In “The Compound” With Robert Ford

From the publisher:

Tartarus Federal Penitentiary is home to the worst violent criminals society has cultivated. It’s also a revolutionary modern-day fortress, powered by solar panels and built to be a self-sustaining environment, complete with dairy barns and green houses. It’s the perfect place to be when an experimental virus hits the American public, making the dead walk the Earth once again.

Two brothers become entwined in a deadly struggle for power among the crowd of prisoners that have overtaken the guards.

Divorced parents fight for survival, trying to find each other and keep their daughter safe from the growing number of zombies.

An old biker is a man on a mission, trying to fulfill a promise to his dead wife, apocalypse be damned. Both his will and his supply of ammunition will be tested.

As the survivors on the outside fight for their lives, their lines of fate converge, leading them through the crowds of zombies and forcing them into the hell of the prison to save one of their own.

Robert Ford has delivered a hit right out of the gate with his debut novel, The Compound.  From the beginning where a disillusioned General watches the world burn because of the Branch 14 virus, Ford takes the reader on a tightly woven tale that left me unable to put the book down until that final page.  As illustrated in the description above, the book follows the characters on their own paths as they find their way through a new and terrible world.  Without going into too much detail about the characters and their trials, each one reads like a person you know and can relate too.  A brother watching his sibling go crazy with power while inside a prison where the inmates rule, a father trying to find his ex-wife and daughter, and a man trying to keep a promise to his dead wife all grab you and stay with you long after you put the book down.

The book starts quickly with the Branch 14 virus getting loose and quickly spreading across the United States.  Once the virus is established, we are introduced to the main characters in short chapters placing them in the path of the newly risen dead.  Ford shifts the point-of-view around in short sweet chunks.  Each person gets time to grow and the chapter lengths aren’t long, but instead are small bite sized pieces that help to build the tension.  This is really used well when the action is focused on the prison as the action ramps up for its bloody conclusion.

Overall, the father trying to find his family during the zombie apocalypse has been done many times.  Robert Ford does take it and with his voice, makes it a new experience that doesn’t seem old and worn, but instead new and exciting.  The hardcover is sold out from the publisher, but it is available in eBook format (click here to purchase).  I highly recommend the book to anyone who loves zombie fiction or to anyone who wants to read a great book.

I am now pleased to welcome to the Arena for the “10 Questions”, Mr. Robert Ford…   

1.  Who is Robert Ford and how did he get here in his writing journey?

Oh wow. That is a long journey without a ring of power, I’ll tell you.
I grew up as an only child on a large farm in northern Maryland. My
parents worked a lot and my grandfather lived with us as long as I can
remember — he was the farmer on previously mentioned working farm —
and I was left to my own devices a lot. My mother kept buying me books
as a kid… I guess to occupy me and feed my imagination as well as so
she could get something done around the house. Little did she know…

I devoured books as a kid and rapidly worked my way up the ladder to
more adult fiction (a lot of which, my parents probably didn’t know I
read at the time), and one day I discovered a paperback of Stephen
King’s Carrie. That absolutely changed everything for me. I had
written short stories and poetry in school as far back as I could
remember and just kept on doing it. I was very lucky to have a string
of phenomenal English teachers that saw something in me back then and
kept urging me on.

Who am I? I am my own worst boogeyman.
I am a wearer of many hats… but to be honest, as much as I’d like to
answer this one, I’ve honestly got no clue who I am. You hear some
people say they’re really in touch with themselves and they “know” who
they are… I don’t know. Over the years I’ve started to think we’re
all fluid like quicksilver, forever changing and impossible to grasp
and maybe a little bit poisonous.

2.  The Compound takes place in a world where the undead walk and  
the inmates are running the prison. How did you research the prison  
life portrayed in the novel?

The prison in The Compound is a futuristic model, created with modern,
self-sustaining amenities to take the burden off of the American
taxpayer. To my knowledge, I don’t think a prison exists like this in
the real world, but I kept kicking around the what-ifs and arrived at
the design of Tartarus.

I looked over a lot of overhead views and layouts of penitentiaries
and prisons across the country, studying them for how secure they
might be, as well as how the hell I could break into one if I had to.
Like the old saying goes… if it’s built by man, it can be destroyed
by man.

For a while, I fell down a rabbit hole of research, reading a ton of
files and message boards and publications about… ehh… let’s say…
information that could be frowned on by the government. Thing is, I
HAD to read about this kind of thing. It’s the sort of information
that would come in handy during a zombie apocalypse. Homemade bombs,
survivalist booby-traps, weaponry, poor man’s silencers. The internet
is an absolutely scary wealth of knowledge.

3.  You are a very busy man between your writing and your Whutta (www.whutta.com 
) ad agency.  How the hell do you find time to write?

I gave up sleep about a decade ago.

It’s difficult, definitely not going to lie about that. My normal
process of research and pre-writing takes longer than a lot of other
writers I know, so it’s always been a struggle, but The Compound,
overall, was written pretty quickly for me. I hope I can continue this
trend.

4.  Samson and Denial was a fun romp through the streets of Philly  
with cults and severed mummy heads, but The Compound took a more  
serious tone dealing with the decay of society and the family.  Did  
the story always want to be a more brutal and serious novel or did  
it turn out that way organically?

Samson and Denial was completely character driven from page one and I
think Samson’s personality is truly what set the tone for that
novella. I knew it was going to be hard and fast-paced with some
twists the readers wouldn’t expect, but there would be undertones of
humor because Samson was the one narrating the story.

With The Compound, I had the opening scene from Chapter One in my head
for about six months before I knew what else happened afterward.
Without giving too much away to anyone who hasn’t read it yet, the
opening scene is supposed to be a light-hearted fun sort of moment
when all of a sudden, things start hitting the fan.

I think that’s what it would really be like if an apocalypse broke
out. I think most bad things that occur in our lives are like that.
You’re strolling along, sipping your Red Bull or playing Angry Birds
when all of a sudden, destiny throws you a curve ball and that happy
little secure pocket of safety you thought you had all along… well,
you realize that was all an illusion.

Death is always over our shoulder whether we want to admit it or not,
and in a communal life or death situation, I think we would see all
manner of breakdown in law and morality and a good portion of human
decency. There will be some who stand out, as there were a few in The
Compound that did — but whether they stand out for being good-hearted
or for utter brutality remains to be seen. I wanted to portray that
type of brutality the world would be like in a situation like that.

5.  What tops Robert Ford’s read pile right now?

This year, I have been scrambling so much I haven’t had time to read
nearly as much as I’d like to, but I have “White Picket Prisons” by
Kelli Owen, “Severance Package” by Duane Swierczynski, and a book
about Shamanism. Oh, and there’s also a tattered copy of Musashi’s The
Book of Five Rings, but that’s a gap-filler because I’ve read it so
many times.

6.  Seeing your first novel released must have been a huge high.   > What went through your mind when you came home and found a box on  > your porch from Thunderstorm books?

Paul Goblirsch is an absolutely amazing guy to work with. I really
can’t say enough about him. He was an absolute pleasure to work with
on Samson and Denial and when he invited me to pitch him some ideas on
a full length novel, I jumped at the opportunity. When I saw the
package on my doorstep, I had seen the cover art on-screen a long time
before that, but seeing and holding my first novel in my own hands…
yeah, that was a big deal. That Thunderstorm does such a beautiful job
on production and design is icing on the cake.

7.   While the characters in The Compound fought for their lives 
around Tartarus Penitentiary the Branch 14 virus was spreading.  Are 
there any plans to return to another area during the outbreak or  
have you said your piece on the subject?

Ahhhh Brent, this question made a smile appear on my face. Here’s the
thing — I had never really intended to write a zombie novel at all. My
fiction has always tended to be more about human monsters, with a
little twist thrown in for good measure. But the idea came to me and I
thought it would be fun and it took off. Along the development of The
Compound, the character Calvin popped into the story out of nowhere—I
hadn’t had an idea of him at all until the day I wrote him onto the
page—and he became one of my favorites.

There’s a lot of things I’ve got lined up first, but I definitely
can’t rule out revisiting this world. As things were wrapping up in
the final chapters, I kept wondering what Calvin’s motorcycle brothers
were doing elsewhere. I don’t know the answer to that question yet,
but if I ever find out, maybe you will too.

8.  What does Robert Ford have coming up for the readers to devour  
next?

I’m finishing a novel right now that’s out of the horror genre titled
No Lipstick in Avalon and it’s a huge departure and for a very
different audience than what I normally write. It was just one of
those ideas that came to mind and a character that wouldn’t shut up in
my head so I sat down one day to write a page or two in an effort to
quiet the thoughts down a bit on the matter. No dice. It only got
stronger and thirty thousand words later, here I am. There’ll be more
information released about that as I get closer to wrapping it up.

But next up in the horror genre, I’m working on a novella–Big Stakes
Jackie—that I had written some notes on and forgotten about. I came
across the notes a while back and laughed as I remembered just how
disgusting some of the things that take place really are. I had the
opening idea a long time ago and it never fully fleshed out until
recently.

After “Big Stakes Jackie, it’s a bit of a toss-up. I’ve got a lot of
notes and research for The Crimson Sisters, which is a novel-length
sequel to Samson and Denial. I won’t reveal a lot of what will happen,
as it’s taking some turns as I flesh it out, but I’ll tell you the
opening line:

“The fucking midget was on fire.”

9.  This is not a question.  Welcome to “Pimp Yourself”!  Right here  
you can lay out where the good people can find and follow you my 
friend.

Haha!  I’m available on Amazon at:

> http://www.amazon.com/Robert-Ford/e/B004TA252S/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1

twitter
@bobford

> https://www.facebook.com/robertfordwriter

and the blog

> http://coronersreport.blogspot.com/

10.  There are a few writers who stop by here on their travels 
through the writing world.  What bit of Bob advice do you have for  
them tonight?

If you want to be a writer, then write. That novel/screenplay/short
story/novella isn’t exactly gonna write itself and if you really do
want to become a writer, you’ve got to heed the advice given to me by
so many others in the field: Ass in chair. Write. Repeat.

If not, you’ll end up being that person years from now telling someone
“Yeah, I had a great idea for a novel once.”

Don’t die with your music still in you.

Bonus Question:  Who wins in a drink-out?  Robert Ford or Ron 
Dickie?

Sweet mother of all that’s holy… I can hold my own against mortals,
but he’s CANADIAN for God’s sake! I think the only thing I could
outdrink Dickie in is probably tequila. Everything else he’s got me,
maple leaves down.  =)

I would to thank everyone for stopping by and a big thanks to Robert Ford for taking the time to stop by and chat!

Goodnight… (I know it’s day, but that’s the closing line regardless)

“Coming Soon to a Blog Hop Near You!”

“Coming to a drive-in near you this summer, three college students on the last night of spring break, will find out the road to Hell is paved with good intentions…and blood.”

Ah, the good old days of the movie trailer.  Believe me, there was really a time when the preview didn’t tell you the whole movie in a two-and-a-half-minute bit.  The preview teased and made you want to see the movie.  Alas, I’m afraid those days are long gone.

But fear not, thanks to D. Alexander Ward (go and check him out, this I command!) I’m here to give you a preview.  Think of it as the opening to a date with that special person.  You both snuggle together while the sun dips out of sight and the darkness creeps along the theater grounds until the projector fires up and brightens the night with its magic.  Writing really can be that dramatic and I’m here now to give you a peek into my mind and my work.  I’ll try not to lead you astray or to give away too much because to be completely honest, I want you to have questions and buy the book to see if your thirst for answers can be quenched.

So, sit back and dim the lights.  Relax and let me take your hand and give you a tour through my work, a Neverland of blood and betrayal.  Eat your popcorn and enjoy the show…

What are you working on right now?   At the moment I’m finishing up the last few chapters of my second novella, Southern Devils.  I also have three top-secret projects going on with other authors and my first full length novel set in the fictional town of White Creek has been started on.  There are also a few odd and end short stories, but I’m focusing on the big things right now.  Southern Devils is the opening of a trilogy and there are three other novellas or novels that I have written out very detailed notes on.

How does it differ from other works in its genre?  Southern Devils is my take on zombies and how the Civil War’s closing days was a battle between a resurrected group of Rebel soldiers and the Union soldier ordered to eliminate them and eradicate all trace of their existence.  The approach I took with the zombies was that they are driven by their mission.  They retain some of their humanity, but also must deal with the ramifications of what they’ve become.

What experiences have influenced you?  Since I was a child, I loved to write and make up really outlandish shit.  Once I hit about the age of 12, I was introduced to Stephen King and television shows like Tales From the Darkside, Monsters, and Tales From the Crypt.  From there the die was cast and horror became my game.  I did some writing in high school, but between everything else in my life at the time, it got away from me.  Now fast-forward almost 20 years and I’m finally taking my dream back and making a go at the writing gig.  So far, it has been a magical ride.

Why do you write what you do?  I like to explore the dark side of things.  That noise outside?  It’s a long-lost love come to give you a final goodbye kiss.  The voice in your head?  It’s the darkness in your soul begging for blood to spill so it can be released.  Horror isn’t just a genre for ghosts and vampires.  It is a genre that defines who we are deep down in the human condition.  What causes someone to go on a brutal killing spree?  We don’t really know what went on in that person’s mind, but it’s my job to be the voice of his conscious and once we start to listen to the little voice in the back of our heads…that is when the fun begins.

How does your writing process work?  Before I begin a new story, I jot some quick ideas down in one of my notebooks and I let the idea stew for a few days.  When I pick it back up again, I like to know the opening line and where I want the story to end up at.  I do admit, there have been some stories where the story took on a life of its own and became what it wanted to be.  I love those kind of stories.  There is nothing like hitting a point while writing and thinking, “Wow, I didn’t see that coming”.  As far as how I work, I sit behind my cluttered desk and I get some words in while I play on the internet

What is the hardest part about writing?   Finishing.  The hardest thing for me is finishing something once I start it.  I get involved with another project and I start to push things off and I tend to fall behind on the stuff I’m not committed to write.  I’ve been finishing Southern Devils for far too long and I get irritated with myself.  Some of my foot-dragging, I believe, also stems from the doubt issues that still creep into my head about a piece.  For example, no matter how much people have told me they loved In Memoriam, I will always think I could have done better and will mess with something until I want to rip it up because I don’t think it’s good enough.  I’m getting better about it and I’m gaining more confidence in my work with every new acceptance and every new review.  The thing that has gone the farthest in settling my mind is the other day a stranger stopped me and told me how much they loved my book.  When they followed about how they couldn’t wait to read my next one, my eyes damn near teared up.  It really put my mind to rest about my work and has really invigorated me since it happened.

What would you like to try as a writer that you haven’t yet?  That one is easy, I want to write a screenplay for one of my works or have a story of mine adapted into comic form.

Who are the authors you most admire?  The ones I admire the most are the ones who have been there with a piece of timely advice, a story about when they were starting, or those who take the time to help and encourage a new author.  In no order I admire for their words and deeds:  Brian Keene, Robert Ford, Kelli Owen, Tim Lebbon, James A. Moore, Christopher Golden, and John Everson.  Each has given me a new insight or a new way to see the field and I thank them all.

Who are new authors to watch out for?  There are three that I’m working with now that come to mind.  Each one has some work out there and everything I’ve read by them has been a fantastic read.  Go and check out Julianne Snow, Jason Darrick, and Dale Eldon.  You can’t go wrong with any of them and each one brings a distinct voice and subject matter to the horror field.

What scares you?  Failure.  I don’t want to fail in this and it drives me to keep improving and challenging myself to write better and have my work show how much I’ve grown and improved.  I also fear for the world I’m leaving my kids.  No, I fear for the world and what my kids will do to it if they have the chance…

Now, I was to give you three places to go and check out.  I’ve been tied up with work and other stuff that I can only offer you two authors to continue on this Blog Hop.  Next Wednesday, Jason Darrick and Armand Rosamilia will take the reigns over at there blogs and give you the answers to the burning questions above.

Stop back by Friday night when I give my thoughts on, The Compound,  the debut novel from Robert Ford and he stops by to enter the Arena and answers “The 10 Questions”!

Goodnight…

At Horrorfind 2011 at the signing table after my reading. Only one book and if I did it today it would be over twenty.

The 2012 That Was and My 10 Favorite Books of the Year!

2012 kicked ass.  Simple and awesome, it was one of the best years a person could ask for.  The writing really started to get somewhere this year and there were some great things going on along with it.  Over the course of the year, I had stories come out in six anthologies as well as a few other accepted ones that are upcoming.  I had tales in Little Stories for the Smallest Room, a short non-fiction piece in Zombie Writing!,  Short Sips: Coffee House Flash Fiction Vol. 2, Father Grim’s Storybook, Undead Tales 2,and I received the honor of closing out Ten Silver Bullets. The big moment for the year was the release of my first solo work, a novella called In Memoriam. This year also saw me give my first book blurb for my friend Carl Moore on his novella Slash of Crimson (a very good read-go pick it up).  One of the most fun things I took part in however, was the book signing with my friend and fellow author Wesley Southard in October.  I finished up work on a handful of new stories and I am in the last stretch of the first Southern Devilsbook.  If you like zombies and history smashed together, this will be for you.

Here at the blog I had interviews with Nate Southard, Tim Lebbon, and Armand Rosamilia, a few different blog hops roared through, and I had my best viewer year ever because of all of you stopping by to take a look.  The Twitter, Facebook, and blog follower numbers have all increased this year and I hope the trend continues into the new year.

2013 looks promising too.  There are more anthologies on tap and some more surprises in store for you readers out there.  But first, without any more delay…my favorite books of 2012.  There are some older books, I wanted to branch it out to the books I’ve read over the last year.  Fear not, the focus is still on this year’s releases.

These are in no order at all…

1.  Edward Lee- The Infernal Series…  For this, I read the whole series back to back and the way Lee portrays Hell as a city called the Mephistopolis was amazing.  He constructed an entire working city-scape complete with a demonic caste system and even an evil economic system.  All three books are worth picking up and reading when you think society around you sucks.  Remember, it could always be worse…

2.  Anthony Kiedis w/Larry Sloman- Scar Tissue… Yes, there is a biography on the list.  The lead singer of the Red Hot Chili Peppers gives ua a raw and no-holds-barred look into his life and his constant battle with drug addiction.  At times uplifting, sad, and horrific, Kiedis shows the reader everything that has made him who he is.

3.  J.F. Gonzalez and Wrath James White- The Killings…  A very tightly written tale about racism, murder, and evil.  The story takes place in two different timeframes, 1911 and 2011 Atlanta.  A series of killings in 2011 mirror a series of murders in 1911.  Carmen Mendoza is a reporter who thinks they have found the link between the two sets of murders as well as a string of other deaths that have occurred in the Atlanta area over the years.

4.  Jack Ketchum and Lucky McKee- The Woman… This is the third book in Ketchum’s series about a tribe of feral people living in the wilds and the bloodbath that follows them.  She is alone and finds herself captured.  The woman is being broken.  A sick man and his family have made it their duty to domesticate her, to tame her wildness.  But all the best intentions never end well and the violence he showed her is about to be repaid a hundred fold.  The Cemetery Dance hardcover also includes the bonus novella “Cow”, which serves as a nice coda to the book and leaves the door open for more to come.

5.    Kelli Owen- White Picket Prisons… A tale of justice in the town of Valley Mill where there is no crime and when Detective Mark Baker tries to track down his sister there, he thinks he finds the utopia his burned out soul has been looking for.  But for Mark, things are never what they truly seem behind the false fronts and smiles.  Something lurks beyond the happy town’s front that could be his end.  This book came along at a time when I was preoccupied with justice and how things go unpunished.

6.  J.F. Gonzalez and Brian Keene- Clickers vs. Zombies… This was the most fun I had reading a book all year long.  At first, I thought the idea sounded absurd, but it turned out to be a full-on B-Movie like assault through both author’s mythologies.  When Ob and his minions begin to inhabit the dead bodies of the Clickers, characters from both worlds cross-over in a riotous time.  This is worth it to see some of your favorite characters in positions and jobs you’d never expect them to be in.

7.  Nate Southard- Something Went Wrong…  A short story collection where each story is a great read.  Nate’s short story writing is amazing and every tale is worth reading.  My favorites in the book were, “Team Building Exercise”, “In the Middle of Poplar Street”, and “Going Home, Ugly Stick in Hand”.

8.  Geoff Cooper- Answers of Silence… The second story collection on the list is a very dark and ironic look at the world around us.  Overall a strong collection where I enjoyed every story.  For a taste of how twisted Coop can be, I recommend “Latex: Like a Glove”.

9.  Jeff Strand- A Bad Day for Voodoo… A funny romp through the day that Tyler Churchill decided the best way to deal with his teacher Mr. Click is with a voodoo doll.  When the tables are turned on him, he must survive long enough to reverse the curse placed upon him…if there’s any of him left.  At times while it’s really crazy and bloody, it packs the laughs a Strand novel is known for.

10.  Brian Keene- Earthworm Gods II: Deluge…  If I had to pick a favorite, this is the one.  Picking up where the first Earthworm Gods left off, the survivors of the great rains struggle to live through the constantly rising waters and the new creatures coming up from the deep.  The book was at first a serial novel on Keene’s website, but he re-edited it and this is the collected version.  I waited until the book came out to read it and I wasn’t disappointed at all.  The novel also serves as a lead-in to the next stage in his mythos with The Lost Level, which he working on now.

And there it is my friends, this is the end for this year.  I’ll see you again in 2013 where we’ll start kicking ass again!

Goodnight…

The Next Big Thing? I Sure Hope So…

Evening there folks!  Tonight is the night I dazzle you with answers to questions I know have been burning in your skulls.  I too, have now been tagged in “The Next Big Thing” bit of author pimping and I am here to show you around the dark recesses of my filthy and blood soaked mind.    So without further delay, I give you…my answers!

What is the working title of your book?

I have a couple of projects going on right now, so I am going to go with “Southern Devils”

Where did the idea come from for the book?

I have a degree in history and I really wanted to make myself feel better about it and put it to good use.  What good use?  Well, I decided to write about how a voodoo resurrected Stonewall Jackson was sent to fight General Sherman in the South during the Civil War.  I wanted zombies that were a little different and these are purely revenge driven and either once they are killed by a head injury or once the mission they were brought back for is completed, they return to the dust where they came from.  Once I got into it, the problem gets out of hand.  The story arc did the same thing and went from the plots for a single novella to a novella trilogy and then a full novel to deal with the trilogy’s aftermath.

What genre does your book fall under?

Historical fiction that leans heavy on the horror side of things.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

The main cast would be:

General Sherman- Brian Cranston

General Jackson- Sam Worthington

Lt. Mark Duvall- Matt Damon

Dunn- Jason Statham

Hettie- Naomi Harris

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Seeking the ultimate revenge, the resurrected General Stonewall Jackson is sent by Robert E. Lee to hunt down General William Tecumseh Sherman as he embarks on a mission to bring the rebellion in the south to its knees.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

I want it to be released from a press and not self-published.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

It has taken quite some time.  Between the research involved and the constant shifting of the tale’s scope, its been hard to finish.  I would say it has taken a year to get to the end of the first book.  The short story “Stonewall”, where the whole saga kicks off, should be out before too much longer from KnightWatch Press in their The Blue, the Grey, and the Scarlet anthology of Civil War horror stories.  The rest of the trilogy should go quickly, but then I’m finishing my first White Creek novel before beginning the ending novel Reconstruction of the Dead.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

As far as something that is a history/zombie mash-up I would say Stant Litore’s The Zombie Biblebooks.  They are a great mash-up of the bible and the zombies we all know and love.  For a look at his work I direct you to go to this little linky here.

Who or What inspired you to write this book?

I was inspired by the muse that has taken over my life the last two years, Wesley Southard who pulled me back in, and for the words from Brian Keene when I needed them the most at my first public reading (having him pull a lighter out and wave it back and forth during the end is still one of the best feelings I’ve had since I began writing seriously).

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

Funny you should ask that!  Why if you turn to the sidebar and find the Biblio page link, it will take you the complete list of all my work out there.  I’ve been in or have stuff coming out in over 15 books (some are unannounced and not on the list yet) as well as my first novella In Memoriam.

Well, that does it for me! 

There have been some issues with rounding up the next victims.  I’ll get some links up in the next few days so you can go learn about some more great authors.

Goodnight…

Enter “The Tool Shed”!

He is an editor who took a gamble on a story from a new author and gave him the opportunity to see his first story in print.  Since Armand Rosamilia became the one to give me the chance to start on the journey I’ve been on the last two years, I have had the chance to know him as an editor, a mentor, and a friend.   Most of all, he is one hell of a writer.

Armand’s new novella Tool Shed, has been unleashed on the world today from Angelic Knight Press.

When Michael Zaun takes possession of his late grandfather’s farm, he finds out he inherited more than he bargained for. Dubbed the “Tool Shed Murders,” the details of the deaths of two girls on the property, and his grandfather’s, seemingly by his own hand, are a little murky. Was his grandfather a monster or a hero?

The discovery of his grandfather’s journal awakens within him a new confidence. But what about the demon his grandfather mentioned? Is it real or just the ranting of a diseased mind?

 With the help of his friends, old and new, Michael will find not only the answer to that question, but a new strength within himself.

Armand sat down to answer some questions for as part of a whirlwind promotional tour through the blogosphere.

 

1. What was the inspiration for Tool Shed?

The initial idea for the story began many years ago, when I was buying every Leisure Books paperback I could get my hands on. I loved the stories that Don was editing, and they were all classic horror tales. I wanted to someday write a ‘traditional’ horror tale, with a monster or demonic entity harassing our hero. I originally thought it from the grandfather’s POV, with the murders happening on the farm. Then I put it away and began writing a dozen other stories. But while reading The Rising, or one of Brian Keene’s zombie books, I came across a point where he talks about dead cows in the field. The line ‘The cows had exploded’ came to me, and I immediately thought of my Tool Shed idea. I rearranged the story a bit and began writing.

2. What other books in the genre would you compare it too?

I’d love to think my story holds a candle to classic Leisure Books work from John Everson, Keene, Douglas Clegg, and Simon Wood. But those books are amazing, and the period when Dorchester was firing on all cylinders is still my favorite books to read and re-read. I started writing it with them in mind, to be honest. Then, when it all fell down and burned, I decided to find another publisher that I wanted to be associated with. That was Angelic Knight Press. I was lucky because they obviously loved it enough to publish it, and I didn’t have it sitting at half a dozen publishers, trying to get sold.

3. Is it a series? Will we get to revisit the characters?

Kind of. There is a longer novel I’ve written called Chelsea Avenue, ‘starring’ the elementals as well but set in Long Branch, New Jersey beginning in 1987. I’m doing edits on the story and hope to get it ready to make the rounds as well very soon. It’s another story that is many years in the making, and another more traditional horror tale.

4. What made you step away from the zombies that populate some of your other writing?

I never set out to be known as a zombie author. I wanted to write horror stories, period. When I wrote Highway To Hell it was only my second zombie story, after the flash fiction piece “Anything But Luck” starring Darlene Bobich (who has been my main character in all the Dying Days zombie stories) and I thought I wouldn’t be writing too many more. Wow, was I wrong. The zombie stories struck a chord with readers, and I still find myself adding more and more to the Dying Days universe. But I still write horror stories, and just released a print horror short story collection, Skulls And Bones, that contains nine stories and none of them are zombies. I swear.

5. The main character, Michael, is a large man. No chiseled abs or buff physique there. And yet, he’s basically the hero. Why write him that way?

I’m a big guy, pushing 300 lbs. I can relate to the character and his physical limitations, although I’d like to think I’m in better shape than Michael. I didn’t want a Vin Diesel He-man in the story. I wanted a group of normal people, and even his best friend is more geek than anything. Characters that are relatable to a reader, instead of buff male strippers hanging out with super-hot chicks. I only do that in my real life.

So, go and buy yourself a good horror read for the holiday season.  You can find it Amazon and you won’t be sorry you entered the Tool Shed.

Goodnight…

Hell Cometh…

Tonight is something a little different.  In a blitz to bring attention to a very unique and gifted individual, a group of other authors have banded together to introduce you to Todd Card.  To learn more about Todd and what he faces as a writer and in life, you can check out his interview with Rebbeca Besser here.

To peek in at his site or to go and buy one Hell of a book, follow your cursor to these links below…

Official site: http://www.hellcometh.com/

Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/Hell-Cometh-Todd-Card/dp/0983655847/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1353421914&sr=8-2&keywords=Hell+Cometh+todd+card
While we gather to give thanks and count our blessings this week, please don’t forget those who aren’t as lucky as we are.  Before we go out and throw money at store employees who had to give up their holiday so you can shop on Thanksgiving night, take  or do something to pay forward in thanks for all the things you have in your life.  Be nice, help the less fortunate, or give.  There are many in our country suffering right now and we as a country must step up individually to lend that hand and reach out to those who need help.

In closing, don’t eat so much tomorrow your belly explodes if you eat that one last thin mint wafer, stay safe, and I want to personally  thank all of you who follow the blog/read the stories/or just hang here with me.  When I see the followers and such, I want to continue on even at times when I’m ready to throw the laptop out of the window.  Thank you.

Goodnight…

The Wheel Keeps Turning

Sitting in the darkened theater with my two sons watching “Skyfall”, something hit me.  A major portion of the storyline for the movie is how much the world has moved on and that age will eventually catch up with all of us in the end.  Since my mind is prone to wandering, it started to really think long and hard about those themes running in my life.  The whole thing really was triggered a few weeks ago on my birthday.  Sitting at a few years from 40, the realization of age and mortality begins to set deeply in.

I’m not going to sit here and say, “well, I hiked 20 miles in the snow for a cold biscuit”, to say how old I am.  I will sit here and miss the days of my innocence.  Looking at my sons, I feel bad for them.  I’m not saying they have it rough, believe me…they don’t, but their childhood compared to mine is so much more complicated.  I have to shove them out the door in the summer when we used to get in trouble for not being back when it got dark.  We didn’t have phones, iPods, our own computers, the internet, and the vast amounts of video games.  We played on a playground, we rode our bikes for miles, we played baseball and football games that lasted all day, and the occasions we did play video games was only for an hour or so before we turned them off and went outside again.

I think this is more the rambling reminisces of a man who is creeping to the mid-way point and the memories from the simple days of youth come roaring back.  The increased burdens life throws on makes the mental jaunts back to the bygone days more and more welcome.  Raising a family, working a job, doing volunteer work for the kids, and trying to keep the writing gig going takes a toll on you after a long while.  Believe me, I feel done most of the time anymore.  I think the thing that weighs on me the most right now is the writing.  The balancing act between working on a story, looking for markets, the social media aspects, and trying to sell your work is trying.

But for those times when the world seems to suck the life out of me, I fight back with Star Wars (I will also be doing a podcast interview soon where I know they will ask about my feelings on the whole Star Wars-Disney thing)…

Goodnight…

(OK, I realize that is in fact not night, but it seems to have become my sign-off line.  Now bugger off, it’s night somewhere in the world right now…)

Yes, that is me in a Yoda ears hat and posing with my R2-D2 Pepsi cooler, get over it…

Halloween is Near, So Let Us Coffin Hop!

Here we are again kiddies, the baddest of bad, the scariest of scary, the Coffin Hop 2012.  Last year I wrote several posts about authors I dig that you should be digging too.  In my “10 Questions” feature I have from time to time, John Everson , Nate Southard, and Jeff Strand entered the arena and survived their battles.  This year I want to take it back a bit.  There is one guest lined up to step in the arena and as soon as the interview comes back, you’ll be in for a treat.  The other days, I want to focus on what music, movies, books, and such influence me and my work.

Before I begin however, there are some housekeeping things to tend to.  First, to see what other amazing authors are on the Coffin Hop go here and hit the Linky Link 2012 button, to check out the Scavenger Hunt at Melissa Smith’s website visit here, and to support the upcoming Coffin Hop anthology to benefit literacy programs by picking up some sweet Coffin Hop swag drag your mouse this way and click here.

For those who have found me here for the first time, hello.  I want you to step inside and get comfortable.  Fire up a cigar and pop open a beer.  Kick your feet up on the table, hell I don’t care.

But once you settle in and feel like everything is going to be ok, I’ll plunge you down into the dark depths of humanity and the evil lurking in the shadows of our very minds.

No, really…I’m glad your here and please feel free to roam around the site (nothing will bite…much).  This year is new to me because before I only had anthologies to promote, but this year I have my controversial novella In Memoriam.  A signed copy is part of this year’s prize package as well as an electronic copy of the Coffin Hop Anthology E.P. ( a short preview of next year’s full anthology), and a few nice paperbacks from some of my favorite horror authors.  To be entered in the drawing, you must make a comment on any blog post this week during the Coffin Hop or sign up to follow the blog (comment once-comment often).  You can earn extra entries by following me on Twitter or “liking” my fan page on Facebook (links are over on the side).  Already signed up for all the social media places to find me?  That’s fine, just comment and you’ll be entered!

Well, that does it for today.  Tune in Wednsday for the top 10 albums that haunt my dreams and me scream when I write and on Friday night, author Tim Lebbon stops by to answer the “10 Questions”!

Goodnight…

October’s Wrath

I haven’t had a post lately, but that is because I’ve been busy putting the finishing touches on In Memoriam and getting set to flip the calendar to October. 

And then it gets real scary.

During the month, I will be on a blog tour promoting In Memoriam, being a stop on two blog hops, and doing a handful of interviews and a podcast.  The cherry on top will be the release party/book signing on the 20th at Comics Unlimited in Evansville, Indiana from 4-7 pm with my brother from another mother (and great writer) Wesley Southard.  The signing is the first official signing for both of us and we hope to see everyone come down and hang out with us.  There might even be a surprise or two for you fiends brave enough to attend!

Once the dates for events get closer, I’ll let you know.  I can tell you now the first blog hop I will be on is from October 1st thru the 5th and from then on till Halloween I’ll be a whirling dervish of terror on the web.

So beware the ghosts and goblins, leave the nightlight on, and prepare for the invasion.

You’ve been warned…

The Re-Introduction of Brent Abell

Hello fellow readers!  The ride is hitting the end of the first hill and the fun is about to begin.  I have a lot of things going on right now and I figured it was time to give everyone a handy-dandy and all-in-one reference guide.  So, feel free to click on one or all of the links and join the party!

 

Blog- http://brentabell.wordpress.com/

Twitter- @BrentTAbell

Facebook Fan Page-   http://www.facebook.com/?ref=logo#!/pages/The-Dark-Fiction-of-Brent-Abell/342998632379521                      

  Amazon Page- amazon.com/author/brentabell

Once my novella and short story collection go up for sale, I will post links to those.

Bio:

My name is Brent Abell and I write horror fiction. For better or for worse, that is my calling and it pleases me. I live in Southern Indiana with a wife, two sons, and a pug who swears up and down he is the reincarnation of Alexander the Great. Oh, that last bit is fueled by my love of whiskey and a degree in history. Stop reading this now and go grab something I wrote and read it instead. What? I know I wrote this, but that’s besides the point, I meant go read something else that I wrote that is fictional.  Do you know what else pleases me?  Rum, walks on the beach, and cigars.  Yeah, they please me a lot.  So, feel free to stop by anytime to have a drink and to talk a while, I’ll be waiting.