I am in the process of collecting short stories for the new anthology Podioracket Presents-Visionaries.
For this project, I’ve brought in new team member. Brian Holtz, the author of several Podiobooks.com novels. Under Podioracket.com’s familiar brand, we will coordinate and promote Podiobooks.com author’s short stories in one place. The series will be called Podioracket Presents. And the first volume is Visionaries.
Our intention is to give listeners another way to find authors they love.
Since we are trying to make this as simple and easy as possible, initially we are gathering together short stories that authors have already created and used elsewhere. If the first season of Podioracket Presents is successful we will be open to new stories in subsequent volumes.
Details for Podiobooks.com authors are available in the guide at Podioracket.com.
I’ll let you know once we have finalized the list of contributors and set an air date.
Fractured Horizon inspired artwork by Devlin Donnelly
Devlin Donnelly, the talented graphic artist who created the original cover for Fractured Horizon and laid the foundation for the Podioracket.com logos, has created a new piece of artwork. Though he claims it’s just a quick, fun piece, I think something this lovely must have taken time.
Original Cover Art by Devlin Donnelly
Tags: cover art, Devlin Donnelly, fan art, Fractured Horizon, graphic art
Thank you to everyone who auditioned for parts in the sci-fi/horror audio drama I wrote, ‘The Killer with Eyes of Ice’. Necropolis Studio Productions announced the 13 member cast list.
Congratulations to those who were cast. Your work is just beginning!
The Cast
Rhayne Archer as Samantha
Monte Bratten as Howard
Tanja Milojevic as Elena
Chris Adler as Cob
Edison Pongklub as Delta
Alex White as Julius
Tim Rowe as Mengus
Miranda Gauvin as the Benz Mechanical Voice
Stephanie Frizzell as Voice 1
David Frizzell III as Voice 2
Dave Frizzell as Voice 3
Tanja Milojevic as Voice 4
and
Edison Pongklub as the Narrator
Check out my previous post on ‘The Killer with the Eyes of Ice’ for more information and a blurb describing the audio drama.
Tags: Alex White, audio drama, Chris Adler, Dave Frizzell, David Frizzell III, Edison Pongklub, horror, Miranda Gauvin, Monte Bratten, Omega Road Chronicles, Rhayne Archer, Sci-fi, Stephanie Frizzell, Tanha Milojevic, The Killer with Eyes of Ice, Tim Rowe
The LIVE reading by P.G. Holyfield of my short story, Feverfew, , was a great success and fun for everyone who attended. I got to be in the chat room for the reading and gave a small interview at the end. If you would like to watch the recorded video of the reading I am embedding the video here.
The story begins 12 minutes in and lasts until approximately 53 minutes in.
P.G. Holyfield will also be creating a clean, edited audio version of the story in the next month or so. I’ll see if I can add that to my feed as well.
Thank you to anyone who attended the reading.
Tags: Children of Az, Feverfew, H.E. Roulo, P.G. Holyfield, Short Story, Tales of the Children, video
My fantasy short story Feverfew will be read LIVE on Wednesday, December 30th 2009 at 6:30 pm Pacific by P.G. Holyfield on video at http://www.stickam.com/pgholyfield.
The story is set in the world of Murder at Avedon Hill (available in print in 2010). The Tales of the Children anthology provides looks at the Children of Az. These gods are born into the world as men, unaware of their own origins and with their powers dormant until someone or something awakens them.
Here’s a quick look at the opening to Feverfew:
Feverfew Flowers
In a land of magic where gods are born to men the concerns of both must mingle.
The five curved peaks of Darsun’s Claws, beyond the mountains of Anarin, marked the boundary of man’s reach. Though an adventurous few sometimes risked the steaming vents and climbed among the rainbow hued pools to trade across the mountains, no one called it home. When the winter storms blew from Drakesmont, the tallest of all the Claws, strange-smelling mists hid beasts that stalked man’s tenuous claims.
The fury of one such blizzard echoed the storm that raged in Rondac Whitestaff’s heart. He leaned into the whipping winds. His feet crunched through layers of blowing snow. His breath puffed out in icy crystals that the wind greedily snatched away. On his back lay his son Alastair. The boy’s whining and crying had stopped and he had become so quiet that not even shivers disturbed him any longer. Rondac, the mighty warrior, was afraid to look back.
He rubbed a shoulder against his fleece collar to scrape away the ice that sagged over his brow. The frown of concentration remained as he studied the crystals of snow that blasted the land into uniform whiteness. “I’m losing them,” he whispered, and the wind raised a gleeful howl. He took a shuddering breath and collapsed onto his knees. His gaze hunted like a trapped thing, pacing between the white walls of the gorge and back as he tried to find a clue that would guide him. He had never failed. This was his place, where no one else belonged but he somehow thrived. He had brought his family to show them the mysteries; Alyssa had begged to see the colored smokes and bubbling hot springs.
He laughed harshly, thinking of his beautiful wife. The storm had caught him, that was the mistake that started it all, and they had been searching for shelter when the beast stole her away. He was Rondac, the man whose will carved a trading trail through these mountains. He led strangers safely through the mysteries of Darsun’s Claw. How can I fail my own wife?
. . .
Join P.G. Holyfield for the rest of the Tale. Wed, Dec 30th at 6:30pm Pacific at http://www.stickam.com/pgholyfield
Tags: Anthology, Feverfew, Live reading, P.G. Holyfield, Short Story, Tales of the Children, video
Here is another of my periodic updates on new and upcoming work.
Fractured Horizon- Is there more?
I have recently received some wonderful comments on my novel, Fractured Horizon. They mean a lot to me and I thank you for your comments, ratings, and questions.
A listener, Steve, made some great observations about the novel. He also asked me a very timely question:
“I always leave a story that I enjoy wanting more, whether in print, audio or film. And that is the way it should be. Then, as so often happens, ‘more’ is when you finally get it ‘less’. So I hesitate to ask … is there any more of Katherine Downs?”
I did not want to make any premature announcements. However, I know that I have been saying I’d have a text version available at the end of this year and planned to have an audio version of the sequel available at the start of 2010. The text version is delayed. In the course of searching for an editor, the partial of Fractured Horizon came before an editor who loved it. The full text is now being considered for publication by a small publishing house.
Naturally I am excited, but it would be premature to celebrate. I do have 40,000 words of the sequel but I have put it aside to work on another book. If Fractured Horizon is chosen to be published it will go through their editing process. It is also quite long, so I know there would be cuts. I think it best to hold off on the sequel until I know what changes are involved.
(and Steve, your other observations were great. I’ll address them in their own post in the near future)
Tales of the Children
My short story “Feverfew” was accepted by P.G. Holyfield, author of Murder at Avedon Hill, for his Tales of the Children anthology. He plans to do a live vidcast of himself reading the tortured fantasy tale on the evening of Wednesday, December 30th. Following the live reading, after editing, the story will be available on his RSS feed. I’ll see if I can get a copy for us on this web site. At the very least I’ll post a link.
P.G. is fun, and at the live reading you have the opportunity to interact and ask questions. If you’re expecting my no-nonsense approach to podcasting, such as my Fh episodes or the 20-minute Podioracket.com interviews, then consider this fair warning. P.G. Holyfield moves at a much easier pace.
I’ll get you more details as P.G. makes them available.
The Killer with Eyes of Ice
Necropolis Studio Productions closed auditions for my sci-fi/horror audio drama “The Killer with Eyes of Ice” on December 13th and we’re eagerly waiting for cast announcements. I know that Alex White, talented author of The Gearheart, tried out for a role. If you haven’t listened to his work, you should.
Once the cast is announced they will begin recording. I do not know dates, but am hopeful we can hear the full production, with cast and special effects, some time in February. And if it lives up to my expectations it is going to be award-winning GOOD!
The Rest- Podioracket & Podcrafters
Podioracket.com remains on hiatus, though we’ve scheduled interviews and blogs during this time so you’ll hardly know that Rhonda R Carpenter and I are gone.
Podcasting in Second Life is about to get a boost from the new group Podcrafters. I expect that I’ll be announcing opportunities in the coming year. I believe that several members are having open office hours for anyone who wants to drop by, but I’m sticking sincerely to this hiatus so that I can get more writing done! No new projects for me until 2010.
Tags: audio drama, Feverfew, Fractured Horizon, Necropolis Studio Productions, P.G. Holyfield, Podcrafters, Podioracket.com, The Killer with Eyes of Ice
Necropolis Studio Productions announced this week that my submission “The Killer with Eyes of Ice” has been selected for production. It with be the third audio drama short story in the Omega Road Chronicles.
I’m particularly excited to hear this story because it is new ground for me. Besides a wonderful story (I try to be modest, really I do), I’m counting on the excellent cast and skilled special effects editing that I’ve heard in previous works by Necropolis Studio Productions. I wouldn’t be able to produce this on my own.
Necropolis Studio Productions produces Call Me Jack and The Age of Zombies, a 2009 Parsec Finalist.
The Killer with Eyes of Ice is a sci-fi/horror piece that will be about 40 minutes long (probably). They have not yet announced auditions or an estimated air date but I’ll keep you informed.
BLURB:
Julius Benz, the universe’s greatest humanitarian, builds a dome on the poisonous planet of Regulus to house the undying shells left behind by mankind’s newest disease. When this savior makes an unscheduled stop at the dome, a reporter follows and secretly records the stunning consequences of illicit research– and his own murder. Driven by the video, Samantha seeks justice for her brother and hope for herself. Because she is already infected. Will she succeed before madness takes over?
Tags: audio drama, Necropolis Studio Productions, Omega Road Chronicles, The Killer with Eyes of Ice
Thank you so much if you voted for my short story Graveyard Shift (and Re-shift). Although it was a very close race and the other women put up a great fight, (including a beautiful slap fight in our audio promo that still makes me smile), I was ultimately given the title:
Thanks to Emerian Rich of HorrorAddicts.net for hosting the competition. You can go to Horror Addicts to find my short story.
The Wicked Women Writer’s challenge at Horror Addicts is on. A huge episode of Horror Addicts is followed by four smaller episodes, one for each of the Wicked Women Writer’s short stories. Each story involves killing a husband and is horror oriented. Mine is the fourth story.
Listen to my story Graveyard Shift (and Re-shift) as well as the three other stories contributed by Rhonda Carpenter, Arlene Radasky, and Michele Roger. All the stories are at HorrorAddicts.net
Vote for the story or stories that you liked best by emailing the host, Emerian Rich at emzbox@sbcglobal.net. Write ‘WWW’ in the subject line. Include 1) The name, number, or author of the story you want to vote for 2) Your name or handle 3) Your mailing address (Only used if you should win).
This will be a tight race. Your vote is very important, and one lucky voter will win the prize box. It contains autographed books, audio cds, t-shirts, key chains, and other book-themed paraphernalia.
Tags: Arlene Radasky, contest, Emerian Rich, Graveyard Shift, Michele Roger, Rhonda R Carpenter, Short Story, Wicked Women Writers challenge
Along with my co-host for Podioracket.com, Rhonda R Carpenter, I will be interviewed on Blog Talk Radio. Our host will be J.D. Sawyer, author of The Antithesis Progression, Sculpting God, Down From Ten, the host of The Polyschizmatic Reprobates Hour and a regular contributor to LinuxJournal Magazine. We’ll be discussing Podioracket.com, BTR, Fractured Horizon and The Mark of a Druid. Be there LIVE at 6pm Pacific/9pm Eastern on Thursday, September 17th. Set a reminder! And if you miss the interview, be sure to check it out in archive. As an incentive to you, let me say that prizes will be awarded during the show to chat-room and call-in participants. For example. . .
I was unable to attend Dragon*Con where the Parsec Awards for 2009 and were presented. Twowire kindly agreed to supply Podioracket with live updates and would have accepted the award for me if I had been fortunate enough to win. In gratitude, I sent him a couple t-shirts and he responded by sending this picture. What a great guy! And stylish, too!
It really is the interaction and support of fans and friends that keeps Fractured Horizon growing. Fractured Horizon is currently featured on the main page of Storycasting.com and fans have created six dream casts for the book. I love seeing how you guys envision the characters! Check it out and see whether you agree. Add your thoughts.
I’m participating in the upcoming Wicked Women Writer’s contest and I’m really hoping you’ll come listen to the tales, love my entry, and vote for it! The host of Horror Addicts, Emerian Rich, is planning a special live Second Life event to kick off the contest. The Live taping of Episode 31 takes place on October 7th at 7:30 pm PST in Second Life at 22 Gutenberg Ave on Book Island.
In addition to my work on Podioracket.com, I’m currently working on a short story for Tales of the Children for P.G. Holyfield as well as an audio drama for Necropolis Studio Productions. I’ll let you know more about those as we get closer to publication.
Tags: Blog Talk Radio, Emerian Rich, Horror Addicts, interview, J.D. Sawyer, Necropolis Studio Productions, P.G. Holyfield, Parsec Awards 2009, Storycasting.com, Tales of the Children, Wicked Women Writer's
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