Richard Thomas

Richard Thomas (born November 21, 1967) is an American author. His focus is on neo-noir, new weird, and speculative fiction, typically including elements of violence, mental instability, breaks in reality, unreliable narrators, and tragedies. His work is rich in setting and sensory details—often called maximalism. His writing has also been called transgressive and grotesque. In recent years, his dark fiction has added more hope, leaning into hopepunk. He was Editor-in-Chief at both Dark House Press (2012-2016) and Gamut Magazine (2017-2019).

Biography Thomas was born in St. Louis, Missouri, and grew up in Webster Groves. He earned a Bachelor of Science at Bradley University, in Peoria, Illinois, and in 2012 an MFA at Murray State University. He currently lives in Chicago.

Thomas was Editor-in-Chief at Dark House Press , an imprint of Curbside Splendor Publishing that launched in 2014 with The New Black. Work there was nominated for both the Bram Stoker Award and the Shirley Jackson Award. He was also the Editor of Gamut Magazine, a new online publication focusing on neo-noir, speculative fiction with a literary bent, that was funded by a successful Kickstarter, raising over $55,000. It was launched on January 1, 2017, shuttered in 2018, and relaunched as the House of Gamut on January 1, 2024.

In addition to his fiction he wrote a Storyville column at LitReactor.com for ten years before it shut down. He has taught creative writing at the Iowa Summer Writing Festival , Story Studio Chicago , LitReactor.com , and his own classes (online) .