Friday, November 29, 2013

Here's to a Wonderful Holiday Season!

Hello, Overlord fans.  Another holiday season is upon us and like everyone else, we’re all gearing up for the sales season.  However, I’m not going to give you the big sales pitch this year.  Many of you have already purchased my books and I thank you so much for being a loyal fan and follower of mine.   Instead, I’m hoping that you can help spread the word about my works to your friends, families, co-workers, and acquaintances, especially those that you think would like my books the most.  There’s always someone else out there that hasn't heard of The Overlords but might be interested if they knew.

Speaking of spreading the word, please inform those same people with children that I visit local schools and libraries, holding children’s writing sessions, science fiction and fantasy workshops, and mentor seniors with their senior projects.  I can’t be everywhere all the time and trying to contact these institutions can be a daunting task.  Your help will enable me to someday meet that young, aspiring author and help them get their writing career off the ground.  All of these things help me to pay it forward and little by little these simple acts can bring on greater things.

I wish you and yours a wonderful holiday season, full of happiness and cheer.  And if the winter becomes long and cold, snuggling up near the fireplace wrapped in a blanket to keep warm while enjoying Harrison’s adventure isn’t such a bad thing, now is it?  J

Monday, November 11, 2013

Welcome Horror Writer, Gary Frank!

Overlords fans, as promised here's the very first horror writer to visit our blog.  Everyone, I'd like to introduce you to Gary Frank.  Gary and I met several years ago at NECON, a horror writers convention that's held at Roger Williams University in Bristol, RI every July.  We both clicked after meeting each other, with our love for sci-fi, fantasy, horror, and The Beatles helping us form an instant bond.  We both enjoy hanging out on the quad, enjoying a "few" cold ones, saugies, and interacting with our fellow NECON campers.  Gary was also kind enough to be a host for one of my stops on my Overlords Blog Tour.  OK, enough with the introductions!  Here are a few things you need to know about Gary:

Mike:  Hi, Gary.  I’m very excited to present the very first horror writer to my Overlords fan base.  We’re going to do an old fashioned interview, ok?  With that said, here we go!

Mike:  Gary, please introduce yourself to my Overlords fans with a little information about you and where you’re from.

Gary:  Hey, Mike. Thanks for the interview! Well, I've been breathing for over 40 years and writing for over 30 and have two published novels from Medallion Press. I come up with short stories every now and then, dabble in poetry, but mainly stick to writing novels. I currently live in north New Jersey, but I come from Flushing, Queens, New York.

Mike:  What are you working on these days and what’s the current status of that project?

Gary:  I had been full throttle on a complicated ghost story called Passing Strangers for most of the summer, getting about 45,000 words down and then abruptly stopped. I’m looking at that book again and also a novel based on ancient China, tentatively titled City of the Pearl Dawn.

Mike:  All your work is predominately horror.  What drew you to that genre?

Gary:  I really loved Robert McCammon's Stinger and Usher's Passing and early Dean Koontz like Phantoms. I had actually started writing science fiction and fantasy, but was always attracted to the supernatural. For a while I was writing short stories in all three genres, but around 2002, I took my fiction novel, Insert Title Here, that hadn't found a home and decided to make the antagonist "something other than human" and Forever Will You Suffer was born. Three years later I sold it to Medallion and I just stayed in horror because it's a much more emotional genre than science fiction or fantasy and that makes it more interesting to explore.

Mike:  Have you created any characters that have truly scared you?  If so, which ones?

Gary:  None that have scared me, but a number of people who read Institutional Memory (my second novel that takes place in a possessed corporate office building) have told me they no longer work overtime in their office by themselves.

Mike:  For those of you who don’t know, I met Gary at NECON several years ago and found that he’s also an accomplished musician.  Did you ever have any plans to connect with Paul McCartney and hit the road as a rocker???

Gary:  Funny you should mention Sir Paul. I had been taking lessons from a South American guitar teacher who was teaching me Spanish guitar and as a 12-year-old boy, all I wanted to learn was rock. The day I brought the sheet music to Yesterday to her was the beginning of the end of our time together. I have played at local cafes, but never hooked up with the right people to really get into the band/bar scene.

Mike:  What makes Gary Frank tick?

Gary:  I have a clock similar to Flava Flav's that I wear inside my chest.

Mike:  Any upcoming projects we should now about?

Gary:  Necon E-Books will be bringing Forever Will You Suffer and Institutional Memory out as eBooks soon. Institutional Memory will hopefully be sometime in November or December and Forever Will You Suffer will most likely be in early 2014. I have a short story, Devil Women From Mars coming out in Michael Knost’s Red-Neck Zombies From Outer Space anthology. I’m not sure exactly when that’s coming out, so we’ll call it sooner than later! And of course, the two novels.

Mike:  Care to talk about your radio show?

Gary:  Ah yes, the radio show. The Rock Labyrinth. 40+ year of classic and modern metal, prog, alternative and good, solid rock. The music runs the gamut from King Crimson, ELP and Rush to Metallica, Priest, Sabbath and Maiden to Shinedown, Evanescence, Black Tea House and Lilly Rouge to Dream Theater, Pinnacle and Spock’s Beard to The Cure, Bauhaus and Sisters of Mercy. Something for everyone! The show is every Monday night at 9pm eastern US time at www.shmusicmedia.com

Mike:  OK, time for some quick ones, ready?  Favorite movie?
Gary:  Star Wars

Mike: Favorite food or dish to make?
Gary:  One of my recipes: Tortellini with ground turkey, onions and peppers.

Mike:  Favorite place you have ever visited?
Gary:  One place? How about a few: Beijing, Hawaii, Cape Cod, Arizona, Colorado

Mike:  Favorite music band?
Gary:  The Beatles

Mike:  Favorite book, and no it can’t be one of yours!
Gary:  No way I can do one book! The Affinity Bridge by George Mann, Peaceable Kingdom by Jack Ketchum, The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury, Stinger by Robert McCammon, The Greyfriar by Clay & Susan Griffiths, Mr. Hands by Gary Braunbeck and several dozen more I can’t think of!

Mike:  Gary, thanks for being a good sport!  Is there anything you would like to leave my fans with?

Gary:  Thanks again for interviewing me. Look for Forever Will You Suffer and Institutional Memory coming out in the next few months from Necon E-Books. Dark Territories is an anthology I co-edited with Mary Sangiovanni and is available through Amazon. Drop by www.shmusicmedia.com on Monday nights at 9pm (eastern US time) for The Rock Labyrinth. I’m on Facebook if you want to say hello. I’ve got a blog called Writing Through Hell and my website is www.authorgaryfrank.com! Lastly, keep an eye out for news in 2014 about the new books.

Gary, it's been my pleasure having you here to day.  Here are links to Gary's books -- be sure to pick up a copy or two, they make excellent reads as well as awesome Christmas gifts!


Unfortunately, both books are out of print, but are available through Amazon’s marketplace. Here are the links to the books:




Friday, November 8, 2013

Nonnie Jules is Writing Again!

Hey Overlords fans, once again my fellow author and huge Twitter supporter, Nonnie Jules, has another book coming out today.  Nonnie and I have traded guest blog postings in the past and just yesterday I was on her blog for the last day of The Overlords Blog Tour: Seven Blogs in Seven Days.  Here's everything you need to know about DAYDREAM'S DAUGHTER, NIGHTMARE'S FRIEND:

DAYDREAM'S DAUGHTER, NIGHTMARE'S FRIEND Book Intro!

Blurb:  
"She was one horrible mess.  Always looking over her shoulder, avoiding becoming too friendly with the neighbors, never letting her kids out of her sight for fear of human monsters lurking around corners, waiting to cause them harm.  That anxiety stemmed from her own childhood memories.  Always fearing  that someone would recognize her face, she kept to herself and didn't go out much.  And when she did, no matter the season, she wore some kind of hat or covering on her head, enough to shield her face.  HE had done this to her even though he was dead now.  

Walter never understood why she was such a loner, avoiding  people as much as she could, and just being extremely anti-social outside of the house.  Houston was originally her home, not his, yet she didn't even want her own family and friends to know that she had returned.  The only person she found herself able to really open up with was him.  And although she tried to make him feel otherwise, he knew that there was still a huge wall up that even he would never be able to see over or climb.

Marisa had a secret and if it was ever discovered, it could cost her her life and her freedom."

Review:

"I couldn't put this book down! Every chapter that I read kept me on the edge of my seat, excited about what was to come in the next chapter.  I want more...so hope there's a sequel! Lifetime Television...watch out for DAYDREAM'S DAUGHTER, NIGHTMARE'S FRIEND.  You're going to want to turn this script into a movie!"- P.J. Soemer, Book Lover

Trailer:

BUY LINKS:
Also on Amazon (Coming to Amazon as an eBook, Saturday, November 9, 2013)

If you're interested in keeping up with this Nonnie, please check out the links below!  Thanks for joining us on this collective 25 blog BOOK INTRO!!!

CONTACT:
General Blog
Parenting Blog
Nonnie's Book Store - Signed Copies & more
Twitter:  @nonniejules


BOOKS:
"The Good Mommies' Guide to Raising (Almost) Perfect Daughters,"
100 Tips On Raising Daughters Everyone Can't Help But Love!

www.amazon.com/dp/B00CP62O56
www.createspace.com/4355124

TRAILERS: