John Quick's Blog

Changes are Coming

In case you've missed it, I have totally sucked at keeping up with this site. Time, life, whatever the reason, it happens. Therefore, I'm making a change.

I'm currently working on a new website to replace this one. This blog will remain live, but it will no longer be the face I'm putting out to the world. Instead, it will be what it's supposed to be: a place to leave my thoughts when I have them and feel they're worth leaving. The new site will become my face, and will be the first point of conta...

Yeah, I Know...

One of the things I always wondered about when I first made this site was how often I'd actually keep up with it. I did well for a while, and then it kind of fell by the wayside thanks to the loads of other stuff I've been doing. Well, I doubt that's going to get better any time soon, but I did at least do a few updates to reflect my release schedule for the rest of 2019 and 2020, and the current projects I'm working on. Here's a few more details.

First, it's NaNoWriMo, which means...

This One Time, At Writer's Camp....

It’s been close to a week now, and my brain is somewhat recovered, so I think I can detail my thoughts and feelings about my very first NECON!
One quick note before we get started: most pictures here were taken by Tony Tremblay, who acts as NECON’s unofficial photographer. If it’s an awesome shot, he gets all the credit, not me. I was just the subject.

The NECON 39 Camp Photo. Can you find me?For those who don’t know, NECON is the Northeastern Writer’s Conference, held just outside Providence,...

A Quick (Hah!) Update...

Just a brief post to keep everyone apprised of what I've got going on.

First off, break out the champagne! I just signed a contract with Silver Shamrock Publications for my haunted house novel, HIDDEN HEARTS. If you look back through the entries here, you'll see a few while it was in development, and come this November, you'll get the chance to see the finished product. Stay tuned for more information as it comes closer to release.

Next up, I do have two convention appearances coming up in the...

Milestones

Okay, it's a little early to celebrate, but I'm going to anyway.

If you've been following along on here, you know I've been struggling with writing thanks to my depression lately. To be completely frank about it, I haven't been able to finish anything novel-length since at least March of last year.

It's looking like that's about to change.

I've referenced HELLFIRE on my progress bar over there, and mentioned it several times on Facebook and Twitter. I started it as my first long-form project sin...

Over the Horizon - Upcoming Event Announcements

December, and the year 2018 with it, are almost over. Now the time begins to look forward to 2019 and beyond! In that spirit, here's a few things you can expect from me in the coming year.

In March, WHAT SLEEPS BENEATH will see release through Bloodshot Books. This is my first time working with Pete Kahle's incredible small press, and I'm super excited to see this one hit shelves. Pete's got everything from me, so it's just waiting on a cover and an exact release date. Rest assured, as so...

A Dose of Reality

I'm going to do something that, as a guy, I'm not supposed to do. I'm going to admit that I, like many, many others, suffer from mental illness. Specifically, I deal with Chronic Depression with General Anxiety Disorder.

Let me get this out of the way right up front: I'm not making this post seeking your pity or your sympathy, nor am I doing it to try and increase my sales. Beyond that sentence, I don't intend to mention any of those topics again during this post. I AM doing it to help shine a...

Storytelling in the Strangest Places

While I was taking a break from writing to get my head straight, one of the things I did to fill my time was catch up on my gaming. Not tabletop, this time, but rather video games. I've been a fan of them for a long, long time, but life prevented me from getting into any good ones lately. Since I had the chance, I decided to try out some of the ones that I'd been hearing lots of good things about. As a result, I found two in particular that really struck me as having some immaculate storytell...

Scares That Care V: Healing By Helping

For a horror author, at least one with a similar mindset to my own, there is one event every year that eclipses all others. That event is the Scares That Care Charity Weekend, held for the fifth consecutive year at the Doubletree by Hilton in Williamsburg, VA from August 3-5. Like last year, I went, and since I'm somewhat recovered from it--enough that I can think coherently, at any rate--I figured it was time to recount my experience there, and also to reveal the reasons behind my radio sile...

Now for My Next Trick...

Here it is, the official cover reveal for my upcoming novella, DAMNATION TRAIL!



How far would you go for justice?
Came the wanderer to the church that bright Sunday afternoon...
He was looking for a preacher, his hope gone hopeless. His heart was heavy, his soul was burdened, and misery had become his existence. He'd lost all he held dear, and found himself involved in something he couldn't get himself out of.
This is his story, how he came to find himself riding on the DAMNATION TRAIL

Experience...