Happy Take Your Child to the Library Day!

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Today is the fourth annual celebration of Take Your Child to the Library Day. Founded in 2011 by children’s librarian Nadine Lipman, the event is held the first Saturday in February and encourages librarians to reach out to their communities and show folks just how wonderful reading can be.

Before the Internet, libraries were the source for information and reading, and these days they can use our support. So head out tomorrow, introduce your children to that big brick building with all the free books to borrow, update the library card that’s been stuck in the back of your wallet for all these years, and renew your acquaintance with a vital partner in the ongoing literacy campaign.

For more information, visit the TYCLD site.

StarWarp Concepts to Attend Brooklyn Book Festival 2015

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brooklyn_logoIt’s official: Brooklyn Book Festival will be celebrating its tenth anniversary this September, and StarWarp Concepts will definitely be there to join in the festivities! It’s a show I’ve come to look forward to—a major shift in attitude from when The ’Warp made its first appearance there a few years back, and I kept rolling my eyes hard every time I heard authors referred to as the “literati” (a god-awful, pretentious term if ever I’ve heard one). The ’Warp missed out on last year’s show due to circumstances beyond our control, so we’re doubly excited to greet readers new and old at this year’s festival!

Brooklyn Book Festival takes place—rain or shine—at Brooklyn Borough Hall Plaza, on Sunday, September 20, 2015, from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. For more information, including travel directions, visit the BBF website. I won’t know the location of the SWC booth until later in the year—usually they don’t announce booth numbers until August, after the festival committee has finalized the plaza layout—but I’ll be sure to post the map here when I get it.

Hope to see you there!

StarWarp Concepts to Attend Big Apple Con 2015

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Mets-Big-AppleIt’s a late addition to the SWC convention calendar, but with noted comic-art dealer Michael Carbonaro celebrating the twentieth anniversary of his annual Big Apple Con this year, how can StarWarp Concepts not be there to join in the festivities? This one-day Manhattan show always gets a sizable turnout of fans and professional comic creators, and so far they’ve announced that legendary talents James O’Barr (The Crow), Herb Trimpe (Incredible Hulk, Iron Man), Rich Buckler (Fantastic Four, Deathlok), Ramona Fradon (Super-Friends), and Larry Hama (G.I. Joe) will be among the folks you’ll find in artists alley.

Big Apple Con takes place at the Penn Plaza Pavilion (401 7th Avenue) in Manhattan on Saturday, March 7, 2015, from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. For more information, visit the Big Apple Con website. Unfortunately, I probably won’t know the location of the SWC table until I get there—right now, all I know is that it’ll be in artists alley—but I’ll be sure to give you the lowdown if that situation changes prior to the show.

Hope to see you there!

StarWarp Concepts to Attend Collingswood Book Festival 2015

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Collingswood-logoNo, it’s not the house where vampire Barnabas Collins of the gothic soap opera Dark Shadows lives—that would be Collinwood—but you’ll definitely find some spooky deals there! The Collingswood Book Festival returns for its lucky 13th anniversary this October, to fill the streets of this quaint New Jersey town with book lovers, and StarWarp Concepts will be making its debut appearance there! Unfamiliar with the Collingswood Book Festival? Well, to quote the festival’s site:

The 13th Annual Collingswood Book Festival makes a triumphant return as bibliophiles converge in this historic South Jersey town to celebrate everything about the written word. The Collingswood Book Festival is a big literary event that exudes small-town, friendly ambience. A week of activities will culminate on Saturday, October 3. Festival-goers will have an opportunity to stroll more than six blocks of Haddon Avenue filled with nationally recognized authors/speakers for adults and children, as well as booksellers, storytellers, poetry readings, workshops, exhibitors and performance stages. All events are free.

Due to circumstances beyond our control, we had to cancel our appearance at last year’s show, so this gives us a brand-new chance to introduce readers to the adventures of Pandora Zwieback, Lorelei, Troubleshooters Incorporated, Carmilla, John Carter of Mars, and all the rest. And what better time for a dark-fantasy publisher to show up than for the festival’s thirteenth year?

Collingswood Book Festival takes place—rain or shine—on Saturday, October 3, 2015, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. For more information, including travel directions, visit the CBF website. I won’t know the location of the SWC booth until they finalize their plans in September, but once I get that information I’ll be sure to pass it along.

Hope to see you there!

Happy Women in Horror Month!

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It’s that time again, when every February the horror genre celebrates Women in Horror Month, putting a spotlight on the contributions of all the female creators—writers, artists, movie directors, producers, special makeup artists, special effects experts, etc.—who’ve brought thrills and chills to generations of fans around the world. And the Women in Horror Month website is the place to go to find out all about the events scheduled for this year. To quote their mission statement:

“Women in Horror Recognition Month (WiHM) assists female genre artists in gaining opportunities, exposure, and education through altruistic events, printed material, articles, interviews, and online support. The vision is a world wherein all individuals are equally given the opportunity to create, share, and exploit their concept of life, pain, and freedom of expression…. WiHM focuses on supporting the achievements of women who utilize the most extreme mirror available in storytelling: horror. We encourage women to explore and represent these horrors constructively, in positive environments.”

For more information, visit the WiHM site.

Blood Reign: Pandora Zwieback, Book 2 Debuts Tomorrow!

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Blood Reign: The Saga of Pandora Zwieback, Book 2—author Steven A. Roman’s follow-up to the critically acclaimed first Pandora Zwieback novel, Blood Feud—goes on sale tomorrow, February 2, 2015. Pan was certainly left in a bad spot at the conclusion of Blood Feud, but if you’ve read the downloadable Blood Reign preview, you know that the cliffhanger ending Pan faced is only the start of her monster-complicated troubles…and her adventures!

And here’s the final snippet to prepare you for Ms. Zwieback’s highly anticipated return:

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National Readathon Day is Tomorrow!

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This Saturday, January 24, kicks off the first annual celebration of National Readathon Day! A collaboration involving Goodreads, Mashable, the National Book Foundation, and major publisher Penguin Random House, it’s a fund-raising effort to battle illiteracy and promote reading. And if there’s one thing everyone at StarWarp Concepts strongly believes in, it’s promoting reading.

How can you participate? To quote the event’s site:

You can get involved by joining readers across America in a marathon reading session on Saturday, January 24. From Noon to 4:00 PM in our respective time zones, we will sit and read a book in our own home, library, school or bookstore. Each individual or team can set their own fundraising target, by creating a National Readathon fundraising page on Firstgiving. Any dollar amount raised is immensely helpful and will benefit the National Book Foundation, a 501c3 non-profit.

For more information, visit the National Readathon Day site, or check out this Library Journal article. And then get to reading!

Blood Reign: Teaser Snippet #1

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Blood Reign: The Saga of Pandora Zwieback, Book 2—author Steven A. Roman’s follow-up to the critically acclaimed first Pandora Zwieback novel, Blood Feud—goes on sale Monday, February 2, 2015. And to whet your reading appetite, hot on the heels of yesterday’s reminder for you to download the special Blood Reign preview, here’s a little snippet of the other thrills you’ll find within its pages:

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