MUSINGS (short story for Cemetery Dance Four Killers anthology)
THE LOST LEVEL (Lost world-styled novel for Apex Book Company)
HOLE IN THE WORLD (Labyrinth-related novel for Camelot Books)
APOCRYPHA (book for former newsletter subscribers)
WITH TEETH (Vampire novel for Cemetery Dance)
SUBURBAN GOTHIC (Sequel to Urban Gothic, for Deadite Press)
Camelot Books has begun shipping copies of Is There A Demon In You? There are still copies available. You can order one here. Still a few free chapbooks left, too.
It occurred to me last night that, had the heart attack killed me, my Lifetime Subscribers would be justifiably pissed off. It didn’t kill me, but it has slowed me down. Over the last two weeks, I’ve been working on The Lost Level, Hole In The World, my keynote speech for Anthocon, and editing Apocrypha. That, combined with some familial stress, has left me feeling like I did in early September. I described it to my ex-wife this morning as “a head cold on the left side of my chest”. I had a much needed and welcome respite last Saturday night. Went out with Geoff Cooper, Kelli Owen, Bob Ford, Meteornotes, Wesley Southard, Matt and Pam Blazi, and Qweequeg, and spent an evening not thinking about deadlines or family stuff. Thanks to them for the break. And thanks to Apex Book Company for being patient above and beyond reason regarding this Lost Level deadline.
KHP won’t be publishing Binky. That was another one I blew the deadline on, and they elected to exercise the contractual clause that cancels the book. I don’t blame them a bit. The fault lies entirely with me. I mailed back the advance this morning, and I wish Jerrod, S.D., and Karen all the best in the world. They’re good folks, and business is just business. So, for now, Binky is on the back-burner. I’ll finish it after I finish some of these other late books.
Lifetime Subscribers can expect their next shipment in coming weeks. Shipments start next Monday and will be staggered, so please be patient. This shipment will include the following: The Damned Highway, Dead Sea, The Last Zombie: Dead New World, and The Last Zombie: Inferno issues #2, 3, and 4 (and copies of Clickers II for those who were shorted). January’s shipment will include Kill Whitey, Castaways, Ghoul, The Cage, Dark Hollow, and The Last Zombie: Inferno #5.
I’ll be at AnthoCon in Portsmouth, New Hampshire this weekend. My schedule is here. And next weekend, I’ll be in Portland, Oregon for Bizarrocon. Hope to see some of you there. As announced previously, these will be my last two appearances for quite a while.
The late, great Janis Joplin once sang “Freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose.” I would add that so is apathy.
Let’s talk, you and I. It’s been a long time since we’ve really done that. Oh, sure. We talk on Twitter every day, and we talk here in the comments section. And we used to chat at The Keenedom and on Facebook until the sound of white noise in those places began to overwhelm me, throbbing in my pineal gland night and day, threatening to drive me mad, and I ended up stabbing both of them with a knife so that they wouldn’t bother me anymore. Continue reading
The title is pretty self-explanatory. Regular readers know the story. I suffered a series of setbacks, both personal and professional, in the first half of 2010 (beginning with a divorce and ending with the Leisure meltdown) that impacted deadlines across the board. Things have since turned around, but there are still three things that remain delayed. So let’s update you on those.
THE LAST ZOMBIE: Scripts for the first five issues are complete. We are experiencing art delays. As stated, that will most-likely impact the release date for the first trade paperback. Antarctic Press announced that Benn Dunn will be illustrating the next story-arc (Inferno), and that the comic should come out on a more regular schedule as a result.
OF KEENE INTEREST: The Leisure situation left me almost penniless, and funds that should have been used for the newsletter were instead diverted to things like food, rent, and child support. Issue #3 was slated to come out in September. The news for it was already outdated, so I decided to go with fresh material. That fresh material has been collected, and funds are looking better. It was my sincere hope to release it this month. That is still my hope. However, it’s more likely you will see it in January. To make up for the delay, issue #3 will include a Top Secret bonus that I think will please all subscribers.
HOLE IN THE WORLD: For the real-life F.U.K.U. members featured in this novel, I have to finish The Damned Highway (a novel I’m co-writing with Nick Mamatas) and The Witching Tree (a new Levi novella for Camelot Books), and then will focus all of my attention on Hole In The World. As of this morning, both The Damned Highway and The Witching Tree are more than halfway completed. I will certainly finish both by the end of the month.
As always, thanks for your patience and understanding. I went ten years in this business without blowing deadlines. I intend to renew that effort in 2011. And I want to take a moment to especially thank Tony and Kim at Camelot Books, Bill Schafer at Subterranean Press, Paul Goblirsch at Thunderstorm Books, and Tim Deal at Shroud Magazine, all of whom have been incredibly gracious, patient and supportive while I try to get caught up on various things for them. I hope that you will support them in turn.