Get Plugged In #5

John Donald Carlucci has the third episode of Fierce Cravings up on YouTube!

Katherine Tomlinson makes her Powder Burn Flash debut, with "Dangerous Chartreuse."

Last, but not least, Chad Rohrbacher comes to A Twist of Noir.

Links and the return of Astonishing Adventures Magazine

Well, first things first. John Donald Carlucci emailed me from the road to tell me that Scarlett is coming back!

No, this has nothing to do with Hester Prynne, we are talking about Scarlett, the mascot of Astonishing Adventures Magazine. John has had a change of heart. He's decided to resurrect AAM, and that he will again take up the mantle of Editor.

Keith Rawson and company are readying a crime magazine that will be ready any minute. It will be called "Crime Factory Zine," and if you love crime fiction like I do, you know that Keith's name means quality.

The one announcement that has held this post up for a couple of days will have to wait for another day, no problem. Think Rod Serling, think Ray Bradbury and now think Katherine Tomlinson, with "The Sin Eater."

Writing Quotes, Burned-out Holiday Edition

Yeah, my sentiments exactly. While I'm burned out after a particularly taxing writing project, that just might be one of the best things that I've ever written, I need to find new inspiration. And hey, most importantly, so do you!

"My aim is to put down on paper what I see and what I feel in the best and simplest way."

-Ernest Hemingway

From The Creative Screenwriting Magazine's Weekly Newsletter

Last, but not least, a good friend of mine reminds us of why we even bother...

We do what we have to do so that we may do what we want to do.

-John Donald Carlucci

"Hunger Pangs" on Erin Cole's "Thirteen Days of Horror"

In honor of Halloween, Erin Cole has started "The Thirteen Days of Horror" and John Donald Carlucci kicks off Day Two with "Hunger Pangs."

Welcome back to the Internet, JDC!

Issue Number Seven Of Astonishing Adventures Is Here!

From The Official Press Release-

Astonishing Adventures Magazine, the prominent ePulp magazine, today announced the release of their seventh adventure-filled issue.

Have some crazy fun with the wonderful stories from writers like Mike Hughes, Christine Pope, Katherine Tomlinson, Sidney Harrison, Roger Alford, Brian Trent, Sarah Vaughn, Kat Parrish, Michael Patrick Sullivan, G. Wells Taylor, and Cormac Brown.

Soak in the amazingly beautiful images by artists like Joanne Renaud, Larry Nadolsky, G. Wells Taylor, Sarah Vaughn, and Susan Schader.

These are tales that will thrill and chill you well after you finish reading them.

Purchasers of the print copy will receive a free audio version of “The Dark” adventure by John Donald Carlucci and read by vocal j*hadist Robert Page.

Six issues into its amazing run, AAM and the Darke Media Group continue to provide the highest quality free fiction eZine on the Net while exploring ways to redefine the traditional publishing mode. Darke Media is launching a new web serial with a second serial, starring the mascot of AAM Scarlett, scheduled for early 2010.

Astonishing Adventures social network
http://astonishingadventuresmagazine.ning.com/

Astonishing Adventures Magazine issue 7 - available print version at
Amazon: ISBN1448687330 $10.00 - http://tiny.cc/WV4OZ

To read online or download
Issuu: http://issuu.com/astonishing/docs/aam7

To download if the Issuu link does not work
Mediafire: http://tiny.cc/ai2st.

Ladies and Gentlemen, there it is. Please, by all means, check it out.

Please, also if you get a chance, check out my story "Le Chat Noir."

Issue #7 Will Be Live 9-15-09!

Editor JDC sent an email to all of the involved authors saying that Issue #7 of Astonishing Adventures will be ready on September 15th!

And as always, when we are talking about AAM, we are talking-

Adventure!

Excitement!

Science Fiction!

Horror!

Strange Tales!

Thrillers!

Crime!

Noir!

Oh, and speaking of noir, look for my story "Le Chat Noir."

The Cover Of Astonishing Adventures Number Seven

Check it out.

Click the jpeg and blow it up.

I believe that the Editor JDC did a fantastic job and if you agree, please tell him so.

Self plug time: look for "Le Chat Noir." In many ways it is as different a story as I have ever written.

"In Vino Veritas, In Tequila Mors"

Over at The Clarity of Night, they have a contest where the challenge is to tell a story in which wine (or liquor) plays a crucial part. It has to be 250 words or less.

The list of the submissions so far; which include Eric Beetner, Sandra Seamans, John Carlucci, and one by that ill-tempered hack, Cormac Brown, called "In Vino Veritas, In Tequila Mors."

John Carlucci Kicks Off Pulptastic Films

John Donald Carlucci is confused...

Photo courtesy of the S.F. Gate Site

...you see, the Pulp Monkey Boy can't figure out just why the public would want to pass up a wonderful chance to support the arts and make a film? He says-

Well, I am working on setting up a 10 part serial call Scarlett vs. the Brain Spiders. Each part will be ten minutes segments.

What I envision is an investor relationship for the 11 part serial. For each dollar invested - we will return two (when and if we earn any monies for the serial).The first part of the serial will be distributed free and the other 10 parts will be available for purchase.

After the final part is released, the parts will be collected and released as a DVD. Each part will be available for $1 with the DVD containing extra materials.

JDC

So what do you say, blog readers, will we please do our part and support the arts?

John Donald Carlucci's "The End Of The World Meme"

The Editor JDC has come out with "An End Of The World Meme."

It's easy enough, until you mull it over and then...well, here we go-

You wake up tomorrow and every person on the planet has vanished. What do you do?

Day One: I've had a few days to think this out and I believe that this should get the screenwriter treatment, as opposed to the author treatment. It is exactly like the making of sausage or hot dogs...if you really think about it, you really don't want to know.

Screenwriters tend to give things only so much detail because like a shark, they can't stop swimming and they have to move on to the next scene. The author has to pay attention because his or her audience can and will back track a few pages, and the holes will be exposed. Like a road map, I'm only putting you in the town, it's up to you to Google the rest.

Also, please note that this meem won't be pleasant, but I want you to look at this a clinically as possible, because that's how I am approaching it.

The first day is about securing; a can opener, all the canned food that I can, a mask to protect myself from airborne diseases, and shotguns from police cruisers. I work at night, sometimes outside and one of the first things that you have to do on my job is get over your phobia of rats.

If everyone but me were to perish, the rats would pop out minutes after that and that's something that movies or a certain TV series doesn't really acknowledge. I've also learned that for every rat that you see, there are dozens that are hidden. More importantly, the more rats you have, the braver they are, and thus, time to go "Dick Cheney hunting trip" on them.

The airborne diseases from the decaying bodies would start right away, so I'm moving south and westward towards the San Mateo mountains to avoid the winds carrying the stuff.

Week One: I finally saw "I Am Legend" when the cable company pulled a bait and switch, so we had HBO for a week. If there's one thing that they got right, you are going to want to have a dog, preferably two of them and a couple of cats to deal with and warn you of all the other animals that will view you as food. Hopefully by this time I've had the time and peace to mourn everyone properly. I've also switched over to "Burgess Meredith in the 'Twilight Zone' mode" and I'm reading everything I can get my hands on.

I am also reading up on antibiotics, in order to combat all the fun things that my 21st Century immune system can't handle. Hopefully by then I've also secured a way to filter the water because the water treatment plants won't be working by then.

Month One: Did I really make it this far? If I did, I've probably discovered Zoloft or something similar to deal with the absence of any other human beings. At this point, I'd even miss the sphincters at work for the usual antagonism. Hopefully not too many animals other than rats have developed a taste for yours truly. I'm not going to delve any deeper than this, the real world is intruding on my writing projects and this meme is on the verge of becoming another distraction.

I tag anyone who wants to do this and only Bubs, in specific, because he has the mental makeup for this, and I want to know how he would handle things from a logistical standpoint.

John Carlucci Revives Democracy Hypocrisy For A Noble Cause

The Editor JDC has revived Democracy Hypocrisy for a noble cause, the hope for democracy and freedom in Iran.

He had posted a video on YouTube that has since been taken down by the site's administrators, but he will mostly likely repost on his own blog. I have seen the video on a social network and I will repost here the text that accompanied the video.

Basij shots to death a young woman in Tehran's Saturday June 20th protests-

At 19:05 June 20thPlace: Karekar Ave., at the corner crossing Khosravi St. and Salehi st.

A young woman who was standing aside with her father watching the protests was shot by a basij member hiding on the rooftop of a civilian house. He had clear shot at the girl and could not miss her. However, he aimed straight her heart. I am a doctor, so I rushed to try to save her.

But the impact of the gunshot was so fierce that the bullet had blasted inside the victim's chest, and she died in less than 2 minutes.

The protests were going on about 1 kilometers away in the main street and some of the protesting crowd were running from tear gass (sic) used among them, towards Salehi St.

The film is shot by my friend who was standing beside me.

Please let the world know.


Now, I ask you, are these the actions of a victor that ran a fair and proper election?

Issue #6 Of Astonishing Adventures Is Finally In Print!

The print issue Number Six of Astonishing Adventures is finally here!

Actually, Amazon finally put in print two weeks ago, some two weeks after the online version. So what do you get with the print issue, that you don't get with its online counterpart? You get a different cover from this one-

You also get my story "All The Better To," and after reading it, you'll never look at your grandma...or anyone else's grandma, the same way again. You could also think of it as a western set in The Great Depression, but see for yourself.

Granted, the story is also available on the online version, but you also get up and coming writer, Katt Parish's epic "Djinn," which is only available on the print version. So why don't you order AAM Issue #6 on Amazon, today?


P.S. The site The Novel Blog.Com, also gave AAM #6 a little write up, check it out!

Issue #6 Of Astonishing Adventures Magazine Is Here!

So let me get this straight, it is John D. Carlucci's birthday and what does he do? He gives all of you a present! How impressive is that? You see? That's why I call him "Johnny Dollars," the dude is money.

So what does the birthday boy have up his sleeve? An epic collaboration with Super Editor Katherine Tomlinson that brings you a pulp magazine full of action, adventure, suspense, mystery, murder, horror, and drama. Think of it as all of your college years and your career, all rolled up into one...minus the bad food and having to bow to the porcelain altar the morning after.



Not to mention you get a story from yours truly called "All The Better To," and here is an excerpt-

Dix’s eyes light up when he spots the old lady. His odd gait picks up speed and purpose, like an odd cross between Boris Karloff’s Frankenstein and an effete dandy. He stops and looms over the old frail. He’s got a sick grin on his face, like a starving dog that’s just smelled some fresh meat. The rat is out to ruin probably the only fun she’s had all month long.

She looks so fragile that I’m afraid Dix’s mere presence is going to give her a heart attack. She winces before she even sees him, I’ll bet his breath got there seconds before he did. When he goes on a bender, forget about asking him to brush his teeth and spend your time looking for a gas mask left over from the Great War instead.

She gets up with her box in hand, but Dix hems her in the corner. His sneer is so severe, that it looks like his face is going to split in two. Thinking it’s great sport, Dix bellows, “Oh, Grandma, what a big chin you have.”

The old frail cranes her neck and looks up at him with one eye. I’m just glad that she’s not smoking or Dix’s 100 proof breath would probably set both of them on fire. “That’s because my chin is big and strong, so that I can stand up to the likes of you,” she says in a high reedy voice.

“And oh, Grandma, look at how much hair you have on your chin…why, it’s as if you are trying to grow a beard.”

“I’m not your grandmother, but if I were? I’d take you over my knee and give you what for.”

Like a punch to the face, that remark breaks Dix’s sneer. He purses his lips and leans over her. “And oh, Grandma…”

All eyes in the room are on them, and there is one huge collective gasp, as Dix yanks the shawl and scarf off the frail elderly woman. Mine is the loudest, because now I recognize her, even though her hands quickly try to cover her face.

Now, here's where this gets real interesting, if you get the hard copy off from Amazon?* You'll get an exclusive story "Djinn," from upcoming author Katt Parrish, a real Scheherazade if there ever was one.

Click here for the digital copy.

*The link for the hard copy is coming soon.

Johnny Dollars Goes All Huffington On Me

My friend John Donald Carlucci has a new political blog-

http://www.democracyhypocrisy.com/

Please give it a gander.

John Puts Our Lives In Perspective

John puts most of our lives in perspective with this post.

P.S. after you click it, you have to scroll down the page to see it.