The latest collection of hilarious horror stories from Mystery & Horror is coming in just a few short weeks! And, for the fourth time in four years, the Strangely Funny collection will feature a brand new spine-tingling and funny-bone-tickling tale by yours truly!
I'll have more details to share as we get closer to the release, but in the meantime, please allow me to reveal the wacky cover for the new edition:
I've already given away two copies of my debut novel, Ten Thousand Days, but I've got one more that's itching to get on your shelf. If you want a chance to get a paperback copy of Ten Thousand Days (the revised 2017 version!) all you have to do is sign up for my mailing list, below.
I will choose a lucky winner on May 31, so your time to sign-up is running out. Plus, by joining the list you'll be among the first to know when my fun new books and projects will be coming out. You know you want to be one of the cool kids. Sign up now!
Today is the five-year anniversary of the release of my first novel, Ten Thousand Days. (It's also my 40th birthday, but that's neither here nor there).
We live in a strange world right now (apologies for the weirdness of my post last month). We need to celebrate every little thing we can. So, in honour of my book's birthday, I'm giving it away.
Specifically, I'm giving away THREE honest-to-goodness paperback copies of Ten Thousand Days. (I know, who reads dead tree books anymore, right?) But I'm doing it, and, if the postal service in your area is still operating, you will eventually get it, too!
The first copy is going to a lucky follower of my Facebook page. I wrote about it last week, but here's the short version: To have a chance to win a copy, all you have to do is 1) Like my Facebook Page, and 2) Leave a comment on the post pinned to the top of the page. That's it! Simple, right?
For the second copy, I'm going to do one of those raffle-copter thingies, which I'm sure you've seen before:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Just enter the list above for another chance to win! And the more boxes you complete, the more chances you have to win. You can Tweet about the book every day to maximize your chances.
For the third copy, I'm finally starting a mailing list. If you sign-up for the mailing list, you'll be entered for a chance to win a paperback copy as well. I guarantee you I won't be using this list to send you spam, or random stories or posts (I use this blog and Facebook for that). The main purpose of the mailing list will be to alert you, dear reader of when any new books or stories are coming out.
Which brings me to, I suppose, my main point today. This day is not just about celebrating past books, but about looking forward to new ones. Barring further tragedies, I should have a new book out very soon. Maybe even two this year.
Am I insecure about talking about new books? Hells yes. It seems like every time I start getting excited about something, especially a new book, it just gets delayed or falls apart altogether. I thought I was going to publish Hell Comes to Hogtown nearly a year before it actually came out. A year or so ago I said I was working on a sequel for Hogtown, and then I never finished it. Talking about a book before it's ready seems to be the Touch of Death for me. So why am I doing it now?
Maybe I'm just a sucker for punishment.
Maybe because I'm tired of just talking about old books. Maybe I'm tired of being negative all the time and focusing on failures. Maybe I'm jealous of all the new books I see other writers putting out. I just want to be excited and look forward to something, you know? Trust me, I don't get to do that very often.
So here's to old books and new, here's to turning 40. The world's going to shit anyway, might as well make the most of it.
Hugs & kisses,
-CDGK
The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Writers post their thoughts on their blogs, talking about their doubts and the fears they have conquered. It's a chance for writers to commiserate and offer a word of encouragement to each other. Check out the group at http://www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com/.
May is the 5th anniversary of the release of my first book, TEN THOUSAND DAYS. To celebrate, I'm giving away a free paperback copy! Yes, not just a digital copy, which is also cool, but a dead tree version you can love and cherish and put on your shelf and never read!
All you have to do is "LIKE" my Facebook Page and LEAVE A COMMENT on the post pinned to the top of the page. That's it!
Please enjoy my quarantine hair.
Please note this is the REVISED and EXPANDED edition that came out in 2017. It's 30,000 words longer and MUCH better edited (thanks, Amy!) So even if you read TEN THOUSAND DAYS when it first came out, you may still want to check out the authoritative "author's cut."
Contest is open to readers in Canada, the USA and Europe, and runs until May 10th, 2020. A winner will be chosen randomly on May 11th, 2020.
I've had these glasses for over five years, I think it's time for a new pair.
I'm actually hoping to give away more than one copy, so watch out for more chances to win in the coming weeks!
In case my face isn't enough to sway you, here's the blurb:
They say love hurts and time heals all wounds.
Sometimes the reverse is true.
Isaac was very good at wasting time. Video games, a mindless job, no responsibilities - he had a simple life and few wants. Despite being hopelessly average, unassuming and kind of useless, he had somehow married the most beautiful, wonderful woman in the world.
He had no idea how good he had it - until it was all taken away.
Time does not like being wasted. It is mercurial, inexorable and carries a wicked grudge. And sometimes, just sometimes, it enjoys playing games with people's lives. To be perfectly honest, Time is a bit of a jerk.
Isaac had never learned to appreciate what little time he had, and now he must travel to the ends of the universe and face unspeakable evils in a cat-and-mouse game with Time itself for the slim chance to win back a few fleeting seconds of happiness. The price of failure? Only the end of all existence.
Ten Thousand Days is a fairy tale set in the modern day, a fantastic journey of desperate love and horror with a twisted sense of humour. It's a story of exactly how far a young man will go for love...
Remember, just LIKE MY FACEBOOK PAGE and comment on the top post for your chance to win. By liking my Facebook page, you also get my semi-regular tid-bits of important Canadian history, like this one:
The IWSG’s focus is on our writers. Each month, from all over the globe, we are a united group sharing our insecurities, our troubles, and our pain. So, in this time when our world is in crisis with the covid-19 pandemic, our optional question this month is: how are things in your world?
Just released today – the latest from Dancing Lemur Press, L.L.C. -
Gabe’s Guardian Angel
By Beverly Stowe McClure
Gabe never asked for an angel…
Gabe Montana’s clumsy. He’s overweight, and he’s dyslexic. Worse yet, the bullies make his fifteen-year-old life even more miserable—so miserable he wants to die.
Charley, his guardian angel, says no to that idea, and comes up with a different plan. He’ll give Gabe self-confidence so he can solve his problems, not run away from them. But Gabe wonders why the angel doesn’t just help with the bullies. What’s with this self-confidence stuff?
Can Charley help Gabe stand on his own two feet? Will Gabe give up hope life can improve for him? Or will he finally listen to the angel’s advice?
Young Adult Fiction: Boys & Men / Loners & Outcasts / Bullying
Print ISBN 9781939844668 $15.95
EBook ISBN 9781939844675 $4.99
“An important read for young adults and their families.” - Donna McDine, multi-award winning author of stories for children “It takes a tough subject and handles it in a positive, uplifting way. A must read for teens and tweens.” – Sandra Cox, author “Gabe’s Guardian Angel is a good read for any youngster who has ever felt isolated and bullied.”– L.G. Keltner, author
THE AUTHOR!
Most of the time, you’ll find Beverly Stowe McClure at her computer, typing stories young voices whisper in her ears. When she’s not writing, she’s snapping pictures of wildlife, flowers and clouds. She’s sometimes known as the “Bug Lady.” She’s not telling why.
I still find it super weird that people come to me to ask for a review of their book. I get that everyone wants to get as many reviews as possible, but the fact that someone values my opinion enough that they will seek me out specifically for a review/quote is a nice feeling.
I don't get a lot of requests mind you, and don't have the time to do many more than I already receive, but I have discovered some really great books this way. The last one was BIG RED by Damien Larkin last year, and now I can add HEADLOCK OF DESTINY by Samuel Gately to that list.
I mean, I get that I'm specifically the target audience for this book. It's pro-wrestling mixed with epic fantasy. But I think that alot of people will enjoy this book, regardless of how you feel about oiled-up men in panties fighting each other. You don't need to be a fan of pro-wrestling to get The Headlock of Destiny, but if you are you'll appreciate some of the inside jokes and references.
Van is a titan, a giant ten-times as a strong as a mortal man, destined to fight and entertain the masses in a wrestling ring. Despite his humble beginnings working at a brewery in a backwater village, he is of course swept up into the politics and show-biz of the fighting circuit, thrust into the biggest tournament in the world, the Headlock of Destiny. Van becomes Van the Beer Man, a wrestling... brewer? (To be fair, the real world has seen wrestling garbage men, dentists and golf caddies, so why not?)
I loved this book. Samuel Gately has an easy, fun voice that makes the text fly by at a breezy clip. The description of the wrestling matches are fast-paced and exciting, with each one a spectacle of over-the-top action. But wrestling action aside, some of my favourite moments were outside the ring, like Van's quest to steal a barrel of beer, his antics at the tavern and casino between matches, or his awkward encounters with his former girlfriend. Much of the characters and interactions are refreshingly grounded and real, despite the story being set in a magical world with wrestling minotaurs and dragons used as passenger airliners. I think that's what really makes this work - in a world with cartoonish wrestling action and fantasy trappings, it's really Gately's down-to-earth portrayal of Van that makes him seem real and relatable. It would have been so easy, and a mistake, to make Van as garish and hyperbolic as the world around him, but instead he's just a normal, regular guy with simple wants and a sad (but not overly dramatic) backstory. Really great stuff.
Long story short, I would recommend this to anyone who like pro-wrestling or fantasy. If you like both, then you REALLY have to check this out, because you're in for a treat.
Samuel Gately is a writer of novels in the fantasy genre. Most have spies in them. He lives in Oak Park, just outside Chicago, with his wife, daughters, and two terrifyingly fluffy dogs.
The last few weeks have sucked. The whole family has been battling the flu. I've missed a ton of work during the busiest time of the year. My son had a fever for 8 days straight. My wife's health is at its worst it's been in awhile. Not to mention a couple of other crisis that are about to explode in our face.
Needless to say, I haven't had much time for writing.
I loath this time of year. I don't know what it is, but the first couple months of the year are always so stressful. Here's hoping it calms down by late April/May, like it usually does.
Oh, one little bit of good news, though:
Sci-Fi and Fantasy magazine The Weird and Whatnot will be publishing one of my stories in an upcoming issue! That's pretty cool, and very unexpected as it is a story I've been trying to place for awhile. I will of course share more details when they become available.
That's it for me this month. How was your February?
Hugs & Kisses,
-CDGK
The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Writers post their thoughts on their blogs, talking about their doubts and the fears they have conquered. It's a chance for writers to commiserate and offer a word of encouragement to each other. Check out the group at http://www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com/.
