The brushing of a stray, black cat against my pant leg—combined with a strange pungency from the flowers, which I knew to hold no fragrance—evoked an inexplicable sense of mounting dread. This feeling was further intensified by a light breeze that stirred a nearby set of wind chimes and foretold of angry clouds visibly gathering in the south.
—Tony LaMalfa, “The Crimson Curse”
In June 2019, the Providence, Rhode Island-based Motif Magazine hosted a writing contest titled “Extend the Mythos.” This competition afforded authors the opportunity to submit Lovecraftian stories—no longer than 2,000 words—for the chance to be submitted in Motif’s August issue, which was released in conjunction with Providence’s NecronomiCon 2019.
The competition extended to artwork as well, so when looking for inspiration, LaMalfa found exactly that in Veronica (Ramsey) Westmoreland’s “Death Kitty.” However, this painting was not the sole influence of his story, “The Crimson Curse.” A stroll along the Lake Michigan waterfront beneath a heat lightning storm, as well as a 2016 walking tour with his wife around Providence (based on the generous guides by Donovan K. Loucks) also played into LaMalfa’s submission.
Although his tale did not win Motif’s contest, it found a home just months later (on Halloween) in the fourth issue Elvelon Press’s Outpost 28. This fortunate turn of events happened after LaMalfa’s chance meeting at NecronomiCon 2019 with illustrator and author Dean Kuhta, founder of the independent publishing shop in Richmond, Virginia. LaMalfa kicked off the release of Outpost 28: Issue #4 with a community event called Haunted Hallowmas.
“The Crimson Curse” made an appearance in 2020—again, in time for Halloween—thanks to Sirens Call Publications. This digital publisher’s quarterly eZine, The Sirens Call, is free to download and peruse. LaMalfa’s story was reprinted in Issue #51 of the generous online periodical.
I’ve just read “The Crimson Curse.” It’s an awfully charming story—but also creepy!
—S. T. Joshi, October 2019
Tony LaMalfa 