Jennifer Brozek

(Crossposted from Jennifer Brozek)

I'm working on revisions for the Sekrit Project Alex extras and the final tie-in story for 2016. They both have fiddly bits to get correct. So, here's a Bubble & Squeek for you.

All I want for my Birthday (and Christmas for that matter). Please consider buying one of my books for yourself or as a gift for someone else. It helps keep my cats in kibble and me working on the fiction you know and love.

Article: On the Qwillery – The Perfect Line in the Sand on why zombies are the perfect kind of monster and why we used them so much.

ebook Release: The kindle version of THE LAST DAYS OF SALTON ACADEMY is live! Here is the Barnes and Noble link.

Interview: On Wag the Fox focused around THE LAST DAYS OF SALTON ACADEMY and YA fiction.

Interview: On Ginger Nuts of Horror. This was one long, meaty interview filled with intriguing questions I’ve never had to answer before.

Release: TEMPEST, All-New Tales of Valdemar. I've got my second story of Hadara and Kitha in here. This is the fourth Valdemar anthology I've written for. I'm still pinching myself at how lucky I am I get to play in Mercedes Lackey's Valdemar world.

Review: Ginger Nuts of Horror reviewed THE LAST DAYS OF SALTON ACADEMY – It doesn’t look like the reviewer liked it very much. But they are correct in saying the book was written for a different age group. (I much prefer these kinds of reviews. :) )

And a picture of Mena being oh-so-dignified. I love this picture of her.

(Crossposted from Jennifer Brozek)

The Last Days of Salton Academy has been released! This YA horror novel is getting some love.

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Ragnarok Publications

It's referred to as 'The Outbreak,' and it happened just over three months ago, casting the world (or at least this part of it) into a state of powerlessness and chaos. The Salton Academy has become a rare sanctuary for those few students who remained behind over fall break.

As winter approaches, cracks are revealed in the academy's foundations as it's discovered someone is stealing food, another is taking advantage of a captive audience, and yet others have banded together and are thinking about mutiny, even murder. One thing's for certain — a supply run must be made soon, or everyone will starve before winter's end.

Oh yes, and then there’s the matter of the headmaster’s son and his undead dog…


“The Last Days of Salton Academy is a dark, twisted rollercoaster of a book. Jennifer Brozek knocks it out of the park.” — Stephen Blackmoore, author of City of the Lost and Broken Souls

“If Lord of the Flies had occurred during a zombie outbreak, it would read something like this. A bloody good tale you can really sink your teeth into.” — Timothy W. Long, Author of the Z-Risen series.

“The Last Days of Salton Academy is a delightful character study which combined boarding school antics with the survival horror of a post-apocalypse thriller. The characters are fresh, the dynamics interesting, and the story engaging from beginning to end. It is a YA story I heartily recommend.” — C.T. Phipps, author of Esoterrorism and Wraith Knight

“As much as I love all things undead, what kept me turning pages wasn’t the zombie horde, but something far more horrible: the students and staff of a pretentious prep school. The Last Days of Salton Academy is compulsively readable—I devoured it in one sitting. With a cast of all-too-believable characters and a set of ever-ratcheting disasters, this novel is guaranteed to keep you up past your bedtime.” — Wendy N. Wagner, author of Starspawn and Skinwalkers

(Crossposted from Jennifer Brozek)

When I first got home from StokerCon, I wrote:

Home from StokerCon. I did not win a stoker award for my YA novel, NEVER LET ME SLEEP. John Dixon did for his, and he is a complete sweetie. But, I didn't walk away empty-handed. I got to see old friends like Lucy A. Snyder and Jonathan Maberry, meet new friends, pitch the Melissa Allen series to a producer, have an in-depth conversation with an agent, meet Gini Koch, got asked to write a short story, and finished red lining my Shadowrun novel. It was a good convention.

My thoughts haven’t changed. It was a good convention. It was the first time I’ve been thanked by a winner of a major award during their acceptance speech. Lucy gave me a shout out and I appreciate it.

However, I hate the Vegas strip. I can’t say I hate Vegas. I spent time with my friend Drake in the north end of Vegas and it was lovely, if hot and dry. You can buy a lot of house for a lot less money than you can in the Seattle area.

That said, I won’t ever move out of the Pacific Northwest if I can help it. Monday, when I was taking out the trash, I had an honest-to-goodness “Calvin and Hobbes Trash Moment.” I dropped the trash in the can, then stopped and realized how quiet it was. I could only hear birdsong. Not even cars at that moment. The sky was filled with light grey clouds, bringing a depth the world around me. I could actually fill the moisture in the air. After 5 days in Vegas, it was exactly what I needed to truly appreciate where I live.

I’m home now. I’m catching up on email and other notices.

Here’s a really great review of NEVER LET ME from Amazon. This is the kind of review that makes my heart sing.

Also, my location supplement, Colonial Gothic: Roanoke Island, has been nominated for d-Infinity Independent Game Awards for best RPG supplement. I’m not going to win. It’s one of those click to vote popularity things but I’m happy to have been nominated.

(Crossposted from Jennifer Brozek)

So much writing on Project Joe! Other than my computer setup exploding on me recently, requiring me to get a new keyboard and to vacuum the dust from the computer, my life is mostly about writing and editing. And petting demanding cats.

EVENT - READING: I will be reading at the University Bookstore in Seattle on Jan 26th. Please come! There will be cookies and book giveaways and I'll be reading from NEVER LET ME which Publisher's Weekly calls "a strong, entertaining tale."

And now back to your irregularly scheduled Bubble & Squeek.

Article: MIND MELD: The Growth and Future of SF/F. An interesting question.

Article: Nightmare Magazine – The H Word: Shifting Away From the Common. I talk about what I enjoy about shapeshifters that aren't werewolves.

Blog: I have a guest blog over at Jim Hines’s Blog site about revealing personal details in your writings. I didn't manage to post about this more than once. So, here it is again.

Event: I am a workshop leader at Foolscap on Feb 5th. I'm teaching a class on writing series called "Combat in the Land of Forgotten Details."

Review: Publisher's Weekly reviewed NEVER LET ME. It's a good review. I'm happy with it. I don't even mind the quibble.

SALE: COLONIAL GOTHIC: LOST TALES. This is one of those "oops, I have a fiction collection" sales. Totally unexpected but very happy for it.

SALE: MAKEDA RED. I'm running the shadows again. This time in novel form. I've wanted to write a Shadowrun novel for ages. Now I get to. MAKEDA RED stars the protagonist from my Shadowrun short story, "Rune's Avatar Cafe."

(Crossposted from Jennifer Brozek)

I am home from OryCon and SF Authorfest 9. I had a fabulous time. It was so much fun. In lieu of content, here is a Bubble and Squeek.

Article: Mind Meld: More Children’s Movies that Scared the Crap Out of Us.

Podcast: LIMETOWN. If you aren't listening to this podcast, you are missing out. It reminds me of American Elsewhere and Night Vale.

Review: A Lovely review of Jazz Age Cthulhu and "Dreams of a Thousand Young" from Hauntology. I really am fond of this novelette.

For the Melissa Allen section of Bubble and Squeek...
Article: Over on Wag the Fox: Characters with a mind of their own. AKA why the sequel, Never Let Me Leave, exists.

Article: Why a Bat? Over on Damien Walter's blog, I discuss why Melissa Allen use a baseball bat when fighting monsters.

Podcast: SF Spotlight Radio from 14 Nov 2015. I talk about a lot of things. Mostly the Melissa Allen series.

(Crossposted from Jennifer Brozek)

This is a big Bubble and Squeek today. A lot stuff came in all at once.

Article: For writers on the SFWA Blog. How do you ask for blurb?

Article: I talk about my love of gargoyles on My Favorite Things.

Article: SFSignal MIND MELD: Second Chances. I talk about why I gave Stephen R. Donaldson a second chance.

Article: Over at Ragnarok Publications, I talk about how I used my anger to fuel my writing career in Dreamer No More.

Interview: Permuted Press asked me some great questions about NEVER LET ME SLEEP. We touch on body image and mental illness.

Interview: Over at Eating Authors I get to talk about ramen. Really, really good ramen.

Review: I get a nice shout out in this review of NOT OUR KIND from the Eviscerating Pen (what a lovely name!).

Pre-Order: Remember, you can pre-order NEVER LET ME SLEEP and the hard copy Melissa Allen compilation NEVER LET ME.  Also, if you missed it, here's a post that's all about my fabulous covers.

SFSignal: I gotta say it. I love seeing my name on SFSignal and in such good company, too.

(Crossposted from Jennifer Brozek)

I'm deep in the throes of writing NEVER LET ME DIE, Melissa Allen #3, so I'm not checking Twitter or Facebook right now. However, lots has happened. Here's a Bubble & Squeek for you.

Award: I was nominated for a Hugo Award. This is both exciting and terrifying.

Convention: I've been added to OrcaCon's Special Guest lineup. I'm also on their kickstarter with a custom game of Katanas & Trenchcoats for you and four of your friends.

Interview: I was interviewed by Douglas Hawk for his 7 Questions series. Want to know what my workspace looks like?

Publication Release: DocWagon 19 is out the door! Get it here:  Amazon | BattleShop | DriveThruRPG

Recommendation: Horrorstor by Grady Hendrix is one of the best, messed up horror books I’ve read in a long time. I will never look at a large home store the same ever again.

Recommendation: Science STYLE - Taylor Swift Acapella Parody. I just really liked this video.

Review: Goodreads review of Chimera Incarnate.

Review: Goodreads review of DocWagon 19.

Sale: I sold The Last Days of the Salton Academy to Ragnarok Publications! Yay!

(Crossposted from Jennifer Brozek)

I'm all edits all time. Between finishing up NEVER LET ME LEAVE and getting the final proof notes on CHIMERA INCARNATE and having edits come back on my Shadowrun story, all I can give you is some Bubble and Squeek.

Article: I popped over to Clarissa Johal's journal to talk about how I put together the table of contents for APOCALYPSE GIRL DREAMING.

Book Release: Happy book release to me! APOCALYPSE GIRL DREAMING is available in ebook (physical copy coming soon). I'm so in love with this book. It's getting some great reviews.

Interview: I had an interview with Vagabond Saint. We talks about all sorts of things. It was a fun interview.

Review: I got a review of APOCALYPSE GIRL DREAMING from the Fantastical Librarian. I love it when librarians review my work. I think the Fantastical Librarian had some great things to say.

Review: This is a review of the Valdemar anthology, NO TRUE WAY, and it has to have one of my favorite lines about any one of my stories to date. "This was one of the saddest stories I’ve ever read, I feel like I will be recovering from it days from now." How can you not love that?

Review: The Exploding Spaceship reviews SHATTERED SHIELDS and had some great things to say.

(Crossposted from Jennifer Brozek)

Article: An SFSignal Mind Meld on the Best Book Openings.
 
Interview: Wag the Fox interviewed me about Apocalypse Girl Dreaming

Podcast: Baen Books Podcast: BFRH 2014 11 21. Bryan and I talk about Shattered Shields.

Review: SF Crowsnest reviews Shattered Shields. It appears that the review, Kelly Jensen, really liked it. Awesome.

Review: Bookwraiths review of Shattered Shields. 3 out of 5 stars but really like it.

Sale: Apocalypse Ink Productions is running a Winter Special. Code: WINTER2014. 20% entire order. If you ever wanted my Karen Wilson Chronicles, or Industry Talk... or Jay Lake's Process of Writing... or Ivan Ewert's Gentlemen Ghouls series... or Peter M. Ball's Flotsam series... or Dylan Birtolo's Sheynan series... now is the time.

Writers: I am now open to edit your work. Here are my freelance editor rates.

(Crossposted from Jennifer Brozek)

Busy-busy writing. I will be at OryCon this coming weekend. Have some links.

Announcement: Colonial Gothic: Roanoke Colony. February 2015

Article: John O'Neil writes about the Apocalypse Girl Dreaming in Black Gate Magazine as a "future treasure." Awesome!

Cover Reveal: Evil Girlfriend Media revealed the cover of Apocalypse Girl Dreaming as well as their 2015 Publication schedule which includes a project of mine I had not yet announced.

Kickstarter: Not Our Kind. Tales of not belonging. $3000 to go in 6 days. I really would like to see this one funded. I'm very pleased with my story for this anthology. Help an anthology out?

Review: Chicks Dig Gaming. By Victoria Elisabeth Garcia in The Cascadia Subduction Zone magazine: "This piece [How to Design Games for Boys] is one of the book’s very best pieces. Lynnea Glasser’s “How to Design Games for Boys” is a knife-sharp satire of the sexist and fallacious assertions that are often made about why girls aren’t interested in games. Glasser delivers her first coup de grâce before the end of the first paragraph. Later lines about “trashy boys’ romance” and tribble-petting will likely make many CSZ readers laugh out loud. !is piece has the makings of an instant classic and seems destined to be read, quoted, and forwarded for years to come."

Review: Coins of Chaos by True Review. They appear to like it.

Review: Human Tales by the Geek Girl Project. They really liked it.