Author: Travis

Enraptured

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Gee, I’m so surprised.  I’m still here.  According to a well-fueled media wave, the Biblical Rapture was supposed to happen at 6:00 p.m. yesterday, May 21. Jesus was supposed to come back and spirit away a few million of the most faithful and thus signal the beginning of Armageddon, which was to culminate in Doomsday on Oct. 21 this year. Hmm. Well, I’m still here, so I guess that means I’m not one of the “faithful.”  That’s a big “duh,” I suppose.  We’ll all have a lot more fun with those people gone. You suppose there’s going to be aContinue readingEnraptured

Hook ‘Em With First Lines

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I picked up (semi-) random assortment of novels from my TO BE READ pile today in a little exercise of curiosity. A truism for writing fiction nowadays is that the writer must grab the reader’s attention from the beginning.  If the reader (or acquisitions editor) isn’t hooked by the end of the first page, she’s likely to put the book down. So what I’ve compiled a few first lines that handful of my novels to be read.  These range from new authors to old hands and heavy-hitters. So tell me which of these you find the most compelling and why.Continue readingHook ‘Em With First Lines

Bin Laden is Dead, or How to Define a Decade

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“It is missing the point to think that the martial art is solely in cutting a man down.  It is not in cutting people down; it is in killing evil.  It is the stratagem of killing the evil of one man and giving life to ten thousand.” – Yagyu Munenori, The Life Giving Sword How do you define a decade? By committing an act of far-reaching, shocking, ruthless violence. I hadn’t had such a strange mixture of surprise, relief and hope in a long time, but it was strangely mixed with things like skepticism, sadness, and trepidation. I was trollingContinue readingBin Laden is Dead, or How to Define a Decade

Historical Lovecraft Anthology Now Available

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*Insert Author Happy Dance here* Just got my author copy of Historical Lovecraft: Tales of Horror Through Time from Innsmouth Free Press. Since “An Idol for Emiko” is my first Lovecraftian tale, I’m mighty excited to see it in print.  The story places some of Lovecraft’s iconic baddies in a 17th-century Japanese fishing village. Bad things ensue.

All Aboard for Some “Malicious Deviance”

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I almost popped a rivet — in a good way — on Saturday when a package came in the mail from Library of Horror Press.  Malicious Deviance, a new anthology that includes a short story by yours truly.  The story is called, “Punishment.”  How far can human beings’ ability to become accustomed to pain and cruelty be pushed? Malicious Deviance: Stories about Bad People is available now on Amazon.

World Fantasy Convention Update

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I found out today I’ll be participating the Asian Horror panel at the World Fantasy Convention in two weeks, Halloween weekend.  The panel takes place at 9 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 28. If you’re planning on being there, check it out! No word yet on whether I have a slot for doing a reading, but I certainly hope so. Needless to say, I’m pretty stoked about this.  This will mark my first panel at a BIG con, so for someone who’s just starting out in this business, it feels like a real milestone. I’m sensing an upcoming Ringu/Ju-on/Kwaidan/Takashi Miike binge…

Upcoming Excursions and Events

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The rest of the month of October is going to be busy on Ye Olde Fiction Circuit. October 22-24 – Mile Hi Con – Denver, Co: I’ll be doing a panel on the Resurgence of All Things Pulp, joining the SF Poetry Slam, plus doing a reading and a book signing. October 28-31 – World Fantasy Convention – Columbus, OH:  I don’t know if I’ve gotten on any panels yet, but I’m planning on taking part in the Mass Autograph/Book Signing Session, and hopefully doing a reading as well. If you’re attending any of these events, look me up!

Author Interview Series #64 – Catherine Cheek

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Meet Catherine Cheek, or Kater if you know her.  You gotta love a woman with pink hair (at least it was pink when we met at World Fantasy Convention last fall–my god, has it really been almost a year?). As so often happens at conventions like WFC, amidst a lot of “Where do I know your name from….”, Kater knew who I was because of having read Heart of the Ronin for Adventures in Sci-Fi Publishing, and she walked right up and introduced herself to me.  Several interesting conversations later over the course of the convention, here we are. KaterContinue readingAuthor Interview Series #64 – Catherine Cheek

Author Interview Series #63 – Lisa Goldstein

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Last fall at the World Fantasy Convention, I took the opportunity to attend the banquet, where the World Fantasy Awards are presented.  One of my charming dining companions was author Lisa Goldstein, who won the American Book Award for her novel The Red Magician in 1983. Since then, her books span multiple genres and milieus, from the historical to the purely imaginative.

Reading with Two Local Authors

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Whaddaya know! Who’d have thought this many spec-fic authors lived in Omaha?  Yours truly will be doing a reading with local authors Marcus Pelegrimas and Matt Rotundo. When: Sunday, July 18th, 2010 Where: 13th Street Coffee Shop, 521 South 13th Street, Omaha So come, enjoy some good stories and support your local talent!