How About Some Book Blurbs on my Birthday...?! ;-)

My birthday is September 19.  Okay, I'm a day early.  How old are you, JC?  I am, as I like to say, borrowing this quote from Neil Peart of Rush, "Old enough to know what's right, but young enough not to choose it."  (From the song, "New World Man.")  Either that or I am ancient, which is my other most used response.

Anyway! 

Below I have some blurbs from three writers who deserve your attention with their own amazing work.  I'm hoping these blurbs either:

1) inspire you to pre-order a copy of my second novel, The Wilderness Within (coming from Trepidatio/JournalStone)...for my birthday (a gift for me--sales, y'know?!!! [yeah, well, I had to work the reason for the birthday reference in here somewhere]--but more of a gift for you, ahem, once you read the novel, because you Will Not Believe where it all ends up) (really, you won't believe some of what happens in the novel; I don't, and I wrote it!), just because you're intrigued or

B) REVIEWERS & BLOGGERS interested in receiving a pdf, mobi, or epub copy, perhaps these will inspire you to get in touch with me (jcsmith0919@yahoo.com) and I'll hit you up with a digital copy.  I've sent out copies for potential reviews and blurbs already, of course--part of the pre-publication deal--but more is always a good thing.

What?  Why, yes, that might be the most parenthesis I've ever used in a sentence.

Here's my Amazon author page, just in case you want to purchase anything else by your humble, rambling host...
;-)

I'm honored to have these blurbs! 

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“Enthralling, surreal, mystical, and evocative, John Claude Smith’s The Wilderness Within is a mind-warping tale for devotees of weird fiction, written by a master of the form. I loved it!” – Tim Waggoner, author of Dark and Distant Voices <--out in December

"With each new work John Claude Smith combines the psychological, physical and supernatural in ever more subtle configurations. You will lose your bearings in this fictional world of Lovecraftian noir where everything is alive with sounds, sensations and an eerie suspicion that our hero would be much better off if he had never answered the call of a lifelong friend. Marvelously evocative writing." - S.P. Miskowski, author of I WishI Was Like You & Strange is the Night

"John Claude Smith's fiction is consistently out of this world, and with The Wilderness Within, his second novel, he continues reaching new literary heights. Written in gorgeous, gripping prose, this twisted tale blends music, the surreal, and hints of nostalgia to pull readers deeper into the darkness of the woods until, like protagonist Derek Gray, the forest closes in around them, and there's no chance of escape."—Gwendolyn Kiste, author of And Her Smile Will Untether the Universe

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Check the hyperlinks for stuff by moi, and stuff by these talented writers, too! 

Here's a birthday cake that seems appropriate for the festive occasion. 

O.o

Art courtesy of Flavio Greco.

Anthology Update, Part 1: Where to Find Some Short Fiction By Yours Truly

Over the last month and upcoming in September and October, I have four tales in new anthologies, so let's quit messing around and get to it!  I'll touch on the already released tales in this blog post, then the forthcoming titles in a follow-up blog. Post. Whatever. 

Out early in August was the fabulous Phantasm/Chimera: An Anthology of Strange and Troubling Dreams, edited by Scott Dwyer.  The TOC is a knockout and features Adam Golaski, Matthew M. Bartlett, Christopher Slatsky, Thana Niveau, Brian Evenson, Livia Llewellyn, Mike Allen, Jon Padgett, Clint Smith, and Jason A. Wyckoff, and me. 

My tale is called, "Chrysalis."  What do a bird, a beetle, a television set, and a mirror, have to do with one woman finding her way out of a hellish marriage?  Well, you need to purchase the anthology to find out. 

Here's the opening sequence, to set the mood and pique your interest.

*** 

     “What in the…?”

     The black bird plunked down on the kitchen tiles and skidded along the floor to Regina’s feet.  She turned and immediately took to standing on her tip-toes before her balance wavered and she set her heels back down on each side of the trembling creature.  She shuffled to one side, the shock of the intrusion one to shake her out of the doldrums of her dreary existence.

     While listlessly washing the dishes, she’d once again been daydreaming about suicide as a legitimate goal in life.  A goal she knew she was too weak to attain.  She used to write bleak, depressive poetry, which might seem a cliché many maudlin young girls on the cusp of womanhood undertake, but her aspirations and talent were obvious.  A few years later, as Regina had begun to make a name for herself, the weight of her dead whale marriage crushed her Muse.  She allowed real misery to derail her burgeoning writing career before it truly got off the ground.  It sank without a struggle, an anchor tied to the ankle of promise. 

***

Also out in August was the Joe S. Pulver, Sr. edited A Walk on the Weird Side, an anthology put together in conjunction with NecronomiCon 2017.  The stellar TOC features: Nadia Bulkin, S. P. Miskowski, Kristi DeMeester,  Matthew M. Bartlett, Ann K. Schwader, Michael Griffin, Craig L. Gidney, Farah Rose Smith, Peter Rawlik, Ashley Dioses, Daniel Braum, Nathan Carson, Jon Padgett, Rebecca J. Allred, Alistair Rennie, Starry Wizdom, Rhys Hughes, Michael Bukowski, Michael Wehunt, Anna Tambour, Christopher Slatsky, Scott Thomas, Lynda Rucker, Tom Lynch, Cody Goodfellow, Robert Levy, Jayprakash Satyamurthy, Philip Fracassi, Maura McHugh.  And me.  Did you just say, "Wow"?!!! ;-)

I corrupt the proceedings with a warped piece called, "Eouem Chumkpaa," which deals with, well, um...language, in a way...and an invasion, of sorts. 

Here's the opening paragraph:

*** 

     They’d driven out to the desert, Cal and the thing that wore the body of the woman he knew as Kayla.  It sat in the passenger seat, knocked out old-school style with a rag doused in ether acquired from a friend of a friend who knew people who dealt in illicit drug concoctions and sales.  The thing that was not Kayla was bound in rope, with duct tape wrapped tight around the wrists and ankles.  A gray strip covered its mouth.  Not her mouth.  Its mouth.

***

Also of note, and completely unrelated, as you might know, my second novel, The Wilderness Within, will be published by Trepidatio/JournalStone on October 6.  The digital and print versions are now up on Amazon, so do that pre-order thang, because you know you want it. 
Thank you!

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Here's the cover art for these amazing anthologies.