Triplicity's Company

Greetings, WYMOP readers!

I was traveling this week, and usually that means I come over here and have a little bitch session about my flight, or the TSA, or something, right?

But this time I chose the right line at security and didn’t even have to take off my shoes. I got an aisle seat like I wanted, and wound up with an average-sized woman next to me rather than an ex-professional linebacker with an eating disorder, and we managed not to get in each other’s ways. There were a ton of toddlers on my flight, but all the parents must have pooled their resources and bought up a ton of Nyquil for the little tots; I didn’t hear a peep.

Son of a bitch, I had a good flight. What the hell am I going to write about?

Looks like I’ll have to blab at you about Triplicity. Oh, woe is me.

Some of you may remember that, many, many moons ago (okay, 2013), I released my first short story collection, Dead of Winter. You may have missed it. It wasn’t out long before I had a little disagreement with the publisher and had it pulled from the shelves. You can still find it listed on Amazon, where it’s clearly marked “Out of Print.”

Oh, woe is me.

I moved on, but was still sad about Dead of Winter. It was really well received in the short time it was out there; lots of people liked it, and it even won an award. A couple of small publishers expressed interest in re-releasing it, but nothing ever came of it. I thought about putting it out myself, but lacked the funds—and the know-how—to do it right, to put out the kind of quality product I wanted.

What to do? What to do?

Then I got an invitation from Books & Boos Press: they had a project they thought I might be interested in—a collection of novellas, rather than short stories. They had two tales and were looking for a third, did I think I might have anything for them? Why yes, I said. I thought I might. I knew what kind of product Books & Boos put out—they’d handled my second collection, Echoes of Darkness, back in February—and they’re the top shelf of small presses. I bit my lip, brought out the virtual scalpel, and excised one of the stories from my Dead of Winter manuscript.

People enjoy this story, damn it. They deserve to read it. And in the best possible setting.

The result: Triplicity: The Terror Project, Volume 1.

“Brando and Bad Choices,” by Stacey Longo—a woman’s own personal trip through hell. Literally. Can she find redemption after death?

“Steel,” by Tony Tremblay—when the world as we know it has ended, what can one girl do to lead her group of survivors through the danger?

And, finally, “The Christmas Spirit,” by Rob Smales—what’s a young mother to do when her family’s first Christmas is invaded by an intruder they can’t stop? Or even see?

I am so glad this story has found a good home.

Okay, here is where this becomes awkwardly sales-pitchy. Could you see it coming a mile away? I kind of think you did.

Friday, 11/25—yes, Black Friday—Triplicity: The Terror Project, Volume 1 hits the stands. Well, hits Amazon, anyway. You can check out my old story in its new home for yourself, or just get some of your Christmas shopping done early. And if you’re one of the few who managed to grab a copy of Dead of Winter before it dropped off the face of the earth, and you were one of the many who enjoyed the hell out of “The Christmas Spirit,” do me a favor and give a shout about it to your friends. I’d love it if they could enjoy my story, too, and I know Tony and Stacey feel the same way.

And if you have already enjoyed “The Christmas Spirit,” I’ve got a little thought to put in your head: there are two other stories in this book, and mine just might be the shabbiest of the bunch.

Talk to you later!

Oh! Before I go, I have a couple of things to share:

First, HERE'S a link to an early review of Triplicity over at Horror Made, the Internet’s home for all things horror. If it’s a good review (it is—it’s 5-star!), you can even point it out to people you’re telling about the book, or maybe just go on over and read it for yourself.

Second, here’s a very cool book trailer Books & Boos put together to get you all excited about Triplicity (I know it’s working on me!):

Okay, seriously: talk to you later!