tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83447632832203162872024-03-13T00:42:46.111-07:00halwagnerlocalheroRamblings out of my head and into yours. I enjoy a little bit of everything and I never have a one track mind.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.comBlogger71125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-72096250605626955052018-12-13T19:38:00.000-08:002018-12-13T19:38:44.148-08:00Finally getting in to something new Similarly to the start of many of my stories, I saw what other people were doing and thought I could do better, or at least different. After a few short horror films I watched, a friend and I said we could do better. So on the drive home we kicked around ideas and after a schnitzel and Tucher we had the outline for a short film, "You're Next Stan"<br />
With limited space, money, time and talent, we have set out to tell a horror story in about five minutes. If the story is good enough, none of those limitations will matter.<br />
Anyone that watches this and knows me then they will see the influence that Twilight Zone has had on me. So when I say, 'horror' its in that realm. It's got a monster, a bunker and people who talk through two way radios. Most importantly it has a twist. <br />
So far we have had a lot of fun building the set and re-working the script to make it tighter and smarter. We still have a long way to go to get everything right. I'm looking forward to every step. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-66180856860481105272018-10-24T20:50:00.000-07:002018-12-26T06:23:16.648-08:00New Titles to choose from I finally got a couple of new titles out this year and what a long year it has been. I would call it the year of uncertainty but I'm not sure of that yet. However, to steal a line from a movie I love, "we must endeavor to persevere". And speaking of stealing, have you read Grimes' Punishment?<br />
Grimes is the latest hardboiled detective I have thought up. My first was Jack Hennessey from the novel Division Six. Directly out of Jack came Chamberlain Cotton from my novel Blood Oranges. Hennessey is a grizzled detective beyond his years due to a little super natural mineral, but none the less, he is the quintessential1950's boiled PI. Cotton is softer than Jack but also set in the 1950's. As Cotton grew into his own, I kind of saw him as Jim Rockford-esque. Another thing these two characters had in common was that they were both established in the PI trade. Jack, due to an alien rock, looked 35 but was actually 50. Cotton who was about 35 had been a PI and bounty hunter for years. With these two investigators already down in print, I stepped back and wondered what their first day of work may have been like. So Roger Grimes stepped up and became a PI.<br />
Grimes is neither an ex-cop nor solider. He is a guy about 30 who sees his time as a thief coming to an end. He wants out before a federal rap can catch up to him. A job test offered the idea for PI. Simple course work got him a license and he was off.<br />
Grimes had not forgotten his thief ways and used a lot of his street training as well as MMA training, in his new job when a powerful local attorney hires Grimes to help an old friend find his missing daughter. The job takes Grimes down the darkest of paths, pushing his limits beyond any laws he broke as a thief, and tests what little morality he has left.<br />
There are several "out of retirement" bad asses out there but no stories of what those men were before they retired. Grimes' Punishment is just that tale, one of a man who wants to do good, do right for his wrongs, and gets none of that. Hard boiled and as noir as it gets, Grime's Punishment is how it all began.<br />
For a review check out <a href="http://sonsofspade.blogspot.com/2018/09/grimes-punishment-roger-grimes-by-hal.html" target="_blank">Sons of Spade</a><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-17539672967274747012017-06-14T18:35:00.001-07:002017-06-14T18:35:18.216-07:002017....the year I publish something again...I hope.<b> Yes, I am still writing. I have yet to publish anything in the last two years. Now 2017 is halfway over and things are busy. I am finally wrapping up projects I started as far back as 2014 and the light at the end of that dark tunnel is just a speck, but it is there. One of my bigger projects to be released will be Snitch.</b><br />
<b> Snitch is a comic book I have been working on with artists, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/efbald/" target="_blank">EF Bald</a> and <a href="http://baldbros.com/" target="_blank">Bob Bald</a> otherwise known as the Blad Bros. The Balds are super talented and so much fun to drink, I mean work with. </b><br />
<b> The story of Snitch is one of revenge and death. The main character awakens covered in fresh scars over most of his body and missing his tongue. He has been stitched back together with no memory of who he was or why he was cut up. Brief glimpses into his past reveal he was cut up by nine men. Each man's face matches with a list of names in a note book. Before he kills a small time hood named Jarrod Killjoy, one of the men on his hit list, Killjoy reveals that he is the Snitch. </b><br />
<b> The Snitch can not control his need for revenge and continues, not knowing why, to kill the men on his list. As the body count grows the police and the mayor are involved. </b><br />
<b> Snitch has help. A prostitute named Cinnamon Child has become a self proclaimed "Agent of The Streets" (created by EF Bald). She sees how Snitch is cleaning things up. Through her own twisted moral inklings she helps Snitch. </b><br />
<b> All in all, I really enjoyed writing a comic book. The script process is similar to film. What makes it difficult is having to convey the story in one frame. Each page is several seconds to minutes of a film. Luckily I have EF and Bob with their twisted artist views of the world. They have managed to pull out of my "dumb words" a story that should be told. I just hope my dumb words can hold up to their art.</b><br />
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<b><span id="goog_543067425"></span><span id="goog_543067426"></span><br /></b>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-2352835098881719292016-11-08T16:58:00.000-08:002017-02-27T11:09:17.180-08:00Neo-Noir in the works <b>Like I have said in past posts, I have creative A-D-D, and what good creative person doesn't. As I started to compile notes on the third instalment of my series The Five, I suddenly got the idea to do an anthology of flash fiction of the criminal persuasion. So I sat down and wrote, tweaked and expanded a collection of short crime fiction stories. I now have 12 stories all together. </b><br />
<b></b> <b>At roughly 8,000 words I needed more for the book. Since I love art and all the pulp crime novels of the 1950's-1960's I decided I needed to add original art to each story. I can draw and love to draw. My drawings never match up to what I see in my mind so I usually scrap it. I'm not good enough but I know who is... Each story will have it's own "Cover" page. I am leaving the art up to the artist. So far I have three artists on board and hope to add a couple more before the anthology is over. </b><br />
<b> As for the stories...they will be flash fiction crime pieces around the 800 word mark. 800 words count came to be as I wrote with the goal of 700, and I did it for most of the stories. At 700 words the stories were crisp and to the point as flash fiction should be, snapshots into the lives of people you wouldn't normally want to meet. Each story came together and was shelved for the next. Once I had them all I went over them and over them and then once more. A tweak here and add on there. Soon each story began to fill out at the 800-850 mark. I was satisfied with that and I feel the readers will be too. </b><br />
<b> So far a few of the titles are (tentatively) <i>Nail Bitter, Dog Walker, Iron that Binds</i> plus a few more. </b><br />
<b>Here is a sample to wet your crime pallets...</b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Her eyes, the color of envy, had me frozen. It didn’t matter either that the blood on her hands was still wet and dripping at the end of the tire iron. </span></div>
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<b> As I wrap up this post and the bourbon soaks into my liver I am ever convinced I will draw one of those covers myself. Not sure which one. </b><br />
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<b>P.S. I don't have a title yet so if you have one leave it in the comments below. </b></div>
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-50315400295019259712016-05-18T16:30:00.001-07:002016-05-18T16:30:37.729-07:00New Project Old Goals<strong> I admit when it is slow at work I plug in my flash drive and write. Lately I have been writing a lot. I started a new novella that accompanies The Five series and I decided to write a screen play for an idea that came out of some photos my friend and co-author, Jorge Sastre took. </strong><br />
<strong> Our mutual friend, Jose, posed for a photo shoot and Jorge with his sick mind came up some killer (pun) shots. I told him there was a story in there and the two of us got to creating. Jorge was busy finishing photography school and didn't have time to write. I had too much time. So I wrote. Then I did nothing. Blocked. </strong><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jorge and I doing a read through for our book trailer from The Collectors</td></tr>
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<strong> Last week a comic book artist, Darwyn Cooke passed away. He was 53 and had done a series of graphic novels, Parker, based on the Richard Stark (Westlake) novels about a thief named Parker. I loved his stylized art with shadow for that noir two tone shading. I was sad to hear he passed. The point I am making is this: I need to do something. Something bigger than I have done before. Something that includes my closest friends. That something would be a film. I dusted off the old script and jumped in. </strong><br />
<strong> Since then I have completed almost two acts. I have also begun to do what I do best, assemble a team. I think its from watching A-Team as a kid and of course I'm Hannibal. Face when I was younger and had hair.</strong><br />
<strong> This is going to be tough and grueling but it's what I want, for me and for my friends. </strong><br />
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-7378501875475606132016-03-29T16:18:00.001-07:002016-03-29T16:18:44.370-07:00Back to Writing! I saw an Instagram post today that really struck a cord and that cord reverberated all day. It read, "Being a writer is like having homework for the rest of your life." So true! I stopped enjoying "free time" the day I realized, rather than go crazy, I'd write stories. After that day I replaced free time with homework. <br />
The thing is, as a kid, I hated homework. I believed it to be a tool for lazy teachers who couldn't get it down in the classroom. I have to admit now the practice of doing homework after a day at school is paying off. See, I work at a school now and do my homework at night. For a long time now I have done very little homework. I focused more on thinking about how to get out of it than actually just completing what I could. Call it a muse or call it resorting back to what I know, either way I have begun to write again. Homework has never been so fun. <br />
In my so far completed trilogy, The Five, there is a three year. Those missing three years had always been planned to be filled in. Well, after a few years it has come time to do that. My coauthor and I have begun finalizing our book "ideas" and finally getting back to doing our homework. <br />
Keep checking back for updates, chapter samples and the best part, the art that goes along with it. <br />
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-77448803107037394042016-03-08T15:22:00.000-08:002016-03-08T15:22:45.356-08:00Two authors walk into a bar...one is Joe Haldeman<strong> I got a text from a bar manager I know. He says, come to the bar tonight I want you to meet a friend of mine. So of course I go because I know who he is talking about. His friend is <a href="http://www.joehaldeman.com/" target="_blank">Joe Haldeman</a>, author of many science fiction books, most notably <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Forever-War-Joe-Haldeman/dp/0312536631" target="_blank">Forever War</a>. </strong><br />
<strong> Just before 7, the agreed upon time, I get there and grab a table in the back so I can see most of the place. The waitress brings me my beer and I wait. The manager comes over and says, come with me. We take two strides and stop at the table in front of me. There sitting with his wife and sister-in-law is Joe. I got nervous. </strong><br />
<strong> The introductions are made and I babble on. Surprisingly they ask me to sit. So I sit and continue to babble. Slowly it turns into pretty good conversation. Gay, Joe's wife, couldn't be nicer. It turns out we have similar day jobs so we talked shop while Joe ate his pizza! </strong><br />
<strong> After a while I went back to my table and texted as many people as I could, recounting my time with Joe over and over. It wasn't over just yet.</strong><br />
<strong> As they paid their tab, Gay came over and asked if I wanted a picture with Joe and she also asked for one of my business cards. I couldn't believe it. Thanks to my writing partner, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Forrest-Parham/e/B00FJIQR5K" target="_blank">Forrest</a>, I had some on me and we exchanged contact info. </strong><br />
<strong> What a great night. It was so cool to meet a giant in the field of scifi and talk to him like a regular guy. This was no comic con snap a pic for $75 and be ushered off. They made time for me and I greatly appreciated that. </strong><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-71487562589978165402015-11-07T19:20:00.002-08:002015-11-07T19:20:52.066-08:00New venture <strong>I know I have mentioned my condition, creative ADD. Yeah its a thing, if not it should be. I was talking with a fellow author/creator and totally got what I was saying. I start to write and BOOM I switch up and start writing something different. Anyway, that is not my point today. </strong><br />
<strong> Today I want to write about an upcoming project that is actually getting under way. I have started other comic books in the past with out really getting anywhere. But now I think this one is going to stick. You may have read in previous post my short flash fiction piece, Someone Snitched. Well go back and read it. Then come back and finish reading this post. </strong><br />
<strong>Good. You came back to finish reading this post. So check out the pics of the up coming comic. It should be out Spring of 2016. </strong><br />
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<strong> Snitch will be,as you can see, a neo noir comic with limited color. I am very excited for this, as that is the genre I enjoy writing the most. </strong>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-68399666746131903242015-09-12T20:24:00.001-07:002015-09-12T20:24:52.007-07:00Next Con<strong> <a href="http://2050.events/" target="_blank">2050 Events</a> is hosting a new convention in Daytona Beach, FL. October 30-Nov 1st and guess what? I will be there selling my latest book, The Five Episode 2 Salvation's Reign. We had such a great time at the Tampa Bay Comic Con last month that we just had to do it again. There was a lot of planning that went into that con working as well as it did. Success, I was told today, is when planning meets opportunity. </strong><br />
<strong> For me, other than selling books, I am most excited at the chance to meet Michael Biehn. He will be there to do a special screening of Aliens. Since Reese, from Terminator is a huge influence on my science fiction, I can only hope I get the chance to meet him. So now I just need to prepare to meet him so when the opportunity is there I succeed. </strong><br />
<strong> After 2050 things are only going to heat up for The Five. We have meetings with a major book retailer that will launch us globally as well as a couple of media outlets that will interview my coauthor and I. </strong><br />
<strong> Now begins the hard part. When book sales and signings reach that point where it becomes a second job. The dream is close, doing this full time, but not there yet. </strong>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-16299674990634660832015-08-12T09:57:00.003-07:002017-01-25T11:51:31.863-08:00Post Con-Tampa Bay Comic Con 2015 <strong><a href="http://tampabaycomiccon.com/" target="_blank">Tampa Bay ComicCon</a> was a great time and total success from just about any way I look back on it. We sold out of books, met and created great new fans of The Five as well as enhanced some friendships we already had. The atmosphere in Tampa was great. The people were way more laid back than what I have experienced at other cons especially Mega Con. </strong><br />
<strong> When the doors opened in the morning, there was no mad dash but rather a slow saunter in making sure to catch every table of every vendor and artist. </strong><br />
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<strong> Forker Media supplied us with a giant 8 foot tall Titainian and plenty of books to sell. The cut out was an eye catcher and people came from all over to check it out. We had two cosplayers tell us they want to try and build the suit for next year. There was also a very energetic man who insisted we make a video game. That would be great. Go ahead. </strong><br />
<strong> There is nothing like meeting people who really enjoy your work to inspire you to move ahead with other projects. While in the process of selling Episode I and II to this guy, another man stepped up and thanked Forrest and I for selling him the book. He said he had started reading it the day before and loved it. The man was I selling to stared at him and I said, "This is really happening. We did not stage this, this guy is for real." </strong><br />
<strong> Out of it all many lessons were learned, what we will do for the next Con and how we will do it. Best of all were the projects we were inspired to do after the con. I am currently writing three graphic novels and one manuscript. There is lots to do but I'm excited to do it. </strong>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-80242694890830616582015-04-27T15:28:00.001-07:002015-04-27T15:36:04.262-07:00Focusing on what I am and not the things I am not.<strong> The title of this post may sound negative or depressing but I assure you it is not. I could go down a philosophical rabbit hole that would leave us chasing our own tails, snared in a morally subjective argument. I am post philosophical queries and see myself in a way ascendant from that. Three lines into it and I'm already tired of talking about this. </strong><br />
<strong> To the point of my post title, I am a writer. I have decided to be one for some time. My success may appear small to some and large to others, again subjective, but I struggle onward to attain a position of comfort. Comfort being, I am my own boss and I seldom keep regular hours. At this present time, I am not. Now we're getting closer to the point I am making. And I say "we" because I am not certain I will ever get to my point. </strong><br />
<strong> Anyway, there are other things I am not as well as a financially secure writer. I am not a motorcyclist. I love them, seldom ride them, and never built one. Yes, I am one of those guys who builds not buys his rides. I saw a bike I really want on Craigslist the other day. It would be a perfect candidate for a brat tracker style build. Oh how I want this bike. Bills, commitments and responsibilities have trumped my moto-card once again. And this brings me to my original point.</strong><br />
<strong> What I want more than to be a motorcyclist, is a writer who does not live by an alarm clock to wake up and go to meetings about meetings then sit in a cube all day. So instead of day dreaming about the wind over my aerodynamic bald head I need to focus on the two graphic novels I have decided to write. Why? Because I am a writer.</strong> <br />
....<strong><em>more to come on those novels. Read my previous post for sneak peek of one of them</em></strong>.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-6693571111693038352015-01-22T18:01:00.001-08:002015-01-22T18:01:29.037-08:00A little Crime Flash Fiction for you <em><strong>I wrote this story a few years ago and had it published in an e-zine that has since gone away. So I will keep it up here. If you enjoyed the story let me know as I am currently working on expanding it.</strong></em> <br />
<br />
Someone Snitched<br />
by H.A.L. Wagner<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
It did not take
long to kill the first three men. With the door kicked in one caught a forty-five
to the head. The next thug took a bash across the bridge of his nose and then a
hard placed boot heel down on his neck. The third guy wielded a knife that ended
shoved up under his sternum. The stomach holds a lot of blood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
It was the last
guy that took longer to die but that was by design. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
The stranger took
his time with the rising star of the underworld. He would savor every snap and
pop of dislocated and broken bones. This last piece of trash, Jarrod Killjoy,
would die slow. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
The pocket
forty-five cracked and caught Jarrod behind the knee blowing it into a crimson
mist. Jarrod fell to the ground. He dragged himself towards the door but the
stranger stopped him with a vengeful stomp on the blown knee. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
The killer grunted
as cartilage and tendons crackled under foot. Jarrod could only gasp short
catches of air into lungs that would not fill. Then he whaled in a futile
attempt for absolution. The stranger was not granting forgiveness of sins,
tonight he was dealing out justice.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
“Who are you?”
Jarrod demanded to know his executioner, a last request from a sentenced man. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
The stranger
stepped into the light to show a snarled and seething face. The stranger’s
insanity hid his face from Jarrod Killjoy’s recollection. A tightly balled fist
hammered across Jarrod’s pale face. The man spit blood and a piece of his cheek
to the wood floor. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
Jarrod whimpered
then forced hard breaths in and out of his lungs to keep from passing out. The
stranger enjoyed the man’s willingness to suffer through what was about to
come. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
“Did the Ramos
cartel send you? I haven’t done anything wrong, I swear. This is all some kind
of mistake.” Jarrod began to plead. “Who sent you and maybe we can resolve
this. I have lots of cash.”</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
The unidentified
man gazed upon his heart’s desire. His eyes grew large with excited ideas. A
four inch serrated boot knife gleamed off what little light penetrated into the
fourth floor walk up. He crouched holding Jarrod’s left hand tugging on the
index finger. The blade sliced into the base of the finger cutting the tendon.
Jarrod’s screams only fueled the single-minded torturer urging him to cut more
digits on the hand. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Despite the pain, Jarrod’s need to know who was
to kill him took prominence in his frenzied brain. “If you’re working for the
Deluca brothers tell them their trucks will be there and loaded with
merchandise.”</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
The Stranger wiped
the blade off on Jarrod’s pleated pant leg. He tucked the knife back in the
boot. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
“Deluca brothers…”
Jarrod mumbled under his breath, presuming too much. His left hand was numb
except for the pinky that he could feel twitch. The stranger swiveled his head
“no”, then stomped on Jarrod’s pinky. When he lifted his boot what was left
looked like a string of pink dough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
Shock set into
Jarrod’s body. Shivering he grabbed his left hand at the wrist and cradled it
against his chest. With a whimper he said, “I am a very powerful man.”</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
The strangers grin
angered the dying man. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
“Listen stranger, I
have powerful friends. The mayor and half the city police are on my payroll.
You wont get far so go hide back in the hole where you came from you sadistic
fuck.” A swift kick in the nuts took the steam out of Jarrod’s building rage. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
The stranger
thought he might have gone too far too soon, when Jarrod Killjoy slumped over.
His pain threshold had exceeded their limits. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
Killjoy awoke on
the bed. He stared up at a slow turning fan. Lights from the city street
flashed below. For less than a second he thought it was a dream until he tried
to move. Exposed nerve endings fired pain into his brain brining back the
events of the night. The stranger sat in a chair near the door. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
“I have money
stranger. Lots of it, right here in this apartment. If you just call a doctor I
will give you all of it.”</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
The stranger sat
in silence. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
“Look there in the
top drawer of the dresser. There’s about a grand there and plenty more. What do
you say?” Killjoy motioned towards the phone on the dresser. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
The stranger rose
from the chair and opened the dresser. He took out a stack of wrinkled bills.
The screech of a bedside drawer spun the killer on his heels. The mussel flash of
a pocket Derringer lit the room and for a frozen second Killjoy had a smile on
his face as the stranger dove for the floor. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
Jarrod Killjoy
began to laugh. He had survived the hands of the torturer and if the stranger
was still breathing would inflict some of his own torment. With the hot barrel
in his mouth, he grabbed at the sheets with his good hand, dragging him to the
edge of the bed. Peering over, Jarrod fanned the barrel searching for a target.
</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
The stranger’s
hand shot up clenching Jarrod’s wrist and twisted it back forcing the barrel
into the man’s neck. The second shot of the derringer cracked. Flesh and muscle
ripped back. Flesh that remained intact singed from the hot powder. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
The stranger rose
from the floor. His side now brown as blood soaked his shirt. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
Jarrod Killjoy
leaned back starring up at the slow turning fan, grasping his neck, holding it together
in a futile attempt to cling to life. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
A raspy gurgle
emerged from the dying man, “Who are you stranger?”</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
The stranger stood
over him, looking into wide, ever darkening eyes. He opened his mouth to reveal
a mangle piece of meat that was once a tongue.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
A half grin
wrinkled Jarrod’s face. “It’s you…the snitch.” </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-18943108446005341492014-09-03T09:25:00.001-07:002014-09-03T09:25:55.711-07:00Book trailers from Bald Bros StudioHi folks,<br />
<br />
Check out the awesome work from our collaboration with Bald Bros. Studio on creating book trailers for a couple of my titles. It has been so much fun working with them to develop the scripts and story boards to make these videos. Seeing the characters I created come to life or at least two dimensional is truly amazing to me. There are more to come, but enjoy what has been done. <br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/BaldBrosStudio" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/user/BaldBrosStudio</a><br />
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-18840315003915916962014-08-13T02:25:00.000-07:002014-08-13T02:25:08.274-07:00Its 5 AM and I've been up since 4 Sometimes it is nice to wake up in the middle of the night and see that text message on my phone just waiting for me to respond. "I miss U" she last sent to me, but that was a week ago. Since then the phone has been silent in the middle of the night. The only texts that come through are during regular business hours. <br />
My project development partner was up til 11 pm with me, going back and forth on our script through Adobe Story. "How about this?" a text would come through and another idea would go into production. It is the stuff I live for and the nights I never want to end. <br />
Now I sit with ideas in my head and it is after 5 AM. Maybe I'll watch the sun rise or take my dog for a hike. Either way I wont be getting any text messages anytime soon.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-63195037843574569212014-07-23T19:36:00.001-07:002014-07-23T19:36:33.834-07:00Rock Bottom or laying on Clean Slate Incase anyone was wondering I have a twitter account @localhero117 Any way the other day I posted a tweet ""When you hit rock bottom the only thing you can start with is clean slate" In the past I found rock bottom to be somewhat liberating. It couldn't get worse and up was the only way to go, that was until it got worse and I kept going down. <br />
How do I know I have hit bottom? Well I won't fall into the trap of saying it can't get worse nor will I look only up. Right now all I do is pace back and forth looking down at the clean slate beneath my feet. Make no mistake, this slate was not cleaned by me nor am I watching it as some kind of positive reminder. No. I am watching it as I pace to make sure it does not shatter, partly due to the fact slate is usually not found too deep down. You can draw your own conclusion on that statement. The thing that you do find at the bottom are clichés and people with lame advice, all things you do not want to hear. They say these things because they care. However, if you hit bottom as tell me, I will not say "You can only go up" or anything of that nature. More than likely you get a shrug out of me and maybe I will buy you a beer, unless you are an alcoholic and that is why you have hit rock bottom. <br />
Slate is usually found in river beds. And the only thing I remember from <a href="http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Heraclitus" target="_blank">Heraclitus</a> is change is constant or something like that. And you can never step into the same river twice. So there it is, a way to look to the positive and look up. Should you find yourself at rock bottom, laying over clean slate you know it is only for a moment in time as it is a constant changing world. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-48710030250998532562014-06-23T21:56:00.001-07:002014-06-23T21:56:04.344-07:00<strong>Getting old is hell. So says my 96 year old grandmother. She is right. You think when you are young and face a problem that it, being life, will get easier as you get older. Those problems you faced in your youth do become easier with the choices being more recognizable. However, the problems you face as an adult past your twenties are just as hard to find solutions to as the seemingly easy ones from your youth. </strong><br />
<strong> This holds true for the two characters, John and Luis Solo, in my book The Collectors. In their youth they skipped out on the town that treated them like shit to pursue a more pure life out there, where ever there was located. Out there turned and smacked them in the face sending them back to East Town to where they started. It was good to be home, for the brothers, as they found work and settled into their always falling short lives. The beach community of East Town, filled with high rise casinos, creates a false sense of fortune being one roll of the dice away. And that with just a little more cash, you too can be a whale in a town full of Sharks. </strong><br />
<strong> Well, you can't, not in this town. This town will chew you up spit you out and piss on your corpse. It's not personal, it's not even business, it just is how things are down in the septic vortex that is East Town Florida. </strong><br />
<strong> Sound familiar? Maybe you have been there, maybe you bought salt taffy on the beach and watched the seagulls eat baby turtles. Or a shark bleed a fish until it was nothing but chum.</strong> <br />
<br />
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-48426956242130731022014-05-19T05:28:00.000-07:002014-05-19T05:28:08.981-07:00Book fair winners and losers Bookmark It, in Orlando FL, held a book fair Sunday with forty authors showing off their latest titles. It was a beautiful sunny day with a light breeze and lower than normal temperatures for this time of year, 83 degrees. I was with my co-author Jorge Sastre and we had three books out for sale, one being The Collectors. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirNcEXoSFWybs6O2PR4mEGaXDum4wkGPJeq0PKYnoNaD0BH-h5I27u9pEwKKPk2AoEUtDRRTzXktuaJilT1sFTt2H_8Z64Hq73P-brnd06zuJoMZLJ0hFtUhlLTi_0hxm8iqgxKYQAXg8/s1600/bookfair1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirNcEXoSFWybs6O2PR4mEGaXDum4wkGPJeq0PKYnoNaD0BH-h5I27u9pEwKKPk2AoEUtDRRTzXktuaJilT1sFTt2H_8Z64Hq73P-brnd06zuJoMZLJ0hFtUhlLTi_0hxm8iqgxKYQAXg8/s1600/bookfair1.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
We had done book signings before but this was our first book fair. We would be sitting down with many other authors, all selling our blood, sweat and tears. On display was years of our lives in 189 pages for $10. The personalities there were all different, yet each of us bonded instantly because we all knew what the other had gone through to get there. But in the back of each of our minds, the other author is the competition. So friendly but watchful eyes scanned the table tops, seeking out a similar book and inspecting, with admirable smiles, though in our minds we were looking for flaws or ideas for our own book covers. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvRSVa6iGrK_kgrGBiD18MzbPAwUUoe9GO8Oy-9cX9Ys217iJ0Hj5nX2HcK1i6xUPztI9wyQkl9t0TrAsIdvi05krtSXUzD0gDc5x9RZzkuHHoJS1PkLZPVt-OtjLlf5LqRX-_1tPbhn4/s1600/dv1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvRSVa6iGrK_kgrGBiD18MzbPAwUUoe9GO8Oy-9cX9Ys217iJ0Hj5nX2HcK1i6xUPztI9wyQkl9t0TrAsIdvi05krtSXUzD0gDc5x9RZzkuHHoJS1PkLZPVt-OtjLlf5LqRX-_1tPbhn4/s1600/dv1.jpg" /></a> All that sounds cynical but really it was a good time and I made some great new contacts. Hell, I'll even mention a new book I picked up, Doc Voodoo Aces&Eights by Beating Windward Press. I met the author, Dale Lucas when he came over to our table to complement us on the artwork for The Collectors (thanks Tom Wolfe!) Dale is a cool guy and we swapped stories on how we got our art work done. Doc Voodoo looks great! <br />
<br />
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-74138529469376226602014-04-21T05:24:00.003-07:002014-04-21T05:24:46.124-07:00Movie time...get your popcorn started <strong>I've been keeping this under wraps of sorts because it is a slow process and I've had the dream burned before. That being said, we actually did some filming on my book, </strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Collectors-Jorge-Sastre-ebook/dp/B009HJZRN0/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1398082818&sr=1-1&keywords=jorge+sastre" target="_blank"><strong>The Collectors</strong></a><strong>, published by </strong><a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Forker-Media/351375471616571" target="_blank"><strong>Forker Media</strong></a><strong>. I cannot begin to tell you how much fun it is to be on set of a movie, let alone one based on a book you wrote. </strong><br />
<strong> It all started out with my co-author, Jorge Sastre, and I meeting up with Bald Bros. Studio and developing a script. From there we scouted out locations to film and worked with the director to get the right feel of the film. We were fortunate enough to find several people willing to help. (Side note: When you tell people you wrote a book they say "that's great". When you tell them it will be a movie, they ask how they can be a part of it.)</strong><br />
<strong> Filming was a blast and I got to read lines with some of the actors. We haven't finished yet, but everything is a work in progress.</strong><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-19647630889023952462014-03-20T19:52:00.000-07:002014-03-20T19:55:41.467-07:00New Punisher and so far I love it<div style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;">
<img alt="printSizeImage" src="http://i.annihil.us/u/prod/marvel/i/mg/3/f0/52e81a096748f/detail.jpg" height="320" width="208" /></div>
<br />
<strong> </strong><a href="http://marvel.com/comics/issue/49377/the_punisher_2014_1" target="_blank"><strong> My favorite comic book hero</strong></a><strong> (if Frank would even consider himself a hero) is back with a new writer and new artists. I got my grease stained fingers on issue #2 before I could get #1. I stared at the cover for two weeks with out cracking into the new book. I just had to go back to my new favorite comic shop </strong><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Nerdtropolis" target="_blank"><strong>Nerdtropolis</strong></a><strong> and see if they had issue 1 yet. And it was in.</strong><br />
<strong> Let me backtrack a moment. A few months ago I picked up Max Comics hardback of The Punisher. It's a good book, The Punisher as we know and love him. The thing was, it was The Punisher we know and love. I was on the hunt for Punisher Noir but no luck finding it on the shelf. </strong><br />
<strong> The writer, Nathan Edmondson does a great job of breathing new life into Frank Castle while staying true to who he is and why he is doing (what we love) he does. There was great mention in there about The Avengers and the like being too busy to deal with the scum Castle chooses to deal with. </strong><br />
<strong> The artwork is fantastic! Set in sunny L.A., I felt The Punisher might be a little out of place, but not at all. I especially liked the skull mask, similar to the noir book I'm looking to buy. I wont get weird into details on Frank's new looks but I like it. He's not super bulky and his slicked back hair gets in his eyes from time to time. Did I go to far? </strong><br />
<strong> Great book for a deserving character. I can't wait to get my hands on #3</strong>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-11680148843309450682013-11-22T17:37:00.002-08:002014-03-20T19:55:55.829-07:00Solid noir for today: Dead Man Down<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2101341/?ref_=nv_sr_1" target="_blank">Dead Man Down</a>. Collin Farrel
and Noomi Rapace <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> <strong> When the advertising for this
movie was playing last year, I remember seeing the star,Farrel, running around
shooting. So when I started the movie, its what I expected, however that is not
what I got for most of the film. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One hundred
and fifty minutes of a noir revenge thriller, that is with the exception of the
last ten minutes. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have to admit that
the two main characters, Farrel and Noomi, enthralled me and I actually cared
about what they were feeling. <o:p></o:p></strong></span></span></div>
<strong></strong><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong> This movie had it’s moments
that sent me back to a black and white era all the while increasing my
heart rate. I thought the movie was evenly paced with a steady growth of
characters considering there is only about two hours worth of film here. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></strong></span></span></div>
<strong></strong><br />
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<span style="mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong> I have to say I was
disappointed with the ending. (Spoiler ahead) <o:p></o:p></strong></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong> The cliché big shoot out was waiting
at the end of this movie. I would have liked to see something more simple yet
more satisfying. Over all, due to what movies are out there, I have to say this
is a modern noir that will leave you content with the two hours you gave it.</strong> </span></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-91874755269650119232013-09-21T16:51:00.000-07:002014-03-20T19:56:06.645-07:00Dirty jeans can be faked<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"> <strong>So I’m sitting here watching <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nirvana Live at the Paramount on the music
channel Palladia. Standing with little movement other than a hand strumming a
guitar, is Kurt in his green sweater. I noticed his jeans are dirty. </strong></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong> A question I have always held is whether these “performers”
(be it rock stars in most cases) dress themselves or does someone else dress
them? And how much thought do they put into it? I wonder if the morning of the
show, Kurt woke up and put on the same pair of jeans he used to tend his garden. A secret admission here to you now is that I do put thought into
what I am about to wear. I’ve done book signings in the past and I thought
about what I wanted to wear. So maybe he did reach for his dirty jeans and say “Tomorrow
at the show I’m wearing those.” Maybe not. </strong></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong> I'm not calling Kurt a fake. I'm sure what started as dirty jeans because he played a show straight from work carried over to a time when he no longer had a day job. I remember once going into a prominent clothing store and having a clerk tell me $80.00 oil stained jeans were on sale. The best part was they were stained with "real" oil. I said, "I have a pair just like that. Last weekend I changed my oil pan gasket." The clerk walked away. I never bought jeans there again. </strong></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong> As the Sci-fi Con season begins and I hit the road to promote my
book, The Five, I will be sure to back my bag carefully. I have a pair of dirty
jeans I wear when working on my truck, but I doubt I will be signing books in
them.</strong> </span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-8190860057072519752013-09-14T17:53:00.001-07:002013-09-14T17:53:17.557-07:00Don't get fooled I've seen a couple of fake emails and facebook posts about "today" being the day Marty McFly travels to the future. Every time I am confronted on this I know it is 2015. But incase you forget check out this website <a href="http://www.october212015.com/">http://www.october212015.com/</a> I found to remind you. <br />
<br />
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-51491011718409301762013-08-18T20:13:00.000-07:002013-08-18T20:13:01.923-07:00Finally! Here is something new in Science Fiction.I am so happy to finally announce my latest book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Five-Episode-Salvations-ebook/dp/B00ED0PTSG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376881741&sr=8-1&keywords=artaxlives" target="_blank">The Five Episode I Salvation's Curse</a> is out for sale as a ebook! This book has been such a process to get out to readers. It is worth the work and the wait, trust me. Already some of the early feed back has been terrific. <br />
For a limited time copies are being sold at $2.99, but this price won't last long. At Amazon just search key word: artaxlives<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Five-Episode-Salvations-ebook/dp/B00ED0PTSG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376881741&sr=8-1&keywords=artaxlives" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinn_VRH-5TI7OB3T4XNfCZXIhupQOh9AMcIXivag9TWc2pJzX-47REbDr2Scrs3PsbrLX1rog_6URBtT_xN9ygR4WOF_1oM_iRrVln7D3LFUZsEmqbYTLDNbEiH_juFfuGeJitU-Klq1k/s200/five+with+subtitle.jpg" width="154" /> artaxlives</a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-82290497292635620362013-03-27T18:13:00.002-07:002013-03-27T18:13:39.361-07:00Seeing Double<strong> Skimming movie preview websites I came across <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2334879/" target="_blank">White House Down</a> a new movie starring Channing Tatum as a Capital Police Officer who shoots the place up to protect his daughter and kill off the bad guys. It got me thinking of a similar preview I just saw, <a href="http://olympusmovie.com/" target="_blank">Olympus Has Fallen.</a></strong><br />
<strong> Now this movie stars Gerad Butler as an overly trained Secret Service Agent who will kill all the bad guys while trapped in the White House. Seems very familiar. </strong><br />
<strong> I bet if you spliced both these trailers together you would get the same movie. I don't know why movies with very similar plots get made and released at the same time. A couple years ago we had "No Strings Attached" then later got "Friends With Benefits" Both movies deal with a guy and girl who start out just wanting sex then realize they are in love with eachother. </strong><br />
<strong> Every couple of three years this happens. Tombstone and Wyatt Earp. If we aren't getting the same movie in the same year, we are getting more recycled crap. I'm just going to stop right now before I go into the Hollywood remake laziness. I even read an article based on a rumor that Twilight was getting a re-boot. But don't puke just yet, its only a rumor. </strong><br />
<strong> There are fresh ideas out there just waiting to be discovered by the right producer/director/actors. We just have to wait or do it ourselves. </strong>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8344763283220316287.post-17681662299103475222013-03-03T16:49:00.003-08:002014-04-30T05:32:29.870-07:00Writing Crime Fiction & Sci-Fi With the upcoming release of my science fiction epic, The Five Episode I: Salvation's Curse, I will be delving back into the world of science fiction. I have mostly used this blog to look at crime fiction and of course my random thoughts. <br />
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<a href="http://parhamwagner.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaYSbO_IKT_rX7H4Cp9ez1qe8us-JVE_GYIFVOFaKpdpNDcet_SDu7FfcWRXqcZb_UzQ2jBRxoDWMvWJaFVtFjcgEylmKv-Jdp3z69LAllne8NjhVwl4e0DcuVe-q77KbRL9w7_iUHcdI/s200/five+with+subtitle.jpg" height="200" width="154" /></a></div>
I really enjoy the two genres. My first novel, Division Six is a great mix of both crazy science fiction and a classic PI tale. I enjoyed writing that book and hope to eventually finish the series. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02615701321799743561noreply@blogger.com1