So I wasn't completely happy with the previous cover for Gale Harbour 2: Revenge of the Space-Surfing Butt Monkeys. I had an idea but I just couldn't get it to confer what I wanted.
So here's a new version:
At long last, GALE HARBOUR BOOK 2: Revenge of the Space-Surfing Butt Monkeys is available for Pre-Order!
Butt Monkeys is the direct sequel to my 2020 book, Psycho Hose Beast From Outer Space.
Here's the blurb:
Newfoundland, Canada, 1993.
It's been a year since a handful of kids defeated the Psycho Hose Beast in the sleepy town of Gale Harbour, Newfoundland. Our heroes have entered into the era of rollerblades, Super Nintendo and oversized plaid shirts… unless you’re a goth, then it’s the era of Maybelline eyeliner, boots with too many buckles, and infected safety-pin piercings.
Thirteen-year-old Niall O'Neil is navigating a blossoming relationship with his crush, Harper Jeddore. Unfortunately, the power that allowed them to defeat the monster from the deep is still within them, and they are no closer to understanding or controlling it. When just touching your girlfriend can kill innocent bystanders, it complicates the already precarious practice of teenage dating.
But lurking in the backdrop of teenage romance, a sinister power is growing in Gale Harbour, and dangerous people are turning up in the small town with possibly deadly intentions.
Will the kids defeat this new threat? What did the US Air Force leave in the abandoned Hansen Air Force base? What is a space-surfing butt monkey? And most importantly—will anyone get to touch a boob?
Revenge of the Space-Surfing Butt Monkeys is Book Two in the Gale Harbour Trilogy.
Release Date: May 3, 2022
Genre: Horror/Comedy/Adventure
ASIN: B09RKG6772 (Kindle eBook)
ISBN: 9798542434674 (paperback)
Price: $0.99 USD (Kindle, special pre-order price), $13.99 USD (paperback)
Click here to pre-order on Amazon.com!
The 99 cents is just for the pre-order. Once the book goes live, the regular price will be $3.99 USD.
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It's times like this that insecurity runs high. I've spent SO LONG working on this manuscript, I can't help that I'm racked with questions about it: Is it ready? Will people like it? Is the cover terrible? Is the blurb awful? Will I be able to drum up enough interest with the pre-order? Can I get reviews? The list goes on and on.
Those of you who follow me know that I had wanted to get this out awhile ago, but life sometimes gets in the way. But no more talk of what was or should have been - it's now time to look toward the future, and Revenge of the Space-Surfing Butt Monkeys will be available in just three months!
For those who read Gale Harbour Book 1, you will recognize the setting and the scene. All your favourite characters are back - Niall, Harper, Pius, Keith, and of course Skidmark - and there's a few new ones, as well. I really wanted to flesh out the town more, adding more inhabitants, more locations, making it a living, breathing community. And of course, there's also more monsters, more mystery, and more teenage drama!
Anyone interested in getting a review copy of Butt Monkeys (or Hose Beast, for that matter), please hit me up! I will have an official sign-up for the blog tour and release a bit later, probably with next month's IWSG post.
That would normally be it, except today's optional question sparked something with me...
IWSG February Question
Is there someone who supported or influenced you that perhaps isn't around anymore? Anyone you miss?
Maurice Good was my acting teacher in my first year of University. He was an Irish actor, author and playwright, in his late sixties when I knew him, and a fascinating and amazing character. He was of the old guard of UK artists - he worked at the Old Vic theatre in London with the likes Laurence Olivier, John Gielgud and Peter Ustinov. He was on Dr Who in the 60s with the original Doctor, William Hartnell. His father was a high-ranking member of the Easter Uprising in Ireland in 1916, and Maurice later wrote an important book on the inner workings and beginnings of the IRA, based on the stories and journals of his father. His stories about drunken shenanigans with mid-century celebrities were legendary (whether or not they were true). Maurice claimed he once got into a fist-fight with Ernest Hemingway.
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Okay, I've monopolized enough of everyone's time. See you next month with more news about Revenge of the Space-Surfing Butt Monkeys!
Hugs & Kisses,
-CDGK
!THE BOOK!
Who are these moon maidens?
Summer of ’94 and Connor Whelan is excited to spend the last three months before his senior year with his uncle in Texas. Aware this trip is due to his mom’s cancer treatments, he still hopes this will be a season of magic.
He gets his wish when he encounters three magical women one night. Claiming to be from the moon itself, bewitching Iluna, flighty Eiru, and motherly Cassiopeia are about to make Connor’s last summer of childhood one to remember.
However, his interest in local girl Laura puts him in hot water with her tough boyfriend. His fascination with Iluna also confuses him. Will the moon maidens’ lessons about joy, wonder, and hope get him through this crazy summer?
An award-winning screenwriter and author, Brian Carmody is a dreamer, a wisher, a hoper, a prayer, a pretender and a magic bean buyer. He’s had moondreams from Texas to Virginia, and now California, where he has plenty of other flax golden tales to spin by his fire. www.brianzwriter.com/
My Magic Summer
With the Moon Maidens
By Brian Carmody
Print 9781939844804 $17.95
EBook 9781939844811 $4.99
Young Adult – Contemporary Fantasy/Coming of Age/Boys & Men
!THE LINKS!
Dancing Lemur Press - http://www.dancinglemurpressllc.com/new-adult-young-adult
Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0965XBJ7Y
Barnes & Noble - https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/my-magic-summer-brian-carmody/1139629159?ean=9781939844804
iTunes – https://books.apple.com/us/book/x/id1573280572
Kobo - https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/Search?Query=9781939844811
Scribed - https://www.scribd.com/search?query=9781939844811&language=0
Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58346132-my-magic-summer-with-the-moon-maidens
!THE AUTHOR!
Brian Carmody is the award-winning screenwriter of The Batting Cage and Aunt. He is an ardent fan of philosophy, noir, and Weird Fiction. He currently resides in Southern California.
The biggest stress I have right now is that I have a manuscript sitting, mostly complete, waiting for edits and I haven't been able to work on it in weeks.
What delights me is finishing it.
Happy Holidays Everyone!
Hugs & Kisses,
CDGK
October Question - In your writing, where do you draw the line, with either topics or language?
The answer to this question evolves as you grow and change as a writer. My first goal was to finish writing a book. Next was holding a book in my hand. Getting a short story published was also a goal.
Currently, my next level of success will be:
1. Making enough money off each book to pay for the next one (editing, design, marketing, etc)
2. Finishing a trilogy
The first one I kinda completed. I did make enough money from the last book to pay for the next one; life just got in the way so the money's no longer there. And I'm well on the way for goal number 2; I'll be quite happy when I complete that one.
Ultimately, though, my true markers of real success are the following. I think I've shared these before, because I've held onto these goals for a long time. Once I hit these, I will know I have made it:
1. Seeing someone read my book on the bus or subway. At which point I will lean over and whisper, "Not very good, is it?"
2. Finding my book in the discount overstock bin for $0.99 at Chapters/Indigo.
3. Having my book turned into a shitty, low-budget Canadian indy film, a la "Jesus Christ: Vampire Hunter."
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/.
I had hoped that today I would be announcing the release date for Gale Harbour Book 2. Actually, I really wanted to announce it last month, but this was my back-up deadline. Unfortunately, it's still not happening.
It all had to come crashing down eventually.
The last year has been very positive for me, writing-wise. I published a book, wrote another, had four short stories appear in anthologies and magazines. I knew I had to keep the productivity ball rolling as long as I could, because once it went off the rails, that would be it.
I've felt like crap for weeks. The problem, of course, is the environment in which I'd been working for so long. In addition to the writing, real life has continued on. With the pandemic, the kids were doing school from home all last year. We've barely saw anyone or done anything. With restrictions changing constantly we're never sure what we're allowed or not allowed to do. The kids finally go to day camp, get the sniffles, then everyone freaks out - it's probably just a cold, but what if it's not? Even if they're fine, we tell everyone else in the family and people have to miss work and cancel plans if they self-isolate... It's all very stressful. Not to mention that camp was a reminder than our kids' social skills have taken a serious hit over the last sixteen months...
But back to the writing. Last year, I saw a moderate amount of success with Psycho Hose Beast From Outer Space. Enough that I made a bit of money that would cover an editor and cover designer for the sequel. Well, I finished the sequel and had my people lined up... and then realized the money wasn't there anymore. Life happens. Replacing every major appliance in the house over the last year certainly didn't help. Nor did repaying some employment insurance my wife received incorrectly several years ago, or paying for that camp where my kids got a cold, or a hundred other things.
The realization that I don't have the money to publish my book the way I wanted to, on top of all the stress and exhaustion from everything else... and I'm just done. All of the excitement, all of the energy I've had the last year, it's all gone. I don't know what to do with myself. I open my manuscript and stare at it for awhile, but there's nothing I can do with it. I try to write other stuff and no words come. I played a game of D&D online with some friends a couple of weeks ago and it was the worst game I've run in years. I just have no energy, no imagination, no nothing.
I try to tell myself to let it go, that it will pass. The book will come out eventually, the next one will get written. But it's hard to accept in the moment. I was really excited to get my book out by the fall, even though I have no deadlines besides those I made for myself. I also know there are plenty of people in way worse places than I am, so I feel guilty about feeling shitty. I'm basically making up reasons to feel sorry for myself now.
OTHER NEWS...
I submitted Psycho Hose Beast From Outer Space to both the Self-Published Fantasy Blog-Off (SPFBO) and the new Self-Published Science Fiction Competition (SPSFC). My book falls somewhere in between Fantasy and Sci-Fi, but since there isn't a Horror competition yet, I figured I would try them both and see what happens. Much like previous years I don't expect any major results, but the 2018 SPFBO did give me a small boost in sales and reviews for Hell Comes to Hogtown, so it's worth a shot.
I'll be out of town when this post goes live, so I may not respond to comments or visit many blogs this week. Hope everyone is well!
Hugs & Kisses,
-CDGK
EDIT: ...and I'm already cut from SPFBO. They said it was too sci-fi, which is fine. Except last year a sci-fi superhero book made it to the finals. It really all depends on which reviewer gets your book. Judging by this review, I doubt anyone even read mine.
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/.
