Jackie Gamber and H. David Blalock Multi-Blogger Interview Part 4, the Final Stop!

It is my honor to bring you the final stop on a special 4 part interview featuring the Leland Dragon series' Jackie Gamber and the Angelkiller Triad's H. David Blalock.  Both of them are truly exceptional writers, individuals who have put in the time and effort to continuously grow in their mastery of the craft of writing.

The two trilogies represented in this special week-long tour are powerful testaments to that truth.  There is much that writers of all levels can learn from both of these gifted authors.  There were a few questions that had not yet been asked on the round robin-style, evolving interview that I wanted to hear their answers to.

The questions I asked and Jackie and David's responses are presented below, covering questions 13-16, with a recap of the first 12 questions and answers revealed on the other three stops of this building, multi-blogger interview.  I hope you enjoy the interview and gain some insights from two truly amazing writers!
-Stephen

H. David Blalock's Responses: 

13. If you were to name one or two themes that you really enjoy exploring in your work, what would they be and what brings you to explore them as a writer of fiction? More than anything else, I like exploring our reaction to evil. Each person sees evil differently and reacts differently to its manifestations. Some react with fear, some with determination, some with anger, some with courage. Some accept it as inevitable, some defy it. Some see it as necessary to life, some see it as an atrocity against life. Of all the things that motivate us in life, the way we look at evil and what we do about that leads to some of the most interesting and compelling stories.

14. What do you consider to be the most difficult aspects of pursuing a writing career in today’s publishing climate? Staying motivated to write. Although there are hundreds more publishers on and off line, this really amounts for many as nothing more than hundreds more places for rejection. Rejection is really the fiercest enemy of the struggling writer. Now, more than any time previous, a writer needs to cultivate a thick skin and learn how to deal with the fact that rejection is a real and unavoidable part of their career, but not something that should be allowed to defeat their ambition.

15. Looking back on your completed trilogies, is there anything about the books that surprises you looking back on them that you might not have seen coming when you began them? (Within the development of the story, or a particular character (s), the tone, a theme, etc.) Honestly, I don't think so. The theme behind the Angelkiller books is so basic, the struggle between Good and Evil, and so fundamental to human existence that it blocks out any side issues that might arise. Details about the struggle might insert themselves into the story but the main idea is so all-consuming it overshadows any attempt to distract.

16. Are you done exploring the worlds featured in your trilogies or do you have any ideas for revisiting them, whether in a short story, another series, a stand-alone novel, or something else such as a movie or game? I have had several requests to expand on the Angelkiller series but for now I don't think I'll be exploring that because of so many other projects pressing on my time and energy. That's not to say that in a year's time or so I might not come up with a short story or two about the Army members, expounding on their backgrounds and giving a little more insight into their personalities and histories. For now, that is still up in the air.

 Jackie Gamber's Responses:

13. If you were to name one or two themes that you really enjoy exploring in your work, what would they be and what brings you to explore them as a writer of fiction? I think what compels me to write a story, above all else, is the exploration into what we see on the outside of people, vs. what is on the inside. Those themes are all over the place in my works. It's the sort of thing I don't put in there consciously, it's more what gets my thinkie-gears cranking, but inevitably it becomes a part of what I'm telling.

14. What do you consider to be the most difficult aspects of pursuing a writing career in today’s publishing climate? The most difficult aspect of a writing career these days, for me, is the fact that the book-writing world I aspired to become a part of, when I was a kid, just doesn't exist anymore. Sure, there are the big--hm, are we down to just three major publishers now?--but with the advent of digital publishing and Amazon, and the slow death of brick-and-mortar, and self-pub, the landscape barely resembles the career I thought I was creating. I read in a marketing book once that writers today aren't just competing for readers with our current peers, we're competing with every book ever made. And I'm no salesman, have no desire to be. It can be daunting.

15. Looking back on your completed trilogies, is there anything about the books that surprises you looking back on them that you might not have seen coming when you began them? (Within the development of the story, or a particular character (s), the tone, a theme, etc.) In the beginning, I didn't see a trilogy at all--just "Redheart". But then as the story developed, I came to see that the changes taking place needed more time and space, and that my characters still had growing to do. In particular, Jastin Armitage was a complete surprise to me in Book Two - he was meant to have his own book (I thought Book Three might be titled "Jastin") but then he had an encounter that shook him to the core, and I wasn't going to hold back, just to "save it" for later. I let the story lead me, and, in the end, it felt just the right thing to do.

16. Are you done exploring the worlds featured in your trilogies or do you have any ideas for revisiting them, whether in a short story, another series, a stand-alone novel, or something else such as a movie or game? I'm the first to say "never say never", so Leland may come round again and tap on my shoulder, who knows? And I wouldn't say no to a movie deal, are you kidding? But for now, I feel closure. I like to write to explore many worlds and characters, not the same ones over and over again. I have a lot of stories in me to tell.

Here are the first 12 questions and author responses as featured on the blogs Rage Circus Vs. the Soulless Void, The Official Writing Blog of Deedee Davies, and Trip Through My Mind.

 H. David Blalock

1. What originally drew you to writing? Reading. It's that simple. I was inspired by the writings of people like Heinlein, Bierce, Lovecraft, Bradbury, Clarke... the list goes on and on. I wanted to be able to tell a story as well as they did and determined early on I would do my best to accomplish that.

 2. When you first started your respective trilogies, did you plan for them to be a series or was it a result of the developing story? Truth to tell, the Angelkiller Triad was never intended to be a trilogy. I wanted it to be a single volume but the story decided to be a bit more than I expected. It developed into a trilogy of stand-alones. I don't particularly want to write a series. I don't want to leave my readers wondering what happened if I unexpectedly leave this mortal coil.

  3. Writing fantasy, what is your secret of making the story real enough for readers to engage and relate while still creating the fantasy elements? Fantasy is reality exaggerated. By taking something mundane and making it grand or stretching its limits, you bring the reader along with you. They believe with you as you believe. If you can't get them to ride along, then you've missed the point of writing fantasy.

  4. What most inspires your stories? I prefer to take the basic questions that confront us daily and turn them around. War? There's a reason for it. Famine? Necessary. Disease? Essential. Then I ask why? From there, the story develops on its own. Sometimes it stops at flash fiction. Sometimes it goes on into novel length. But it finally gives up its answer and with any luck the reader gets to the end and nods, saying "Yep. That's right." Or "I hated the way that ended, but it made sense." I want to have the reader feel what inspired me, to share that inspiration in all its wonder or terror.

 5. Which writers inspired - or continue to inspire you - to write? I have always admired the work of the writers of the first part of the 20th century. People like Lovecraft, Howard, Bradbury, Norton, even Asimov. It was the psychological impact of their writings more than the plots that affected me. It's been said there are really only a few story lines and all fiction is merely variations on those themes. How those writers took those common themes and presented them in a way that evoked a nearly visceral impact inspired me to want to join that company.

6. Do you have a special time of day that you prefer to write? I write as often and whenever I can. My favorite time, though, is while it rains. I like to sit on my porch and listen to the rain and wind. There's a certain music to that which makes it easier to hear the muse. Not sure exactly why.

7. Do you have any tips on overcoming writer's block? I find that working on more than one project at a time makes it easier to avoid writer's block. When you're writing several stories if you find yourself stuck you can always set that one aside for a bit and work on another. A little time away from the blocked story does wonders to cure the problem.

 8. Are you an e-book person, or do you prefer to own a hard copy? Personally, I prefer the feel of a real book. I understand the appeal and convenience of the e-book in a society addicted to its portable computers and smart phones. Nevertheless, the tactile satisfaction of the weight of the book, the smell of the page, the knowledge it won't disappear with battery failure or break if dropped, all those things make me prefer hard copy.


9. Are you a planner/organizer when you write or a seat-of-your-pants writer? I much prefer to organize and sometimes outline my writing projects. It does wonders in avoiding writer's block. It also makes it easier to meet deadlines, provide proposals to editors, and generally facilitates the process.

10. Are there specific character traits you find yourself giving your characters and what are they? The characters get the traits they need for the story. I don't believe I have any one set of characteristics assigned to multiple characters, although I suppose there has to be a similarity between them since they are all the product of a single mind. I make an effort to give each character something unique depending on their importance to the plot. The main characters need the most development, of course, but secondary characters deserve something to identify them from the furniture in the background.

11. Do your characters speak to you and do you lead them or do they lead you? Early on, my characters tended to wander away and do their own thing. As I grew as a writer, I learned to herd them in the proper direction. Finally, it became clear that those characters who strayed from the plot too often or too far became very mortal. I haven't had much trouble since.

12. If you could sit and have dinner and convo with any writer from any time who would you meet? Undoubtedly, Heinlein. It was his work that first inspired me to write and I never lost my fascination with his writing. Although his later work suffered a bit because of his failing health, I still maintain he was one of the greatest writers ever.

 Jackie Gamber

1. What originally drew you to writing? For as long as I can remember, I have written stories. In elementary school, I was writing plays and "books" that I would illustrate myself and glue together, and as a teen I had so many of those blank journals filled in with angsty poetry that I ran out of room to keep them all. As an expression, writing has been a part of me, and I can't honestly say what draws me to it; maybe it's similar to how athletes are drawn to compete, and scientists to explore.

 2. When you first started your respective trilogies, did you plan for them to be a series or was it a result of the developing story? My first ideas for "Redheart, Book One" were too vague and tenuous to be anything except a rough concept. Eventually, as I let the world of Leland grow and become a part of the book, the real story kicked in. I thought at first it was a single novel, but came to understand there was more to it than a single generation could tell.

 3. Writing fantasy, what is your secret of making the story real enough for readers to engage and relate while still creating the fantasy elements? I'm not sure I have any real secrets to storytelling; for me, it's all about characters. I didn't at first set out to write a fantasy, I had a character who is a dragon. To my dragon, Kallon Redheart, the story isn't a "fantasy", it's his world, and his world is a part of who he is and how he came to be. His story couldn't be told any other way. That's the part I hope readers sense as real: my characters.

4. What most inspires your stories? My stories come from a place of exploration. The word "why" is a strong motivator for me. In that breathing space between "why would he/she be like that?" and "because", that's where many of my stories develop.

5. Which writers inspired - or continue to inspire you - to write? I'm a huge Ray Bradbury fan. I have a specific memory, while reading "Fahrenheit 451" of thinking, "I want to write like this. I want to do this." It took me years to work up the courage to give it a try, but Bradbury's influence definitely had a hand in it.

6. Do you have a special time of day that you prefer to write? I love to write first thing in the morning. In fact, I'd say I'm driven to the laptop, most occasions, before I'm even fully awake. I often wake up already thinking and puzzling, and bursting to figure stuff out.

7. Do you have any tips on overcoming writers block? I can share my personal experience with writers' block as something very real. I know there is raging debate over whether or not it exists, because some writers never experience it; but to me, that's like saying no broken bones exist because "I've never broken one." I have experienced it more as a cork, as though words are all bottled up behind it, and I can't seem to access them. I find it to be a symptom of something else, something amiss in my personal life, whether it be physical, emotional, or mental. I've learned to take it as a sign to something deeper. When I address that issue, the words flow again.

8. Are you an e-book person, or do you prefer to own a hard copy? I'm totally both. I love e-books for the immediacy of it; when I'm in the mood for a new read, I can shop and have it in my hands in moments. That, my friends, is a miracle. But I have bookshelves full of hard copies, too. I like to run my hands over them, smell them. I can see them everyday, they become part of my environment, and I believe they feed my mind with possibilities, even when they are sitting still.

9. Are you a planner/organizer when you write or a seat-of-your-pants writer? When it comes to writing, I'm a sort of hybrid. I have a general plan of where I'm going, what I want the ending to be, some plot twists that need to make it happen - then I let 'er rip. I often surprise myself, and sometimes I follow a conversation or action that, in the end, just doesn't work and can't be used ("delete" is a painful process), but I like to follow my storytelling instincts to uncover things I wouldn't find any other way.

10. Are there specific character traits you find yourself giving your characters and what are they? I imbue characters with traits that make sense to their own personal journeys. My "bad guy" needs realistic motives and process, just as my protagonist and other characters. If I have patterns in my stories (I think most writers do), I don't put them in consciously.

11. Do your characters speak to you and do you lead them or do they lead you? My characters often speak to me! Stories, for me, develop with tiny flashes; of a scene, a line of dialogue, a face. When it sticks, it's because a character begins to surface, with a story to tell. I used to wonder if I had some shadow of schizophrenia--eh, I'll be honest; I still do wonder. But I care less now about the why of this weird process, and more about how to honor it, and the story that comes from it.

12. If you could sit and have dinner and convo with any writer from any time who would you meet? Ray Bradbury. I've admired the man's work since I was a teenager; he was one of my biggest inspirations. The more I discovered him as a person, through media interviews and things, the more I admired him. He loved books, he loved libraries, like me. He was a dreamer, and a do-er. I sometimes drafted emails in my mind, introducing myself, assuring him I'm not a psychopath, and inviting him to lunch. I never scraped together the courage to actually do it.

More about Jackie Gamber and H. David Blalock:

About Jackie Gamber: As an award winning author, Jackie writes stories ranging from ultra-short to novel-length, varieties of which have appeared in anthologies such as Tales of Fantasy and Dragons Composed, as well as numerous periodical publications, including Orson Scott Card’s Intergalactic Medicine Show, The Binnacle, Mindflights Magazine, Necrotic Tissue, and Shroud. She is the author of the fantasy novel Redheart and Sela, and writing an alternate history time travel novel. She blogs professionally for English Tea Store.com, where she reviews classic science fiction and fantasy novels and pairs them with the ideal tea-sipping companion. Jackie is a member of the professional organizations Science Fiction Writers of America and Horror Writers Association. She was named honorable mention in L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future Award, and received a 2008 Darrell Award for best short story by a Mid-South author. She is the winner of the 2009 Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley Award for Imaginative Fiction for her story The Freak Museum, a post-apocalyptic tale that looks closely at perceptions and outward appearances and how they affect the way we see ourselves. Jackie Gamber was co-founder and Executive Editor of Meadowhawk Press, a speculative fiction publisher based in Memphis. One of their novels, Terminal Mind by David Walton, won the Philip K. Dick Memorial Award in 2009. Jackie also edited the award winning benefit anthology, Touched By Wonder. She has been a guest lecturer at Memphis Options High Schools, and is a speaker at writers’ conferences from Michigan to Florida. Jackie is also the visionary behind the MidSouthCon Writers’ Conference, helping writers connect since 2008.   

 

Jackie Gamber’s Redheart Book Synopsis: Enter the lands of Leland Province, where dragon and human societies have long dwelled side by side. Superstitions rise sharply, as a severe drought strips the land of its bounty, providing fertile ground for the darker ambitions of Fordon Blackclaw, Dragon Council Leader, who seeks to subdue humans or wipe them off the face of the land. As the shadow of danger creeps across Leland Province, a young dragon named Kallon Redheart, who has turned his back on dragons and humans alike, comes into an unexpected friendship. Riza Diantus is a young woman whose dreams can no longer be contained by the narrow confines of her village, and when she finds herself in peril, Kallon is the only one with the power to save her. Yet to do so means he must confront his past, and embrace a future he stopped believing in. A tale of friendship, courage, and ultimate destiny, Redheart invites readers to a wondrous journey through the Leland Dragon Series.   

 

About H. David Blalock: Born in San Antonio, Texas, David spent the majority of his formative years in Jacksonville, Florida. At the age of 16, his family moved to the Panama Canal Zone where David finished school and entered employment with the Department of Defense as a Powerhouse Electrician. Hiring into the FAA, he returned with his wife and two daughters to the States and settled briefly in Gulfport, MS. A few years later, he moved to Memphis, TN, as an Air Traffic Controller for the Memphis ARTCC. There he remained until his retirement. David’s writing has appeared in numerous anthologies, magazines, webzines, and writer’s sites. His work continues to appear on a regular basis through multiple publishing houses.   

 

H. David Blalock’s Angelkiller Book Synopsis: Why do bad things happen to good people? Simple. In the ancient war between the Angels of Light and Darkness, the Dark won. Now it is the job of an undercover force simply known as The Army to rectify that. Using every tool available, The Army has worked to liberate our world from The Enemy for thousands of years, slowly and painfully lifting Mankind out of the dark. On the front of the great Conflict are the Angelkillers, veterans of the fight with centuries of experience. Jonah Mason is an Angelkiller, and his cell is targeted as part of plot to unseat a very powerful Minion of The Enemy. Mason and his troop are drawn into a battle that stretches from real-time to virtual reality and back. The Conflict is about to expand into cyberspace, and if Mason is unable to stop it, The Enemy will have gained dominion over yet another realm.   

Author Links: Jackie Gamber Website: www.jackiegamber.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jackie-Gamber-Story-Artist/334783969938507 Twitter: @jackiegamber 

  H. David Blalock Website: http://thrankeep.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Writer.HDavidBlalock Twitter: @Hdavidblalock 

  Tour Schedule and Activities 

9/8 SpecMusicMuse Review 

9/8 The Rage Circus Vs. The Soulless Void Multi-Blogger Interview Part 1 

9/8 Horror Tree Guest Post (Blalock) 

9/8 Elizabeth Delana Rosa ~Book Lover & Creator of Worlds~ Guest Post (Gamber) 

9/9 Jorie Loves a Story Guest Post (About Gamber) 

9/9 I Smell Sheep Interactive Thread with Jackie and Dave 

9/9 Armand Rosamilia, Horror Author Guest Post (Blalock) 

9/10 The Southern Belle from Hell Art of the Angelkiller Triad (Blalock)

 9/10 Bee's Knees Review Guest Post (Gamber) 9/10 Blog of Sheila Deeth Guest Post (Gamber) 

9/10 The Official Writing Blog of Deedee Davies Multi-Blogger Interview Part 2 

9/10 Seers, Seraphs, Immortals & More Jackie Gamber Interviews H. David Blalock 

9/11 Seers, Seraphs, Immortals & More H. David Blalock Interviews Jackie Gamber 

9/11 Workaday Reads Guest Post (Gamber) 

9/12 Vampires, Witches, & Me, Oh My! Guest Post (Gamber)

 9/12 Trip Through My Mind Multi-Blogger Interview Part 3 

9/12 Beauty In Ruins Guest Post (Blalock) 

9/13 Jess Resides Here Review 

9/14 Willow's Author Love Guest Post (Blalock) 

9/14 Fantastical Musings Multi-Blogger Interview Part 4 

9/14 Jorie Loves a Story Guest Post (Gamber) 

  Tour Page URL: http://www.tomorrowcomesmedia.com/trilogy-tour-featuring-jackie-gamber-and-h-david-blalock/ 

Tour Badge Html: http://www.tomorrowcomesmedia.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/TrilogyTourBadge.jpg 

Amazon Links for Redheart, the First Book of Jackie Gamber’s Leland Dragon Series:

Kindle Version: http://www.amazon.com/Redheart-Leland-Dragon-Jackie-Gamber-ebook/dp/B004VFNJIA

Print Version: http://www.amazon.com/Redheart-Leland-Dragon-Jackie-Gamber/dp/0983108676

Amazon Links for Angelkiller, the First Book of H. David Blalock’s Angelkiller Triad:

Kindle Version: http://www.amazon.com/Angelkiller-Triad-Book-1-ebook/dp/B006CR84AI

Print Version: http://www.amazon.com/Angelkiller-H-David-Blalock/dp/0983740232

MidSouthCon 30 and a Big April Looms

MidSouthCon 30 and a Big April Looms!

Jackie Gamber at the SSP Booth on Friday of MidSouthCon 30

MidSouthCon 30 went fantastic.  As a whole, the SSP camp had its biggest convention of the year, bolstered by the release of Jackie Gamber's 2nd Leland Dragon series book, Sela.  H. David Blalock and myself also had really good conventions, making the weekend a very strong one overall.

I ended up staying with the Gambers over the weekend after I blundered in not reserving my hotel early enough to get the convention rate.  Yes, even though I do lots of events, I forget the basics from time to time.  But I had a really time with Jackie, Dan, Ben, Ellen, their two four-legged family members, a big bulldog named Ursula and a very talkative cat named Katie.

Jackie Gamber and Ursula

Ursula came to visit the convention on the first day, in fact.  Jackie had to assist Ursula with the escalator, as this picture can attest!

As often happens on these sorts of excursions, the first day involved a nice 4am wakeup and subsequent 6 1/2 hour drive to Memphis, straight to the Convention site where I immediately set up the SSP Booth.  Banners, stands, posters, buttons, a ton of books, signage, and a billion other things are integrated into these displays, to the point that Jackie wondered how I manage to get so much worked into a 6 foot table display, LOL

Georgia Jones and me at MidSouthCon 30

Georgia Jones, whose new book Legends of Darkness just came out last week, helped me get things in order and had some great decorative touches on the booth.  She's with Blackwyrm Publishing and is also a good friend of mine who was part of our booth for the weekend (incidentally, she met Dave Mattingly of Blackwyrm at the Pitch the Publisher panel we hosted at Fandom Fest last summer!).   Georgia's got an excellent book and is really hitting the ground running, so be expecting to hear alot more about her in the near future.

The weekend involved quite a bit of booth time, along with some panels, and a nice visit to the Literary Underworld Party on Saturday night.  My neighbors in the dealer room were the Literary Underworld to my left, Yard Dog Press to my right, and Kerlak Publishing across the aisle from me.  Talk about a fun sector of the dealer room!  We definitely were not the most quiet area either!  LOL

Elizabeth Donald with Jimmy Gillentine and Angelia Sparrow
just to the back of them

It is a blast getting to hang out with the likes of Allan Gilbreath, Selina Rosen, Elizabeth Donald, Jimmy "Popcorn King" Gillentine, Angelia Sparrow, Kimberly Richardson, and the others that were about the booths over the weekend.  Shorty, an icon on the convention circuit, runs a great dealer room and this was no exception.  Many kudos to the staff that helped us get carts, load in, come by and bring drinks throughout the weekend, and more.

Me with Amanda Trowbridge at MidSouthCon 30

I also got to meet some folks in person that I had only known through Facebook interaction and the like.  As I've always said, nothing beats meeting someone in person, such as happened when I ran into Amanda Trowbridge, someone I had known from Facbook for a couple of years, but had never met in person before this event.

MidSouthCon is truly a first rate, well-run Con.  The literary track was fantastic, from the marketing panel I was on, to one on author's co-ops, to another on Faith in Speculative Fiction, and one on convention etiquette. The Faith in Speculative Fiction panel was particularly fun, as it was moderated by Kirk Stevens, who is possibly one of the best moderators out there, and included Herika Raymer, Robert Krog, and Stephen Dorning, three authors that I think very highly of, and who also happen to be friends I have a lot of fun being around at these events.

These weekend events tend to speed by in a whirlwind, and this was no exception.  Before I knew it, it was time to break down the booth, pack up, and make the drive back to Lexington.

A big April is looming.  Matt will be doing artwork for the third Fires in Eden book, and we'll be putting the final polish on! :)  I will also be heavily involved with a number of activities involving fellow SSP authors' Jackie Gamber, Michael West, and Steven Shrewsbury's new books.  Keep your eyes on the SSP blog, SSP Facebook and Twitter pages, and Google + for a lot of contests, articles, and more.

New Crown of Vengeance Review from Watch Play Read

Will be getting a full report on DemiCon with pictures shortly. The weekend went very well, and I already miss my Iowa friends!

I just got the good news that a very nice new review of Crown of Vengeance went up on the Watch Play Read site. They reviewed Crown of Vengeance to prepare for their review of Dream of Legends, which is coming soon.

The review link is here:
http://www.seventhstarpress.com/documents/ebooks.html

The eBook sale that includes Crown of Vengeance will be going on through mid June. Please spread the word about it, as Crown of Vengeance and The Exodus Gate are both available for just $1.99, as well as Jackie Gamber's Redheart and Steven Shrewsbury's Thrall.

the eBook sale link is here:
http://www.seventhstarpress.com/documents/ebooks.html


The DemiCon report will be coming very soon!

The MidSouthCon Report--At Last!

The MidSouthCon Report-for March 25-27, 2011

MidSouthCon is, without question, one of the elite conventions in the USA. It is large, but not too large to really enjoy, and the staff really does a great job of execution.

This was my third trek to MidSouthCon. Technically, my convention began at a small coffee shop on Thursday evening, March 24th, where Elizabeth Donald was having a meet and greet in regards to her release of Blackfire, the followup to The Cold Ones (about zombies, not beers, LOL)! Tyree Campbell of Sam's Dot Publishing was hanging out with David Blalock, who also had a new book out at MidSouthCon, the amazing Emperor, the followup to Ascendant, which is the book that the short film Swordbearer I directed is from. It was great to see Elizabeth and the rest of the gang, and kick things off right.

I stayed overnight at Thran Keep, also known as David Blalock's house. I always get incredible rest there. It is the ideal author's setting. I can totally picture Dave sketching character notes on his porch in the late afternoon with a Scotch at his side! LOL

The day began early on Friday, as I had to get down there to set up at the dealers room at the new Hilton location. The new hotel is fantastic, and has a great location right on the highway.

A lot of things loomed before us, most importantly the launch of the Seventh Star Press version of Redheart, Book One of the Leland Dragon Series, by Jackie Gamber. The Gambers are from Memphis, so it was very important that the book got unveiled there on their homefront. The SSP family couldn't have it any other way.

Shorty runs the dealer room at MidSouthCon, and is one of my favorite fellows at Cons. He is well-named, standing at a height much closer to seven feet tall than six, and pretty stout of build. Shorty is a benevolent giant though, and runs an organized dealer room, so everything went pretty smoothly on the setup.


(Me with Shorty and the renegade author Jimmy Gillentine...I'm about 5'11 in shoes, so that gives you an idea about Shorty's stature!)

My neighbor on one side was Kerlak Publishing, with all the madness of their plot bunnies, squirrels of mass distraction, and excellent books, and my neighbor on the other was Robert Krog...Robert ended up selling out of his single author collection, and I got a picture shortly after he sold the last copy.




(The lovely Herika Raymer, author, friend, and editor of Imagyro)

Following opening ceremonies we had a screening of Swordbearer, in the same room where the ceremonies took place. Had a brief scare as the place emptied out entirely following the conclusion of the opening ceremonies, but about ten minutes out from the screening time we got a nice surge.

I am happy to say that everyone stayed for the movie and for the Q and A afterwards that featured myself, David Blalock (who was the Executive Producer and did the screenplay adaptation), and Allan Gilbreath, our dashing fight coordinator.

I headed to the Literary Underworld party later that night, where I got to visit with some great friends like Jennifer Mulvihill, Angelia Sparrow, the incomparable Elizabeth Donald, Jimmy Gillentine, and Jason Sizemore, the genius behind Apex Book Company. Lots of new friends to meet too like Alex Brown, a fiesty fellow and author who knows how to have a good time!


( Jennifer Mulvihill, good friend and author...can you believe I get to hang out with gals as awesome and rockin' as Jen? :) )

We had a great visit and I stayed up a little later than usual, but got in a few hours of recharging the batteries for Saturday.

Saturday involved a lot of time in the dealers room, some panels, and the Redheart party in the Con Suite. There was also an ongoing scavenger hunt, a high tech version where people used smart phones to scan bar codes to get clues to locations that ultimately ended up at the Seventh Star Press booth.

The Con Suite party features custom dragon-shaped cookies, gourmet carmel corn, and these cool red velvet cupcake-like things on a stick. Jackie really seemed happy at the party, as many copies of Redheart were sold and there was a noticeable enthusiasm about Jackie's Leland Dragon Series.


(Here's Jackie signing one of the many copies of Redheart that sold over the weekend!)


(Dragon Cookies! They tasted as good as they looked too!)

I went to one of Jackie's cool BookTasting sessions afterwards. No, we do not actually eat books at one of these, but instead Jackie guides everyone through a tea tasting sequence where a particular tea is paired with a particular book due to specific qualities of each that Jackie feels match up well. Maura Heaphy, a senior lecturer in science fiction at Ohio State University and an author herself of non-fiction books on the genre, teamed up with Jackie for this panel. Everyone seemed to love it a lot, and I hated having to leave early, but Ben Gamber was kindly watching over my table for the Con Suite Party and so that I could catch the portion of the BookTasting where Jackie matched a tea with Crown of Vengeance.


(A BookTasting Event! )

There were activities everywhere, and there were many fan tables, podcasters, and others, such as DragonTalk Radio, whose host Jon Klement was interviewing many MidSouthCon guests. Jon's very passionate about his show, which has been growing and growing with loads of new guests and convention coverage.


(DragonTalk Radio's Jon Klement interviewing science fiction author Stephanie Osborn)


My panels included one on marketing/PR for small press authors, another one focusing on each panelists place on the publication map, another on Different Flavors of Fantasy, and another on building a hero.

All were excellent panels, with some great guests, such as Jason Sizemore, Debra Dixon, and Violette Reid, and many more very established authors.

The PR/Marketing one contained none other than Selina Rosen and Elizabeth Donald, both incredibly knowledgeable, and incredibly outgoing. Joy Ward and I anchored one side of the table, but our two other co-panelists did the most in terms of captivating the audience. Dan Gamber was on hand to moderate, but I don't think there is no way anyone could moderate Selina or Elizabeth, much less both of them on the same panel!

Saturday night I visited with Elizabeth, Jimmy, Angelia, and Jon Klement again. A little more low key and laid back than Friday, but no less enjoyable.

Sunday went well in the dealers room, wrapping up a strong weekend for Seventh Star Press titles. I had many returning reader-friends picking up new books, and many new ones. Redheart went over extremely well, and we sold some copies of Steven Shrewsbury's Thrall as well. It is always nice when the loadout is lighter at the end of a convention weekend.

Due to my workload, I had to head back after the dealer room closed on Sunday, as the drive is about six hours back to Lexington and I had quite a bit to do on Monday. Got back smoothly enough, I am happy to say.

It was a great end to a six week run of conventions and events, and I'm already looking forward to the next one!

We'll end this post with a happy pic, one of my favorites from the weekend, of Dan and Jackie Gamber! :)

Midweek Update-Jackie Gamber's New Book, Metropolis SuperCon, and more

The week has been a whirlwind, with lots of writing on the third Rising Dawn Saga book and helping out with the introduction of fellow SSP author Jackie Gamber's new book Redheart.

Metropolis SuperCon last weekend was an adventure. Metropolis is a small town just across the border from Kentucky, in Illinois. They have definitely embraced all things Superman, ranging from a giant statue of the Man of Steel to a museum, and even an annual Superman-themed festival.

For my part, I was focused on the Con, since this was my first foray into the town. I got there very early on Saturday morning, leaving Lexington about 4am and making the 4 hour plus drive to arrive there close to about 8:30. I forgot about the time zone shift, so I ended up being there at 7:30 local time.

This was a smaller show, and I was arranged next to writer Bobby Nash, and across from artist Sam Flegal. Both guys are friends of mine from the circuit, and they seem to be able to put up with me, which is always good.

There was a room adjacent to the vending area where screenings and some panels were taking place. I participated in a screening of Swordbearer, and an author's Q and A that featured Bobby Nash and myself.

I really enjoyed meeting the people that attended, such as Carson, Aimee, Justine, Kristina, Patrick, and several other wonderful individuals. Kristina ended up being a major highlight of my weekend...she had stopped by my table on Saturday, and had said that she wanted to give The Exodus Gate a try. She sounded enthusiastic, but I did not expect to see her on Sunday, having already read a big chunk of the book and wanting to get The Storm Guardians. That was some of the fastest reader feedback I have ever received during a con!

On the Saturday night, I went with Ken and Myra (who are the honchos at FandomFest/Fright Night Film Fest, and who also help run a number of other smaller shows), to a house where some die-hard horror movie fans that they know wanted to treat us to a steak dinner. And treat us they did...Josh, the guy cooking the food, is evidently an aspiring restraunteur, and he served us a phenomenal steak dinner.

We had a blast hanging out, and because of Josh, Brandon, and Ben, I will never see the Eric Roberts movie Best of the Best in the same light again.

Over the weekend, we also made the discovery that Myra Daniels can evidently make magic hotdogs, the eating of which produces immediate sales results. I am not kidding, in that the three hot dogs that I had over the course of the weekend immediately preceded sales of books, almost instantly, following a few slower stretches. Michael Gordon, a comic creator who came down with Bobby, tested Myra's Magic Hot Dogs himself...lo and behold, he made an immediate sale after consuming one of the hot dogs. No more proof needed! Unfortunately, Myra ran out of hot dogs, otherwise I might have been able to reach the New York Times Best Seller list if I could have eaten enough of them. I have asked her to stock me up with the Myra's Magic Hot Dogs before all of my future Cons! LOL

Sunday went smoothly enough, as the Con concluded and I made the trip home in some of the calmest weather I've been in for quite some time.

This week is rushing by fast. I have been working to help get the word out on Jackie Gamber's new book Redheart, a fantastic YA Fantasy adventure that is the first book of her Leland Dragon Series. She's a fellow SSP author, so I consider her family, but I can say with the utmost of confidence that she is one gifted writer. She won the very respected Mary Shelley Award, among others.

Matthew Perry did the cover art and illustrations. I will post them below so you can take a peek at it all.







I encourage you to pre-order one of the limited edition versions of Redheart. They are going to be very beautiful hardcovers for sure. Check out the packages here, at the Seventh Star Press online store.

You get far more value than the amount you pay, without a doubt.

Well, I have to get back to work, as there's lots to do, including getting ready for my 4th event weekend in a row, at the Troy Book Lover's Festival in Troy, Ohio. Thankfully, the drive won't be too far (just outside of Dayton).

I'll be checking back in shortly.

Pic of the 2010 Pluto Award

I was asked by the kind folks behind the Pluto Award to take a pic with the award. I complied, of course, and thanks to my sister, who has a good eye for pics, I ended up with one that I could live with! lol

Anyhow, here's a pic of me with the 2010 Pluto Award!



Things have hit the ground running already in 2011. Progress is being made daily on the post-production of Swordbearer, great progress is being made on the 3rd RDS book, progress is being made on the 2 Cons that I'm doing programming for (FandomFest and Duckon), and much more. I'm getting good at keeping lists, needless to say!

Have some cool new blogs coming up at the Seventh Star Press Blogspot, where I do periodic reviews, interviews, etc. of other authors and publishers. The last two were with Dave Mattingly of Blackwyrm Publishing and the unrivaled Elizabeth Donald, author extraordinaire, though this post largely focused on her visionary Literary Underworld project. Upcoming authors include Dave Guyton, a very cool guy who has an incredible book trailer that has almost 50,000 hits for one of his novels, Scott Sandridge, who may hold the record for number of panels participated on at a Con, and Nick Valentino, a rising star in the world of steampunk.

Stay tuned for some cool announcements from SSP too, involving a new anthology, a novel release on the horizon from Jackie Gamber, AND a whole new wing of SSP involving eBooks... ;)

I am also going to do a blogpost shortly regarding ways that readers can help raise awareness for authors that they like...not just my readers, but for readers of any author in general, as I do get questions about things like that from time to time and have some insights on that.

From 2010 to 2011, a Look Behind and a Look Ahead.

2011 is looming as a very busy year, but it would not be in this position were it not for all of the things that occurred over the course of 2010.

In general, 2010 saw the release of both The Storm Guardians and Dream of Legends,adding a new title to my 2 different series. This also saw Karen Leet coming aboard as my editor on the Fires in Eden series, while Amanda DeBord continued to handle The Rising Dawn Saga. The year also saw my first foray into steampunk with "In the Mountain Skies", my short story in the Dreams of Steam anthology from Kerlak publications that came out later in the summer.

Things were not quiet on the film front either, as I finally returned to directing with Swordbearer, a medieval fantasy short film that is based on a segment of H. David Blalock's novel Ascendant. The production on that was complete and post-production was fully underway by the end of the year. It was a very good experience, and I was thrilled working with DP Aaron Champion, my first AD Nathan Day, and Cineline's dynamic duo, Matt and Sven, once again (as they say, "The Sven is Mightier Than the Sword" lol)

The year also saw a great deal of travel. I got to go visit in person with my reader friends in a range of bookstores and conventions, including Hypericon (Nashville), Marcon (Columbus), InConJunction (Indianapolis), Fright Night Film Fest (Louisville, the con that now includes FandomFest),ConNooga (Chattanooga),Millenicon (Cincinnati), MidSouthCon (Memphis), ConText (also in Columbus), The Kentucky Book Fair (Frankfort), Dark Woods Con (Pikeville), Duckon (Chicago), Archon (St. Louis), and ScareFest (Lexington).

Regretfully, I missed DemiCon due to one of my mother's 3 stints in the hospital during the past year, but I am slated to go back this spring, and the folks there were really understanding about the situation with my mother's health emergency.

I also got to make some educational visits, with talks to groups as Dunbar High School and the Bowling Green Technical College. I love visiting with students, and these experiences were definite highlights of mine for the year.

The bookstore visits throughout 2010 were wonderful, with a nice mix of independents and several Borders stores. I really appreciate Borders' openness to small press authors, as I was treated very well at the Borders stores in Louisville, Cincinnati, Columbus, and Indianapolis. I was very saddened that one store, Davis-Kidd in Nashville, had to close, as my visit there in February of 2010 to Nashville was a wonderful experience. Similarly, the Sherlock's Book Emporium in Lebanon TN closed in 2010, though another location is open in downtown Nashville now. Fortunately, both Davis-Kidd in Memphis, and my hometown store, Joseph-Beth in Lexington, are continuing forth strongly. Both places were amazing to visit on my travels in 2010, with two incredible turnouts at Joseph-Beth and one of my best attended on the road events at Memphis' Davis-Kidd.

There were many pleasant stops at indie book stores, like Beaverdale Books in Des Moines and Empire Books in Huntington, WV, My last signing event of the year took place at That Book Place, one of the components of Frank Hall's burgeoning publishing and book selling empire in Madison IN. Frank is one of the true good guys of the business, and he takes care of many cats in addition to small press authors, so I am rooting him onward to victory!

The year also saw two very special authors come aboard SSP: Steven Shrewsbury and Jackie Gamber. Steven's book Thrall was released towards the end of the year and promises to be a really successful book for Steven in 2011. Jackie's Leland Dragon Series is going to be released through SSP, with the re-release of the fantastic Redheart in the first half of 2011 and the followup book later in the year. I can't wait to do some events with them, and it is great to all be in the SSP family together.

I took on two programming tracks for two Cons, becoming the head of the Writer's Track for Duckon in Chicago and the Author/Publishing Track at FandomFest (which includes Fright Night Film Fest) in Louisville. These tasks will ratchet up even more in 2011, but I was able to get a lot of ground work in place in 2010.

Best of all were all the new friends, including reader-friends, that became part of my life over the course of the past year. There are many individuals that I am so glad I've met, from other authors, to new reader-friends, to store owners, film crew members and actors/actresses, and others. Meeting new friends is really one of the best, if not the best, aspects about what I do.

The year definitey ended on a high note, with Crown of Vengeance winning the 2010 Pluto Award for best novel (small press). We got the notice just days before Dream of Legends became available. The timing was pretty darn good!

In all, it was a year that saw a lot of strides and progress. As with all things, there were ups and downs, but the overriding direction of it all was definitely positive. Lots and lots of Monster Energy Drinks were also consumed!

I'm very excited about 2011. We will be aiming to have the 3rd Rising Dawn Saga book out in Mid-Summer, with the 3rd Fires in Eden Book at the end of the year. Expect some new announcements in the realm of short stories, both from within Seventh Star Press and outside of it (and expect to see more of my steampunk friends, Harvey and Solomon...).

Swordbearer will be screened in the early part of the year, beginning a schedule that will continue throughout the year at Cons, festivals, and other screening venues. There are not that many indie fantasy films done, so I am hopefuly that we will see a lot of enthusiasm out there for this project. I hope it brings attention to many talented individuals who worked very hard to raise the production value of this project to a high level.

The Cineline guys acquired not just one, but two RedCams for their operation, so I have a suspicion that I will be involved with them on some production projects this year.

I am hoping to make some progress on a Viking-age feature that I have hinted at from time to time, involving a screenplay I have written. I think it is a hard-hitting dark fantasy piece that hits an area of filmmaking that has been in very, very short supply over the past several years.

Be sure to keep an eye here and on my site, as there is a great deal of activity and adventure looming. To everyone who helped me, supported me, or encouraged me in 2010, I extend a heartfelt thanks, and assure you that I am laser-focused this year and rarin' to put in an immense amount of hard work to see how far we might be able to get during the next several months!

Time to stock up on Monster Energy Drinks!

;)

ScareFest this weekend, Kentucky Book Fair next weekend!

First of all, be sure to check out a brand new interview accompanying a nice review of Crown of Vengeance on Bookworm Blues. I really enjoyed this one as it involved some questions that really got at the core of the book, with more than a couple that I have not been asked at all yet. Leave a comment or two while you are there if you enjoyed the interview! here's the link...

http://bookwormblues.blogspot.com/2010/11/crown-of-vengeance-stephen-zimmer-with.html

Just getting ready for ScareFest in Lexington this weekend, which kicks off the first of 2 localized events, the other being the fantastic Kentucky Book Fair in Frankfort on November 13th. I am going to be a guest of Deth Publications this weekend, as author Elizadeth Hetheringon and her husband Vance have generously invited me to join them this weekend at their booth.

My last large event was Archon in St. Louis, so I am ready for a convention weekend, and it is doubly wonderful that I have only a whopping 10 minutes to drive to this one! ScareFest is held in downtown Lexington, and will have an attendence in the range of 3-5 thousand...primarily a horror and paranormal fest, it has a number of media/film celebrities from the horror genre signing autographs, along with some programming and parties and a very big dealer room.

I've gotten word that many good friends are going to be there, from Stephen and Suzie Lackey of Captain Pixel Productions, to Joe Garcia of Fast Custom Shirts, to authors Michael West and Crymsyn Hart, to Lexington publishing genius Jason Sizemore of Apex Book Company.

This will be a nice change of pace, as lately I've been slammed with things involving the new Fires in Eden book, as well as helping out my fellow Seventh Star Press authors, Jackie Gamber, and Steven Shrewsbury, whose new novel Thrall is imminent. I can't say how wonderful it is to have Jackie and Steven aboard...fantastic authors AND fantastic individuals. Keep your eyes out for the Thrall announcement, which will unveil the cover art, some Matthew Perry artwork, and the video trailer.

well, I'd better get back to work...lots to do, including working on screenings for a certain short film that has to do with David Blalock's Ascendent novel...hint, hint! :)

Jackie Gamber joins the SSP family!

Will be reporting on my visit as a guest author for the Reading Extravaganza program at Paul Lawrence Dunbar High School in Lexington today, which went wonderfully, but I wanted to keep the immediate focus today and into tomrrow on the press release for the newest member of the Seventh Star Press family!

Award-winning author Jackie Gamber is now aboard, with myself and Steven L. Shrewsbury, at Seventh Star Press, and I'm ecstatic about this. Jackie is fantastic, and I absolutely loved the first release of Redheart on Meadowhawk Press. That book is going to be re-released by SSP, and the second book, Sela, is going to come out in the middle of 2011.

I've gotten to visit with Jackie at several conventions, and she is an outstanding panelist, as well as generous in her support of other writers. She will be a wonderful representative of Seventh Star Press and what it is all about. I am looking forward to teaming up with her at lots of events in the future.

visit her site if you haven't already at www.jackiegamber.com

Matthew Perry is going to be the first up to do cover art and illustrations for the Leland Dragon Series as well, and I'm really looking forward to seeing how he illustrates Kallon Redheart, an amazing dragon character in this series.

Be sure to check out the full official press release for Jackie at:

http://www.seventhstarpress.com/documents/press_releases.html


And get ready next week for Steven L. Shrewsbury's novel going live at SSP, with the introduction of the cover art and some more amazing Matthew Perry artwork.

There'll be another book announced right after that..which has something to do with the Fires in Eden Series!

Hypericon, Memphis, and more!

This has been one tough week!

I'm a little late in posting about Hypericon and Memphis, but only because I had to compact a week's worth of work and then some into 3 days before I set out again for Huntington, Louisville, and Cincinnati signings this weekend.

The book launch weekend went very well! As always, Hypericon was wonderful. I am really impressed with this Con, as they faced a few daunting realities this year. One was that Con Carolinas in Charlotte was running the same weekend (which is a large, excellent Con...one that I enjoyed immensely in 2009 and hope to get back to next year.) Also, rumors had been flying around the internet that Hypericon was not taking place due to flood damage to the hotel site in Nashville. There were a few regular faces that I did not see this year, but the Con went on strongly and featured some incredible guests.

The author guest of honor was none other than horror legend Ramsey Campbell. He is an energetic and very friendly fellow, who has a great legacy of literary works. I found myself on a panel with him on day one (the mystery writers panel, where Con Chairman Fred Grimm grabs a few authors minutes before this panel takes place, and then asks them a variety of questions...some serious, and some not so serious). I was on another panel with Ramsey on day two, one focusing on bad writing advice that authors have received. I walked into the panel room before it began to find fantasy legend Glen Cook on one end of the table and Ramsey Campbell on the other. I had to sit between the two of these incredible guys, which was a little surreal. Two other outstanding panelists, Brian J. Hatcher and Jason Sizemore (the big man at Apex Publications) joined us shortly thereafter.

One attendee at the Con told me that the other evening panel I was on was the best panel they had ever seen. It was a panel dealing with writer's block and time management, and featured the inimitable Elizabeth Donald, the vivacious Sara M. Harvey, a New York Times best-selling author in Eric Wilson, and yours truly. Eric actually managed to captivate both Sara and Elizabeth (who usually put on a show when teamed together) with his marital erotic metaphors in relation to working through potential writer's block. It was fun to witness Elizabeth and Sara as they reacted to Eric's comparisons!

I did do a launch panel on the first evening of the panel, where I was joined by Matthew Perry, who did the cover art and illustrations for my novels. We had a nice audience, and got to talk about the scope of the series, Matthew's involvement with the art side of things, and it even featured a reading.

I spent a lot of time in the dealer's room, where I was exhibiting. Besides talking to readers and new readers alike, I spent a lot of time talking to Elizabeth and Angelia Sparrow, whose Literary Underworld table was to my right, as well as Kimberly Richardson and Allan Gilbreath of Kerlak Publications. Found out some really cool things about Allan, involving his knowledge of medieval weaponry. I had also found out the previous day that a new steampunk short story of mine made it into the upcoming Kerlak anthology Dreams of Steam. Some very cool writers are on this one, including Nick Valentino and H. David Blalock!

I got to visit a great deal with H. David Blalock, the eminent author of Ascendent, who was hanging out at Hypericon and graciously hosted me for my Memphis Davis-Kidd signing on the monday after the convention. David's abode is a perfect residence for a writer...rural, wood-shrouded, and tranquil!

David helped me navigate Memphis, which was very helpful as I had a live tv interview on the Memphis ABC affiliate, Eyewitness News. It was a several minute segment, and the host of the show, Terrance Bates, was simply fantastic. He made me welcome the moment I entered the studio, and is a lively, engaging interviewer. I hope to post the interview shortly, as I was able to get a video file of it.

The signing at Davis-Kidd went well. Many thanks to Christina Meeks, who is the hard-working PR and Events coordinator at Davis-Kidd. A nice group showed up, and we had a great discussion about my writing approaches and the books, followed by a reading that was delivered by Kirk Stevens, a friend of mine and talented Memphian writer. Kirk is a great reader, and I loved hearing him read the first segment of The Storm Guardians.

Following the signing, Kirk, David, and myself got to hang out with Dan and Jackie Gamber, and their daughter. Dan and Jackie have been very wonderful to me, and it was great to kick back and have dinner with them. I will always be a supporter of Gamber Nation! (as I sometimes refer to them! haha)

I then made the drive back starting early Tuesday morning, got back to Lexington, and pretty much dived back into things as all kinds of tasks were waiting for me. Always a million and one things to do when you are a small press author, as if you don't do it, nobody else is going to do it for you!

It is definitely a short week, as I am readying to head to Empire Books and News in Huntington on Friday, Borders on South 4th Street in Louisville on Saturday, and Borders on Eastgate Boulevard in Cincinnati on Sunday. Hopefully things will go somewhat smoothly, and a few folks will drop by. Always an iffy thing when you are an author like myself. I can definitely say that it is wonderful when you look up and see a familiar face at one of these events, or a reader of your work. I'll be sure to report on all three here when I get back.

DarkWoods Con and MidSouth Con...a Report!

Been on the road quite a bit the past couple of weeks, and still not quite done yet. Coming up this weekend is Millennicon, but I figured that I would give a report on DarkWoods Con and MidSouthCon before heading up there.

Dark Woods Con took place the first weekend in March. This was the first year for the convention, which is located in Pikeville Kentucky. I think that the organizers chose a great location and time to hold the convention, as it fits a great gap in the Kentucky schedule, and does not rub up against some of the larger events in the state such as the Fright Night Film Fest and ScareFest. Smart planning, and it met with good results.

My hat is off to the staff of DarkWoods Con. Cherokee and Chris Hall, Billy and Denise Blackwell, and everyone involved did a great job, as the event went very smoothly. The dealer's room had a lot of exhibitors and the attendance was strong. Plus Billy has been growing a great new beard, for his role in ZP International's Santa vs. Zombies movie. I got a pic of Billy B with the new beard, and have posted it here to share with all of you Billy B fans!

I did two panels over the weekend. One was a screenwriting/author's panel. My friend Jeffrey Reddick, who is a VERY talented screenwriter (his credits include Final Destination, the LionsGate film Tamara, the Day of the Dead remake, and others) was in from LA. Jeffrey is from Kentucky, and I really respect the fact that Jeffrey has come to the state to support the independent film community on several occasions, dating back to when I was involved in organizing music/film conference events. It was a blast to be with him on the panel, which also featured horror authors Elizadeth Hetherington and the incomparable Nic Brown (author of Blood Curse: Werewolf for Hire, and the head honcho of the B-Movie Man site).

The community really seemed to embrace the convention, which leads to interesting photo opportunities such as the one posted here, where Michael Berryman of the original Hills Have Eyes movies is talking with myself, and two of the local police officers. The officer standing to my right expressed that he hoped that this event happens again, and even suggested some other area events that the organizers might be able to align with or promote with.

I also got to catch up with some of the folks that I see regularly out on the Con circuit. Artist Sam Flegal was there, with his friend Matthew, running a table in the dealer's room. We didn't realize we were staying at the same hotel until the last day, which was a bummer as it would have been good to hang out a bit more. Sam's a very hard-working artist who is really pushing hard with a thorough appearance schedule, and I advise anyone that encounters him to check out his prints and artwork.

DarkWoods Con has the potential to become a very big event, and I'm hoping that the staff moves forward full throttle in 2011.

MidSouthCon in Memphis is a wonderful, well-established convention, and for me it was a homecoming. As you can see from my website's appearance schedule, it was the first event I did for The Exodus Gate last year. For me it was a homecoming, and I had no less than six panels to do over the weekend and shared space with D.A. Adams in the dealers room (he's the author of the highly recommended Brotherhood of Dwarves series).

This year, it felt so good to walk in and know so many people from Memphis and the convention circuit. I was glad that D.A. Adams was willing to put up with me, as he is a great guy to team up with at a convention. His girlfriend, Rene, is a blast as well, and the two of them help to keep me sane during the course of an event!

Lo and behold, Nick Valentino had a table right next to ours. This is amazing, as Nick and I go back to when I was doing some independent music activity, and he was in a very solid metal band called Fall With Me. Nick is now a fast-rising author, whose Steampunk novel Thomas Riley was flying off the table all weekend. David Gates, a graphic artist who was helping Nick out, was also there (and he hails back to the Fall With Me days as well!), and I have to say he has one of the best "self help" business cards around...the back of it has a sketch of Dave's face and the words 'I Can Do It'. I told Dave that whenever I feel shaky, I will pull that card out and read the slogan again and again! LOL

I got interviewed by Kimberly Richardson, the Goth Librarian herself, for a video interview series being hosted by Kerlak Publishing. Kimberly has a really good vibe and instinct for video interviews, and I feel that the interview turned out really well. It was great to spend more time with Kimberly in person...and we also got to share a panel together.

Other highlights included getting zinged by Dan Gamber, the Creative Executive Director (I hope I got that title right) of Meadowhawk Press. Meadowhawk Press is one of only 4 small press publishers to win the Philip K. Dick award, and also features Jackie Gamber, the author of Redheart, who is piling up awards faster than that guy Apollo could skate at the recent Winter Olympics.

It didn't matter whether I was on a panel or in the audience...Dan found a way to zing me good, and turn every head in the audience in my direction. I noticed that he had a certain look when he was about to do this, so I was able to brace for it before the weekend was out. I feel honored, as out of 1500 attendees, he selected me for this distinction. Maybe I should find a way to list this honor in my promotional blurbs! Seriously, though, keep an eye on Meadowhawk...they have some really great things in the works, as Dan is an out-of-the-box thinker when it comes to the publishing world.

Spending time with friends like Kirk Stevens, H. David Blalock (and his nephew William), Angelia Sparrow, Elizabeth Donald and Haley Elizabeth Garwood was wonderful as well. I can say that there is a very wonderful camraderie amongst many small press authors who are regularly out on the Con circuit, and it really does make a difference when you arrive at an event like this.

Between the 6 panels and the dealer's room, I had a very full weekend, but it was a very good one. Major salute to Dan, Jackie, Kirk, and Kat Hibpshman for an outstanding literary track.

I'm already looking forward to MidSouthCon 2011 and DarkWoods Con 2011...two very pleasant weekends, one featuring the debut of a very promising new Con, and the other another triumph of a Con with an excellent legacy already in place.

Now on to Millennicon in Cincinnati!

Headin' Back to Memphis, and Dark Woods Con Report!

Had to take a break from working all day on a spec-script, for a potentially very large project. Figured I would hop on here and weigh in a little on the past weekend, and the weekend coming up, at MidSouthCon.

First of all, the verdict is in...DarkWoods Con is a winner. I think that Cherokee Hall, the Blackwells, and everyone involved did a fantastic job with organizing the show. The attendence was solid, there was a nice variety of exhibitors, and excellent guests.

Jeffrey Reddick, as usual, was fantastic to visit with, and we finally got to be on a panel together. Myself, writer Elizadeth Hetherington, the incomparable Nic Brown, and Jeffrey headed up a screenwriter/author panel that didn't seem to have any pauses. We had a great conversation with the audience, and the range of experience on the panel was where it needed to be to respond well to the inquiries. Jeffrey also indicated that he has a lot of irons in the fire now, and I can't wait to see how everything turns out with him in the near future. He's a great fellow and is one that anyone would want to root for.

I spent a lot of time in the dealer's room, talking to other guests, exhibitors, con attendees, and even a few that will hopefully become new readers of my work! My table was next to Schaeffer Tolliver and Justin Powell, who were manning a table for the Cineline guys. Worked out very nicely, and we had a front seat position for all the sideshow stuff from the Pickled Brothers. They are fantastic, if you haven't seen them, though it does make me queasy to watch swords being drawn out of mouths by audience participants and light bulbs being eaten.

Sam Flegal and his friend Matthew were on hand, and it turned out that we were both staying at the same hotel (though we didn't figure this out until the end of the con). Sam is a very talented artist, and is part of that extended Nashville and Tennessee family of authors and artists that have been very kind to me as I've gotten underway with the books in the past year. I was glad to see that business was brisk at his table.

And then there's Jacob Ennis, the mastermind behind Stash and the upcoming Red River. Jacob is a first rate moviemaker, and a good guy to boot, and I hope that he and I find a project to work together on one day. We discussed a couple of possibilities, so we'll see, but definitely keep your eye on him.

I had a few moments to talk with Michael Berryman, the guy who was in the original The Hills Have Eyes movie. Very nice, cordial guy, I must say!

Jerry Williams and Pat Bowling were there as well, bringing their craziness, as well as many others, such as the Infernal Dreams fellows, TJ Moreschi of Feathered Italian Films, Lee Vorvoort of the movie Gun Town, George Bonilla and the ZP International crew, and Vance and Elizadeth Hetherington (I got Elizadeth's book and am reading it, she's a very talented horror writer).

I also met Joe Garcia of the Fast Custom Shirts guys, and it looks like I have FINALLY found an artist-friendly source for t-shirts. (we're already preparing a few designs, so keep an eye on the blog)

Lots of new friends, a very good overall experience, and even a couple of Stacey Gillespie sightings (Kentucky's legendary indie film actor). Plus I got to see Billy Blackwell in his fancy new beard that he grew for his role in a new George Bonilla film...very nice!

Mark down DarkWoods Con on your calendar in 2011. Well worth it. Great Con and I think that they have something going that can really excel.


This weekend I'm back in Tennessee, in Memphis, for MidSouthCon. I'm on no less than 6 panels over the weekend, and I will be stationed at D.A. Adams table in the exhibition hall, so I'll be pretty easy to find. There are so many wonderful people in Memphis... H. David Blalock (The Jarl Himself), Herika Raymer, Kirk Stevens, Dan and Jackie Gamber, Kim Smith, Debra Parmley, Kimberly Richardson, and several others are based in Memphis who I have come to know and like a whole lot. The Con is very well run, and features some big names like Sherrylin Kenyon and Kevin J. Anderson. It will be great to catch up with a bunch of author and artist friends while I'm there. I hope to get to stop in and get some Memphis BBQ at a place recommended by author Angelia Sparrow...we'll see what happens! :)