The Ballad of Anthony Giangregorio (UPDATED)

Several years ago, Anthony Giangregorio wrote and self-published (via his Undead Press imprint) at least one novel* set in the world of George Romero’s Dawn of the Dead, featuring the same trademarked cast of characters, without the permission of George Romero or the other rights-holders. And it stopped qualifying as fan fiction the moment Giangregorio sold the book via Amazon and other retail outlets.

Giangregorio resurfaced a year or so ago, attending conventions such as NECON, World Horror, and AnthoCon, where he worked hard convincing everyone that he’d turned over a new leaf. And now he’s managed to screw a bunch of new authors. Kelli Owen has all of the details here** and if you are a new writer, her Blog entry on the matter is required reading for you. It’s an ugly, frustrating situation for the authors involved.

*Many news sources, Blog posts, message board comments, and cached comments from Giangregorio himself indicate there were several novels in this series.

**I’m thrilled to see Kelli tackling stories like this. I’ve done it for over 15 years (Jobs In Hell, Hail Saten, and this website), and I’m tired. I’m happy Kelli and others from her generation are taking over, so old guys like me can sleep occasionally and catch up on our writing deadlines. Bookmark her Blog.