Death Packs and Demon Deals

 Need a book haul in your mailbox? I've got a deal for you! 

Now through October 31st you can order signed books direct from me. You can choose from three packs: The Death Pack, The Demon Deal or The Short Stack. Each dynamic deal comes with bookmarks and stickers and shipping is included in the price.

All books are personalized to order. Payment is accepted through Paypal, Cashapp or Venmo. 

1 Set: $25

2 Sets: $45 (save $5)

3 sets: $60 (save $15)

Email frankjedler @ gmail dot com with "Book Haul" in the subject line. Indicate which set(s) you are interested in purchasing, personalization preferences, and preferred payment format to complete your order.

3 Picks with Kenneth W. Cain

 

It's time for 3 Picks! The feature where a spotlight author shares their three book recommendations within a given category that they should know a thing or two about.


This week's 3 Picks features author and editor, Kenneth W. Cain. Kenneth is known books such as the dark fiction collection, Embers, best seller A Season in Hell as well as his forthcoming title, From Death Reborn.


Kenneth Cain also does tons of editing work for noted horror publishers Crystal Lake Publishing and Silver Shamrock Publishing among others as well. Kenneth knows a thing or two about story collections and anthologies. So, it is with that in mind that we turn to Kenneth Cain for his 3 Picks for Horror Anthologies worth their weight in gold.

Here's his 3 Picks:




Pick 1: After by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling - This anthology has a wide range of stories, many of which really hit the right tone and feel for what I like in horror, including some fun takes on well-used themes. “After the Cure” by Carrie Ryan was most excellent.


Pick 2: Chiral Mad 2 by Michael Bailey - If you know me, I’m quite fond of charity, and Bailey has worked hard to put out some incredible anthologies for a great cause. This one is chock-full of great stories by some of the best in the business, as are all of his anthologies. “The Great Pity” by Gary Braunbeck blew me away.


Pick 3: 20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill - I’m a huge Joe Hill fan, and not because of who is father is. This collection contains one of my favorite stories, “Pop Art.” There’s a lot of subtext in that story, and some great lessons in how to write a good story. So many excellent stories.


Honorable mention (and only because I haven’t gotten around to reading it yet, despite having read many of the individual stories): The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories by Ken Liu. I stumbled upon one of Ken’s stories on a podcast I listen to, and it blew me away. So naturally I sought out his work, and I found a literal treasure trove of amazing stories. So, while I wouldn’t classify his work as being full-on horror, it has a quiet dark side to much of it I feel would qualify it as dark fantasy, which is good enough for me. “Paper Menagerie,” which has a paranormal aspect to it, is a favorite that I’ve read over and over.

There you have it, a treasure trove of horror anthologies that pack a lot of punch. Kenneth W. Cain has poured over many horror anthologies so he know's a good one when he reads one. Be sure to check these titles out when you need a fix of horror shorts.

What are your 3 Picks for must read horror anthologies? Let us know in the comments below!

To find out more about writer and editor Kenneth W. Cain visit kennethwcain.com

3 Picks with Frank Edler

 

Welcome to a special St. Patrick's Day edition of 3 Picks. This week's 3 Picks features blog host, me, Frank Edler. I will now refer to myself in third person to keep you abreast of my work. Frank Edler is the author of several books including A Death in Toledo and Catcoin: The Fictional History of a Cryptocurrency. He has also just release his first audiobook for Death Gets a Book.

Many people may not know this because its trivial knowledge to begin with but Mr. Frank is part Irish. Both of my grandparents on my mother's side of the family are off-the-boat Irish. So I grew up with a strong sense of my Irish roots. So since St. Patrick's Day has become a 2nd rate holiday celebrating Irish Heritage and giving the world another great excuse to drink to excess, I present to you my 3 Picks for Irish Inspired Books.

Pick 1: Ghosts & Lightning by Trevor Byrne. Trevor Byrne is a modern Irish writer. Ghosts & Lighting appears to be his only major work of fiction and it's stuck with me over time. Its gritty and real. The story of a young man finally struck off on his own, only to be called back home, to Dublin to deal with the family he was trying to escape. 

Pick 2: Irish Gothic: Tales of Irish Horror by Ronald Kelly. This new release from popular horro author Ronald Kelly is a collection of horror that utilizes classic Irish folklore to tell modern tales of horror. I can't believe a book like this hasn't been written before. Not the way Ronald Kelly writes it.

Picks 3: Leprechaun in the Hood by Cameron Pierce, Adam Cesare & Shane McKenzie. Its a horror comedy musical in book form about a Leprechaun. This is a tough pick because the book is out of print so if you want to check this one out you are going to have to scavenge your local used book store to try to get your hands on it. Maybe you'll get lucky and find it in your grandma's attic.

There you have it. 3 Picks for books to read while you drink a pint of green beer, enjoy a slice of soda bread and listen to Flogging Molly. And remember, if someone is wearing a "Kiss Me, I'm Irish" shirt, they are not Irish and you shouldn't kiss them, even if it's your sainted mother. Slainte!

What are your 3 Picks for Irish based horror? Let us know in the comments below.

Catcoin to the Moon: A Celebration of Bitcoin Reaching $50k

 

Catcoin Free Until 2/21/21

Bitcoin has reached the $50,000 mark and to celebrate, my cryptocurrency tech-adventure, CATCOIN will be free on Kindle eBook until Saturday 2/21/2021.

I've been somewhat of a cryptocurrency buff for several years now. So much so that I wrote Catcoin: The Fictional History of a Cryptocurrency. Catcoin is my homage to the story of Bitcoin... but with cats. I wrote Catcoin in an effort to help those less initiated but curious about cryptocurrencies and how they work. 

The result is the story of the first Catcoin, a cat named One, taken in from the streets by Catoshi Nakomoto, who invented Catcoin. Soon enough, Catoshi spends One to buy a pizza and One sets off on a globe-trotting journey as he's spent as currency in exchange for goods and services. 

If you haven't guessed, Catcoin is anything but serious. It's meant to be fun and funny. The story is as wild and wacky as a trip through a funhouse. You'll laugh as you learn about the history of Bitcoin through the eyes of a drunken cat. Yeah, there's a wrinkle with holding One as money. He needs wine, and lots of it.

See? Fun! So pour yourself a glass of wine and curl up with your free Kindle copy of CATCOIN. And invest you're savings on a few Catoshis of Catcoin today.

Catcoin: The Fictional History of a Cryptocurrency is free on Kindle eBook from 2/17 through 2/21. Grab your copy today!

3 Picks with Chuck Buda

 

This week's 3 Picks are presented by author Chuck Buda. Chuck is known for his extreme dark horror series The Debt Collector and Gushers. But Chuck Buda is probably better known for his dark horror westerns, The Haunted Gunslinger series.

Chuck Buda's Haunted Gunslinger books have put a good deal of attention on him lately with a resurgence of interest in the genre, particularly with crossover style westerns. Since this is a genre on the rise once again, many people might not know where to start, even if they have an interest in exploring the books that are out there.

With that in mind, Chuck Buda is here to share 3 reasons he loves Westerns and 3 Picks for entry reading into the Western genre. 

What genre packs action, adventure, romance, suspense, thrills, humor and just about everything else into it? That is right. Westerns!

I love reading western yarns for 3 major reasons:

1) See the opening statement above.

2) Most western tales are told through series which I find most entertaining (or serials as we old-timers like to characterize them – just like the serials we watched on television as we grew up)

3) Nostalgia for simpler times when life was real and not doctored by technology or social media.

While the choices are vast, a few of my recent favorite authors and books are listed below. I highly recommend starting here if you wish to dip your boots into the dusty trails of westerns!



Pick 1: Lane R. Warenski – Grizzly Killer: The Making of a Mountain Man

Grizzly Killer is an epic saga of one man’s journey against bad guys and the hostility of nature. Strong characterization and expansive settings are the hallmark of this tale. Not necessarily a shoot ‘em up style of western but it frames up the importance of survival during the same period. Unforgettable!


Pick 2: Peter Brandvold - .45 Caliber Series

.45 Caliber reads like a hot bullet screaming toward its victim. Blood. Grit. Action. Just the right amount of good versus bad with lots of twists and gobs of shooting. Every facet of the West going wild within these pages. Read with your inhaler. Great fun!


Pick 3: Ron Schwab – Deal with the Devil (The Law Wranglers Series)

Deal with the Devil is like Law & Order set in the Old West. Lawmen and lawyers duking it out on the frontier, shaping the boundaries of the wild expanses. And still, there is time for love and sex and plenty of drama between characters. The pages turn quickly as you hurry to find out who does what to whom. Suspenseful!

Of course, you cannot go wrong with the classics by Louis L’Amour or Zane Grey, either.


If you are looking for some new ideas for escapism, pick up a Western and tell the author Uncle Cholly sent you! You will not be disappointed.

You can find out more about Chuck Buda at his website: authorchuckbuda.com

Are We Reading Bizarro? (Part 2)

This week, in my ongoing series, "Are We Reading Bizarro?" I've decided to dig a little deeper to see if I could pull the number of people reading Bizarro fiction up. In the first week I used purely anecdotal evidence from my Goodreads feed over the course of a few weeks to surmise that only three of the people I am connected to on Goodreads were reading Bizarro or Bizarro adjacent titles.

Are We Reading Bizarro?

This week I decided to up the ante a little bit. I am still using Goodreads as my measurement but instead of relying solely on what passed through on my news feeds, I dug through my friends list (812 members as of this posting), page by page to see of those reporting the titles they're reading, how many I could count off that were Bizarro or Bizarro adjacent.

The number I wound up at: 5.

Digging In Deeper For The Numbers

An interesting thing happened while I was combing through all twenty eight pages of friends statuses, There were far more than five people who's status reported they were reading a Bizarro or adjacent title. The problem was there were more of those status updates that were year old (roughly in the range of 2013 through 2017.) Obviously, I couldn't count those as people currently reading Bizarro. What I can say is that there are way more of those old statuses reporting reading Bizarro than there are currently.

I can't say that means anything or not. But, it could be an indication that we were reading much more Bizarro years ago looking at those snapshots back over years past than we are now. Again that is purely circumstantial evidence and obviously not concrete. 

I can also say that, after my first blog post in this series, several people stepped up to report that they were currently, recently or intend to soon, read a Bizarro or adjacent title. That is encouraging.

I myself, am about to finish up my first experience with Kurt Vonnegut and I have two Bizarro or adjacent titles up next in my reading queue.  As always, if you're reading Bizarro or adjacent let me know! I know someone reported trouble replying directly to the blog so let me know on Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads or wherever we interact!

Up next for Mr. Frank

It's a weird time to be alive but a great time to get in more reading! Be well and read weird.

Are We Reading Bizarro? (Part 1)

In recent weeks, in the writer/reader circles that I tend to run in on social media platforms, I've witnessed a call to action to return Bizarro Fiction to the prominence (its "relative" prominence) it once enjoyed. Now, there can be no doubt the genre has been experiencing a decline both in readership and in new material released under the genre label.

Are you reading weird?

But I've read several blog posts, status updates and I have even done a podcast interview on the discussion of what can be done to bring attention back to Bizarro Fiction. In the face of a genre in recession, people are starting to take a positive, pro-active approach and bring Bizarro back from the proverbial dead.

All the "Rah! Rah!" is great. It really is. It needs to continue. But, bottom line, until people start picking up Bizarro books, reading them and talking about them, things simple won't change. Which brings me to what I want to accomplish here.

I've been monitoring for a few weeks now, my Goodreads feeds with an eye on one metric in particular. How many people are reporting that they are reading a Bizarro (or Bizarro "adjacent") title? The fact of the matter is that I'm simply not seeing all the "Rah! Rah!" translating into people picking up Bizarro books.

That is, until today, March 18th, 2020. Today I can report to you that in the past 24 hours I have seen reading activity on three Bizarro or Bizarro adjacent titles. Of course, that is by my definition and parameters. I would say there is one, unquestionable Bizarro title and two adjacent titles of the three.

So, is it progress or happenstance? That's why I'm starting this little blog series. It's all just an idea. I'd like to try to report at least once a week if not more. We'll see how this goes. Let's keep in mind this is pretty anecdotal. I am basing this off my own Goodreads feeds and my own definitions of what constitutes a Bizarro or Bizarro adjacent title.

If you're reading Bizarro or adjacent, please, let me know in the comments. Let me know if you're planning on reading something Bizarro soon. Or maybe you're considering a Bizarro title, let me know about that too!

Happy Ready!

Catcoin is Coming

Catcoin: The Fictional History of a Cryptocurrency is the title of my new book. It's new in a great many ways. If you've read anything I've released already you have an idea of my style of writing, my brand. Some call it horror comedy, some call it whimsical urban fantasy, some call it straight up funny. Always with the monster bend. This time, with Catcoin, I'm exploring different territory.

The thread that binds it all together? The comedy. At least, I hope so. Catcoin is more of an adventure comedy. If you can picture a documentary that follows a dollar bill around you can start to wrap your head around what Catcoin in. Now, instead of a paper dollar bill, picture that currency as a drunk Cat from Italy who is turned into a Cryptocurrency (think Bitcoin) and we get to follow that wine guzzling cat as it trots around the globe being spent as a new form of currency the world has yet to see. That's Catcoin in a nutshell.

Catcoin. Premiers 2/28/20 on Kindle eBook.

So, I'm wading into a some uncharted territory with this one. It's definitely, in no way, shape or form, horror. But is is funny. So I'm going to be marketing it toward the action/adventure crowd. The easy money is to call it a thriller. Thrillers are hot right now. But, I think that's a disingenuous. Catcoin, at its core, is an action/adventure thriller. That is for certain and I must pitch it to the readers who appreciate that type of story. I don't believe this will hit in the same way that it hits for those who enjoy Death, Brats or Scatterbrain.

So, if you've picked up my books or not, I am here to tell you that Catcoin is something different. It's still tainted with humor the whole way through (at least, I hope so, humor is objective and that ball is in our court fine reader.) I've left the monsters behind. I've left the speckles of darkness in my wake.

Catcoin in my love letter to Bitcoin and cryptocurrency. I see the dawn of a new era in those things and it was important for me to provide a bit of fictional whimsy to that bright new future. You may see things the Catcoin way or you may not. That's for you to decide, just like we will all decide with things like Bitcoin and Etherium and their ilk.

The world is going crypto. Are you on board?

Pre-Order CatCoin NOW for just 99 cents on Kindle eBook before it assumes it's normal value of $2.99 after February 28th, 2020!

A Year In Reading 2017

Like many, I enjoy reflecting on the many titles I've read over the past year. Thank goodness for Goodreads.com where I can actively track the books I've read over time. As has become tradition, I'd like to present to you my notable reads for the year 2017. Sure, everyone is doing it but here's my hook: These are the books I've read and enjoyed in 2017 but were not necessarily published this year.
The fact of the matter is, I probably read more books not published in each given year than those that are published in the current year. I'm always impressed with those who focus on reading mostly new books. Of course, this is coming from a chronically slow reader. There are just so many great books out there and even if I were a fast reader, there are just too many great books to get to that you couldn't possibly get to in any given year. 

So, let's get on with my list of notable books I've read in 2017! These are listed chronologically in order read from January through December.

• THE HOTTEST GAY MAN EVER KILLED IN A SHARK ATTACK by Douglas Hackle (2016) Douglas Hackle: I started the year off reading  Douglas Hackle's first long form story because I'd seen so many other fans of Bizarro say this was a strong contender for top Bizarro book of the year. Ya know what, they were right! This is a jolly good story about a sentient sled, the detached arm of a famous rock star, a polar bear-headed keytar player and a not-so-hot gay guy who take off on a road trip of epic proportions. It is as awesome as it sounds!

• TANUKI TANGO OVERDRIVE by Arthur Graham (2016) Arthur Graham:  Arthur Graham is an author and editor that's been in the bizarro game for quite sometime. Since stepping away from Rooster Republic Press he's gone on to edit the Horror Sleeze Trash Zine as well as focus more on his own writing. Tanuki Tango Overdrive was a fun romp that took me by surprise. It's a funny, over-the-top action adventure similar to A. Lee Martinez. Check out this hidden gem for a good laugh. Oh yeah and Tanukis are real and they have giant balls. Really!

• THE NIGHTLY DISEASE by Max Booth III (2016) Perpetual Motion Machine:  Originally published by the now defunct DarkFuse and since reissued by Perpetual Motion Machine, THE NIGHTLY DISEASE was another book I made a point of reading due to all the hype I'd seen the previous year on this darkly funny tale of life as a hotel night auditor. This is the type of book that takes you behind the scenes of a job you never knew could be so interesting. Okay, so, maybe author Max Booth III punches up the action from the true, ordinary and mundane night to night life on the job. But, if you've read Confession of a Hotel Night Auditor blog then maybe you realize there is an uncomfortable amount of truth to this dark, bizarre thriller.

• THE FIRST CUT by Chuck Buda (2016) La Cigolli Publishing:  Every year there seems to be at least one book I read that I enjoy even thought it has a lot of technical flaws. This year, Chuck Buda's The First Cut is that book. I loved the story and the characters in The First Cut. This is a very graphic, sexually perverse and violent story. It also represents a maturing in the storytelling skill of the author. I gave it three stars at first because of a few technical aspects that I felt hurt the overall reading experience. However, in the end, many months later this book still sticks to me. I can't wait to read on further in the series and see how it all plays out.

• HOME IS WHERE THE HORROR IS by CV Hunt (2017) Grindhouse Press:  CV Hunt is on the list again this year after winding up on last year's list with my uber-favorite, Ritualistic Human Sacrifice. I didn't think Hunt could follow-up such a strong book but Home Is Where The Horror Is is as nearly as strong an effort as the aformentioned book. This is a very real, very visceral story with vivid characters and a rather unique monster. Great horror and a book actually published in the year I read it! This one stuck to my ribs as well since reading it.

• HUSK by Rachel Autumn Deering (2016) Tiny Behemoth Press:  Yet another book I read to catch up on the buzz books of 2016. I wanted to grab a signed copy of this at a convention Deering and I were both at but unfortunately I was also vending books at a table and never had the opportunity to meet her. Nevertheless I grabbed the digital copy and found out what all the hubbub was about. In some ways this was similar in tone and feel to CV Hunt's Home Is Where The Horror Is and it's still unique unto itself. The monsters battled in this one come from within. Right. Right? Right!

• MINIVAN POEMS by Justin Grimbol (2016) Thicke & Vaney Press: This is exactly what it says it is, a book full of poems about minivans. Yet, you still cannot prepare yourself for the wonderful poems held within. These are very short, bite-sized poems that are an ode to minivans, country living, down-home folks, loved ones and butt. Lots of butts. I am not one for poetry at all but Justin Grimbol makes poetry a wonderful art accessible to everyone. I need more Minivan Poems in my life. And a hard copy of this book to put out on my coffee table.

• SPUNGUNION by John Boden (2017) Dynatox Ministries:  Right at the end of the year I read two fantastic books. Spungunion is one of those books. This one took me by surprise. I'd read another of Boden's books last year. I saw this title and thought the premise sounded pretty cool. The introduction by Bracken MacLeod stresses that no two John Boden stories are alike and boy is that the truth. Spungunion is nothing like Jedi Summer (the book I mentioned previously). Spungunion is some folksy, truck, road trip horror. The writing is keen and vivid. The prose is poetry. It's a short book but it packs a wallop. This is like Convoy if Convoy was a surreal horror thriller.

• IS WINONA RYDER STILL WITH THAT DUDE FROM SOUL ASYLUM? AND OTHER LURID TALES OF TERROR AND DOOM!!! by Douglas Hacks (2017) Douglas Hackle:  I start and end with Douglas Hackle. The only author who I read two of their works in 2017 and both knocked it out of the park. This book is a collection of absurdist short stories, the realm in which Hackle really shines. This should be taught in Bizarro lecture halls the world over. Perfection of the genre. This is how weird fiction is done.

So, there you have the top of my reading list for 2017. I don't like to stamp the list at 10 or 20 or anything like that. This is just the most enjoyable reads of the year. The list is longer than last year's which only featured six books. This year come in at nine. I put away more books than I did last year and I think overall I read a lot more quality stuff that the previous year. 

Some honorable mentions that didn't make the list would be: SUNFALL by Tim Meyer, Chad Scanlon and Pete Draper. M.R. Tapia's THE DIE-FI EXPERIMENT. JOHN WAYNE LIED TO YOU by John Wayne Comunale, VERY TRUE STORIES STARRING JEFF O'BRIEN by Jeff O'Brien. And CHILDREN OF THE DARK by Johnathan Janz.

I've already got a full reading list of what promises to be top notch shit for 2018. If the titles I have at the top of my To Be Read pile are any indication of the year in reading to come, it will prove to be a banner year in reading. Hope you're year in reading will be grand as well.

You can check out my full list of books read for 2017 HERE.

A Challenge To Zombie Writers

In June, I had the unique opportunity to interview over twenty different authors of zombie fiction for The Summer of Zombie Blog Tour 2014. In fact, this was my third year conducting these interviews for this annual blog tour. Each year, among other questions, I've always asked the same two questions in one form or another:

1) Do you think zombie fiction has become over-saturated?

2) Does the genre need to evolve lest it become a victim of its own popularity?

Each and every year, the majority of the responses to these two questions is always the same. The genre is not over-saturated and zombie are fine just the way they are.

I am first and foremost a reader of zombie fiction. I am, I'm afraid to admit, a Johnny-come-lately to the subject. It wasn't until I opened up World War Z that I became entranced with the subject. Soon after, I began to consume all matter of zombie fiction I could find. From big press to indie authors, I loved it all. In fact, it was because of zombie fiction that I came to embrace and respect self-published authors and indie press.

But then something awful happened. I read so much I began to realize I was reading the same story time and again. It was becoming monotonous. The dead had risen from the grave. They were hungry. A small band of survivors. A safe place to live that ultimately becomes compromised. A boat. An island. A crossbow and a machete.

And sinew. Always sinew.

I am afraid that zombie fiction is becoming what hair metal became in the late 80's. Zombie fiction will drive itself into the dirt riding on the wheels of its own mediocrity. I think it's time for Nirvana.

You could reinvent the zombie. It's happening already. Some zombies are fast now. Some have emotion. Some are aware. In my short story collection, SCARED SILLY, there is a story called Old Scrote that is centered around a zombie who has an appetite for something other than brains. I challenged myself to write a different kind of zombie story and the first place I decided to change was the zombie itself... and not by much. All I did was change its appetite and asked how would things be if this zombie wanted to eat a penis? The result was one of my favorite pieces to write and I have garnered a lot of positive responses to its different point of view.

What if instead of the survivors being a rag tag band of misfits or a reluctant loner forced with an adolescent charge or a military or police officer leading a pack of less than resilient civilians, the survivors are a tribe in Africa?  Maybe they could be that tribe in Africa that elongates their necks with a series of rings stacked up around their necks. Their heads, and thus their brains, are now out of reach of the average zombie rendering them the last living people on Earth left to deal with the scourge of the dead. You can take that ball and run with it, just credit me in the beginning of the book and send me a free copy!

 

Strip it down and reconstruct the whole thing. Why do the dead have to come back from the grave? Why can't something like food come to life period? Another alternative zombie story you will find in SCARED SILLY is entitled, GROSSeries. In it, a husband laments a trip to the grocery store to shop for his wife who is caught working late. To make matters worse, all the food becomes animated and leaps off the shelves to attack the shoppers. The reluctant hero must fight, aisle by aisle, to escape the ravenous food products and encounters a baby he must rescue along the way. Will they escape? Will escaping the confines of the grocery store be enough to survive? I guess you may have to read to find out.

I don't think it takes much to nudge the entire genre into a more interesting direction.  So I challenge you, the writers of zombie fiction, to write a book, a short story or a flashy little blog piece. Try something different. Take it in a new direction. Find an road that you haven't found traveled and follow that path to see where it takes you.  And when you take up the challenge and come up with an end result, be sure to share it with me.

I sure would love to read that!

My short story collection, SCARED SILLY, features the alternative zombie stories Old Scrote and GROSSeries as well as three other frighteningly funny tales to tickle your funny bone.  It is available in paperback as well as eBook from Amazon, Barnes&Noble and other major eBook retailers.