Author Interview: Diane Arrelle 2

"To Hell with Dante" is a collection of cynical afterlife stories, ranging from comedic genius to dark surrealism.  To help kick off this fine anthology, I'll be conducting interviews with many of the contributors.  Today I'm interviewing Diane Arrelle, the talented author who contributed the story "Believing for a Reason."  Thank you for being here, Diane.

MTI:  I believe we did an interview before, when you contributed to The Temporal Element.  But for readers who missed that interview, why not start off by telling us a little about yourself.

DA: I have been writing for about 25 years. I worked for a newspaper for 2 years then freelanced for the next 15 years. I wrote a humor/family/opinion column for nine years until the newspaper group went out of business.  I loved the column because as the mother of two children, no one ever seemed to care about my opinion at home.        

As for fiction, I have had about 200 short stories published and I have 29 of them in my book, Just A Drop In The Cup.  I had a second book, Elements Of The Short Story, published in 2007.

Like many writers, I have had a wide variety of jobs including being an elementary school teacher for 10 years and for the last 15 years I have been the director of municipal senior centers. I just retired two months ago.

MTI:  Your story, Believing for a Reason, appears in To Hell with Dante, tell us a little bit about that.  What's the general idea behind it?

DA: I guess the main idea is that you need to believe in something to move on,  even if that belief is a total rejection of everything we have been told to believe.  It is my rejection of dogma.

MTI:  Does your story hold any special significance, perhaps seeking to provoke some thoughts about the afterlife, or was it just a lot of fun fiction?

DA: Although the story was a lot of fun to write, and the main character such a hopeless narcissist, it really stems from the need to question what we have been told to blindly believe in.  

MTI: Okay, on a totally unrelated note, if you could meet and talk with any one deceased person, who would it be?

DA: On a shallow personal note, my Aunt Rose, who passed away at the age of 15 and took some secrets with her.  I think Moses would be a wonderful choice, so much fact and fiction mixed together, I’d love to hear the real version of the Exodus from Egypt.

MTI: Shifting back to your writing, can you tell us a little about what you're working on right now?

DA:  I wish I were being more ambitious. I retired to write, but I’ve spent most of the time out with my friends and doing yard work. A lesson here, don’t retire in the fall if you live rural, because you spend most of the time raking.  I am working on several things including a book based on my column, I am planning on putting out a book of short stories on Kindle and I am trying to write stories for several anthologies including one for Temporal Elements II

MTI:  Other than your piece appearing in To Hell with Dante, do you have any other stories being published in the near future?

DA:  I have a story coming out in Sha Daa Facets, my story, The Smart Phone will be appearing in K-Zine in 2015 and my story There Will Always Be Hell To Pay will be in the anthology, Paying The Ferryman in 2015 as well.

MTI:  Your story, "Paradox Lost" appears in The Temporal Element, the very first Martinus Publishing anthology every released.  Do you have any thoughts about that particular story to share with our readers?

DA:  I had a great time writing that story. It was totally tongue in cheek in tone but it came from the time travel paradoxes that nag me when I lay awake at night.  What would happen if you went back in time to murder someone but accidently killed yourself?   Although I get good ideas when I’m wide awake in bed, I’d still rather be sleeping and save those ideas for a different time.  

MTI:  On a lighter note, have you watched any good tv lately?

DA:  I love Dr. Who speaking of time travel, I have been watching it since the Tom Baker years. I still watch Saturday Night Live, but mostly out of habit, although I do like the openings and the news.  I watch mostly movies on TV and HBO. Yes, I did watch True Blood, although I usually find trendy horror creatures boring.

MTI:  How about music?

DA:  My taste is eclectic and I like so much on the radio today.  I love the sound track from Pirate Radio when I’m in the 60’s sort of mood and Pitch Perfect for a mix of music. Being that it is November, I am getting ready to listen to the Trans Siberian Orchestra. I an taking a road trip with my husband on Black Friday to see them perform in Pennsylvania.  

MTI:  What are three of your favorite movies?  You know, the ones that never get old.

DA:  Field Of Dreams, that one always makes me cry at the end.  I love Shrek, the original The Producers and Secondhand Lions (ok so I picked 4).

MTI:  Of course, writers are some of the most voracious readers these days.  Tell me, have you run across any great pieces of literature lately?

DA:  Well, I’ve been enjoying Carl Hiaasen, Augusten Burroughs, Davis Sedaris, Janet Evanovich and Bill Bryson

MTI:  You have the attention of potential readers.  Do you have any words of wisdom to share with them, or possibly a sales pitch to encourage them to read more of your writing?

DA:  I write under a pen name, Diane Arrelle, so be sure to look for me under it. I have the upcoming stories  mentioned above and I have a story in State Of Horror New Jersey, a few stories currently in Were Travele, and my story A Woman Sporned in Paranormal Horror II.  I also have a piece in Chicken Soup For The Soul True Love and one in Finding your Happiness, both of those under my real name Dina Leacock.

MTI:  Of course, readers love free samples, so let's give them a taste.  Here are the first few paragraphs of your story, as featured in To Hell with Dante:

            Matilda Davis knew she was going to die.  One minute she was driving too fast on an icy bridge and the next... well, the next was a series of images, crashing through the guardrail, the car landing on its roof with a bone snapping crack, and then the awareness of nothingness.

            Puzzling feeling... nothingness... “Am I dead?”

            Laughter by many and a lone voice saying, “Give the woman a chance to acclimate.”

            “Hello?” Matilda called.

            “Hello,” a voice answered.

            “Are you... are you God?”

            The giggles started again.

            “Cut it out,” the voice called to the unseen crowd and then to Matilda,  ”Do you want me to be your god?”

            Matilda felt a wash of confusion. “My god?  I... I don’t have a personal god. Is this heaven?  Is this some sort of test to get in?  Why are people laughing at me?” Matilda was starting to feel emotions again and annoyance crept into her voice. “And what’s with all this nothing. Why can’t I see anything? Where are you people?”

            The voice asked, “Do you have a god?”

            “Hey, look, whoever you are. I don’t have time for this mystical crap. Just answer my questions.”

            “Ah,” the voice sighed. “An angry soul.”

MTI:  Thanks for another great interview.  Those who want to read the rest of this story and 20 others can pick up To Hell with Dante.

Setbacks and Delays

Martinus Publishing isn't doing well, and neither am I at the moment.  As a quick heads-up, I'd like to inform everyone of the situation.

Sticking just with the publishing side of things, sales are currently awful.  The last two anthologies, Life of the Dead, and To Hell with Dante have both tanked, big time.  We are seeing virtually no sales of these titles, and I've spent more (much more) on advertising than has actually come back.  These titles are essentially dead.  That is very disheartening, and I dread having to send out royalty reports in January to the contributors.  I hate sending out pocket change for the authors who have contributed stories, and I further hate to let them know that nobody's buying their work.  Some will roll with it, some will be understanding, and maybe a few will just be upset and blame me for not being a rich New York City publishing house.

There is a huge pile of slush on my computer, waiting to be read, but due to various reasons I have been unable to focus adequately to get through most of it lately.  If you can imagine a writer with "reader's block" then that's me at the moment.  I cannot stand to look at the raw print some days, and I can't give an adequate assessment of a submission if that is the case.  Most of the open anthologies are closing to submissions by the end of the year, at least, so I might get a breather to catch up in January.  Maybe.

I have quite a few personal things troubling me, but those are my business, and I will not trouble anyone else with them.  Needless to say, I do not ask for your pity or your sympathy.  I only say it so you won't be surprised by any delays that might arise due to my current state of mind.  Don't be surprised if you don't get a timely response to a submission.

A little over 3 months ago, I quipped in a radio interview that I was "too stubborn to quit" when it came to the publishing industry.  That may still be the case, but I can't run myself into the ground for nothing.  When you have 2 flops in a row, and find yourself broke with no means to even run any more online ads, it really isn't much motivation.  Worse still, I don't even have the money to get some other projects I have in the works off the ground.  Damn it, I can't stand the thought of telling people I'm too financially strapped to make their dreams come true.

I realized some years ago that I was not liable to be able to become the successful writer that I always sought to become, but I thought I could help others on their trek toward that goal. Now, I can't even do that, so what good am I?  I'm sorry.

I'm not giving up.  I'm not shutting down.  However, I will say that writing and publishing aren't my most important concerns anymore.  Being a writer is something that has defined me my entire life.  Yet, the greatest success in the world would not grant me what I truly need in life.  No, that is something entirely different, and I have only just begun to understand it.  When that is achieved, perhaps then the writing will matter again. 

Someday...

Author Interview: Francis Gideon

"To Hell with Dante" is a collection of cynical afterlife stories, ranging from comedic genius to dark surrealism.  To help kick off this fine anthology, I'll be conducting interviews with many of the contributors.  Today I'm interviewing Francis Gideon, the talented author who contributed the story "Alone and In Debt."  Thank you for being here, Francis.

FG: Thank you for having me!

MTI:  Starting off, could you tell our readers a little bit about yourself?

FG: Sure! Right now, I’m a horror writer living in Canada. I just moved to a new city to be closer to my university as I start my PhD.

MTI:  Now, getting down to business; what first compelled you to weave fiction, and what's your favorite type of story to write?

FG: When I was young, I read the book “The Outsiders” by S. E. Hinton. I really liked it, but I remembered being even more impressed by the fact that the author wrote and published the book when she was around 16-17 years old. I was about twelve at the time, and decided that if she could do something like that so young, then I could too. So I started writing more seriously then. Most of my “novels” never ended up more than thirty pages on loose leaf paper, but it was a start.

My favourite stories to write are a toss-up between horror and romance, actually. I always figured those genres were the most relatable, since everyone has experienced some type of love before (be it from family, friends, or significant other) and we’ve all been scared, too. I was lucky that “Alone and In Debt” is a little bit of both.

MTI:  Tell me, if you had to pick just one author who has influenced or inspired you, who would it be?

FG: Other than S. E. Hinton, who first got me really interested in doing writing professionally, I would say either Angela Carter or Kurt Vonnegut. Both of them aren’t afraid to be really, really weird in their fiction—and to take risks.

MTI:  Your story, Alone and In Debt, appears in To Hell with Dante, tell us a little bit about that.  What's the general idea behind it?

FG: At the time, I remember reading a lot of stories with demon possessions, or deals with demons/devils. It’s a very common theme—from Faustus to Supernatural now. But I always wondered how people really dealt with the fact that they had been possessed or were now going to hell. I began to wonder what types of emotions that would involve—and how people could comfort one another during that. So, I thought of a therapy group just like Narcotics Anonymous, but for people who had made deals. The rest of the story came easily after I already had a setting.

MTI:  Does your story hold any special significance, perhaps seeking to provoke some thoughts about the afterlife, or was it just a lot of fun fiction?

FG: It was a lot of fun! Most of what I end up doing becomes a thought experiment—a process of asking myself “what if…?” for certain scenarios, and in that way, I suppose I’m trying to get the audience to ask themselves the same types of questions. There is one scene, with Corey and Adam in the diner, where they talk about how “monsters are national creatures.” That, in particular, I find to be a really fascinating thought. A lot of scholarship on horror films echoes this statement, too. Coming from Canada, I see the subtle differences between the horror films I grew up watching—Black Christmas, Ginger Snaps—and the US horror films. Horror is always a shadow of the current time it was made in, and to think of a different monster for each country, is something really captivating and thought provoking for me. I can only hope the audience thinks so as well.

MTI:  Okay, on a totally unrelated note, if you could meet and talk with any one deceased person, who would it be?

FG: Since most of my favourite authors are dead now, I would probably say one of them! Or Robin Williams.

MTI:  Shifting back to your writing, can you tell us a little about what you're working on right now?

FG: A lot of things, actually! I have a YA zombie novel that I’m putting the finishing touches on right now, in between my PhD work. I know, most people would probably groan hearing about another YA zombie novel, but I’m hoping to approach the contagion aspect of this a little differently, using some outside research. Only time will tell if I’m able to pull it off.

MTI:  Other than your piece appearing in To Hell with Dante, do you have any other stories being published in the near future?

FG: Yes! I just had a Halloween story released with Mocha Memoirs Press called “Surrender to Destiny” about a London detective investigating the bodies of men hollowed out and colonized by insects. I also have a few holidays stories (mostly romance though) coming out with JMS Books, too.

Here are some links:

http://mochamemoirspress.com/deaths-cafe-surrender-to-destiny/

http://francisgideon.wordpress.com/

MTI:  On a lighter note, have you watched any good tv lately?

FG: Yes! The TV show Hannibal (an adaptation of the Thomas Harris universe) continues to impress me more and more each time I watch it. The cinematography is beautiful and their new treatment of the stories really captivates me as an old fan of the books/movies.

MTI:  How about music?

FG: Gerard Way (former front man of the band My Chemical Romance) recently released his solo album Hesitant Alien, which has been getting a lot of plays for me recently. He even has a song about a manga on it! The whole album has a kind of Brit Pop, David Bowie vibe to it. Really nice to listen to as I grade papers.

MTI:  What are three of your favorite movies?  You know, the ones that never get old.

FG: Too hard—but I’ll try. Surprise, they’re mostly horror or comic book related: Silence of the Lambs, The Company of Wolves, and The Dark Knight.

MTI:  You have the attention of potential readers.  Do you have any words of wisdom to share with them, or possibly a sales pitch to encourage them to read more of your writing?

FG: Hmm, Kurt Vonnegut is always so much better at small sound bites for occasions like this. The only thing that springs to mind is “Goddammit, you’ve got to be kind.” Be nice to people. We all need each other in some way and we all have different stuff going on that makes it difficult. It’s far, far better to need people and ask for help every once in a while than to completely shun everyone for the sake of reputation or something else abstract. The older I get, the more I think about being kind and just how important it is.

Thanks again for having me!

Of course, Francis.  It was a Pleasure.  Those who wish to check out Alone and In Debt, along with 20 other cynical afterlife stories, can pick up To Hell with Dante!

Veterans Day Poem: Ode to the Absent Fallen

It's Veterans Day again (or Armistice Day, as my Great-Grandfather Ned would insist).  In honor of those who have served, those who have fought, those who have fallen, here is a piece of poetry I was inspired to write while visiting a cemetery not so long ago.

The flags flutter in the breeze,

symbols of memory,

of passed away dreams.

The heroes, the fallen,

those who have gone,

will a final rest ever truly be known?

I sit and I wonder

where have you gone?

Is it a far better meeting

or more a tribulation tone?

Will I know it all soon

or be condemned to ignorance

for the weeping we've sown?

For the days have gone too soon;

as I look at the stones

my mind hearkens back to you,

forever alone.

A day come and gone;

I'll miss you, you know,

but we'll someday find solace

in the truth we have known

I leave you with these words;

come back home.

Do something to honor a Veteran today.  We owe them!

Author Interview: Karl G. Rich 2

"To Hell with Dante" is a collection of cynical afterlife stories, ranging from comedic genius to dark surrealism.  To help kick off this fine anthology, I'll be conducting interviews with many of the contributors.  Today I'm interviewing Karl G. Rich, the excellent author who contributed the story "Everybody Goes to Heaven, and Then..."  Thank you for being here, Mr. Rich

KARL G. RICH:  Thank you, Martin, it’s a pleasure, but please call me Kregger. Karl Rich is the name I give the barista down at Starbucks since my real name seems both unpronounceable and incapable of being spelled correctly. Karl’s an alter ego I have used since the Stone Age when I worked in the restaurant biz.

MTI:  Of course, Kregger.  We've done this before, but for readers who didn't catch our last interview, why not tell them a little about yourself?

KREGGER:  First and foremost, I am a grandfather of six. Being Papa seems to have swallowed all my other identities. As a young adult, before kids and my current wife--on entering a restaurant, instead of smoking/nonsmoking, I would ask for the “No Kids” section. Children weren’t my favorite people, but now my favorite people call me grandpa.

At work I’m a healthcare professional. I take painstaking care not to talk about work with strangers. This is due to their reactions to the tonnage of blood, gore and pain I deal with on a daily basis. One time my brother-in-law asked me, “What was the worse thing I have ever seen?” I described in detail how a prolapsed rectum nearly ate an intern in an operating room. Thank God, I caught the young doctor by his surgical booties before he disappeared forever. Can anyone imagine that eulogy? Now, my brother-in-law knows better than to ask such silly questions.

MTI:  Your story, "Everybody Goes to Heaven, and Then..." appears in To Hell with Dante.  Tell us a little bit about that.  What's the general idea behind it?

KREGGER:  I spend a lot of time writing about heaven and hell. I don’t believe in either place as popularized in the media or religion, but the perception of both places allow for a variety of stories. Imbedded within most of my stories are retellings of old jokes. In “Everybody Goes to Heaven, and Then…” I used a classic internet joke with some of my recurring characters to illustrate choices people make. In death as in life bad choices and bad decisions lead to bad things. Right now, I’m trying to shoehorn a joke about not stepping on ducks/bunnies in heaven into a story, but I’ve yet to figure it out.

MTI: Does your story hold any special significance, perhaps seeking to provoke some thoughts about the afterlife, or was it just a lot of fun fiction?

KREGGER:  Just plain fun. I’ve given up trying to convince anyone of anything. I write for fun.

MTI:  Okay, on a totally unrelated note, if you could meet and talk with any one deceased person, who would it be?

KREGGER:  Honestly, the first person that came to my mind was Adolph Hitler. Not because I admire or idolize the man, but to ask WTF were you thinking? In what world would a man or group of people think it proper to exterminate any other group? I believe his answer would probably be the world of the 21^st Century.

MTI:  Shifting back to your writing, can you tell us a little about what you're working on right now?

KREGGER:  I have a Sci-fi project that is an extension of my story in the Veterans of the Future Wars anthology called, “I am Drone.” It is a futuristic thriller set in a post-nuclear-war America with human drones used as weapons of mass destruction to safe guard what’s left of America.

MTI:  Oh, I want to read that one!  Keep me apprised of your progress with that project.  Other than your piece appearing in To Hell with Dante, do you have any other stories being published in the near future?

KREGGER:  I’m waiting on a submission to Vineyard Press for the Passions of Man anthology. I have one more submission called, “The Absence of Heat” slated for publication in the We Were Heros anthology by Martinus Publishing. This winter I will start querying for my novel, The Mad King of Beaver Island.

MTI:  Writers are often voracious readers.  Have you run across any good literature lately that you'd like to recommend?  You know, other than your own great work.

KREGGER:  I’m in the process of slogging through a compilation of twelve novels called, Deadly Dozen:12 Mysteries/Thrillers.  It’s something I picked up for learning style and technique of the genre. The stories are interesting, but I’m noticing a staccato style in the writing. Most of the books utilize very short chapters to move the story along. I couldn’t beat the price, and if I hate a story I skip to the next one. I read Timebound by this year’s ABNA winner. Here’s a clue to new writers—women are not male characters with breasts.  So write female characters with female traits. Today’s market, we are selling to, are women. Conversely, I suggest women writers not emasculate their characters as Rysa Walker did in Timebound. I also enjoyed Malone Hero by Edmond Wells, a long time contributor to Martinus Publishing.

MTI:  Other than writing, what would you call your favorite hobby or pastime?

KREGGER:  I always have been and will always be a sailor. It is the one thing that defines me till I die. At which time I will be submerged in Lake Michigan. I do not understand anyone that fears water.

MTI:  Once again, you have the attention of potential readers.  Do you have any words of wisdom to share with them, or possibly a sales pitch to encourage them to read more of your writing?

KREGGER:  I write because I enjoy the process.  I look forward to seclusion with the Margaritaville channel playing in the background. I prefer to sail alone for the same reason. I don’t have an eye for what is marketable. I only write what makes me happy. Happy people are successful by whatever criteria are used.

It is impossible to write every minute of the day, so on those off moments Martinus Publishing has multiple anthologies available as well as Martin Ingham’s newest creation, The Curse of Selwood.

MTI:  Well, thank you for the extra plug there.  Now, readers love free stuff, so here's the start of your story in To Hell with Dante:

Clinton walked down a dirt footpath.  He was surrounded by dense fog and an overlying canopy of trees in dusky twilight. In front of him a white light beaconed through the fog, as if an opening to a tunnel.

            “Where am I?” he muttered as he walked alone, squinting into the brush beside the path.

            He walked for what seemed like an eternity through the impenetrable fog and foliage. He carried a pack and musket, but couldn’t recall camping, sleeping, or hunting. He halted and listened; the forest sounds were muted and soft.  Birds called to one another in the distance and since the wind had died there was silence from the trees above. The fog not only muffled his sight, but dampened his hearing as well. Everything smelled wet and decayed.

            White woolen pants covered his legs down to his knees and wool socks protected his feet from chafing inside tall, black boots. Glancing down at the blouse he wore under his red military coat, he found dark-red blood stains, but no wounds.  For the hundredth time in as many days, he wondered, where had he come from?

            He came to an intersection in the path. The path to the left and right led to a white light-filled tunnel. He spun around to find a similar portal to his rear. The tall man gripped his hands in prayer and fell to his knees. “God help me.” He bowed his head and shuddered.

MTI:  Thank you again, Kregger, for a fantastic interview.  Those who want to read the rest of his story, as well as 20 other cynical afterlife stories, can pick up To Hell with Dante!

Author Interview: Jeff Provine 2

To Hell with Dante is a collection of cynical afterlife stories, ranging from comedic genius to dark surrealism.  To help kick off this fine anthology, I'll be conducting interviews with many of the contributors.  Today I'm interviewing Jeff Provine, the excellent author who contributed the story "Gravedigger."  Thank you for being here, Jeff

JEFF PROVINE: Always a pleasure!

MTI:  We've done this before, but for readers who didn't catch our last interview, why not tell them a little about yourself?

JP:  I’m an adjunct professor in Oklahoma City teaching Composition, Mythology, and a course called “The History of Comics.” It’s work that gets me pulled in three directions at once, but it does give some time in my schedule for writing projects.

Since it’s the Halloween season: one of my other projects has been creating the OU Ghost Tour, a charity walk around Norman’s campus telling spooky stories from the past. It has been a great time researching and interviewing (I’m not much of an investigator; I just don’t have the patience). Two books collecting local legends have spun off it: Campus Ghosts of Norman, Oklahoma and, new for 2014, Haunted Norman, Oklahoma.

MTI:  Your story, “Gravedigger,” appears in To Hell with Dante, tell us a little bit about that.  What's the general idea behind it?

JP:  The idea came out of the many references to those gateways to Hell in places like Turkmenistan, Sicily, and Ireland… what if someone stumbled across a new one?

There’s another story behind the story as well, one that began Halloween night, 2010. The air hung heavy with mist as the warm fall day turned to a chilly night. As I walked along in my mad scientist’s costume to meet some friends for a party, the mists parted, and there came along a pretty young lady dressed in gender-bent Vash the Stampede from Trigun. It was like I dream. I’m sure my mouth was gaping. We passed by each other, traded smiles and quips of “nice coat” for her red trench coat and white lab coat. And then she was gone.

For days, I couldn’t get the image out of my head. I was enamored. Who was this girl?

Then, as I had told the story a time or two, it bounced back through the grapevine that someone had a class with the girl, who had worn her Vash costume to class. I had to make sure, so I staked out the class. While I was waiting, I had a notebook with me and spent some time jotting notes for stories. “Gravedigger” spawned out of that.

It was her class, and we did end up going on a couple of dates, but nothing really took off. It was just as well since, a couple of holidays down the road, I met my future wife at a New Year’s Party.

MTI:  Does your story hold any special significance, perhaps seeking to provoke some thoughts about the afterlife, or was it just a lot of fun fiction?

JP:  The story’s theme is taking the reality of Hell and showing what one might be willing to trade for it. To get the feel, I made lots of references to Revelation, the paintings of Hieronymous Bosch, and modern horror. Even though we know it’s horrible, the gravedigger has the chance to gain so much if he’s willing to sell his soul for just a few days at a time: money, fame, power.

MTI:  Okay, on a totally unrelated note, if you could meet and talk with any one deceased person, who would it be?

JP:  The figures in the story (Vlad, Jack, and the 1980s Business Man) are each fascinating characters. On the one hand, asking someone about their buried treasure would be a good deceased person to meet. On the other, great figures like Theodore Roosevelt or Walt Disney would be interesting. Personally, I would like to have a good talk with my late grandfather, who passed away when I was a teenager. He had a lot of wisdom to share that I was too young to understand.

MTI:  Shifting back to your writing, can you tell us a little about what you're working on right now?

JP:  I’m looking at creating a loosely connected batch of stories all tied together geographically in the spirit of Arkham, Massachusetts, and Derry, Maine: Chisholm County, Oklahoma. Many of its stories are inspired by actual Oklahoma events that I’ve researched while writing my Campus Ghosts and Haunted Norman creative nonfiction collections of local lore.

MTI:  Other than your piece appearing in To Hell with Dante, do you have any other stories being published in the near future?

JP:  I’ve got a short story in the collection Krampusnacht coming out this Christmas from World Weaver. Bad little boys and girls watch out for the monstrous goatman with a switch!

MTI:  Writers are often voracious readers.  Have you run across any good literature lately that you'd like to recommend?  You know, other than your own great work.

JP:  I read the Mammoth Collection Volume 1 of Elephantmen a short time back. It was classic science fiction in every sense of the word.

MTI:  Other than writing, what would you call your favorite hobby or pastime?

JP:  I’m a big board game enthusiast. We’re living in a golden age of indie board games thanks to technological development in printing and design. It’s exciting to see all the new takes on how tabletop gaming can go.

MTI:  Once again, you have the attention of potential readers.  Do you have any words of wisdom to share with them, or possibly a sales pitch to encourage them to read more of your writing?

JP:  There are stories everywhere; we just have to take a look. I’m bubbling over with ideas, and the trick is to just get some time to put them down on paper.  One my favorite things in all of the world is to talk stories with people, so, if you have a story idea but aren’t sure where to go with it, feel free to chat!

MTI:  And now, to help satisfy our readers, here are the first few paragraphs from your story, Gravedigger!

The old gravedigger put his shovel through the earth and struck empty space. His gnarled hand caught the handle before the weight of the blade pulled it underground. He held it for a moment before he wiggled it back and forth to free it.

            Soil crumbled around the opening. Foul, wet air bubbled up into the grave, leaving a sick fog around his muddy boots. Dull, red light shone up from the crack in the ground.

            “What the hell…?” the gravedigger mumbled.

            He took a step backward. When he had sure footing at the edge of the six-foot grave, he looked back at the eerie hole. It seemed larger.

            The gravedigger licked his lip, tasting sweat and dirt. He’d dug graves for the family mortuary since he could walk. These days his grandson did most of the digging with the backhoe, but he still took his exercise by digging a few by hand. There wasn’t much more relaxing than lovingly crafting a grave in the quiet of the nighttime.

            In all those years of all those shovelfuls of ground, he’d never seen anything like this. He’d hit sinkholes and, once, a nest of badgers, but no red-glowing hole. It stank, and the light cast up horrid bleeding shadows. The shop light hanging over his head seemed drowned out.

MTI:  Thank you again, Jeff, for another great interview. Those who want to read the rest of Gravedigger and 20 other cynical afterlife stories can buy To Hell with Dante!

Cover Reveal: The Temporal Element II

The Temporal Element II is still accepting submissions until the end of 2014, but I am pleased to reveal the following cover art for this upcoming anthology!  Here is the piece with tentative lettering:

The artwork was done by the very talented Anastasia Karasyova.

The Temporal Element II has a planned release date of February/March 2015.  For those of you who can't wait for this exciting new collection of time travel tales, the first collection, The Temporal Element, is still available!  Pick up a copy while you wait for the second set of stories in the new year!

Author Interview: Erik Storey

"To Hell with Dante" is a collection of cynical afterlife stories, ranging from comedic genius to dark surrealism.  To help kick off this fine anthology, I'll be conducting interviews with many of the contributors.  Today I'm interviewing Erik Storey, the talented author who contributed the story "Tartarus Tavern."  Thank you for being here, Erik.

ERIK STOREY: Anytime. Thanks for having me.

MTI:  Starting off, could you tell our readers a little bit about yourself?

ES:  Well, I've been told that I'm an anachronistic curmudgeon, a Luddistic peasant, and a condescending prick. But I'm here to set the record straight by saying that I'm really a nice guy, once you get to know me. And that the stuff I write is in no way a reflection of who I am as a person in the real world.

MTI:  Now, getting down to business; what first compelled you to weave fiction, and what's your favorite type of story to write?

ES:  I started writing as a kid when I ran out of things to read. It only got worse as an adult. No matter how many books I read—and I've read thousands—there's always something missing. So now I'm attempting, everyday, to fill in those gaps.

My favorite type of story to write, by far, is crime. Stories about criminals and the downcast and detritus of society. If you can't beat them, or join them, might as well write about them.

MTI:  Tell me, if you had to pick just one author who has influenced or inspired you, who would it be?

ES:  Lois L'Amour. The consummate storyteller. He may not have been as literary as some of my other favorites, but he could tell a hell of a yarn. He wrote western, crime, and adventure stories, even one that was pretty much fantasy. Plus over a hundred books, and once you start one, you can't help but finish before going to bed. It's that kind of storytelling power that I hope to have when I grow up.

MTI:  Your story, Tartarus Tavern, appears in To Hell with Dante, tell us a little bit about that.  What's the general idea behind it?

ES:  It's the story of a cynical detective that dies while working a case, and finds himself waiting in line for the afterlife. It seems that everyone else he knows is there, but they are all going somewhere he's not.

MTI:  Does your story hold any special significance, perhaps seeking to provoke some thoughts about the afterlife, or was it just a lot of fun fiction?

ES:  Oh, it's mostly just fun, but there is an underlying concept of choice and self-determination.

MTI:  Okay, on a totally unrelated note, if you could meet and talk with any one deceased person, who would it be?

ES:  Ernest Hemingway. As much as I like his writing, the stories about his life fascinate me more and I'd like to see if he lives up to the hype. A morning of fishing in a cold river, an afternoon hunting elk in the forested hills, and an evening of drinking and fisticuffs.

MTI:  Shifting back to your writing, can you tell us a little about what you're working on right now?

ES:  My second novel, about a wandering adventurer that finds himself stuck in Idaho with an extorting law enforcer, a murderous biker gang, and a cult of polygamist, anti-technology Mormons. Oh, and a bunch of other people even crazier.

MTI:  Other than your piece appearing in To Hell with Dante, do you have any other stories being published in the near future?

ES:  I do, but I'll wait to talk about it until it's a little closer to release. It's a crime story, and not for the faint of heart, or those with weak stomachs.

MTI:  On a lighter note, have you watched any good tv lately?

ES:  Well, I was. A great show called Longmire that was recently canceled. FOR NO APPARENT REASON. It was honestly one of the best crime dramas on TV. I am also addicted to Justified. Both of these shows are modern westerns, well written, highly entertaining, and are slightly similar to the kinds novels that I write.

MTI:  Yeah, I'm kind of pissed that they dropped Longmire, too.  I'm also sad to hear that this upcoming season of Justified will be the last.  No more after season 6.  Curses!

So, what do you listen to for music?

ES:  A little of everything. Nahko and Medicine for the People, Mike Stinson, Old Crow Medicine Show, J. Roddy Watson and the Business, Shovels and Rope, Vance Joy, Milky Chance, Matt Nathanson, and my old favorites Tom Waits and Steve Earl.

MTI:  What are three of your favorite movies?  You know, the ones that never get old.

ES:  Big Trouble in Little China, Legends of the Fall, Raiders of the Lost Ark. In no particular order.

MTI:  Legends of the Fall is one of my favorites, too, but a lot of people have never even heard of it.

Of course, writers are some of the most voracious readers these days.  Tell me, have you run across any great pieces of literature lately?

ES:  I've been going back in time, and have been rereading all of the Travis McGee novels. Also just reread The Last Good Kiss, by James Crumley, and had forgot how perfect that book is. Some recent novels that I adored were Iron House, by John Hart; Wayfaring Stranger and The Light of the World, by James Lee Burke. All three were brilliant.

MTI:  You have the attention of potential readers.  Do you have any words of wisdom to share with them, or possibly a sales pitch to encourage them to read more of your writing?

ES:  How about just a big Thank You to all of the readers out there. You are a dying breed and your valiant adventures into the literary world of books and stories is well appreciated. Especially from us writers. Please don't stop reading. Ever. Encourage your friends to turn off the tube once in awhile and join in partaking of the word-drugs, the getting high on the imaginary. And if you want something different than the street corner stuff, try reading some more of my stories.

MTI:  Of course, readers love free samples, so let's give them a taste.  Here are the first few paragraphs of your story, as featured in To Hell with Dante:

            My head is pounding. A staccato timpani drum is beating against my temples from the inside. Feels just like any morning after a whiskey night; like the morning after a wedding, a wake, or a day ending in Y. When my vision clears, I expect to see the cracked paint and the dust encrusted fan that adorn the ceiling of my little studio apartment.

            But that isn't what I see. This isn't a normal morning. In fact, I don't see anything that would give me an indication of the time of day.

            I'm standing in line. Maybe a couple hundred people in front of me. I turn my sodden head and see that there are even more people standing behind me, shaking their heads and scratching their asses, all of them as bewildered and confused as me. Then I'm alert enough to start to notice the details. We are all buck-ass naked. Wangs and titties wobble as we shuffle ahead in line.

            All of us are in a hallway. The walls are carpeted brown and black; it's all bristle and sharp points when you touch it. The ceiling is pockmarked Styrofoam, the kind that you could stick a pencil in with a good throw. The hallway stretches ahead and behind so far that it seems to warp into an arch, with me at the high point and the bare skinned people on the horizons like squat insects far below.

            No one is talking. We're all trying to understand, trying to figure out what we are waiting for.

ES:  Thanks again for taking the time to talk with me.

MTI:  Thank you, Erik.  It was my pleasure.  Readers who would like to see more of Erik's story and 20 other cynical afterlife tales can pick up To Hell with Dante.