October! Finally!

Yes...October. Time to finally break out the horror movies and get ready for Halloween. As you can tell, I sort of took September off from my blog. I was just too busy with work and thus my writing had to take a backseat for a month. Besides, not too much is going on right now. What is going on? WEIRDOS!

A book featuring photographs by Dawn Wirth was just released by her and Jesse Viduarre (a.k.a. Jesse Xerox) and it documents Los Angeles' most notorious (and first) punk band, WEIRDOS. All of the glorious photos are from 1977 up to maybe 1978, the earliest incarnation of this amazing band. I am very proud that Dawn asked me to write an introduction to her book. Besides my two-page introduction, there are also intros from such luminaries on the scene as Pleasant Gehman (Lobotomy Fanzine, SCREAMIN' SIRENS), Terry Graham (drummer for BAGS, GUN CLUB), and Cliff Roman (founding member and guitarist for WEIRDOS). If you love punk rock or just great rock photos, get this book!

http://www.blurb.com/b/5540418-the-weirdos

Other writing...I do music reviews occasionally too for magazines like Ugly Things, Record Collector News, Maximum Rock'n'Roll, and The Big Takeover. Recently I was asked to write some reviews for an amazing magazine out of England titled FAILSAFE.

FAILSAFE is all about the pioneers of punk rock and the glorious history of punk music on both sides of the Atlantic. Strange thing about it though...I don't think you can buy it anywhere! It is made as a labor of love from the publisher and mailed out around the world to appreciative miscreants. Oh well...If you ever see it, check it out. Great insights on punk rock bands and history.

Other news? Well...Dead Guns Press says that their western horror anthology BADLANDS should be out soon. It features two of my stories...more on that when it is out. UPDATE!!! BADLANDS is now available on Amazon in paperback format! I have two short horror stories set in the wild west of the 1800s within this anthology. Get it here:

http://www.amazon.com/Badlands-John-L-Thompson/dp/1494773449

I hear that AXES OF EVIL II is being assembled and should see release soon. It has one of my stories in it.

I'm still waiting to hear from a publisher to see if my novella, SHADOW FALL, will see print any time soon.

I'm slowly putting together my personal anthology for James Ward Kirk Publishing. I hope to have it ready to go to print by the new year.

And that is about it right now...Whereas last October seemed a flurry of activity, this October seems quiet so far. The calm before the storm? I hope so! I need to get back to writing so I am making this short.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Back To The Grind

Well...summer is over at my house. Lounging around, reading books, hanging out with family and friends, going on small trips...That is all over now. Back to work and back to being more productive.

The biggest thing that happened to me over the summer was thought I finished writing my first novel. Well, not really a full-length novel, but what is called a novella. My story is currently at 31,578 words, but I am still making a few tweaks to it. It may get a little bigger, but not by much. To me a perfect idea is only perfect as long as filler/fluff is not added to it and I don't want to sacrifice my story just to make it bigger. I have sent it to a publisher and I am being told to wait 3 to 6 months for a reply on whether they will take it or not. It would be easier to sell if it were longer, but oh well...

I will tell you more about my novel...er...novella after it gets picked up (or rejected).

In other writing news, my relationship with James Ward Kirk Publishing has brought more wonderment into my life. In previous posts I mentioned that my story "The Horror at Engle Farm" had won the Editor's Choice Award in the BARNYARD HORROR anthology and my story "The Twilight of Men's Lives" also won another Editor's Choice Award for INDIANA CRIME REVIEW 2013, both by JWK Fiction. Well, it seems that both of these stories are now included in JWK FICTION BEST OF HORROR 2013, which is out now in Kindle and Paperback form.

This anthology features a lot of up and coming great talent. Besides my humble efforts, I find the work of Chantal Noordeloos, Paula Ashe, and James Dorr to be very literate and exciting. Paula Ashe's story "Bereft" is the most creepy story that I have read in ages. So, besides tooting my horn, you should pick this up to have a sampling of horror writing from the best new talent of today. Remember, this is a 'Best of' collection so there is no fluff here. Every story should keep you fairly enthralled.

On another note, I have always found James Ward Kirk Fiction to be honest and striving to improve constantly. They pay off in cash or contributor copies when they can and are trying their best to build up towards being a pro-paying publisher. So support the 'Indy Horror' publisher and get this mighty tome of horror now!

Here it is on Amazon for Kindle:

http://www.amazon.com/JWK-Fiction-Best-Horror-2013-ebook/dp/B00MFOGJR2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1407601556&sr=8-1&keywords=jwk+fiction

Here it is on Amazon for a paperback copy: http://www.amazon.com/dp/0692269398/ref=cm_sw_r_fa_dpd_uxK5tb1MNDQFM

The wonders never cease...I sent a short autobiographical nonfiction piece to an online magazine called FIVE2ONE and I only just recently discovered that they have printed copies of their online magazine available for purchase. I went ahead and bought one and was pleased to see my piece alongside a lot of creative poetry and short stories. FIVE2ONE is about creative writing and not horror. As I continue to write, I am a little afraid of being pigeonholed as one type of writer or another so I am glad to see this piece in print.

You can read my autobiographical piece here for free online:

http://five2onemag.onimpression.com/search/label/H.D.H.C

Or if paper is your thing, get the print copy here:

http://www.magcloud.com/browse/issue/602928?__r=439389

On other writing fronts, I still write for music magazines as time permits. The next issue of Mike Stax's wonderful magazine UGLY THINGS will feature an article on the L.A. punk band SCREAMERS by Jon Savage (author of England's Dreaming) and will be accompanied by photos from my archive. So none of my writing there, but still proud to mention my involvement with that. I did write an introduction for a book to be released soon by Dawn Wirth (famous L.A. punk photographer) about THE WEIRDOS. If you don't know the WEIRDOS, they are probably Los Angeles' most important punk band from the first wave of punk. I am honored that Dawn asked me to write an introduction piece for her book. Lastly, I wrote a couple of record reviews for David Ball's FAILSAFE magazine from England. I hear it is out now and I can't wait to get a copy. If you appreciate scholarly journalism on punk, you can't do much better than FAILSAFE magazine.

More next month! See you in September!

Summer Time Blues

Wow! Where does the time go at summer? Family, friends, hobbies, to-do list stuff...oh yeah...WRITING! Here it is already July and I have not written a single short story, but I have completed the skeleton of my first novel. I want to take a few days away from it, but then I need to reread the whole thing and flesh it out a bit before I start sending it publishers. My writer's group is also reading it and giving me some good advice on parts. I won't leak any of it just yet, but i will say that it involves hybrid undead ghost-like creatures that are invading London. I wrote it much like Bram Stoker's Dracula with a nod towards pure journalism in some parts, to pure pulp and horror in equal amounts in other parts. More on this soon...I will say that being a fan of the short story, it was a little difficult for me to get into a novel length venture, but I'm glad I did and I think horror fans will enjoy the result.

In other July news...

THE UNDEAD WAR: TALES OF THE ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE is now available as both a regular paperback and an eBook from Dead Guns Press. I have one short story in this collection and it is the only story I've ever written with a true zombie in it. My story in this is a reprint of one of my older stories, but I was thrilled to be included in a tome with other great writers like Selene MacLeod, T. Fox Dunham (Congrats to Dunham who is getting one of his novels turned into a movie!), Matthew Wilson, Gary Murphy, and John L.Thompson, just to name a few.

Get it here as an eBook:

http://www.amazon.com/Undead-Dead-Guns-Press-Book-ebook/dp/B00LJJCIMO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1405624667&sr=8-1&keywords=undead+war

Or here in paperback edition:

http://www.amazon.com/Undead-War-Zombie-Apocalypse-Volume/dp/149477030X/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1405624667&sr=8-1

In other horrific news...

I wrote an original short story a few months back to go along with a piece of artwork by legendary black/death metal album cover artist Niall Parkinson from Ireland. I was really inspired by his piece entitled "The Time Has Come" and wrote an entire short story around his artwork. My story is just now seeing the light of day courtesy of James Ward Kirk Publishing and Niall's book titled NO SIGHT FOR THE SAVED. Right now it is only available as an eBook, but I understand it is just a matter of days before you can get a paperback copy.

Here is the eBook link:

http://www.amazon.com/Niall-Parkinson-No-Sight-Saved-ebook/dp/B00LRQ6VKY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1405625164&sr=8-1&keywords=no+sight+for+the+saved

UPDATE: JULY 21st: The paperback version of NO SIGHT FOR THE SAVE is out now! You can order the paperback here:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0692255796/ref=cm_sw_r_fa_dpd_eZrZtb0KNECHWQQA

Here is the artwork that inspired what I think is one of my very best short horror stories to-date:

"The Time Has Come" by Niall Parkinson

That is all for now, but I hope to bring you some great news about my novel in the near future! Cheers and Happy Summer, Greg

My Laziness Runeth Over

Hello all! I am back! I took a little time off from my writer's blog to focus on my teaching and end-of-the-school-year activities. I know...no excuses...but I am sorry that I did not post in April or May so I will rectify that now...June!

First of all, THANK YOU to all who bought and read my story "Snapshots of Hell." I was extremely pleased with the expertise and professional manner in which Phrenic Press went to work on my story to make it a taut read with a great cover! I'm not too sure about Amazon ranking, but I did reach 75,000 at one point, which I am told is 'pretty good.'

If you have not read my story yet, please go to Amazon and get it! It is FREE with Amazon Prime or .99 cents without. I guarantee that you will like it. And, if possible, please recommend it for a Bram Stoker Award with the Horror Writer's Association. I would be thrilled and honored to win a Stoker!

Now, on to the business at hand...So much happened in March that April was quite the opposite. Maybe this is due to tax deadlines here in the U.S.? Well, May saw an anthology finally come out that I had subbed for over a year ago:

IN THE DARKNESS -anthology from Thirteen O'Clock Press (U.K.) came out in May. This one is edited by the wonderful Dorothy Davies. Here is their promotional blurb about it:

In the darkness anything can happen and often does – if this wild collection of stories is anything to go by! Under cover of the dark many a nefarious and often strange happening is going on, without our knowledge until it’s too late and we are lost… Thirteen Press authors have come up with a startling variety of stories on the theme of In The Darkness, murder and mayhem breaking loose everywhere. Come join us in the dark, don’t be afraid, we don’t bite – not too often anyway…

You can pick it up as a paperback here:

http://www.lulu.com/shop/thirteen-press/in-the-darkness/paperback/product-21614105.html

Or as an ebook here:

http://www.lulu.com/shop/thirteen-press/in-the-darkness/ebook/product-21632842.html

In other news, June is looking up with a few more anthologies coming out. This time around Dead Guns Press is releasing two themed anthologies with some of my stories in them:

THE UNDEAD WAR: TALES OF THE ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE

and...

BADLANDS: TALES OF THE STRANGE AND BIZARRE IN THE OLD WEST

I am told that these titles should be out very soon so keep checking back here for more info.

That is all for right now, but I will do a June update so check back regularly. Have a great summer! Cheers, Greg

March Addendum

Ladies and Gentlemen...My novella, SNAPSHOTS OF HELL, has finally been released by Phrenic Press as a Kindle download for .99 cents on Amazon.

Here is a summary of my story:

John Evers had been propelled to fame through his legendary photographic exhibits in the posh galleries of New York City.

Moving himself and his wife to England for professional reasons, John now finds his personal success fleeting. In order to recapture his fame, he takes a gamble on a single lot being auctioned off rather dubiously. As fortune would have it, John is lucky enough to gain possession of the lot he is seeking: LOT 466-8 CAMERA AND UNDEVELOPED FILM FROM THE ESTATE OF ALEISTER CROWLEY.

John can’t believe his luck at acquiring undeveloped rolls of film once belonging to Aleister Crowley, one of England’s most famed Satanists. Believing this good fortune to be his salvation, John unknowingly releases an evil from beyond the grave that will not rest until it ravages both his mind and his body.

Will John and his wife discover a way out of their personal torment before it’s too late? Or will their life become another collection of 'Snapshots of Hell'?

I don't want to give any more away, but please check out my story for a horrific good time! You can get it here at Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00J7XJNAY

Phrenic Press is a new publishing company that has strict rules as to the quality of stories that they will publish. If you enjoy well written horror that avoids cliche and gimmicks while haunting your cerebellum for days to after a reading...check out Phrenic Press and their stories on their blog:

http://phrenicpress.wordpress.com/2014/03/25/release-snapshots-of-hell-by-greg-mcwhorter/

Or learn more (and 'like' them) on their facebook page here:

https://www.facebook.com/PhrenicPress

Maniacal March!

Okay...things are picking up. The end of March will see a few of my stories released. First up is NIGHTMARE ILLUSTRATED #5 coming out around March 23rd. My story in this issue is my personal favorite/best story. It combines horror with thriller. Kind of genre-bending and a bit of twisted mind-screw...Artwork supplied by the uber talented Niall Parkinson from Ireland. Niall is best known for his Black Metal album covers, but he consented to ink some pics for my story. What a guy! I will need to light a black candle in his honor! You can check out Niall's artwork here:

http://www.artwanted.com/artist.cfm?ArtID=78152

The aforementioned NIGHTMARE ILLUSTRATED #5 will be available from Horrified Press (paperback and kindle, I believe)on Lulu.com on or after March 23rd. Here is a sneak of the cover (cover by the very talented Stephen Cooney):

Also coming from Horrified Press' affiliate press is the anthology WHAT LIES BENEATH from Thirteen Press. This anthology includes an early story of mine titled "Tell Me Where He Lies." Although this story has seen print elsewhere, this is the final, and best, edit version. Here is the cover (another Stephen Cooney masterpiece!):

I will give you ordering details when this goes on sale (paperback and kindle), but my understanding is March 26th and also through Lulu.com. Thirteen Press also has one of my stories coming out in another anthology titled IN THE DARKNESS. I think this may be released next month...April?

I also have a novella that will be available at almost any time soon from a new imprint called Phrenic Press. I cannot tell you anymore or share the cover pic yet, but I can tell you that my story is titled "Snapshots of Hell" and is one of my most ambitious works yet. When this goes on sale, it will be kindle/digital-only. This is one of my very best efforts yet and I cannot wait until it gets out to the public for mass consumption...mass horror! More as it develops...

Lastly, I am still working on my first novel that is tentatively titled SHADOW FALL and I'm about 1/3rd of the way finished with it. Okay...so I have not come that far with it, but I hope to have it finished by summer time and I already have some pretty big nibbles on it form top-tier publishers. I cannot wait to see what develops. I don't want to say much about it now, but it is coming together to be quite a story! Teaser: Violent ghosts...London...Nazis...oh my!

As always...stay tuned...stay sick!

Ferocious February!

Hey now everybody! Just a quick blog post here. February has been really slow for me as far as publishing goes, but things are starting to kick into gear. I just got two of my pulp/crime stories printed in a wonderful new book:

HARDBOILED: AN ANTHOLOGY OF CRIME AND DETECTIVE

Edited by John L. Thompson, Published by Dead Guns Press

My two stories:

"The Twilight of Men's Lives" (about a day in the life of a gun-for-hire and the double crossing that leads to many deaths.)

and

"The Soundtrack" (a novella sized story about a Hollywood private eye and the mess he gets into with a mobster that wants something returned to him.)

You can download the Kindle version for FREE right now here:

http://www.amazon.com/Hardboiled-John-Thompson-ebook/dp/B00IKW3R6E/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1393302683&sr=8-2&keywords=hardboiled+thompson

Or you can be adventurous and get the print book here:

http://www.amazon.com/Hardboiled-An-Anthology-Crime-Detective/dp/1494739526/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1393302756&sr=8-1&keywords=hardboiled+thompson

In other news, I have stories coming out in March with Thirteen Press (an imprint of Horrified Press), Schlock! Webzine (a zombie penguin story of all things!), and a novella entitled "Snapshots of Hell" from a new imprint called Phrenic Press. More on all of these things as they develop.

More next month...March Madness is coming!