Category Archives: Publishing

Enter: The Girl With the Cookie Name 2

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Back on August 24th, I introduced you to Pandora Zwieback 1.0: a pregnant teenage runaway who was the main character in a never-completed screenplay titled The Nightlife Ain’t No Good Life. And now the secret origin of Pandora Zwieback continues!

PANDORA ZWIEBACK

An unofficial member of the group, 16-year-old Pandora is Trent’s older sister and the group’s “guardian,” having been appointed as such by the kids’ parents.

Quick-tempered and a touch cynical, Pan resents having to “babysit” a bunch of nerdy kids. What especially annoys her is that Hector obviously has a crush on her, and she’s just not that interested in a “kid” as a boyfriend.

Pan is the member that gives the group their mobility, since she’s the only one old enough to drive a car, which she does with all the hypermobility and instincts of an Indianapolis Raceway driver. This sometimes makes her more of a danger to the kids than whatever threat they happen to be facing.

What you see above is the character description of Pandora Zwieback 2.0—no longer a pregnant teen runaway, but still not a Goth monster hunter; in fact, here she’s not even the lead, but a supporting character!

But what exactly is “here”? Who are Hector and Trent? And what’s with the “bunch of nerdy kids”?

In 1995, I was working as an assistant editor at Byron Preiss Visual Publications, a book-packaging company here in New York. My boss was Howard Zimmerman (who recently edited the first Pan novel, Blood Feud). One day Howard mentioned that a friend of his, Sandy Fritz, an editor at Popular Science Magazine. Seems the company had expressed an interest in publishing a version of the magazine aimed at younger readers, to be called PopSci for Kids.

About a week later I presented Sandy with a proposal for The Braintrust: a group of highly intelligent, science-oriented teens and tweens who’d have exciting adventures in each issue of the magazine. (Hector was Pan’s maybe-boyfriend; Trent was her younger brother.) Included were drawings of the characters by David C. Matthews, a small-press artist with whom I’d been working on the original run of my Lorelei comic. As you can see, there are no traces of gothiness in fact, this version of Pan. In fact, she seems to favor Banana Republic over Hot Topic for her outfits!

Capping off the proposal was the script for the first one-page segment. The story had the kids attending a science fair, where bad guys were in the process of stealing a special computer that was on display. With Pan behind the wheel of the family car, the Braintrust goes into high-speed pursuit—only for one of the bad guys to throw a hand grenade at them!

To be continued!

…or not. Unfortunately, Pop Sci was a little horrified that I’d put the kids in such over-the-top danger, and canceled the project. Throwing grenades at children—really?

Well, hey, you wanted an adventure strip, right? Didn’t anybody over there grow up watching old Johnny Quest cartoons on Saturday mornings?

Oh, well…

Looking back on the project, and Pan’s role as the grumpy older sister to a smarter younger sibling, I now realize that in 1995 I created the basic idea of Disney’s animated series Phineas and Ferb, with Pan as their older sister, Candace! If only I’d thought to include musical numbers and a secret-agent platypus…

Happy Banned Books Week!

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Ever read Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn? How about To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, The Catcher in the Rye, by J. D. Salinger, The Color Purple, by Alice Walker, or Brave New World by Aldous Huxley? Well, now’s your chance to catch up on your reading and strike a blow for free expression!

To quote the Banned Books Week Web site:

During the last week of September every year, hundreds of libraries and bookstores around the country draw attention to the problem of censorship by mounting displays of challenged books and hosting a variety of events.

The 2011 celebration of Banned Books Week will be held from September 24 through October 1.

Banned Books Week is the only national celebration of the freedom to read. It was launched in 1982 in response to a sudden surge in the number of challenges to books in schools, bookstores and libraries. More than 11,000 books have been challenged since 1982.

Contemporary Young Adult entries include Suzanne Collins’s The Hunger Games trilogy (sex and violence), Sherman Alexie’s The Absolutely True Story of a Part-Time Indian (sex education and violence—and sex!), Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight series (more sex and violence!), and J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter books (’cause they endorse the occult, don’cha know).

Gee, that’s some fairly prestigious company you’ve got there. Maybe I need to get on that list…  😉

For more information, just click on the poster.

Magical Mice Love Zwieback, Too!

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So, just when I think we’re overdue for another positive review of Blood Feud: The Saga of Pandora Zwieback, Book 1—’cause really, how could there be any other kind?  ;-)—along comes my buddy, author J. D. Calderon, to step up to the plate!

Over at The Oswald Chronicles, J. D.—writer/creator of that webcomic, as well as author of the fantasy novels The Stone Egg, Dream Weavers: The Trinity Saga, and Dofon: An Imperfect Mantle—reviews Blood Feud in episode 7 of his podcast, Talking to the Scribe.

Click the Oswald logo above to visit the site, and then give the podcast a listen. And don’t forget to check out the Oswald webcomic, of course!

Talking to Myself (Part 3)

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Wrapping up a previously unprinted interview that I did for another Web site…

What is the one book no writer should be without?

I’ll give you five (’cause I’m so generous!):

On Writing, by Stephen King: It’s not only a great guide to the craft, but it’s also a good look into the creative writing process and serves as the closest thing you’ll get to King’s autobiography. I’m always recommending it to writers, even though I ignore probably half of his rules.

Doctor Who: The Writer’s Tale—The Final Chapter, by Russell T Davies and Benjamin Cook: Basically, it’s a massive collection of e-mails between Davies (the writer/producer who, in 2005, successfully revived Doctor Who) and former Doctor Who Magazine editor Cook that intricately explores the writer’s mind-set when he’s trying to create. Davies is amazingly open about how he writes, and in how he fights through frequent bouts of procrastination. The Final Chapter covers the period between Davies’s third season on the show, all the way to the conclusion of the final David Tennant two-part episode “The End of Time.” It may not teach you new writing tricks, but it’s a fascinating exploration of the writing process.

The Chicago Manual of Style: It’s the bible of the publishing industry, used by every editor, copyeditor, and proofreader worth their salt. It makes all their jobs easier if writers familiarize themselves with how things are meant to be written, and not just guess at it. Yes, it’s an expensive book (about $45.00), but in the long run it’s worth the investment. I’m constantly making use of it.

Webster’s Dictionary (most up-to-date edition): This is the dictionary used by mainstream publishers for reference—they accept no substitutes.

The Elements of Style, by William Strunk Jr. and E. B. White: A great reference tool that will help you tighten your writing and guide you past common writing mistakes—for example, it’s “I couldn’t care less,” not “I could care less.”

What writing magazines or other resources do you find most helpful?

I think Writer’s Digest is a good place to start for beginners interested in improving their craft. Publishers Weekly and School Library Journal keep you up-to-date on what’s going on in the industry, but considering how expensive a subscription is, it’s best that writers check out the online versions instead, or subscribe to their free e-newsletters. And magazines like Rue Morgue and Gothic Beauty keep me informed about fashion and horror culture that pertain to Pan Zwieback’s world.

Are you working on anything now?

Sure! I’m busy working on Blood Reign, the second Pandora Zwieback novel, for next year. But considering the cliffhanger ending I wrote for the first novel, Blood Feud, I can’t really say anything about the new book, except it’s got another great cover painting by Bob Larkin.

I also have a graphic novel coming out later this year from my company, StarWarp Concepts. Lorelei: Sects and the City is about a succubus (a female demon who feeds on the souls of her victims) trying to stop a supernatural cult from destroying the world. It’s a “Mature Readers” title, which means you have to be older than 18 to buy it because of adult language and some nudity. It’s sort of a tribute to the horror comics I read and the horror movies I watched when I was a teenager.

What’s the best piece of advice you ever had on writing?

Back in college, the professor in a screenwriting course I was taking once told the class that if you want to be a writer, you should always have a pen and notepad with you in case an idea comes to mind, or if you see something in your travels that you think would make for a good scene. So I don’t go anywhere without a notepad.

Do you have any advice for young writers?

Write what you know, but don’t be afraid to research what you don’t. Research is critical if you want to add depth to your story, especially if it’s set in the real world.

Always be willing to listen to constructive criticism; you don’t have to accept all of it, but you should keep an open mind. I got some great feedback while I was writing Blood Feud, especially from my editor, Howard Zimmerman. Contrary to the belief of some writers, editors aren’t there to screw with your “vision”—certainly not the good ones. They’re there to help you improve it. It’s the bad editors you have to watch out for.

Oh! And always carry a notepad.  😀

Talking to Myself (Part 2)

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Continuing a previously unprinted interview that I did for another Web site. (Part 1 ran yesterday.)

What was your big break?

As much as I hate this kind of thing, it really was a case of “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know.”

In the late nineties I was an editor for a publisher/book packager named Byron Preiss, who had a license from Marvel Comics to publish original novels based on their characters. Having edited some of the books, and written short stories for a couple of anthologies (Untold Tales of Spider-Man and The Ultimate Hulk), I was offered the chance to take over a YA novel titled Spider-Man Super Thriller: Warrior’s Revenge—Marvel had rejected the manuscript delivered by a mystery and fantasy writer named Neal Barrett Jr. Basically, I was in Byron’s office when news of the rejection came in and he turned to me and said, “So, you want to write it?” Of course I said yes!

The only problem was, the cover for the book had already been printed for advance sales purposes, so I wound up ghostwriting the book for Neal, who was amazingly gracious about the whole thing.

So, if you ever come across a copy of Warrior’s Revenge, just remember: it might have Neal’s name on it, but it’s actually my first novel!

A couple of years later, a similar situation happened: two established writers were supposed to do an original X-Men novel trilogy, except Marvel rejected their proposal. And again Byron asked if I’d be interested in taking it over. Well, who was I to say no?

The result was X-Men: The Chaos Engine Trilogy, in which the X-Men fight their archenemy Magneto, Doctor Doom (from the Fantastic Four), and the Red Skull (from Captain America) for control of the Cosmic Cube, a device that allows them to alter reality. All three books sold really well—helped in no small part by the fact that Book 1, X-Men/Dr. Doom, came out in time for the first X-movie. I think that’s when people really started to recognize my byline.

What authors have influenced you the most?

Well, Stephen King is probably my biggest influence. There’s comics guru Stan Lee (with whom I got to collaborate on a comics project!) and H. P. Lovecraft—an early twentieth century pulp-magazine horror writer who influenced guys like King. And there are some others who’ve influenced me: comic writer Alan Moore, mystery writer Robert B. Parker, Harlan Ellison, and Ray Bradbury. (I’m sure there’s somebody I’ve forgotten.)

The trick, though, is finding a way to blend all those influences into something that eventually becomes your own, unique writing style.

What are some of your hobbies?

I used to be a major comic book fan, but over the years I got tired with all the superhero stuff—which is kinda funny, considering my professional writing career started with me writing short stories and novels about Spider-Man, the X-Men, and the Incredible Hulk. Now I just spend all my money on Doctor Who merchandise! I’ve been a Who fan—Whovian?—since high school. I even got to write a story for an official Doctor Who anthology!

What’s your favorite movie?

When I was a teen it was the original, un-messed-with Star Wars. (The one where Han shot first.) Somewhere along the way it became The Blues Brothers. Must’ve been all that great blues music—well, that and the insane car stunts…

If your book, Blood Feud: The Saga of Pandora Zwieback, Book 1, was turned into a movie, who would you like to play the main characters?

At conventions I often describe the Pandora Zwieback series to folks as “Ellen Page and Salma Hayek in a Hellboy movie.” They’re a little too old at this point to play Pan and Annie, but when I was trying to land the series with a publisher back in 2005/6, I thought they’d be perfect.

For me, Salma Hayek had been Sebastienne Mazarin since 1995, when her big-screen debut in Desperado coincided with Annie starring in the Heartstopper comic series I was writing. And when Ellen Page was running around in X-Men: The Last Stand, dressed in leather and calling Vinnie Jones’s Juggernaut character a dickhead, I thought, That’s Pan!

Oh, and Bruce Campbell for Pan’s dad!

Tomorrow: Advice for writers, and suggested reading. Be here for the thrilling conclusion!  😉

Talking to Myself (Part 1)

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Sure, it’s said that the first sign of madness is when you start talking to yourself, but I’ve been doing it for years and I turned out okay.  😉

While I’m working on my convention report about this past Sunday’s Brooklyn Book festival for the StarWarp Concepts blog, I thought over here you might like to pass the time reading an interview I did that was meant to run on a review site to coincide with Blood Feud’s publication. “Meant to” being the operative phrase. Unfortunately, there was a change in policy—the site’s bosses decided to discontinue reviewing self-published books before the interview could be posted.

(What, you didn’t know I was also the publisher of StarWarp Concepts? Gee, I must’ve forgotten to mention that…  😉 )

Anyway, that was the end of the interview—until now, that is. I found it on an external hard drive last week and, after some tweaking, thought you might find it of interest. I broke it into three parts because some of the answers are a bit long—but hey, more reading for you. And you’re here because you like to read, right?

We join the interview already in progress, bypassing the introductions…

Did you always want to be a writer?

Oh, yeah! Back in grade school and high school I was always writing stories and doing comic strips. I was even appointed fiction editor of my high school’s magazine after winning a short-story contest. But when I started out as a professional writer I wanted to write comic books; in fact, I’ve been writing comics and graphic novels for a good while now. But it wasn’t until I was actually working in the book-publishing business that I began thinking about becoming more of a novelist.

If you weren’t a writer, what would you be?

Probably what I am right now: a freelance proofreader and copyeditor for a number of publishing houses. The hours are flexible and the money’s decent, and the work keeps me in touch with the industry.

What is your working style?

You mean when I’m forcing myself to sit down and write, instead of finding anything else to do that won’t involve staring at a blank computer screen until the words come into my head?  😉

My writing tends to be very fluid, changing as a new idea or better way of presenting something pops into my head, so I’m always going back and tinkering as I move ahead; usually it involves dialogue. It’s why, when I hand in a manuscript, my editors have always considered them tight first drafts (sometimes the only drafts, depending on their deadlines!).

Sometimes I’ll listen to specific pieces of music, for inspiration or scene pacing or emotional depth. I’ll give you an example: In Blood Feud, one of the most emotional scenes toward the end of the book involves Pan racing to rescue another character and then attacking the main bad guy, a fallen angel named Zaquiel. While I was writing it I kept playing on a loop a track from one of the recent Doctor Who soundtracks: “This is Gallifrey—Our Childhood, Our Home,” composed by Murray Gold.

Now I can’t listen to this piece without seeing Pan’s confrontation in my head.  😀

Do you prefer to write longhand, or on a computer?

Everything starts out longhand in notebooks—sometimes even on Post-its, if a good line pops into my head that I need to write down. And even after I transfer that handwritten material to my computer, I’ll still print out the pages and continue handwriting on those.

Do you believe in outlining?

For my own projects? No, but I’ve had to do that when working with licensed properties like the X-Men and Final Destination, and that’s because the editors and licensing agents need to know what you plan to do with their franchises. But even then I had a tendency to wander away from the outline and let the story write itself.

I know outlining works for other writers, but I’ve always found it too restrictive. I don’t even like working out a full plot because things change as I’m writing. My approach is: I know where I’m starting, I know where it’s gonna wind up—let’s see how we get there.

That’s probably not the best way to go about doing it, but it’s worked for me (so far).

Tomorrow: My big break, writing influences, and who I’d like to have seen starring in a Pandora Zwieback movie!

The Secret Origin of Sebastienne Mazarin (Part 1)

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Back on August 24th you were introduced to Pandora Zwieback 1.0—the original, non-Goth version of Pan that I created for an unfinished screenplay in 1984. But how about her mentor, Sebastienne “Annie” Mazarin, 400-year-old shape-shifter and professional monster hunter—where did she come from?

Would you believe from comic books? Yes, indeedy.

The project began in 1993, with a comment made to me by artist Louis Small Jr., who at the time was being heaped with praise for his work on Harris Comics’ new Vampirella series (recently reprinted in Dynamite Entertainment’s Vampirella: Masters Series, Vol. 5). Although comic fans loved his art, he wasn’t feeling much of that love from his bosses at Harris—in fact, they’d already started promoting the artist scheduled for the next story arc! Understandably annoyed, Louis wished he could create his own Vampirella-type character, to show Harris what they were missing out on by ignoring him.

A few days later, I presented him with Heartstopper, a proposed series about a shape-shifting monster hunter named Sebastienne Mazarin: half French, half Brazilian, all badass.

As I explained to Louis, having Annie as a shape-shifter instead of a vampire would deflect any negative comments about how he was just trying to rip off Vampirella by drawing another female bloodsucker. And making Annie a Latina would help her stand out from the multitudes of white superhero women that dominated the market. Louis agreed, and got to work sketching.

The first thing you probably noticed is Annie’s wearing a lot less than today’s version. Such was the state of the industry in the 1990s—a decade when having a half-naked female character in your comic practically guaranteed it would get published. And sell phenomenally well. It’s a period now known as “the bad girl era.”

(Bad-girl comics—for those of you unfamiliar with the term—starred heroines who possessed a lot of attitude but very little clothing; a bikini and thigh-high boots with stiletto heels were the basic uniform. Vampirella, Catwoman, Lady Death, Shi, Flare, Witchblade—the list was endless. And the one thing they had in common was that they sold insane amounts of copies—because fanboys DO luv their scantily clad fantasy women…)

True to form, the bad-girl approach worked. Louis and I had gotten a bit chummy with Joseph Monks, co-creator (along with artist Joseph Linsner) and former writer/publisher of the horror comic Cry For Dawn. After a creative-differences split with Linsner, Monks planned to continue publishing and was looking for projects. When I pitched Heartstopper he said it was definitely something that would make for a good series, and wanted it to be one of CFD Productions’ new titles. (I’m pretty sure it was Louis’s sketches that sold him.)

First, though, he wanted to tease the series in the first issue of his anthology series NightCry.

That sounded like a good plan, so Louis and I got started. I wrote the first-issue script, and Louis…ran into scheduling problems. Apparently those Vampirella issues he drew proved to be more popular than expected, and now he was being flooded with art commissions and offers to draw comics for other, larger publishers. And when you’re a freelance artist trying to make a living from drawing comic books, you’ve gotta go where the money is. (Being a freelancer myself these days, I understand that logic all too well.) It was easy to see that Louis would never have the time to focus on Heartstopper.

That didn’t stop him from trying, though. He managed to complete eight penciled pages as the deadline for NightCry #1’s trip to the printer drew ever closer. Then Monks—realizing he had room for only four of those pages (one of the other stories ran long)—handed them off to an inker to make that deadline, rather than give Louis time to ink them himself.

The problem was, the new guy was a rookie inker. Never been published. Never really inked anybody before, either. The results were…pretty ugly.

In the end, between the bad art job and Louis being unavailable to work on the series, it was decided that Heartstopper was not going to be one of CFD’s new titles. In retrospect that was just as well—the company folded two years later—but I was still disappointed.

But, I thought, maybe if I can find another artist who’s as good with the bad-girl stuff as Louis is, I can try and place the series with another publisher.

And that was when an equally talented artist named Uriel Caton entered the picture…

We’ve Got E-books!

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That’s right! Available for purchase right now from DriveThru Horror is the PDF edition of Blood Feud: The Saga of Pandora Zwieback, Book 1!

Well, no, you can’t buy it for a dollar, but the low, low price of $4.99 is just as good, isn’t it? Of course it is!

Also available is J. Sheridan Le Fanu’s vampire classic Carmilla ($3.99!), which features six beautiful illustrations by resident Pandora Zwieback artist Eliseu Gouveia.

It’s a baby step into the 21st century for StarWarp Concepts, but we are working on other platform editions (Kindle, Nook, Kobo, etc.); I’ll have news on each one as they become available. For now, just click on the DriveThru logo above to check out the first two SWC releases!

You’re Supposed to Encourage Them, Y’know…

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Ever since I got involved in book publishing, I’ve subscribed to the Publishers Weekly newsletter. (PW is a magazine that’s the bible for the industry—sort of a combination New York Times Book Review and literary Entertainment Weekly.) In one of the recent newsletters, there was a link to an article by bookstore owner Josie Leavitt, titled “She’s Not a Strong Reader”

“…after two failed attempts to get the book [the teenage girl] wanted, she finally let me help her. I got her a wonderful stack of Libba Bray and Sarah Dessen and left her alone, only to have her mother announce to me, ‘She’s not a strong reader.’ As if that explained why her daughter was taking her time to choose the right book.”

And that reminded me of a similar encounter I had at the 2005 San Diego Comic Con, only in this case it involved a young boy (maybe 10 years old) and a copy of a Young Adult novel that I was selling at my booth: Spider-Man Super-Thriller: Warrior’s Revenge.

Now why, you ask, would I be selling copies of a book written by Neal Barrett Jr.? Simple—because Neal didn’t write it, I did. In fact, it was my first novel! (Long story short, Neal’s manuscript had been rejected by Marvel Comics’ licensing division, and I was brought in to write an entirely new manuscript. Problem was, the covers had already been printed, so no author credit for me.)

Anyway, the boy’s eyes made a slow pass across the table and then locked on the Spidey cover. (It is pretty eye-catching, thanks to the great work of artists Mike Zeck and Phil Zimelman.) He picked up the book.

“It’s a novel,” I told him. “Spider-Man and the Hulk fight the Super-Skrull.”

His eyes got real big. He thumbed through it, liked what he saw, and told his father he wanted it.

And Dad balked.

“I don’t know…” He thumbed through it, too. “It’s not a comic book. Are you sure you’re gonna read it?”

“Yes!” the kid said. “I really want it!”

Dad frowned. “I don’t know…”

I was a little surprised by his reaction. I mean, after a dozen or so years of exhibiting at comic cons I’d gotten used to teens and adults grimacing when they realized that things like my other Marvel project X-Men: The Chaos Engine Trilogy and this Spidey adventure were actual books, with lots of words on the pages. Gah! How horrible that I actually expected them to read something without pictures! (Not that there weren’t some pictures—for Warrior’s Revenge, artist James Fry had provided ten fantastic illustrations.)

But here was a boy who saw all the words on the pages and still wanted to read it—and Dad was trying to discourage him? WTH, Dad?

“Y’know,” I said to the dad, “if he likes to read, that’s really not a bad thing.” The unspoken nudge being it would be a good thing to buy it for his son. (Besides, I was charging only three dollars—what a bargain! I mean, I recently saw a copy of it for sale at Amazon.com for $121.00!)

Dad sighed. “I guess…” He shrugged. “All right.”

He paid for the novel, I autographed it, and off the kid went, happily clutching his new book. And I stood at my booth and shook my head, wondering why any parent would want to discourage their child from reading.