John R. Fultz's Blog, page 52

“The Rude Mechanicals and the Highwayman” Podcast

“The Rude Mechanicals and the Highwayman” is the third Urbille story. Springing from the pages of FUNGI magazine like wicked mushrooms, all three stories have now been audio-adapted by Far Fetched Fables.

Here are the links:

“The Key To Your Heart Is Made Of Brass” – Urbille 1

“Flesh of the City, Bones of the World” – Urbille 2

“The Rude Mechanicals and the Highwayman” – Urbille 3

I have finished the Urbille novel A FEW ODD SOULS. It is currently in my agent’s hands and will reach the public when the stars are right, the cosmos is in balance, and the proper contracts have been signed. :) These three Urbille stories are only the tip of the metaphorical iceberg. The novel is an epic Weird Fantasy that spans hundreds of alternate realities, yet the core of the odyssey was born in these three short stories. It’s great to have all three of them adapted by the talented team at Far Fetched Fables, who always do spectacular work.

Potential

“When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.”

— Lao Tzu

 

The Great SAVAGE SWORD Re-Read, Vol. 3

Third entry in a series running now at BlackGate.com

It was Big John Buscema’s house, but giants named DeZuniga and Chan came to play in it.

The third volume of Dark Horse’s collections of Marvel’s SAVAGE SWORD OF CONAN covers the late 70s, when the magazine was being driven to knew heights by John Buscema, Alfredo Alcala, Tony DeZuniga, and Ernie Chan, all under the leadership of writer/editor Roy Thomas.

This third volume contains several all-time classic issues…

The Great SAVAGE SWORD Re-Read, Vol. 2

Second entry in a series running now at BlackGate.com

SAVAGE SWORD OF CONAN was the grooviest 70s sword-and-sorcery magazine–and possibly the greatest such magazine or comic of all time. Stellar work from Roy Thomas, John Buscema, Alfredo Alcala, Neal Adams, and more…

I’m re-living this series that I started reading when I was 8 years old in 1978. It’s as fun to write about these first 24 issues as it is to read them.

 

The Great SAVAGE SWORD Re-Read: Vol. 1

Over at BlackGate.com I’ve posted the first in a series of articles exploring/celebrating the SAVAGE SWORD OF CONAN, as collected by Dark Horse in the past few years.

This first post takes an in-depth look at Volume One, where the unmatched art team of John Buscema and Alfredo Alcala began weaving their pencil-and-ink magic with the help of writer/editor Roy Thomas.

Sword and Sorcery doesn’t get any better…

Some Heads Are Gonna Roll…

Cover of HEAD LOPPER #2

Reading Andrew MacLean’s new comic HEAD LOPPER was an exhilarating experience. It’s great to have a new fantasy-adventure comic–or Sword-and-Sorcery if you prefer–and this book is the best book of its kind since James Stokoe’s gonzo-brilliant ORC STAIN.

As you might expect from the title, HEAD LOPPER involves a lot of decapitations. Yet its cartoon-art style is so colorful and brilliant the gore factor never overwhelms the narrative. If Jack Kirby had done a CONAN comic, it might have been a lot like this. There’s a whole lotta Mike Mignola influence here too–which is always a good thing.

HEAD LOPPER also reminded me of the infamous fantasy tradition of the Severed Head. Reaching all the way back to the story of Perseus and the Medusa, perhaps even farther, this gruesome scene shows up again and again. Perhaps it has something to do with how our ancestors lopped off the heads of their enemies with great pride, often displaying them as trophies that eroded to skulls over time. Hell, the French lopped off so many heads at one point that they built a machine to do it faster! And yet they seem so civilized today…

Artwork by Enrich Torres.

It’s no coincidence that the climax of CONAN THE BARBARIAN (1982)–probably the single best Sword-and-Sorcery movie ever made–is when Conan takes the head of the evil Thulsa Doom and brandishes it before the brainwashed masses. That moment of revenge breaks the wizard’s dark spell, but it’s really just payback for Doom’s beheading of Conan’s mother in the film’s first act.

I saw the movie as a 12-year-old, and I was shocked at the violence of that scene. But I’d already seen my share of severed heads on the covers of fantasy magazines and even a few novels. As early as 7 or 8 years old I was grabbing copies of SAVAGE SWORD OF CONAN directly from the local convenience store rack. There were also mags like CREEPY, EERIE, and 1994–from the twisted geniuses at Warren Publishing. Thankfully Dark Horse Publishing has brought all of this great stuff back into print in terrific collections.

Artwork by the great Ernie Chan.

Enjoy these classic covers featuring the grand tradition of the Severed Head motif. Nothing says “Sword-and-Sorcery” or “Savage Tales” more than this particular pose. In this type of artwork horror and fantasy meet, mingle, and combine to form a chilling effect. Even Shakespeare did the Severed Head in MACBETH, and he kinda did it in HAMLET with Yorick’s skull.

This weekend I watched the first two episodes of BBC America’s THE LAST KINGDOM–a terrific historical drama based on the works of Bernard Cornwell–and there it was again at the end of ep one: The Severed Head motif. What better way to taunt your enemy than to display the head of his slain cohort? What single image says “conquest” more than the Severed Head shot?

Call it Dark Fantasy, Sword-and-Sorcery, or Grimdark. Doesn’t really matter.

Whatever you call it one thing’s for certain: Heads will roll.

Artwork by Sanjulian.

Artwork by Big John Buscema.

Artwork by Enrich Torres.

 

 

THE SHANNARA CHRONICLES

Here’s the latest and greatest trailer for Mtv’s forthcoming adaptation of Terry Brooks’ bestselling series THE SHANNARA CHRONICLES.

I had my doubts until I heard Jon Favreau was involved. After watching this extended clip I’m convinced that the Jan 5th premiere will be a must-see event.

I read the first book, THE SWORD OF SHANNARA, when I was about 11 years old circa 1980-81, and I really dug it. However, I never read any of its many sequels because they just didn’t “grab” me. Ironically, the Mtv series skips the first book and begins with the second, ELFSTONES OF SHANNARA. You can see one of those infamous magical stones in the trailer.

This show could be as big as GAME OF THRONES–and it’s going to have far more fantastic elements than GoT, which keeps its magical/mystical aspects to a minimum for the ultimate “slow build.” SHANNARA is going to be more magical, and probably less “grimdark” since it was directly inspired by J.R.R. Tolkien’s LORD OF THE RINGS.

When SWORD OF SHANNARA came out in 1977, there was a feeling among Tolkien fans of sadness because there were no more Tolkien books; the master storyteller himself had passed away in ’73. The amount of Tolkien material was tragically finite: Limited to THE HOBBIT, LOTR, and THE SILMARILLION.

In later years we’ve gotten a few more treasures from Tolkien’s unpublished hoard, such as the terrific CHILDREN OF HURIN and lots of fragments and lesser works. But back in the late 70s/early 80s a lot of readers were thrilled to discover a book like SWORD, which did its best to recreate that Tolkien flavor–and it even had the Tolkien-esque art of the Brothers Hildebrandt to complete the package. SWORD’s popularity led to two decades’ worth of Tolkien imitators as publishers tried to duplicate its commercial success.

In Brooks’ fantasy world the “secret twist” is that his Middle Earth-like realm is actually set in the far future, which makes SHANNARA a post-apocalpyse fantasy. Judging from this trailer, the producers are playing up the sci-fi/post-apocalyptic aspects, perhaps in a deliberate attempt to separate the show from Tolkien’s work. Visually it has a slight MAD MAX edge, but how much of that appears in the tv series remains to be seen.

Those who condemn SHANNARA as a “rip-off” of Tolkien will no doubt continue to do so. But fans old and new will be interested to see how well Favreau and company bring the Epic Fantasy vibes to life. My advice for those bothered by Brooks’ Tolkienish similarities: Skip this show. My advice for those who want to see something that just might be a superb adventure with the flavor of old-school fantasy: Give it a shot. I plan to.

WEIRDBOOK #31: Get Yer Weird On

Front Cover

The huge new issue of WEIRDBOOK (first issue since 1997!) is now available on Kindle  for only $3.99. The paperback version is also available for $12 + S&H. It’s a massive eldritch tome, as you can see from the Table of Contents below.

I’m honored to have a new dark fantasy tale, “Chivaine”,  appearing in the issue. The front cover is a painting by Dusan Kostic, while the back cover features work from the great Stephen E. Fabian, who did all the covers for the original WB run.

Editor Doug Draa calls this new issue ” a bridge between the magazine’s past and it’s future.” Doug has moved Heaven and Earth to bring Paul Ganley’s classic weird fantasy magazine back to life. Doug has partnered with John Betancourt at Wildside Press to make it possible. Get your weird on…

WEIRDBOOK #31

Full Table of Contents

-FICTION-

Chivaine by John R. Fultz

Give Me the Daggers by Adrian Cole

The Music of Bleak Entrainment by Gary A. Braunbeck 

Into The Mountains with Mother Old Growth by Christian Riley

The Grimlorn Under the Mountain by James Aquilone 

Dolls by Paul Dale Anderson 

Gut Punch by Jason A. Wyckoff 

Educational Upgrade by Bret McCormick

Boxes of Dead Children by Darrell Schweitzer 

The Forgotten by D.C. Lozar

Coffee with Dad’s Ghost by Jessica Amanda Salmonson

Missed It By That Much by Gregg Chamberlain 

A Clockwork Muse by Erica Ruppert 

The Rookery by Kurt Newton 

Wolf of Hunger Wolf of Shame by J. T. Glover

Zucchini Season by Janet Harriett

The Jewels That Were Their Eyes by Llanwyre Laish 

The Twins by Kevin Strange

Princess or Warrior? by S.W. Lauden

-POETRY-

The City in the Sands by Ann K. Schwader

NecRomance by Frederick J. Mayer

Walpurgis Eve by Kyle Opperman 

Sonnets of an Eldritch Bent by W. H. Pugmire

Castle Csejthe by Ashley Dioses

The Shrine by Wade German

Bride of Death by Dave Reeder

Modern Primitive by Chad Hensley

 Visit the WEIRDBOOK homepage.

WEIRDBOOK #31 now on Kindle

Front Cover

The brand-new issue of WEIRDBOOK (the first issue since 1997) is now available on Kindle for only $3.99.

The print version of the magazine drops in October.

I’m honored to have a new dark fantasy tale “Chivaine”  appearing in the issue. The front cover is a painting by Dusan Kostic, while the back cover features work from the great Stephen E. Fabian, who did all the covers for the original WB run.

Editor Doug Draa calls this new issue ” a bridge between the magazine’s past and it’s future.” Doug has moved Heaven and Earth to bring Paul Ganley’s classic weird fantasy magazine back to life. Doug has partnered with John Betancourt at Wildside Press to make it possible. Get your weird on…

WEIRDBOOK #31

Full Table of Contents

-FICTION-

Chivaine by John R. Fultz

Give Me the Daggers by Adrian Cole

The Music of Bleak Entrainment by Gary A. Braunbeck 

Into The Mountains with Mother Old Growth by Christian Riley

The Grimlorn Under the Mountain by James Aquilone 

Dolls by Paul Dale Anderson 

Gut Punch by Jason A. Wyckoff 

Educational Upgrade by Bret McCormick

Boxes of Dead Children by Darrell Schweitzer 

The Forgotten by D.C. Lozar

Coffee with Dad’s Ghost by Jessica Amanda Salmonson

Missed It By That Much by Gregg Chamberlain 

A Clockwork Muse by Erica Ruppert 

The Rookery by Kurt Newton 

Wolf of Hunger Wolf of Shame by J. T. Glover

Zucchini Season by Janet Harriett

The Jewels That Were Their Eyes by Llanwyre Laish 

The Twins by Kevin Strange

Princess or Warrior? by S.W. Lauden

-POETRY-

The City in the Sands by Ann K. Schwader

NecRomance by Frederick J. Mayer

Walpurgis Eve by Kyle Opperman 

Sonnets of an Eldritch Bent by W. H. Pugmire

Castle Csejthe by Ashley Dioses

The Shrine by Wade German

Bride of Death by Dave Reeder

Modern Primitive by Chad Hensley

 Visit the WEIRDBOOK homepage.

THE NOVEL’S DONE . . . And Life Goes On

Art by Bruce Pennington

Sometimes you finish a novel, but the novel isn’t finished with you.

Last week I completed the revisions on my latest novel, a Big Weird Fantasy (title to be revealed later). I’ve been working so hard on this novel for so long (started in January then hit full-speed in June) that I hardly know what to do with myself now that my time is freed up again.

I went back to school in mid-August (I’m a high school teacher), so I had to go back to revising only during weekends and spare hours. But that was okay–I finish my first drafts during the summer, then do revisions. So for the past month-and-a-half I’ve been revising 2 or 3 chapters per week. It feels great to finally be done with the book and have it in my agent’s hands at last.

And yet…

Art by Zdzislaw Beksinski

Last night I couldn’t stop dreaming about the society of mechanical people that is the centerpiece of the novel. These “clockwork people” live primarily in a city called The Urbille, which is the center of a multi-dimensional Nexus connecting thousands of parallel earths. This novel is lingering in my consciousness longer than any other book I’ve written. Could it be due to the fact that it’s the best book I’ve ever written?

I have a theory (based on empirical evidence) that each project a writer completes makes him or her a better writer. This new book is my 5th novel, and I’m convinced at this point that it’s the best. The most ambitious. The most genre-blending. And possibly the most philosophical. But these are simply my thoughts about the novel as the writer who just completed writing it.

Art by Les Edwards

Writers tend to vacillate between thinking their latest work is the greatest thing ever and the conviction that it’s utterly worthless. I’m sure the day will come when my confidence in this novel as my “best ever” will begin to wane. Writers are often their own worst critics, and we’re far more sensitive about our work than we gladly admit.

Today I’ve got time to do this blog post–the first one since I dedicated all my time to finishing the Urbille novel–and I find myself wondering: Why can’t I stop thinking/dreaming about the clockwork people in my novel? Is my subconscious trying to send me a message? Or am I having literary withdrawal symptoms?

When I’m writing a novel I literally can’t stop. Even when I’m not at the keyboard my mind is constantly turning over concepts, characters, ideas, and details. This happens whether I’m awake or asleep. Indeed, some of my best ideas come from my half-awake mind. I chalk this up to the dream-state being a direct line to my subconscious. Sometimes the conscious mind can get in the way of what’s trying to bubble up from the pool of the subconscious mind. When I’m sleeping, that barrier no longer exists.

Art by Zdzislaw Beksinski

Writing a novel (at least for me) is all-consuming. It takes over my thoughts, actions, sleep patterns, dreams, musical choices, reading choices, entertainment choices. It’s hard to get “away” from the novel when you’re in the middle of crafting it. The only way out of that tunnel is through the far end, i.e. finishing the novel.

I imagine it’s a lot like giving birth. While a woman has the baby inside her, she changes her entire lifestyle to accommodate it and make it as healthy as possible. By the ninth month, she’s usually more-than-ready for it to come out of her body–the natural result of everything she’s been doing for the better part of a year. Yet after the baby is out in the world, there often comes a postpartum depression. That’s kind of how it is finishing a novel…

Art by Richard Corben

First there’s elation. “It’s done! By the Bones of Odin, it’s finally done!” Then there’s the come-down. “Oh, wow, it’s done. What do I do now? I’ve actually got free time.” You might think it would be the perfect time to start another novel, but that usually doesn’t happen right away. Think about it: Does a woman usually get pregnant again right after she’s given birth? Not if she has anything to say about it.

The last thing I want to do right now is start another novel. First, I’m working full-time so there’s no time to dedicate to it. Second, before you can write a novel you have to come up with an IDEA for it–and that can take months or years. Third, it takes a TREMENDOUS amount of ENERGY to conceive, draft, and perfect a novel. It wears you out. You need time to recover, just like a woman who has given birth.

Art by Bruce Pennington

The obvious choice would be to write a few short stories. Focus on short-form works until the next Big Idea for a novel comes along. For me, that usually doesn’t come until the beginning of the new year (or sometimes during the last couple weeks of the outgoing year). Writing short stories involves using different muscles than writing novels, although there are some commonalities.

Yet here’s the problem with writing short stories, at least the way I see it: In order to sell a story (i.e. get it published) you generally have to meet the editorial tastes of whomever is running the magazine you’re submitting the story to. That is, you have to write something that will “fit in” with what a publication usually publishes. However, the best short stories don’t come from following a publisher’s guidelines, they come from a writer’s personal inspiration and private conception. In other words, a writer of short stories has to make a choice: Are you going to write FOR a particular market? Or are you going to write exactly what you WANT to write?

Doing the second choice is where I am drawn to short stories. I’m not interested in “writing to the guidelines”–which is why I don’t sell many short stories. I spent 15 years trying to write something worthy of being published in WEIRD TALES. It was the Holy Grail of fiction magazines, and I started submitting stories back in college circa ’88/’89. I came back every few years with a new story and got a new rejection. But I also got amazing advice and critiques from the WT editors (mostly Darrell Schweitzer).

Weird Tales #340
Cover by Les Edwards

Eventually, in 2004, I managed to sell my first professional short story, “The Persecution of Artifice the Quill” in WEIRD TALES #340. (I actually sold two more Artifice stories to WT after that, but they never saw publication there because the magazine came under new management.) So after spending 15 years as an unofficial “apprentice” to one of the greatest living fantasy writers (Mr. Schweitzer), I’m not all that interested in honing my short story craft to meet the dictates of other editors. I learned from one of the best there is.

What I AM interested in is following my muse–creating stories that please ME, not an editor. Writing isn’t my primary source of income, which gives me the freedom to write only what I’m really interested in writing. It’s a great freedom to have.

I still sell short stories now and then. I’d sell a LOT more if I was willing to “write to the guidelines.” But I have a day job–I follow other peoples’ rules all day. I don’t want to follow anyone else’s rules when I write short stories. Especially rules that aren’t rules at all, but actually lists of editorial preferences. These preferences vary from editor to editor, and from publication to publication.

Art by Bruce Pennington

I have to admit, I wish there were more magazines out there (online and offline) that would let writers do their own thing. But most of them are looking for VERY PRECISE qualities in the fiction they publish. If you don’t write with those qualities in mind, you’re not going to get published in those mags. 

So I may crank out some short stories over the next few months. Or not. It depends on if I have any worthy IDEAS for short stories. And if I do have a worthy idea, if I do write a story, it may not find a market for months, years, or never. Seriously, I no longer have the patience or stamina to write story after story and send them out to magazine after magazine, rotating them in an endless cycle. Been there, done that–for two decades. I’d much rather write novels. 

Often I’ll write a story because there’s a themed anthology coming out and I’ve been invited into it–such as Schweitzer’s THAT IS NOT DEAD and CTHULHU’S REIGN. But for the most part I’m only writing the stories that fascinate me, that have to be told, that I can’t stand NOT to write. I regret the fact that I was so consumed with revisions on my new novel that I actually missed the window for the latest Schweitzer anthology.

Art by Bruce Pennington

It’s doing this–writing exactly what I feel most powerful about–that’s landed me my greatest success. For example, when Laird Barron picked “The Key To Your Heart Is Made Of Brass” for YEAR’S BEST WEIRD FICTION Vol. 1, I was very pleased because this is a story that no mainstream publishers wanted to take a chance on. It was rejected 9 times, then wound up as “Best of the Year.” I’ve written two more stories set in the Urbille universe, and now this new novel that blows the roof off that universe and expands it in fantastic ways.

So I find myself wondering two things in my newfound quiet time:

Why am I still dreaming about the clockwork people of The Urbille?

Art by Stephen E. Fabian

-and-

What am I going to write next?

But there’s no rush.

As I’ve said many times: NOT WRITING is a huge part of the Writing Process.

This is the point when the raw ideas in my head begin conglomerating into a new Big Idea for the next novel. And along the way I might develop a few new short stories.

But for today, I think I’ll just take it easy.