Hallow Mass Update

COMING THIS SPRING!

Igy Hotarubi Pinterest

Following an inquiry or two, I've committed to writing and publishing Volume II of my Lovecraftian horror trilogy: "The War on Death" Hallow Mass by spring 2024. 😬🙏 As illustrated by handy emojiis, fear and hope collide in my aging head. What if I botch the attempt? One promising backstop is to insert a financial penalty for NOT finishing, such as taking out advertising in advance of publication. Yeah. I like it. Now to work.

I'm also writing a horror/suspense novella which should publish in ebook form by Christmas. On top of that, I'm collating my notes from Ireland and hope to put out a short non-fiction book on my pilgrimage by next March. 

So many projects. I'm bound to complete one.

Available in durable ebook and softcover

Naming the Unnameable in Lovecraftian Films

 Happy February! There's are reasons Hollywood can't seem to nail down a Lovecraft film. This video does a better job than most in explaining why.

Screened

Smashwords Holiday Book Sale

Find them here!

 In truth, my BOOKS are 50% off. Not all of them, just the ones on Smashwords or Smashwords via Draft2Digital.  A deal-bargain-score for the Christmas season! Choose between subjects as diverse as horror, humor, parody, or prostate cancer. I'd go myself, but I wrote them all. 

Fiction Writing Update and The Social Dilemma

trainerbubble.com

Trapped once more

 I used to update my writing more often. Ah, well. I'll start by reporting that the allure of social media/YouTube is just as addictive as intended. Among other spots, I've described the cloying allure of the Web back in 2017,  in a book revue and in a post complaining about Facebook. Just the morning I woke up late and started zipping around news sites and watching old Soprano videos instead of working. I have a twelve minute grace period. After that, I vanish into the online time-suck. 

And fiction writing? 

One helpful method is to reduce the time I write. Less seems to be more. This will increase in subsequent drafts, but for now my second volume of Hallow Mass inches forward two hours at a time. Depending on the amount of dialogue, that produces between one and four pages. I finish refreshed and less tempted during difficult periods to bolt intoWeb surfing. More updates soon.

BTW:

As mentioned earlier this year, take a look at The Social Dilemma. They really nail the built-in addictive nature of social media, smart phones, etc. 

Also 2018's The Creepy Line. 

New Hallow Mass eBook Edition in Pre-Order

frontporch.club

No, the starburst is not the new cover. But it is an arresting image.

Here. This is it.

Abridged, lean, fit and with new cover art that is not a starburst, Hallow Mass.2 rolls out in two weeks—or April 9 if you prefer. This remodel is in preparation for the second volume Hell War, due out this fall. 

Hallow Mass edition two—ebook only— preorder is available via literary aggregator site Draft2Digital at Barnes & Noble Nook, Rakuten Kobo, Apple and more. Additional markets will become available as April 9 approaches.

What about Stinking Amazon? 

The colossus sets its own rules. Should you wish to preorder, as I've done in the past, then you must sign up for their Kindle program. You will then be exclusive to the behemoth for the next ninety days. Good preorder success has been mine in the past, but I'm open to testing new waters. For no other reason that it allows me a small rebellion against Amazon's monopoly stranglehold on books.

That said, the paperback edition and ebook will be out on Amazon come April 9.

New paperback cover; due to launch on Amazon April 9.

What is the Difference Between an Edition and a Volume?

Glad I typed that. Bob B. at Yahoo! Answers crushes the question.

"Some publications cannot be fitted into a single book or journal, so they split it across multiple volumes.

Also, sometimes a given publication is revised/updated and re-published, in which case the re-published version is a "new edition".

You savvy, G.I.?

Should you wish to avoid reading a future promotional blog post, go here for advance knowledge of my next ebook release via Draft2Digital. 

Self-Publishing, Magical Realism, and the Slippery Slope

crownofcompassion

I wanted so little: a new cover for my horror novel, Hallow Mass. But then I needed a page count for the cover artist. That led me to glance over the manuscript and notice several errors. This led to a brief rewrite which, in turn, led to a longer rewrite, which resulted in my cutting over 4k words. 

This, then, led to my sending the manuscript out to a proofreader. In the meantime, I've acquired the new ebook cover from the artist who is holding onto the paperback cover until I present a final page count. In the meantime, I attemptted to format the paperback interior myself. Several days were eaten up as one step forward often led to three steps backwards and one hop to the side.

Great work by the proofreader, but my production manager—also my wife—rarely sees a free moment these days from her technical writing job. Unable to do the task herself, she suggested a copywriter to supply the manuscript with a high-gloss finish. 

So I offered the job on Reedsy to five of their curated editors. So far, one passed and another wanted twice as much as I could afford. Meanwhile, I've contacted a company in Australia for the formatting. Great price, but I need the copywriting completed first, as well as adding ISBNs, before I can receive the final pdfs. 

Bowker, which handles American ISBNs, presents one with an unforgiving interface. I checked a box by mistake, couldn't undo it, and must now call Bowker and seek their help.

My to-do list now looks like a rough draft for the Peace of Westphalia. And all I desired was a new cover.

Next time, I'll desire differently. 

Death Honk Launches on Draft2Digital

 

theimaginativeconservative

Pre-order is ended; pay full price. Not much. A buck more. But if you fancy shopping at Barnes & Noble, Apple, Kobo, or any store not named Amazon, then now is your opportunity to pounce upon a fine collection of creepy short stories. 

My day will be filled with imploring various individuals to review the book. Like moving from one apartment to another, you must ask three or four times as many people to get one. Such are the days of an indie author.

Story Du Jour #11

All Story Du Jour tales are available online and free! A small presentation in these trying times.

Speculative Fiction

The Colored Lens

"The Memory Jar" - by George Lockett

5,227 words

A married woman discovers that giving someone a piece of your mind can have devastating consequences. 

Here's a sample of the writing:

"That night, Anna slipped out of bed and back into David’s office. She took the jar from its cubbyhole and padded up to the linen closet. If she stooped her head, she could just squeeze herself into the space beneath the bottom shelf. The closet was wholesomely warm, like being enfolded in a thick blanket. She pulled the door to, leaving a crack large enough to admit a shaft of moonlight, then held up the jar and watched the shapes inside.

The movement was faster now, almost eager, the darkest patches of oily blackness pressing up against the glass and spreading like ink before receding into the grey depths. The motion repeated. It reminded her of an octopus she’d once seen in an aquarium. It would climb the glass, then throw itself off the top and drift down the tank. It did this over and over. They could be playful creatures, the staff had said, but it seemed restless to her. Trapped."

More fiction fun soon. How's that?

Short Story Du Jour #7

Branching out into short fiction.

The Dark 

 “The All-Night Horror Show” 

by Orrin Grey 2434 words 

During a home invasion, a washed up old actor finds the best solution lies within. You can see how this one will play out, but nonetheless enjoyable.

 Here’s a sample of the writing:

"That is not the crack-pause-crack of the fireworks one or two streets over. That is the sound of someone knocking on the front door, though it is late now, getting on toward midnight. “The witching hour,” he remembers intoning in his heavily-accented voice on some talk show or another a decade gone now, when people still cared who he was.

He rises from his chair and it is like rising from a coffin. His arms and legs feel heavy, bound in chains, as he was in The Secret Door. He can feel them dragging along behind him as he struggles across the hardwood floor, into the narrow hall. On the TV at his back, he is walking the other way, up a set of stairs cast in chiaroscuro."

Monday might be time for a little mystery.

Horror: California Now on Kindle

Now on Amazon in Kindle Format.

Noble Anthology Includes MY Story

I am a bit prejudiced when it comes to my short stories in print. Even if you haven't been waiting, pretend you have for the glee that comes with anticipation fulfilled. Here in Kindle, among other tales, waits "Mark of the Bruja." When an ancient evil nests inside a Hollywood apartment, only a narcissistic director and a drunken housepainter stand a shot at stopping the ghastly murder of children.

A softcover version of the anthology is rumored in the works from Soteira Press, but I can't say more and wouldn't since I have no good information on the subject.

Update: Scratch that rumor. The softcover edition is available for your post-holiday horror reading.

Hallow Mass and Lumen5

Hallow Mass

Whipped together in an hour or so with Lumen5.