Tagged: Editor

Dennis O’Neil: A Difference of Opinion

Back then, when the universe was trying to create justice from whatever scraps of phantom it could find, I was working for one of the all-time excellent comic book editors, writing stories about a superheroic archer. I once gave this archer a line that conflated a politician with… I don’t remember the exact wording, but it had something to do with corruption or the like. The editor seldom asked me for rewrites. He was not the kind of fellow would impose his ego on the work of others by demanding unnecessary revisions But in this instance, he asked for a tiny couple of changes: he wanted me to make “politician” plural and add “some” to modify that same “politician.” So our hero said that only some politicians were corrupt and hence not all of them were.

Big deal? Huh uh. At least it shouldn’t be. In such a situation, the person being edited can a) quietly make the change(s) and go find something useful to do, or b) holler and smash the windows and cry that his First Amendment Rights are being shredded by some crass son of a bitch who picks his nose with a tuning fork, or c) mention the disagreement to the editor and make the changes. Preferably, mention it politely…

Let’s end the story, not that we must. I made the changes and kept my mouth shut and did not, as far as I can remember, feel persecuted. For the record, I did not agree with the editor. The editor was acting from the values of a generation that had recently survived a war and before that a protracted depression. Leave my own politics aside, and put the editor’s right beside them. This was a matter of courtesy – you did not insult people in public, even if they were drooling blackguards who you personally saw mug the vicar – and it was a matter of fairness. Innocent until proven guilty and all that. Maybe fear of being offensive played some part in this, too.

But the editor was (slightly) wrong because, in the honest opinion of the guy calling the fictional shots – me – the archer/hero would not have softened his opinion; he was not that kind of guy, at least not as he was then interpreted, and so we were committing the itsy-tiny offense of not being true to the character. This is seldom considered a cardinal sin and I would not expect to be lynched for it.

We are reminded of an occasional confusion that occurs when a reader believes that what a character says is what the author is saying. Sometimes that’s the case, but not always. So, hey, could we just relax and enjoy the prose?

Oh, and remember to always work for excellent editors.

Dennis O’Neil: Welcome To Clabdabalum!

O'Neil Art 131219The natives of the planet Clabdabalum use a language which is, at its purest, non-verbal – in fact, non-communicative. However, over the millennia, it has been corrupted by verbal elements. (In Clabdabalum version of the Genesis myth, Adam and Eve are tempted by a grammar text.) This pidgin lingo lacks every part of speech that we Terrans use except one: pronouns. The Clabdabians have only one pronoun and that pronoun has no tense, nor does it have a gender, which is not surprising considering that the Clabdabians themselves have no gender, which may be why they’ve never made it big. (They may or may not have tenses. It’s hard to tell.)

Having only a single pronoun to work with, the Clabdabian writers’ output is pretty sparse and so they have not yet evolved the need for editors. Some might say that this is a sign of advanced intelligence, but I’m not among them. (Editors are splendid creatures who miss godhood by only a dangling participle or two.) But, a Clabdabian might ask, what does an editor do, exactly?

You’re waiting for an answer, aren’t you?

Well, wait! I won’t offer a concise definition because mine is not a one-size-fits-all universe. There seems to be a number of ways to be an editor and I suspect that those who eventually become good at the job decide what has to be done and then find strategies to make the task doable with their own strengths and preferences. They’re also well-advised to beware of their weaknesses and devise tricks to compensate for what they lack.

Okay, now that we have that settled… I will, shyly and timidly, proffer another suggestion. It’s not a good idea to do what I did during my first brief attempt to be a DC Comics editor, way back in the 70s, and that was to make the scripts I edited resemble the scripts I wrote. Though I didn’t realize it at the time, the best I could hope to achieve with this ill-conceived ploy was to get second- or third-rate O’Neil and what I really should have wanted was first-rate (fill in the name of your favorite comics writer). That doesn’t mean give the writer total freedom to do as the writer chooses; I have great respect for people who follow their own muses and produce what they want to produce when they want to produce it. But they, bless them, do not work for companies owned by others, as do many comics writers and almost all movie and television scripters. This need to follow… let’s call them “guidelines…” does not preclude a writer becoming emotionally and intellectually involved in the work. The great Raymond Chandler said that the trick for the commercial writer is to give the boss what he’s paying you for, but get what you want in there, too. He proved it can be done and so have legions of others.

I doubt that any of them were Clabdabian but hey… you never know.

P.S.: “Snut” is the pronoun referred to above.

P.P.S.: Here’s an excerpt from an e-mail I received from Jim McLauchlin: 

Hero Initiative is a beneficiary of Amazon Smile. If you sign up Hero as your charitable choice, a percentage of qualified purchases will go to Hero at no additional cost to you! Info: http://smile.amazon.com/about

An easy way to support a worthy organization.

THURSDAY AFTERNOON: The Tweaks!

FRIDAY MORNING: Martha Thomases

 

PRO SE PRODUCTIONS DEBUTS NEW WEBSITE AND NEW PODCAST!

  • News
  • July 12, 2013

Pro Se Productions, an innovative Publisher of Genre Fiction and New Pulp, proudly presents its all new website! Designed to fully represent all that Pro Se is, the site features multiple pages, including staff and creator pages, imprint descriptions, submission guidelines, a news page, a listing of open solicitations, and more. 

From the front page featuring wonderfully rendered Pro Se Covers (swipe over them and they become buttons to other pages!) to the interesting bios, book descriptions, and information galore, the Pro Se website will provide fans and newcomers alike with all they need to know about this growing company.

Also debuting with the website is the weekly PRO SE PRESENTS: THE PODCAST! This will be a podcast focusing on both up and coming releases and projects from Pro Se as well as its continually growing catalog of Genre Fiction and New Pulp works. Tommy Hancock, Partner in and Editor in Chief of Pro Se, will host each episode following the first one. For the Debut, Pro Se Author and Friend of the Company Derrick Ferguson acts as host and quizzes Hancock on Pro Se, then, now, and later!

Pro Se’s new website will be updated frequently and can be found at www.prose-press.com. The Podcast is available on iTunes and can be found at www.prose-press/podcast. Other links on the site can be found in the drop down menu (button in the top left corner at the top of every page on the site.)

PRO SE EXPANDS AND WELCOMES GLOBAL RELATIONS AND ACCOUNTABILITY COORDINATOR!

Pro Se Productions, a continually expanding and growing company focusing on Genre Fiction, New Pulp, and cutting edge Action and Adventure Books and Anthologies, announced today the addition of a new position within Pro Se Administration- Global Relations and Accountability Coordinator.

“Pro Se,” Tommy Hancock, Partner in and Editor in Chief of Pro Se, states, “has grown tremendously since opening our doors so to speak in early 2010.   We have every single writer, artist, editor, and administrative person that’s done even one little thing to thank for that.  With the fact that we intend to produce the most books we have yet in our history this year and next year as well, it’s become necessary to bring in others to help handle the growth.  To that end, we created a position that actually has two duties- Marketing and Social Networking as well as managing day to day affairs from the Editor in Chief’s office.  Essentially, making sure I get my myriad projects and jobs done successfully.”

The Global Relations and Accountability Coordinator will act as executive assistant to the Editor in Chief and will handle daily operations outside of the Editorial/Writing/Creative Staff.  The GRAC will also assist the Editor in Chief in creation of and distribution of press releases, setting up blog and podcast appearances, and utilizing Social Media of all types to its fullest extent.

“Pro Se,” Hancock says, “has a great catalogue that will continue to grow and be even greater.  We’ve spent three years intentionally growing our personal library of books and now it’s time to promote them, old and new, from the first book published to the latest and greatest, with every technique and tool we can come up with.  And as our Global Relations and Accountability Coordinator, Beth Alvarez will help us do that and we are proud to welcome her to Pro Se Productions!”

Beth Alvarez is a previously self-published author residing in Memphis, Tennessee with her growing family. A voracious reader in her free time, Alvarez specialized in the study of fine arts with a focus on visual arts and teaching. An accomplished programmer, she has spent time working as a freelance web development specialist and graphics designer since 2005 and now adds Global Relations and Accountability Coordinator for Pro Se to her accomplishments.

Beth can be contacted at BethAlvarezProSe@gmail.com and will in the future be making contact with reviewers, bloggers, websites, other publishers, and other parties related to Pro Se business.

Pro Se Productions- www.prosepulp.com

ALL PULP LIVES! AND A MYSTERY ENSUES!

  • News
  • April 6, 2013

Tommy Hancock, Editor in Chief of and one of the founding members of All Pulp, announced today that since his announcement on April 1, 2013, concerning the closing of All Pulp if someone did not assume his duties, which he submitted his resignation from approximately a month ago, several interested individuals have applied.  And as of today, Hancock has made a decision as to who will be in charge of continuing the great legacy of Pulp Coverage All Pulp has maintained since opening in September, 2010.

“This,” Hancock states, “is truly a great day for All Pulp.  Although I’m not currently at liberty to reveal who the new ramrods of the outfit will be, I promise that the quality from All Pulp will not only continue, but will most likely improve with a whole new host of possible contributors.  Also, this move will carry All Pulp to multiple audiences, including not only our wonderful readers who fill the New Pulp Movement, but to fans of all sorts of Pop Culture goodness.”

Hancock states that even though he is in no way rescinding his resignation as Editor-in-Chief, the new development has inspired him to maintain with All Pulp as a contributor beyond the occasional book review he originally promised.  “I’ll be a presence in the continuation of All Pulp,” he explains.  “Not the guy in the Captain’s chair, but with where All Pulp is going, I’ll definitely be a regular part of things.”

Stay tuned to All Pulp, continuing in its normal fashion until further developments are announced.

ALL PULP TO CLOSE END OF THIS WEEK!

ALL PULP TO CLOSE END OF THIS WEEK!

  • News
  • April 1, 2013

Approximately four weeks ago, Tommy Hancock, one of the original founding members of All Pulp as well as Editor in Chief, announced that he was stepping down from All Pulp, except as an incidental contributor.  At that point, Hancock stated that the position of Editor in Chief was open if anyone was interested in taking it on.  Although some have considered it, none have come forward.

“Based upon the fact,” Hancock says in a statement today, “that the Editor in Chief position at All Pulp remains open and that the site will not function in the same capacity at all without not only a body, but an active person in that position, I must announce today that, unless that position is filled by Saturday, April 6th, 2013, All Pulp will cease operation.”
Anyone interested in the position of Editor in Chief of All Pulp should contact Hancock at allpulp@yahoo.com or proseproductions@earthlink.net or at 870-834-4022.

PRO SE PRESENTS GOES QUARTERLY UNDER NEW MANAGING EDITOR!

  • News
  • March 27, 2013

Pro Se Productions, a leader in the New Pulp Movement, announces today a format change for its award winning magazine as well as a new head for the publication.

The latest issue of Pro Se Presents, the March 2013 #18 issue, will be the last monthly issue of the title.  With #19, Pro Se Presents will become a quarterly magazine, but will also double to triple in size, according to Tommy Hancock.

Hancock, Partner in and Editor in Chief of Pro Se explains the reason for this.  “Pro Se Presents has proven extremely popular and is considered by many to be an honest to goodness heir to the Pulp Magazines of old.  Even with that in mind, though, certain things have to be taken into consideration.   One of those is time and the rest of Pro Se’s ever growing schedule.”

“Due to a massive commitment to put out an amazing number of titles this year as well as the amount of time working on a single issue of the magazine consumes, some decisions had to be made.   The result is that the magazine will now be quarterly, will contain at least twice the amount of stories, and have some other cosmetic differences that both allow the magazine to continue and for Pro Se staff as a whole to give more time to all the titles being prepared.”

The first quarterly issue of Pro Se Presents will be 19, available in June 2013.

“Other changes,” Hancock stated, “are coming forthe magazine as well.  Until now, I have included the duties of the magazine as one of my Editor-In-Chief responsibilities.  And, as with everything else Pro Se, my time has become stretched thin enough that it’s become imperative to pass the duties of managing the magazine over to someone who’s been training for it for awhile as Chief Editor- Pro Se Presents’ new managing editor, Lee Houston, Jr.”

Houston made his New Pulp debut as a contributor to Pro Se’s first line of magazines and moved up quickly to the ranks of novelistwith his HUGH MONN and PROJECT ALPHA books, as well as various projects for Pro Se and other companies.  Houston has acted initially as an editor and then Chief Editor for the magazine. “Each issue we showcase the best short stories available, just like the classic anthology pulps of yesteryear did.”  Hancock will maintain company control of the magazine, but for all practical purposes Lee Houston, Jr. as of Issue 19 will be the Managing Editor for the two time Pulp Ark award winning magazine from Pro Se Productions!

Learn more about Pro Se at www.pulpmachine.blogspot.com and www.prose-press.com!

REESE UNLIMITED DEBUTS THE LATEST HERO IN SOVEREIGN CITY-THE ADVENTURES OF GRAVEDIGGER!

  • News
  • March 26, 2013

Pro Se Productions, a leader in Action Adventure and Genre Fiction, proudly announces the latest release from its first author centered imprint and one of the best Pulp writers today!  Multiple award winning author Barry Reese has created yet another hero to add to his own modern Pulp Pantheon, which already includes such New Pulp standards as The Rook and Lazarus Gray.  Reese Unlimited, an imprint of Pro Se, presents THE ADVENTURES OF GRAVEDIGGER VOLUME ONE, the latest entry into Pro Se’s Sovereign City Project.

Her Life Began…The Day She Died. 

 The Adventures of Gravedigger introduces the latest masked warrior to inherit the mantle of Gravedigger. A lost soul who has returned from the grave to take up a mission of justice and vengeance, Gravedigger stalks the streets of Sovereign City assisted by her faithful agents and surprising familiar allies! She is the last defense against the criminals, madmen, and bizarre creatures that prowl in the shadows! 

According to Tommy Hancock, Partner in and Editor in Chief of Pro Se, “Barry consistently brings his best to each new project.  What makes GRAVEDIGGER more than just the next Reese Unlimited title, though, is the fact that it’s a new tale he’s telling, new to him and to us.  Very few people instill personal excitement and passion for a concept into their work the way Barry does and it definitely carries over onto the written page.”

“I wanted,” Reese states, “to create something that would continue the theme of personal rebirth that populates a lot of my work but I also wanted to do something a little bit different from The Rook and Lazarus Gray. I think I accomplished both with Gravedigger. She and her allies were really near and dear to my heart… by the end of the book, I considered them all to be personal friends. I hope readers will react in the same way.”

Gravedigger walks the streets of Sovereign City with Barry’s Lazarus Gray and Derrick Ferguson’s Fortune McCall, but brings a whole new flavor to that project. Hancock, the creator of Sovereign City explains.  “Sovereign City is the best and worst of every large settlement of human beings you can imagine.  In that sort of mix, there has to be heroes and villains will pop up.  What Sovereign hasn’t had is an equalizer of sorts, someone who, while definitely a hero by definition, is not cast in the traditional Sovereign City mold for such. Barry delivers that with Gravedigger in spades, which will be needed to bury the bodies she leaves behind.”

Featuring a stunning cover by award winning Pulp Artist George Sellas and mind blowing interiors by renowned artist Will Meugniot. THE ADVENTURES OF GRAVEDIGGER is a stunning, horrifying new addition to Pulp! From Author Barry Reese, Edited by David White, with Format and Design by Sean Ali! THE ADVENTURES OF GRAVEDIGGER VOLUME ONE from Reese Unlimited and Pro Se Productions!

Available in print for $15.00 from Pro Se at https://www.createspace.com/4216431 and via Amazon at http://tinyurl.com/cnelfld !  Coming soon in digital format!

PRO SE PRESENTS 18-DOUBLE SIZED ISSUE OF ACTION!

  • News
  • March 19, 2013



Pro Se Productions announces the latest issue of the Pulp Ark Pulp  Magazine  of the year two years in a row, PRO SE PRESENTS 18! 
The March 2013 issue of Pro Se Presents comes out shooting, punching, and fighting with five great tales of action, adventure, intrigue, and all out Pulp, so much so that it’s packed into an EXTRA SIZED ISSUE!


“One of the things,” Tommy Hancock, Editor in Chief of and Partner in Pro Se, “that our magazine is most noted for is variety.  Each issue is different from the previous one, both usually in number of stories and genres.  This nearly double sized issue is no exception to that.”
Featuring three winners of the 2012 Pro Se sponsored White County Arkansas Writers Competition, Pro Se Presents 18 opens up with Six Guns, Desperadoes, and men willing to die for what’s right in tales written by Jim Barton, Gary R Hoffman, and Del Garrett!

This two fisted action packed issue also includes the debut story of author Jaime Ramos! And the first adventure of a pair of new characters destined to be a force in New Pulp- STONE KOLDE by Alyssa Swift and Tommy Hancock- premieres in PRO SE PRESENTS 18! Featuring a stunning cover by Marc Guerrero and Format and Design by Sean Ali, get all the Pulp You can handle in the latest issue of PRO SE PRESENTS!


EIC TENDERS RESIGNATION FROM ALL PULP

EIC TENDERS RESIGNATION FROM ALL PULP

  • News
  • March 11, 2013

Tommy Hancock, one of the seven founders and Editor in Chief of All Pulp since its inception submitted the following statement-

“This is a statement I didn’t think I’d ever write when we started ALL PULP just slightly less than three years ago.   At that time, we were seven strong and we were going to bring a new voice to how Pulp news was delivered.  Not that we thought anything was wrong with other sites delivering it at the time – Coming Attractions was a large part of the inspiration for what ALL PULP is now – but we wanted to bring ourselves into the spreading of the Pulp Gospel, not just our work or New Pulp, but anything and everything we could find that was Pulp News.  And I think we did that from the get – go and although some of the Seven have faded into the sunset and other names have taken bylines as guest reviewers or interviewers, I think that same mission is still in place.  All Pulp is still innovative, creative, and – based on the emails and messages I get – still a vital part of how so many Pulp fans get their news.

ALL PULP also has done something else, ALL PULP and a few other things.   In the last three years, I have met many creators, fans, publishers, and more people who are interested in Pulp than I could have ever imagined.  Out of those connections have come many opportunities for me as a Pulp Writer, a Publisher, a Commentator, and Event Organizer.  Now, my typical mode of operation has been to just stack one job on top of the other, paid and unpaid alike, and bore ahead.   The advice of many over the years has been not to do that, but I’ve done fairly well at keeping up with it.

But things have finally gotten to the point that not only do I need more time, but the truly necessary, important parts of what I do within Publishing, Writing, and New Pulp also need more attention than I’ve given in the past.  Several projects I am working on are on the verge of breaking out in a variety of ways, but they won’t without the right care and attention.  I do have others helping me, I’m not alone in any of them really, but I am the driver of many of the cars we have in the race.  So, to that end, some decisions have been made.  As of today, March 11, 2013, I am formally offering my resignation as Editor in Chief and regular staff member from All Pulp.

I will remain on board for a month and work with those who are still involved with ALL PULP to determine who the leadership will be and how it will be handled.  If someone is found or a decision is made before the month is up, then I’ll take my fedora off the hook and put on my trenchcoat and be on my way.  I do hope to continue to be a contributor here with a more regular review column (TIPPIN’ HANCOCK’S HAT) as being a reviewer is one of the opportunities I have been encouraged to explore on other levels, if the new bosses will have me, that is.   But as for being a leader and a regular here, I’ll simply be another person who checks the site about three or four times a day.

I can’t begin to thank everyone who has been a part of ALL PULP’s success.  The Spectacled Seven who started it all (Ron Fortier, Barry Reese, Bobby Nash, Derrick Ferguson, Sarge Portera, and Van Plexico, and some hack named Hancock) had a vision and I thank my six cohorts for making that vision happen.  The creators of Pulp as well as the fans also have made ALL PULP not only a news site, but a repository collecting the history of the last few years of Pulpdom.  The fact that I was allowed to be a part of that is just too cool.

So, that’s it.  There’ll be other announcements about changes for me and maybe the new regime at ALL PULP will run them. If you want to say bye or complain finally about all the things I’ve done here that you don’t like or whatever, then drop me a line at allpulp@yahoo.com or post on our Facebook page.  And stay tuned to here to see just who’s going to be driving this madcap crazy train in the future.

A Tip of My Fedora to Each and Everyone of You,
Tommy Hancock
3.11.13

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