Pro Se Productions, a leading Publisher of New Pulp, proudly announced today the release of its latest novel which features the book length debut of a character featured in two recent issues of Pro Se’s Award Winning Magazine, PRO SE PRESENTS. Written by author PJ Lozito, Pro Se’s 12th novel, THE STING OF THE SILVER MANTICORE, takes New Pulp by storm today.
“The Manticore is already a fan favorite,” Tommy Hancock, Partner in and Editor-in-Chief of Pro Se, stated. “An instant hit since his debut in the magazine earlier this year. PJ’s hero has definitely struck a chord with New Pulp fans, both those interested in stories that read and feel like they were written in Pulp’s heyday and those who like new insights and twists on the old style. Giving the Manticore and his colorful cast of goodies and baddies a full length venue to play from was not only an easy decision, it was most definitely the best place for both writer and creation to display pure New Pulp awesomeness.”
Art by Sean Ali
According to the book itself-
He hunts the most dangerous prey imaginable!
His mission: To fight criminals and villains who are out to destroy our society!
“Ride with Brent Allred and his mysterious assistant, Bako,
as they wage war against enemies who mock the law, but will feel its strength by
THE STING OF THE SILVER MANTICORE!
Throughout the underworld and in the halls of law enforcement,
one cry inspired fear and awe by all who hear it.
“Beware the Sting of the Silver Manticore!”
The Silver Manticore, the masked marauder wanted by the law and criminals alike, is about to undertake what will be one of the greatest adventures of his incredible career. The Silver Manticore will be drawn into a web of suspense and intrigue that will bring him face to face with his most dangerous enemy as they begin a battle that will span decades and generations!
PJ Lozito presents a tale of action and adventure, of thrills and suspense,
setting the stage for a hero for the ages!
Featuring a stunning cover by award winning artist David L. Russell and exquisite formatting and design by Sean E. Ali, THE STING OF THE SILVER MANTICORE is destined to be a New Pulp Classic, appealing to fans of Action and Larger than Life Heroes everywhere!
Available now in print for $12.00 at Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Coming Soon in all Ebook formats!
For more information on Pro Se Productions, check out www.prosepulp.com!
Pulp Ark 2012 doesn’t officially kick off until later today but organizer Tommy Hancock is reporting that the convention is off to a great start! In just the first few hours, more fans have come through the doors today than attended the entire weekend last year! In related news, sales are strong for those vendors who have already set up their tables and with more authors, vendors and participants arriving over the next 24 hours, it’s safe to say that Pulp Ark 2012 is going to be a pulp con for the ages!
Airship 27 Productions shared with All Pulp a sneak-peek of one of artist Clayton Hinkle’s illustrations for TALES FROM THE HANGING MONKEY, coming in May.
Tales From The Hanging Monkey offers readers daring South Seas island adventures as delivered by some of New Pulp’s best. Join writers Bill Craig, Derrick Ferguson, Josh Reynolds, and Tommy Hancock on a grand pulp adventure.
PULPED! The Official New Pulp Podcast presents: THE RUBY FILES GETS PULPED!
Host Tommy Hancock brings on a whole herd of Pulp Cats to talk about Airship 27 Productions’ latest original anthology – THE RUBY FILES! Listen as Ron Fortier, Rob Davis, Bobby Nash, Sean Taylor, William Patrick Maynard, Mark Wheatley, and Andrew Salmon discuss noir, hard boiledness, gumshoes, dames, and more! Learn about the creation, writing, and art behind this brand new chapter in the history of Private Eye Pulp!
Tommy Hancock Hosts solo once again but does not ride alone! Joining Hancock on this episode is John Hartness, well known author of THE BLACK KNIGHT CHRONICLES, creator of the BUBBA, THE MONSTER HUNTER stories, and author of THE CHOSEN! Listen as John defines Urban Fantasy, shares a peek into the life of fanboy vampires, explains how a Redneck comes to work for the Roman Catholic Church, glorifies in The Devil being The Angel who Loved the Almighty the most, and so much more! Listen in as John Hartness Gets Pulped!
A leader in New Pulp Fiction, Pro Se Productions announced today openings in several upcoming anthologies and a new way that the company would be soliciting writers to participate in upcoming collections. “One of the thrills,” stated Tommy Hancock, Partner in and Editor in Chief of Pro Se, “of being a New Pulp writer and publisher is the need to write and offer opportunities for others to write all the cool ideas that could possibly fit between the covers of a book. This fact is something that Publishers, small and large alike, recognize. As Pro Se’s presence increases at Conventions/Conferences, one question more than any other comes up constantly. And it’s the question a Publisher wants to hear, one that, fortunately for Pro Se, has been unsolicited. That is, writers and artists seeking out Pro Se and asking this most favorite of questions- “You got anything open for submissions?” or the very similar “What anthologies can I submit to?”
“After giving this some thought and looking at how not only the New Pulp crew does it, but also at how larger presses and even the largest of the Publishers handle such things, Pro Se has decided to change up its Anthology process a bit. This will not affect how PULP OBSCURA or future ‘invite only’ Anthologies are done at all. There will still be special projects, of course. But there will also be the PRO SE OPEN.”
“Essentially,” explained Hancock, “The Pro Se Open will be a list of Anthologies that Pro Se plans to do in the future. This is an open call on all the books listed in the Open, that is anyone can submit a story for any of the books in the list. There is no deadline essentially, that is until all the slots open in any given book are filled.”
The Process will be as follows-
1. An upcoming Anthology is listed in the Pro Se Open.
2. Submissions are accepted (a 2-3 paragraph proposal for the story and at least a two page writing sample if you are a new writer submitting to Pro Se)
3. When the slots for the collection are all filled, a deadline will be set of approximately ninety days from the closing of the anthology. This will give writers time to complete their tales, artists time to do covers, etc.
4. The book will be published within approximately 30 days following the passing of the deadline.
Even though the deadline will be 2-3 months out once a book is closed, Editors assigned to these projects will follow up, monitor, and make sure work is being done. Steps will be taken to move the anthology along as planned if work is not being done in a timely manner. This means, however, that until all the slots are filled on an anthology in The Pro Se Open, it will remain open, but it is Pro Se’s commitment that once all the works are in for a particular collection, that that collection move into high gear toward publication, regardless of current publishing schedule.
The Pro Se Open will be updated periodically as to adding new collections and removing ones that have been filled.
Anthologies currently listed in the Pro Se Open are as follows-
PULPOLOGY- It has been said often that Pulp has its origins in ancient tales, legends, the mythologies of many lands. Taking this to heart, this anthology will feature stories starring characters from mythologies around the world! Actual mythological characters in new adventures set in their own era, the ancient world of heroes and monsters, or updated takes on classic myths (Jason and The Argonauts in the Old West, for example). Either way, these stories will spotlight the characters and strengths of mythologies world wide and put a two fisted, high octane Pulp spin on the legends themselves! 6 Stories, 10,000 words each.
THE ADVENTURES OF MOOSE AND SKWIRL, TROUBLETAKERS- Trouble happens everywhere in the universe. Any time. Any place. And to make sure whatever cockeyed balance there is is kept, the universe takes care of itself, assigning special individuals to the unpredictable, unrewarding, and usually life threatening task of just being in the completely wrong places at the totally right times to hopefully keep everyone…or most everyone from dying. But the universe doesn’t trust just one person to do this, no it works in groups of two. Moose-Stocky, barrel chested, two fisted, sarcastic, and ready to deliver a soliloquy over the bodies of whoever stands in his way… And Skwirl-Seductive, sexy, and with a sense of humor that could kill….literally. These two ‘Trouble Takers’ travel space and time very much at random, figuring out whatever issue they are thrown into and then fixing it. In their own unique, usually very destructive, bloody way. Five slots, 12,500 word stories ( If interested, request short bible for this one).
SIX GUNS AND SPACESHIPS- This is a wide open, do it as you want Space Western Anthology. The requirements- It’s got to be a mash up between classic westerns and space opera (Firefly, Outland, Bravestarr, just a few examples). It doesn’t take place on Earth at all, has to be off planet, but time period and location beyond that are up to the writer! 5 open slots, 12,500 word stories.
TO LOVE AND DIE- Pulp Romance is back! And its deadlier than ever! These stories will be set in any time period up until modern day and must feature two things-Romance…and Treachery. These stories may be mysteries, horror tales, adventure yarns, whatever, but there must be a strong core of romance mixed with danger throughout. Six Open Slots, 10,000 word stories
NEWSHOUNDS! – Dogged reporters, crusty editors, copyboys and cub photographers with dreams of grandeur, Pressmen who know the city lives and breathes by what they print! One of the most fertile grounds for action packed pulp has always been the newspaper office. And all those wonderful character types and more all work for The Partisan, a 1950s paper partial to the common man, to righting the wrongs done against the innocent and the weak! And this gaggle of hard bitten, hard fighitng men and women are known near and far to those who love them and those who wish to see them dead! Do No Wrong in Their City unless you want it covered by the Newshounds! 5 open slots, 12,500 word stories (If interested, request short bible for this one)
THE NINTH CIRCLE-VOLUME ONE, This collection centers around a crime ridden precinct and borough in a city that shuffles its misbegotten and forgotten to THE NINTH CIRCLE. Six Slots-10,000 word stories (If interested, request short bible for this one)
DEAD MAN WALKEN- This western adventure has enough intrigue and mystery to choke a horse! A town is savagely attacked by a ruthless band of outlaws and most of the citizens killed, including the promising sheriff elect, Fitch Walken. A month after the massacre and all the bodies are buried, Fitch Walken stumbles into town, the last three months of his life gone from his memory! The mystery deepens when Walken’s grave is exhumed…and he’s IN THE COFFIN! What follows is the classic struggle of a man to find out who he is, what happened to him, and just which side of good and evil he will stand on! Five Slots Open-12,500 word stories (If interested, request short bible for this one)
THE BLACK FEDORA-A BOOK OF VILLAINS- This is just what it says it is, an anthology dedicated to stories about the bad guys we love to hate. These stories will focus on original villains and of course the heroes they face, these tales similar in style to the FU MANCHU stories of the past. But this isn’t only for yellow perils!! Any type of villain that populates pulp is welcome to try on THE BLACK FEDORA! Two slots open, 15,000 word stories
HIGH ADVENTURE HISTORY-Ever wanted a chance to write a masked man enforcing justice in ancient Egypt? Or a larger than life genius and his team of heroes righting wrongs in renaissance Italy? Or mad scientists terrorizing the Arizona desert towns of the Old West? Then here’s your chance! HIGH ADVENTURE HISTORY will include stories of traditional pulp concepts and tropes plopped into our very own past, pre 1900! Take your favorite pulp stereotype and wrap it up in ancient or not so ancient places and people and join us in HIGH ADVENTURE HISTORY! Five Slots open, 12,500 words stories.
THE SHAMUS DIRECTIVE is a project actually founded in historical context. Just prior to and all during World War Two, The United States government via the FBI as well as members of the Armed Forces, developed dossiers on all licensed Private Investigators in the country. A list was then comprised of the ones deemed appropriate and ‘good’ and they were then considered to be ‘cleared’ to be used in espionage missions, mostly on the homefront, or missions that regular forces just could not deal with for various reasons. THE SHAMUS DIRECTIVE poses the theory that not only was this list compiled, but the people on it were truly the world’s greatest detectives and they were formed into sort of a team to handle major issues in conjunction, even maybe saving major parcels of land and people in the process. Three Slots Open, 10,000 word stories (If interested, request short bible for this one)
If you’re a writer or artist and are interested in these anthologies or have questions, email Hancock at proseproductions@earthlink.net! And check out Pro Se at www.prosepulp.com and www.pulpmachine.blogspot.com.
TIPPIN’ HANCOCK’S HAT-Reviews of All Things Pulp By Tommy Hancock
HEAVENS ON FIRE by Guido Henkel Published by Thunder Peak Press 2010
Supernatural Investigators stumble over all sorts of Monsters and Mysteries in the world of fiction. But if you look particularly close, when you tie the word paranormal or supernatural to the word investigator, often those tales revolve around monsters we’d expect to see- Vampires, Ghosts, Furry Beasties on Two Legs, and so on. I enjoy it when someone gets it right, though, and by right I mean when a writer realizes that by tying those words together, it opens up a whole realm of possibilities beyond Hollywood creatures and bump-in-the-nighters.
In the fourth installment of his Jason Dark series set in Victorian England, Guido Henkel leaves behind the terrestrial fear bringers and applies the term of ‘terror’ and ‘monster’ to something more ethereal, holy even. This novella finds Dark and his wonderful partner Siu Lin literally in the middle of a war between Heaven and Hell. The earth is being assaulted by demons who have found a portal into our world. These hellish invaders are led by a vile creature who has the ability to essentially continually manifest demons as necessary. And his intent is not simply to destroy the world, but to quite literally bring the Heavens, and all who reside there, crashing down at his feet.
I have been continually impressed with the twists and takes Henkel applies to the entire genre he’s exploring with the Jason Dark series. Although the battle between angels and demons has become somewhat cliche, Henkel brings a level of actual humanity to it. There are reasons the Demon is after God and there are reasons the Angels stand in the void and those reasons on all sides are not simply black and white, they are in fact very…human. Couple that with the usual fast pacing, tight plotting, and bits of tension fraught throughout a Henkel book and this is a great read.
Something that struck me as off, however, was the characterization, particularly of our two main characters. I’m not sure if its simply because Henkel has settled into the characters of Dark and Siu Lin after four volumes, but there’s something missing. I’m fairly certain that instead of adding nuance and depth to both the individuals and the two as a team as he has in the first three volumes, Henkel has basically brought Dark and Siu as they were in the third book into this one. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it does take a bit of unique vitality out of the tale that its predecessors displayed.
FOUR OUT OF FIVE TIPS OF THE HAT- Great story, fantastic pacing, and enough supernatural hijinks to satisfy any fan of paranormal escapades with a good mystery thrown in to the mix.
TIPPIN’ HANCOCK’S HAT- All Things Pulp Reviewed by Tommy Hancock
DEMON’S NIGHT by Guido Henkel Published by Thunder Peak Publishing 2009
Ever since a particular detective first made his literary presence known in The Strand Magazine (and actually in other ways even before that), there’s been a bevy of creators find themselves drawn to tell imaginative tales replete with shadowy twists and tangled turns in the fog ridden streets of England in the late 19th Century. Many of those have dared to mimic Doyle, others have worked to flat out ignore him, and still others have gone steps beyond where his most notable creation ever went. It’s a rarity, to me anyway, when someone writes in that vein and simultaneously completely respects what came before while completely and totally having absolute fun with what they are doing.
Guido Henkel, the architect of the now 11 volume JASON DARK series, skillfully manipulates everything readers love about Victorian England and the supernatural while obviously having the best magical, mystical, monstrous time a writer can have in DEMON’S NIGHT, the novella featuring the debut of the Victorian Detective that handles the cases his better known peer won’t often even entertain.
People are dying in Whitechapel. Not an unusual thing, except the bodies being discovered are withered, drained of every fluid possible, dried like prunes. Tweaking the interest of Dark, the murders are the doing of a demon, a slave serving a master seeking release. And only Dark and a young Oriental woman with skills all her own stand in the way of this netherworldly plot.
DEMON’S NIGHT is a wonderful story and great introduction to Jason Dark. Obviously owing a bit of who he is to those who came before him, Dark is also a figure all his own. At times moody, often introspective, and dangerously spontaneous when it’s least advised, Dark applies logic while opening his mind to the weirdness the world truly has to offer. The supporting cast appearing around Dark for the first time is definitely an added asset to the story and the character. Siu Lin, initially a victim of the beast of the tale, quickly proves her worth to Dark and makes a great compliment to his rather complex lead.
Henkel keeps the story rolling, darting back and forth between Dark’s and the demon’s perspective, and makes sure the reader stays along for the action packed storm that unfolds from beginning to end.
FIVE OUT FIVE TIPS OF THE HAT- DEMON’S NIGHT is not only a great start, it’s a truly awesome tautly told, well crafted novella featuring the best of Holmesian influence and Henkelian talent.
New Pulpster’s Van Allen Plexico, Tommy Hancock, and Matthew Moring join Bobby Nash, Mike Faber, and Mike Gordon on the Earth Station One podcast.
Earth Station One Episode 99: And So It Begins
This week, Bobby Nash takes command and we travel to deep space to visit the station known as the “last, best hope for peace.” The name of the place is Babylon 5! Writer Van Allen Plexico joins the crew to discuss this landmark series. We also strap Tommy Hancock and Matthew Moring to the Geek Seat and they reveal the new line of books from Pulp Obscura. Plus, Scott Viguie reports on Gallifrey One!
Table of Contents 0:00:00 Intro / Welcome 0:03:47 Rants & Raves 0:32:56 Pulp Obsura Guys in the Geek Seat 1:05:45 Babylon 5 2:17:36 Khan Report 2:27:26 Gallifrey One w/ Scott Viguie 2:47:29 Shout Outs 2:54:43 Show Close
Khan! Report Feb 24-26 AnachroCon (Atlanta, GA) Feb 24-26 GalaxyFest (Colorado Springs, CO) Feb 24-26 Image Comics Expo (Oakland, CA) Feb 25-26 London Super Comic Convention Mar 9-11 Days of the Dead: Atlanta Mar 10-11 Metropolis Supercon Mar 16-18 MomoCon (Atlanta, GA) Mar 16-18 WonderCon (Anaheim, CA) Mar 18 Joelanta (Atlanta, GA) Mar 23-25 Mad Monster Party (Charlotte, NC) Mar 30-Apr 1 Emerald City Comicon Apr 6-8 Marcon (Columbus, OH)
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Next on Earth Station One…
Next week, Earth Station One turns 100. That’s right. ESO reaches episode 100 and we’ve invited some of our friends to stop by the station for a night of fun, friendship, and discussions of all things geeky. Special guests Mark Maddox, Anthony Taylor, Peter Cutler, and Doctor Q join Mike Faber, Mike Gordon, and Bobby Nash for a 100th episode celebration.
We would love to hear from you. What are some of your favorite memories from the first 100 episodes? Let us know at http://www.esopodcast.com/, at the ESO Facebook Group, email us at esopodcast@gmail.com, or call us at 404-963-9057 with your list. We might just read yours on the show. Or just call us up and say hi.
TIPPIN’ HANCOCK’S HAT-Reviews of All Things Pulp by Tommy Hancock
CALLER ID
Rachelle J. Christensen
Cedar Fort
Sometimes the four lines describing something that has a cool cover are enough to pull someone into reading a book.And sometimes, even for a fan of almost any even slightly Pulp hinting piece of prose like me, that handful of lines turns out to be the best part of the experience.
‘Caller ID’ is a story of a young lady who accidentally stumbles upon evidence of something going on out of the ordinary around her idyllic, wealthy home and lifestyle.Literally into a marijuana field and accidentally onto a name on a Caller ID screen that is supposed to be the first step into the harrowing adventure ahead.
Kidnapped and held prisoner, our young heroine works fervently to piece the mystery around her together and to escape.Meanwhile, her family brings in the FBI, including Agent Jason Edwards, who makes it his singular mission to rescue her and sort out all the details.
‘Caller ID’ has moments of suspense.It has several scenes that can be described as tense and action filled.There’s also an undercurrent of mystery and a countercurrent, it seems, of romance.The author handles words well and there’s quite a bit of potential within this book, but it doesn’t ever make up its mind what sort of book it is.Even if it is a suspense romance as its been billed, it doesn’t even clearly define itself that way.The book opens with a promising build up of the heroine, then focus shifts to the possible villains, then back to her, then to the Agent and at that point, the narrative completely loses focus.The resolution is telegraphed far too soon and that’s even not tied up well as there’s a last minute twist that lacks credulity.
TWO OUT OF FIVE TIPS OF THE HAT-‘Caller ID’ could have been high octane, tense, and still developed a romance between clearly defined characters.Instead it just sort of rambled without really going anywhere exciting.
