Dead Man #9 - Carnival of Death

The 9th book in the DEAD MAN saga, Bill Crider's CARNIVAL OF DEATH, is out this week. We asked Bill a few questions about his career and his new book.

You write in so many genres--western, mystery, horror--do you have a favorite? If so, why?

I've enjoyed writing in every genre, and I'd hate to pick a favorite.  I've been most successful in the mystery and crime field, but a lot of the popular fiction writers I admire most have written in several fields.  There's a lot of crossover between mysteries and westerns, for example, with writers like Elmore Leonard, Harry Whittington, Bill Pronzini, Bob Randisi, James Reasoner, and on and on.  So I'm just following their lead.

Is there a common thread to your writing?Most of my writing is set in small towns in Texas and, though I've ventured far afield on more than one occasion, you could say that Texas and Texans figure in most of my work. I like to write about the changes in life and society I see going on around me and how the changes affect the characters in my books, so that's another thread that runs through them.

You're considered an expert on pulp fiction and the old Gold Medal paperbacks. Lee Goldberg & William Rabkin say they were influenced by their love of those books when they created The Dead Man series. Where do you think The Dead Man fits in with, and deviates from, books of that era?

The Gold Medal paperbacks were short, punchy novels full of action and color. They moved fast, and they featured ordinary people in extraordinary situations. I see The Dead Man as being solidly in that tradition, with some elements of the fantastic added for color. There's also a connection to the kind of adventure books that I wrote with Steve Mertz more than 20 years ago in series like The M.I.A. Hunter and The Tunnel Rats. And of course Nick Carter.

How did you approach your Dead Man book, Carnival of Death? What were the challenges? What did you enjoy most?

The challenges included writing an action-oriented story that also developed the character and history of Matthew Cahill a bit without violating the rules of his world and what had happened in other installments of the series. An even bigger challenge was to write a book that was up to the high standards of the ones that preceded it, all of which were topnotch stories by writers whose work I admire. The most enjoyment came from getting back to writing the kind of series action story like the Gold Medal paperbacks. It's always great fun to do that kind of thing.

What's next for you?

I'm working on a book in the Rancho Diablo series that I write with Mel Odom and James Reasoner. It's a western with horror elements called Gabby Darbins and the Slide-Rock Bolter. Should be fun.

A Year Ago Today

Lee Goldberg here...

As you already know, Amazon has ordered 12 more books in the DEAD MAN series...in digital, print and audio...on top of the 12 that they ordered back in September. That will keep the monthly series of original novellas going into 2013 (book #9, CARNIVAL OF DEATH, comes out in a few weeks).

The renewal cames just as DEAD MAN VOLUME 1, a digital and print compilation of the first three DEAD MAN tales, and the audio edition are released.

What you may not know is that news comes almost to the day that Bill Rabkin and I self-published FACE OF EVIL, the first DEAD MAN tale, one year ago this month. Last February, I had the silly fantasy that Amazon would see the potential of the series and become our publisher...little did I know how quickly that dream would come true.

But I owe that to a series of events that began in an "Introduction To  TV Writing" class I was teaching at UCLA back in 2007. One of my students was a guy named Mike Daniels. The goal of the class was for students to leave with a solid outline that they could use to write their first spec script in the "Introduction to Screenwriting" class. But it was clear to me that Mike was far too talented to be wasting his time writing an outline...he should go to script now. So asked I him to continue participating in class, but to start writing  the script and share his pages with me on the side. He did.

By the end of the term, he'd turned out a brilliant RESCUE ME spec...and, if memory serves, a spec pilot script as well. At the end of that last class, I told him he was as good, if not better, than most TV writers that I knew and to stop wasting his time taking classes...he was ready to conquer the TV biz.

And he did.

Within a year, he was on staff of ONE TREE HILL. Today, he's married to one of the actresses from the show and a producer on SONS OF ANARCHY.

What does all of this have to do with THE DEAD MAN?

Not long after our class was over, Mike asked me if I'd read an unpublished novel that his brother James had written.  James was a lawyer, but on the side he also narrated books for Brilliance Audio. I agreed, with more than a little hesitation, to read the book. Much to my surprise, I really liked the book...it was clear he had enormous talent...but the story needed a lot of work. I suggested some revisions to the opening chapters, which James made, and then referred the book to my agent. She saw the potential too and took him on...and although she wasn't able to sell the book, I never forgot it or how talented he was. When the DEAD MAN came along, I asked him if he wanted to write one. He did...and the book turned out to be RING OF KNIVES, the second in our series.

When RING OF KNIVES came out, James told all of his friends at Brilliance Audio about the book...and when they read it, they thought that it, and the other books in the series,  would make great audiobooks.

Since Brilliance is owned  by Amazon, word about their interest in the series soon filtered up to the editors at Amazon Encore and Thomas & Mercer...who called me about the print rights.

And you know how the rest of the story goes...

But the capper is that James, and his brother Luke, are narrating the audiobooks (James narrates his books, Luke narrates all of the others). Is that just  too perfect?

Anyway, this all goes to show how everything is connected...and that you have no idea how something you do today could pay off in unexpected, unimagined ways years from now.

Amazon Brings Back The Dead For More

We're thrilled to announce that Amazon's 47 North imprint has commissioned 12 more DEAD MAN novels, carrying the monthly action/horror series into 2013. Upcoming authors of DEAD MAN novels include Joel Goldman, Lisa Klink, Mel Odom, Christa Faust, Burl Barer, Phoef Sutton, and Anthony Neil Smith.

Now You Can Listen to THE DEAD MAN

The first three DEAD MAN novels, combined in DEAD MAN VOLUME 1, are now available in an audiobook from Brilliance Audio and Audible. The books are narrated by the Daniels brothers...Luke and James,who also happened to write Dead Man #2: Ring of Knives.

The Dead Man Theme Song

Matt Branham has recorded a terrific theme song for THE DEAD MAN that will soon be featured on the audiobook editions from Brilliance Audio. But you can listen to it right here.

Coming Soon....more adventures of The Dead Man

Rave review for KILL THEM ALL

The fine folks at Horror World have given Harry Shannon's DEAD MAN: KILL THEM ALL a rave review. They say, in part:

What ensues reads like a sick western set in modern times, replete with the best bells and whistles...Like most of Harry Shannon’s accomplishments, this novella entertains and is well worth the ride

Dead Man #8: FIRE AND ICE is now available

Jude Hardin's FIRE AND ICE, the latest tale in the bestselling DEAD MAN saga, is now available. It's a rip-roaring thrill ride through a landscape of pure terror. Here's a short interview with Jude about his writing and his DEAD MAN tale.

A Q&A with Jude Hardin
Question: You've had so many jobs...professional drummer, bartender, avionics technician, carpet cleaner, chemical plant supervisor, substitute teacher, and registered nurse. Did it take a while to "find yourself" and have you finally succeeded in your quest? 

Jude Hardin: Ha! Maybe I was trying to find myself, or maybe I just can't hold a job. But really, I've always been a writer, even though I've mostly paid my bills doing other things. I went to the University of Louisville right out of high school and earned my bachelor's in English, and from there I didn't really know what to do to make money. I tried freelancing for the Louisville newspaper for a while, but spending two weeks on a feature article and then getting paid $50 wasn't cutting it. I bartended for a while and then joined the Navy and learned electronics, and after the Navy I went back to bartending and did some other things and finally went back to school for a nursing degree. I've been working as an RN for fifteen years; but, through everything I've done, since I started working on My English degree when I was eighteen, really, I always thought I would sit down some day and write the great American novel. When I turned forty-three, I figured I better get started before it was too late. I thought it would be easy. I thought I would write a book and send it out to publishers and they would line up with their checkbooks and fight over it. I was deluded, of course. It wasn't easy, at all, and nobody fought over that first book. Or the second. Or the third.

Q: How did you get involved in The Dead Man series and what attracted you to it? 

JH: It was really quite a coincidence. I was working on a horror novella called Unborn at the time with the intention of self-publishing it, and I thought I might like to collaborate with someone else on a different self-publishing project. I approached author J. A. Konrath and asked if he would be interested. He had too many other things going on at the time, but he knew that his friends Lee Goldberg and William Rabkin were rounding up a posse of writers for a series of action-adventure/horror novellas. He gave me Lee's email address, and I sent him a short query and he agreed to take a look at the first few chapters of Unborn to see if I might be a good match. I sent the chapters and he wrote me back the same night and offered me the Dead Man gig. I was ecstatic and accepted without hesitation. 

Q: Is it hard writing a book in a series that you didn't create? What have you learned from it? 

JH: It was harder than I thought it was going to be. Nobody, and I mean nobody, knows a character like the author who created that character. It's sort of jarring, like you're not in Kansas anymore. Lee Goldberg and William Rabkin loved my villain right away, but it took me longer to nail the main characters in the series--their characters. Lee and Bill are television writers, so it was interesting developing the story with them from that perspective. It was a great experience. 

Q: How much does Fire & Ice draw on your own experience working in a chemical plant? 

JH: Most of the action in Fire and Ice takes place inside the plant, so I used my memory from a job I had in the early-to-mid 90s to construct the setting. I worked there for three years. It was a big steel building with no climate control, and I can still feel the heat of the place in the summer and the cold in the winter and the noise and the smell. I often draw on real-life experiences when composing my fiction, and I think it adds a certain verisimilitude for the reader--a portal to what John Gardener calls the fictional dream--that looking things up on Google can't always match. 

Q: What's next up for you? 

JH: I recently signed a multi-book deal for my Nicholas Colt thriller series, so that's going to keep me busy for at least the next couple of years. Colt is the main character in Pocket-47, my debut novel. New York Times bestselling author Tess Gerritsen says, "POCKET-47 sucked me in and held me enthralled. Author Jude Hardin keeps the pace frantic, the thrills non-stop, but best of all is his hero, the wonderfully ironic Nicholas Colt. This is a character I'm eager to follow through many adventures to come." So that's what's next up for Colt and me--many adventures to come!

News from The Dead

Lots of exciting news in the world of THE DEAD MAN. The Brilliance Audio edition of THE DEAD MAN V1 -- which includes "Face of Evil," "Ring of Knives," and "Hell in Heaven" -- is now available for pre-order. What makes this especially cool is that "Ring of Knives" author James Daniels performs his own book while his brother Luke Daniels does the others. The Daniels Brothers are experienced audio book performers and we're lucky to have them bringing Matt Cahill and Mr. Dark to life...so-to-speak. The paperback edition of THE DEAD MAN V1 comes out in February.

Meanwhile, James Daniel's latest DEAD MAN tale, "The Beast Within," will be published in just a few weeks.

KILL THEM ALL -- 99 Cents for a Very Limited Time!!

Harry Shannon's KILL THEM ALL, the sixth book in the DEAD MAN series, is bargain priced at 99 cents for a very limited time. And if you visit the product page for the book, you'll find a terrific Q&A interview with the author. Here's an excerpt:

Q: You've written a lot of horror books, including Clan, The Hungry and the Lionsgate movie and novel Dead and Gone. How is the horror in The Dead Man different from what you have done before? 
HS: That's an interesting question. For me, horror is not a genre so much as an emotion, so it can be expressed in any number of ways. I generally gravitate towards dry humor coupled with a serious exploration of existential themes--literally the meaning of life, death and those fragile emotional attachments we form along the way. With my entry Kill Them All, I wanted to use the horror as a metaphor for moral corruption. I immediately saw Matt as the classic American hero, an archetypal loner wandering into and out of a troubled desert town, standing up to evil on behalf of the weak and downtrodden. I often set novels in Nevada, but to answer your question, this one has the feeling of a graphic novel, and though it's contemporary it is far more of a classic western than anything else I've ever done. It tempts me to try my hand at a period piece. 
Q: This is the first time you've written in someone else's "universe." What was it like writing characters you didn't create? 
HS: To be honest, it wasn't easy at first. I'm not used to having to discipline my muse to that degree. Lee Goldberg and William Rabkin were very patient with me, red-lining and sending back a couple of drafts, pointing out where I'd gotten something wrong about Matt's personality or background. The tone had to be just right, and my goofiness had to be reigned in a bit. Kill Them All ended up far, far better as result of their patience. I'll have to prepare and outline more carefully the next time I do a project like this. But once the boundaries were nailed down properly, it just started flowing out. I'm proud of i>Kill Them All. It has substance to it, and was lots of fun to write. 

The Dead Man Rises

Amazon launched their 47North imprint today by offering the first five Dead Man books for just 99 cents. You can also find out the story behind how the books are written on the Amazon Kindle Post.  As of now, the first book in the series, Face of Evil, is a runaway Kindle bestseller, ranked #220. Help us crack the top 100 and buy a copy today!

The Dead Man is Coming Next Week!

The big relaunch of THE DEAD MAN series, and the kick-off of Amazon's new 47North imprint,  is coming on Oct 24 and we can't wait!

In the meantime, you can already pre-order Harry Shannon's November title KILL THEM ALL, James Daniels December book THE BEAST WTIHIN, and the DEAD MAN VOL 1-3 compilation.

Publishers Weekly on The Dead Man leading the 47North Slate

Publisher's Weekly today reported on Amazon launching their new imprint with THE DEAD MAN...

Amazon has added another genre to its publishing stable, with the launch of 47North, a science fiction/fantasy/horror imprint that will publish original and previously published works from new and established authors as well as out-of-print books. “We are especially happy to have a diverse list at launch, and look forward to publishing across a wide range of subgenres,” said Victoria Griffith, publisher of Amazon Publishing’s west coast group. 47North has signed 15 titles at launch with its first title coming from Lee Goldberg and William Rabkin, the authors of Successful Television Writing and who have written and/or produced scores of highly successful network television series, including Diagnosis Murder, Spenser: For Hire, and Baywatch. Their digital-first novel, Face of Evil, will be published this month; four more installments will also be published in October, with a new adventure following each month thereafter. A print compilation of the first three novels will publish in January 2012.

 

Amazon Launches 47North with THE DEAD MAN

Today, Amazon announced the launch of their new sf/fantasy/horror imprint 47North...and one of the premiere titles is THE DEAD MAN series. Our kick-off is coming in just a couple of weeks...in a very big way...and we can't wait!

More Word from the Dead

Ron Hogan at Reader's Entertainment has written a great background piece on THE DEAD MAN series and our new deal with Amazon. Here's an excerpt:

“Ultimately, we are the ones responsible for maintaining the consistency of the franchise and turning in great books to Thomas & Mercer,” Goldberg explains; each book is commissioned on a work-for-hire basis, with the authors receiving an advance and splitting royalties with the series’ creators. Although Thomas & Mercer will be paying a lower royalty rate than the 70 percent Goldberg and Rabkin earned while self-publishing, the deal is still “much better than what we would get from a traditional publishing contract,” he says. “In addition, we are going to move a lot more units than we would thanks to Amazon’s marketing and promotional savvy on their own platform.” 

That’s welcome news for Goldberg, who attributes much of the “great” sales for Face of Evil to a guest post he wrote for Amazon’s Kindle blog in which he described how the series was connected to his love of classic “men’s adventure” novels that flourished when the paperback market was in its heyday. “The other books [in the series] were doing fine, but not spectacularly well,” he admits. “Nowhere near what we saw as their potential, based on the amazing critical response and reader reviews we’ve been getting.” 

When Amazon’s audiobook division, Brilliance Audio, began negotiating at the beginning of the summer with Goldberg and Rabkin about audio versions of the series, Thomas & Mercer quickly became involved as well. “They instantly understood what we were hoping to accomplish with the series,” Goldberg says. “They saw the potential in it and, like us, were frustrated that it hadn’t been tapped yet.”

The Dead Man Reborn

We are thrilled to announce that Amazon's Thomas & Mercer imprint has picked up THE DEAD MAN series in a unique and exclusive 12-book digital & print deal ... with an option for more. But that's not all. Brilliance Audio will be also be rolling out their own editions of the books.

The five books that we've already published -- FACE OF EVIL, RING OF KNIVES, HELL IN HEAVEN, THE DEAD WOMAN, and THE BLOOD MESA -- will be re-released in the days leading up to Halloween ... so keep your eyes peeled for great offers.

The sixth book in the series will be released in November and will be followed each month by another new adventure in the continuing saga of Matt Cahill, a man resurrected from the dead to battle evil among us that only he can see.

Amazon will also be releasing three-book compilations of THE DEAD MAN series in trade paperback (as well as in specially priced digital editions). The release dates of the first compilation, and the Brilliance Audio editions, have not been determined yet ... but we’re hoping they'll be ready for Christmas.

Lee Goldberg and William Rabkin will continue to run the series, which they're writing with a terrific group of action, horror, mystery, SF and western authors, like James Daniels, David McAfee, James Reasoner, Harry Shannon, Joel Goldman, Mel Odom, Jude Hardin, Lisa Klink, Mark Ellis, Matthew Mayo, Joe Nassise, Bill Crider, Marcus Pelegrimas, Matt Witten, Marcus Pelegrimas, Burl Barer, and Phoef Sutton.

And we couldn't have hoped for a better partner than Amazon’s Thomas & Mercer. We just returned from meeting with the Thomas & Mercer team (including editors Terry Goodman and Andy Bartlett) in Seattle and was blown away by their creativity, enthusiasm, and eagerness to see THE DEAD MAN reach its full potential. They get exactly what we are trying to do with this series.

And what is that, you ask?

We want to capture the spirit of the “men’s action adventure” paperbacks of the 70s and 80s – short, tightly-written books full of hard-boiled heroes, outrageously sexy women, wild adventure, and gleefully over-the-top plots – and reboot the genre for a new generation that maximizes the potential of the Kindle.

And with Thomas & Mercer behind us, we don't see how we can fail.

CLAN Kindle Nation Daily Book of the Day Today

Harry Shannon here, author of The Dead Man: Kill Them All. My horror thriller CLAN is Kindle Nation Book of the Day Today. Read all about it here...

http://kindlenationdaily.com/2011/09/kindle-nation-bargain-book-alert-harry-shannons-clan-is-our-ebook-of-the-day-at-just-2-99-with-4-9-stars-on-18-reviews-and-heres-a-free-sample/

The Dead Man is Alive and Well

We appreciate all the emails asking about the status of the September release in the THE DEAD MAN series. This month's book, and possibly next month's as well, have been temporarily delayed. But don't worry, THE DEAD MAN is alive and well (pun very much intended)...and many more adventures are coming from a dozen terrific writers. The brief suspension in the publishing schedule is related to some really exciting DEAD MAN news that we wish we could reveal now....but we can't. But trust us, it's big..

"The Greatest TV Show That's Not On the AIr"

We got a terrific review from Exploitation Retrospect for THE DEAD MAN: FACE OF EVIL. They say, in part:

If you're anything like me – a card-carrying HorrorDad^TM who fits in his reading time between pre-school drop-off/pick-up, meals, swim lessons, exercising, grocery store trips and the like – FACE OF EVIL (and the other Dead Man books I'll be reviewing soon) gets my highest recommendation. The book is short and fast-paced, but never feels rushed, and you'll find yourself looking for any excuse to bang out the next chapter. And, like an adaptation of the greatest tv show that's not on the air, the end will leave you wanting more. NOW! 

CLAN released!

Harry Shannon here, author of  #6 in the series, The Dead Man: Kill Them All!

My new one is out, a horror/thriller called CLAN. It is $3.99 on Kindle.

They have been among us for thousands of years. One mysterious gene they carry lies dormant—until they change. Joe Case is an ex-cop searching for the man who humiliated his sister. Kelly McCammon is a Hollywood executive running from the Russian mob. Destiny leads them to tiny Salt Lick, Nevada…A town under siege.

"CLAN is a thriller with a genuine bite. Once Harry Shannon gets his claws in you he will not let go! Highly recommended."
—Jonathan Maberry, New York Times Bestselling author of Patient Zero and Dust & Decay

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005IDKXDI/ref=cm_sw_r_fa_dp_SfNuob0Z436WN

DEAD MAN #5: BLOOD MESA Will Give you a Bookgasm

The good folks over at Bookgasm really enjoyed The Blood Mesa. They say, in part:

These DEAD MAN books are coming out as fast as possible, never allowing the readers to catch a breath. And that is a good thing. Especially with the fifth entry, THE BLOOD MESA, which goes from 0 to 60 really quick.
[...]Author James Reasoner never lets up with the action or tense moments. There is plenty of ax-swinging to go around, and again, more of the Mr. Dark mythos of the series in full effect, showing that Dark has been around a lot longer than believed. Reasoner really lets loose with the gore and throws in a human sacrifice to cap things off.This is actually the shortest so far for the DEAD MAN series, but readers will not feel cheated since once the action kicks in, it does not stop until the last page. “Bring on book six!” is all I can say. 

Don't Wet Yourself

Tomb it May Concern nearly wet himself reading THE DEAD MAN: RING OF KNIVES.

 These books WILL kick you in the ass and make you sit gingerly on the edge of your seat before punching you in the gut with awesome bursts of horror!  [...] Well, it sucks to be Matt, this we know, but damn!  He ends up in an Institution of Fleshy Dissolution completely by accident, but fate deals the cards and the Dead Man will play them through.  He gets tortured, he battles evil. He kicks a ton of ass. There is horror. There is action. There is tension.  I wet my pants.  I...wait, I didn't wet my pants, thankfully I was on the toilet when I read the part that has Matt laying the boots to nuts on a cloddish foe.

Sinister Urge has discovered THE DEAD MAN and likes what they've found.

They’re fast-paced action stories with some genuinely creepy horror elements in equal measure. There’s also enough (dark) humor to keep things from getting too depressing. They’re quick reads, but at only $2.99 each, they’re good value for money. I’m looking forward to getting caught up on the series, and then reading each new one as it comes out.

A Bloody Good Read

THE DEAD MAN #5: THE BLOOD MESA by James Reasoner was released today and is already garnering rave reviews throughout the blogosphere. Permission to Kill says:

This month’s instalment in The Dead Man series is The Blood Mesa by James Reasoner and a bloody good read it is too – with the emphasis on the word ‘blood’ – but you knew that from the title, didn’t you? [...]The joy comes from, not only a story that delivers what it promises, but told at such pace that it will leave most readers breathless. This story is the literary equivalent to a drag strip race, with the title page being the starting line, and the first paragraph being the green light. From its opening, the story keeps accelerating until its brutal climax. That truly is its strength – it’s rapid fire pace and its unflinching brutality (which you’ve got to expect from a series featuring an axe wielding hero).

Post-Modern Pulps also enjoyed the exhilarating pace and non-stop action.

The story riffs off of some creepy western themes, with a hefty dose of cannibalism, whacko/zombie-movie mania, and did I mention there's a few sticks of dynamite thrown in for good measure? The Blood Mesa [is] another excellent yarn from the Texan author - it is highly recommended.

And our friends at Wag the Fox are onboard for the fun, too.

 If you ever read Scott Smith's The Ruins, or watched the film adaptation as I did, then you might be familiar with the idea of a supernatural force inflicting itself on a group of isolated students on an ancient archeological site. There was a lot of drawn out suspense with that film, as I recall, gradually building the tension until they finally decided to make a break for it. Reasoner doesn't mince around with any of that and goes straight for the jugular, ramping up the danger almost immediately, plunging Matt, the professors, and students, in a blood-soaked rampage that echoes the kind of tragedy that may have befallen the Anasazi. While you aren't too worried about Matt making it out alive, he's got several freaked out college types about to be plunged into his world--and not all of them are making it out alive. [...] I really got a kick out of this one and I think it holds up very well with the rest of the series.

If you haven't read the DEAD MAN series yet, this is the perfect time to start!

Five Stars for THE DEAD MAN

There's a short review of DEAD MAN: FACE OF EVIL in the June issue of Crimespree Magazine. 

THE DEAD MAN: FACE OF EVIL by Lee Goldberg & William Rabkin is the first in a series of novellas that harken back to the days of serials. Different authors will be writing different chapters in this battle of good and evil with Matthew Cahill at the heart of it all. An accident leaves Cahill able to see a shadow world normal people can't, and now he's driven to save us all. Damn good fun. 

And Futures Mystery Anthology Magazine gave five stars to James Reasoner's THE DEAD MAN: THE BLOOD MESA.  They say, in part:

If you like horror with a dash of suspense then you should read the DEAD MAN series. They are not only fun but addictive [...]This series is a delightful journey in good versus evil. There is a mixture of fantasy, horror, with a sprinkle of suspense. All of the books in the series are great and THE BLOOD MESA is no exception. As Mr. Reasoner takes on the journey with Matt, we are thrown around with evil. We experience the pains Matt feels.[...] We can see the sores, feel heat, and feel pain as Matt does! The BLOOD MESA is excellent as are all the books in the DEAD MAN series. On a scale of 1 to 5, I give it a 5!

Writing THE BLOOD MESA

When Lee Goldberg asked me to be part of the Dead Man series that he and William Rabkin created, I didn’t hesitate to say yes.  For one thing, I’ve been an admirer of their writing for a long time, since well before I knew them, and I was excited about the opportunity to work with them.

For another, I thought they had come up with an intriguing concept and a great protagonist in Matt Cahill, the man who should have died but didn’t and now wanders the world battling against evils that only he can see.  This is a perfect set-up for a series, because the writers can take Matt almost anywhere they want to and tell a wide variety of stories.

And I was excited as well by the chance to tackle a different sort of yarn from what I usually write.  Even though I started out as a mystery writer and had sold more than a million words of mystery fiction before I wrote much of anything else, there’s no doubt that I’ve been best known for most of my career as an author of historical fiction, using settings and time periods ranging from biblical times to the Vietnam War.  But the Dead Man series is set firmly in our own time, even though THE BLOOD MESA has some historical background to it, and it’s nice to get back to something contemporary.

Not only that, but it has strong elements of horror and the supernatural, and for the most part this is unexplored territory for me in my work.  True, I’ve done a few Westerns that had mild supernatural elements (often of the Scooby-Doo variety!), but THE BLOOD MESA is the first real horror novel I’ve written, even though I’ve been a reader and fan of horror for many, many years.

But most important of all for me, writing THE BLOOD MESA was fun, just as I thought it would be.  I had an absolutely great time with it, for all those reasons I’ve talked about, and I hope the readers can tell how much I enjoyed it.  If they can, then chances are that they’ll be entertained by it as well.

Post-Modern DEAD WOMAN

The gang at Post-Modern Pulps digs David McAfee's THE DEAD WOMAN. They say, in part:

There is also more conflict with Mr. Dark, the ancient and demonic entity who torments Matt on his adventures.  We are given glimpses of more layers beneath other layers; the plots of the DEAD MAN stories continue to shed light on something much more elaborate, perhaps even epic, taking place with Matt caught in the middle having far more questions than answers.

The DEAD MAN series has gone on for some months now, with several more books on the way, and it is in no danger of growing stale.  In fact, with each new author comes a new perspective, a new lens through which we are viewing this twisted world.

Coming in two weeks... James Reasoner's THE BLOOD MESA!

News from THE DEAD MAN

The cover for THE DEAD MAN #6: KILL THEM ALL by Harry Shannon has just come in from Carl Graves and we think it's one of the best yet. The book comes out in August.


David McAfee's THE DEAD WOMAN keeps getting kudos. Paul D. Brazill writes "The fourth  adventure in  Lee Goldberg and William Rabkin's exciting  cliff-hanger horror /thriller serial, The Dead Man,  is another beaut" and Futures Mystery Magazine raves "THE DEAD MAN THE DEAD WOMAN excites, is suspenseful and keeps the reader on their toes!  If you like suspense with some horror, you will love this series.  Think Koontz, King and you have it!  Great series and THE DEAD MAN THE DEAD WOMAN does not disappoint! 

Emmy-award winning writer/producer Phoef Sutton has joined the ranks of DEAD MAN writers and his notion for his upcoming novel is, as you might expect, refreshingly original and darkly funny. We can't wait to read it!

Advance reading copies of James Reasoner's THE DEAD MAN #5: THE BLOOD MESA has just gone out to reviewers and bloggers. The book will be published in early July.

Man Eating Bookworm Devours THE DEAD WOMAN

The Man Eating Bookworm thinks David McAfee's THE DEAD WOMAN is one of the best in the series so far...

This series just gets better and better with each new instalment in Matt Cahill's ongoing hunt for Mr. Dark and the reasons behind his macabre abilities.This is a terrific little book. It's well written, tight and meets with my one requirement for an excellent Dead Man book. A little axe swinging action! [...] I've said before but it's worth repeating. This is a great series. If you haven't jumped onboard yet, you're missing out.

The Tainted DEAD MAN

The Tainted Archive takes an up-close look at THE DEAD MAN series today and interviews co-creator Lee Goldberg about it's evolution. Here's an excerpt:

there have been four titles thus far, with the fifth on the way and more beyond that. In my review of the first book in the series, Face of Evil I commented on the humour which provided ligh relief in what is essentially a very dark series.

"We firmly believe that humor humanizes and reveals characters, especially in extraordinary situations, and allows us to relate to them on a much more personal level. There's humor even in some of the darkest moments in our lives. And where we find that humor, and why we do, says a lot about who we are. We've kind of strayed a bit from the humor in the first book and we'd like to see us get back to that. But that said, we're really enjoying the unique take that each novelist is bringing to their story in the series. It's made it a lot of fun for us...and we're discovering new things about Matt Cahill and his world along the way." Lee Goldberg.

And staying true to the projects origins as a TV script Lee and Bill decided to recruit world class writers from the mystery, western, horror, science fiction and suspense genres to write books from their original outlines. For just as with a TV series a team of writers usually work from a series of outlines, then so too would the writers contributing to the Dead Man series - this allows for an overall structure to be maintained while each new writer brings something new to the series.

Permission to Read

The folks at Permission to Kill think that David McAfee's THE DEAD WOMAN brings some new depth to the DEAD MAN series. They say, in part:

This entry doesn’t have the sly humour or cynicism of the Lee Goldberg and William Rabkin penned entries, nor does it have the spine-tingling style of James Daniels Ring of Knives. Instead it is more intriguing, and reveals a fraction more of ‘The Dead Man’ mythos. It also sets up a plot deviation that could bring quite a bit of fun in future entries … by fun, I of course, mean blood-stained mayhem! [...]this book is a core book – possibly more important than the second and third stories – as it really delves into what it means to be ‘The Dead Man’ or ‘The Dead Woman’ as the case may be. And as such this insight should prove essential in the ongoing adventures of Cahill.

"Running Cold" and "The Mick Callahan Novels" Kindle Books of the Day!

Harry Shannon here, author of The Dead Man: Kill them All!

We have a very nice Kindle Nation feature today on both "Running Cold" and "The Mick Callahan Novels" at discount Kindle prices. Thought I'd pass it along, hope you will too...

http://kindlenationdaily.com/2011/06/kindle-ebook-of-the-day-harry-shannons-running-cold-the-latest-in-the-popular-mick-callahan-mystery-series-4-9-stars-from-21-reviews-and-just-2-99-on-kindle-read-this-free-sample-and-yo

DEAD WOMAN wins praise

The Dead Man #3: The Dead Woman by David McAfee is off to a fine start, winning raves across the blogosphere. Right What You Know appreciated the "subtle mysterious feel to this book [that] left me wanting more," while Jaime Anastasiow dubbed it "one of my favorite installments...[I] couldn't put the Kindle down."  Gelati's Scoop declared  that they are "hooked on this series; no two are the same, and they appear with regularity. My kind of stuff: a fun steady character, different backdrops and situations, and great action. What more can a reader ask for? [...] You don’t have to be a fan of horror to enjoy this, just a fan of fun." 

David McAfee on writing THE DEAD WOMAN

This was a new experience for me. When Lee Goldberg emailed me and asked if I would like to do a story in a series he and William Rabkin had created called THE DEAD MAN, I accepted because it sounded like a great opportunity to help spread my work around, but I had my doubts I could pull it off. Not because I doubted my chops, but because I wasn’t sure I could write a story in what was, essentially, someone else’s universe. Matt Cahill already had a well-defined personality and back story in place, and they would dictate his reactions and thoughts. Usually, I let the characters do that while I discover who they are. Since Matt already existed, it presented a set of challenges I’d never faced before, and I just wasn’t sure I could operate within those confines. Still, I figured I’d give it a shot. I sent Lee a very basic synopsis of the story idea I had for the series. He emailed me back and gave me the green light, and off I went.

It turned out to be the most fun I’ve had writing in years.

Matt Cahill is an extremely interesting character to write, and it is partially because those guidelines have already been established that I was able to write with such freedom. I didn’t have to worry about establishing character, and instead I stuck him where I wanted and ran with it. The result of this is a novella I am extremely proud of. That’s not to say I couldn’t have done better - I always read over my work and find things I could tweak - but I’m pleased with the end result. I hope the readers will enjoy it, too.

My son was born just before I began writing THE DEAD WOMAN, and for a while it was rough finding the time to spend on the project. It helped that Lee did not establish a deadline. I kinda did that on my own when I told him I would have a draft to him by Tax Day. As the date got closer and my son let us sleep less and less, I started to worry. There were some days I didn’t get to write anything at all. Fortunately I made it by the deadline. Barely.

THE DEAD WOMAN also marks the first time I’ve ever worked with a real copy editor. Up ‘till now it’s just been me and whatever my friends could catch. I have to say that was fun. I can see why it would get less fun over time, because it requires you to go back and revisit areas of the book you thought were done, but for a first timer like me, it was a blast.

And that’s how I would describe my experience writing the book and THE DEAD MAN series in general: A Blast. I had a lot of fun. Hopefully it shows in the writing.

Thank you, Lee, for the great opportunity. May this series last for decades!

DEAD MAN #4: THE DEAD WOMAN now available!

David McAfee's THE DEAD WOMAN, the fourth book in the DEAD MAN series, is out today as an ebook on the Kindle, the Nook , and on Smashwords, as well  as in a trade paperback edition.

The widely acclaimed DEAD MAN series is about Matthew Cahill, an ordinary man leading a simple life...until a shocking accident changes everything. Now he can see a nightmarish netherworld of unspeakable evil and horrific violence that nobody else does...

For Cahill, each day is a journey into a dark world he knows nothing about...a quest for the answers to who he is and what he has become...and a fight to save us, and his soul, from the clutches of pure evil.

He thought he was alone with his torment, but in a small town in Tennessee, terrorized by a vicious serial killer, Matt meets a woman sees what he does…and together they must confront a horrific and immortal terror that thrives on death.

David McAfee is the author of the Kindle bestseller 33 A.D., a bloody thrill-ride through biblical Jerusalem that pits Jesus Christ against vampire assassins. So naturally we thought he'd be perfect fit for THE DEAD MAN series.

THE DEAD MAN books have been getting some fantastic reviews...here's just a sampling:

The story races by at a brisk rate of knots, each twist and turn, and shift in time providing another revelation [...] I was enjoying it so much, I didn't want it to end. --Permission to Kill Blog 

THE DEAD MAN FACE of EVIL reminds me of Stephen King and Dean Koontz.[...]a fascinating horror story that leaves you wanting more, more, more!  --Futures Mystery Anthology Magazine 

Hell in Heaven is a direct spiritual descendant of the sorts of awesome pulp action adventure tales that the greats like Robert E. Howard loved to write.  --Post-Modern Pulps

I've not seen a writing tandem like this since the glory days of Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy --Bookgasm

Hell in Heaven is the best so far in an already splendid series and is super rush of a read with plenty of sharp twists and turns and some truly smashing lines. --Paul D. Brazill

This series has kept me rapt from the first page [...]these authors are the Jamaican sprint team doing the 4x100m relay, each stage just gets better and better. --Right What You No

Isn't it time you started reading THE DEAD MAN series?

Buy THE WALK for 99 cents this week...and get THE DEAD MAN for free!

It was two years ago today that, at Joe Konrath's urging, I began my "Kindle Experiment" by making my out-of-print book THE WALK available as an ebook. I've sold close to 20,000 copies of THE WALK since then...and to celebrate, I am pricing the book at just 99 cents for the next week.
 
And as a special gift, if you email me proof of purchase of THE WALK at lee AT leegoldberg.com, I will email you, in return, a free copy of THE DEAD MAN #1: FACE OF EVIL.

That's two books for just 99 cents. You can't beat that!

Criminal-E: Harry Shannon interview: Running Cold

Harry here, have a new interview up with the UK's Allan Guthrie at Criminal-E.

Criminal-E: Harry Shannon interview: Running Cold:

"Running Cold by Harry Shannon £2.10/$2.99 Amazon UK , Amazon US Stoker-nominated author Harry Shannon has written four Mick Callahan mysteries..."

Heavenly Praise for HELL

THE DEAD MAN #3: HELL IN HEAVEN lived up Bookgasm's high expectations:

THE DEAD MAN series has become one of my favorite things to look forward to on a monthly basis. On top of that, they are lean and mean reading material, and the third book, HELL IN HEAVEN, amps up the mean aspect. For fans who have been wondering where the ax has been, it’s back in a big, bloody way. 

And the Journey of a Bookseller blog almost found much to like in this new tale:

One thing about these stories, once you start one, you won't move until you've finished it.  They are fast paced, nasty reads that are best during daylight hours.  And I sure enjoy reading them.

Coming next week: THE DEAD MAN #4: THE DEAD WOMAN.

 

More Kudos for HELL IN HEAVEN

Paul D. Brazill thinks HELL IN HEAVEN is the best yet in the series. He said, in part:

Hell in Heaven is the best so far in an already splendid series and is super rush of a read with plenty of sharp twists and turns and some truly smashing lines.

Gelati's Scoop liked it a lot, too. He says...

I am a sucker for a good sense of humor and sense of irony. This story has it pouring out of its skin like an Italian guy that has had way too much garlic in his last meal. Do I know much about that, the garlic stuff maybe, being able to write like these legends, no. You have read my posts so you know the score on that. The characters and the universe they have created here is nothing short of original, fun, scary, and totally laughable. The combination makes for a read that is quick, insightful, engaging and thumb numbing. 

And the Man-Eating Bookworm gobbled up HELL IN  HEAVEN with delight:

In my review of THE DEAD MAN: RING OF KNIVES I had one concern, the absence of Cahill's trusty axe. Though the story was exceptional, full of action and suspense, I couldn't help but remiss the lack of axe swinging fun. Well, all I can say is...THE AXE IS BACK!
If you haven't read THE DEAD MAN books you are certainly missing out on some terrific reads. If you've read the first two and haven't got around to book three yet, stop your procrastinating and download this sucker. You'll be glad that you did.

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We'd love to get your review, too. So what are you waiting for? Grab one of the DEAD MAN books today!