James R. Tuck's Blog, page 5

THE NEXT BIG THING BLOG HOP QUESTIONAIRE

Ten Interview Questions for The Next Big Thing:

What is the working title of your book?

RED RIGHT HAND

Where did the idea come from for the book?

I love the Lovecraftian Mythos. Not so much Lovecraft’s actual writing of it, but what other writers have done, specifically Robert E. Howard, and in urban fantasy you are always looking for the thing that noone else is doing so viola! An urban fantasy take on the Lovecraft Mythos.

What genre does your book fall under?

Dark Urban Fantasy.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

Hmmmmm. No idea. I need a good actress to play Charlie, the main character. She has a lot of depth and has to go through a LOT in the course of this book.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

A woman with PTSD is dragged into a war of horror by the elder god Nyarlathotep.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

I will be shopping it.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

I have been working on it a bit over a month with two huge breaks in the middle for the release of the second Deacon Chalk book and Dragoncon (and the resulting con crud that kicked my ass for near 10 days.).

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

It’s very dark and violent so probably the Deacon Chalk books I write. Also the John Taylor series by Simon R. Green, but only at their darkest. It’s near to a horror book so if you read Brian Keene you would not mind RED RIGHT HAND.

Who or What inspired you to write this book?

I wanted to see the Crawling Chaos in our world.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

This is a different take on a mythology that is new to urban fantasy. Lots of horror books have been placed in the Lovecraft Mythos, but this is the first one to take an urban fantasy slant….it’s like AMERICAN GODS meets HIGHLANDER by way of APOCALYPSE NOW.

MORE THAN ALE WILL BE SPILLED TONIGHT! (a guest blog by Steven Shrewsbury)

Alright kiddos, gather round. Today we have Steven Shrewsberry stopping by to entertain you. Put on your raincoats in the first four rows, this might get messy.

Me, Steven Shrewsbury, John Hartness, and Brady Allen. Shrews is about to go on a rant.

I met Steven at Fandom Fest where I was privileged to not only lift a glass of moonshine with him (and Brady Allen and John Hartness) but to also sit and discuss the late, great Robert E. Howard with him and Brady Allen. It was a blast. Steven is a helluva guy. He writes some kick ass sword and sorcery as well as kick ass horror. I loved  HAWG, OVERKILL,  and THRALL and highly recommend them. Steven has promised me a story for THUNDER ON THE BATTLEFIELD, the sword and sorcery anthology I’m editing for Seventh Star Press for next year and, by Crom I plan to hold him to it!

What’s on the mind of Steven Shrewsbury?

So kick back and listen as he tells you about creating a new story.

A CREATION THING

As a guest blogger, I’ll try to behave and not wreck the place or wipe anything on the curtains as I go. Much. I’m author, Steven L. Shrewsbury, by the way, writer of sword & sorcery hardcore horror and a good dad, so I hear.

I’m enjoying going through the third draft of a novel. There seem to be so many folks doubting themselves or unsure of how they should approach things. Just do it, well, it cannot be that simple all the time, of course, but getting after it, yeah, do it. I like it. I feel good about it. I’m not filled with doubt, worry if I’ll offend anyone or any of that manure. It feels right. Now, that isn’t valid in every scenario in life, but this time, I feel the burn. It’s warm.

At times, I smile at things I write, stuff I forgot in the earlier drafts. There are times I have qualms that I wrote it at all. But that doesn’t scare me. Then there are the moments of passion, or outright Christmas morning glee when everything hooks up and the answers are revealed. Those are the times I feel it, I feel something, or someone in my mind. Maybe it’s my higher self, or my low-life, baser self, conducting an orchestra of the mad. Whatever the cheesy application, it’s damned good to listen to. It burns through the darkness and light splashes on the page. Does it smell like victory or just a mental napalm barbecue with legions of victims? Dunno.

All writers have a God complex. Some fess up to it but others whack off against the idea for eternity. It’s a creation thing, some are weirder or more obsessive than others. Some, their balls never drop and they work their jaws in discussion on a topic instead of working it out in a tale. Others, spread it out too much and the money shot gets old after a spell. Today, though, I looked at what I made. And it was good.

Why do writers write? That’s a complex one for a panel, but frankly, my answer has always been because I have to. Not out of financial need, but really that the tales must come out. I’ve been telling tales since I started re-fighting the battle of Jericho in my sandbox as a kid. Granted, Joshua didn’t have part off a Navarone play set and the will o’God behind him together, but I’ve always had the urge to relate a story. Many a tale is told easily and others have a terrible habit of torturing me for years. This novel I’m brushing up about a Confederate in his 90s facing a band of maniacs the Coen brothers would love is killer, at least to me, anyways, and it came out right. It isn’t S&S, and while parts are horrific, it is more survivalist/thriller, but I hate labels. Someday, I’ll share with the class.

Someday, someone will read this book and tell me it blows chunks. They may say they didn’t care for it, it wasn’t their kind of thing or, it fell short of what I must’ve had in mind. That’s okay as well. I told the story. It exists. It belongs to no one else. Those who cannot try can bite me. There are people that bitch to God about the weather, their taxes and why a platypus lays eggs. Today, I’m God. If only for a little while.

I’m sure He understands.

Steven Shrewsbury

Author of OVERKILL, THRALL, HELL BILLY, and HAWG

http://sshrewsbury.wordpress.com/

bigbearshrews@yahoo.com

MICRO FICTION TO TIDE YOU OVER

I am almost over the con crud I got from my awesome DragonCon weekend. It did almost kick my ass.

But I wanted to toss up a small blog to tide you over for the bigass DragonCon report. So here goes.

_______________________

“Boy.”

“Yes Sire.”

“Never bow. Come quickly when I call you but never bow again.”

“Not even in the presence of your father the Sultan?”

“Especially not then. Better to die.”

“By your example Sire.”

THE BIG, FAT DRAGONCON SCHEDULE

I have a TON of stuff I am doing at Dragoncon this year. Here is the list. AND I will be in and out of the Author’s Lair booth in one of the dealer rooms at the Marriott. My books will be there!

COME SEE ME YOU KNOW I LOVE YOU SOOOOOO MUCH.

FRIDAY
Title: The Good, the Bad and the Undead
Description: The never-ending appeal of vampires
Time: Fri 11:30 am Location: Centennial I – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
James R. Tuck, Laurell K. Hamilton, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Jeanne C. Stein, J. F. Lewis
Carol Malcolm (moderating)
——————-
Title: Vampocalypse Now!
Description: Life in a world conquered by vampires
Time: Fri 02:30 pm Location: Embassy A-B – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
James R. Tuck (moderating), Jonathan Maberry, Nancy Holder, Keith DiCandido, Clay Griffith
——————-
Title: Remake It!
Description: A discussion of horror remakes, good and bad. What movies could stand to be remade?
Time: Fri 07:00 pm Location: Embassy C – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
James R. Tuck,  Mike Miller
——————-
Title: Our Monsters, Ourselves
Description: What each generation’s choice of monsters says about the world we live in
Time: Fri 08:30 pm Location: Embassy A-B – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
James R. Tuck, Jonathan Maberry, Anya Martin, Fr. Bryan Small,  D. Lynch
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SATURDAY
Title: Pulp History
Description: From western penny mags to early sci-fi digests, great literature has come on cheap paper. Past, present & future collide in serialized dime fiction.
Time: Sat 11:30 am Location: International BC – Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
James R. Tuck, Bobby Nash, Barry Reese, Van Allen Plexico
——————-
Title: Zombies: Beyond Armageddon
Description: Zombies in non-apocalyptic scenarios
Time: Sat 02:30 pm Location: Embassy A-B – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
James R. Tuck (moderating), Jonathan Maberry, Carole Nelson Douglas, Kevin J. Anderson
——————-
Title: Urban Fantasy – What exactly is it?
Description: What makes urban fantasy different than other kinds of fantasy?
Time: Sat 04:00 pm Location: Centennial I – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
James R. Tuck, Faith Hunter, D. B. Jackson, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Carol Malcolm (moderating)
——————-
Title: Heroism and Sacrifice
Description: What does a hero have to do to save the day?
Time: Sat: 5:30pm  Location: Embassy A – Hyatt (Length 1 hour)
James R. Tuck, Faith Hunter, Jeanne C. Stein, Linda Robertson, Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, Anya Martin, Carol Malcolm (moderating)
——————-
Title: You Are What You Fight
Description: How heroes identify (or not) with their monstrous foes
Time: Sat 07:00 pm Location: Embassy C – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
James R. Tuck, Faith Hunter, Jeanne C. Stein, J. F. Lewis, Linda Robertson, Carol Malcolm (moderating)
——————-
SUNDAY
Title: This Is My Boomstick!
Description: Fans of the Evil Dead, unite!
Time: Sun 02:30 pm Location: Embassy A-B – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
James R. Tuck, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Mari Mancusi, E. Coulter
——————-
Title: Autograph Session
Time: Sun 04:00 pm Location: M301 – M304 – Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)
——————-
Title: Reading: James R. Tuck (and friends!)
Time: Sun 05:30 pm Location: Marietta – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)

THE REAL SCOOP ON SELF-PUBLISHING (no BS. Talking to my successful indie author friends.)

If you read books then you know that things they are a changing in the publishing world. A lot of folks are up in arms over the advent of independent publishing, or as it is know more commonly, self publishing. Now I have dipped my toe in that water. I have a self-pubbed little crime collection out. It’s full of these tiny crime stories that I love and think are kick-ass. They are too short for anyone to pay me for publishing them traditionally so I did it myself. It sells well and I had fun.

But I’m not a self-published author. It’s a ton of work and I do love my publisher. Kensington has been very good to me. So I am not an expert on what it’s like to really be a self-publisher. However, I am lucky enough to have many wonderful friends who self-pub. I chose three of them to interview for you today. Now I picked these three folks because of a few reasons.

1) They are all very talented. These are folks who are self publishing because they CHOOSE to, not because they suck.

2) They are actually making a livable wage (and then some) by self-publishing.

So without further adieu:

Q: Tell the readers a bit about yourselves.

Annabel Joseph: My name is Annabel Joseph and I’ve been writing for publication since about 2007. I started out at the two largest e-romance publishers and moved to self publishing after my 5th book. I have fourteen books out now with two more on the way, and I’d classify myself as a successful self-published author since I make a good living at it. I’m so thankful for my readers, because a lot of my success has come through word of mouth.

Jennifer Malone Wright: I write mostly paranormal fiction, you know…the kind with vampires and people who have special powers. My book that sells the best is The Vampire Hunter’s Daughter. I may delve into other genres, but for the most part they will always have a paranormal twist.

John Hartness: I’m John G. Hartness, author of The Black Knight Chronicles urban fantasy series from Bell Bridge Books, and the creator of Bubba the Monster Hunter and his series of short stories. I’m a professional writer, lighting designer, theatre director, writing instructor, poet, drunkard and knight-errant. Some people call me Maurice, ‘cause I speak of the pompatus of love.

Q: Why did you choose to self-publish?

Jennifer Malone Wright: The Decision to self publish was a huge decision and it was not made lightly. Seriously, I was researching publishing, agents, query letters and also the process of self publishing for years before I finished my first book. I finally chose self publishing because of the ebook boom and wanted to see what I could do with it before I pursued an agent.

Annabel Joseph:  It was a convergence of several things. First, I got a terrible cover for one of my traditionally published books. And when I say terrible, I mean, people went out of their way to write to me and say, “I did not buy your book because the cover was THAT bad.” When I complained to the publisher I was basically told to shut up, which smarts. I mean, that’s my book I labored over, and their cover sunk it. I’ll never get over it.

Around that same time, a friend convinced me to self publish one of my edgier books on Amazon. It started to sell–really SELL. By the second month it climbed to number one on the erotica bestseller list and stayed there for over a week. I had priced it at $2.99 and I sold thousands of copies at that price. I’m not saying that’s normal, but for whatever reason, the book generated word of mouth, and I made $12,000 on it that month. Meanwhile, my traditionally published book with the awful cover was priced at 11.90 and sold, I don’t know, maybe 30 copies.

I did the math in my head…hmmm…do I want to sell 30 copies a month and make $30 in royalties, or sell 6000 copies a month and get $12,000 in royalties? I was actually in contract negotiations with my next book and pulled out. The publisher got mad and it was a bad scene, but I’ve never looked back and I don’t regret it. For me, it was a matter of making a living at what I was doing, or not making a living, and I wanted to make a living.

John Hartness: I got impatient with the traditional publishing process. Not understanding the sheer volume of submissions agents and publishers receive, I waited a month after sending out my first few query letters and pulled the trigger on self-publishing.

Q: Do you love self-publishing or do you wish you were with a traditional publisher?

John Hartness: Even now that I am with a traditional publisher, I can’t foresee ever selling all my properties to traditional publishers. I love the editorial support I get from my publisher, but I love the control of self-publishing. And I write so much faster than any publisher could keep up with, so I will always keep at least one foot in the self-publishing waters. I look at all of it as stops on the journey. I learned a ton self-publishing that I’m now able to apply to my traditionally published works. Then I’m learning a ton through working with a traditional press that I can apply to my self-pub work. So it all flows back and forth.

Jennifer Malone Wright: There are some days I would disagree with the statement I’m going to make, but for the most part I totally love self publishing. I love being able to keep track of all my sales and know what works and what doesn’t. I love the creative process of picking covers and stuff like that. I actually like marketing so doing that doesn’t bother me either. The only thing I really don’t like is the accounting part of it.

Annabel Joseph: I only miss one thing about traditional publishing, and that’s the “prestige” factor. It doesn’t matter how many books you’re selling or how much money you’re making…a self-published author still appears “lesser” than a traditionally published author. There’s a stigma attached to it, the assumption that you’re self publishing because your work’s not publishable, and that’s not always the case.

I should mention here that I do believe it’s beneficial to put out at least a book or two the traditional way– if you can–because you learn a lot about what and what not to do. You learn a lot of things about writing and editing. If you’re determined to begin your career as a self publisher, do yourself a favor and hire an experienced editor to help you through your first few books. You need it. It’s costly, but I can’t stress this enough…everyone needs editors. Everyone. Every. One. Pay the money.

Q: I know each of you spend money on your covers. How important is a good cover to the sellability of the book?

Annabel Joseph: I know from experience they have a massive effect on book sales. My best covers have my best sales. My worst covers have my worst sales. Publishers will tell you–when you don’t like your cover–that covers don’t matter. It’s such a lie. When I talk to readers, they tell me they judge the cover before the blurb. You can have the best blurb in the world, but if that cover pic doesn’t compel them to click, they aren’t going to get to the blurb. Books live and die by the Amazon thumbnail, so not only do you need a great cover…it needs to be compelling in itty-bitty thumbnail form.

John Hartness:  I think a good cover is critical, particularly in paperback. I know I lost sales before I re-did all the covers to my books last year. I spend less money and time on my ebook short stories, but I can almost get away with that. But when I’m asking someone to shell out money for my novels, they need to get a professionally presented product.

Jennifer Malone Wright: Oh my goodness. A good cover is sooo important. I have seen several of my friends change their covers to something better and see their sales jump dramatically. I never did my own covers, The Vampire Hunter’s Daughter sells really well and the covers are great. My other novel, The Birth of Jaiden, doesn’t sell so well so we are going to try and come up with a new cover when we do the re release after it has been re edited. Think about how many books are out there, if yours doesn’t have an eye catching cover people will scan right on past it.

Q: What’s the best thing about self-publishing?

Jennifer Malone Wright: The best thing about self publishing is that I am in control of all my own work and I get a pretty good royalty compared to what traditionally published authors get.

Annabel Joseph: Control of your work is the number one best thing. A self publishing author controls the cover, the subject matter, the release date, the price, the formats, everything. Until you get a bad cover, or have an ebook out there priced at $11 totally tanking, you don’t understand how important that control is, or how powerless you are at a traditional publisher. Basically, you have NO power and no rights to your work, even though you’ve written the book. It’s difficult. With self publishing, you never have to surrender your rights or your power.

Self-publishing also allows you to bend genres and tiptoe around the outside of various genres, because you can put out things publishers don’t want to take a chance on. I’ve come to realize there are a lot of things readers want that publishers won’t touch. Self publishing allows authors to fill that niche. I had a historical called Lily Mine that a publisher kicked out a week before the release date because they said the ending was too implausible. It was a Cinderella-type story, and I believed readers would love it, so I published it myself. It climbed to number 12 on the erotica bestseller list and has continued to sell well for over a year now. Publishers aren’t always right about what people want to read.

John Hartness: The control.

Q: What’s the worst thing?

John Hartness: Having to do it all myself. I’m a team of one on my self-pub stuff, and with my traditionally pubbed work I’ve got a group working with me.

Jennifer Malone Wright: I said it before up there, the accounting. I freaking hate the whole save this for your taxes and make sure to claim this and blah blah blah… I hate it!

Annabel Joseph: Lack of respect, lack of opportunity. I have to kiss a lot of butt and do a lot of networking to get a spot at conferences or author panels, or to get reviewed on the bigger blogs. I’m not welcome at big romance conventions like RWA or RT, even though I imagine my sales match or exceed their published authors. It’s a constant struggle to be taken seriously, to prove yourself.

Q: Do you still get flack for being self-published, or has that day passed us by?

Annabel Joseph: No, it hasn’t passed us by. I do feel like the red-headed stepchild of the publishing industry. A lot of doors are closed to me because of the choices I’ve made, but I remind myself that I’m making a living at writing because I’m self publishing. The checks I get from my publishers are about 1/10 of the checks I get from my self-published work, and I don’t want to go back to those slave wages over an issue of pride. I have to remember it’s about the success, not the prestige. It’s about reaching readers and being able to stay home and do this as a full-time job. It’s worth a few people looking down their noses at me.

John Hartness: We’re not quite past that day, but we’re close. I still get a few snubs from cons and book festivals that won’t look at self-pubbed authors, and some agents and editors still look down their nose, but more and more people are travelling the hybrid author road, so it’s starting to look less like a decision people are forced into and more like a viable career path.

Jennifer Malone Wright: I do think, to an extent that that day has passed us by, but not completely. When I was first published I did get flack. You know, like when someone says “Oh, your published! With who?” then you tell them you are self published and you can see their whole facial expression change and they say “Oh.” Yeah, that has passed us by. We still have a long way to go to overcome the stigmas and stereotypes of self publishing over the years.

Q: Any predictions about the future? What will happen with traditional publishing? What will happen with self-publishing?

John Hartness: I think the picture of the author of the future will be different from the author of today. I think with a hybrid career (some trad pub, some self pub) we’ll see more midlist authors able to actually make a living off their writing, and writing will become a viable profession once again. I think the mass market paperback is dead within five years unless you’re a top 20 bestseller, and it will be replaced by ebooks and trade paperbacks. And I think we’re in the midst of a renaissance for small press and micro-press publishers.

Jennifer Malone Wright: I think we are always going to have traditional publishing, I don’t really have a prediction about them. For independent publishing, I think it will keep rising up and eventually a lot of these independent authors will be very, very well known. However, independent publishers must realize that we must have our product be equal or better than the traditional publishers or the self publishing industry will fall again.

Annabel Joseph: I think publishers will have to become more service-oriented to keep authors in the fold. The exodus to self-publishing has already begun, and to retain authors, publishers will have to cough up some perks to offset the low royalties they pay, like more author control. They’ll have to cater more to their authors and maybe even offer to do the promo legwork that has traditionally fallen into the author’s lap.

Otherwise I don’t see how they survive, how they remain relevant. Once the digital market overtakes the paper book market, and mass distribution of paper books loses importance, all publishers really have to offer is prestige and whatever perks they can think up to convince authors to share their royalties with them.

All I know is things are changing like crazy. It will be interesting to see where they end up.

***********

WOW! Thank you all for being so open and up front. I appreciate it.

See, dear reader, this is what you DON’T get from other blogs. I bring you the straight dope from folks who are LIVING this. Now do your part. These are all PHENOMENAL authors. You like to read so go buy one of their books. Follow them on twitter, like them on faceybook, repost their stuff. These fine folks are worthy of your support. Love them like you love me and buy their shit.

Here are your links:

ANNABEL JOSEPH

Website: www.annabeljoseph.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/annabeljosephnovels

Twitter: @annabeljoseph

Fetlife: Annabel_Joseph

Latest release: BURN FOR YOU

JOHN HARTNESS

Facebook : facebook.com/johnghartness.

  Website: www.johnhartness.com

Twitter:  @johnhartness.

Latest Release: SIXTEEN TONS A Bubba the Monster Hunter short

JENNIFER MALONE WRIGHT

Website: www.jenniferwrightauthor.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thevampirehuntersdaughter

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Jennichad217

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4824985.Jennifer_Malone_Wright

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Jennifer-Malone-Wright/e/B00508KU4I/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1

OH THE HORROR (I might be on a kick)

Those of you who know me, know that I am pretty kicky. I get on kicks. I become slightly obsessive about something and get really into it and make it my focus and then after a while I move on to something else.

Now, my kicks are all organic. They are things that I honestly like and enjoy and when I move off a kick I don’t stop liking or enjoying that thing it just isn’t my all-consuming focus any more. I tend to cycle through stuff too. Blues, guns, hotrods, etc…

Right now, I am on a horror kick.

Which is cool since I am writing a horror book. It has some urban fantasy elements, but it is pretty much a straight horror novel.

So, because of this horror kick, let me share some of my fave scary stuff with you.

1) The writing of Brian Keene.

Damn Brian Keene can write. His stuff is like Stephen King’s but scarier and way further out on the edge.  But he writes characters that are both believable and relatable that you get sucked into. Plus his horror concepts are tremendous. I was reading his terrific novel DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN.  Was. I made the mistake of leaving the book by the computer one night when I went to bed. My son gets up for school the next day and read like 3 chapters. We discussed how good it was that night. I left the book out the next night when I went to bed and BAM! that little SOB absconded with it. (I ain’t mad. I love for him to read)

Check out Brian’s website HERE and follow him on the twitter and stuff too. He’s a nice guy with a ton of stuff going on.

2) Deadite Press

Tying into the Brian Keene thing. You can go to Brian’s website and search DORCHESTER and see the back story( or CLICK HERE cause I did it for you, lazybones), but basically most of Brian Keene’s stuff was published by them for YEARS. They went tits up and left a lot of horror writers on the screwed end of publishing. Brian got his rights back and then chose Deadite Press to put out his back list as well as new releases. They do a quality job and they have a real publisher identity. Now they cover the extreme end of horror, the guts and the gore, and the deeply disturbing, but that doesn’t bother me at all.

DEADITE PRESS’S WEBSITE

3) Extreme Horror

This is a brand of horror that goes THERE. You know, the stuff that will literally make you sick to your stomach. It is NOT for everyone. This isn’t Stephen King, or THE SIXTH SENSE, this is bloody-bowels-emptied-on-the-floor-then-possesed-by-Satan-and-crawling-to-kill-you horror. It’s dark, disturbing, terrible stuff. I like it, but I am well-adjusted and secure in all that I believe is right and good in the universe. But this stuff isn’t for everyone, I wouldn’t let my son read it. It is 18 and over stuff. But that being said the stuff I love int his genre are in particular WRATH JAMES WHITE and EDWARD LEE. I read THE BIGHEAD by Edward Lee a long time ago. It is one of the most disturbing novels I have ever read. Seriously, I nearly had to put it down it was so disturbing, and you know that I am not squeamish at ALL.

4) MAY

May is one of my favorite horror movies ever. It is a terrific little flick about a disturbed chick who grows up play with and making dolls. She gets in the real world, discovers that people will use her for their own amusement instead of being decent and truly friendly so she snaps and begins to make a true friend out of the parts of folks she likes. The lead actress does a terrific job. This aired recently on cable so it is on my DVR just waiting for me to have a spare evening to watch it.

WHAT HAS BEEN GOING ON? (The Happy-haps)

Okay gang. I have a LOT happening right now.

First of all BLOOD AND SILVER is about to drop and roundhouse kick the urban fantasy world in the neck. It’s available this Tuesday (Aug. 7th) and here are some early reviews:

“This is urban fantasy as men’s fiction—Sookie Stackhouse meets the Dresden Files by way of Maxim.” -Publisher’s Weekly

“Not only was Blood and Bullets not a fluke, but it seems as if it was nothing more than Tuck merely flexing his muscles, cracking his knuckles as he tossed off a quick “warming-up” novel before he really got down to business and started writing.” -Blogcritics.org

“I think Blood and Silver was even more exciting than Blood and Bullets, although I hate to say it because that one is in my top favorite books EVER and I don’t want to hurt its feelings.” -Literary Escapism

To celebrate I am having a book release on the 7th at 7pm.

If you are in the Atlanta area then come out to Foxtale Books in Downtown Woodstock. It’s gonna be a blast. I am having friends join me, awesome authors like:

Kalayna Price – USA Today Bestselling author of The Alex Craft and Haven novels.

Janice Hardy – Author of the Healing Wars trilogy.

Delilah S. Dawson – Author of the Sang series.

Annabel Joseph – Bestselling author of many erotica novels.

Alex Hughes – Author of Clean.

And we are doing a series of short readings, then Q&A, then signings, then a second Q&A geared toward authors, all moderated by the chief moderator of the Horror and Dark Fantasy track at Dragoncon, and book blogger for Bitten By Books, Carol Malcolm.  You will have access to not just me, but SIX incredibly talented authors. If you love the genre or write the genre THIS is the best opportunity you are ever going to have. Come out, bring a friend!

Speaking of Dragoncon I have my initial schedule of appearances. It is pretty action packed and I am loving it. Nine official panels, one more that I have been asked to sit in on (more on that closer to the time), and they hopefully will schedule a signing or a reading for me.  PLUS this year I am a member of the Author’s Lair booth in one of the big dealer rooms where my books will be sold and I will be there when I can to meet, greet and sign. Here is where I will be.

——————-

Title: The Good, the Bad and the Undead

Description: The never-ending appeal of vampires

Time: Fri 11:30 am Location: Centennial I – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)

——————-

Title: Vampocalypse Now!

Description: Life in a world conquered by vampires

Time: Fri 02:30 pm Location: Embassy A-B – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)

Moderator / MC for panel

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Title: Remake It!

Description: A discussion of horror remakes, good and bad. What movies could stand to be remade?

Time: Fri 07:00 pm Location: Embassy C – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)

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Title: Our Monsters, Ourselves

Description: What each generation’s choice of monsters says about the world we live in

Time: Fri 08:30 pm Location: Embassy A-B – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)

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Title: Pulp History

Description: From western penny mags to early sci-fi digests, great literature has come on cheap paper. Past, present & future collide in serialized dime fiction.

Time: Sat 11:30 am Location: International BC – Westin (Length: 1 Hour)

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Title: Zombies: Beyond Armageddon

Description: Zombies in non-apocalyptic scenarios

Time: Sat 02:30 pm Location: Embassy A-B – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)

Moderator / MC for panel

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Title: Urban Fantasy – What exactly is it?

Description: What makes urban fantasy different than other kinds of fantasy?

Time: Sat 04:00 pm Location: Centennial I – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)

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Title: You Are What You Fight

Description: How heroes identify (or not) with their monstrous foes

Time: Sat 07:00 pm Location: Embassy C – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)

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Title: This Is My Boomstick!

Description: Fans of the Evil Dead, unite!

Time: Sun 02:30 pm Location: Embassy A-B – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)

And last but in no way least I am excited to announce that I am teaming with Seventh Star Press to bring you a terrific Sword and Sorcery anthology called THUNDER ON THE BATTLEFIELD. It will be a tremendous collection of new stories in the same vein as Robert E. Howard’s Conan, Michael Moorcock’s Elric, and Fritz Leiber’s Fafnir and Grey Mouser. Lots of action, lots of blood splashed steel, lots of face rocking awesome.

Seventh Star is a wonderful publisher and I am pleased as hell to be working with them.

Read about it here:

SEVENTH STAR PRESS ANNOUNCES THUNDER ON THE BATTLEFIELD

and if you are a writer read the actual submission call here:

THUNDER ON THE BATTLEFIELD SUBMISSION CALL

Oh, and I am currently working on not one but TWO new, non-Deaconverse, manuscripts.

WRITE YER DAMN BOOK (advice from others or link salad)

Okay Loyals and True Believers of the writing persuasion, come gather ’round for a heaping helping of advice.

Now I spend entirely too much time on the interwebz and in doing so I find a crap ton of writing advice that I enjoy and find helpful. Well, you know me, I’m not greedy, I will share the wealth. I will give you links to the best ones I have found recently.

So go ahead. Click these links. Go read. Comment on the blog. Check out the writers. Stalk them. Buy their shit.

You know the deal.

So here goes.

THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STORY

This blog should be on your check often radar. Not only is Janice Hardy a helluva writer, she is also a helluva a traveling companion for the coming zombie apocalypse. This blog is PACKED with wayyyy to many awesome articles to pick just one. Hell, this blog is just about to turn the corner on ONE MILLION PAGE VIEWS so you know it kicks some serious ass.

HOW I WENT FROM WRITING 2,000 WORDS A DAY TO 10,000 WORDS A DAY

You read that right. Rachel Aaron has a truly kick ass blog about how to use a tiny bit of logic and planning to turn your daily wordcount into a bloodbath. Go now and read and then repost.

GENRE AND AESTHETIC

Sara Taylor Woods is a pre-published writer. That won’t stay true for long. Her blog is a great place to get the sense that you are not alone and the problems you are running into are real. This blog is a fresh look at how we can fall into the traps of affecting an aesthetic instead of truly exploring a genre.

HOW TO KILL YOUR DARLINGS

Delilah S. Dawson, writer extraordinaire of steampunky vampire smut and third party of the FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE DOOMPACALYPSE, has a great voice when she blogs. I guarantee you will chuckle while she smacks some sense into you.

And last but NOT least in any way shape or form is

WORD WHORES

This is the group blog I am damn lucky to be a member of. It’s a great group of authors who kick ass and take names and then tell you all about it. We have turned our blogging to writing advice. We pick a topic and EVERY DAMN DAY a new writer tackles it. It’s like daily wisdom. I post on Mondays. Tune in and check us out.

THE MAN WITH MANY HATS (Guest interview with Stephen Zimmer)

Okay, I met Stephen Zimmer at Con Nooga. He was hella nice and sitting next to him at panels I was struck by his well spoken manner or answering questions.  I wandered by his booth to say hello and discovered he wrote for Seventh Star Press which is a small publisher I had heard of and had been impressed with.

Stephen and I have never had a lot of time to sit and talk with each other, which is sad because I think he would be a blast to hang out with.

He has a new book out SPIRIT OF FIRE so now was the perfect opportunity to have a chit and a chat with him. So here it is folks:

James Ray Tuck Jr: give me just one sec.  alrighty   ready to rock

Stephen Zimmer:  I’m ready here.

James Ray Tuck Jr:  Okay, so it’s been a minute since Fandom Fest, tell everyone what you have been up to, specifically about the new book you have out, also all the other things that keep you one of the busiest men in showbiz.

Stephen Zimmer:   Definitely glad that the Fandom Fest project was completed, that was a big one, as it coincided with the full blog tour and release of my newest book, Spirit of Fire, which is the third in my Fires in Eden series. For those that haven’t read this series, they are epic fantasy with ensemble casts, and this particular installment is a very fast paced one with loads of action and some big revelations for the series as a whole.

I have been busy with doing PR work for the other Seventh Star Press authors, as well as working on developing a couple independent film projects, and keeping a full writing schedule that includes, at the moment, the 4th book of the Rising Dawn Saga, and some short stories from the Chronicles of Ave collection, the Annals of the Rising Dawn collection, and a new horror collection that I am really excited about unveiling.

James Ray Tuck Jr:  Very cool. Now what drew you into wanting to write epic fantasy?

Stephen Zimmer:    Seriously, it goes back to when my mother read me Lord of the Rings, the fully trilogy, when I was about seven. That started the roots, but what I love about epic fantasy is the ease with which it can be intimate at one moment or zoom up to a cosmic level during the course of a story. Of course, that kind of range can cause things to go spinning out of control if you are not careful, but if you balance it right, like writers like Tolkien and George R.R. Martin do, the results are magical. The layers and richness of good epic fantasy can deliver you into a truly immersive reading experience, and I hope that my series has given that to readers.

James Ray Tuck Jr:  So you lean more to the Tolkien side of the road rather than the Robert E. Howard side? More Heavy layered and textured world with large casts of characters rather than the man versus the unnatural with only his sword and the strength of his thews?

Stephen Zimmer:  I do lean more towards the Tolkien side in my writing, but I love Robert E. Howard and some of the characters in the ensembles I have could easily step into one of Howard’s environments. The supernatural does make its presence felt in my series, so it is not entirely on the Tolkien end of the spectrum. But Ave is a thoroughly developed world that serves as fertile ground for the characters that make the main ensemble.

James Ray Tuck Jr:    So there is magic in your world, how does it work?

Stephen Zimmer The magic in my world is a little more present than you would see in a series like A Song of Ice and Fire. There is a cosmic clash going on underneath the events of the Fires in Eden series, so there are supernatural beings that take the stage at times. The Wizards in my series are an actual immortal race that predates humans, and they wield supernatural powers as well. As far as humans go, most magic is concentrated in the Sorcerers that serve The Unifier, who have been given revelations directly from Jebaalos, who is a dark entity who presides over the abyssal realms.

James Ray Tuck Jr:     Sounds very awesome, and there’s more in the series to come?

Stephen Zimmer:  There is a lot more to come, about 4 books remaining in the main series, as well as many more short stories in the Chronicles of Ave, a the collection which is set in the same world, and I have not ruled out doing another series based in Ave. Readers are going to see much more of Ave over the course of the next books, far beyond what is shown on the map included in Spirit of Fire. It helps when Ave features races of flying steeds, which also makes for some exciting aerial combat sequences.

James Ray Tuck Jr:   Flying aerial combat sounds pretty kickass. Okay, now lets shift gears a second and talk about somme of the other hats you are wearing…..Tell me a bit about Seventh Star Publishing and what you do.

Stephen Zimmer:   Seventh Star Press is a small press publisher based in Lexington, Kentucky, and I was the first author to come aboard. I do represent the press officially and am a part of it, with my main capacity being PR and outreach, but there are several other individuals involved. Currently, we have eight authors, two artists, and work with 4 editors. It is not the largest small press out there, but it is one where everyone works together really well.

James Ray Tuck Jr:     I really like the way you guys run. Your books look top notch. What’s the best thing about being with Seventh Star as an author and the best thing about working with them as an employee?

Stephen Zimmer:      Thank you very much, we really try to make every book and author succeed rather than fling twenty titles a month against a wall to see what sticks. One thing I like best about Seventh Star in terms of being an author is that everyone works to make each release the best end product it can be. The editors and artists are very passionate about the work they put their names with and they strive to do their part, and then in the PR phase, where I am one of the individuals involved, we do everything we can to get the word out. The authors are very connected to the editors and artists, in a way that you don’t see at every publisher out there.

In terms of working with Seventh Star in an official capacity, it is the fact that I know we work to do everything to make each author’s series or franchise successful that makes me feel very good about what we do. No author is left behind, and if a title does not get off to a fast start, the focus is on how to find the right avenues for that title rather than shifting priorities elsewhere in the catalog. Sometimes finding the audience for a book or series takes time, or a series needs to be cultivated. I find that sometimes publishers can be impatient with titles that could eventually turn out to be very successful if given the right chance.

James Ray Tuck Jr:     Now You guys are pretty heavy in the fantasy genre, is that the main focus? And when are y’all going to do a kick ass Sword and Sorcery anthology? lol

Stephen Zimmer:   Interesting you mention that! Our next release is a paranormal thriller called Haunting Obsession by R.J. Sullivan, and our newest author is J.L. Mulvihill with her steampunk series Steel Roots.

Following that comes Michael West’s next novel in his Harmony, Indiana franchise, which is horror, and then David Blalock’s next one in the Angelkiller Triad, which is urban fantasy.

Yes, we did have a run of fantasy this spring with Jackie Gamber’s new Leland Dragon series novel Sela, and my new one, Spirit of Fire,and the reissues just before of D.A. Adams’ first two Brotherhood of Dwarves books, but don’t forget Steven Shrewsbury’s Overkill is Sword and Sorcery! Also, my other series, The Rising Dawn Saga, is urban fantasy on an epic scale, and Michael West has another series with us, the Legacy of the Gods, which is urban fantasy.

As far as anthologies go, The End Was Not the End, which is post-apocalyptic tales set in ancient world to medieval settings, it is highly likely that there will be several Sword and Sorcery pieces in it. All of that is up to the editor, Joshua Leet, but I’m sure he’s gotten several submissions in that area. A full-focused Sword and Sorcery anthology is definitely something we’d be interested in doing in the future.

James Ray Tuck Jr:      I’d be in to submit for that! You guys have a ton going on then….it’s great to see good folks doing vital stuff. So you said you were doing some indie filmmaking. Anything you can talk about?

Stephen Zimmer:     I have a very action heavy screenplay, that features a Conan-esque lead character who goes on an Odyssey-style adventure set in the Viking Age, featuring lots of supernatural baddies. I would love to see this be made as a feature, but only if it is done right in terms of production value. That is the foremost project I’m working to develop. We’ll have to see what happens, but it is dark fantasy/sword and sorcery in style all the way.

James Ray Tuck Jr:      Awesome. So anything you want to do in the future? You are so busy doing a ton of kick ass stuff is there anything you just want to do that’s not already in the works?

Stephen Zimmer:   On an artistic level, I would just like to be in a rhythm where I could do a feature film production each year and keep on schedule with my two series and releasing short fiction. I do want to do a space opera series at some point for sure, and I do have some ideas for a YA series sketched out. Possibly something novella length with the Harvey and Solomon steampunk tales I’ve been doing, the first two of which are in the Dreams of Steam I and II anthologies.      (from Kerlak Publishing)

James Ray Tuck Jr:  So how do you like writing in the Steampunk genre? Do you feel like it is still growing or becoming saturated?

Stephen Zimmer:       I really enjoy it, and I feel that as long as you have a compelling plot and good characters you are not limited to any particular genre. I believe it is still growing and also experiencing a big bandwagon effect. Whatever is hot at a given moment goes through this kind of phase, and it will eventually shake out.

I have come to love writing the Harvey and Solomon characters, which all came about as a kind of challenge from Kimberly Richardson at Kerlak Publishing before Dreams of Steam I. I took it on to see how I would fare outside of my comfort zone of fantasy/urban fantasy, and ended up enjoying it a great deal. The stories are very different from my other work.

James Ray Tuck Jr:       I ‘m working on a steampunk novel and enjoying it quite a bit. What’s your favorite part of the world? Do you do a stiffer, Victorian spin? The gadgetry?

Stephen Zimmer:      I don’t want to be too stuck on the gadgetry, nor did I want to get too formal, so Harvey and Solomon’s first adventures have taken place in a Smoky Mountains-style setting, an Alaskan one, and a southwestern one in a third story that has been submitted for consideration at the present moment. All three stories involve tribal people, and mystical elements, which I feel helps me offer some dimensions that go beyond the standard elements. It is definitely a late 1800′s type setting, there are airships, ironclad vessels, things of that nature, but my favorite part is the friendship between Harvey and Solomon and their journeys across this kind of landscape.

James Ray Tuck Jr:    So like a Jeremiah Johnson/ Lewis and Clark kind of story but with steampunk?

Stephen Zimmer:     Yes, only Harvey is a cat, which makes for some interesting twists! LOL

James Ray Tuck Jr:    It sounds like it.

Alright, so that is a good bit of info…now tell everyone where to get your newest and how to keep up with you.

Stephen Zimmer:     As far as my newest, you can still get a limited edition hardcover direct from Seventh Star Press at: http://www.seventhstarpress.com/documents/pre_orders.html

Amazon Kindle version is available, as is the softcover from most online vendors like Amazon, B&N, etc. It is in the Ingram catalog, so any store or library should be able to get it in. .

as far as me, here are my main connecting points:

website: www.stephenzimmer.com

twitter: @sgzimmer

facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/AuthorFilmmaker-Stephen-Zimmer/221620254562078

James Ray Tuck Jr:   Awesome. Any final words to the readers out there?

Stephen Zimmer:     Thank you for your time and reading this interview! I appreciate the chance to introduce myself and I love to hear from readers so do not hesitate to reach out to me in the future if you want to ask questions or talk with me about the stories.

James Ray Tuck Jr: Excellent… thanks a bunch mang

See? Go pick up Stephen’s stuff.

BUSIER THAN A TEN-PECKERED ROOSTER IN A HENHOUSE

Here’s a general rundown of what I am doing and have been doing and the general crazy that is my life right now.

First of all I am all over the place. This Saturday (June 23rd) I will be at the BOOKS-A-MILLION in Canton, Ga from 1-3pm signing books with my two good friends Janice Hardy (author of THE HEALING WARS series) and Delilah S. Dawson (author of WICKED AS THEY COME). Plus there will be a store-wide sale of at least 20% off so come out, buy some books, meet some writers, get some signatures, SAVE THE HUMAN RACE FROM EXTINCTION!

SPIDER’S LULLABY the second e-novella in the Deacon Chalk series hits this Tues. (June 26th) at all fine e-tailers for only $1.99

Then next weekend (June 29-July 1) I will be at FANDOM FEST in Louisville, KY.

You should come out for this one if you can. It is gonna rock! 140+ writer guests. It will be insane. Pluse media guests like BRUCE CAMPBELL AND PETER DAVISON.

Here is my schedule for the convention.

Friday 2:30pm Jones Room How to Be a Panelist

Friday 5:30 pm Jones Room Horror Cage Match

Friday 8:30 pm McCreary Room Shrewsbury Night Live! With Special Guests James R. Tuck, John Hartness, and Brady Allen

Saturday 1pm Morrow Room Robert E. Howard Roundup

Saturday 4pm Beckham Room I want to Be a Vampire (M)

Saturday 5:30 pm Beckham Room Exploring Genres Urban Fantasy

Sunday 11:30 pm Fields Room Guns and Monsters How to Write Urban Fantasy (M)

Sunday 1pm Beckham Room The Big 6 and Traditional Press’ Place in Today’s World

Plus a reading and a signing.

BUT WAIT THERE’S MORE!

The next weekend (Saturday July 7)  I will be at a MASSIVE SEVEN AUTHOR EVENT in Columbia, SC      4pm-7pm

Barnes & Noble Booksellers

3400 Forest Dr, Columbia, South Carolina 29204-4041

Me, Kalayna Price, John Hartness, Misty Massey, Rachel Aaron, Delilah S. Dawson, and A. J. Hartley.  If you are in the area, come out!

AND FINALLY

I have dipped my toe into the self publishing world with this special little ditty:

I did this myself y’all!

Description:

FROM THE AUTHOR THAT BROUGHT YOU DEACON CHALK!

A new collection of short stories set in Culvert City, a place where bad people do bad things to each other. This is CRIME done the way it should be. Dark, gritty, hard as concrete and twice as cold.

Hard-eyed men and quick-draw dames.

You’ll meet a hitman with no name who does what he’s paid to do with style, a young buck finding his place, and a woman pushed to the edge and over.

This is how crime fiction should be written…like a knuckle sammich across the kisser. You get six stories and they sit like a full chamber on a snubnose Saturday night special, loaded hot and ready to fire.

Welcome to Culvert City, watch your back.

Buy it on Amazon for only $1.99 (more formats and places to buy to come soon!)

Plus the release party for BLOOD AND SILVER Deacon Chalk book 2 is coming on August 7th at FoxTale Books in Woodstock Ga.

Whew! I’ll catch y’all on the flip side.