Emerging Voices in Genre Fiction

Today is a day I give back to the writing community for all the good things that have been done for me. I have chosen to write about three authors from three completely different social circles from the social media world; neither of these authors have been published with Bizarro Pulp Press, and they do not have books under contract with my press. There is no bias here except for the fact that I love their work. Would I publish them? Bizarro Pulp Press isn’t always the right venue for the type of work an artist wishes to produce, and many authors have specific goals in mind for their art; therefore, this blog post is not an attempt to recruit them. I have reviewed their work, and I don’t think they have reviewed mine, although I know Phil has looked at my stuff before and did not hate it, which is a grand compliment from him. This huge disclaimer is meant to explain that I genuinely want to introduce good fiction to a wider audience. 

I provided Amazon links to their stuff. It's the United States Amazon link. I didn't want to turn this into a bazaar or an advertisement, so I kept it simple. These authors have no idea what I wanted to write about them, but they agreed that it might be cool. In my grand crusade to spread awesome reading material to peoples of the universe, I give you...

Autumn Christian

CLICK THESE WORDS FOR AUTUMN'S AMAZON PAGE

I heard some buzz about Autumn in social media land about two years ago, and I saw one of her personal posts; it was poetic, so I was intrigued. Yeah, I’m one of those people who read a lot of the writing samples that are posted to Facebook, because you never know what you might discover. I’m glad I did. I haven’t only read two of Autumn Christian’s books so far: Crooked God Machine, and Wormwood. I feel like she is a heady mix of Poppy Z. Brite and David Lynch. I loved Crooked God Machine; some of the sentences “felt” like they were punching me in the stomach with their depth. It was truly beautiful. Autumn’s work seems very personal and authentic, despite the surreality of the worlds she produces on the page; the power of her emotion keeps the stories grounded and allow for readers to connect. I think a younger audience would love Autumn’s work, and I don’t say that often about a lot of authors I have discovered on Facebook; the teenagers I work with don’t have a Poppy Z. Brite or Anne Rice to connect to. If I recall correctly, Poppy Z. Brite didn't exactly write PG-13 stuff, and I don't think Autumn needs to change anything about her approach at all; I think the books she already has are perfect for a hyper-imaginative audience, and she could really inspire some people to write. Autumn Christian is charged with raw talent and potential, and I think she is going to find a mass audience, especially if she targets a younger demographic in the future (that’s my unprofessional opinion, and as a married man, I know that I am usually wrong about everything).  Autumn is going to be a hit, soon, no matter what she does. 

Philip LoPresti 

CLICK THIS FOR PHIL

Phil represents the direction I think modernized horror should explore more often. I met Phil when his first book of poems, Haunted F***ing, was published, and there was a lot of buzz around it amongst the community that supports Dynatox Ministries. Caught up in the hype, I was able to get my hands on a copy and discovered a poet who wasn’t afraid to get away from candles, ravens, shadows, etc. I can relate to Philip, because his work is not for a mass audience and it is written for people who would love to be exposed to horror “art.” One of the biggest problems with the type of work Phil produces is that it can be frustrating to work with a medium that can never be mainstream; and that is part of the allure to the art that Phil creates. His photography is stunning, and he is quite opinionated on social media. Publishers who want to truly produce art that is different and challenging are looking for Philip; but therein lies the rub. I would love to create an imprint specifically for work like Phil’s. His work is going to be off-putting to many; I can admit that I struggle with some of the imagery and language, but that’s because Phil is willing to unsettle the audience with his work. Phil works with the element of horror that is supposed to actually be horrific; it’s like someone saying they want to find a horror movie that is “actually scary” but they don’t realize that true horror is personal. Good horror should make you feel uncomfortable, and I consider Philip Lopresti a true horrorist because he can make you squirm. I know he is an Edward Lee fan, so I think if you are a fan of Edward Lee and you want the poetic version, Lopresti is the man. 


John McNee
CLICK HITHER FOR JOHN MCNEE'S AMAZON PAGE

I was introduced to John McNee’s work through a more traditional avenue;  when I had discovered a press called Strangehouse Books, I saw the cover of a book called Grudge Punk. Instantly, I was reminded of an old cartoon I enjoyed called Aeon Flux. Even though the book was nothing close to Flux, I really enjoyed it. I was under the impression that McNee was a new writer, so I did not expect to read a book that was so professionally delivered. A full-realized world with great characters, I wanted a

second book right away, and have been begging him for it since. I respect that McNee transitioned from a science-fiction novel to classical horror; The Prince of Nightmares, his latest offering, is a haunted house story that is very enjoyable. I am currently attempting to get through it, but I have so little time and it’s very difficult to find the energy to read with three kids running around the house. Horror does not need buckets of gore to be interesting, and McNee’s approach is very old-school, reminding me of a book William Peter Blatty would have written after The Exorcist. The story relies more on psychological horror and character development, which is a welcome break from all the extremely graphic stuff I typically find. 



Thank you for stopping by! I hope that you found an author or three you might consider exploring. 

THE INFLUENCE OF ANIME ON ART

Anime is a beautiful artistic representation of unique ideas and amazing storytelling; it’s an entertainment medium that continues to grow, especially as Netflix begins to pick up exclusive shows, exposing the genre to a new audience. Popular bizarro writer and poet S. T. Cartledge, author of House Hunter and Day of the Milkman, incorporates vivid storytelling that is heavily influenced by Anime and Manga. S. T. stopped by the blog to talk about some of his favorite shows, including some recent hits. 



So a couple of years ago I got into watching anime and reading manga. I love it. It's so vibrant and imaginative and wild. In the same way that anything is possible in bizarro, anything is possible in anime and manga. And the volume of content is just incredible. Here are a few of my favourite anime series:

Cowboy Bebop

It's a classic. Bounty hunters in space set to a wild jazz soundtrack. It came out in 1999 and it's still the benchmark for cool. There's plenty of action, gunfights, fistfights, wild spaceship flights and big explosions. And the characters have enough mystery to them that the backstory teased out over the 26 episodes and one movie keeps you emotionally invested. And Radical Edward. Yeah, at times she's annoying as fuck, but she's also one of my favourite characters around. You should also take note of the director, Shinichiro Watanabe, and the composer, Yoko Kanno. Their work together really sets this series apart from other sci-fi anime. I'd recommend Watanabe's other series, Samurai Champloo, Kids on the Slope, and Terror in Resonance. The latter two also feature fantastic soundtracks by Kanno, and Terror in Resonance is currently only a few episodes in, but it already seems to be something special.

Neon Genesis Evangelion

Some fan favourites are fan favourites for a reason. This series is unforgettable. I watched the last 6 episodes of Evangelion right before I went to work and I spent my shift in a shellshocked daze. Evangelion is about a post-apocalyptic world where earth comes under attack by outer space monsters called 'angels'. They fight back using children piloting mechas called 'Evas'. The main character, Shinji, struggles with the responsibility that the entire human race is counting on him to not be a fuck up. Combine that with the fact that he's working for his estranged father and has never known love and acceptance in his life, the poor child has no idea how to process his emotions. Evangelion is a manic spiral into the darkest spaces of the human psyche. And the thing I love about it, is that it teases at resolution. It teases you into thinking maybe things will turn out okay. Maybe Shinji will learn how to be a normal child saving the world time and time again. Be prepared to face a world without closure or resolution. The rebuild of Evangelion as a film series was meant to make the whole thing more accessible. Three of the four films are out now, and all I can say is that Evangelion is hellbent on tormenting you. The films definitely aren't more forgiving than the series. Evangelion plays with your emotions in ways you could not imagine. It is truly unforgettable.

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

Brotherhood is a remake of a series simply called Fullmetal Alchemist, which in turn was based on a manga series. At the time the original series came out, the manga was still being written. By the time Brotherhood came along, it was complete. The original anime was brilliant in its own right, but Brotherhood is a more faithful adaptation, and as such, it captures that artistic vision just that much clearer. The scope is much bigger. And it is pulled off expertly. The basic concept is this: When their mother dies, Ed and Al try to bring her back to life using alchemy. They fail. Ed loses his leg and Al loses his body. Ed sacrifices his arm in order to bind his brother's soul to a suit of armour. As a result of playing with death, they find that the world is populated with homunculi, powerful creatures embodying the spirit of the seven deadly sins. The story itself has a lot of complex ins and outs, a brief summary just can't do it justice. But at the core there is the existential struggle between life and death, the ethics of trying to bring people back from the dead, and facing the monsters which plague such decisions.

Kaiba

This anime is a strange one. It's a colourful sci-fi story where people have memory chips stored in their heads. They can buy good memories and delete bad ones. They can remove their memories from one body and put them in another. The story revolves around a mysterious character who doesn't quite know who he is. The world is corrupt, and people are hunting him down, thinking he's some sort of mastermind behind a planned rebellion. This series is surreal, it's abstract. It's sad and beautiful and overwhelming. Storytelling is minimal and the animation style is strange. It's a visionary masterpiece.

Knights of Sidonia

I have been waiting for something like this for a long time. Tsutomu Nihei is one of my favourite manga artists. Knights of Sidonia is his latest manga, yet it's the first one to be picked up as a proper anime series. I haven't finished season one yet, but the adaptation is brilliant. His style of storytelling is fairly minimal, and the action and sprawling landscapes are things you need to pay close attention to in order to fully appreciate and understand the story. The anime does a great job adapting it, making it easy enough to follow, while also doing justice to the elaborate architecture of his worlds and detail of his monsters. The things which make his stories stand out. Knights of Sidonia is about a space ship carrying what might be the last of human civilisation through space infested with shape-shifting monsters known as 'gauna'. The humans pilot mechas to fight off the gauna. Plenty of action. It's hardcore sci-fi mechas vs kaiju in space, with the characters inside the space ship Sidonia driving the story along.

Attack on Titan

This is the big one people are all over right now. For a while, it slipped through my radar, but while I'm still only about 11 episodes into the anime, I'm much further along into the manga. The story follows a human settlement living within a series of walls built in concentric circles, keeping out giant naked human-eating humanoid creatures called titans. They're pretty much giant, brutal zombies. There is an elite military network trained to fend off the titans, killing them by propelling themselves into the air using some form of grappling hook system, and slicing the back of the titans' necks. I don't want to give away plot details, but what the humans know about the titans is kind of hazy, and what they find out throughout the series turns those assumptions on their head and really ratchets up the action. It's intense. The anime is directed by the same guy who did Death Note and Highschool of the Dead. The action is awesome. The animation is slick and visceral. From what I've seen of the anime and what I've read in the manga, I think it looks better on the screen than it does on the page, which is saying a lot. You want to check this series out. It's ridiculously entertaining.

Eden of the East

This series is probably the least insane one on this list. A lot of series I like tend to pump up the action or drama so much it ends up blowing apart and going into unreal proportions (Dragonball Z, anyone?). Eden of the East is an incredible anime because it doesn't have to resort to that. After Japan comes under missile attack for unknown reasons, a select few citizens are chosen to participate in a game where they are given an incredible amount of money and resources and are given the job of fixing Japan by any means necessary so that it doesn't find itself carelessly under attack like this again. The series is a bit of a mystery/thriller/drama. An innocent bystander gets caught up with one of the participants of the game, and with each participant trying to achieve the goal their own way (or not) and trying to keep tabs on each other (should they fail or run out of funds they will be hunted down and killed by one of the participants), Eden of the East is as much about survival as it is about understanding the game, and understanding how things have changed so much in such a short amount of time. The animation is crisp and clean, the story is brilliant. You think of what anime typically is, and this series undercuts it and produces its own captivating vision.

S.T. Cartledge is an Australian writer of action/adventure Bizarro fiction, often bordering on the fantastical, with rich world-building and fast-paced action sequences inspired by anime, manga, and the works of D. Harlan Wilson, Carlton Mellick III, and Cameron Pierce. He lives in Perth, Western Australia, where he studied creative writing at Curtin University. In 2013 he graduated with first class honours. Visit his blog at: 
http://themanifold.wordpress.com/


Check out S. T. Cartledge's books: 

In a world dominated by the milk industry, only one milkman remains after a terrible storm sinks all the ships and throws the Great White Sea out of balance. The storm has left HiLo, the last milkman, to endure the memories of a world that left him behind. Adrift upon a lonely sea in a lonely world, his search for food, drinkable milk, and survivors is soured by the ghosts of those he lost.

But World Milk, HiLo’s former employer, left many secrets in its wake; with the company of a ghostly hologram woman, HiLo’s quest for answers might resurrect the once-glorious milk industry and return the world to creamy freshness. 

The day of the milkman is upon us. 

CLICK HERE TO GET IT

Finding a good house is a house hunter's job. If you want a great house, you need Imogen. She's the best at capturing young houses and training them to be homes. But all of her skills will be tested when the Association goes after the mythical Jabberhouse in order to breed houses in captivity. With a mysterious helper, Imogen and her house fight to stay alive and keep houses free.

A bizarro adventure, with cockroach people, spider-cars, assassins, house-fights, and a big-ass castle stomping into battle against an ancient temple. House hunting has never been so weird.

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Depression and Creativity Collide

Grant Wamack, rapper, writer, and existential warrior of the cosmos, has just dropped his new novella, A Lightbulb's Lament. Since the bizarro genre is a literary phenomenon that uses metaphorical devices to explore our emotions and our society, Grant discusses the role of depression in the creation of a hero so many of us want to be; a hero who is the figurative warrior against personal darkness--Mr. Watts. 

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Blog Postage (Lit Edition)
by Grant Wamack

Let's flashback to my freshmen year in college. I just moved out of the dorms and eased into a studio apartment in the heart of Northern Illinois University's campus. I was getting pretty good grades,  some of my short stories were beginning to be published, I had good friends who made sure I was making moves on the regular, I was finally able to get away from my dad's overbearing presence, but still... there was something nagging at me. Doubts about the future, terrible luck with women (even though I was surrounded by the “hook-up” culture), and most importantly I was still uncomfortable with myself. 

Cue existential crisis and questions. Why the fuck am I an English major?  I don't want to be a teacher. Why am I trying to please my Dad by majoring in English? I'm so much more than that. More than this. These thoughts would go on and on and I would sink into deeper levels of depression, dragging anyone in my immediate circle down with me. Everyone was partying on the weekends and I'd be in my room battling the black dog raging inside my head. 

Late nights spent alone watching Salad Fingers, consuming tons of weird fiction as a form of escapism, recording my first rap mixtape Heavenly Fridges, and lots of cathartic writing. It wasn't enough though. I had to do something to expel this energy. 

I carried a small notebook in my back pocket for ideas (I still do), and one day while working at Home Depot, I was struck with the image of a gentleman with a lightbulb for head and a world full of darkness. It was so compelling that I fleshed out a loose outline over the course of the next week. Earlier that year, I finished my first bizarro novella, Notes from the Guts of a Hippo, which was a major feat for me since I could barely write a 5,000 word short story. However, I had an idea and it had to be written. Not just to prove to myself that I could do it again, but to fix this depression holding me back.

It might be important to note that I've always been interested in magic, rather it be on stage, hoodoo, mysticism, astrology, or numerology. I thought of this as a ritual of sorts. I thought if Mr. Watts, the main character, could bring light to this fictional world that it could possibly bring that figurative light to my world as well. There's this idea if you work on your inner world, it will directly ripple out into the physical plane. 

Did it work? 

In a lot of ways yes; I'm in much better shape mentally thanks to affirmations, better eating habits, good friends, and self love. Mr. Watts represents a turning point in my life; his journey is my journey. All of us have moments of self-doubt and identity confusion, but I know there is a light in the darkness...

You can also check out his lyrical experimentation/exhibition...

Grant Wamack writes weird fiction, raps, and weaves dreams at night. During the day, the Navy employs him as a Mass Communication Specialist, in other words, a "super" journalist

Blog: http://grantwamack.wordpress.com/

Music: http://gsmusik.bandcamp.com/

Art: http://artspazm.tumblr.com/

Book Review: All Art is Junk by R.A. Harris

Lana Rivers, a girl with paintbrush hair, is missing and it's up to Lancelot, her cyborg knight, and his bionic conjoined twin, Cilia, to find her before her evil father, a disrespected artist turned mad-scientist, performs a terrible experiment on her.

Lana is somewhere on The Installation––once an unknown artist's subversive statement on society and now the only thing keeping it afloat, literally. A deluge of biblical proportions has wiped 99.99% of mankind from the face of the Earth and the only survivors are all on the floating art installation, addicted to a drug known as oil.

Lancelot's mission is thrown into jeopardy when the people of The Installation begin to go insane, forming gangs, each with their own fetish, and go to war against each other as a dread drum soundtrack shakes the very foundation of their world.

As Lancelot races to rescue Lana in time, he'll discover the origin of oil, himself and the truth about Lana's father's experiments. And in doing so, he'll learn more about humanity, morality and love than he ever expected.

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CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE ON AMAZON (UK)

REVIEW: 


We can look up the definition of “art” as it applies to different mediums, but an artist, if such a thing exists, would tell you that sacrifice is part of the process. Creating anything that is “art” is a primal process that involves blood and emotion, and when the composition is complete, something new is learned or gained by the artist. R.A. Harris conveys this concept in his bizarro novella, “All Art is Junk,” although I don’t know if that was the author’s intention. You see, one may interpret art to derive personal meaning, and that is this story’s greatest success.

The plot seems straightforward and almost obvious: a cyborg named Lancelot must brave the insane world of chaos and nightmare to find a young girl named Lana. We can expect the robot is going to learn about humanity and love, as the summary on the back of the book suggests, but the meat of the book is Lancelot’s interpretation of these things in contrast to the ideas that have helped create the strange world Lancelot confronts. Here’s a book that revels in the artistry of an idea and doesn’t let go. The author’s prose remains unique and in-focus; the reader isn’t distracted by heavy-handed prose because Lancelot’s goal is the impetus for each sentence. This book can be a simple journey of self-discovery, or it can be a quest to understand innocence; the Harris has provided a story of anti-art, an understanding of the humanity that is lost or gained through the process of creation. 

Metaphors and symbolism are everywhere, but the writing is the main attraction here. Harris brings this world to life as if he were painting the pages rather than writing them. Lancelot came to life; I wanted to know what he would learn, and most of all, I wanted to know how he would learn it; The Installation is an interesting setting that is fun to explore through Lancelot’s eyes; his quest for Lana is a fun adventure that can be enjoyed without delving deeply into the text, although Harris allows you to understand the story on your own level, just like Lancelot. If you’re curious to know what the heck that cat is doing on the front of the cover… 

A fun read. I appreciated the prose and the author’s unique approach to the concepts that are explored within the book’s pages. Harris has a bright future ahead of him; it’s hard to believe this is his first book. 

WHAT IS BIZARRO FICTION?

By Grant Wamack

What is bizarro fiction? Well that's a damn good question. Let's go back in time to answer this question. Follow me, young world.

When I was 17, I was just coming off my Lovecraft phase and looking for something different; something weird. I stumbled across bizarro when I found out about Eraserhead. I researched bizarro head honchos such as Carlton Mellick, Kevin L. Donihe, Jeremy Robert Johnson, etc. At first the whole idea scared me. I pictured surreal stories that would just fly over my head. Regrettably, I moved on. 

However, a year later a lot of bizarro writers were creeping into a lot of horror magazines and anthologies I read. So I gave them a chance and I fell in love. These stories were absurd, similar to Kafka, but to a higher degree. They were funny and weird but at the same time relate-able. I want to stress that word again: relate-able. Throughout all the weirdness and quirkiness, there was always a human element you could clutch on to that made me feel for the characters no matter the situation. 

Bizarro is an umbrella term for the weird, the absurd and/or the quirky usually with a dash of humor mixed. Think cult movies-those weird films that you love but you have no idea why. All you know is that they're ridiculous fun. 

In terms of writing, bizarro gives me the freedom to do what I want. I'm not saying breaking literary rules or just being weird for the sake of being weird, but I don't have to worry about staying within a genre. Many times I can just let my imagination run wild, crossing multiple genres and forcing the reader to react in a variety of ways. 

*Shameless plug alert* 

If you would like to find out more about bizarro visit Bizarrocentral.com or you could just dive in and buy Grant's bizarro novella Notes from the Guts of a Hippo here


Grant Wamack writes weird fictions, raps and weaves dreams at night. During the day, the Navy employs him as a Mass Communication Specialist, in other words, a "super" journalist. Visit his website here http://grantwamack.wordpress.com/

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT- Max Booth III

If you know horror fiction, you've heard the name Max Booth III, and the proof is that you've just read this sentence. An editor for Dark Moon Books and co-founder/editor for Perpetual Motion Machine Publishing, Max does a lot behind the scenes to bring quality fiction to people who feel like reading now and then. Critic, editor, and satirist; Max is a force on the move in the literary world, with work that bends our perception of literature and genre. Referred to as the "Douglas Adams of horror fiction," Max was kind enough to hang out and talk about his latest book you're supposed to be reading, They Might Be Demons, and share his musings about writing and aliens.

To understand the myth behind the man, we'd like to start by asking about your genesis as a writer: what made you decide to publish your first story?

Well, I’ve been writing since I was seven years-old. It’s just something that I’ve always been fond of. There has never been any other person that I’ve wished to be. My first story was published was I was seventeen. I was one of those who were taken advantage of by Anthony (Tony) Giangregorio with his Open Casket Press company. Fortunately I’ve had better luck with who’s published me since then.

How did you get into the editing business? What was your first gig?

I used to belong to a now defunct writing website called StoriesVille.com. It was basically a website where aspiring published authors would post their stories and others would critique them. It got to a point where some of the new members would send me their stories ahead of time to go through and fix. So I guess that was my first experience with editing. My actual first gig, however, was with Dark Moon Digest. I answered a call for editors, passed the initial trial run, and was hired as a story editor. I’ve since been promoted to Assistant Editor of the magazine.

Tell us about the process behind They Might Be Demons; did you write it wherever, whenever…?

Originally, Dark Moon Books wanted to do a book series of authors penning short flash fiction collections. However, that idea fell apart, but the publisher—Stan Swanson—contacted me about doing a collection anyway, since I had previously pitched my idea for the book series, and he liked it. My idea was basically basing every story on the same day, in the same town, with most of the same characters. So I started working on it, but it wasn’t exactly a project I focused all my energy on, but more of a book that I would go to when I was feeling extra silly—add a chapter here, there, then leave it for a few weeks. Eventually, it became a finished product. If it’s even legal to call this thing a ‘product’.

The demons in your book seemed to enjoy their vacation on Earth. Did they have an after-party?

They would have, but the author had already hit “SEND” to the publisher.

Your work seems to balance moments of horror, humor, and humanity for an enjoyable reading experience; emotion and entertainment are wrapped up in a nice package. Is there a particular moment while writing There Might Be Demons that really stands out as a memorable experience? Is there a specific piece you're fond of?

I’m really a fan of the copyright page. I didn’t personally write it, but my publisher did, and I think he did a top notch job.

The demons in your book decide to grab a bite to eat; where would they go? Whatburger, Wendy's, Subway… or would they prefer finer cuisine? (Describe your demons a bit, what they might eat, etc.)

I imagine that some of the more ancient demons who are more behind on the times would visit Five Guys, Burgers and Fries based on the prospect of eating five guys. Plus, you know, their food is delicious.

Why do you think your work can be categorized as "bizarro" fiction? Did you consciously choose this as a genre? What the heck is bizarro, anyway?

I did not consciously choose it as bizarro fiction, no. I just set out to write something extremely goofy. This is the result. Bizarro fiction, to me, is humorous horror that even your dreams would find unbelievable and weird. The kind of stuff you doodled on the back of your math homework in 5^th grade.

If an alien showed up at your front door, what would it want, and why would it want it? Would the alien share its name with you, or would it just want to hang out and eat a Big Mac?

It’d probably want to borrow five bucks. Aliens are always trying to borrow money from me. I’m sick of it.

Kurt Vonnegut seems to be a major influence on your writing; is there a particular work that stands out to you from Vonnegut? Are there other literary authors who you're particularly fond of? In other words, if you could play Texas Hold 'Em with any authors, living or dead, who would it be?

I’ll go with the obvious choice and pick Slaughterhouse-Five. It is hilarious and depressing and horrifying, and I am a sucker for time travel. As for other authors, I would love to have dinner with Christopher Moore.

If Hollywood made a movie about your life, who would portray you? What kind of movie would it be?

Tim Roth would play me, and the movie would be called Four Rooms.

How have you changed as a writer since your first piece was published?

Well, I think I’ve gotten a few inches taller. I’ve gained weight. I started watching Doctor Who. I’ve also began insisting people tell me about themselves in the form of book blurbs.

Our blog spends a lot of time advertising and writing about zombie stuff; you happen to be involved with the horror sub-genre. One of your pieces in They Might Be Demons showcases an interesting discussion on zombies; what do you think are some of the problems with the genre, and where do you think might happen in the near future with zombie literature?

I’ve read and edited a lot of zombie fiction and the problem I always come across is the majority of them read exactly the same. There’s a man with a gun and he shoots the undead a bunch of times in the head, then he escapes or kills himself. It’s all just Dead Rising-fan fiction. There’s not enough focus on actual plot. As for the future of zombie fiction, I was beginning to think that it was slowing dying. However, with the recent release of World War Z: The Movie Based off the Title of an Unrelated Book, I think it’s going to come back full force. And I guess that’s a good thing, since I’m currently writing a zombie novel, which is something I promised myself of never doing.

 As an editor, what's the biggest pet-peeve you have?

Peeved pets.

Which authors are you reading these days?

I just started King’s Joyland, but what’s the point in naming authors you’ve already heard of? From the small press line, I’ve been really enjoying Richard Thomas, Christian A. Larsen, Jay Wilburn, T. Fox Dunham and some guy named Vincenzo Bilof.

If you decided to live on the Mars colony and you were allowed to bring only one, special personal item, what would it be? Why? (This one might be a book)

I would take the expression, “That’s so Raven”, with me.

Let's get personal for a moment: can you tell us about a particularly memorable nightmare? Do you think it's shown up in your writing somewhere?

My therapist has recommended I do not share my dreams with anyone else.

Do you have any advice for wannabe writers like myself?

Be like Nike and Just Do It.

Thanks for the help, Max! Is there something else you want to tell your adoring fans before you go?

I am a sad and thirsty tomato in a garden of intentional neglect.

Bio:

Max Booth III is the editor-in-chief of Perpetual Motion Machine Publishing, assistant editor of Dark Moon Digest and fiction editor of Kraken Press. He has edited various anthologies and authored the books True Stories Told by a Liar and They Might Be Demons, along with a few others being juggled around submission purgatory. Follow him on Twitter @GiveMeYourTeeth and visit his website www.TalesFromTheBooth.com.

Links:

WEBSITE: www.TalesFromTheBooth.com

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/talesfromthebooth

AMAZON PAGE: http://www.amazon.com/They-Might-Demons-Max-Booth/dp/0989409023/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1369283052&sr=8-1&keywords=they+might+be+demons

New Release: Gravity Comics Massacre

Press Release from Bizarro Pulp Press!

Vincenzo Bilof's novella is on the way. The book cover has been finalized. We are in the editing stages now and should see that bad boy out very soon. The art was done by Sarah VonKain. 

A mind-bending trip down the rabbit hole of terror where aliens, comic books, and nightmares are painted onto a blood-red canvas…

Damien Shears is the best artist alive, but his favorite pastime is killing people. Armed with a pen designed by aliens, Damien illustrates his victims until they fall asleep; in their dreams, they confront their worst nightmares while Damien visits atrocities upon their flesh. His famous comic store has become the perfect tourist attraction for a group of five burn-outs who're looking for a place to party. Reality and dreams collide for the sake of murder and art; the aliens need more data for their analysis of human fear, and people will have to die.

"GRAVITY COMICS MASSACRE is a wild, fast-paced ride into the strangest sectors of your imagination. I dare you to read it without a smile carved into your face; unique and adorably quirky, you can't help but finish this in one sitting. Vincenzo Bilof is what bizarro fiction has been missing."

--Max Booth III, author of They Might Be Demons

"For original, literate, Horror that swings between the bizarre and the profane, look no further than Bilof's inventive rendition of the darkest Horror tropes. You might just get what you don't expect!"

--William Cook, Editor of Fresh Fear and author of Blood Related.