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Post by skovrecky on Feb 29, 2008 9:45:07 GMT -5
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Post by Thorngrub on Apr 2, 2008 11:28:46 GMT -5
^ "The page cannot be found
The page you are looking for might have been removed, had its name changed, or is temporarily unavailable. "
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Post by Thorngrub on Jul 8, 2008 16:01:53 GMT -5
 "Mick Garris writes like a combination of Robert Bloch and James Ellroy, hardboiled noir with a ghastly little prick of the devil’s own pitchfork." -- Stephen King " Development Hell
by Mick Garris
Cemetery Dance Publications is proud to announce the first-ever novel from Mick Garris, acclaimed director of Desperation, Riding The Bullet, The Shining, The Stand, and many others!
About the Novel:
Hollywood, California: the Bermuda Triangle of art, sex, and commerce. The beautiful people make their daily deals with the devil on the sun-dappled patio at the Ivy, not in a fiery underground cavern. Nobodies become somebodies in the blink of an eye, but the flash of heady success can be fleeting. The rocket that shoots you into the atmosphere can be carrying weapons of mass destruction that can send you just as quickly and efficiently to Hell.
And back to Heaven again.
Development Hell is a wicked Hollywood satire, disguised as an extreme erotic horror novel. It is told knowingly from an inside perspective, tracking the career trajectory of a young film school hotshot into the annals of the Big Studio.
This arrogant young director leads us through his own set of unique experiences, starting with his explosive and disastrous first Hollywood movie; his discovery of a mutant baby in the arms of a Mexican news dealer in downtown Los Angeles that will be his ticket back to the top of the heap; into the arms of a re-animated glamorous star who died in the 1930s; and body-hopping through the most glamorous sheaths of human flesh on the planet.
It is a side of Hollywood rarely seen from beneath its unvarnished, Botox-free, crinkling, wrinkling flesh, and features a supporting cast of characters you will surely recognize.
Development Hell welcomes you into a behind-the-scenes peek unlike any other you have witnessed before. " Advance Praise for the Novel: "You want to see Hollywood’s dark side? Read Mick Garris’ Development Hell. Garris has earned the right to tell this story from years of working in the creative salt mines of Tinsel Town. He finally gets to show us the way it looks from the inside, and it isn’t pretty. This is a sharp, funny and chilling book; an unflinching report from the ego-haunted wasteland behind the face lifts and million-dollar smiles." -- Clive Barker, #1 bestselling author of The Books of Blood, Coldheart Canyon, and Weaveworld "Development Hell is an imaginative and bizarrely funny cross between dark fantasy, Hollywood satire, and hip pop-culture-infused fiction. Wildly entertaining, it is also terrifying—the terror arising not only from the plot, but also from the fact that, as a Hollywood insider, Garris makes it feel all too real…" -- Ridley Pearson, #1 bestselling author of The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer, The Art of Deception, Middle of Nowhere, and The First Victim "Mick Garris stakes Hollywood’s vain heart with a wit that X-rays, vivisects and soars. His debut novel is fierce poison; unmerciful and hilarious. The writing is wicked, acrobatic abracadabra." -- Richard Christian Matheson, author of Created By and Dystopia "Mick Garris, the nicest and least offensive of men, exhibits none of those finer tendencies in Development Hell: The Nine Lives of a Hollywood Player. In the studio-speak of movie executives taking a meeting, it would be described as 'The Twilight Zone meets David Lynch on steroids,' but that would be selling it short. It's a wildly original, vicious, and twisted gut-punch of a book that makes my worst day in Hollywood look like a pleasant trip to Disneyland. Garris claws at the walls of the film biz as if it were a padded cell and he himself a howling lunatic who's missed his medication. I love it." -- Frank Darabont, Director of The Green Mile and The Shawshank Redemption www.cemeterydance.com/page/CDP/PROD/garris01 |
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Post by Thorngrub on Jul 31, 2008 10:26:21 GMT -5
by the way, before I begin going off on Tom Disch's swan song The Word Of God, let me say that DEVELOPMENT HELL was a fun read. It had a quirky, amateurish tone that was actually part of its appeal. Someone mentioned that it reads almost more like a collection of related short stories, the way the chapters stagger the narrative apart into seperate incidents, but I think it's a journey worth taking if you're in the mood for light, satirical reading that doesn't spare any opportunity to take a jab at plenty of celebrities, be they actors or directors, dead or alive. Its a regular rogue's gallery of cinematic references throughout the ages as seen through the eyes of a modern day hack TV-movie director. Look for this to come out in paperback soon - - maybe next year, who knows. I've got the signed 1st edition hardcover put out by Cemetery dance.
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Post by Thorngrub on Feb 25, 2009 18:16:22 GMT -5
Most famous for the RIVERWORLD series and the WORLD OF TIERS series, today one of my absolute most favorite writers in the world passed on to the other side, at the ripe old age of 91, Philip Jose Farmer. He also wrote the awesome DOC SAVAGE: HIS APOCALYPTIC LIFE as well as the even more classic TARZAN ALIVE. 100% required reading for anyone cool, PJF was one of the great ones. His passing saddens me much in the same way as if I heard my own grandfather had passed on. Part of me is happy for his spirit, and that he lived such a rich and full life, but the other part of me is quite saddened that he won't be around another decade or so to gift us with another remarkable pulp novel of ideas.  In his slightly younger days  More recently Gunna miss you, Phil. I'm sure right about now you're in a bright new vast world near a wide raging river and standing by a huge stone mushroom. SYOTOS |
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Post by maarts on Feb 27, 2009 4:49:36 GMT -5
I loved his World Of Tiers-series! Haven't read them for ages!
RIP indeed.
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Post by Thorngrub on Apr 3, 2009 12:09:27 GMT -5
 Zoran Zivkovic - a Serbian writer - is among my absolute favorite writers alive today. If you haven't had the intimate pleasure of reading one of his stories or novels - -you are missing out. The pre-eminent post-modernist of our age, he is already getting hailed as the next Borges. That ought to be sufficient evidence for you to drop everything immediately and hook up with Zivkovic asap. This novel - his latest - is no exception. The Last Book concerns itself with a bookstore called The Papyrus wherein 3 customers die within a span of a few days, from unknown causes. Our protagonist, a police inspector, arrives on the scene and begins falling for one of the bookstore clerks. The investigation continues and brings the reader along on a satisfying exploration of the mystery. I'm halfway through it right now, and I can honestly say it is virtually impossible to not keep turning the pages. Also, this author is an absolute master of pared-down narratives. It is a joy to read such succinct passages, one of the reasons it is a breeze to get through. Comparisons to Borges and Eco notwithstanding, Zivkovic shines because of the very accessibility of his prose. This is not "dense" material in the least - except for in the long run, after you're finished. The compact expressionism of Zivkovic's writing will lure even the most inexperienced of readers down his easygoing path, thrilling them and keeping them transfixed with the goings-on. I highly recommend this Serbian author to anyone and everyone, because his narratives are about and for the everyman among us. His stories are truly brilliant paragons of the writing craft. To miss out on Zivkovic is to deny yourselves one of recent literature's most enduring contributors. Here is a product description from the PS publishing website: Synopsis / Contents:
The Last Book: a brilliant surrealistic thriller from the author of Impossible Stories and The Fourth Circle.
A series of mysterious deaths in the Papyrus Bookstore brings literature-loving police inspector Dejan Lukic to investigate. Here he meets the attractive owner, Vera Gavrilovic, and learns that the only thing the victims have in common is that in the moments before their deaths they were reading an elusive and unidentified volume - the Last Book.
As the plot thickens and the seemingly causeless deaths multiply, the National Security Agency, a secret apocalyptic sect and an exotic teashop become involved, while Dejan and Vera's growing attachment is threatened by nightmares and ever-encroaching danger...
Is a literary madman on the loose, murdering readers according to the method laid down in The Name of the Rose? In a final race against time, Inspector Lukic must discover the secret of the Last Book and the reason why he feels as though he has already read everything that is happening to him. The extraordinary denouement reveals hidden truths about the clash of realities and the awesome power of the creative imagination.
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Post by maarts on Apr 10, 2009 6:13:39 GMT -5
Is it as big as The Name Of The Rose?
The extraordinary denouement reveals hidden truths about the clash of realities and the awesome power of the creative imagination.
What does that mean?
Oh well, one way to find out...
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Post by Thorngrub on Apr 21, 2009 13:14:10 GMT -5
hey maarts - No, it ain't nearly as big as Name of the Rose - - in fact, it's quite a slim tome.
Easy breezy read, too. Check your local library for Zivkovic listings. . . .
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Post by Thorngrub on Nov 29, 2010 13:26:26 GMT -5
 Product Description : "From Knockabout Comics. Dodgem Logic is committed to alleviating the attendant sense of anguish and despair by brightening the world with the astonishing cartoon-work of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen's sublime Kevin O'Neill or that of underground legend Savage Pencil; the musings of Father Ted, The IT Crowd and Black Book's own Graham Linehan or of the nation's sweetheart, the implacably positive Josie Long; even a delirious commemoration of the lunar landing's anniversary by the masterful Steve Aylett. In addition to a variously-hosted women's column launched by Lost Girls co-creator and erstwhile underground cartoon artist Melinda Gebbie, Mr. Moore will himself be contributing a lead feature on the history of underground subversive publishing from its origins in the 13th century, along with various illustrations and words of advice. All these and many other sterling features, Including a free CD of Alan Moore-approved music." I ordered the first 5 issues of DODGEM LOGIC - -Alan Moore's new, totally underground, UK-based comicbook / local arts rag. Comic Book stores here in Salt Lake don't seem to be interested in carrying this item - - so I ordered them from Amazon.com while I still could. It's a very interesting "All Purpose" sort of underground publication - -reminescent of a magazine I used to subscribe to in Elementary School, called DYNAMITE - (if I recall that correctly) - - only, DODGEM LOGIC is inherently for adults. If you're into Alan Moore or have an underground sensibility and wish for something that digs a tad deeper than your usual commercial fare, I'd pounce on the few available issues of this on Amazon while you still can - - it won't be long before these are all out of print.  Product Description for DODGEM LOGIC "Contributors include Josie Long, Dave Hamilton, Steve Moore and more, taking in subjects as diverse as gardening and anarchy, plus comic strips from Steve Aylett, Savage Pencil, Kevin O'Neill and an 8-page A5 comic book by our favourite bearded wizard of comics, Mr Alan Moore, esquire, with the wonderful title of "Weird Penises". Oh yes, its true, boys and girls." Issue #2 is was shipped today - - while issues 3 and 5 were shipped Friday - -leaving only #4 to ship, probably today. Here are is a preview of the amazing, diverse artwork we will be seeing from DODGEM LOGIC:  Product Description for issue #2: "Adults only anthology with comics,articles and reviews edited by comic writer,artist and iconoclast Alan Moore"   Product Description for issue #5: "Dodgem Logic #5 is packed full of delicious art work , photography, poetry, short stories and usefulness. Featured this issue we have a section from poet Tom Pickard's incredible autobiography 'More Pricks Than Prizes', plus Mitch Jenkins and Paul Chessell deliver 8 pages of prodigious photography and art work featuring our very own Spring Boroughs heroes. Barney Farmer and Lee Healey will pollute your minds with their sensational strips, whilst Melinda Gebbie discusses 'old skool' animation. John Black from the Alabama 3 offers up his musings on the notorious Jean Genet, and Alan Moore will have you in tears with his poetry [get your hankies ready, seriously!]. Comedian Robin Ince relates his recollections of the Edinburgh festival, and if that's not enough we have our regular contributors to beguile and intrigue you." As far as I've been able to tell - - these must be the only 5 issues out of DODGEM LOGIC, thus far. / end "Head's Up" for the more serious comic book readers/collectors out there: Ye have been duly warned. . . |
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Post by Thorngrub on Nov 15, 2011 10:42:42 GMT -5
 I'm at the beginning of Chapter 4, and thoroughly engrossed. Reading BIOSHOCK: RAPTURE is a pure delight, and that has everything to do with the wondrous piece of happenstance that went into the fate of its authorship. The celebrated American author John Shirley is a master of exacting prose, having won the Bram Stoker Award for his collection Black Butterflies and also enjoying having broken ground for more than a few genres, in particular cyberpunk and horror. As with any writer obsessed with the dedication to his craft, Shirley's abilities only improve with age. Therefore, take note dear would-be-readers that here, with his BIOSHOCK novelization, he contributes his keen perceptions for details and the underlying morality of his characters towards a vastly descriptive 1940s alternate history that would give Jules Verne delirious nightmares. John Shirley's writing is so natural and cinematic for the reader, that it easily defies categorization into whatever genre one might wish to pin him on, and that likely has a lot to do with his pioneering efforts in having established a few genres himself throughout the 70s and 80s. While a dozen lesser known writers churn out the latest "steampunk" books, Shirley quietly pens the genuine thing yet always one-step-ahead of its inherent limitations. With BIOSHOCK: RAPTURE, it's as if Shirley has been freed, by virtue of his writing assignment to create a "prequel" to the massively popular videogames BIOSHOCK and BIOSHOCK 2, to stretch his own imaginative muscles and apply his skilled craftmanship into writing a narrative every bit as richly structured and engaging as the writing of Verne himself. What makes BIOSHOCK completely worth checking out regardless of whether you're a gameplayer or not, is Mr. Shirley's command of the English language. He captures all the nuances that not only bring the reader straight into the story with all senses engaged, but which also render a deepl understanding of human nature and the stage upon which we play out our dramas, both big and small. The vision of a 1940s tycoon developing an entirely self-sufficient city beneath the sea is the premise of the novel, and knowing the capabilities of Shirley's writing, I can only begin to imagine the detailed horrors awaiting beneath the icy waves as I sink deeper into this book. Expect a full review proper when at last I finish it. |
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Post by RocDoc on Nov 15, 2011 10:56:17 GMT -5
hey, i've never been in here before - maybe i'll learn about some good fiction, eh?
as opposed to the biographies i read nearly exclusively - and usually music related ones.
last one i finished yesterday and was john phillips' from 1986....shit was it bleakbleakbleak. what a fuckup the guy was.
now is chuck klosterman's 'killing yourself to live' - my GOD is this guy hilarious!!
his subplots on this 'project' given to him by spin made me think he's gonna be a hunter thompson wannabe - but no not at ALL.
i'm only 50 pages into it, but i'm laughing (out loud, yeah, cliche) 2-3 times on every page.
helps that i'm a music nerd, but klosterman's written 'persona' is pretty endearing regardless.
his observations to me seem like they're being delivered in a sort of deadpan steven wright manner and that sort of thing just KILLS me - very enjoyable.
i'll probably finish it up tonight.
fuck this computer shit, eh? books baby!
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Post by Thorngrub on Nov 15, 2011 11:41:41 GMT -5
Re: klosterman
I'll have to check some more of his shit out. Nice description of a deadpan steven wright.
Yeah Boss, go back and catch up with the 20 pages of this thread, there's some interesting stuff archived alright. I'm thinking I'd like nothing better than to keep this thread going. Gotta find a way to bring more new and old blood back in here.
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Post by Thorngrub on Dec 19, 2011 11:47:53 GMT -5
 ^ This is the 1st volume of Jonathan Maberry's epic YA zombie trilogy. Volume 2 of what I recently learned from the author himself is now going to be a tetralogy-- DUST & DECAY is the 2nd book, and an easygoing YA read, yet gripping and involving due to the well-sketched out characterizations, in particular the relationship between our protagonist, the young 15 yr-old Benny, and his older brother who makes his living as sort of zombie bounty hunter, living out in the great Rot & Ruin, that is to say, the near -future apocalyptic wasteland formerly known as the USA. The first book in this series is ROT & RUIN, and I do heartily recommend it to readers of fiction--any fiction. What -? Going to turn your nose away on account of the fact it's zombie fiction ? Oh--you mean on account of the fact it's YA fiction ? Gettin' warmer -? OH, you mean on account of the fact that it's both YA and zombie fiction - ? I get it. Too bad you don't. Because reading ROT & RUIN was a somewhat of a revletion, for me. A revelation about the significanse of Young Adult (YA) fiction. If you think about it--we all started reading as young adults. Or even before that. The point being, the treasured vocation of reading itself has its genesis for most of us at a young, impressionable age. In a sense--this makes YA fiction the Quintessential Reader's market--the launching point from which we all started our reading careers. Which is to say, that before discovering JOnathan Maberry's ROT & RUIN zombie series, I used to skirt the entire YA section, on account of having assumed it would having nothing to offer me. Boy was I wrong. This zombie tale is well worth the read, regardless of how old you are, and imo, makes for a great story in any sense, even if zombies aren't your thing. I'll explain more about the plot assuming anyone here's interested.....* |
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JACkory
Struggling Artist
Posts: 167
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Post by JACkory on Jun 29, 2013 23:01:26 GMT -5
I've got a veritable Library of Congress of classic literature on my Kindle. I couldn't read them all if I tried. But if I ever get marooned on a desert island I'll be set. At least I will if there's an electric plug in so I can charge the battery. There's always a catch.
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