Meet Playmate

Happy New Year, Nocturners!

As you all know, I’ve been hard at work trying to close out The Shadow Legion Casebook V. 1.  Three of the stories are in house at Airship 27, ready to go--and hopefully you’ll see the Ferryman adventure, ‘A Waltz In Scarlet,’ in the upcoming Mystery Men and Women V. 4--and I’m hard at work on the final tale.  I’ve got roughly 8500 words to go before the book is closed out, and I’m really hoping that you’ll have it in your hands by the end of this year.

One of the cool things you’ll be seeing in this collection are some new characters that will add more depth to the city of Nocturne.  Now most of them are villains....but one of them is kinda, sorta a hero.  This was one of the characters I had included in my original pitch document I sent to Ron Fortier all those years ago.  There was no place for it in New Roads To Hell, but I’ve found a place for it in the new book....and now I’d like to give you a small preview of what’s in store for you, from the unvarnished initial draft of ‘A Prayer For The Toy God.’  Enjoy!

Standing over them, however, was the true answer.  It--if it had a sex, Maybelle could not see any indication--stood over what remained of the men who she assumed had arranged the kidnapping.  It was bent over like an animal, but the disturbing thing was how its limbs seemed...fluid.  There were no angles in its stance, just curves, as if there were no bones underneath.  It was dressed in a badly stained children’s costume, a mockery of her lover’s secret identity with the name ‘Black Talon’ written across its chest in a tiger-striped pattern.  The costume was too small, and it was ripped at the seams and frayed at the cuffs.  A thin cardboard mask hung from its too-thin neck, this depicting the Talon channeling Brother Lion, ripped at the eyes and mouth.

It had the head of one of the unfortunate criminals in one long-fingered hand.  The digits unfurled, allowing the corpse’s skull to fall to the concrete floor with a wet thud.  Its head raised up on a stalk-like neck and swiveled around, revealing a mockery of a face, contours fashioned by mismatched swatches and uneven stitches, eyes that could have been black buttons if not for the strange, dim glow within them.  A crooked mouth brightly colored like a crayon gash moved in what could be construed as speech.  

This, Maybelle knew instinctively, was Playmate.

The Travel Agency Travels To...ZONE 4

As part of the NEW ROADS TO HELL Podcastapalooza, I appeared on Zone 4's most recent episode, where John, Ron and Gordon interview me about the book, the city of Nocturne, The Shadow Legion, and writing in general.  Check out Episode 238 here!

Also, in case you missed it, I talked with Ric Croxton and Lee Houston, Jr. on Ric's Comics here, and did a little prose back and forth with my BETTER IN THE DARK partner Derrick Ferguson here.

Coming up...I'll be talking about the 20th Anniversary of THE X-FILES with the crew of Earth-Station One, and talking about the horrific elements of NEW ROADS with Des Reddick at Dread Media!  And there's more coming soon!  So don't miss out on a single stop on the Nocturne World Podcast Tour!

(And maaaaaybe, if you're in the general New York City area, there might be a chance to meet me in person and get a signed copy--keep watch for more developments!)

Cap'n Ron Fortier Visits THE NOCTURNE TRAVEL AGENCY!

Just in time for the release of New Roads To Hell, I sit down with the man behind Airship 27, Ron Fortier to talk about his distinguished career as a comic book writer, author and publisher! Listen to it here!

ALL STAR PULP COMICS #2 Is Here!

AIRSHIP‭ ‬27‭ ‬presensts

ALL STAR PULP COMICS‭ ‬#‭ ‬2

‭(‬Portion of Profits Goes to‭ ‬Boston Red Cross‭)

Airship‭ ‬27‭ ‬Productions has once again teamed with Redbud Studio comics to release the second in their on-going pulp comics anthology.‭  ‬The first giant issue in this series won the coveted Pulp Ark Award for Best Pulp Comic of‭ ‬2010.

Volume two of the series,‭ ‬co-edited by creators Ron Fortier and Rob Davis,‭ ‬is even bigger than that stellar premier issue.‭  ‬Contained here are eight stories featuring both modern and classic pulp heroes‭; ‬Ki-Gor the Jungle Lord,‭ ‬the Black Bat,‭ ‬Cain,‭ ‬Robin Hood,‭ ‬Lance Star,‭ ‬Brothers Bones,‭ ‬Dillon and Domino Lady.‭

The cover is by Will Meugniot and features Ki-Gor’s lovely mate,‭ ‬Helene,‭ ‬battling back to back with Derrick Ferguson’s modern day adventurer,‭ ‬Dillon.‭  ‬Other creators represented are Russ Anderson,‭ ‬Fortier,‭ ‬Davis,‭ ‬Ian Watson,‭ ‬Thomas Deja,‭ ‬Michelle Sciuto,‭ ‬Sean Taylor,‭ ‬Aaron Meade,‭ ‬Todd Jones,‭ ‬Lee Oaks,‭ ‬James Gaubatz,‭ ‬Van Plexico,
Andrew Salmon and Kelly Everaert.‭

The book is available from Indy Planet.com and part of the proceeds are being donated to the Boston Red Cross.‭  “‬We were the last stages of assembling the book,‭” ‬explains Editor Foriter,‭ “‬when the Patriots‭’ ‬Day bombings occurred in‭ ‬Boston.‭  ‬All of us,‭ ‬like the rest of the country,‭ ‬were in shock and felt helpless to do anything.‭”  ‬It was writer Van Plexico who contacted Fortier about possibly offering some of the sales proceeds to help those injured in the terror attack.‭  “‬The second Van brought up,‭ ‬I knew it was something we had to do,‭” ‬Fortier continues.‭  ‬He contacted Davis and all the creators and the decision was made to take all the profits earned by the book during its first six months in print and donate them to the Boston Red Cross.

‭“‬We truly hope our fans,‭ ‬when they learn of this idea,‭ ‬will want to rally around a truly good cause and help us put sales over the top,‭” ‬adds co-editor Rob Davis.‭  “‬We really want this to be the best selling title Redbud Studio has ever produced.‭”


The issue is now on sale at‭ –(http://www.indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?products_id‭=‬8450‭)

Pssssst....Wanna See Something Cool?

Remember a while ago, when I revealed that California-based artist Chris Kemple was going to be providing the interior illustrations for New Roads To Hell?

Well, yesterday, Captain Ron Fortier lit down from good ol’ Airship 27,  and he was bearing this gift--one of the nine illustrations that will add heat to the Shadow Legion’s initial adventure.  Here we see his version of Nightbreaker going all Babe Ruth (or maybe I should say Jackie Robinson?) on a couple of thugs with a handy tree branch!

We’re well on track for the release of this novel (and I’m 10,000 words away from finishing up the second book in the series, The Shadow Legion Casebook Volume One), so there will be more news and goodies in the near future.  Keep an eye on the Travel Agency, Airship 27, and the Nocturne Facebook Page to get in on everything about The Shadow Legion, Tao Jones, the Pulpworks Weird Western Heroes, and more!

The Periodic Update Post

Hey, folks--I got some crazy stuff for you this time around...starting with this photo.

Yes, that's me.  I'm posing with sword and gun props designed by my dear friend Dave Lugo.  Dave's passion is munitions, and he specializes in creating these cool pulp weapon props...and he's going to be making props of such key weapons in my stories as The Nightbreaker's Multi-Gun, and Tao Jones' exotic blades.  I'll be sharing his progress with you as he moves forward on this, and if I come to a show in your town, you might be able to see them up close and personal!  Check out Vortexx Press, the site Dave runs with his son, and take a look at some of his props and sculpture.

What's that you say?  The Multi-Gun?  Well, in the last two weeks I've been riding a real creativity tsunami surrounding the Nightbreaker story, which I'm now calling 'Ghosts of Steel.'  And it all began when I realized that the story I was struggling with was also the story I had started out to write, 'The Tick Tock Men.'  The biggest flaw with that original version was that I had our hero in the status quo I wanted him in, and didn't realize the story was about how he got to that status quo.  The Multi-Gun is a key part of that movement to where I want Isaiah Copper to be when I begin writing The Devil's Toybox, and it'll make its debut in this very same story!

(and because David Lugo's knowledge of weaponry is the best, bar none, he's been giving me some good background on how the Multi-Gun could work, and what parts would be used to build it...I hope this will create a veracity in future Shadow Legion stories and novels that will wow the fans!)

I'm also making slow progress on The Adventures of Tao Jones, my contribution to the Sovereign City Universe...plus I'm working on two new short stories for each of my Weird West characters, Doc Thunder and El Cuevo.  You'll definitely be seeing the Doc Thunder story at the end of this year...and as for the El Cuevo story, well, you'll know as soon as I do.

And, as with last time, let me direct you to some coolness I've been listening to and reading of late.

The 'listening to' is John Anealio, who writes these cool science fiction and geek-related songs.  John's been doing a project he calls '23 in '13,' where he vowing to write a new song every two weeks for the whole year--and these songs are free to download and listen to!  Check out his blog.

As for what's been occupying my Kindle, let me direct your attention to Monster Aces, a quartet of stories about a mysterious group of monster hunters roaming the Earth and...well, hunting monsters.  Two of the writers involved in this project are Ron Fortier, whose Airship 27 will be publishing the Shadow Legion novels, and Barry Reese, whose Lazarus Grey walks down the mean streets of Sovereign City over at Pro Se Press.  If you love old school movie serials and classic monster movies, this book is for you!

I've also been reading Lords Of Fire, the first of a science fiction series by Van Allen Plaxico, who I had the pleasure of interviewing in the very first Elsewhere In The Multiverse.  There's a unique mix of space opera and mysticism that reminds me a bit of Marion Zimmer Bradley's Darkover novels, only with a lot of military Sci-Fi thrown in.  If you're looking for a good solid epic, check this book out.

Finally, in the nonfiction groove, I've been digging Epic Fail: Bad Art, Viral Fame and The History of The Worst Thing Ever by Mark O'Connell, a discussion of how we tend to obsess over examples of unintentionally awful art, from the world's worst novelist to Rebecca Black's amatuer teen pop.  O'Connell is a very engaging writer who has a lot to say about this recent phenomenon--and how that phenomenon is not so recent after all.  It's a Kindle Single, which means it's a short and entertaining read....and it's only two bucks.

Well, time to get back to work....talk to you soon!

Secrets Of The Shadow Legion Part One...With Added Commentary On Controversial Comic-Related Topics!

This was a preliminary version of the promotional
image Michelle Scuito put together before we
went for the one featuring all the characters
peering out at the viewer.....

I'm taking a break from doing the introduction of our characters to let you in on a little something about the creation of this series, and tie it in to something that is happening right now in the world of comic books...plus, it'll tie into a contest we'll be having when the book comes out.

For the longest time, I was involved with writing super-hero fanfiction. This was something I did after I experienced a personal trauma that resulted in something of a writer's block when it came to original fiction (don't worry; I got better...;)). I wrote a slew of stuff for a number of fanfic sites, many of which are still operating today. One of those sites was DC Omega, where in its earlier iteration I wrote some Titans and Green Arrow stories.

Now sometime last year I became disillusioned with superhero comics--a hobby I had pursued for literally decades--with the announcement of 'The New 52,' a reboot of the DC Universe (well, kinda...as we learned, the company's two biggest franchises, Green Lantern and Batman, remained untouched by this 'radical new direction')--prompting me to go cold turkey. But I still had an urge to say something about this reboot....so I contacted the present E-i-C of DC Omega, which I had learned was planning on doing a true reboot of the site, Gavin McMahon and offered my services.

Gavin was amenable to my doing something for the site, and I polled my friends on Facebook, asking them to suggest obscure DC characters they'd like to see me rework. I picked the most intriguing of these suggestions--six in total--and got to work on figuring out what my versions of these characters would be like in the DC Omega newly started universe.

But here's what happened...

As I developed the new versions of these DC heroes, they strayed far of their original conceptions. They strayed so far, in fact, that I had the nagging feeling that I should turn them into entirely original characters and see if I could finally make something worthwhile....something I might own myself.

I sent out a copy of the outline I was working up for Gavin to a number of my writer friends who either had a background in comics or fanfiction. Amongst them was Ron Fortier, the mastermind of Airship 27. Everyone pretty much told me I was right in pursuing it as an original property, but Ron put his money where his mouth was.

This needs to be pushed to the boundaries you are following, he wrote me, and made into a novel.

Ron offered me the opportunity to bring what is now The Shadow Legion--he suggested the name, and it stuck--on the spot.

Continuing one of the milestones of super-hero literature
because...it's our IP, and we want more money form it.

Now I present this little peek behind the curtain because as I post this, the first of the Before Watchmen issues will soon be released. There's been a lot of controversy over Alan Moore's asking that this project not be done...much of which involves certain fans (and you know who you are!) insisting that Moore is being disingenuous with his demands that his creations not be revived in a cynical marketing ploy by a bunch of cynical writers (if you can call Brian 'If My HBO Went Out I'd Have Nothing To Write About' Azzarello a writer) who care more about the headlines they're generating than producing art when the Watchmen characters were extrapolated by Moore from the Charlton Comics' 'Action Hero' line of the 60's.

Here's the thing, though...just like I originally began The Shadow Legion as a fanfic featuring a handful of obscure extant characters and brought them so far afield that they became original characters in and of themselves, Alan Moore took those Charlton Characters and, in fashioning them to fit the story he wanted to tell, brought them so far afield that they became original characters as well. Yes, some of the Watchmen characters have resemblances to the Charlton characters that inspired them, but they're mostly superficial--i.e. Nite Owl has a special ship and is a legacy character, Rorschach wears a trenchcoat and a concealing mask--but for every one that bears those superficial resemblances, there are others that end up with no commonality with their inspiration, like Silk Spectre and Ozymandius.

(And for those of you who start crying 'But Moore desecrated family literary icons like Dorothy Gale in ways their creator wouldn't have approved of!', I say there's a big difference between using characters whose creators have long died and fallen into the public domain and characters whose creator is not only alive, but asking politely for you not to do this thing...)

It is possible to take inspiration from extant works...given how long and wide and deep previous literature is, it's hard not to stumble onto something that has been done before. But it's what you do with that inspiration that potentially makes what comes out of it yours. It's what makes The Watchmen Alan Moore's, and hopefully makes The Shadow Legion mine.

I'll let you in on more secrets as we move closer to release....