by john | Feb 2, 2015 | Uncategorized
You might have heard about this little anthology I’ve got coming out that I co-created and co-edited with Emily Lavin Leverett, call The Big Bad II. All month I’ll be hosting guest blog posts from authors in the anthology talking about the Evolution of Evil – how they came up with their story for The Big Bad. This is Nicole’s take.
I’m an 80s brat. Born in ’74 (still younger than me! – JH), but reared on the Eagles, The Police, Michael Jackson, and Prince. My coming of age years sprouted firm and fully underneath the bestseller might of V.C. Andrews and Stephen King at the height of his popularity and horror movies. My parents sought out horror via the revolutionary VHS (sometimes we managed to snag a BETA version in error from the video store. My father would be furious), and watch the carnage unfold on our home television set until the wee hours of the night. Then, my folks and I would load up into our car and go to the Waffle House® for breakfast.
Film after film failed to frighten me. You see, I grew up in a public housing project. The gritty horror of inner city life rendered Freddy’s one liners and Jason’s “campy” antics to farce and funny. In a word, it was overkill. I saw real people die from drug overdoses, gunshot, and stabbings. Blood stained sidewalks, police brutality, and common fist-fights in my every day diet made Hollywood’s scary settings more cartoonish than horrific.
My story, “Sweet Tooth,” in The Big Bad, Volume Two, is based on what did terrorize me as an 80s teenager. The candy lady. Her apartment was in our neighborhood, and like most people in the projects, she hustled to make her government-subsidized wages stretch. She sold candy, pop, gum (no, it’s not the same as candy), and chips from her kitchen.
As a youth, I feared her, like my protagonist, Bryce Howerton, does in my story. Her place smelled strange-weird, a mixture of ancient dirt and leftover death. My stomach hurts even now as I think about that odor and how it made my own sweet tooth ache from disgust. From that single horror—a filthy apartment that sold food products to kids—also coupled with the news coverage of razor blades in apples at Halloween and sweets had become suspect for me ever since.
To this day, I still prefer salty snacks to anything “sweet.”
My second fear as a teenager grew from the abduction of young black children in the Atlanta area. The Atlanta Child Murders turned my momma into a protective force. Her fear fed mine and together it grew to incredible size. The community’s outrage over the seemingly lack of interest in black lives, even then, seemed horrific (#blacklivesmatter).
Twisted and intertwined, these two fears became the crux of “Sweet Tooth,” a short story of an inner city teen and his very real fear of the hood’s candy lady. Of course, those facts mixed with fiction, and what Bryce learns about the discarded bodies, the candy lady, and himself if what great storytelling is all about.
So, check out “Sweet Tooth,” and other tales of villainy in The Big Bad, Volume Two, from Dark Oak Press and from the editing genius of John Hartness and Emily Leverett.
As for me, you can follow me on Twitter @nicolegkurtz, find me on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/nlkurtz), and groove with me on Google+ (mochamemoirspress). You can find my other works of horror at Other Worlds Pulp, my website, http://www.nicolegivenskurtz.com.
by john | Jan 30, 2015 | Uncategorized
Somewhere in the digital archives of my life there’s a video Literate Liquors with Tonia Brown from last ConCarolinas. That translates into “John shot it but doesn’t know where the file is and hats editing video anyway.”
But she kindly agreed to come on the show again, so we set up in my mobile studio and hung out for a little while, talking about farts, butthole bronzing, being funny horror writers, and all sorts of other shit.
So without further ado, here’s Tonia!
She’s got a new book out, called Hauling Ash, and here’s a link for that –
And another new re-release of a book called Skin Trade, so check that one out too!
by john | Jan 23, 2015 | Uncategorized
Y’all can check it out here or somewheres else, whatever you wanna do.
Damn, but I am a good-looking fella, ain’t I?
In other news, the Weird Wild West Kickstarter that I’ve been flogging near to death for a couple weeks has ended, and it funded enough to make a couple of the stretch goals and guarantee that the book would be published, so that’s really cool. I’m pretty excited about being in this anthology with some awesome folks, and who knows, I might even make a little money off it.
Raising Hell debuted this week, and I couldn’t be happier about the love it’s getting. The book has received some very positive reviews, and we’ve moved over 200 copies in the first week alone! That’s pretty good numbers for a self-published novella, so I’m really grateful for all the folks who have taken a flyer on this new character with me. I think it’s the best thing I’ve produced so far, but I think that whenever I release a book. And let’s face it, I’m supposed to think that – because if I’m not growing as a writer, I’m dying as a writer. So I want to think everything I write is the best thing I’ve ever written. If you haven’t checked it out yet, what are you waiting for? It’s exclusive to Amazon for the first 90 days, so buy it here!
I’ve also reached a milestone on my Patreon page – $100 pledged per month. That means I’ll be doing another reading of a Bubba the Monster Hunter short story on a future episode of Literate Liquors. Thanks again to everyone who has pledged, I really appreciate you all!
by john | Jan 1, 2015 | Uncategorized
At least one. There’s been no secret to anyone that reads here that 2014 sucked. I lost my mom, quit one job, lost another, lost more friends to cancer than I care to think about, and write almost nothing until November. But as the year wound down I got involved with a bunch of exciting new projects, a new day job that I enjoy, and managed to pull myself out of the depression that dragged me down for much of 2014. I’m not much for resolutions, because I break those way too quickly, but I do have some goals for 2015 that I’m willing to share.
1) Cut down on sodas. I’ve gained a bunch of weight this year, and I was no little dude to start with. That’s got to change. I don’t feel very good much of the time, and it’s because I’m carrying around the equivalent of two big bags of dog food everywhere. The first step for me is to cut down and hopefully eventually cut out, sodas and sugary drinks. If I can cut down to one can of soda per day from the 4 or more I normally drink, that cuts 500 empty calories out of my diet. It’s not easy, and it won’t be easy, but I’ve got to do something for my health, and that’s one place to start.
2) Write more. I’ve been pretty good about writing consistently since November, and I’m getting back in the groove. I can tell I’m in a good writing place when I can’t watch a whole movie on Netflix without thinking about writing. That leads to more publishing, which leads to more sales, which leads to more money to do fun things with my wife.
3) Be more consistent with my publishing. I plan to publish a Bubba short story every month, and to write at least one Harker novella per quarter. I plan to turn in Book 6 of The Black Knight Chronicles this year, hopefully by June, and publish another novel on my own. I also have several anthology projects I’m committed to, some have been announced and some have not. But there should be a LOT of new material for folks in 2015. I think if all goes well we’re looking at somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 new releases from me this year, if not more.
That’s really it as far as goals for the year. I’ve been pretty slack the past couple of years as far as producing new work, and that’s gotta change.
So far I’m doing pretty good keeping up with doing Literate Liquors on a weekly basis. Starting on the 9th of January, you’ll be able to get older episodes and current episodes on Magical Words as well, so go over there and check us out for the best in writing advice and you can listen to Literate Liquors as well!
The Patreon thing is starting to take off as well. Patreon is a way for fans to support artists, and in my case, get all my books for free (kinda) before they hit the street! Here’s how it works – you pledge a monthly donation to an artist that you dig, and they get a little bit of cash each month. Then you get benefits for being a patron, like your name in the acknowledgements of each story, free preview copies of all my ebooks, or even dinner for you and a guest at a convention or a manuscript critique! There are patron levels for every budget, and if you want to learn more, here’s the link to Patreon.
by john | Aug 24, 2014 | Uncategorized
I’ve probably written this once or twice before, but there’s no telling where that was, or when it was, and with Dragon Con rushing toward us like a runaway freight train, I thought it couldn’t hurt to give some of the better points a repeat.
Let’s start by saying this – I love conventions. I really do. They are hard work for both the organizers and the guests, and certainly for the hotel staff, but if done right they can be great places to get work done, meet new friends, reconnect with old friends, and have incredible, memorable experiences. Dragon Con is an amazing con, run almost totally by volunteers, with attendance in the tens of thousands! For a lot of us, it’s the biggest convention we do each year. And even if we do shows like NY ComiCon or SDCC, Dragon is an animal all its own. So here are some tips for properly enjoying Dragon Con, which may be extrapolated to any other con in the world.
1) Bring food and water. Not necessarily everywhere, and I don’t suggest toting a picnic basket through the Marriott, but I plan on taking a box of Pop-Tarts and some Lance crackers, plus a pair of empty water bottles. Breakfast can get expensive, so if you take your own Pop-Tarts, and some small snacks, you can save a ton on food through the weekend. Plus you never know when you’re going to miss a meal, or be up longer than any food place downtown is serving, so it’s a good idea to have some late-night snacks around. And water is crucial. There are water stations all over the con, USE THEM! Why pay $4.00 for a Coke when you can refill on water for free? I’ll certainly be drinking my fair share of sodas and other unnamed beverages during the weekend, but my backpack has two water bottle pouches on it, and I plan to make use of them.
2) Make a plan. There’s a ton of things to do at a con, especially at one as big as Dragon. So take some time to go over the app and the schedule beforehand, and highlight some things you definitely want to do. I try to do at least one thing each year that I’ve never done before. This year, I’m going to try to make the Saturday night dance, because my friend DJ Spider is spinning. I’ve also triple-booked myself with panels that I want to attend in some time slots, so which one I go to will depend on which hotel I’m in when they are ready to start. And be sure to save time for at least one walk through the Walk of Fame, if just to see famous people for a minute.
3) Stay flexible. I know, this seems to contradict the point above, but some of the best things in life are spontaneous. Even if you really wanted to see the third Supernatural panel, maybe your friend just heard about this awesome room party, and you want to go check that out. Go check out the party! Stay loose, and have fun!
4) Stay together. I’m a big dude. And I look like an extra off Sons of Anarchy. Nobody messes with me. My friend Andrea is less than five feet tall and if she tips the scale at a hundred pounds it’s because she’s soaking wet in combat boots with a heavy backpack on. There are people who look at her and see “target.” Frankly, there are people who look at me and see the same thing, but there are a lot fewer of them. Please don’t go anywhere in downtown Atlanta alone. Especially after dark. I write this for the women out there, but I don’t wander around any metropolitan area alone after dark. There are just too many whack jobs and assholes out there. Remember the buddy system, and text people to let them know where you are, where you’re going, and when you should arrive.
5) Be careful of where that drink came from. I have a friend who got roofied at a con. He (note gender-specific pronoun, men are not immune) took a drink offered to him by someone he didn’t know at a room party. A little while later he realized he was much drunker than one drink should have made him, and he got a friend to help him back to his room. Fortunately nothing bad happened to him, he got to his room safely, but things could have gone very poorly. This goes along with remembering the buddy system, but please don’t accept drinks from strangers.
6) Don’t stand by and allow harassment to happen. Fandom should be a safe environment. Conventions should be the place where we let our freak flag fly. Don’t let somebody ruin someone else’s good time because they are an asshole. If you see someone harassing someone else, get security or step in and stop it. Your choice may depend entirely upon your level of armament and your size.
7) Make a new friend. I do this at a lot of cons. I try to make friends with people I don’t know. It makes my life richer.
8) Give yourself more time to get from place to place than you think you need. I already know that I will be leaving my autograph session early, because I cannot guarantee that I will make it from the bowels of the Marriott to the panel room in the Westing in 30 minutes and not be a sweaty, drippy mess. So I will only do about a 30-40 minute autograph session. I know that I can get from the Marriott to the Hyatt in 30 minutes with plenty of time to spare, but not the Westin or the Sheraton. If I’m lucky I won’t set foot in the Sheraton all weekend. Nothing against the hotel, it’s just in the wrong location for me and none of my panels are there. Especially from Friday at 5 to Sunday at 10, traveling through the Marriott and the gerbil trails connecting the hotels can be maddening. Allow extra time.
9) Obey Rule 125. No matter if you party all night and sleep all day, or panel all day and sleep human hours, make sure you follow Rule 125 of con attendance. Rule 125 – Each day must contain at least (1) shower, (2) meals and (5) hours of sleep. This will increase your (and everyone else’s) enjoyment of the con.
10) Wash your hands. I do a lot of fist-bumps at cons, because people are gross. And I don’t have time in my life right now for con crud. So don’t be offended if I fist-bump, it just cuts down on germs. I also wash my hands a lot.
11) Have fun! This is a work trip for me, but I’m still going to have a good time. I’ll be in the Westin lobby bar most evenings. If you see me, feel free to come up and say hello. I might not have a ton of time to give you, but I’ll share what I’ve got. And I’ll have books for sale, so you can buy my shit!
by john | Aug 21, 2014 | Uncategorized
First, a public service announcement from the kind folks at Grammarly, because grammar is important (no matter how bad I am at it) and plagiarism sucks. I use grammarly’s plagiarism checker because I’m an original SOB, and every other SOB ought be original, too.
Next week is Dragon*Con, also known as “OMFG what are all these people doing in line at this restaurant in Atlanta on a friggin’ weekend!” Here’s my schedule so far –
I get there Thursday night. I’ll probably head down to the Westin Bar to drink.
Friday 10AM – Setting In Urban Fantasy – me, Faith Hunter, D.B. Jackson and a bunch of other awesome folks. Westin Chastain.
Friday 1PM – Reading – I have an hour to read. I have no idea what I’m going to read. Probably part of Fair Play, Part of Black Knight 5 in its RAWEST form, and probably some poetry. Hyatt Roswell
Friday 4PM – Faces of Pulp – me, Bobby Nash, James Tuck and the usually suspects – Westin Augusta 3
Saturday 2:30PM – Bell Bridge Books Spotlight – I’ll talk about why my publisher is awesome! Hyatt Embassy D-F.
Saturday 5:30 PM – Autograph Session – Me, Elizabeth Donald and Stuart Jaffe all signing at the same time. Come say hello! Marriott International Hall South
Saturday 7PM – I want to be like you – Everyday Vampires – I will be hauling ass to get from the bowels of the Marriott to the Westin Chastain room for this, but I’ll be there!
Sunday 4PM – Monster Menagerie – This is my big-ass panel in the big-ass ballroom. I have to remember not to say Fuck on Dragon TV. Westin Augusta Ballroom
Sunday 7PM – Whose Point of View – Hyatt Embassy D-F
Sunday 10PM – Humor in Urban Fantasy – Westin Chastain
That’s all I’m technically scheduled for, and I don’t have a booth this year, so I’m likely to be hanging out more, and attending more panels, and I may find myself added to some of those panels I was planning on just attending, so who knows where you might find me. I know the Westin Bar will be my base camp each evening, and I will have books to sell and sign at the bar and after every panel, so please don’t be shy about coming up to me. Unlike some authors who are afraid they’ll cause a huge friggin stampede, I know I’m a little fish and will sign anything you’ve got as long as it’s not too wet to write on. I totally stole that line from a Hayseed Dixie concert.
Hope to see y’all there!
