Horror Book Of The Day: ARIOCH: Demon Of Vengeance

ARIOCH: Demon Of Vengrance

#BlackLivesMatter meets horror!

When an innocent black man is murdered in a small backwoods town an unspeakable evil is released upon those who killed him. No gun or knife can stop it, who will survive this evil?

Horror book of the day: Cold Hollow by Emilie J. Howard

The Barner family relocates to Cold Hollow, a quaint town nestled in a Vermont mountain range. They find it to be quite charming and the inhabitants endearing, except for a few residents. Odd laws are enforced, confrontations begin, and insanity reigns as a madman sits upon his imaginary throne, trying to keep the threads of his dream from unraveling. Will Sophia and Angus Barner be able to protect their children from the malevolence that lurks within the small township? This is the story of Cold Hollow, a place you’ll never want to visit.

BUY THE BOOK

Kindle________ Paperback

Interview with PM Barnes the author of Zombie Seed

TDWZS (The Dead War Zombie Series) What inspired you to become an author?

PM Barnes: I have been writing for as long as I can remember. I actually have some books that my mother preserved from my childhood. A few of them are actually bound and date back almost 30 years.

I feel that my love of books and of writing came from my parents. I often hear tale of my father taking my mother to the park when she was pregnant with me and sitting her under a tree so he could read to her belly.

It’s also possible, that my father is to blame for my dark literary leanings. Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner and Poe were pretty frequent guests at these “readings”, so it’s not too hard to see why much of my work leans into the macabre.

TDWZS: Why write in the zombie genre?

PM Barnes: For one, I am a huge z poc and post apoc fan. I feel like as a writer, the love of a genre generally means that you are always thinking about ways to improve it or bring in some new elements. It’s part of not being able to turn it off.

I would often be reading these really great books and thinking about twists I wished they would take. When I set out to start my own series, Zombie Seed, I actually made a list of all the things I really wanted to read about in the genre and also, all the clichés and things I felt were really played out.

In addition to that, I am a student of human psychology and I feel that we see a more clearly represented human experience in times of adversity.

What drives people to still find z poc and post apoc stories interesting, is because they maintain their relevancy and may have even increased over the last few decades.

As we consistently are reminded of how tenuous our hold is on the current arrangement of society, our fear of what will happen when it all falls down grows.

The end of the world is our favorite concept to play with. We recognize the inevitability and our powerlessness against it.

TDWZS: Lets's get to your book. What's it about? Is it a series?

PM Barnes: Zombie Seed is a culmination of all the elements I just discussed. I’m trying to view the apocalypse from the psychological side of things and focus on the carnage that humans can exact in times of uncertainty. It was really important for me to blur the lines of good and evil. While reading the series, you will at times find yourself as frightened by some of my “living” characters, as you will of the undead ones.

As of right now, the series is set to have five books in it. The book that is currently out, is actually book three. There will be two before and two after.

TDWZS: As I'm sure you know there are thousands of zombie books out there right now. What makes yours stand out?

PM Barnes: Great question and I agree. There are some really good z poc books out there and I have had a pleasure to read quite a few and get to know the authors.

I feel like what sets mine apart, is my main focus. Again, I have chosen to zero in on more of the living monsters, than the undead ones. I also bring in some turns that are not usually associated with the z poc (which I would love to list, but finding out about them is part of the suspense in the book). It’s pretty much a guarantee that while reading my books, you’ll have an “I did not expect that”, moment.

TDWZS: What's the cause of the zombie apocalypse in your books?

PM Barnes: The cause of the z poc in my series, is discussed in the next installment, ZS II: CONCEPTION. I don’t want to give too much away and blow the feel of the book, but I can say that it is not an accident. My z poc is actually a synthesized event, in response to another event.

TDWZS: Are your zombies the fast or slow moving type?

PM Barnes: Another great question. I actually have both in my book. You have once again stumbled upon one of the elements that adds to the suspense and also sets Zombie Seed apart.

TDWZS: Are you trying to make any greater point with your books or just write a good zombie story?

PM Barnes: My main focus is to entertain. There are some laugh out loud moments and ones that will have you cringing on the edge. That being said, I did want to bring a mirror up to ourselves, by showing that the depths of human depravity are something that we all are subject to.

If I had to sum my book up into one quote, it would be one of many great ones by Golda Meir, “…nothing human is alien to me.”

TDWZS: Do you have an online presence? If so where? Blogs, web sites, Twitter, Facebook, etc.

PM Barnes: You can pick up Zombie Seed in e-copy at Amazon:

Or you can pick up the paperback copy at: https://www.createspace.com/4823824

I have Youtube channel that I will be using to post weekly video blogs: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCK8to-LH0k7SJmTsERk3mRw

You can find my author page on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/PMBarnesAuthor

There is also a Facebook Page for the ZOMBIE SEED series: https://www.facebook.com/zombieseedseries

Does the race of the hero in a book matter to you?

Recently a friend and I were talking and he wondered allowed if the fact that our books feature black protagonist might be limiting our sales. I had never really thought of it from that standpoint as I write in the horror/sci-fi genre and I was more concerned about how to market my books to a black audience who might be reluctant to read it.

I know with comic books a hero's race can be an issue with some readers but at the same time comic books are a much more visual medium than fiction books/ebooks. Not much is left to the imagination there.

Now I'm a little naive so I still have faith in most readers. I believe that most readers don't care about the hero's race as long as the story is good and they can become engrossed in it. I also believe that at some point many forget the race of the character or find it irrelevant after a while.

So instead of me just guessing if a hero's race matters to readers I'll just ask you. Does it? Feel free to answer the poll below honestly. No one is judging anyone here.

Zombie Book Of The Day: Day Zero By Charles Ingersall

Marine Corps sniper Sergeant John Walken hitchhikes home after being discharged with a career-ending injury.

Along the way he is picked up by Sebastian, a retired Jarhead truck driver. They travel to the small New England community of Rainier Island for a routine gas station delivery.

While John waits, a bloody and muddy young girl stumbles into the center of town and attacks one of the residents.

The police department quickly barricades Rainier from the Main, trapping John and Sebastian. But isolating the bridges and using John's special skills may not be enough as the island is plagued with unexplained deaths from within and human threats from outside its borders.

Paperback-----Kindle

Zombie Kindle books of the week. 11/17/2013

Here are three zombies books for kindle that are excellent. Each has a ranking of at least four stars and an average of 10 reviews. They also have something else in common. They all have "A Zombie Novel" in their titles. Check them out. If your a zombie fan I think you will enjoy them.

Check out this drawing of Dead War hero Sgt. Richards!

Hey it's me Dead War author George Cook. I asked an artist to a drawing of Sgt. Richards based on the description in the book. Check out the photo below and let me know what you think.

Why do so many ( relatively ) unknown authors complain about Amazon KDP?

In the interest of full disclosure first let me say that I am a KDP user and have several Kindle books available.

I can honestly say that I have had some success. Now I will not be quitting my day job any time soon but I make a nice amount to supplement my income from my real job.LOL.

Now don't get it twisted I would love to sell a million books and get movie deals and become rich. But if it doesn't happen that's okay. Why? Because I got to publish my work and someone actually paid to read it. Someone else read my story! Isn't that what writers want first and foremost?

On Amazon KDP forums you will see many post attacking Amazon KDP. Now KDP does have some issues with reports and contacting support. I hate that there is no phone number and you have to go through their site ( email ) to get a question answered. Then there is the legitimate debate about KDP select which is a complete issue unto itself.

But to the complainers I would ask, " Is there any other easier way you could have gotten your book out and actually sold it?"

For all of KDP's issues I believe it's still the easiest and quickest way to publish a book. It has offered me the opportunity to fulfill a childhood dream and become a published author. Not just here in the United States but in other countries as well.

I sell four times as many books through KDP than I do with Smashwords, Pubit, and Scribd combined. I have not tried Kobo yet as I have just found out they now have a publishing method similar to Amazon KDP and Pubit.

Like many KDP authors I don't have a publisher or a huge marketing budget but I can do what I can through Twitter, Facebook, GooglePlus, and other online methods to market my books. I can help build word of mouth.

KDP gives me and many other authors more opportunity than any other eBook format or store before it to both publish and sell our books.

Is KDP perfect? No. Does it give many authors a chance to be published and earn money? Yes.

Isn't that what all writers want? An opportunity.

George Cook author of The Dead War Series.

P.S. I know some will strongly disagree with my post but this is my opinion based on my experience. All other opinions are welcome.

TDWS: Zombie Book Of The Day: Necropolis Rising by Dave Jeffery

If you want your book featured just tweet it to us with the author's name and book title or email it to me at georgelcookiii@gmail.com  The book must be available at Amazon to be posted. Books will be posted in the order they are recieved.

It took thirty minutes for the city to die. But their hunger would last forever. The military has sealed the city. No one is getting in. No one is getting out. But a team of cyber-criminals have a job to do. A job that will see them receiving a huge payout if they succeed. Or a bullet if they don't. Once inside the city staying alive proves to be just as difficult as staying dead ...