Books, Beer and Blogshit: November 2015

Monday, November 30, 2015

Winter of Zombie 2015: Thad David

You're reading Books, Beer and BLOGshit! It's the only blog on the internet that is posting the last Books, Beer and BLOGshit interview of the Winter of Zombie 2015 Blog Tour. I am you exhaused host, Mr. Frank.

This is it! This last and final interview this season. And who else do we end this whole shit and shebang with? That's right! Your pal and mine, Thad David. He is co-author of a zombie book talked about earlier this season with his partner in crime, J.L. Koszarek. Together they wrote DIVIDE THEN CONQUOR. But tonight, the last night we all spend together until the summer, I say we all Unite and Multiply!

Feel the love and read the interview!

The Blogshit: Let’s cut to the chase, what are you promoting for the Winter of Zombie?

Thad David: We are promoting Divide Then Conquer – Book 1 of the Zombie Company Crusade Series. The ZCC series is a collaboration between Jodi and myself that sparked from the creation of the Zombie Company Crusade video game that launched Sept 1^st. I’m always fascinated with politics and the lengths that people go to “protect the party” as well as how much people think their one side can save the country. I wanted to use Zombies as a catalyst to divide the United States and bring these political cleavages to light. Jodi and I talked about this for over an hour and she asked me to send her what I had. The next day I received an e-mail that blew me away. She had taken what little I had down on paper and added a ton of info and turned it into an amazing story. Since then that’s been our whole process, a constant back and forth collaboration on this really cool idea.

The Blogshit: It’s rarely ever talked about, but how do you envision the outcome of the zombie world you have created? Is there hope? Will humanity succumb to the new world order? What is the outcome of all this horrible zombie business?

Thad David: Before we both answered these questions, Jodi and I agreed to not read each-others until after we wrote it. I’m dying to hear what she put down for this one because its something we haven’t discussed yet in full detail.

As far as my answer, I see the outcome of the story to be a pretty messed up place. We are basically taking 3 trains, putting them at full speed ahead, and blasting them into a head on collision. We have a lot of action happening all at once coming from several different places. I know this doesn’t fully answer your question so in short I do believe mankind will prevail here as long as they can get over their petty differences and beliefs. The real question now is which faction of mankind will survive, good, evil… it’s a bloody political battle inside of this war. Even if mankind wins the fight against zombies, they may still lose.

The Blogshit: As a writer of zombie fiction, do you feel you can sustain your career writing about zombies only or do you feel you will need to write outside the sub-genre to continue? What avenues will you branch out to if you do feel a need to expand?

Thad David: Ill be as honest as I can here. Divide Then Conquer is my first attempt with writing anything. I have some outlines for several books but putting pen to paper is another story. My strengths as a writer is the story creation and I focus on creating suspense. J.L. Koszarek is the mastermind behind the writing in our story. We get a ton of complements on the writing style and character development and that is all thanks to Jodi. She is a true author and artist. I have another Thriller storyline I would like to pursue in the future but for now I am trying to learn as much as I can from Jodi. We are planning to make the ZCC series at least an 8 to 9 book series so we have a ways to go and I have a lot to learn.

The Blogshit: What is more important to the story: A sympathetic human survivor or a zombie with an interesting storyline?

Thad David: I personally enjoy the human perspective, especially in survival situations. In ZCC we have a TON of characters. They range in a wide scope of human personalities. I believe we have at least one character that a reader can relate to and enjoy following. I started out the series as a huge fan of Jack Mason and I’ve really fallen in love with some of the other characters. I would really hate to see some of them succumb to the virus that’s running wild across the country. While I have others that I truly hate and would love for them to fall face first into a pit of crawlers. A soft-landing though so they remain alive and can watch as they are eaten from the inside out.

The Blogshit: For you, who are the most important writers in zombie fiction at this moment?

Thad David: I am very new to Zombie fiction as a fan and a writer. For me personally I would say the most important writers are Shawn Chesser and Armand Rosamilia. These two writers have been a huge help to me personally in so many ways. They both care deeply for the Zombie culture and it shows in their actions and work. I really enjoy their stories. I’m jumping into some other stories as well and I can’t leave out Mark Tufo. I am very excited for this blog tour. I have met so many wonderful authors so far and I am really excited to read their stories. To many books is a good problem to have right now.

The Blogshit: Is there room for sex in the zombie apocalypse?

Thad David: I hope so. I wouldn’t want to live in a world without meaningful relationships. Love and sex are at the forefront of most of these stronger connections that we as humans thrive on. Besides how will mankind truly survive if we aren’t reproducing? If everyone around you is falling it doesn’t mean we have to stop having a little fun. Obviously it may be tough to find the right time, place, or mate but I don’t see how we as humans would go without sex for too long.

The Blogshit: How much consideration do you give to the seasons in your zombie stories?

Seasons have not played a large role in DIVIDE yet, but they will in Book Two. Surviving the zombie apocalypse in warm weather is difficult, but winter is coming and with it will come challenges specific to freezing temperatures and precipitation. The cold and snow will affect the zombies, too. In the apocalyptic world, the weather has a direct influence on our chances of survival.

The change of seasons is also a great literary tool to convey the passage of time. The ZCC series will span months, and possibly even years. It is my feeling that the change of seasons will come into play in this way going forward.

Thad and I are gearing up for our first Winter of Zombies in the ZCC series. As I sit here today, I wonder which character(s) aren’t ready. I wonder who will be alive in the springtime.

Thad David: A lot actually, as Book 1 ends winter is just around the corner in the story. We are preparing and have discussed the different possibilities and ways that zombies will be affected by the colder climates. It’s going to be interesting to see how everyone attempts to survive the cold in some of our mountain regions of the story.

The Blogshit: Our final question always revolves around zombie themed food. This Winter of Zombie, Books, Beer and BLOGshit wants you to consider setting up a food truck to cater to a zombie clientele. What would you name your Zombie Food Truck?

Thad David: Small Bites – A Little Something To Gnaw On

Thad David on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Thad-David/e/B00QFMMV2C/

Thad David on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/10068886.Thad_David

Winter of Zombie 2015: Brice J Chandler

You're reading Books, Beer and BLOGshit! Its the only blog on the internet that is ludacris enough to ride this blog tour out for the whole ride! I am your sore fingered host, Mr. Frank!

This, the next-to-last interview for the Winter of Zombie 2015 Blog Tour, features Brice J Chandler. He's quite handsome. Unless he is a she, in which case, she's quite pretty. But if she is a he well I mean he could be pretty too, you know? I've heard men labeled as pretty before. They are the type of men who are extremely secure in their masculinity too. Unless of course their masculinity is a farce and they are totally feminine, in which case it would be wholely appropriate to call them pretty as well.

Wait, what's going on? Oh ya! Interview with Brice J Chandler! Read his/her interview now!

The Blogshit: Let’s cut to the chase, what are you promoting for the Winter of Zombie?

Brice J Chandler: I’m promoting alcohol, violence, and tearing shit up… wait, sorry, I thought you meant what kind of writing process do I promote/use. I’m here to promote my novel Whiskey Jack, which has many of the previously mentioned qualities.

Brice J Chandler: The zombies in my story are probably not going to decompose, at least not any time soon. So the outcome doesn’t look good for humanity.

Even with that bleak forecast, there’s always hope. Without hope, there’s no reason to have a story because no one is going to care about the outcome. If the reader doesn’t think that the protagonists have a shot at making it, then they won’t want to keep reading to see what happens in the end. Besides who the hell wants to read a story where the zombies walk around moaning and grunting because there aren’t any humans to eat.

As far as the outcome for humanity in Whiskey Jack, I’ve contemplated a sequel to the book where I would explore the world after the apocalypse (maybe 25-50 years later). I think humans will still be around, but they’ll need new heroes to help reestablish their place in that world. I might have a returning protagonist, but it’s tough to bring back my heavy drinking, main character from the first novel 25 years later. I’m a writer and a factory worker, and I can barely get up some mornings because my knees, back, or some new pain is killing me. Forget going on a drunken zombie killing spree.

Brice J Chandler: I initially started writing Whiskey Jack in 2001, when I was on a deployment with the 15^th Marine Expeditionary Unit. So, the zombie sub-genre is where I started my career and my first love, but I’ve already branched out into other genres.

I don’t think that all of my writing will be in the genre. I really love the zombie genre, but I have a lot of other worlds I’d like to explore. I’ve had a couple literary short stories published in different places, and I’m currently working on a cross genre zombie/literary and also a post-apocalyptic series with a sci-fi/steampunk basis.

The Blogshit: What is more important to the story: A sympathetic human survivor or a zombie with an interesting storyline?

Brice J Chandler: That’s an interesting question. Normally, I’d say a sympathetic human, because I think readers will better relate to another human.

As a writer, I’m interested in the zombie’s point of view, especially if they have an interesting story. Like, what if the culprit of the zombie apocalypse – the person who started it (assuming that it was some kind of biological weapon… something like that) – thought that they were doing something to better humanity.

What if that that zombie could tell its story? It might not be much as far as dialogue (some moans and clacking of teeth). Unless they could speak. I think that would make for an interesting story.

What would be really interesting is if such a zombie came face to face with a sympathetic human. How could that zombie justify being the catalyst of the apocalypse to a guy or gal who was forced to kill their loved ones because they turned? That would be really interesting. I’m sure it’s been done. I briefly touched on that idea in Whiskey Jack.

The Blogshit: For you, who are the most important writers in zombie fiction at this moment?

Brice J Chandler: The political answer would be to say, “all of the authors on the Winter of Zombie blog tour,” or better, “Armand Rosamilla,” but that really isn’t trying to stay on everyone’s good side or kissing ass. It’s the truth. The indie authors are the people out there fighting in the trenches for readers’ attention. They’re out there saying “hey check this book out. Please give it a chance.” That’s really hard to do as a writer in any genre, but the amazing thing about zompoc authors (and a lot of indie authors in general) is that they work together as a group so that everyone benefits. Armand goes out of his way to help promote the genre and indie authors. There’s also a lot of Facebook groups such as All Things Zombie and Band of Dystopian Authors and Fans that are making huge strives for authors. It’s pretty cool to be a part of that. It’s too bad that I’m sort of a social media introvert, but I’m going to try my best to pull my weight.

The Blogshit: Is there room for sex in the zombie apocalypse?

Brice J Chandler: Gotta repopulate the Earth somehow. Look back at human history and you’ll find that even in our darkest points of despair there was room for sex. Wars, disease, depression, famine… doesn’t matter. Somewhere in the midst of it all, people were having consensual sex. Why should the zombie apocalypse be any different?

The Blogshit: How much consideration do you give to the seasons in your zombie stories?

Brice J Chandler: I’ve written zombie stories set in every season, and I make sure to consider the effects of season on the survivors and the zombies. I’ve been that guy out running around in the desert in summer in full gear with weapons and a heavy pack. Even when you’re in pretty good shape, running a hundred yards in the heat isn’t easy. You have to consider how people are going to operate in the different weather extremes. You also have to consider if a zombie’s brain will freeze in below freezing temps.

Although, to be fair, the seasons and weather are not my number one priorities when I write. I’m generally too focused on trying to create a story I think kicks ass and that my small fan base will love. I think that if I can entertain one reader then I’ve succeeded, regardless if something defies logic and science. It’s the zombie apocalypse after all.

Brice J Chandler: Brice’s Bloody Burritos and Body Shots. I can make a pretty mean burrito, and I’ve made too many trips to Chipotle or Moe’s where I could barely walk after eating so much. I figure that if I can entice the zombies to eat to the point of being bloated, it’ll make escaping easier after I’ve run out of food. Also every food truck needs to serve alcohol. What zombie wouldn’t love a body shot where they can take a chunk out of a body, just as long as it’s not mine.

Brice J Chandler on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Brice-J-Chandler/e/B00IS8BMHQ

Brice J Chandler on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thewritebrice

Sunday, November 29, 2015

Winter of Zombie 2015: P. Mark DeBryan

You're reading Books, Beer and BLOGshit! Its the only blog on the internet that believes all the writers on the Winter of Zombie Blog Tour 2015 deserve all the recognition this tour can possibly muster for them. I am your decidedly unsuccessful host, Mr. Frank.

As we wind down here on The BLOGshit on the eve of the final day of the tour I'd like to extend my hope to every writer whose participated in these interview, the very best of luck. The indie zombie market is crowded and its a large crowd in a larger sea of saturated independent authors. Making an name in this world and getting your books out there is a daunting task. We at The BLOGshit sincerely hope we have helped in some small way help put your work in front of a few more eyes that may not have seen you otherwise.

And with that sappy stuff out of the way, we present the Books, Beer and BLOGshit Winter of Zombie interview of P. Mark DeBryan. Happy reading.

The Blogshit: Let’s cut to the chase, what are you promoting for the Winter of Zombie?

P. Mark DeBryan: My novel Family Reunion! It has quite the backstory and as a matter of fact it was originally a short story. It started its life as In For A Dollar In For A Dime, a short story that I wrote for John O’Brien’s Untold Stories. John was gracious and allowed me to take the story and expand it to a full length novel. Basically it’s about a large family spread out across the U.S. who are all on their way to the Pacific Northwest to attend a long overdue family reunion when a pandemic breaks out. Then a vaccine causes millions to turn into crazed, blood thirsty creatures that live only to feed on you!

P. Mark DeBryan: Well, there is always hope, or there would be no reason to go on. I think humanity creates these crises in order give us something to fight back against. Of course we will eventually either overcome the crisis or we won’t; by that time I guess we won’t be worried about it. We will all be gone!

P. Mark DeBryan: I love this sub-genre! It give us a great opportunity to create hope, by making us face the overwhelming odds of not making it. It also speaks to the underlying fear that many feel these days of an uncertain future. We all think “Oh crap, at least we aren’t living in a zombie apocalypse… we really don’t have that much to fear!” = Hope

I have read voraciously since learning how in my second time around in the second grade. I was “held back” because I couldn’t read. My mother began reading to me every day, and I became a book junkie. I read in all genre. I would list them but… let’s just say there are not many that I don’t like or haven’t read. I only say this to point out that I do not fear “having to” write outside the genre. I look forward to it daily. I think of about six book ideas in as many genre every day, but right now I am happy that I get to play in this niche’.

The Blogshit: What is more important to the story: A sympathetic human survivor or a zombie with an interesting storyline?

P. Mark DeBryan: Hmmm… That’s a loaded question. I think the human survivor is key because I believe that most, if not all, good stories revolve around relationships. The human condition is only relatable when there are more than one of us around to relate too. You can have a sole survivor, but he/she is always relating to that one fact; he/she is all alone. What does that one survivor do that makes us want to read about him/her? They survive, but their main goal is to find another human or group of humans. You can insert sentient being in place of human, but the zombie no matter how interesting, by its very definition doesn’t care about anything but its next meal. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that the zombie’s storyline can be disregarded, but I feel it is only as important to the story as it relates to the human counterpart(s). Although, I have been wrong about much less complex queries. Like, does this dress make me look fat?

The Blogshit: For you, who are the most important writers in zombie fiction at this moment?

P. Mark DeBryan: John O’Brien, Joe Mckinney, Tufo, Chesser, oh crap, this could go on and on… there are just too many to list. I think any of them that put together an entertaining story are important to me as a reader. As a writer I learn something every time I pick up a well written story. Whether it is format, style, creativity, or the business end of being an author. David P. Forsyth has given me award winning advice on “how to” while John O’Brien is the one responsible for unleashing the beast inside me.

The Blogshit: Is there room for sex in the zombie apocalypse?

P. Mark DeBryan: Not for me, I’ve been married for 28 years.

The Blogshit: How much consideration do you give to the seasons in your zombie stories?

P. Mark DeBryan: Well, I have only written my first book, and it only takes place over a couple of weeks. So, no, not yet. I will however (hopefully) be writing for the foreseeable future, and I will take care to make each story follow the laws of physics and the changing of seasons.

P. Mark DeBryan: Oh my! This is actually right up my alley. I love to cook, and every cook I know wants to please those that they are cooking for. That being said, brains will have to play a major part in the name, however, as the genre has evolved the zombies have become much less picky and are into fast food now. Intestines and internal organs are more often the first choice of the zombies as the buffet gets picked over. This is really an important question and I don’t want to give it short shrift, but I procrastinated until 10 pm the night of your deadline for getting this in, so… Brains Intestines Organs NOW! The design of the logo would be key. The acronym would be BIO NOW!

P. Mark DeBryan on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/P.-Mark-DeBryan/e/B014POIOSQ

P. Mark DeBryan on the Web: http://pmarkdebryan.com/

Winter of Zombie 2015: Ted Nulty

You're reading Books, Beer and BLOGshit! Its the only blog on the internet that cuts to the chase. I am your host, Mr. Frank!

This afternoon on Books, Beer and BLOGshit, author Ted Nulty. He is awesome. The chase has been cut to. Read the interview now!

The Blogshit: Let’s cut to the chase, what are you promoting for the Winter of Zombie?

Ted Nulty: My series ‘Gone Feral’ which features zombies that are made by ingesting a chemical. The ‘Ferals’ are psychotically violent and turn cannibal. My book ‘The Other side of me’ is the third installment of the series.
Zombies, I’ve loved them since I saw ‘Night of the Living dead’. The overwhelming sense of dread at facing a swarm of the living dead is a rush. But they really became cool when they got fast, Dawn of the dead, 28 days later fast. Now single zombies were a threat where before it took a whole town to be scary.
I wrote ‘Gone Feral’ as a homage to all the zombie writers before me, but I wanted it to be real, I wanted it to make sense where sometimes some of the other tales left a little too much gap in the realm of plausibility. Watching CNN in a bar one night with some Marines, we saw a naked man going cannibal on another man on a freeway overpass in Florida. The story about bath salts was my inspiration for the series. You see every single aspect of the chemical poisoning of the population was ‘Gamed out’ at the Marine Corps EOC (Emergency Operations Center) at Camp Pendleton. I learned how many airplanes it would take to disperse a water soluble drug to 60% of the population. Throw in a little artistic license, and I was ready to go.
I did want to stay as close to the zombie “rules” as I could. So I made the chemical transferable through a bite. I also made the affected, immune to pain and hard to kill. Add in some rage and you are looking at as close to a zombie as I can realistically get.
The positive response from readers was quite a shock, and I immediately began work on book II at the behest of my small but growing fan base. I wrote ‘Barry’s Walk’ in response to that feedback and it turned out to be wildly popular with folks. Barry was a minor character in the first book that people said they wanted to know more about. I wrote it as a stand-alone novel and therefore had to include some of the story from the first book for continuities sake. I burned that sucker out in 30 days and had a blast doing it. I left a little cliff hanger there at the end just because I had another novel in mind. But I had another flight of fancy first and decided to scratch that itch.
‘The Other Side of Me’ is my homage to Jekyll and Hyde. I wanted to write about a really good person who through no fault of his own becomes a very evil monster, then I want that tortured character to face the challenge of reconciling his acts with the knowledge that it wasn’t his fault. Kind of a PTSD on steroids type of thing. Again the plot twist bug bit me, and I had to throw a few curve balls in there. The story is set in the ‘Gone Feral’ universe, and the drugs the terrorists use are the vehicle used to catapult this whole new cast of characters through a wild journey.
Did I mention I’m a Marine? Well I am, and we like challenges. So not only did I make my zombies hard to kill, and fast. I made sure that all mammals were affected by the drug, making Cats, Rats, Dogs, and Pigs (Especially pigs) susceptible to the effects of the toxin. This made the world exponentially more difficult to survive in. It also gave me more ways to herd, corral, push, or otherwise guide my characters into more trouble.
I can’t get through a day without some form of humor, so I have taken the task very seriously to introduce some form of off color shenanigans into my books. It’s what us Jarheads do to cope with stress, and I know it would happen in the real world. I have to confess that the kid humor is always taken from my devil spawn children. You’ll have to take it with a grain of salt (pun intended).

The Blogshit: It’s rarely ever talked about, but how do you envision the outcome of the zombie world you have created? Is there hope? Will humanity succumb to the new world order? What is the outcome of all this horrible zombie business?

Ted Nulty: Book IV will cover humanity’s attempt at rebuilding, but I like a challenge, therefore I think that even after the ferals are ‘cured’ I think that there will be a lot of former monsters having psychotic breaks and becoming serial killers.
In the first book, I have 1/3 of the population eat the second 1/3 with the rest of the population surviving. If you think about it, that means 2 out of every three homes empty. Think of all the stuff lying around! People will develop a user mind set instead of being productive (They just lived through the apocalypse remember) so they will be massive consumers. It would take years to get people to go back to being producers of anything but food. I mean there would be five new cars at the dealership for every person left alive! People would become wasteful. There would be a lot of unused but serviceable stuff lying around.

The Blogshit: As a writer of zombie fiction, do you feel you can sustain your career writing about zombies only or do you feel you will need to write outside the sub-genre to continue? What avenues will you branch out to if you do feel a need to expand?

Ted Nulty: I am a science fiction writer at heart, I just haven’t written a book yet! I do very well with my crime fiction, but I need to write a metric shit-ton more books before I can live comfortably.
I am inspired by Keith Laumer and want to write a Bolo themed book. Especially when they first became self aware.
The same goes for Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle…I want to write a WAR World book. The Saurons are so cool to beat up on!

The Blogshit: What is more important to the story: A sympathetic human survivor or a zombie with an interesting storyline?

Ted Nulty: In ‘The Other side of Me’, the main character is a Pastor who becomes a raging pscho-cannibal, but after he recovers he tries to redeem himself (Kind of a Jekyll/Hyde kind of thing), but my nasty nature intervened and I threw some plot twists in there. It helped develop the story line. My fans have said they like how I have an abundance of characters and they like how they all get developed. They say they get to know them, all the better when I have them eaten, shot, or otherwise torn apart!

The Blogshit: For you, who are the most important writers in zombie fiction at this moment?

Ted Nulty: The Indie crowd is it! Eric Shelman, Mark Tufo, WJ Lundy, Shawn Chesser, John O’Brien, Gareth Wood, Z.A. Recht, James Cook and the list goes on! I am humbled when I actually see my name mentioned with these great writers. Three years ago I was reading all of their works and wishing I was that talented.

The Blogshit: Is there room for sex in the zombie apocalypse?

Ted Nulty: There is always room for a good sex scene in a book. I however am a Marine and am woefully unqualified to write such things. I’m more of a bash the girl over the head with my club kind of guy who then drags her back to my cave. Probably why my picture is up at the post office. One of my shortcomings.

The Blogshit: How much consideration do you give to the seasons in your zombie stories?

Ted Nulty: A little bit. My stories start off in the summer, so the bodies can get ripe and pop from internal gasses. I just wish books had ‘smell-o-vision’ so they smelled like what you are reading. My kids wouldn’t let me back in the house with the number of zombie books I read!

The Blogshit: Our final question always revolves around zombie themed food. This Winter of Zombie, Books, Beer and BLOGshit wants you to consider setting up a food truck to cater to a zombie clientele. What would you name your Zombie Food Truck?

Ted Nulty: You ask this after I get done describing how things should smell! ZOMPIZZA! I love Italian food especially pizza. Gotta have a ‘Brain Pie’! with a nice Corona to wash it down! DEEEE-EEEE-Lish!

THE Ted Nulty

Ted Nulty's Home Page: http://tednultyauthor.com/
Ted Nulty on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Ted-Nulty/e/B00MMWZNCY

Winter of Zombie 2015: James Dean

You're reading Books, Beer and BLOGshit! Its the only blog on the internet that looks cool as hell in a leather jacket with a cigarette dangling from its mouth! I am you sex symbol host, Mr. Frank!

Author James Dean is on The BLOGshit today. No, not the James Dean of breakfast meats fame. Nope, not that James Dean either, he's been dead a long time. We are talking about the James Dean that is sick and tired of hearing all these James Dean jokes. When you hear James Dean this is the only James Dean you should be thinking about. Have we said James Dean enough to get him far up in the SEO?

James Dean!

No! Not HIm!

The Blogshit: Let’s cut to the chase, what are you promoting for the Winter of Zombie?

James Dean: I’d like to promote the fight for equal rights of all undead kind! It’s time for Zombies to stand up…or crawl, or drag themselves along the ground…maybe just sit and rot in the corner…

You know what, screw it. Let’s talk about my book, This Dying World: The End Begins. It’s the story of Dan Foster, who wakes up in the middle of the night to find all these annoying zombie things making a complete mess of his neighborhood and really driving down the property value of his house.

Dan escapes with his wife Abby and daughter Katie and travels across the Midwestern United States during the middle of winter, trying to reach the safety of his brother’s home…which is conveniently placed about 3 miles west of the middle of nowhere.

James Dean: Well, the problem with a zombie apocalypse is that last little word…apocalypse. Now I know there are a few different ideas on how absolute that word is, but generally it means a shitty time will be had by all. The villagers will not rejoice, the local store will run out of good humor bars, and The Walking Dead will probably be cancelled.

With that being said, is there hope? Sure, there’s always hope. But I have a saying I use a lot. Fill one hand with hope, and the other with crap…see which one fills up faster. The world that the Fosters live in is dying, and humanity is going to take a huge hit. Most have already succumbed, and the numbers of the dead grow every day.

As far as the outcome…I’ll let you know. It all depends on when the voices in my head stop arguing with each other long enough to clue me in on what will be happening. The fun part about writing this story is I have no idea what will happen next. In many ways, my characters tell me how their lives are going and what their next moves are. If I try to force it, they don’t like it and they mess up the story for me. I mean really, I created the jerks and they STILL don’t listen to me!

James Dean: I think it’s usually more of a want than a need to write outside the genre. There are always people who want to read zombie fiction, so I would be willing to bet that an author can sustain themselves on zombies alone if they want to. But for me personally, I love horror as a whole. I can easily see myself branching off into other areas of horror fiction. Plus my geek side still loves sci-fi and sword and sorcery genres too, and I may eventually write in those genres as well. I guess it all depends on how I feel when I start typing.

NO! This is the James Dean of Pete The Cat fame.

The Blogshit: What is more important to the story: A sympathetic human survivor or a zombie with an interesting storyline?

James Dean: What about a sympathetic zombie survivor with a pet human as his storyline?

Honestly, I think you need a little of both. The sympathetic human gives the reader someone to relate with. The more real the character the more your audience can slip in to the role of that person. (sounds dirty doesn’t it?) A real person is a flawed and imperfect creature, and a character should reflect that.

But no matter how realistic your character is, if they don’t have an interesting zombie storyline to live with, the story can get stale really fast. But if your zombie grows with your character, giving your human survivors new challenges to overcome, you end up with a story that stays fresh and interesting.

The Blogshit: For you, who are the most important writers in zombie fiction at this moment?

James Dean: I’ll be sappy here and say pretty much the indie community as a whole. If it wasn’t for all these indie authors paving the way for new authors like myself, I would probably have never given writing a serious shot.

Individually (and this should come as no surprise to anyone that knows me) Eric A. Shelman would rank on top. Besides being a big fan of his writing, he’s helped me in so many ways to get my first book out there. Through him I met the person who eventually edited my book, Ramona Martine. He pointed me to Giles Batchelor, who is a top beta reader as far as I’m concerned. He set me up with Jeff Kosh to do my cover art. And indirectly because of Eric I got to meet a great supporter and soon to be author Lana Sibley. (YOU BETTER BE WRITING LANA! DON’T MAKE ME COME OUT THERE!)

Hey Eric, you can mail me my check now!

Now of course there are the ones I enjoy reading. Mark Tufo, of course…Bobby Adair, John O’Brian, Shawn Chesser, Chris Philbrook, Ted Nulty…honestly I could keep going. It will sound cheesy, but if an author can make all the voices in my head shut up long enough to carry me off into their story, I think that is a pretty important author.

No! That's country music's Jimmy Dean.

The Blogshit: Is there room for sex in the zombie apocalypse?

James Dean: Umm, really? Is there room for sex in the ZA? If all you do is run, hide, eat, and sleep…what’s the point? Now, should people get pregnant in the ZA? I would say probably not. But if you have a chance to get laid in the apoc and you turn it down, I’d shoot you out of principle.

The Blogshit: How much consideration do you give to the seasons in your zombie stories?

James Dean: Seasons are very important in my story. The whole book takes place over the course of a couple weeks in the middle of a Midwestern winter. The cold doesn’t really bother the zombies in my world, but it does pose a significant challenge to the survivors. The roads become impassable, there’s frostbite to worry about, and there’s always that little issue of freezing to death. Even simply walking can lead to serious injury from slipping on ice.

Of course, spring and summer come with their own challenges. There are storms, floods, droughts, and all the other issues that come with changing of the seasons to challenge any survivor. Throw the fact that rotting corpses are now getting warmed up into the mix and the world is going to start smelling worse than an outhouse on an asparagus farm.

Really?

James Dean: Dead Fred’s Meaty Masterpieces

Carol’s Cookies

The Shambling Gore-met

YES! THIS JAMES DEAN!

James Dean on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/James-Dean/e/B00WW7Y6GI/

James Dean on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jdean1975/

Saturday, November 28, 2015

Winter of Zombie 2015: GG Silverman

You're reading Books, Beer and BLOGshit! Its the only blog on the internet that thinks YA stands you YouTube Anonymous, a new support group for YouTube addicts. I am your subscribing to everyting host, Mr. Frank!

While I peel myself away from YouTube for a brief moment, I'd like to introduce you to YA zombie author G.G. Silverman. I believe she is the first pure YA zombie novelist we've had on this or any Winter of Zombie tour. We are struggling to keep it PG here on the BLOG~~shit~~shoot. T~~his doesn't bode well. I fear we are just going to be censored from here on out. Fuck it. Opps. Read G.G. Silverman's interview on the BLOGshit before we get in deep shit!~~

This is G.G. Silverman

The Blogshit: Let’s cut to the chase, what are you promoting for the Winter of Zombie?

G.G. Silverman: I’m promoting my first novel, VEGAN TEENAGE ZOMBIE HUNTRESS. It’s a comedic YA horror novel, and my one-sentence description is that it’s a mash-up of some of my fave things from pop-culture: Daria, Mean Girls, and Shaun of the Dead. The main character is a feminist and vegan, and her non-violent principles come into conflict with having to kill zombies, and that conflict provides so many opportunities for comedy. But I’ve been told that as funny as the book is, it also delivers on the horror, but not so much gore that non-horror fans can’t get into it. The humor softens the blow.

G.G. Silverman: In my book, life starts returning to normalish after a year, but I gloss over it. Most of the action occurs during the z-poc.

In the real world, it’s such a big question to ponder. I think that so many things are possible. On the one hand, a dreadful cannibalism scenario like something out of Cormac McCarthy’s THE ROAD could happen for sure, if food became scarce. But then you’ll see some people creating great acts of kindness, and you’ll see others using the ingenuity to come up with great tools. But overall, I think there’d be a lot of destruction, and that part makes me nervous. Imagine if tomorrow your sewer line stopped working, and you couldn’t flush. That right there is the beginning of a horror show. Some of my neighbors can barely handle sorting their garbage into the right bins, if it even makes into the bins. I can’t even imagine what would go down even if everyone started crapping in the woods. SO. GROSS. <gags>

G.G. Silverman: not ever exclusively written about zombies. I’ve got a dark spy-ish thriller in the works, and I’ve had a science-fiction story published as well as a ghost story, and I’ve got some literary stuff coming down the pike. I like working in as many forms as I can. Keeps my writing fresh. That said, I will continue to honor my zombie fans with MORE BOOKS about their fave characters, Cokie, Clarissa, and Lila, and new ones too. That’s right. There’s several more coming down the road. Stay tuned!

This is G.G. Allin

The Blogshit: What is more important to the story: A sympathetic human survivor or a zombie with an interesting storyline?

G.G. Silverman: Either can be interesting if done well. Take a look at WARM BODIES by Isaac Marion. It’s told from a zombie’s perspective, but is soooooo beautiful. It’s the first time I ever had a crush on a zombie. I’d totally make out with R from Warm Bodies. Is that weird? Making out with a zombie? I mean, R is total sweetheart and I just can’t help myself.

The Blogshit: For you, who are the most important writers in zombie fiction at this moment?

G.G. Silverman: I mentioned Isaac Marion above, because he’s doing unexpected things, not following the norm. Then there’s obviously Robert Kirkman, who’s WALKING DEAD took the world by storm. I also have to thank Max Brooks for WORLD WAR Z and THE ZOMBIE SURVIVAL GUIDE. About ten years ago, he truly did the hard work of paving the way for the rest of us zombie genre folks, and without him, none of us would be here, I think. He got everyone hungry for more, pun intended. And he’s still writing great zombie stuff. I have massive respect for him.

The Blogshit: Is there room for sex in the zombie apocalypse?

G.G. Silverman: Um, there will have to be if the human race wants to survive! I mean, last time I checked, sex was how babies were made. Unless you know another easy way that someone can do at home without test tubes or turkey basters.

The Blogshit: How much consideration do you give to the seasons in your zombie stories?

G.G. Silverman: So far, my zombie books occur all the space of one night, so I consider the season so far as what the weather will be on that one night. So, if it’s raining because it’s spring in the Seattle area (my setting), there might be mud. And mud makes for fun pratfalls.

G.G. Silverman: <spits out coffee> Ohhhhh my goodness. So many fun things pop into my head. I’m a branding consultant by day so this naming gig is right up my alley. My dark, zombie-infested alley.

Ok, here’s a list of fun food truck names serving specifically zombie clients. Warning, they’re tacky:

• Pleased to Meat You

• Bone-anza Barbecue

• The Beefcake Bus

• Break-a-leg Barbecue

• Flesh-tone Foods

Well, that’s it for now. Thanks for letting me play!

G.G. Silverman's Web Page: http://www.ggsilverman.com/

G.G. Silverman on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/G.G.-Silverman/e/B00F64HFQC

Winter of Zombie 2015: John O'Brien

You're reading Books, Beer and BLOGshit! Its the only blog on the internet that hunts zombies with its bare hands! I am your coagulated blood handed host, Mr. Frank!

Today, author John O'Brien makes his triumphant return to the BLOGshit. He is a regular to the BLOGshit on both the Winter and Summer of Zombie blog tours and we always look forward to him like he's Santa Claus with a gun. John O'Brien is a preeminant force in the zombie fiction world and we always look forward to what he has to say in this, the Books, Beer and BLOGshit Winter of Zombie 2015 interview.

BANG!

The Blogshit: Let’s cut to the chase, what are you promoting for the Winter of Zombie?

John O'Brien: I recently published another set of short stories set within the fictional world created with A New World. The title is, A New World: Untold Stories 2.

John O'Brien: It could go either way and there’s always hope that humanity will survive in some capacity. But it’s a huge uphill struggle. The odds are pretty bad. As the series began, the odds were 7 night runners for every single survivor. That very quickly dropped off into staggering odds as humanity vanished under the wave of hunting night runners. So, we’ll have to see what happens.

John O'Brien: I’m not sure about this, honestly. I feel that I could sustain it with stories in the same genre, but eventually those would overlap. There are only so many different things that can happen. So, I will eventually write outside of the genre and have a few stories in mind to do just that. I will most likely branch out into the military thriller and fantasy genres.

This is NOT the John O'Brien you're looking for.

The Blogshit: What is more important to the story: A sympathetic human survivor or a zombie with an interesting storyline?

John O'Brien: The most important thing in my opinion is to have a character that people can relate to. One that seems real in their thinking and actions. Mistakes will be made and they can’t be perfect all of the time. So, to me, it doesn’t matter whether that would be a zombie or survivor. I just need for them to be three dimensional and seem real.

The Blogshit: For you, who are the most important writers in zombie fiction at this moment?

John O'Brien: You mean besides me? Haha…I’m so kidding there. To be honest, there are a lot of great writers out there in the genre. It’s difficult to give name to any one or two.

THIS is the John O'Brien you're looking for.

The Blogshit: Is there room for sex in the zombie apocalypse?

John O'Brien: I think there’s room for it, if it’s done appropriately and not the focus. After all, the characters are in a stress-filled environment. Post-adrenaline, shared tense encounters, and the closeness each survivor will share will naturally lead to that. I chose not to be descriptive or have that in the series, but it will be prevalent in any situation of that kind.

The Blogshit: How much consideration do you give to the seasons in your zombie stories?

John O'Brien: Well, I try to keep everything as realistic as possible. I mean, it is fiction. However, each season brings a different challenge to the mix so I keep that in mind when keeping track of the story line in my head.

John O'Brien: Brain Apetit

Whether you’ve been freshly raised or have been stumbling around the block for a while, you’ll appreciate our specialties. Tired of Mexican or Asian? We carry only the finest and specialize in celebrity cold cuts. Try our leg of Tufo sandwich. Cold outside? Of course it is — you’re undead. Order our famous Armand chili. Have your own kill? Bring them in and throw it on our open grill. Leave your legs behind, we cater. Whatever you crave, don’t moan. We have what you need.

John O'Brien
Author of the series, A New World

Author page: http://www.amazon.com/John-OBrien/e/B005IDEPP0/
Web site: http://anewworldseries.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/A_NewWorld
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AuthorJohnWOBrien
Merchandise store:
http://zazzle.com/anewworldsupplies

http://www.cafepress.com/anewworldseries

Winter of Zombie 2015: Nerys Wheatley

You're reading Books, Beer and BLOGshit! Its the only blog on the internet that has never dropped the spirit stick! I am your peppy cheerleader, Mr. Frank!

Today at Winter of Zombie camp, is the very suspicious camp counselor, one Nerys Wheatley. She keeps telling the kids all these graphic, creepy stories that are far too detailed to be something she made up off the top of her head. What I think is that she is the maniac murderer of Winter of Zombie camp.

Of course, being the first one to suspect that means my time in this movie is coming to an end soon. I only hope I can provide the first key clue as to Ms. Wheatley's true nature to the protagonist before my ultimate demise. So read the interview and get clued in so you can be the hero at the end of the day!

The Blogshit: Let’s cut to the chase, what are you promoting for the Winter of Zombie?

Nerys Wheatley: I’m promoting “Mutation“, book 1 in my “Twenty-Five Percent” series, a zombie/action/thriller with scares, tension, and a few laughs.

After thirteen years, the world has learned to deal with the virus that turns people into mindless flesh-eaters. There’s even a cure, although those who come through the disease are physically changed and Survivors, like police detective Alex MacCallum, are often feared and hated. When a new, much worse strain of the virus causes a sudden, massive outbreak, Alex is forced to join with Micah, an anti-Survivor activist who hates him. Surrounded by hordes of eaters, the two enemies struggle to stay alive and find the cause of this new, and possibly not entirely natural, strain of the deadliest virus on earth.

Nerys Wheatley: There’s always hope! My scenario is a little different in that the outbreak is localised and contained to one city. The virus has already been around for thirteen years so they know what it does. What they don’t know is that this is a new strain and not so easy to deal with and the authorities seriously underestimate the danger. As things stand now, the situation is grim, but my heroes will fight to stop the outbreak somehow. Whether or not they succeed has yet to be revealed (and I haven’t written it yet!).

Nerys Wheatley: I’m currently writing book three in the series and there will most probably be more in the future, but I won’t write another, separate, zombie series. It’s not a case of sustaining my career, it’s more that I enjoy all different genres and I want to write them too! I can’t stay in one place. Too many ideas! I have plans for future science fiction novels and I can see myself going into other genres too. I hope those that enjoy my zombie books will also enjoy them. Being an author is kind of like being the Doctor, being able to travel anywhere, anytime, and into any story. It’s exciting!

The Blogshit: What is more important to the story: A sympathetic human survivor or a zombie with an interesting storyline?

Nerys Wheatley: Well, in the best books you would get both! But if I have to chose, it would be the human survivor. An interesting, likeable lead character for the reader to root for is always what I want in the books I read. Without that I tend to lose interest. I want someone I can take the journey with, experience things through their eyes and want them to succeed. Those are the kind of characters I try to write. Although in Mutation I kind of have both in that my ’zombies’ (called eaters) are not your typical walking dead (they’re not dead, for a start!) and my lead character was formally infected and cured. So I have a sympathetic human survivor AND zombie with an interesting storyline all in one person!

The Blogshit: For you, who are the most important writers in zombie fiction at this moment?

Nerys Wheatley: This is difficult for me to answer as, to be honest, I don’t read that much zombie fiction! Should I admit that? I read more when I wasn’t writing it, but there’s something about writing the genre that makes me move away from it a little. Kind of like taking your work home with you! So as far as important goes, there are other people who can and I’m sure will answer that better than I can.

However, ask me what I think is important to zombie fiction as a whole and I would say more originality. I’ve had several reviews for Mutation that comment on how different it is from the other zombie stories out there and how refreshing it is to have something new. I’ve also heard many people say they are over the whole zombie genre because it seems to them like it is becoming all the same. It doesn’t have to be that way. There are always new stories to be told, and I know there are new zombies to create! Undead innovation, we can do it!

The Blogshit: Is there room for sex in the zombie apocalypse?

Nerys Wheatley: Unless the human race is going to die out, there had better be! Are we talking human/human? Human/zombie? Zombie/zombie? Or, in a twist, zombie/werewolf? I’m not here to judge. Whatever floats your boat!

The Blogshit: How much consideration do you give to the seasons in your zombie stories?

Nerys Wheatley: My series so far only takes place over less than a (very action-packed) early autumn month so so far I haven’t had to!

Nerys Wheatley: My very upmarket zombie food truck would be:

THE GOURMET STIFF

Tired of eating raw brains day in day out? Want something tasty and new to munch on, but can‘t quite shake a penchant for the grey matter? Try our new menu, for discerning zombies who like something a little bit different. From marinated medulla oblongata with a spinal fluid and parsley sauce, to fricasseed frontal lobe topped with spiced kidney wedges, we cater for all your undead culinary desires.

With covered seating area and full dessert menu.

Nerys Wheatley on the Web: http://neryswheatley.com/

Nerys Wheatley on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Nerys-Wheatley/e/B00X6FP2KO/

Friday, November 27, 2015

Winter of Zombie 2015: Rob E Boley

You're reading Books, Beer and BLOGshit! It's the only blog on the internet that's a touch of French with a hint of Italian. I am you continental cusine host, Mr. Frank!

Back in the day, in a little town called Freehold, New Jersey where Bruce Springsteen once got frustrated with suburban life and a grand mall once stood stood a little resturaunt in said mall's food court. It was called Roli Boli. It was delicious.

Rob E Boley is also delicious, in a consumption of words kinda way. I doubt he has any real connection to Freehold, New Jersey or Bruce Springsteen. But that's okay because Roli Boli no longer exists in the mall anyway. Damnit, Rob E Boley, you made me hungry.

I'm going to go brood in the corner while you good fold enjoy the Books, Beer and BLOGshit Winter of Zombie interview with Rob E. Boley.

The Blogshit: Let’s cut to the chase, what are you promoting for the Winter of Zombie?

Rob E. Boley: I’m promoting my Scary Tales dark fantasy series of novels, which begins with That Risen Snow: A Scary Tale of Snow White & Zombies. The series is a mash-up of fairy tales and classic horror monsters. It starts where the classic Snow White fairy tale ends—with the Prince kissing Snow to wake her from her zombie curse. Except she wakes up as a deranged zombie and all hell breaks loose. Although Snow White’s zombies remain the primary threat throughout the series, I also introduce other mash-ups, such as Red Riding Hood and werewolves, Beauty & the Beast with Phantom of the Opera, and Goldilocks and The Mummy.

Rob E. Boley: I don’t want to give away any spoilers but I will say this: very few of my characters are likely to live happily ever after. I’m a huge fan of bittersweet endings. It’s far more satisfying—and true to life—when characters win a little but also lose a little. I mean, how many pure victories do we ever really achieve in life? Achieving anything—especially surviving a zombie apocalypse—always comes at a cost.

Rob E. Boley: I never really set out to be a zombie horror writer—or even necessarily a horror writer. I just write the stories that come to my mind, but so far those have mostly tended to be horror or dark fantasy. I grew up reading horror and I love the genre. I have a few more books coming in The Scary Tales series. I’m also working on another book that features zombie-like creatures, but I can’t imagine all of my future books will feature zombies. I have some ideas for non-zombie stories, and it’s just a matter of time before one of those sees print. At some point, I aim to write a werewolf novel. I’ve always loved the man-beast duality of werewolves.

The Blogshit: What is more important to the story: A sympathetic human survivor or a zombie with an interesting storyline?

Rob E. Boley: It totally depends on the story. But as long as the survivor has some serious flaws and the antagonist has some depth, I think the story will do just fine. That’s the thing with writing zombie fiction—zombies aren’t—as characters—typically that interesting. They’re more like a force of nature, like a hurricane or flood, than most traditional monsters. So, in zombie fiction, it helps to have some regular people to serve as an alternate antagonist. Walking Dead is a great example of that. After the first few trades, the real threat quickly becomes other people—not the shambling ghouls.

The Blogshit: For you, who are the most important writers in zombie fiction at this moment?

Rob E. Boley: Honestly, I don’t know if I’m qualified to say. I mean, there’s so much zombie fiction out there, I can’t imagine I’ve read but a small fraction of it. I will say that Robert Kirkman’s Walking Dead graphic novel series is brilliant. I love Max Brooks’ work, too. I am a huge fan of David Wellington’s Monster Island trilogy, which was an original spin on the zombie mythos.

The Blogshit: Is there room for sex in the zombie apocalypse?

Rob E. Boley: Sex is like Jell-o. There’s always room for it. I actually get frustrated that there isn’t more sex in zombie apocalypse tales. I mean, death is literally staring these people in the face. Hell, death is trying to eat their faces. Why aren’t they screwing like rabbits, you know? Seriously, though, if you want a great example of sexy zombie apocalyptic hijinks, check out The Resurrected by Megan Hart. She does an amazing job of infusing erotic tension into her zombie epic. Spoiler alert: she also writes a bad-ass zombie sex scene.

The Blogshit: How much consideration do you give to the seasons in your zombie stories?

Rob E. Boley: Seasons are especially important for zombies. If it’s below freezing, those corpses are going to freeze right the hell up. Likewise if it’s summer, those zombies are going to get ripe mighty quick. Autumn is my favorite season, so I tend to set a lot of my stories, including The Scary Tales, in those fall months. Though probably spring is the best weather for zombies. All the rain loosens up the soil so it’s easier to crawl out of the grave. Plus, there’s no dead leaves to crunch underfoot and ruin the element of surprise.

That's a Roli Boli. You know you want one too.

Rob E. Boley: I think it’d have to be called Whole Brain Foods. We’d only serve human brains and meat that were raised free-range style—with a minimum of two hours of outdoor time each day—without the use of genetic modification, antibiotics, or tranquilizers. Don’t you just hate biting into a good hunk of human flesh and tasting a mouthful of chemicals? I sure do! Of course, we wouldn’t use preservatives for our products, so that food truck is going to stink something fierce. Fortunately, our zombie clientele aren’t likely to care. Unfortunately, our zombie clientele doesn’t have a lot of cash on hand—and they always forget to bring their credit cards. But that’s life—er, afterlife—in the food truck business.

Rob E. Boley Online: http://www.robboley.com/

Rob E. Boley on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Rob-E.-Boley/e/B00FSM1AD6