Tag Archives: pulp

The Adventures of Moose and Skwirl

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The Adventures of Moose and Skwirl cover_ebook

IT TAKES TWO TO STOP…AND CAUSE TROUBLE IN THE UNIVERSE! THE ADVENTURES OF MOOSE AND SKWIRL DEBUTS

Pro Se Productions, a publisher of innovative Genre Fiction, announces the first volume of adventures featuring a pair like no other universe saving, hell raising adventurers ever imagined. Based on concepts created by Tommy Hancock, The Adventures of Moose and Skwirl is now available in print and digital formats from Pro Se Productions.

“It’s interesting,” says Pro Se Editor in Chief Tommy Hancock, “where ideas actually start sometimes. This concept was born out of a play performed at a convention a few years back and has grown into a book by four authors that truly turns the universe on its ear. The Adventures of Moose and Skwirl takes its cues from many genres, not simply science fiction. These tales are as much influenced by the Lethal Weapon movies as they may be by such things as Doctor Who. What that really means is that above all else, The Adventures of Moose and Skwirl are straight up exciting fun!”

Trouble happens everywhere in the universe. Any time. Any place. And to make sure whatever cockeyed balance exists is kept, the universe takes care of itself. Some ethereal cosmic force assigns special individuals to the unpredictable, unrewarding, and usually life threatening task of Troubletaking, being in the completely wrong places at the totally right times to hopefully keep everyone…or most everyone from dying.

But the universe doesn’t trust just one person to do this. No, it works in groups of two. Stocky, barrel chested, two fisted and sarcastic, the being known as Moose stands ready to deliver a soliloquy over the bodies of whoever gets in his way. And Selene Karanova Wirl, Skwirl for short, is seductive, sexy, and wields a sense of humor that could kill almost literally. These two ‘TroubleTakers’ travel space and time very much at random, figuring out whatever issue they are thrown into and then fixing it. In their own unique, usually very destructive, bloody style. The only trick is they often have to keep from killing each other first.

Authors R. P. Steeves, Percival Constantine, Nikki Nelson-Hicks and Gordon Dymowski travel the universe to bring to life a concept created by Tommy Hancock. The Adventures of Moose and Skwirl. From Pro Se Productions.

For more information on this title, interviews with the author, or digital copies to review this book, contact Pro Se Productions’ Director of Corporate Operations, Kristi King-Morgan at directorofcorporateoperations@prose-press.com.

To learn more about Pro Se Productions, go to www.prose-press.com. Like Pro Se on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ProSeProductions.

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Asian Pulp debuts!

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Asian Pulp

In April 2013, Pro Se Productions released ‘Black Pulp’, a collection of stories written in classic pulp genres featuring lead characters of African descent. Not only were readers captivated by the cast of characters featured in the book, they also saw the potential of future volumes, both of ‘Black Pulp’, and collections featuring other ethnicities in much the same way. Pro Se Productions proudly announces the release of ‘Asian Pulp’, featuring seventeen of today’s best authors, in both print and digital format.

Leonard Chang, novelist and writer and co-producer of the TV crime drama ‘Justified’, states in his introduction to ‘Asian Pulp’, “The world of pulp fiction was a world that I understood—it was a reaction to trauma, both as art and as catharsis. Personal trauma. Emotional trauma. Physical trauma. National trauma. This is why I responded to it, why I immersed myself in it. And why, whenever I was in a personal and artistic crisis, it saved me. Fiction is a reflection of and commentary on life, and I needed to find a reflection of and commentary on my life.

That there weren’t any Asian Americans in the pulp I was reading wasn’t a problem (or if there were Asians they tended to be dismissible stereotypes) — no, not a problem at all, but actually an opportunity. I’ve always viewed writing as providing myself with more reading material. I write what I can’t find out there. Why not have a Korean American act as a private eye, and infuse in his character all the traits I wanted to see but haven’t? Why not write about Korean American gangsters, criminals, and detectives? And this is where we, as writers, all began moving toward: writing about people we want to see on the page, in lives and stories that speak to us.”

Following in the tradition of the best selling ‘Black Pulp’, from Today’s Best Authors and up and coming writers comes ‘Asian Pulp’ from Pro Se Productions! A collection of stories featuring characters of Asian origin or descent in stories that run the gamut of genre fiction!

‘Asian Pulp’ includes works from Don Lee, Naomi Hirahara, Kimberly Richardson, Percival Constantine, William F. Wu, Gary Phillips, Calvin McMillin, Mark Finn, Dale Furutani, Steph Cha, Henry Chang, Sean Taylor, Gigi Pandian, Louise Herring-Jones, Alan J. Porter, and David C. Smith. The anthology opens with an introduction from Leonard Chang.

“As an author of color who writes genre fiction,” says Gigi Pandian, “I love finding books where there are diverse characters in exciting stories. Ever since I was a kid, I’ve loved reading mystery and adventure stories, but characters in the types of stories I enjoy rarely reflect my own ethnic heritage or the diversity around me (my father is an immigrant from India, and I grew up in California). When I became a writer, I naturally created characters that were part of my own life experience. I enjoyed ‘Black Pulp’, so it was an honor to be invited to contribute a story for this new anthology. ‘Black Pulp’ was first and foremost a great collection of fiction–but I also loved how black writers and characters were brought into the spotlight. I hope ‘Asian Pulp’ does the same thing for Asian writers and characters.”

Mysteries, westerns, stories of crime and noir, and more, all with Asian characters in the lead! Between these covers are 17 tales of action, adventure, and thrills featuring heroes and heroines of a different shade that will appeal to audiences everywhere. ‘Asian Pulp’. From Pro Se Productions.

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Announcing Pro Se Single Shots!

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Luther-Cross-logoPro Se Productions has just announced a new line, the Pro Se Single Shot Signatures.

The line features thirty-eight writers who will be producing stories, ranging between 3000-15000 words, on a consistent basis. They will either be an original series featuring recurring characters, or individual stand-alone tales with the unifying title of “From The Pen of…” followed by the author’s name. These short tales will be released in digital format only (print collections at a later date are a possibility, though) at a price point of 99¢ per story.

When Tommy Hancock, Pro Se Editor-in-Chief, invited me to this line, I wasn’t sure I would say yes. I’m already planning on doing something similar on my own, with the Vanguard series I’m currently writing and with other ideas waiting in the wings. However, I decided to take advantage of the opportunity and experiment with a different publisher.

To that end, I’m happy to announce that I will be writing Luther Cross, one of the Pro Se Single Shot Signatures!

Luther Cross is a demon/human half-breed, who has grown into a paranormal investigator. Possessing some degree of demonic abilities as well as knowledge of magic and the occult, Cross makes his living hunting down demons, ghosts, and other creatures of the night.

I originally conceived of Luther Cross several years ago and I began work on an introductory novel featuring the character. Unfortunately, the novel was never completed, but Luther stuck in my head and I always wanted the opportunity to get back to writing him at some point in the future.

I’m very excited to have the opportunity to revisit him in this new format. It’s one that I think suits the kind of stories I’m planning to tell with Luther far better than the format of a novel. In fact, I’ve already completed the first tale and sent it off.

Below you can read the full press release from Pro Se Productions. More information will definitely come:

PRO SE PRODUCTIONS TAKES SHORT FICTION TO THE NEXT LEVEL

A leading independent publisher of Genre Fiction, Pro Se Productions announces an innovative new Fiction line today.

In 2010, Pro Se Productions debuted as a small press focused on ‘Puttin’ The Monthly Back into Pulp!’ The company originally produced a line of three magazines that featured ‘New Pulp’ short stories, that is stories written by modern writers very much in the style and feel of tales featured in classic Pulp magazines in the early 20th Century. When Pro Se made the move into publishing novels and short story anthologies, it closed the magazine line, only to restart the concept as a single magazine title due to popular demand. PRO SE PRESENTS grew into an award winning magazine that ran for 20 issues, its final installment released in February 2014. With the end of the magazine, Pro Se Productions closes one era to enter another, one that readers got a taste of in December of 2013.

“We are always,” says Tommy Hancock, Partner in and Editor-in-Chief of Pro Se, “focused on producing the very best in New Pulp and Genre Fiction in all aspects, including the format which we present it in. It’s no secret that Publishing in the last five years, particularly for independent presses such as Pro Se, has moved more and more into the digital realm. Not only can readers carry more books around on their Ereaders or their phones, but the price point is tremendously better in most cases over print books. Digital publishing also affords writers and publishers to produce any size work they wish, including single short stories that can be offered for less than a dollar each. Pro Se Productions decided to dip its foot in that pool and in December we held a grand opening of sorts for our new imprint- Pro Se Single Shots.

“The success we had,” continues Hancock, “with the first volley of Single Shots was quite amazing. No one’s getting rich on them, but the interest readers showed in being able to drop 99 cents and get a good, solid short story that they could read in a single sitting was staggering to us right out of the gate. This combined with the fact that our second magazine line had run its course we felt in its current format, gave us a few ideas. Chief among them was the fact that we could take each story that would have appeared in a PRO SE PRESENTS and offer it individually to readers in a digital format. That way a mystery fan could pick up the mystery stories he or she wanted for a reasonable price without having to feel like they were buying other stories they may not enjoy. But an even more intriguing idea presented itself rather quickly.

“The concept of digital singles affords Pro Se the ability to really bring the concept of Pulp storytelling and even, in a indirect way, the idea of recurring tales from a consistent stable of authors on a regular schedule –much like classic Pulps did- into the 21st Century. This kernel of an idea took root with us rather quickly and brings us now to possibly the most exciting announcement Pro Se has made in a long time. Pro Se Single Shot Signatures.”

The Pro Se Single Shot Signature line brings together 38 writers from across the spectrum of Genre Fiction. Each of these authors will be producing either an original series of his/her creation featuring recurring characters and concepts or writing an imprint of individual stand alone stories entitled ‘From The Pen of…’ and the author’s name. Multiple genres are represented, from jungle tales to horror stories to some that defy description.

Regardless if an author is doing a series or imprint, they will all be working on a regular production schedule established based on their own ability to produce quality work. Some will produce stories on a bi weekly, monthly, bi monthly, quarterly, or bi annual schedule. Each story will range in length from 3,000 to 15,000 words. Also, debuts of the individual series and/or imprints will be spread out over the remaining months of 2014, with at least three titles debuting in April.

Pro Se Productions proudly announces the inaugural cast of authors in the Pro Se Single Shot Signatures line. They include:
David Foster
PJ Lozito
Russ Anderson
Sean Taylor
Teel James Glenn
Fuller Bumpers
Tommy Hancock
Morgan Minor
Mark Bousquet
Philip Athans
Jim Beard
I. A. Watson
Joshua Reynolds
Bobby Nash
Greg Norgaard
Mark Gelineau
J. Walt Layne
Nikki Nelson-Hicks
D. Alan Lewis
H. David Blalock
Gary Phillips
Sean E. Ali
Barry Reese
Percival Constantine
Jeremy Hicks
Logan L. Masterson
Chuck Miller
Alexander S. Brown
Adam Lance Garcia
David White
Kevin Rodgers
Derrick Ferguson
Aaron Smith
Frank Schildiner
Brad Mengel
Richard White
Terry Alexander
Terrence McCauley

Each Pro Se Single Shot Signature Series and Imprint will feature cover art by Artist Jeffrey Hayes.

If the author of a series or imprint chooses to, print collections of his or her stories will be produced at later dates as agreed upon by Pro Se and the individual creator. Hancock also stated that Pro Se will continue to produce stand alone Single Shots as they did in December and again in March.

“The Signature line,” Hancock says, “is a very exciting prospect for Pro Se, the authors and artist involved, and the readers I believe. It puts these fantastic New Pulp tales in a quick, easy to digest format, makes them inexpensive, and opens readers up to a whole host of ideas and authors that they may never have been exposed to otherwise for whatever reason. It may not be the same feel as having a paper magazine to fold up in your hand, but the Pro Se Single Shot Signatures line definitely makes Puttin’ The Monthly Back into Pulp something Pro Se can do in a big way.”

In coming days, news concerning the individual authors and the series and/or imprints they are working on as well as production schedules will be released from Pro Se Productions.

For More information on Pro Se Single Shot Signatures, to be placed on a review list for upcoming releases, or for interviews with the authors involved, please contact Morgan Minor, Director of Corporate Operations for Pro Se, at directorofcorporateoperations@prose-press.com.

To learn more about Pro Se Productions, go to www.prose-press.com and like Pro Se on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ProSeProductions.

Happy Holidays from PulpWork Press!

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pulpworkxmas2013Hope you all have been enjoying your Christmas, Kwanza, Hanukkah, Festivus, Winter Solstice, or whatever else you might celebrate at this time of year. My Christmas day was spent doing a lot of work, but don’t worry, dear reader, I haven’t forgotten your present.

Or I should say those of us at PulpWork Press haven’t forgotten your present.

At the moment, the PulpWork Christmas Special 2013, featuring stories by Joel Jenkins, Josh Reynolds, Russ Anderson, and myself, is now available for FREE on the Amazon Kindle store! Click here to get your copy now!

So what will you get in this book? Well, you’ll get the following four tales of yuletide murder and mayhem!

The Third Death of Henry Antrim: Royal Occultist Charles St. Cyprian and his companion-in-arms, the lovely, gun-toting, and slightly bloodthirsty Ebe Gallowglass, discover murder most foul, a holy relic in the form of a Colt .45 pistol, and an evil sprung up from the wildlands of the weird west.

Malcom Destroys Christmas: A seven-year-old boy swears vengeance upon Santa Claus and the malign menace known only as Krampus decides to enlist him in a dastardly plot against Father Christmas.

The Shadow Killers: Cold-hearted assassin Monica Killingsworth finds herself the reluctant, but extremely well paid, escort of a small child and becomes the target of merciless killers, some of which she has worked with before. But Killingsworth knows a thing or three about assassination and bullets, blood, and bombs fly on Christmas day.

And Myth Hunter fans, you also get this tale!

The Wild Hunt: When the vulpine changeling Asami encounters a restless spirit wandering the icy slopes of Kurodake, Japanese legend clashes with Norse mythology and she finds herself caught up in the midst of a mythic hunt.

So what are you waiting for? Go get your copy right now!

SoulQuest Cover Coming Along!

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imageToday I’ve got something special for you. Brad Horton is hard at work on the cover. If you follow me on Twitter, you probably saw I posted a small headshot from Brad recently. Well, I woke up this morning to find the image you see to your left waiting for me in my inbox!

The hooded guy in the cape and wielding a sword is Zarim, the hero of SoulQuest and captain of the pirate airship, the Excalibur. By his side, as always, is Ekala, his first mate, a rough-and-tumble thief who doesn’t take crap off anyone.

These designs were originally created by artist Frank Jensen when he was working on SoulQuest as a comic book. I gave those designs to Brad as a reference to work from and told him to feel free to make any changes he felt were necessary. For the most part, he left the designs intact, but he made some subtle tweaks which I feel have really tightened up the look of the characters.

And this is just the preliminary stuff, people! Brad’s showed me the concept he has in mind for the cover, and it will take these awesome designs and make them extremely dynamic!

Once again, if you haven’t, run on over to Brad’s website and check out his amazing work. He’s also got some art for sale (my personal favorite is his Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles piece)! We still don’t have an official launch date for SoulQuest just yet, because I want to give Brad all the time he needs to work his magic, but once we do, readers of this blog will be the first to know!
On other fronts, my latest story for Pro Se is inching closer and closer to completion. I’m at 5,239 words and the story has a rough goal of 8-10,000 words, so a little more than halfway done.

I announced this on Facebook and Twitter yesterday, but I wanted to mention it here as well: I’m looking into starting up a podcast specifically about pulp writers on writing pulp. I’ve gotten some interest so far, but if any pulp writers are reading this and would like to be a guest on the show, please drop me a line either through Facebook, Twitter, or this site’s contact page. In your message, let me know what aspect of writing pulp you’d be interested in discussing on the show (feel free to come up with a list of things, as I’d like to have recurring guests).

Writing Update

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I’ve just completed the first draft of Outlaw Blues. This book is the second novel in the Infernum series, which began with Love & Bullets. Outlaw Blues features an Infernum assassin named Carl Flint, who characters may remember made a very, very minor but very significant appearance in Love & Bullets. (And if you haven’t read the book, what are you waiting for? Head on over to my store and pick up a copy!)

Outlaw Blues follows the Infernum series modus operandi of lots of action, betrayal and intrigue. It does differ a bit–Love & Bullets probably had more in common with John Woo’s Hong Kong Blood Operas such as Hard Boiled mixed with a healthy dose of James Bond trappings. Outlaw Blues is more akin to a modern-day western, taking inspiration from the films of Sergio Leone and Clint Eastwood.

Carl Flint is similar to Angela Lockhart in some respects. He’s an assassin but whereas Angela was out for revenge, Flint is looking for redemption wherever he can find it. And his search will bring him on a collision course with a Colombian drug cartel in a small Mexican town.

Some familiar faces from Love & Bullets will make a reprise, particularly Julie Kim. Readers of Love & Bullets will remember her as the partner of Agency operative Christian Pierce. She was originally written in Love & Bullets as something of a background character, but she proved to be a pretty big hit with readers, which has led to her having an elevated role both in Outlaw Blues and in future installments. And, of course, the colorful and mysterious leader of Infernum, Dante, will return (albeit in a bit of a reduced role).

I’m going to begin edits on the manuscript first thing tomorrow. Depending on the Pulpwork Press release schedule, Outlaw Blues will be available for sale either towards the end of 2011 or in early 2012.

But while you may have to wait a while for the second Infernum novel, you’ve still got other opportunities to read my work. The Myth Hunter is due for an early 2011 release. This will be the start of a new series, featuring a character named Elisa Hill, who travels the world exploring various mythologies. I’m really excited about this new series and Elisa’s a character I’ve been living with for several years now. If you enjoy the Indiana Jones films, chances are you’ll get a real kick out of it.

As far as other future projects, my next novel, which I begun while Outlaw Blues was on hiatus due to computer trouble, is back on track. This book, At The Gates of Hell (working title), will feature paranormal investigator Luther Cross and focus almost exclusively on the realm of Christian mythology. I was thirty pages into it before I was able to resolve the computer trouble with Outlaw Blues, and am now prepared to go full-steam ahead.

And, of course, you can check out SoulQuest, my ongoing online serial at the Revenance Original Fiction site. The second chapter has been sent in and should see a release shortly. I’ve also got some other irons in the fire, but it’s premature at the moment to make any official announcements about those.

The Sea Witch

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I first discovered Joel Jenkins when I read Dire Planet. This is the first book of Joel’s I’ve read that took place in the real world, so to speak, so it was interesting to see how Joel’s style translates in a non-fantasy setting.

Needless to say, I was not disappointed.

The Sea Witch introduces us to Max Damage, an Olympic fencer and son of Pierre Dommage, a very eccentric man. Growing up, Max was given some very unusual tutoring. Max himself is a bit unusual, extremely strong and fast, a quick healer, but with some drawbacks including sensitivity to light. But Max’s life gets turned upside down when his father passes away and he inherits the family business, Damage Inc. While Max and his new accountant Seth investigate the mysterious projects and messy bookkeeping, they’re confronted by a strange Russian woman named Minnie. It seems Max’s father was involved with a man named Zhinov, President of a splintered Russian state. And now Max and his friends have become Zhinov’s targets.

The Sea Witch opens with a bang and never makes the mistake of letting you get bored. The banter between Max, Minnie and Seth is always fun to read and Joel always manages to find a new way to keep your eyes glued to the page. This is a book that will always surprise you with new action ideas Joel is able to pull out. And the machinations of Zhinov fit in perfectly with his character as a chessmaster. And the mystery behind Max’s unusual abilities as well as his connection to Minnie is maintained nicely through the course of the book until its revelation.

As much as I enjoy Joel’s fantasy work, I have to say The Sea Witch is a welcome change and just might be my favorite of his works to date. I’m looking forward to seeing more of Max and the rest of Damage Inc.

200 pages, available from Pulpwork Press
Buy now from my store!