I was published seven times in 2011 – short stories in The Avenger: The Justice Inc. Files, The Green Hornet Casefiles and How the West Was Weird II; a comics story in All-Star Pulp Comics # 1; and three books written entirely by me – The Adventures of Lazarus Gray, The Rook Volume Six and The Damned Thing.

Not a bad year! It looks like I’ll have at least as many in 2012.

The Rook anthology is going to feature stories by Ron Fortier, Mike Bullock, Perry Constantine, Tommy Hancock, Bobby Nash, Michael Edwards and myself… And the cover is by comics legend Bob Hall with colors by Tom Smith.

Look for it in the first half of 2012!

I transformed my website into the current blog format back in July and interest has continued to grow — so much so that December 2011 is already our biggest month! We’ve gotten more unique hits this month than in any month prior and for that, I thank you. I appreciate all the folks who have subscribed to the blog and who check back daily to see what’s up.

Hopefully I’ll have lots of exciting information and artwork to share with you in the months ahead!

I’m currently reading Writings in Bronze by Will Murray and Cerebus Volume One by Dave Sim. Both are really good. Cerebus starts out as a parody of Conan so it’s sorta pulp-related in that context. Definitely check them both out if you haven’t already.

Sean Levin posted a review of The Green Hornet Casefiles at Amazon.com, which contains a story by me – “Summer of Death.” He gave the book 5 stars and said:

Joe Gentile, Win Scott Eckert, and 19 other talented authors have outdone themselves with this second anthology based on the classic television series, and have certainly far outdone the travesty produced by Mssrs. Gondry, Rogen, and Goldberg. The contributors to this tome treat this enduring property with the respect it is due, rather than the smirking self-congratulatory “humor” those Hollywood hacks injected into their film. Unlike those gentlemen, these writers allow the character his dignity and don’t change the mythos beyond recognition. Moonstone has always stayed true to the spirit of the classic characters they have worked with, and this excellent work is no exception. Bravo to the authors; their love for the Hornet shines through every page of this book…which is more than I can say for the “filmmakers” named above.

RULES ARE UP TOP WITH THE PRESS RELEASE, MY ELIGIBLE WORKS ARE AT THE BOTTOM.

Nominations for the PULP ARK Awards are now open and will close January 15, 2012. The awards are given in conjunction with Pulp Ark, the convention/creators’ conference and the official New Pulp Convention to be held in Batesville, AR, April 20-22, 2012! The Awards are given for excellence in the field of Pulp, including books, stories, comic books, magazines, and characters as well as creators.

To determine if a work or creator qualifies for these awards the definition for works that qualify is as follows-New Pulp is fast-paced, plot-oriented storytelling of a linear nature with clearly defined, larger than life protagonists and antagonists, creative descriptions, clever use of turns of phrase and other aspects of writing that add to the intensity and pacing of the story.

Tommy Hancock, Coordinator of Pulp Ark explains additions to the Awards this year. “We have,” Hancock stated, “added two awards, both by popular requests and thanks to our donor who supports and provides the awards. Best Book has now been broken into two separate awards-Best Novel and Best Collection/Anthology. Also, there is now a category for Best New Character. This can include any New Pulp character created in 2011.”

Hancock also states, “We will also give a Lifetime Achievement Award again this year as well. A Ten Person committee selected from well-known Creators in New Pulp currently will decide the recipient of this award. This award is given to someone who has contributed to Pulp, not simply New Pulp, but to the continuation of the interest and promotion of Pulp in all its forms.” Last year’s winners of the first Pulp Ark Lifetime Achievement Award were Tom and Ginger Johnson.

The only works eligible for the Pulp Ark 2012 Awards are those produced between January 1, 2011 and December 31, 2011. Anyone can make a nomination and anyone that makes a nomination will receive a ballot. The only people voting in these eleven awards will be those who made a minimum of one nomination. Also, each individual is allowed only ONE NOMINATION PER CATEGORY. A person may nominate someone in all nine categories, but may only nominate once in each category. All nominations are confidential and sources of nominations will not be revealed. All nominations should be mailed to Tommy Hancock at proseproductions@earthlink.net.The categories open for nomination are (in no particular order and this can be cut and pasted for your nominations ballot)

1. Best Novel (This includes ebooks as well as books)
2. Best Collection/Anthology (This includes single author story collections and multi author anthologies. This includes E-publications as well as print books)
3. Best short story (this includes stories that appear in short story collections, anthologies, magazines, and e magazines. If from an e-mag, the story must appear on a site identified as an e-magazine, not simply be posted on a site or blog. It includes e-publications as well as traditionally printed works.
4. Best Cover Art (This is restricted to prose book publications, including e-books)
5. Best Interior Art (This is restricted to prose book publications, including e-books)
6. Best Pulp Related Comic (This refers to a series, complete run, one shot, etc. This award is for art, writing, and all other work associated with the nominated comics and the winner. This includes e-publications as well. )
7. Best Pulp Magazine (This award is for art, writing, and all other work associated with the nominated comics and the winner. This includes e-publications as well, but the e-publication must be identified as an e-magazine on the site supporting it. )
8. Best Pulp Revival (The Revival nominated must be published within the calendar year of 2010. This includes epublications as well.)
9. Best New Character (This must be a character that debuts in a New Pulp work published in 2011. This included e-publications as well)
10. Best Author (This reward refers to the author and any published author is eligible, including novels, short stories, etc. This includes e-publications as well).
11. Best New Writer (To be nominated, a writer must have been published for the first time in the pulp field in the calendar year of 2011. This includes e-publications as well).

Eligible Barry Reese works:

NOVELS
The Damned Thing

STORY COLLECTIONS
The Rook Volume Six
The Adventures of Lazarus Gray

SHORT STORIES
“Summer of Death” – The Green Hornet Casefiles
“The Devil’s Workmen” – The Avenger: The Justice Inc. Files
“Desolation” – How The West Was Weird, Volume Two

COVER ART
Jason Levesque – The Damned Thing
Anthony Castrillo – The Adventures of Lazarus Gray
Ed Mironiuk — The Rook Volume Six

INTERIOR ART
Anthony Castrillo – The Rook Volume Six
George Sellas — The Adventures of Lazarus Gray
Kevin Duncan – The Damned Thing

BEST NEW CHARACTER
Lazarus Gray – The Adventures of Lazarus Gray
Violet Cambridge – The Damned Thing

BEST AUTHOR

Got several pulp-related Christmas gifts: 14 (!) Bantam Doc Savage books – as I continue my quest to accumulate them all; Men’s Adventure Magazines in Postwar America by Max Allan Collins; and Writings in Bronze by Will Murray. Fun stuff!

Lazarus Gray and the heroes of Assistance Unlimited want to wish and yours a very Happy Holidays!

Normal blog operation will resume on the 26th!

Here’s an old (2010) interview with me that Revolution SF did. It’s still one of my faves. Enjoy!

The art with this post is by George Sellas and depicts Miya Shimada. It’s taken from my upcoming novel Die Glocke.