Month: June 2009

Context 22

Posted on by Ty Schwamberger

Context 22 has been listed under Appearances for some time.  Though, it was just confirmed today that I will indeed be a Participating Author at the convention.  The main page of their website and bookstore will be updated shortly with my name and book. 

I am really looking forward to this event.  Not only since I will be able to contribute on several panels, but because a few of the individuals I met at Hypericon 5 will be at this event, as well.  It will be nice to get together with them again so soon after meeting them last weekend.

As a side note, no, this is not one of the ‘major’ annoucements that will be coming shortly (just have to shore up a few last details).

LIVE from Nashville…

Posted on by Ty Schwamberger

It took 8 1/2 hours to drive from Cleveland, OH to Nashville, TN, for a weekend filled of fun at Hypericon 5.

After the drive we checked out the hotel bar/grill, only to find that they had a limited selection of food.  We ended up driving a short distance to Shoney’s.  The fish n’ chips were great – the southern sweet tea was tasty.  After dinner we returned to the hotel bar for a night cap.

I was on my second beer when it happened.  A guy walked into the bar and asked the bartender if she was serving food.  Naturally, I turned around to look who was talking – it was Brian Keene!  After introducing myself and giving him a gift of appreciation for what he does as a horror author, we spent the next few hours drinking and talking.  Good times!  In fact, if I don’t meet anyone else during the convention, those few hours spent in the hotel bar were well worth the drive.

So that’s what happened yesterday.  As for today, I am now dressed and getting ready to head down to the convention when it opens to the public in 30 minutes.  As the weekend progresses, I’ll try to update you with what’s going on.  Better yet, if you’re in the Nashville area, come down and enjoy the Con for yourself!

Update:  Below are the panels I attended this afternoon and the authors who were involved.  I highly suggest you check out each of their websites and decide which of their books are right for you.  Please Note:  If authors are part of more than one panel, the link to their website will only be provided once.

Panel:  What Are We Reading?

Description:  Authors discussed what they’re currently reading, as well as their favorite authors and literally influences

Authors:  Brian Keene, P.S. Gifford, Steven Shrewsbury, Kimberly Raiser and Wrath James White

 

Panel:  Writing Realistic (and unrealistic) Fight Scenes

Description:  Authors discussed what makes a realistic fight scene as well as their pet peeves about common writing mistakes

Authors:  Jonathan Maberry, Julianne Lee, Glen Cook and D.A. Adams

 

Panel (last one attended on Friday):  Diversity In Horror

Description:  Authors discussed the wide range and types of horror

Authors:  Wrath James White, Ronald Kelly, Brian Keene and Maurice Broaddus

 

Saturday Update:  Didn’t go to any panels or the art/dealer room this afternoon.  Instead, we went to the Hard Rock Cafe Nashville, walked along the famous Broadway Street and looked in some shops and then finished our site seeing trip up with a visit to 132 acre Centennial Park near downtown Nashville.  Overall, it was a nice afternoon seeing some of Nashville.  I can definitely understand why people love it here.  The people are great and there are tons of things to do during the day and night. 

That’s all for now.  There are a few panels I am going to this evening and possibly a film screening.  I’ll update more later tonight.

Update:  I was originally going to attend two panels this evening.  Though, after attending the below panel, it seems that both topics were covered, so I don’t need to listen to the other one.  Below is the panel I just got back from.

Panel:  Writing For The Opposite Gender

Description:  Writers spoke about how they approach writing about characters of a different gender or from the POV of the opposite sex.  Also talked about, tips on how writers create interesting characters, and when the use of stereotypes are necessary.

Authors:  Jonathan Maberry, Matthew Warner, Alicia Benson, John Everson, Scott Nicholson and Sara Harvey

 

Weekend Wrap-Up:  Back home now in Cleveland, OH.  There were a few panels on Sunday, but instead of going to them, I enjoyed a 8 1/2 hour drive home.  The convention was a blast!  I got to meet, talk to and party with several of my favorite authors and got to meet several authors that I had never heard of before, but will now be checking out their work.  Overall, the trip to Nashville, TN, was well worth the long trek.  In fact, I’ll probably do it again next year.

Oh, I almost forgot to mention something that I was informed about on Saturday while checking my email.  I’m not going to tell you exactly what was in my email, yet, but there will be some big news (two-fold) coming up this week, so check back often!

On the road…

Posted on by Ty Schwamberger

By the time you read this, I’ll either be on my way from Cleveland, OH to Nashville, TN or have already arrived at Hypericon 5.  To read the background of me attending this event, click here.

As I previously mentioned, even though I won’t be an ‘author guest’ at the event, I’ll still be attending the event as a  fan – where it all started, anyway. 

If you’ll be in the area, I highly suggest you come down and check out the convention.  There will be quite a few ‘big name’ authors, dealers and just some downright good times going on – which should last late into the night at a bar or two.  If you do come to the event, feel free to bring a copy of Night School and I will be more than happy to sign it for you.  I’ll be easy enough to spot as I’ll be wearing one of the Night School T-Shirts (which are also available for purchase at the Storefront) on Friday and Saturday during the days when I am wandering around the convention.  I’ll also bring along (which will be kept in my hotel room) the Night School Knife, if you’re interested in checking it out in person.

As you might imagine, with me being at the event from the 4th – 7th, there more than likely won’t be any page updates – though, this may change depending on internet availability.  Though, I will make sure to post my thoughts and some pictures of the event on Monday the 8th.

This should be a lot of fun…hope to see some of you there!

Richard Laymon Book Contest II

Posted on by Ty Schwamberger

The Return of the Richard Laymon Book Contest and it’s a big one!  You can view how the contest came about, by clicking here.

So, here goes…

YOU COULD WIN…  The Richard Laymon Collection, Volume 1. 

Laymon Collection V1

This is a triple-book (885 pages) containing The Cellar, The Beast House and The Midnight Tour.  This was published by Headline (in the U.K.) in May 2006.  This trilogy is arguably what put Laymon on the map, so to speak. 

 

The description of each book is below.

The Cellar

Visitors flock to see the Beast House with its blood-soaked corridors and creaky doors. Armed with Instamatics and video camcorders, these poor souls enter the forbidden house, never to return. The deeper the tourists go into the house, the darker their nightmares become. The men are dealt with quickly. The women have to wait longer…first they are tortured and sexually ravished.

But the worst part of the house is actually beneath the haunted structure. There lies even a more terrifying presence waiting for its next victim. Don’t even think about going into the cellar…

 

The Beast House

Bodies torn and chewed. Blood blackly-encrusting open wounds. Flaps of skin hanging loose, clawed from the stripped, ripped corpses. Men, women, children, slaughtered, mangled…

The old woman who showed them round was well-practised in her grim, money-spinning take of the mysterious beast that has killed and killed again. Of course it was all in the past and all nonsense. Anyone would agree to that.

Until, trapped, they heard, then smelled and felt the white, night-time creature that had come, grunting and spittle-slicked, for their bodies, their blood.

 

The Midnight Tour

The sales pitch hasn’t changed much over the years – except now you can listen to it on earphones as you take the audio tour of the house.  But the taped tour only gives you a sanitized version of the horrific events that made the Beast House infamous.  If you want the full story, you’ll have to take the Midnight Tour.  Saturday nights only.  Limited to thirteen unlucky tourists.  It begins on the stroke of midnight.

Tonight the guide will show you every nook and cranny of the house.  She’ll tell you everything – including the details too ghastly and perverse to be mentioned in the daylight.  But she might not be able to save you.  Because this Saturday night, those on the Midnight Tour will be joined by an unexpected visitor.

They’ll be lucky to get out alive.

 

As you can imagine with Headline being a company based in the U.K. these books are extremely hard to come by.  In fact, it is almost impossible to buy in new condition, as this book is in.  The closest I have seen to new condition for this book is in ‘Used – Very Good’ on Amazon and is priced at $86.55.  So you know in new condition it is well over $100.00!  That’s right, this prize is valued at more than $100.00 and it could be yours for…Free!

So, how do you win, you ask?  Simple.

Send me an email (ty_schwamberger@yahoo.com) with the subject line, ‘Richard Laymon Book Contest’ and include your name, mailing address and why you love the horror genre.

One lucky winner will be chosen at random on (entries must be received by Midnight on June 19th) June 20th from all entries received.  The lucky winner will be notified via email.  Please, only one entry per person.

Good Luck!

Book Review(s) Published

Posted on by Ty Schwamberger

I recently had two (2) book reviews that I wrote published by Withersin Magazine.  The two books that I read and wrote reviews on are both by Edward Lee – Messenger and House Infernal.  You can click the titles to read the reviews if you wish.

As always, you can check out the full list of all my published items (novel, short stories, book reviews, etc) by visiting Published/Upcoming Works.