Frazer Lee's Blog, page 33

Panic Button: Update Top Ranking

source: IMDb.com

Sorry to bang on about it (yeah, i'll get back to the washing up just as soon as i've posted this, i promise!) but it has come to my attention that Panic Button is not only #31 on the whole of the IMDb listings, but is also today the 2nd most popular Horror title and the 8th most popular Thriller – and that's globally folks.

Once again, congrats to the entire team: Producers, director, cast, crew – this is quite unprecedented for a low-budget, truly independent film that was...

Panic Button: Uptown Top Ranking

source: IMDb Pro Movie Meter (Nov 15 2011)

News just in that Panic Button is currently ranked #31 on IMDb. Up 46,038% in popularity this week!

Some context – that's higher global ranking than the likes of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 and Captain America: The First Avenger (dig: those: colons!).

That is a big deal for everyone involved, well done to the entire team!

A request – if you liked the movie, please take a moment to click thru & give the film a quick rating/review. It...

The Lamplighters: news digest!

Wow, what a week it's been for The Lamplighters!

The ebook held the #1 spot in Samhain Publishing's Horror Bestsellers for 10 days since its release on November 1st.

The first review of The Lamplighters came in and it's a goody!

I did a guest blog about all things Lamplighters at The Top Shelf, my thanks to Misty Rayburn:

http://www.the-top-shelf.com/?p=2404

Then, my publisher Samhain got in touch and informed me I was "voted a close 2nd to Ramsey Campbell in their favorite horror author...

Panic at the AFM

Here's wishing the Panic Button production team lots of sales ops at the American Film Market where the movie screens today.

Check out the movie's official site for this and other screening details, and a new poster created especially for the AFM:

Panic Button AFM poster

Still on topic, the folks over at the Panic Button's Facebook just posted this photo, which made me smile:

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smell the fear! the Panic Button team check out the movie novelization

Yes folks, the proof copy of the Panic Button movie novelization has arrived at their offices! More about the book soon, meantime I urge you to check out viral site All2gethr.com for some social networking satire and a few treats and surprises. All2gethr.com could well become your alternative to that other well-known social networking site, which is allegedly under threat from hacking group 'Anonymous'. Hmmm, wonder who 'Anonymous' might be? And are they on Google+….?

Meantime, Panic Button releases on DVD and Bluray in the UK via CineBritannia, November 7th. It will be available as VOD on Sky Movies Box Office from Nov 7th.

For more info about Panic Button, check out my new page dedicated to the movie and forthcoming novel.

This is Hallowe'ek

It's been a helluva couple of days here at Lee Towers. Hallowe'en was a blast as always and I am now only just removing the last of the pumpkin soup from my hair… those pesky trick or treaters. The Lamplighters ebook launch went off with a cauldron-sized bang. I had fun giving away Samhain Book Vouchers on Facebook & Twitter, and answering probing questions & posting excerpts at the Samhain Cafe.

The dollop of cream on top of the pumpkin pie was the news that The Lamplighters hit the #1 spot in Samhain Publishing's Horror Bestsellers list, thanks to all those purchasing the ebook. I made the screengrab (below) as I'm fully aware that these things are only fleeting ~ and The Lamplighters sure as hell can't hold off all that amazing Samhain Horror talent for long!

Talking of which, I traded interviews with fellow Samhain author Hunter Shea (if you missed it, you can check out his insightful interview here) and you can read my musings on all things horror, The Lamplighters and my fishiest secrets at Hunter's official website.

Yup, it's Hallowe'en all week here… so here's wishing you a Happy Hallowe'ek!

The Lamplighters: out today

out now from Samhain Horror

The Lamplighters is out today!

Here's where you can buy the ebook:

Samhain Horror (30% off for a limited time direct from publisher)

Amazon.com (kindle)

Amazon.co.uk (kindle)

Barnes & Noble (nook)

Don't "do" ebooks? Treebook lovers can pre-order the paperback (out 7 Feb 2012) at these outlets:

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Barnes & Noble

Remember you can win a $5 Samhain Gift Certificate (to spend on The Lamplighters or any other Samhain title) at the Facebook Page today.

I'll be chatting about The Lamplighters today at the Samhain Cafe, hope to see you there!

Countdown to The Lamplighters: 1 day

Today's Lamplighters Countdown post is… well, a bit of a rant about HALLOWE'EN.

What inspired this post was a trip to my local library last week, where I spotted this poster on my way out:

a warm Hallowe'en welcome?

What really blows about the message of the poster is the assumption that trick or treating is somehow "anti-social behaviour waiting to happen".

Give me a break. Really.

Now I understand that costumed freaks knocking on the door for sweets* might be intimidating if you're a little old lady (*candy if you're reading this in the good ol' U.S. of A.). I get that, I really do. I've lived in some of the roughest areas of the sprawling metropolis in my time, and I admit that a couple of times I was bricking it when I answered the door on Hallowe'en night. But I have always, always opened my door to trick or treaters.

In fact the day I don't answer the door, to a bunch of kids dressed up in their Hallowe'en finest, with a ceramic Jack Skellington head filled with treats is the exact same day I'm officially no longer useful. I mean it, it's proof-positive that I've become an old fart (oh, okay that happened already). But if that day really does happen, go ahead and ship me out to Resyk. Turn me into Soylent Green ("…is people!"). The day I don't open my door to trick or treaters is the day I succumb to the fears that the cretins at the Daily Mail would have me losing sleep over. It's the day I lose my optimism that the Great Unknown, the Big What If might offer something fun, something different, maybe something challenging and – yes – scary.

Hallowe'en (and its origins) is all about us facing up to perhaps our greatest fear of all – that of our own mortality. Samhain rites around the world have resonated with the simple, common core idea that we should honour our dead on one day of the year – stare death in the face and celebrate it – laugh at it. Celebrate death? How queer. Think about it, if we can do that then we are no longer afraid – and we might even be inclined to give ourselves over to some optimism and fun for at least some of the days and nights that we are still on the planet.

And we might even be inclined to open that door and make a child's day by joining in with the fun.

I say save the bah humbug for Christmastime, and here's wishing everyone – young and old – A HAPPY HALLOWE'EN!

a warmer Hallowe'en welcome!

Countdown to The Lamplighters: 2 days

Today's Lamplighters Countdown post is the opening chapter from my novel.

Dim the lights, grab a flagon of pumpkin juice and read on if you dare

And if after that your bloodlust isn't sated, why not head on over to the Samhain Horror store, where you can read excerpts from all the currently available and upcoming titles.

Cheers for reading. 'Til next slime, take scare!

Excerpt from 'The Lamplighters':

Copyright © 2011 Frazer Lee

All rights reserved — a Samhain Publishing, Ltd. publication

"It's the greatest job in the world."

Vera smiled as she said the words.

"All I have to do is turn on the damn lights, water the plants; a few chores…"

Static crackled in her ear — the phone line was lousy tonight.

"Are you still there?"

"Yes," came the reply, "but I can hardly hear you. There's a weird kind of… echo."

"It's Jessie's uplink," Vera chuckled, "We're not really allowed to call anyone from the island…"

"Sorry… how… calling me?"

Christ, the line was getting choppy. Vera pressed the cordless handset closer to her ear, then checked herself.

"As if that'll make any difference," she said. Probably talking to herself now.

The crackling grew louder. She could still hear her friend's voice, buried beneath layers of digital cacophony. A faint echo smothered by an avalanche of noise.

There was something else in the mix too; an ominous growling hum like the electricity pylons near her home. Berlin, so far away now. Even as she thought it, the hum grew; drowning out what little was left of her friend's staccato tones.

And with a click, silence.

"Scheiße," she cursed, stabbing the redial button. The phone was completely dead. Hacking an outside line was a fine art, she appreciated that, but Jessie clearly needed some new software. And she'd be giving that little bag of smoke back too.

First things first. Vera put the handset in its cradle and headed for the kitchen. She walked over to the huge range in the centre of the room and ignited all four of the gas taps. Then, crouching on her haunches, she turned the oven on full blast. The expensive smoked glass oven door afforded her a look at her own reflection. Only a month on Meditrine Island and already she looked five years younger. Amazing. Gone were the dark grey shadows around her eyes – even her signature brittle dry hair had a new luster. Berlin could take care of itself, thanks very much. The island really was like a fountain of youth, she thought as she rose and crossed to the patio door.

Unclipping the latch, Vera had to use two hands to slide the glass behemoth open. Whoever owned this house had a serious heavy glass fetish. Stepping out into the night, her senses were flooded. The island's fresh air was like no other; an intoxicating blend of jasmine and ocean spray. When she went back to the city, she'd have to remember to bottle and sell it.

Click.

Her quiet moment was suddenly blasted with fifteen hundred watts of raw security lighting as she stepped in front of the infrared sensors. She cursed the light for blinding her as she picked up the watering can, blinking away the white-hot glare. The light had brought the mosquitoes a-calling too. They whizzed around her as she dashed back into the kitchen.

Vera filled the watering can with cool, clear water at the bath-sized sink. This was the least tedious of her tasks – the plants were going to drink their fill tonight. Amidst such fabulous wealth, such meticulous order, it felt good that a mere backpacker could decide the fate of items so precious to their millionaire owners.

Millionaires? Billionaires, more likely.

She remembered Jessie's sardonic voice from the first time they'd hung out together, gossiping about who owned these mansions; this island. But Vera didn't really care who the owners were. That they were paying her handsomely to do a few chores was all she cared about. And the most strenuous chore was watering the plants. Easy money. "The job's a doozy," Jessie had giggled. 'Doozy Jessie' been working on the island longer than Vera and seemed to be going a little stir crazy…

As the water rose closer to the brim of the watering can, the security lights clicked off suddenly. Like everything else on the island they ran to a tight schedule, thought Vera. As she did so, milliseconds before the light bulbs faded, Vera saw something outside.

A figure.

She blinked twice, slow and firm. The ghost imprint of the blinding bulbs still there, forming crescent shaped black holes in her mind's eye. Was there someone out there?

Vera blinked again, then swore furiously as liquid spilled onto her feet. Soaked, she closed the faucet and let the watering can rest in the sink unit. Shouldn't have smoked that joint before coming up to the house, she thought, sounding for all the world like her mother. Scatterbrain, she used to call Vera whenever she lost the power to function normally; everyday tasks becoming impossibly hilarious missions. She still wondered if her mother had known her daughter was stoned, or if she simply believed her child was missing a neuron or two million.

The old clumsiness was really kicking in now, as she left little pools of water on the tiled floor on her way to the patio. Putting the can down (yet more spills) she grabbed the door handle and pulled with all her might.

Swoosh.

The glass giant slid open easier this time. Vera bent down to pick up the can — then the smell hit her.

Something had invaded the envelope of jasmine and surf, corrupting the very night air with its presence. A hospital smell, harsh and synthetic, like the way her dentist smelled. She'd hated the dentist since she was a kid. Had he followed her here, to paradise, tracking her down after all these years to do all that work she had chickened out of? To tut and frown disapprovingly through his paper mask, noting her cannabis-stained enamel and ugly overbite?

She leaned out into the night air, her nostrils searching for the source of the stifling smell. It was mixed with something else now, like ripe leather.

Click.

He was standing right next to her, impossibly close. Vera's heart blasted into her mouth, choking her scream. The source of the smell regarded her idly, his black eyes like camera lenses. Cold. Unforgiving.

Before she could react, Vera heard a swooshing sound. The smell of rubber gloves perversely filled her nostrils, pushing all the way back into her throat as if someone really had jammed two fingers up her nose. The intruder's dark form was a monolith, burned into her eyes by the security lights.

Click.

Swoosh.

The bulbs faded once more. Vera's senses imploded as the sliding door crushed her skull against the alloy doorframe.

Crunch.

Swoosh, as the door slid back again.

Crunch.

Vera's body jerked uselessly then fell still; her brains spattered across the cool, thick glass.

check out more horror fiction at www.samhainhorror.com

 

Countdown to The Lamplighters: 3 days

Today's Lamplighters Countdown post is my interview by Horrorbid's Matt Molgaard in which I talk up my new movie Panic Button, out on DVD/Bluray 7 November in the UK.

Panic Button is screening lots over Hallowe'en and the producers are heading to the AFM in November to sell the movie to more territories. Check the Panic Button website  for updates.

'Til next slime, take scare.

Countdown to The Lamplighters: 4 days

Today's Lamplighters Countdown post is all about a fun Hallowe'en contest:

Light a lamp for The Lamplighters and WIN a FREE "VACATION"** ON "MEDITRINE ISLAND"**

**well, a copy of The Lamplighters ebook that will transport you there!

Here's how:

1. change your Facebook profile photo to The Lamplighters image you see on your left anytime between now and 1st November

2. post on the Wall at The Lamplighters Facebook Page in the comments box under the post about this contest

It's easy as that!

3 lucky winners will be drawn at random through the day on 1st Nov, when the ebook launches.

**the actual prize is a $5 Gift Certificate to use in the Samhain Store on a copy of The Lamplighters (or any other book that takes your fancy!)

Good luck, and don't forget to pack your sunSCREAM – it gets rather hot & SCARY on Meditrine Island this time of year (or any time of year for that matter)…

'Til next slime, take scare,

Frazer x

About The Lamplighters:

Life on Meditrine Island is luxurious…but brief.

Marla Neuborn has found the best post-grad job in the world – as a 'Lamplighter' working on Meditrine Island, an exclusive idyllic paradise owned and operated by a consortium of billionaires. All Lamplighters have to do is tend to the mansions, cook and clean, and turn on lights to make it appear the owners are home. But the job comes with conditions. Marla will not know the exact location of the island, and she will have no contact with the outside world for the duration of her stay.

Once on the island, Marla quickly learns the billionaire lifestyle is not all it is made out to be. The chief of security rules Meditrine with an iron fist. His private police force patrols the shores night and day, and CCTV cameras watch the Lamplighters relentlessly. Soon Marla will also discover first-hand that the island hides a terrible secret. She'll meet the resident known as the Skin Mechanic. And she'll find out why so few Lamplighters ever leave the island alive.

More info/Buy:

http://frazerlee.wordpress.com/the-lamplighters