New Steampunk Anthology From Echelon Press

On Monday February 14th, Karen Syed from Echelon Press announced an upcoming Steampunk anthology named Her Majesty's Mysterious Conveyance to be released May 2011.  Some of the authors featured will be Nick Valentino (aka Sir Thomas Riley), Sean Hayden, Kim Lankin-Smith, Jennifer Williams and the wonderful Adam Christopher.

I'm very excited about this anthology and as details come out will keep you posted here.  Congratulations to all the authors!

A Chat With Mark Allan Gunnells

Today we're lucky enough to interview author Mark Allan Gunnells whose new zombie novella ASYLUM has recently been released from The Zombie Feed.  I thoroughly enjoyed ASYLUM and was excited to be able to chat with Mark and find out more about the man behind the story...

Hello Mark, it's a pleasure to have you here on Betwixt! Can you give the readers who may be unfamiliar with you and your work a brief introduction of yourself?


Well, I wish I had something very interesting to tell about myself. I’m actually kind of a boring guy. I work, I read, I write, I watch Buffy on DVD…rinse and repeat. However, a lot of interesting things are always happening in my imagination, resulting in what I hope are some entertaining stories.

Your new novella ASYLUM just got released by The Zombie Feed; I thought it was fantastic! Where did you get the idea for this story? Did you have any trepidations about the gay angle of your story? Was it harder to publish it?

I’ve long been a fan of the Romero zombie films, that formula of a disparate group of people barricaded together against an onslaught of the undead. It’s a great way to explore characters, friction between different types of people, the power dynamics. To me, that’s the interesting part of those kinds of stories. As a gay man, however, I used to watch these movies and think, “Why are there never any gay survivors?” That really stuck out to me, how we were never represented in such tales. So I wanted to write a story with the familiar formula but introduce characters that readers might not used to be seeing.

As for whether or not I had any trepidations about the gay angle of the story…truth is, I don’t write that way. When I’m in the midst of creating a story, I rarely give a thought to publication. So I’m not worried about how publishers will view it or readers. I basically write whatever the hell it occurs to me to write then try to entertain myself. Only when I’m done do I start pondering markets and publishers and things like that.

I did have a hard time getting this one published. I actually had almost given up on ever finding a home for it. It wasn’t just the gay aspect that made it had to place, although I’m sure there were some publishers that shied away from that. For some publishers it was too traditional, even with the inclusion of the nontraditional characters. For others, it focused a little too much on character and not enough on horror. These were all things I understood, but I still felt passionately about the tale and was so happy Jason Sizemore at The Zombie Feed accepted it.

I’m glad they accepted it, too or we all would have missed out on a great tale! And I for one loved that it was so character driven... so you’ve always been a horror fan from way back; do you only write in the horror genre? How has your road to publication been as a gay man?

Horror has always been my genre, from a very young age. I was walking down to the local one-screen theater to see the newest Halloween, Nightmare, and Friday films long before I should have actually been allowed in. I’ve been reading horror fiction from a young age as well. Now horror isn’t all I enjoy, and I do write outside the genre, but horror is my first love and my truest passion, and I keep returning to it.

The road to publication has been rough, but I think it is for most, and I don’t think my being gay had anything to do with it. Honestly, at least half the stories I write don’t even feature gay characters, and those that do often treat the sexuality of the characters as merely a mundane trait like eye color or height. ASYLUM is one of the few that really delves deeply into gay issues.

Who has been an influence on you as a writer?

That’s a hard question. I try not to emulate anyone really, but there are many writers I admire and in some cases envy. If I had an idol it would be Joe R. Lansdale, who shows such an eclectic mix of interests, crosses genres with ease, shows how powerful simplicity can be, and seems adept at both shorts and novels. As someone who loves short stories, Clive Barker is someone I admire because he came to prominence for collections before he started putting out novels; also as a gay man I admire his openness. It may be cliché, but King is someone whose talent I respect and who seems to have maintained a genuine passion for storytelling despite all the fortune and fame.

Those are all amazing storytellers and Clive Barker is just...WOW!

How has it been working with the team at The Zombie Feed? It must be exciting to be the FIRST author published by this new imprint!

The team at TZF have been absolutely terrific. They took a chance on this novella and have worked tirelessly to promote it. My experience with them has been a dream and I hope to work with them again in the future. And I was quite honored to be the first TZF release. Honored and humbled.

What else do our readers have to look forward from you?

Yes, I currently have a book, WHISONANT/CREATURES OF THE LIGHT, out from Sideshow Press that features two novellas and is designed as a flipbook, one story with its own cover on one side then flip it upside down and turn it over and you have the second story with its own cover. http://sideshowpressonline.com/?page_id=4&category=3&product_id=28.  My short story collection TALES FROM THE MIDNIGHT SHIFT VOL. I will also be out from Sideshow this winter. And finally, I have a digital short entitled “Dancing in the Dark” available from Darkside Digital.  http://www.darkside-digital.com/dancing-in-the-dark-by-mark-allan-gunnells.html

They both sound great, Mark; I can’t wait to read them! Thank you for taking the time to sit down with me here in my lil’ ol’ piece of the blogosphere and I look forward to more awesome reads from you!

Review: Slights by Kaaron Warren (Angry Robot)

Slights is the first novel from Kaaron Warren and what a debut it is!

It is being labeled as a horror novel but there isn't a vampire or a zombie in sight here; in Slights Kaaron Warren explores a different kind of horror, one that is chilling, brutal and all too human.

Slights chronicles the slow descent into madness of Stevie, a young woman with a damaged soul.  When we meet her, Stevie and her mother have gotten into a car accident.  Her mother dies but Stevie finds herself in "a dark room" filled with every person that she has ever slighted in her life, who are waiting to exact their revenge on her.  She survives the accident but is curious about the dark room, what it means and if others experience the same thing and from here her curiousity becomes a terrible obsession.

Warren has won the Ditmar Award for Best Novel of 2010 and the Shadows Award for Best Fiction of 2009 for Slights and it is a no brainer as to why.  The novel is beyond brilliant, a depraved masterpiece of psychological horror.  I don't believe I've ever read anything quite like it and it has definitely quenched my thirst for a truly disturbing read that I couldn't put down.  There were passages that were brutal to read yet I soldiered on and believe me when I say that this book will live with me for a long time. Yes, I thought it lengthy, with a slow buld up but the pay off in the end is completely worth the journey that Warren takes us on. What Warren has done with Slights is to have written a book that will be talked about for years to come, a book that is a shining example of how literate and beautiful horror can be while keeping all those zombies and vamps in its formidable shadow.

Review: Asylum by Mark Allan Gunnells (The Zombie Feed)

ASYLUM is a new novella by Mark Allan Gunnells from the micro press The Zombie Feed. I am a HUGE fan of apocalyptic zombie fiction and with Gunnells setting his story in a gay bar, I immediately tore into it, curious to see how his twist on this claasic horror staple would play out.

Gunnells had me from the first sentence. ASYLUM starts off with a hook up in the parking lot of a gay night club and just skyrockets from there.  Curtis and Jimmy are the two friends who first realize that the impossible has happened, that they are being surrounded by a growing hoard of shuffling, fleah eating zombies.  They flee into the club and have to convince the other club patrons that all their lives are in danger and that they have to barricade themselves in.

What Gunnells does from here is tell the story from multiple viewpoints, allowing each character to take center stage while giving us a glimpse at their backstory.  This helps us to care about these people and what happens to them.  Knowing that they probably won't survive to see the morning makes each of them react in different ways and Gunnells handles it all with great skill, keeping the story fast paced while adding depth to his characters.

The tension builds nicely as the story unfolds and the ending is perfect.  For me ASYLUM is more tragic than horrific, so fans of the more blood splattered, hard core zombie fiction may think this too tame for them.  However, I found it an original, worthy addition to both the wide ranging zombie genre and to the gay horror field.  Kudos to Mr Gunnells for this fresh new zombie tale and to The Zombie Feed for unleashing it upon us!

2011 Stephen King Challenge

I came across this reading challenge through Twitter; it comes from the fabulous ladies at Book Chick City.  The challenge is to read 6-12 Stephen King novels by December 31 2011.  I'm totally going to join in since this will give me the motivation to read some of his more recent work; Cell, Duma Key and Under The Dome are definitely on the list.

If you'd like to join in as well, you can see the details here.

And we're off and running!  :)

My Favorite Books Of 2010!

The year is almost over and even though Life hasn't allowed me time to blog and review as I should (an issue I'm rectifying in January), I didn't want 2010 to end without one last post to cap off my first year of blogging and reviewing.  So hear is my list of my Top 10 Favorite reads of the year! 

I didn't want to call it a "Best Of..." since some of the books weren't published in 2010 but I still think that these books should be sought out by you and enjoyed, as I think that they are all well worth your time.  If some names are unfamiliar to you but my reviews pique your interest, please support these authors and check out these and their other works.  You won't be sorry!

So in no paticular order and without further ado...My Favorite Books Of 2010!

Sea, Swallow Me by Craig Laurance Gidney

12 Burning Wheels by Cesar Torres

Tales From The Sexual Underground  by Rick R Reed

...these three books are as different from each other as can be but each is also a terrific collection of short stories from very talented authors.  Craig Laurance Gidney reimagines old fairy tales and myth with his own unique vision; in his collection, Cesar Torres uses sensual, beautiful language to introduce us to the bizarre worlds that populate his mind; and speaking of bizarre, Rick R Reed explores an entire sexual landscape in his collection of fiction and non fiction pieces that range from erotic to laugh out loud funny. 

Contraband by Charlie Vazquez is a fast paced, gritty future earth tale where the protagonist literally becomes the contraband of the title.  Charlie Vazquez tells the tale of Volfango in a visual, poetic voice and I look forward to seeing more from this author soon.

A Demon Inside is a chilling haunted house story and the latest triumph from Rick R Reed that kept me on the edge of my seat til the last page.  Rick pulls no punches here with the chills and thrills and this is probably my favorite book from him.

So Fey, Queer Fairy Fiction and Wilde Stories 2010 are two amazing anthologies from Lethe Press, both edited by the esteemed Steve Berman.  I love stories that remix old ideas into something that honors the original work while also being fresh and contemporary and So Fey pulls this off beautifully.  Wilde Stories is a collection of queer SFF that Lethe Press releases annually and there are some brilliant stories to be found here as well.

Much was made of Death Troopers by Joe Schreiber when just the cover was posted on the internet and after I picked up the paperback, I could understand why.  It is simply a grand, gruesome story that is truly horrorific that just happens to take place in the Star Wars universe and IT TOTALLY WORKS!  I absolutely loved it! 

Slights by Kaaron Warren is probably on everyone's "Best Of..." lists and once you read it, you will see why.  It is brilliant,  a chilling, horrific work that chronicles a young woman's slow descent into madness.  It was a little long for me but the work as a whole is a must read for any and all horror afficionados.

The Clockwork Jungle Book from Shimmer was my introduction to Steampunk this year and it was such an amazing collection that with every story I became more and more of a fan of the genre.  (So much so that I want to start a weekly feature on Steampunk books and stories!  I'm very excited!)  Each story deserves its own review; the standouts for me, however, were The Jackdaw's Wife by Blake Hutchins, The Student And The Rats by Jess Nevins, Otto's Elephant by Vince Pendergast, The Fishbowl by Amal El-Mohtar and The Mechanical Aviary Of  Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar by Sweta Narayan.

So this is my first year end list of Must Read Books for Betwixt...and I hope that you seek out these books and keep checking this blog for more reviews and book news in 2011!  Happy New Year!

News From Angry Robot!

New author news this week from Angry Robot:

First up, Angry Robot welcomes Jo Anderton

Jo Anderton

New Australian author Jo Anderton has signed to Angry Robot for at least two novels in her Veiled Worlds series. The worldwide deal, covering physical books and eBooks, was done by agent Anni Haig-Smith and Angry Robot’s publishing director, Marc Gascoigne. Debris will be published in the autumn of 2011, with direct sequel Suited scheduled to follow in early-to-mid 2012.

Series opener Debris introduces us to Tanyana, leader of a matter-manipulating team. Following an accident, she’s dismayed to be demoted to little more than a garbage collector, but it soon becomes obvious she’s been manipulated into that role by the faceless faction she calls the Puppet Men, to uncover a world-shattering secret.

That man Marc Gascoigne said, “With the ever-increasing popularity of Japanese and Korean anime, manga and computer games, it’s been surprising that there hasn’t been more SF and fantasy showing its influence. Debris’s mix of SF and fantasy themes, exotic future-medieval settings, Dune-esque warring factions, and a fabulous kick-ass heroine is exactly the sort of on-trend science fiction Angry Robot was set up to publish. We’re damned pleased to have Jo on board.”

Jo added, “I’ve been reading Angry Robot books since their first giant, metallic steps and absolutely loving them. Debris started out as an idea about a magical version of the industrial revolution and a scarred garbage collector who saves the world, but still has to pay her rent. Add a few motley companions, a pinch of probably-misinterpreted quantum physics, and far too much time spent in front of various Final Fantasy video games. I’m thrilled my books have found a home at Angry Robot.”

Then, new announcement about Matthew Hughes:

With all the new author news around here recently and prepping/raising alcohol tolerances for Fantasycon, we’ve had to keep this under wraps for a few weeks. Which has been a struggle, because this is so damn cute.


Yes, it’s the cover for Matthew Hughes‘ first Angry Robot novel, The Damned Busters. The artist is the wonderful Tom Gauld, who you may know for his great editorial cartoons in, for example, The Guardian newspaper’s book review section. He’s only done a few book covers, most recently for the US edition of the Neil Gaiman- and Al Sarrantonio-curated Stories anthology, but maybe we can change that.

And as you can see, the cover pretty much tells you the set-up of the novel. Mild-manned insurance actuary Chesney Arnstruther accidentally summons a demon, and by hook or by crook ends up with his heart’s desire – to be a superhero. But as we all know, it’s not always wise to get what one wishes for…

Complete with lovely Angry Robot logo, the book, volume one of the To Hell and Back series, will be in stores and for download May/June next year. The sequels will also have covers by Tom, because, well, he’s bloody great.