Tuesday 29 October 2013

Cover Reveal - S. Craig Zahler


Who should be given a second chance at life? 
Decades in the future Corpus Chrome, Inc. develops a robotic body, dubbed a “mannequin,” that can revive, sustain and interface with a cryonically-preserved human brain. Like all new technology, it is copyrighted.
Hidden behind lawyers and a chrome facade, the inscrutable organization resurrects a variety of notable minds, pulling the deceased back from oblivion into a world of animated sculpture, foam rubber cars, dissolving waste and strange terrorism. Nobody knows how Corpus Chrome, Inc. determines which individuals should be given a second life, yet myriad people are affected. Among them are Lisanne Breutschen, the composer who invented sequentialism with her twin sister, and Champ Sappline, a garbage man who is entangled in a war between the third, fourth and fifth floors of a New York City apartment building.
In the Spring of 2058, Corpus Chrome, Inc. announces that they will revive Derek W.R. Dulande—a serial rapist and murderer who was executed thirty years ago for his crimes. The public is horrified by the decision, and before long, the company’s right to control the lone revolving door between life and death will be violently challenged….
Cover Art by Bradley Sharp
Cyberpunk/Transhumanism novel  coming from Dog Star Books in January 2014
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What They’re Saying About S. Craig Zahler
“Zahler’s a fabulous story teller whose style catapults his reader into the turn of the century West with a ferocious sense of authenticity.” —Kurt Russell, star of Tombstone, Escape from New York, Dark Blue, and Death Proof.

“If you’re looking for something similar to what you’ve read before, this ain’t it. If you want something comforting and predictable, this damn sure ain’t it.  But if you want something with storytelling guts and a weird point of view, an unforgettable voice, then you want what I want, and that is this.” —Joe R. Lansdale author of Edge of Dark Water

Monday 21 October 2013

Great Way to Start a Monday...

So, I wake up, I crank open Tweetdeck to see what's happening in the Twitterverse, and wah-hoo, I see a sweet little post in my interactions column from J.M. Blackman.

Click to see the review: http://jmblackman.com/2013/10/20/t-k-toppin-author-spotlight-double-header-review-of-the-lancaster-ruleto-catch-a-marlin/

First of all, thank you J.M. Such kind words, and as an author yourself, I'm sure you know how nice that feels. Yep, J.M writes some incredible Sci-Fi/Speculative Fiction.

J.M. recently finished reading both The Lancaster Rule and To Catch A Marlin. I wrote TLR in 2008, and TCaM in 2011, and I'm sure she noticed how much my writing has changed (she did), and how little it stayed the same (I didn't know) in regards to how I treated the characters and the world-building. It's nice to be able to find out about these from completely unobjective eyes.

It's also great to start the week off grinning like a fool.

Again, thanks, J.M.

Cheers!

Friday 18 October 2013

SFFSat - Oct 19

Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday (SFFSat) is a place where a bunch of us post snippets from our written works and also shoot the breeze a little. And before I get ahead of myself, thanks and appreciation as always to those who stop by and leave fantastic comments.


This week, more in the continuing adventures of, well, other than Mason and Elmo (the ship's computer), I've no idea what to call my protag other than Captain.

For a short little preamble for those who don't know: Two characters on an old ship that looked like it originated from the 1960s. They discover a creature that looks suspiciously like a dinosaur, but more like a dragon...they scramble. They've just made it back to their drop ship for (hopefully) and escape...

You can catch the previous ones:
Part 1: here.
Part 2: here.
Part 3: here.
Part 4: here.
Part 5: here.
Part 6: here.
Part 7: here.
Part 8: here.

Part 9: here.
Part 10: here.
Part 11: here.


Last week, the ever-helpful Elmo informed our heroine they were too close to the landing zone to deploy weapons to shake the creature off and their thrusters would be damaged in the process... We ended with my protag saying: "If we don't shake that thing off, it won't matter either way."

And now this week's snippet....we have Elmo responding to that comment.

“Suggestion, Captain.”
I would’ve rolled my eyes. “What!”
“Realigning the thrusters towards the creature might dislodge it.”
I rolled my eyes. “Do it then!”
I heard a low grate as thrusters turned, then the engines whined even louder, immediately followed by a sudden earthquake-like tremble rocked the ship; the creature attached to us scrabbled loudly against the hull and let out another of its bone-chilled roars. In one quick jerk, the drop ship bounded like a sideways slingshot.
Mason screamed.
I screamed.

Stay tuned for more next week! 

If you are interested in participating in next weeks SFFSat, just click HERE, and follow the rules. Sign up is open every Wednesday - and if you're on Twitter, use the #SFFSat hashtag.

Cheers!

Monday 14 October 2013

Cover Reveal: THE DEVIL INSIDE

Yet another Jax Marlin novella is soon to be released through Ring of Fire Publishing. THE DEVIL INSIDE, #5 in the short story series.

All Must Die!
When her inner demon screamed, Jax Marlin set it loose upon the world's criminals. When the demon wanted blood, she gave it like an offering.

Special Inspector Pedroni chases his foe--always a step behind. This time, with heavy heart, unable to believe his Jax has become a common murderer.

After the events with the Necromancer Killer, after having to set her prey free, Jax struggles to come to terms with her decision. Her inner monster, one she's kept at bay for years, surfaces in outrage and goes on a rampage. Can she stop in time before her sanity is lost? And can Pedroni come to terms with what she's become?

Stay tuned for the release date!

Cheers!

Friday 11 October 2013

SFFSat - Oct 12

Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday (SFFSat) is a place where a bunch of us post snippets from our written works and also shoot the breeze a little. And before I get ahead of myself, thanks and appreciation as always to those who stop by and leave fantastic comments.


This week, more in the continuing adventures of, well, other than Mason and Elmo (the ship's computer), I've no idea what to call my protag other than Captain.

For a short little preamble for those who don't know: Two characters on an old ship that looked like it originated from the 1960s. They discover a creature that looks suspiciously like a dinosaur, but more like a dragon...they scramble. They've just made it back to their drop ship for (hopefully) and escape...

You can catch the previous ones:
Part 1: here.
Part 2: here.
Part 3: here.
Part 4: here.
Part 5: here.
Part 6: here.
Part 7: here.
Part 8: here.

Part 9: here.
Part 10: here.

And now for this week...

Elmo, engage weapons. Activate the below turrets—”
The drop ship lurched again, we jerked wildly to the aft of the vessel. Mason’s elbow rammed into my ear, inflicting more vertigo into my head. I wanted to vomit.
“Elmo just shoot the thing off us!” I screamed from under Mason.
“We are too close to the landing zone, Captain. Weapons fire will destroy our thrusters.”
“If we don’t shake that thing off, it won’t matter either way.”

Stay tuned for more next week! 

If you are interested in participating in next weeks SFFSat, just click HERE, and follow the rules. Sign up is open every Wednesday - and if you're on Twitter, use the #SFFSat hashtag.

Cheers!

Friday 4 October 2013

SFFSat - Oct 05

Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday (SFFSat) is a place where a bunch of us post snippets from our written works and also shoot the breeze a little. And before I get ahead of myself, thanks and appreciation as always to those who stop by and leave fantastic comments.


Today, we've been asked to use a cue word, that being 'suns'...so, I tweaked this rambling, mad-capped tale to suit.

For a short little preamble for those who don't know: Two characters on an old ship that looked like it originated from the 1960s. They discover a creature that looks suspiciously like a dinosaur, but more like a dragon...they scramble. They've just made it back to their drop ship for (hopefully) and escape...

You can catch the previous ones:
Part 1: here.
Part 2: here.
Part 3: here.
Part 4: here.
Part 5: here.
Part 6: here.
Part 7: here.
Part 8: here.

Part 9: here.

And now for this week...

“Elmo, for all the suns and moons, get this clunker up in the air!”
“We appear to have taken on extra weight, Captain.” Elmo, ever-helpful.
Mason let out a guttural bellow. “We’re going to die!”
Scared as I was—literally, it was close to bowel-loosening scared—I sucked in my most bracing breath and pushed up to my hands and knees. “Not today!”
From beyond the hull, I heard something like the screams of fingernails on a chalkboardlots of them. The creature was trying to rip the drop ship apart. Mixed with the frenzied whine and vibrations of the ship straining its engines to take off, it sounded downright nightmarish.

Stay tuned for more next week! 

If you are interested in participating in next weeks SFFSat, just click HERE, and follow the rules. Sign up is open every Wednesday - and if you're on Twitter, use the #SFFSat hashtag.

Cheers!