Kevin Lucia http://kevinlucia.net/start/ en Copyright 2008 Sat, 25 Oct 2008 22:17:02 +0000 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/?v=3.2ysb5-20051201 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Spilling Some Blood With Necrotic Tissue and Snuff Books As a writer and reader, I've never been much for "bloodbaths" in books and movies, where substance was incidental, as long as buckets of gore and blood was involved (So, as you can imagine, I've never seen Hostel or any of the Saw movies, nor do I intend to). I'm okay with some of it as necessary to the story, but I'm not into "shock value" horror. I also hate it when decently scary movies, (like Event Horizon), dump buckets o' blood everywhere because they run out of plot with thirty minutes left in the movie.

I'm much more of an atmospheric writer, and I enjoy those types of movies and books as well (this is why I've become an UBER fan of Dean Koontz and as of late, Nate Kenyon). Now, don't get me wrong - I love Stephen King, Joe D'Lacey, Brian Keene and others, and their body counts are always high. However, there's also strong storytelling right alongside their mass destruction of human flesh, so I don't feel as if I'm spying on a charnel house or cattle slaughter (although, technically, Joe D'Lacey's novel "Meat" is ABOUT cattle slaughter - of a kind - but I digress).

As I writer, I've always tried to be subtle with my blood and gore. On one hand, I don't want toss it around indiscriminately, so that the writing was all about that. On the other hand, good guys need to get mauled and killed now and then to preserve credibility and realism, and I don't want to use blood and gore only as a tool of punishment - like the bad guy gets chunked to pieces as a moral balancing of the universe.

For me, the overriding story is paramount. If I'm writing a psychological thriller or about an encounter with Cthulhu, more than likely I'm going to go for chills down the spine, loss of sanity, that sort of stuff. Vampires could go either way. Werewolves...well, that kind of DEMANDS for some spilled blood, don't you think?

How about evil doctors possessing ancient hoo-doo powers, summoning evil gods to perform their unholy operations?

Hmm.

I have two linked stories appearing in two upcoming anthologies, Necrotic Tissue's Malpractice: An Anthology of Bedside Terror, and Snuff Book's RAW: Brutality As Art. Ironically, I didn't submit stories to them that were intentionally graphic, nor did I consider that my focus. They just "fit" with my graduate school thesis project, a set of linked stories, or a "novel-in-stories" about a haunted town deep in the woods.

NT's Malpractice theme first got me thinking: Wouldn't a haunted little town that is quite possibly a nexus for supernatural forces and all things evil have an evil hospital, too? With an evil doctor?

Now that's a bedside horror. Then, when the RAW anthology came out, I thought, "Hmm. Wouldn't an evil doctor, (with a PHD in evil medicine), regard his practice as an art form?"

And that's where my stories have come from lately. In the spring, I'll be working with a graduate professor to put together my thesis. I probably won't try to publish a collection right now. Don't really think enough folks would buy it. But I'm looking forward to threading all these stories together:

Way Station - Coach's Midnight Diner
Darkness Road - NexGen Pulp Magazine, Issue 1
My Brother's Keeper - Dark Horizons, Issue 4
Water God of Clarke Street - Shroud Publishing anthology, Abominations
Old Bassler House - Shroud Publishing Anthology, Northern Haunts

And, upcoming titles:

Monsters - All Hallows
Therapy - Necrotic Tissue's anthology, Malpractice
A Willing Donor - Snuff Book's anthology, RAW.

Anyway, some of these stories are chilling only, some with just enough blood, and some...with a little more. Those with strong stomachs, be sure to snag a copy of either Malpractice or RAW, and if you do...let me know what you think. Those who get whoozy at the sight of a hangnail, skip those, and when one of my current stories gets published, (a slightly dark fairy tale re-take on Rumplestiltskin - yes, in the same town), that will probably be for you.
Will feature my story, "A Willing Donor".

Will feature my story, "Therapy".
]]> http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/10/spilling_some_blood_with_necro.html http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/10/spilling_some_blood_with_necro.html Sat, 25 Oct 2008 22:17:02 +0000 Borderlands Press Boot Camp Very quickly, now...hold your breath...wait for it...

I just received my acceptance into Borderlands Press Boot Camp writing workshop. I'm like, stunned. I came across their page the DAY of the deadline. That NIGHT! I sent my stuff in, and waited patiently. And then, tonight...BOO-YA!

The coordinator also mentioned that I'd sent it in at the perfect time. I have to be honest with you, writing is 90% working like an insane madman and 10% right place/right time....but in the last year, I've been in a lot of right place, right times.

Now - I've got a ton of money to raise. The crazy thing is the conference is probably worth (in knowledge, not price thank goodness), more than my graduate degree. Luckily, I recently started stockpiling my writing checks and such, so I should be able to make a go of it.

Wow. I'm really, quite honestly speechless. I don't know how many of you folks know the following names, but HERE's the people I'll be learning from:

Gary Braunbeck
Ginjer Buchanan (Sr. Editor Berkley Publishing)
Mort Castle
Doug Clegg
Thomas F. Monteleone
Thomas Tessier
F. Paul Wilson
Douglas E. Winter

Wow. Wow. Guess who's NOT sleeping tonight?

 


 

]]> http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/10/borderlands_press_boot_camp.html http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/10/borderlands_press_boot_camp.html Sat, 18 Oct 2008 00:44:07 +0000 Sign Up For Monthly Email Newsletter With some of the things hopefully coming down the pike, I'm revamping, retooling, and rebooting my monthly newsletter. If all goes well with the Hiram Grange project, I'll have excerpts for newsletter folks only, contests, maybe some prizes, and some other free stuff. That, and the usual mundane stuff that clogs up my mind.

So, if you'd like to get this: http://www.kevinlucia.net/newsletter.html  in your email roughly once a month, (this is an old version), send me an email to:

newsletter@kevinlucia.net.


Thanks!

]]> http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/10/sign_up_for_monthly_email_news.html http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/10/sign_up_for_monthly_email_news.html Fri, 10 Oct 2008 23:37:58 +0000 TOC For Northern Haunts Getting Set Hey, folks - the TOC for Northern Haunts, featuring my short short, "Old Bassler House", is now up.

http://shroudpublishing. blogspot. com/2008/10/northern-haunts-toc. html

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Northern Haunts is much more than an anthology. It is an indispensable guidebook for your journey through the shadowy New England otherworld. 100 original tales of ghosts, creatures, mad men, and other horrifying mysteries. Each story is told in the first person so that you can employ NORTHERN HAUNTS as a fireside ghost story reference book. It is designed for you to customize these treacherous tales in order to tantalize your friends and terrify your family. Proceeds from the sale of NORTHERN HAUNTS will be donated to the AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY. This book is currently open for PRE-ORDERS only. Amazing cover art by Christopher Zibelli!]]> http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/10/toc_for_northern_haunts_gettin.html http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/10/toc_for_northern_haunts_gettin.html Fri, 10 Oct 2008 00:16:43 +0000 Save a great literary and speculative magazine!
Anyway, if you want the full story - read on. If not, please: visit The Relief Journal and consider lending a hand somehow - be it getting a subscription, buying an issue, donating what you can, and spreading the word. Their first ever speculative fiction anthology, Coach's Midnight Diner, is on sale from their website for only $10. Over 200 pages of some solid speculative fiction, with a faith-twist: but written to entertain, not preach.

About The Relief Journal:

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A full picture of Christ involves a juxtaposition of life and death, this moment and eternity, crucifixion and resurrection. Death and heaven and hell are only half of the picture. Many examine life only through a lens of death, as if life is only valuable as a tryout for the afterlife. Christ did speak to what would happen when we die, but he was also extraordinarily concerned with what can happen when we live. He focused often on the here and now of life, teaching that he came to give us life, and life abundantly.

The goal of The Relief Journal is to pursue a complete picture of Christ and life -- real, gritty, painful, wonderful, this-side-of-heaven life. Relief seeks to bridge the gap between mainstream fiction and Christianity. Christ's goal was never to keep us sheltered and comfortable. He did not pull his punches. The primary measuring stick for good Christian writing cannot continue to be safety. It must be skill - the ability to expose what is real, express it eloquently, punch the reader.

For authors who cry out for a venue and readers who long for stories that don't make them gag, we present Relief.

Coach's Midnight Diner

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A hardboiled anthology of horror, mystery, and paranormal fiction, Coach's Midnight Diner is the faith-based anthology readers have been waiting for. With full allowance for artistic freedom, Diner authors pull no punches.

Entrees of Jesus Vs. Cthulhu Fiction by Chris Mikesell, Kevin Lucia, Neil A. Riebe, and Jens Rushing highlight in the first edition of Coach's Midnight Diner, but there's so much more on the menu. We'll serve up horror fiction by Editor's Choice Award winner Robert N. Jennings, J. Mark Bertrand, Melody Graves, Nathan Knapp, and Caroline Misner.

Side orders of Crime, Mystery, and Detective Fiction by Charles Browning, Suzan Robertson, R.M. Oliver, S.J. Kessel, Michael Medina, and Mike Dellosso will have you guessing who the culprit is until the very end.

We'll quench your thirst for Paranormal Fiction with stories from Mike Duran, Robert Garbacz, Matt Mikalatos, and Paul Luikart. And for dessert, Jennifer J. Edwards and Linda Gilmore bring stories from That One That Happens in A Diner.

Coach's Midnight Diner will satisfy your appetite for thrills and quench your thirst for something a little deeper than your average fare.


Thanks, all. ]]> http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/09/save_a_great_literary_and_spec.html http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/09/save_a_great_literary_and_spec.html Wed, 17 Sep 2008 21:49:19 +0000 "A WIlling Donor" accepted for publication in Snuff Books' "RAW" Anthology Hey folks - been busy finishing my edits to "Hiram Grange & The Chosen One" - but I just wanted to drop the line that my short story, "A Willing Donor", has been accepted for publication in Snuff Books' upcoming anthology, "RAW: Brutality As Art".


More details to come.]]> http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/09/a_willing_donor_accepted_for_p.html http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/09/a_willing_donor_accepted_for_p.html Fri, 12 Sep 2008 07:28:47 +0000 Flash Fiction Accepted Into Northern Haunts Just heard that my flash fiction tale, "Old Bassler House", was accepted for Shroud Publishing's upcoming flash fiction anthology, Northern Haunts. This is going to be the perfect anthology to read from by a roaring camp fire. It's also not just an anthology, but a cause - all the proceeds will be donated to the AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY. Read and pre-order below!

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Northern Haunts is much more than an anthology. It is an indispensable guidebook for your journey through the shadowy New England otherworld. 100 original tales of ghosts, creatures, mad men, and other horrifying mysteries. Each story is told in the first person so that you can employ NORTHERN HAUNTS as a fireside ghost story reference book. It is designed for you to customize these treacherous tales in order to tantalize your friends and terrify your family. Proceeds from the sale of NORTHERN HAUNTS will be donated to the AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY. This book is currently open for PRE-ORDERS only. Amazing cover art by Christopher Zibelli!]]> http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/08/flash_fiction_accepted_into_no.html http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/08/flash_fiction_accepted_into_no.html Fri, 15 Aug 2008 19:33:12 +0000 Subscribe to Myspace Blog Many new friends have added me in the last month, either randomly, through linked friends, or through a few shorts I have drifting around out in the big "there". In any case, I'm sorry I haven't been around to everyone's pages to thank you for your add, as consumed as I have been with my current project.

In any case, I invite all of you - as well as my longtime friends - to subscribe to my blog.
Sometimes I actually talk about other things besides pimping myself and my little scratchings, but in the coming months, I'll be talking a lot about my current work, Hiram Grange & The Chosen One, and the entire series, The Hiram Grange Chronicles, to be published by Shroud Publishing. There'll be giveaways, prizes, webisodes...all sorts of cool things.


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But please, don't subscribe for me, or for Hiram either - because honestly, he doesn't give a wit either way. Do it for yourself, or for someone you love.

You never know when a Confluence will occur in your neighborhood. It always pays to be prepared.

Hiram Grange
www. hiramgrange. com

*Image By Malcolm McClinton]]> http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/08/subscribe_to_myspace_blog.html http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/08/subscribe_to_myspace_blog.html Tue, 05 Aug 2008 21:10:06 +0000 Download Free Graphic E-Novel Hey folks, I'd love it if you could visit the Literate Machine and download a free graphic e-novel that some colleagues and I collaborated on several months ago. It was a trial run, and I think it turned out nicely. It's free in .pdf form, and if you like it - or not, because fair criticism is always needed - please review it for me. Spread the word as well, not only about our download, but also of Literate Machine as well.

Thanks!
]]> http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/08/download_free_graphic_enovel.html http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/08/download_free_graphic_enovel.html Tue, 05 Aug 2008 12:10:39 +0000 I'm a flasher... No, you terrible, dirty-minded people. How COULD you think that way?

Actually, I've been playing with Macromedia FLASH. I don't have much of a "store", and all the things I'd "sell" I don't make money from anyway - anything you buy with a story of mine in it pretty much goes back to the publisher, which is good, because a lot of them could use some support and new readers.

Anyway, I did want a nifty way to display all the book covers of the anthologies and magazines I've managed to get into in the past year. I hunted and hunted, and finally found a cool freeware FLASH file and all the documentation to go with it.

Hey, if nothing else, and you're looking for something cool for your website, visit my store page, right click on the display, and that will give you all the info you need.

AND....if you want to buy something while you're at it, that's never a bad thing....
]]> http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/08/im_a_flasher.html http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/08/im_a_flasher.html Sun, 03 Aug 2008 22:19:22 +0000 Rewrites are fun and annoying.
Image by Malcom McClinton

Rewrites, even if only a portion and not the whole thing, can be a pain in the butt. For one thing, it feels as if you're grinding your wheels, stuck in a gear, not moving anywhere. For another, it feels like you're going over ground you've already walked, and there's no forward progress anywhere in sight (this is especially daunting when a deadline looms...or zooms by).

Finally, a re-write makes you feel stupid. You think, "I must really suck as a writer, because I should've gotten this right the first time."

I actually like them, in some ways. Before a re-write, I'm plugging along, dutifully scribbling away, but SOMETHING lurks in the back of my mind, telling me something is off. I like the narrative, I like the characterization or a certain scene, but there's something....missing. Something is too slow, doesn't make sense, or is just plain illogical.

Though it burns the old ego a little to backrack, re-tred, and do something over, there's something satisfying in finding that taunting little "something" in the back of your head, (and then beating the snot out of it), tweaking it, nudging it, into something vastly superior.  Three years ago, in the middle of the novel project that now resides half-finished on my shelf, I never experienced this, because I never finished anything, thus could never make it to third, fourth, fifth draft. What have I discovered?

I love rewriting.

Anyway. I've finished my re-write on Hiram Grange & The Chosen One, and I'm back on track.]]> http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/08/rewrites_are_fun_and_annoying.html http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/08/rewrites_are_fun_and_annoying.html Sun, 03 Aug 2008 08:37:16 +0000 Featured Contributor For NexGen Pulp Magazine Morning, folks. Just wanted to pass along that the nice folks at NexGen Pulp Magazine have featured me in their blog this week. Would love it if you stopped by and left a comment, even if it's only to tell me that the evil aardvarks have revolted against your totalitarian rule, and have now united with the squirrels to overtake your backyard. I'm sure we'll all appreciate the warning.

My story, Darkness Road, was printed in their first issue.

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My story, "My Brother's Keeper", was re-printed in their August/September issue.

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Thanks!]]> http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/08/post_2.html http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/08/post_2.html Sat, 02 Aug 2008 13:33:30 +0000 Story In NexGen Pulp Magazine Hey folks, just wanted to drop a line that my story, "My Brother's Keeper", has been reprinted in NexGen Pulp Magazine's August/September Issue. I'm fortunate enough to share space with Dave Dunwoody, author of Empire: A Zombie Novel.


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David and I also appear in Shroud Publishing's horror anthology, Abominations.


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Why not make it a package deal?]]> http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/08/story_in_nexgen_pulp_magazine.html http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/08/story_in_nexgen_pulp_magazine.html Fri, 01 Aug 2008 18:42:22 +0000 Madison and I were washing dishes yesterday when she decided to take a die cast figurine of Magneto, Master of Magnetism, (yes—one of mine), swimming while we worked.  As she plunked and dunked poor little Magneto, (whose mastery over magnetism proved utterly useless amidst suds, ceramic plates and plastic cups), with gleeful delight, she exclaimed…

Madison: Look, Daddy! Superman is taking a bath!

Me: No, honey—Superman is DC Comics. That’s Magneto; he’s Marvel Comics. Can you say Magneto?

Madison: I dunno (plunk, plunk).

Me: Here, let’s sound it out. Mag…

Madison: Mag…

Me: ne….to…Magneto.

Madison: Mahneto!

Me: Good enough, kiddo.

Madison: Daddy, I like Magneto!

Me: Really? Why’s that?

Madison: I dunno. (proceeds to vigorously dunk poor Magneto).  Because he likes water!

Me: You like Magneto because he likes water? Isn’t the Sub-Mariner the big water guy in Marvel?

Madison: (frowns) Huh?

Me: Never mind. Waitaminute. You don’t like Magneto better than the Hulk, do you?

Madison: Uh-Huh (dunks some more).

Me: (Uh, oh). Why?

Madison:  Because Magneto’s nicer.

Me: How’s he nicer?

Madison: I dunno. Because he likes water?

Me: Wait—Magneto is nicer because he likes water?

Madison: Yup! (Proceeds to drown poor little die cast Magneto).

Hulk took this moment to object:

Hulk no like baths. Make Hulk look like wrinkled grape. Hulk like sponge baths; with nice squishy loofah.

What about Magneto?

Hulk hate Magneto. Magneto stupid dumb-head. Magneto go shoot beer cans with Hulk in woods, but no talk to Hulk at parties. Puny Magneto.

Unfortunately, Magneto happened to overhear all this.

You brainless mass of primitive brawn! How dare you insult the great Master of Magnetism? Of course the little girl likes me better! I’m die cast, shinier, and I can bend metal to my will! You will pay for your arrogance, and bow before my horrible might! This, I command!

Hey, wait a minute. You stole that last part from Serpentor, that guy Dr. Mindbender made to replace Cobra Commander back in the ‘80’s.

Uh….no I didn’t. I, uh…overheard it at a...comic Convention … somewhere….

Hold on….you are Serpentor, aren’t you?

Er….oops, look at the time. I’m Meeting Professor X for lunch. later! (Jumps on flying serpent throne and speeds off)

No disrespect to Madi, but I’m gonna have to go with the Hulk on this one. You just can’t trust mutant masters of magnetism.

Stupid Magneto. Stupid Serpentor. Hulk smash both, then take nice loofah bath.

Indeed, Hulk. Indeed.

]]> http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/07/post_1.html http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/07/post_1.html Thu, 31 Jul 2008 21:37:38 +0000 Sweet & Vicious, by Claudia Gabel Okay, so I'm almost done with S & V, by Seton HS grad and Binghamton native Claudia Gabel, and this is what I have to say:

Lizette and Bryne suck. Big time.

Lizette and Dane are cheating. HAVE to be.

Sawyer has it bad it for Marnie. BUT...he might like Nola, too. NOW that would be a pickle, wouldn't it?

Matt is either a secret agent, a crack dealer, or a secret agent who deals crack. I haven't figured it out yet.

Ian SO wants Nola. Personally, I'm rooting for Ian, but a surprise play by Sawyer would be cool, too.

Maybe Weston and Lizette should hook up? Naw. They're already involved...with themselves.

Anyway...on to the finish.]]> http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/07/sweet_vicious_by_claudia_gabel.html http://kevinlucia.net/start/2008/07/sweet_vicious_by_claudia_gabel.html Wed, 30 Jul 2008 11:39:59 +0000