Hank Garner's Blog, page 36

Episode 534 | Daniel Arthur Smith Talks Writing Short Fiction

Today my guest is Daniel Arthur Smith, author and publisher of Tales From The Canyons of the Damned, and Frontiers of Speculative Fiction. In this episode, we peel back the layers of short story writing and talk about what makes a great piece of short fiction and what writers can do to write better short stories.

This twenty-ninth issue of Tales from the Canyons of the Damned consists of three sharp, suspenseful, thought-provoking short stories—each from a different featured master of speculative fiction. Nice List by Will SwardstromDreaming of a Carboniferous Christmas by Robert JeschonekThe Christmas Gift by Daniel Arthur Smith Tales from the Canyons of the Damned (canyonsofthedamned.com) is dark science fiction, horror, & slipstream magazine we’ve been working on since 2015. What is Dark Science Fiction and Horror? Think of it as a literary Twilight Zone, Night Gallery, or Outer Limits, it’s Netflix’s Black Mirror and Amazon’s Electric Dreams in the short story format. And it’s a bargain. Each monthly issue has three-to-five sharp, suspenseful, satirical tales from today’s top speculative fiction writers. These are Dark Sci-Fi Slipstream Tales like you’ve never read before.

Daniel Arthur Smith is a USA Today bestselling author. His titles include Spectral Shift, Hugh Howey Lives, The Cathari Treasure, The Somali Deception, and a few other novels and short stories. He also curates the phenomenal short fiction series Tales from the Canyons of the Damned and Frontiers of Speculative Fiction. He was raised in Michigan and graduated from Western Michigan University where he studied philosophy, with a focus on cognitive science, metaphysics, and comparative religion.  He began his career as a bartender, barista, poetry house proprietor, teacher, and then became a technologist and futurist for the Fortune 100 across the Americas and Europe. Daniel has traveled to over 300 cities in 22 countries, residing in Los Angeles, Kalamazoo, Prague, Crete, and now writes in Manhattan where he lives with his wife and young sons. For more information, visit danielarthursmith.com

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Episode 533 | Stefan Bolz Interview

Today’s author interview guest is Stefan Bolz, author of The White Dragon Omnibus Edition.

“Action-packed poetry. This is Stefan Bolz at his best.” [Amazon Reviewer, on “Genesis.”]”

A superb illustration in character building.” [Chris Fried for Leighgendarium.com, on “Crucible.”]

“A stunning conclusion.” [Amazon Reviewer, on “Alchemy.”]

The White Dragon: Omnibus edition combines all three books in The White Dragon trilogy: Genesis, Crucible, and Alchemy. It tells the story of the very beginning of an apocalyptic event as seen through the eyes of an eighteen-year-old girl. Nothing could have prepared her for what is about to happen and she has to face some seriously tough stuff before the end. During the thirty-six hours of terror that turn Kasey Byrne’s life upside down and strip her of everything dear to her, something inside her awakens. It is gift and curse alike for it can destroy her or turn her into the most powerful weapon against the evil that has reached the shores of our world.

Born and raised in the beautiful Main River Valley in Germany, Stefan came to the U.S. in 1996 where he settled in upstate New York. He grew up on German poetry, soccer, Nutella, and American music. After coming here, he studied creative writing/screenwriting and psychology. Next came a foray into poetry and essays on life and existential questions which brought him to his first novel, The Three Feathers, a fable about a young rooster who follows his dream and jumps the coop in search for adventure. While in the midst of it, he realized that writing has been his own dream all along. He doesn’t like to be pinned down in only one genre and feels at home in Science Fiction, Dystopia, Apocalyptic, Literary, Horror, and Fantasy. Stefan’s stories have appeared in The Alien Chronicles (The Future Chronicles): Foreword; The Time Travel Chronicles (Future Chronicles Book 7): Short Story: The Traveler (was optioned by Brittany House Pictures); Tails of the Apocalypse: Protector; Chronicle Worlds – B-Movie: Nightmare; Shapeshifter Chronicles (The Future Chronicles Book 13): The Night of the Hunted; Post Road Magazine: Woven Dreams – On Robert Lamont. You can find him at www.stefanswritingdesk.com.  “Stefan Bolz is a remarkable author, whose writing is not merely inventive but lyrical, almost mystical. You can’t help but fall under the spell of the worlds he creates, the characters he gives life to. He’s one of that vanguard of authors bringing speculative fiction into a new silver age.” — Samuel Peralta, Award Winning Author and Creator of ‘The Future Chronicles’

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Episode 532 | Lisa Jewell Interview

Today’s author interview guest is Lisa Jewell, author of Watching You. 

The instant New York Times and #1 Sunday Times bestselling author of the “riveting thriller” (PopSugar) Then She Was Gone delivers another suspenseful page-turner about a shocking murder in a picturesque and well-to-do English town, perfect “for fans of Gone Girl, The Girl on the Train, and Luckiest Girl Alive” (Library Journal). Melville Heights is one of the nicest neighborhoods in Bristol, England; home to doctors and lawyers and old-money academics. It’s not the sort of place where people are brutally murdered in their own kitchens. But it is the sort of place where everyone has a secret. And everyone is watching you. As the headmaster credited with turning around the local school, Tom Fitzwilliam is beloved by one and all—including Joey Mullen, his new neighbor, who quickly develops an intense infatuation with this thoroughly charming yet unavailable man. Joey thinks her crush is a secret, but Tom’s teenaged son Freddie—a prodigy with aspirations of becoming a spy for MI5—excels in observing people and has witnessed Joey behaving strangely around his father. One of Tom’s students, Jenna Tripp, also lives on the same street, and she’s not convinced her teacher is as squeaky clean as he seems. For one thing, he has taken a particular liking to her best friend and fellow classmate, and Jenna’s mother—whose mental health has admittedly been deteriorating in recent years—is convinced that Mr. Fitzwilliam is stalking her. Meanwhile, twenty years earlier, a schoolgirl writes in her diary, charting her doomed obsession with a handsome young English teacher named Mr. Fitzwilliam…

In Lisa Jewell’s latest brilliant “bone-chilling suspense” (People) no one is who they seem—and everyone is hiding something. Who has been murdered—and who would have wanted one of their neighbors dead? As “Jewell teases out her twisty plot at just the right pace” (Booklist, starred review), you will be kept guessing until the startling revelation on the very last page. Lisa Jewell was born and raised in north London, where she lives with her husband and two daughters. She is the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA TODAY bestselling author of over twenty novels, including The Girls in the Garden, The House We Grew Up In, and The Third Wife. To find out more, visit Facebook.com/LisaJewellOfficial, or follow her on Twitter @LisaJewellUK.

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Episode 531 with Luke Daniels, Rhett Bruno, and Jaime Castle

Today we have a special roundtable episode talking all about audiobooks and how authors can take advantage of this growing segment of the publishing market. Joining me are Rhett Bruno and Jaime Castle, co-authors of The Buried Goddess Saga, and hall of fame audiobook narrator Luke Daniels. 

From Book 1: A rotten thief. A stubborn knight. Only together can they save a broken kingdom.  Self-proclaimed “World’s Greatest Thief”, Whitney Fierstown, has yet to find a trinket or treasure he couldn’t steal. He nearly pulls off the heist of the century by snatching the Glass Crown off the dying king’s head until rotten luck throws him into the path of Torsten Unger, a steadfast knight determined to save his vulnerable kingdom.  Torsten offers this ultimatum: rot and die in a dank cell or join him on a dangerous expedition and put his skills to good use. The Queen’s treasonous brother has cursed the Crown Prince by taking a piece of his soul and hiding it in the haunted Webbed Woods. Only a master thief can steal it back.  Rebellion building in the south. Madness seated upon the throne. Famine and death spreading throughout the land. The kingdom is in peril. If this unlikely pair is to thwart their devious target, save the prince, and survive the horrifying monster lurking in the darkness, they must first put aside their differences…or die trying.  Check out the exciting first book in an Epic Fantasy Adventure Series perfect for fans of R.A Salvatore, Brandon Sanderson, and Nicholas Eames. You can also grab it on Audible narrated by the award-winning Luke Daniels. Luke DanielsLuke Daniels was born into a family of actors. Both his father and mother have been performing and teaching in the Theatre for almost five decades. It is because of their influence that, from a very young age, Luke and his two brothers often found themselves spending countless hours in rehearsal halls across the country. This early exposure and “backstage pass” into the creation of innumerable productions fostered a deep love of storytelling in Luke that can be heard in his wide-ranging audiobook work today.

Luke Daniels has narrated over 450 audiobooks. A listener favorite, he has been the grateful recipient of 13 AudioFile Earphones Awards, 4 Audie nominations, as well as Audible’s 2012 Narrator of the Year Award. Luke is well known for his imaginative storytelling and dynamic characterizations, which create an immersive listening experience for his audience. Luke’s vast repertoire of work ranges from Kerouac to Updike, Nora Roberts to Stephen King, Michael Crichton to Phillip K. Dick. His background is in classical theatre and film. He has performed at repertory theaters around the country, but now produces from his home studio in the Midwest, where he resides with his pack.

Episode 530 | Hayley Stone Interview

Today’s author interview guest is Hayley Stone, author of the phenomenal new book Make Me No Grave: A Weird West Novel. In this interview we talk about Hayley’s life-long dream of being a writer, her love of science fiction and action/adventure stories, her first sci-fi series, shifting gears to westerns, what the western genre allows a writer to do creatively, mixing a little bit of magic into the old west, and much more.

Marshal Apostle Richardson faces off against bloodthirsty outlaws, flesh witches, ruthless vigilantes, and more in this gritty, magical re-imagining of the Old West. Marshal Apostle Richardson faces off against bloodthirsty outlaws, flesh witches, ruthless vigilantes, and more in this gritty, magical re-imagining of the Old West. Almena Guillory, better known as the Grizzly Queen of the West, has done plenty to warrant the noose, but US Marshal Apostle Richardson enforces the law, he doesn’t decide it. When a posse tries to lynch Almena ahead of her trial, Apostle refuses their form of expedited justice – and receives a bullet for his trouble. Almena spares him through the use of dangerous flesh magic but escapes soon after saving him. Weeks later, Apostle fears the outlaw queen has returned to her old ways when she’s spotted terrorizing Kansas with a new gang in tow. When cornered, however, Almena makes a convincing case for her innocence and proposes a plan to take the real bandits down.

Working with a known killer opens Apostle up to all sorts of trouble, not the least being his own growing attraction toward the roguish woman. Turning Almena away from vengeance may be out of the question, but if he doesn’t try, she’ll wind up right where the law wants her: at the end of a rope. And if Apostle isn’t careful, he’ll end up joining her.

If you like Red Dead Redemption and Lila Bowen’s Wake of Vultures, you’ll love this gun-blazing weird western.

Hayley Stone has lived her entire life in sunny California, where the weather is usually perfect and nothing as exciting as a robot apocalypse ever happens.  When not reading or writing, she freelances as a graphic designer, falls in love with video game characters, and analyzes buildings for velociraptor entry points. She holds a bachelor’s degree in history and a minor in German from California State University, Sacramento.

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Episode 529 | Jaime Castle Peels Back The Layers On Pantsing

Today’s show features fantasy author Jaime Castle, author of The Buried Goddess Saga. We talk about his unique take on discovery writing and what he calls ‘onioning‘ the story. This show is a great counterpart to last week’s show with Josh Hayes on outlining, and hopefully you’ll pick up some tips that will help round out your author toolkit.

Self-proclaimed “World’s Greatest Thief”, Whitney Fierstown, has yet to find a trinket or treasure he couldn’t steal. He nearly pulls off the heist of the century by snatching the Glass Crown off the dying king’s head until rotten luck throws him into the path of Torsten Unger, a steadfast knight determined to save his vulnerable kingdom.  Torsten offers this ultimatum: rot and die in a dank cell or join him on a dangerous expedition and put his skills to good use. The Queen’s treasonous brother has cursed the Crown Prince by taking a piece of his soul and hiding it in the haunted Webbed Woods. Only a master thief can steal it back.  Rebellion building in the south. Madness seated upon the throne. Famine and death spreading throughout the land. The kingdom is in peril. If this unlikely pair is to thwart their devious target, save the prince, and survive the horrifying monster lurking in the darkness, they must first put aside their differences…or die trying. 

Jaime Castle is the is the co-author of The Buried Goddess Saga (along with Science Fiction author Rhett C. Bruno.) He lives in Texas with his wife and two children and enjoys anything creative. A self-proclaimed comic book nerd and artist, he spends what little free time he can muster with his art tablet. Are you ready to enlist in the King’s Shield? Join Jaime and Rhett’s Fantasy Newsletter and get access to exclusive content, like Pickaxe, the first in a short story series called Legends of Pantego that will dig into the deep history of the world you’ve come to love in the Buried Goddess Saga. Sign up here: www.jaimecastle.com/kings-shield/

Episode 528 | Mike Lupica Interview

Today’s author interview guest is Mike Lupica, author of the new novel ROBERT B. PARKER’S BLOOD FEUD. Mike and I talked about his amazing story of becoming a sports journalist, his dual loves of journalism and mystery writing, his relationship with Robert B. Parker, being tapped to continue the Sunny Randall series, and much more.

Robert B. Parker’s iconic and irresistible PI Sunny Randall is back, and the stakes are higher than ever as she races to protect her ex-husband–and his Mafia family–from the vengeful plan of a mysterious rival.

Sunny Randall is “on” again with Richie, the ex-husband she never stopped loving and never seemed to be able to let go, despite her discomfort with his Mafia connections. When Richie is shot and nearly killed, Sunny is dragged into the thick of his family’s business as she searches for answers and tries to stave off a mob war. But as the bullets start flying in Boston’s mean streets, Sunny finds herself targeted by the deranged mastermind of the plot against the Burke family, whose motive may be far more personal than she could have anticipated…

Mike Lupica is one of the most prominent sports writers in America. His longevity at the top of his field is based on his experience and insider’s knowledge, coupled with a provocative presentation that takes an uncompromising look at the tumultuous world of professional sports. Today he is a syndicated columnist for the New York Daily News, which includes his popular “Shooting from the Lip” column, which appears every Sunday. He began his newspaper career covering the New York Knicks for the New York Post at age 23. He became the youngest columnist ever at a New York paper with the New York Daily News, which he joined in 1977. For more than 30 years, Lupica has added magazines, novels, sports biographies, other non-fiction books on sports, as well as television to his professional resume. For the past fifteen years, he has been a TV anchor for ESPN’s The Sports Reporters. He also hosted his own program, The Mike Lupica Show on ESPN2. In 1987, Lupica launched “The Sporting Life” column in Esquire magazine. He has published articles in other magazines, including Sport, World Tennis, Tennis, Golf Digest, Playboy, Sports Illustrated, ESPN: The Magazine, Men’s Journal and Parade. He has received numerous honors, including the 2003 Jim Murray Award from the National Football Foundation. Mike Lupica co-wrote autobiographies with Reggie Jackson and Bill Parcells, collaborated with noted author and screenwriter, William Goldman on Wait Till Next Year, and wrote The Summer of ’98, Mad as Hell: How Sports Got Away from the Fans and How We Get It Back and Shooting From the Lip, a collection of columns. In addition, he has written a number of novels, including Dead Air, Extra Credits, Limited Partner, Jump, Full Court Press, Red Zone, Too Far and national bestsellers Wild Pitch and Bump and Run. Dead Air was nominated for the Edgar Allen Poe Award for Best First Mystery and became a CBS television move, “Money, Power, Murder” to which Lupica contributed the teleplay. Over the years he has been a regular on the CBS Morning News, Good Morning America and The MacNeil-Lehrer Newshour. On the radio, he has made frequent appearances on Imus in the Morning since the early 1980s. His previous young adult novels, Travel Team, Heat, Miracle on 49th Street, and the summer hit for 2007, Summer Ball, have shot up the New York Times bestseller list. Lupica is also what he describes as a “serial Little League coach,” a youth basketball coach, and a soccer coach for his four children, three sons and a daughter. He and his family live in Connecticut.

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