At long last, it is my honor to present the premier issue of 5x5 Fiction, Stories Told Loud and Clear.
ISSUE ONE: Murder, Monsters and Misfortune
View and/or download your free copy now!
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Thursday, March 10, 2011
AJ Brown at Type AJ Negative interviews me about writing, horrors, and 5x5 Fiction
I recently sat down with the awesomely talented writer, AJ Brown of Type AJ Negative and chatted about writing, plagiarism, The Man of Shadows, and the upcoming issue of the brand new 5x5 Fiction.
Pull up a chair and join us here.
I had a lot of fun, AJ. Thanks! And may your computer live a long, long life...
Monday, March 7, 2011
Panic Press Kindle/mobi books for only .99 cents!
Panic Press is offering their Kindle/mobi books for only .99 cents. That includes my book, The Man of Shadows. Here’s your chance to own all of their releases for less than $1 each!
Per their site:
Click on your chosen title(s), pay 99 cents and have your chosen title(s) sent straight to your email address. If it is different to the email on your paypal order, then please add the address you wish to have it sent to in the buyers instructions section.
All books are 99 cents. No more, no less!
The Man of Shadows by Angel Zapata
Ashes in her Eyes by Alan Spencer
Scream For Me by Brian Rosenberger
Sins and Tragedies by The Dark Fiction Spotlight
Sustenance by Nate D. Burleigh
Tales from the Dark Path by S.E.COX
Werehouse by Ryan Hunter
Without Notice by Jason Hughes
DEADication Anthology
Mind Rotting Tales by Ken and Kevin L. Jones
Revolution City by Darren James
Pantomime by Robert Essig
Per their site:
Click on your chosen title(s), pay 99 cents and have your chosen title(s) sent straight to your email address. If it is different to the email on your paypal order, then please add the address you wish to have it sent to in the buyers instructions section.
All books are 99 cents. No more, no less!
The Man of Shadows by Angel Zapata
Ashes in her Eyes by Alan Spencer
Scream For Me by Brian Rosenberger
Sins and Tragedies by The Dark Fiction Spotlight
Sustenance by Nate D. Burleigh
Tales from the Dark Path by S.E.COX
Werehouse by Ryan Hunter
Without Notice by Jason Hughes
DEADication Anthology
Mind Rotting Tales by Ken and Kevin L. Jones
Revolution City by Darren James
Pantomime by Robert Essig
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
She's Nothing like a Feather When She Falls at In Between Altered States
Episode 10 of Aleathia Drehmer’s In Between Altered States is now live. It features work from Timothy Gager, Len Kuntz, Jeffrey Miller, Mike Whitney, Shawn Misener, Alexandra Brunel, and Justis Mills.
You can also find my flash piece, She’s Nothing like a Feather When She Falls.
They are currently open for subs for Episode 12 based on the prompt: Junkie Nightmares and Hustler Fiends. General guidelines can be found here.
Thanks, Aleathia!
You can also find my flash piece, She’s Nothing like a Feather When She Falls.
They are currently open for subs for Episode 12 based on the prompt: Junkie Nightmares and Hustler Fiends. General guidelines can be found here.
Thanks, Aleathia!
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Who holds the pen— you or your characters?
Something that’s intrigued me as writer is: how much control do I have during the creation process? When I sit down to write, I usually have a brief outline either generated in ink or, at the very least, well defined in my brain. I usually know where I want to begin and have a ballpark estimate of how and where my story should end. The middle, or meat and potato portions of my tales usually dwell in very murky waters.
But…
…usually…
…my characters dictate their own direction. How so?
Let’s try a writing exercise.
I see a woman. Her name is Wendy. She’s tall and beautiful. She has brown hair and blue eyes. She loves the theater and Italian food. She loves her boyfriend, Max and has never cheated on him. She practices witchcraft and eats babies. Whoa! What happened there? She was almost perfect until I found out she loves the theater…
Just kidding.
The witchcraft and eating of babies just came out of nowhere. Or did it? How does the brain birth a person of our own devise? Is it our own devise?
Sometimes I get stuck in the middle of what I consider a strong story. Everything is going splendidly until I hit “the wall.” You writers know what I mean. There’s no way to get around it either, so I try breaking it down. I try going over it. I try going under it. Every attempt ends in failure. I look back and I can see Wendy with her arms crossed. She’s tapping her foot with a smug look of “I know what your problem is…you’re simply not listening to me.”
I get worried. Do other writers have conversations with figments of their imagination? Is it schizophrenia? Is there a bit of insanity in store for me? Is there any harm in listening to what Wendy has to say?
Maybe not. Okay…here goes.
Hey, Wendy. Uh, I think I’ve been a jerk. I probably haven’t been paying enough attention to you.
You haven’t.
I know. Sorry. But I’m willing to listen now. What should do? I’m stuck here in front of this wall, and I really don’t know what to do.
Angel, Angel, Angel…first of all, the main problem is my name isn’t Wendy.
It ain’t.
No. It’s actually Frank. And I’m short. And I hate the theater. And I cheat on my wife all the time.
Wow. No wonder I can’t get through this wall. I’m really sorry, Frankie.
Excuse me, it’s Frank.
Oh. Sorry, Frank. What now?
I need you to trust me.
How so?
I need you to give me that.
Give you what?
That pen in your hand.
Why?
Because that wall isn’t a wall at all.
It isn’t?
No. It’s a door. Watch. Give me the pen and I’ll show you.
* * *
Okay, a bit theatrical, but this is how it works for me sometimes. I have to hand over the reins to my characters. I have to give them control. I have to listen to them. It’s not enough to create this person from out of the thin air. I may have given Wendy…er, Frank his first breath, but I have to realize he longs to breathe on his own.
Okay, enough about me.
What’s it like for you and your creations?
But…
…usually…
…my characters dictate their own direction. How so?
Let’s try a writing exercise.
I see a woman. Her name is Wendy. She’s tall and beautiful. She has brown hair and blue eyes. She loves the theater and Italian food. She loves her boyfriend, Max and has never cheated on him. She practices witchcraft and eats babies. Whoa! What happened there? She was almost perfect until I found out she loves the theater…
Just kidding.
The witchcraft and eating of babies just came out of nowhere. Or did it? How does the brain birth a person of our own devise? Is it our own devise?
Sometimes I get stuck in the middle of what I consider a strong story. Everything is going splendidly until I hit “the wall.” You writers know what I mean. There’s no way to get around it either, so I try breaking it down. I try going over it. I try going under it. Every attempt ends in failure. I look back and I can see Wendy with her arms crossed. She’s tapping her foot with a smug look of “I know what your problem is…you’re simply not listening to me.”
I get worried. Do other writers have conversations with figments of their imagination? Is it schizophrenia? Is there a bit of insanity in store for me? Is there any harm in listening to what Wendy has to say?
Maybe not. Okay…here goes.
Hey, Wendy. Uh, I think I’ve been a jerk. I probably haven’t been paying enough attention to you.
You haven’t.
I know. Sorry. But I’m willing to listen now. What should do? I’m stuck here in front of this wall, and I really don’t know what to do.
Angel, Angel, Angel…first of all, the main problem is my name isn’t Wendy.
It ain’t.
No. It’s actually Frank. And I’m short. And I hate the theater. And I cheat on my wife all the time.
Wow. No wonder I can’t get through this wall. I’m really sorry, Frankie.
Excuse me, it’s Frank.
Oh. Sorry, Frank. What now?
I need you to trust me.
How so?
I need you to give me that.
Give you what?
That pen in your hand.
Why?
Because that wall isn’t a wall at all.
It isn’t?
No. It’s a door. Watch. Give me the pen and I’ll show you.
* * *
Okay, a bit theatrical, but this is how it works for me sometimes. I have to hand over the reins to my characters. I have to give them control. I have to listen to them. It’s not enough to create this person from out of the thin air. I may have given Wendy…er, Frank his first breath, but I have to realize he longs to breathe on his own.
Okay, enough about me.
What’s it like for you and your creations?
Saturday, February 5, 2011
New story, "Chewing the Fat" up at Pulp Metal Magazine
I got a brand new story, Chewing the Fat up at Pulp Metal Magazine. Many thanks to Editor, Jason Michel – The Dictator.
Excerpt:
Millie had her first baby the day after her eighteenth birthday. Although “had” would imply “given birth to” when in fact “had” in this particular case denotes “ate.” And she’d have no problem telling you that that Antichrist infant tasted nothing like chicken.
“It really didn’t,” she’d admit with a wink...
Read the entire story here.
Excerpt:
Millie had her first baby the day after her eighteenth birthday. Although “had” would imply “given birth to” when in fact “had” in this particular case denotes “ate.” And she’d have no problem telling you that that Antichrist infant tasted nothing like chicken.
“It really didn’t,” she’d admit with a wink...
Read the entire story here.
Friday, February 4, 2011
Author CK Webb Reviews The Man of Shadows!
The Deepening is a fantastic resource for book enthusiasts. Editor-in-Chief, Clayton Bye and his staff offer insightfully honest book and novel reviews. One of his staff members, Author CK Webb, has just posted a review of my book, The Man of Shadows, published by Panic Press. She says, "I absolutely loved The Man of Shadows. The writer’s tales give a new spin to old stories, and he does it with a style unlike any other. Angel Zapata will have you questioning everything that you believe as an adult and wanting, more than anything, to pull the covers up tight when you crawl into bed at night…"
Read the entire review here.
You can pick yourself up a copy of The Man of Shadows through Amazon here.
I really appreciate CK taking the time to read and review my work. Thanks so much, CK!
CK Webb is author of Cruelty To Innocents & Collecting Innocents which she co-wrote with her mother, DJ Weaver. You can find out more about her work at the site, WebbWeaver.
Read the entire review here.
You can pick yourself up a copy of The Man of Shadows through Amazon here.
I really appreciate CK taking the time to read and review my work. Thanks so much, CK!
CK Webb is author of Cruelty To Innocents & Collecting Innocents which she co-wrote with her mother, DJ Weaver. You can find out more about her work at the site, WebbWeaver.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
The Man of Shadows FREE Giveaway on Goodreads
My book, The Man of Shadows has been listed on Goodreads. Stop by and enter the FREE giveaway for a signed copy here!
The winner will receive a signed copy of my book, The Man of Shadows.
Panic Press presents, The Man of Shadows, a dark collection of twenty-five short horror stories by Angel Zapata. Edited by S.E.Cox and illustrated by Darren James.
It begins with “The Mouth of Babes,” a visceral tale of streetwalkers and addicts, morbid voyeurs, cannibalistic tattoos, and witchcraft. Jimmy only wants another photograph for his online Death Images website. But when his good friend, Steve calls him down to the morgue to see a body with a strange tattoo of a mouth on her abdomen, he learns that sometimes the dead have incurable appetites.
“In Death Reversal,” a grief-stricken wife hopes to resurrect the husband she murdered by making a long distance call to hell.
“The Bridge” pits the superstitious beliefs of the neurotically-challenged, Benson against the very real presence of a modern-day troll.
“Dead Flames” paints us a brief love story between the walking dead.
From the wicked predilections of children to the varied manifestations of evil personified, The Man of Shadows will have you running for the light.
The winner will receive a signed copy of my book, The Man of Shadows.
Panic Press presents, The Man of Shadows, a dark collection of twenty-five short horror stories by Angel Zapata. Edited by S.E.Cox and illustrated by Darren James.
It begins with “The Mouth of Babes,” a visceral tale of streetwalkers and addicts, morbid voyeurs, cannibalistic tattoos, and witchcraft. Jimmy only wants another photograph for his online Death Images website. But when his good friend, Steve calls him down to the morgue to see a body with a strange tattoo of a mouth on her abdomen, he learns that sometimes the dead have incurable appetites.
“In Death Reversal,” a grief-stricken wife hopes to resurrect the husband she murdered by making a long distance call to hell.
“The Bridge” pits the superstitious beliefs of the neurotically-challenged, Benson against the very real presence of a modern-day troll.
“Dead Flames” paints us a brief love story between the walking dead.
From the wicked predilections of children to the varied manifestations of evil personified, The Man of Shadows will have you running for the light.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Anatomy Fidelity and The Hole Truth at The Glass Coin
The Glass Coin has published a couple of my poems for their Open Minds, Duplicity themed issue. My works “consider the external/physical human body and dig deeper into its internal/spiritual significance.” Explore Anatomy Fidelity and The Hole Truth.
My sincere thanks to editors, Sairah Saddal and JM Prescott.
My sincere thanks to editors, Sairah Saddal and JM Prescott.
Monday, January 10, 2011
The Man of Shadows available for Kindle on Amazon.com
Don't have a Kindle? Hmmm...you may need to buy one so you can download yourself a copy of The Man of Shadows for only $4.99 on Amazon.com. If you prefer, the print version can be purchased through Panic Press using the link on the right of this page. Of course you can always order both...
I'm saving my pennies now so I can get my own Kindle. Hell, I just realized my Rage of Angel header still says I'm an unpaid writer...I may have to change that...;-)
Hey, and if you enjoy my book, please feel free to leave a review over on Amazon.
I'm saving my pennies now so I can get my own Kindle. Hell, I just realized my Rage of Angel header still says I'm an unpaid writer...I may have to change that...;-)
Hey, and if you enjoy my book, please feel free to leave a review over on Amazon.
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