Keene was born in 1967. He grew up in both Pennsylvania and West Virginia, and many of his books take place in these locales.[2] After graduating high school, he served as a radioman in the U.S. Navy aboard an LPD. After his enlistment ended, Keene worked a variety of jobs before becoming a full-time writer. Among them were stints as a foundry worker, truck driver, data entry clerk, dockworker, telemarketer, customer service representative, repo man, bouncer, disc jockey, salesman, store manager, daycare instructor, custodian. In interviews, he credits this diverse background as the key to the characters that populate his books.[3]
2015 Imaginarium Film Festival Awards for Best Screenplay, Best Short Film Genre, and Best Short Film Overall (for "Fast Zombies Suck")[8]
2016 Imadjinn Award for Best Fantasy Novel (for "King of the Bastards")[9]
2017 This Is Horror Award for Nonfiction Podcast of the Year (for The Horror Show with Brian Keene).[10]
In 2004 and 2005, Keene spearheaded a Books For Troops program, in which various horror authors supplied free, signed books to American troops serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere around the world. Keene was honored for this in 2005 by the 509th Logistics Fuels Flight Squadron based at Whiteman A.F.B. in Missouri.[11]
In 2014, an American flag was flown in Keene's honor in Afghanistan and presented to him by the United States Army International Security Assistance Force.[12]
Keene is one of the few writers who has spoken inside the headquarters of the Central Intelligence Agency in several closed sessions.[13]
Comics and graphic novelsedit
In 2006, three stories from Keene's Fear of Gravity were adapted in the graphic novelBrian Keene's FEAR. The stories were "Castaways", "Red Wood", and the award-winning "The King, in: Yellow".
Keene wrote the 25-issue series "The Last Zombie" for Antarctic Press.
Keene's work for DC Comics has included Doom Patrol, the 2010 "DCU Halloween Special", and "Masters of the Universe: The Origin of Hordak". He was originally part of the writing team for Future's End but left the project along with writer Greg Rucka, also walking away from writing Animal Man and Booster Gold.[15]
In 2017, Keene returned to DC Comics to spearhead "DC House of Horror".[16]
Film adaptationsedit
In 2006, the short story "The Ties That Bind" was turned into a short film, and it had its world premiere on April 4, 2009, at the Garden State Film Festival.[17]
In 2009, Dark Hollow was optioned for film by director Paul Campion.[18]
Ghoul was made into a TV movie directed by Gregory Wilson and starring Nolan Gould[19] and debuted on the Chiller Network on April 13, 2012.
In July, 2015, a film adaptation of Keene's short story "Fast Zombies Suck" was released for free via YouTube.[20]
In December, 2016, The Naughty List, a film adaptation of Keene's short story "The Siqquism Who Stole Christmas" was released for free via YouTube and Vimeo.[21]
Podcastedit
From 2015 to 2020, Keene hosted a weekly podcast called The Horror Show With Brian Keene.[22] Keene and co-hosts Dave Thomas and Mary SanGiovanni discussed horror-related news and events, writing and publishing, and interviewed various horror authors, publishers, musicians, actors, and filmmakers.
Since 2012, he has been in a romantic relationship with fellow author Mary SanGiovanni.[23] The two were married on May 27, 2023.
On June 5, 2018, he suffered first and second degree burns to his face, and second and third degree burns to his arm after an accident while burning brush on a friend's property (during flood clean-up), and was sent to recuperate in a burn unit. Due to a lack of insurance, a GoFundMe was set up to pay the medical bills.[24][25]
Philanthropyedit
Keene is actively involved in fundraising for the Scares That Care charitable organization.[26]
In August 2017, Keene was made a member of the board of directors for the Scares That Care charitable organization.[27]
Referencesedit
^"BrianKeene on Twitter". Twitter. September 22, 2016. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
^"He's Keene on horror Award-winning author makes his living writing about the dead," York Sunday News (PA), May 29, 2005.
^"Interview With Brian Keene on Xomba". Hellnotes. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
^Past Stoker Nominees & Winners Archived October 15, 2008, at the Wayback Machine, Horror Writers Association Website, accessed May 27, 2011.
^The Complete Idiot's Guide to Zombies By Nathan Robert Brown
^Dragos-Valentin Radulescu. "Brian Keene - The Last Zombie - Rising Dead LOTD Community Forum". rising-dead.com. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
^"2014 Grand Master Award Winner: Brian Keene | World Horror Convention 2014". Archived from the original on 2014-06-06. Retrieved 2014-06-03.
^"2015 Film Festival Awards". Locus. 21 August 2013. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
^"2016 Imadjinn Award Winners". Locus. 17 October 2016. Retrieved 22 August 2017.
^"2017 This Is Horror Awards Winners". Locus. 19 April 2018. Retrieved 22 August 2017.
^"Talking With Horror Master Brian Keene About A Life In Dark Fiction And Why He Isn't Writing Futures End, Animal Man, Or Booster Gold - Bleeding Cool Comic Book, Movie, TV News". Bleeding Cool Comic Book, Movie, TV News. October 2014. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
^Terror, Jude (10 July 2017). "DC Sets 80 Page House Of Horror Anthology For October Release From Top Horror Authors And Brian Keene". Bleeding Cool Comic Book, Movie, TV News. Retrieved 22 August 2017.
^"A Handy Guide to Passive-Aggressive Sexism, or, How To Avoid Misidentifying Partners As Secretaries". Postcards From Space. Retrieved 22 August 2017.
^"Brian Keene Badly Burned in Fire, Seeks Help with Medical Bills". 6 June 2018.
^"Horror novelist Brian Keene badly burned in Lower Windsor TWP. Mishap".
^"Interview with Brian Keene". Apex Magazine. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
^Ripple, Joe. "welcome Brian Keene to our Board of Directors". Scares That Care. Retrieved 22 August 2017.