from Amazon HERE.
