
THIS JUST IN . . .
FREAKY CREATURE SMACKDOWN!
Holy dripping fang, flying furball, and shadowy imp! Gritty Press has just released FUR, FANG & SHADOW, a Triple-Shot of my Creepy Creature Short Stories (with yet another excellent cover, I might add). I’m a big fan of B-movie monsters, twist endings, and pulpy tales, and these stories teem with freakish beasts and the havoc they wreak….
KIN, in which a viperous attack leads to a death-race like no other….
SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME, in which a shade-creature watches in silence from a backyard tree….
ROADSIDE ATTRACTION, in which a carny and his caged man-beast work the circuit—until the beast wises up….
In FUR, FANG & SHADOW, I broke the lock and rummaged in a forgotten trunk filled with snarling varmints and disturbing moments. Oh dear, I should have left the trunk locked.
If you insist on poking your head in, don’t blame me if you end up needing rabies shots, stitches, transfusions, and therapy. But if you really insist, here’s where you can find your very own copy of FUR, FANG & SHADOW….
Barbaric Story Alert!
Holy chain mail, broadsword, and brimmin’ flagon! Gritty Press has released another of my short stories! This time, it’s OUT OF THE FOG (A Tale of Flench and the Freebooter), a barbarian story in which I do my best to channel the juju of Robert E. Howard in his wonderful Conan adventures.
OUT OF THE FOG is a subtle story, in that it’s about what happens just before something happens. It’s intended as an introduction to my barbaric trio: Flench, the crippled stable hand; the freebooter himself, and his eternally steamed warhorse. I can’t wait to send the three of them on more adventures! Hoist a tankard … or get outta the way, ’cause it’s barbarian time! And stay tuned to Channel Gritty….
New Tires and Paint!
Gritty Press is in the midst of releasing revamped, revised versions of a number of my older short stories, many of which are no longer in print. I’m giving them all a good going over, tightening, loosening, expanding, contracting, scrubbing, and polishing them as needed. They run the range from Western to sci-fi, fantasy to horror, hardboiled crime to straight-up action, and they’re jam-packed with barbarians, time travelers, pirates, cowboys, drug addicts, and other such curious creatures.
It’s been fun and enlightening for me to revisit these stories, and gratifying to see them once again out and about in the world, in freshly spiffed, readily available e-book versions. And speaking of … these Gritty Press releases also sport some of my favorite covers ever. Turns out uber-photographer Jennifer Smith-Mayo is also one heck of a graphic designer (but we knew that).
But wait! It gets better: They’re priced right—a mere 99 cents a pop! Ideal for a slice of distractive entertainment on the bus, train, plane, or auto (passengers only!).
Over the next many weeks and months, Gritty Press will continue to release a veritable slew of my stories and novellas—some revised, some new-and-never-published. The first two offerings are already available: A dangerous horror short story, THE WITCH HOLE, that has apparently creeped out a number of readers (excellent, I say!), and BEEN A LONG TIME, a Western sci-fi time-travel story that makes the argument that vacations should be avoided at all costs….
Buy your copies soon! And hurry! I need more coffee, I tell ya! I’m runnin’ low on the jitter juice and I’ve left an intrepid jungle explorer in a right terrible situation….
What?! Another New Book!?
Yep, another one of my books hits the shelves, but this time it’s a Western novel called DOUBLE CROSS RANCH. And it’s up for sale today, May 6—in Kindle and paperback versions! Giddy-up, pards….
Here’s a bit about the book:
LET THE DEAD BURY THE DEAD.
Rancher Ty Farraday’s hunt for stray cattle takes a turn for the worse when he discovers a shallow grave and the body of wealthy Alton Winstead, the owner of the Double-Cross Ranch. Ty’s first frantic thoughts are of Winstead’s widow, Sue-Ellen, who picked Alton over him. Unfortunately, she chose poorly.
Alton masterminded a crime and left his helpers to swing for it. Hungry for revenge, the murderous headcases have overrun the Double-Cross and are holding Sue-Ellen prisoner. They believe she’s harboring some very important information. Ty boldly rescues her from the ranch—to find their troubles are only beginning….
Bigfoot, Aliens, Murderers, and Ghosts!
This time out we’re poking and prodding, flipping over rocks and exploring what’s hissing and clawing around beneath…. And all in the Granite State! Most exciting of all, though, is the book’s righteous cover image. It was shot by my beautiful, talented, and lovely photographer wife, Jennifer Smith-Mayo.
Myths and Mysteries of New Hampshire reveals the dark and ominous cloud of mysteries and myths that hovers over the Granite State. This book offers residents, travelers, history buffs, and ghost hunters a refreshingingly lively collection of stories about New Hampshire’s unsolved murders, legendary villains, lingering ghosts, terrifying myths, and haunted places.
Buy your copy now … or I’ll starve! (Myth or mystery?)
Talkin’ Jerks
I was recently interviewed by Vermont Public Radio about my book, JERKS IN NEW ENGLAND HISTORY. The brief interview aired last week and is now posted online. This one focused mostly on a few nefarious knuckleheads from Vermont’s past, but offers a good idea of what the rest of the book contains.
So for anyone interested in learning a wee bit about a handful of New England’s old-school scoundrels, here’s your chance….
http://digital.vpr.net/post/book-looks-history-neer-do-wells-and-jerks
Spring Readin’ … Dead Ahead!
I’ve just been told that big machines are, this very minute, slapping down the ink on Lowestoft Chronicle Press’s 2014 print anthology, SOMEWHERE, SOMETIME…. The release date of this collection is March 15, 2014. I’m excited to be included among the many fine contributors, in part because the antho contains an interview with me plus a previously unpublished short story of mine. SOMEWHERE, SOMETIME…. is up for preorder now….
But wait, there’s more!
Also, in Lowestoft-related news, the Spring issue of Lowestoft Chronicle, the excellent online magazine, is now live. Among many promising pieces I’m looking forward to reading is a choice story from one of the finest writers of my acquaintance, Allister Timms. Click on over for good reading.
Downright Spooky!
Cowboys & Indians magazine recently reviewed my 2012 book, HAUNTED OLD WEST, and dug it mighty, referring to it as an “… excellent and spine-tingling read.”
Here’s a link: http://www.cowboysindians.com/Blog/October-2013/Five-Spooky-Haunts-of-the-West/
A Big Howdy to 2014….
And with this bright, shiny new year comes a pile of promise for exciting experiences in places we’ve not visited before. New and different, new and different … I wish everyone many new and different experiences this year.
And speaking of new (ish) … my novel, The Hunted, first released in August in mass-market paperback, once again sees the light of day, this time on January 8, in hardcover, large-print format. Check out that dandy cover….
Roll Them Bones….
Know any gamblers? Have any fans of Westerns in the family? Do you happen to like collections of top-notch stories? If you answered “Yessireebob!” to any of the above, then make room on your Christmas list for a copy of the hot new Robert Randisi-edited, gambling-themed, short-story anthology, LIVIN’ ON JACKS AND QUEENS (in case you were curious, that’s a line taken from the classic “Maverick” theme song).
Make no mistake, I’m a shameless huckster–the anthology contains my story, “Pay the Ferryman”….
Here’s the official blurb and lineup:
Legendary western writer and noted anthologist Robert J. Randisi offers up a winning hand with fourteen never-before-published tales of the Old West, each revolving around the central theme of gambling. Among the stories you can expect to be dealt here are:
Jacks or Better by Johnny Boggs
A Cold Deck by Phil Dunlap
The Reckoning by Randy Lee Eickhoff
It Takes a Gambler by Jerry Guin
Odds on a Lawman by Christine Matthews
Pay the Ferryman by Matthew P. Mayo
White Face, Red Blood by Rod Miller
Hazard by Nik Morton
Acey Deucy by John Nesbitt
The Mark of an Imposter by Scott Parker
Horseshoe and Pistols by Robert J. Randisi
Too Many Aces by Charlie Steel
Missouri Boat Race by Chuck Tyrell
The Legend of ‘Blind Ned’ Baldwin by Lori Van Pelt