Author: Tommy Hancock

Yep.  It’s time to roust the roosters and the wrens a bit.  We’re going to have a contest, kiddoes! 

The discussions I’ve had with people about my IDEAS LIKE BULLETS columns have been great and of the four posted, two have already moved on to become actual projects with writers and that is the whole purpose of doing this!  So, with that said, I thought it might be time to take one of the other four ideas and see if we can get some interest in it.  And what better way to do that then to HOST A CONTEST! So, here goes!

IDEAS LIKE BULLETS CONTEST-DAYDREAMING

It’s simple.   The first column I posted introduced the world to a concept of mine about a heroine named Daydream.  That column can be found here- http://allpulp.blogspot.com/2010/11/new-column-ideas-like-bullets-take-one.html.  Daydream could be taken any number of directions with the way I left it in the column and I hope many of you who are writers will do just that.  The rules are as follows- Write a minimum of a 3,000 word story starring Daydream.  It can be fleshing out the work I put in the column, it can be pre-Daydream days, it can be with her as a full fledged heroine or whatever you make her, but it has to be the character as introduced in the first ILB column.  Now, more words would be fine and it can be a novel if you want it to, but that won’t necessarily earn you extra points.  The story must have a beginning, middle, and end and must be pulp in nature.  Your first submission is your only submission, we won’t be editing and sending back for improvement.  At least not until a winner is chosen.

What do you win, may you ask? Well, first is publication of your winning entry in Pro Se Production’s PRO SE PRESENTS magazine line.  Secondly, a complimentary copy of said magazine your story appears in.  Thirdly, a slot as co-writer or possibly even as full writer on a DAYDREAM series of recurring stories to appear in Pro Se publications if you so choose to accept it.  Is it a lot? No, not at all.  But it’s something.

Now, if you decide you’re going to take up this challenge, then you have to email me at allpulp@yahoo.com and notify me of such BEFORE you start writing.  If I receive an entry without having been notified prior to receiving it, it will be disqualified.  I want to  know who’s working on what.   today is January 5th, 2011.  All entries must be in to me by February 5th, 2011. And just in case you missed it, here’s the link to the original ILB about Daydream- http://allpulp.blogspot.com/2010/11/new-column-ideas-like-bullets-take-one.html

 OK, guys and gals, the gun’s loaded…FIRE AWAY!

PARKER, Part 1: First Impressions
Van Allen Plexico

In this series of articles, Van Allen Plexico explores the history of Richard Stark’s (Donald E. Westlake’s) criminal pulp noir character, “Parker,” in his many appearances across various media. In this first installment, we discover Parker’s origins and earliest appearances.

When we first meet Parker, we see him as a big, hulking man, stomping his way automaton-like across the George Washington Bridge. All who gaze upon him feel a vague sense of dread or at least unease. He looks somehow dangerous, but also extremely focused.

On what exactly he’s focused, no one can guess—or really wants to guess.

That sums Parker up in a nutshell: Extremely dangerous and extremely focused. And, to a large degree, that’s pretty much all we know about him today—even after all these years.

Few main protagonist characters in all of literature, if any, have been the subject of so many stories—appearing in dozens of books, movies, and comics—with the audience still knowing so little about them afterward. Time after time we see Parker being pulled into a criminal enterprise, planning it, executing it, carrying out the inevitable damage control when things go bad, and then sorting out matters at the end. And every single time we learn little more about him by the end than we knew going in.

That’s perfectly fine, though, because the fun of a Parker story, in any medium, is not learning about the depths of Parker’s character. The fun is in seeing a consummate professional doing his job, exhibiting the ultimate in competence along the way, and in dealing out… not true and high justice, per se—not from a career criminal like Parker—but a sort of street-level justice where those who play fair and obey the rules get their promised rewards, and those who double-deal and back-stab get what they have coming, too.

Parker first made his appearance in 1963’s The Hunter, a novel by Donald E. Westlake, writing as Richard Stark. (That book has been filmed as at least two movies in the years since; more about those in an upcoming installment of this series.) Westlake later claimed he got the idea for Parker while he himself was walking across the George Washington Bridge and feeling its seemingly solid form vibrating from all the wind and traffic; he began to imagine the kind of character who would feel at home in such a setting. Indeed, Parker does come across often as a human equivalent of a massive, concrete-and-steel suspension bridge, solid as stone on the surface but concealing an ocean of tightly controlled tension (and, when necessary, violence) on the inside.

“He had big hands, Mal,” is the way one character who has encountered Parker describes the man in The Hunter—and that’s just the way Parker wants it. He likes appearing sort of “gray” and blending into the background; he never does anything to call attention to himself. He appears almost to have been hewn from solid rock, or roughly molded from raw clay.

Westlake claimed that one of his goals in writing Parker’s books was to challenge himself as a writer by using a protagonist who has almost no internal voice. With Parker, everything is right there in the open. He has a job to do, and that is all that he thinks about for the duration of the operation. While Parker is on a job, he has no room in his heart or in his mind for compassion, humor, or any other human emotion or consideration. Some might describe him as “amoral,” but that’s not entirely true. When it comes to dealing fairly with his accomplices, he is utterly and completely fair, following his own internal code of morality and justice—at least, as such things are to him. He is the definition of the term, “all business.”

That being the case, it’s not hard to see that the one thing guaranteed to set Parker’s teeth on edge is a co-conspirator who exhibits anything less than total dedication to the job and complete professionalism. Nothing will cause Parker to back away from a prospective job faster than a whiff of amateurism from one of his potential accomplices. He has a small circle of men (and a woman or two) that he trusts to work with him. Anyone else must be carefully scrutinized.

Inevitably, in almost every Parker tale, an amateur approaches Parker (or one of his friends) with a “brilliant idea” for a heist and, almost every time, Parker goes along despite his many misgivings. Again, almost every time, something goes horribly wrong and Parker is left to pick up the pieces, sort out his accomplices, deal retribution on the person who caused the problem, and get away with whatever loot is left.

This simple formula led to Westlake creating sixteen Parker novels between 1963 and 1974, and then returning to the character with a run of eight more between 1997 and his death in 2008.

In the installments to come, we’ll look at some of what makes Parker such an enduring and popular character (for such a mean SOB!), and the ways in which he and his heists (one hesitates to use the more lighthearted term “capers” when referring to the dour Parker) have been depicted in various media.

So—fill your shot glass, light up a smoke, lock the hotel room door, and get ready to explore the career of the greatest pulp noir criminal of all: Parker!

Coming in Part 2: An in-depth look at the first string of Parker novels, 1963-1974.

MOONSTONE CLIFFHANGER FICTION-MORE DOMINO LADY!

Moonstone Books and ALL PULP are proud to present the final chapter in this thrilling tale from MOONSTONE CLIFFHANGER FICTION!!!!

Chapter Seven

“I’m coming,” Reginald Hanna said loudly over his ringing doorbell. Although it was quite late, near midnight, he knew who his caller was. Beside, after all the commotion at the selectmen’s meeting earlier, he was much too keyed up to sleep.

“Detective Bishop, I take it,” he said, after opening the front door to see a young man in a dark suit and fedora standing before him. In the man’s arms was the cat he was now intimately familiar with.

“Hello, Mr. Hanna,” Bishop began. “I thought you might like to know how things went at the station house.”

“But of course. Won’t you please come in.”

Once inside, Hanna offered Bishop a drink but the detective politely refused. “It is late, sir, and I really should wrap this up. I just wanted you to know that both Geller and Ochra have confessed to the crimes and implicated Topper Carson as their boss.”

“That’s excellent. I will only be too happy to testify when the time comes.”

“Thank you, sir. I don’t know how the D.A. is going to play this one, but your help was very instrumental to bringing them in.”

“It was the least any good citizen would do. And let’s not forget the Domino Lady.”

“Actually, sir, I wish we could.”

“Excuse me,” Hanna was perplexed.

“Well, sir, you see, it’s like this. My superiors are happy the case is solved and the suspects in custody, but they don’t need the press to know another known felon was responsible for their apprehension. It sort of makes the department look bad.”

“Ah, but of course, Detective. Very well, you can rely on me to… ah… forget to mention the masked lady. Now, is there anything else I can do for you?”

“Well, yes, sir, there is.” Bishop indicated the yellow cat in his arms. “I was wondering, sir, seeing as you already have one cat, if you might not want… another one? She’s really a good cat and when she attacked that fellow tonight, she might have saved my life.”

Hanna looked at the animal and smiled. Over on the sofa, Alexander was stretched out but still very much aware of what was transpiring. Hanna reached over and took the cat from Bishop.

“Come here, my sweet,” he said warmly, then looked over at Alexander. “What do you say, Alexander? Shall we adopt this lovely creature and give her a loving home?”

As in response, the male cat extended its paws and went, “Meowww.”

“Well,” laughed Reginald Hanna, “I think it’s settled, detective. Yes, we’ll take her. But first we’ll have to come up with a name for her, won’t we.”

Bishop tilted his hat back on his head and scratched his jaw. “Would you mind a suggestion?”

“Not at all, detective.”

“Well, sir, when I was in school, we had a French girl who was a real spitfire and the way this cat acted kind of reminded me of her in some ways.”

“Really. And what was her name, this French girl… with pizzazz?”

“Babette. Her name was Babette.”

Detective Barney Bishop started down the steps to the sidewalk, a jaunty bounce to his step. It was hard not to feel elated with how things had turned out.

“Hold it right there, detective!” The voice was decidedly female.

Bishop stopped in mid-step and turned toward the high hedge on his left. The Domino Lady, gun in hand, stepped out of the shadows and he caught his breath.

In the soft glow of the street lamp, she was a vision of ethereal beauty, draped in a slinky white gown with a black cape covering her creamy pink shoulders.

“The Domino Lady,” he uttered, finding his voice. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“I simply wanted to congratulate you on a job well done, Detective.”

“Really?” She was closer now and all he could smell was her lilac perfume.

“Yes,” her said with a breathy voice as she reached out with her free hand and took hold of his necktie. Gently she pulled his head down and then he was kissing her full, sweet, honeyed lips.

Bishop felt his head swim, looking into twin pools of brown. He closed his eyes and savored the kiss that seem to linger forever.

When he opened his eyes, she was gone as if she’d never been there at all. But there was the warmth on his lips and in the distance he thought he heard footsteps fading away.

Bishop sighed, “You’re welcome.”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE-
1/3/11, Lockport Illinois-

MOONSTONE ANNOUNCES ‘GET DRAWN INTO  SAVAGE BEAUTY’ WINNERS!

Moonstone Entertainment, Inc., Runemaster Studios, Inc., and Captain Action Enterprises, LLC, the forces behind the upcoming comic series SAVAGE BEAUTY,  are pleased to announce the winners of the ‘GET DRAWN INTO SAVAGE BEAUTY’ sweepstakes!

The story of two sisters who fight injustice and right wrongs as jungle heroines in Kenya, Savage Beauty will have an extra person drawn into its third issue as a result of the Sweepstakes.  To qualify, entrants had to pre order at least one issue of SAVAGE BEAUTY #1 and submit their names as well as the names of the comic book stores or websites they pre ordered from. 

The grand prize winner that will be drawn into Savage Beauty #3 and that will receive signed copies of the first issue as well as a signed and numbered Savage Beauty print, both autographed by writer and co creator Mike Bullock, is RICHARD VASSEUR.

Ten second prize winners that will receive signed copies of Savage Beauty #1 and a Savage Beauty signed/numbered print, both autographed by co-creator/writer Mike Bullock are as follows-
Barry Reese
Ric Croxton
Ron Fortier
Allen Klingelhoets
Klima Littlewareagle

Moonstone, CAE, Inc, and Runemaster Studios, Inc. would like to thank all who participated in the sweepstakes!  Be on the lookout for SAVAGE BEAUTY at a comic retailer near you!

SAVAGE BEAUTY #1
Story: Mike Bullock
Art: Jose Massaroli
Colors:Bob Pedroza
AVAILABLE FROM MOONSTONE 2/2011
Place your order at http://moonstonebooks.com/shop/category.aspx?catid=122

From Pulp Empire (http://www.pulpempire.com/)

As we ring in the new year, we wrap up the final stories of Pulp Empire volume 3 on our website, www.pulpempire.com. Later this month, we will debut the fourth volume of our pulp stories collections featuring returning favorites like Teel James Glenn, Jack Mulcahy, and David Perlmutter, along with new Pulp Empire contributors Scott T. Swartz, Paul Newman, and Kenneth W. Comer. Thirteen new stories in all. As always, volume four will be available with all the rest of our books over at our Lulu store (stores.lulu.com/nahlhelm). We have absolutely been deluged with submissions are are still working our way through all of them! Currently we’re putting together tales for our next two numbered volumes.

In addition we are also introducing our first themed anthology that will be debuting in May: Pirates and Swashbucklers. We are now seeking submissions for the book; guidelines can be found at our submissions page (http://pulpempire.com/mag/?page_id=3).

Those are only the first two of a planned five collections this year so 2011 looks to be a big year over here!

Sincerely,
Nick Ahlhelm
Pulp Empire editor