Writing and Publishing.

THE EMISSARY sales will begin on Saturday, November 30th. Also going up at around the same time will be my novel of the zombie apocalypse, DEADLOCKED.

DEADLOCKED is the rewritten, re-edited, expanded version of my novel THE LIVING END that I wrote for another publisher some time back. I've rewritten and added sections to the book and cleaned up the manuscript somewhat. Also with a new, much more effective cover that better represents the book.

Coming in the next few weeks several more of my older books will come back into print under the Last Hemlock Press. All of these will be rewritten and re-edited to one extent or another. Some of them will have major revisions, while others will be only moderately changed. Also coming out will be my sequels to WORKING CLASS HERO, the series that was stopped in its tracks by my previous publisher. Expect BILLY B VERSUS THE TROUBLE BOYS in the next few weeks.

In addition to getting my back-list books back to the light of print, I'll also get my original projects scheduled as time allows.

At any rate, come what may, I'm stuck to this path for the time being.

The cover for my preferred author's state of DEADLOCKED, A Novel of the Zombie Apocalypse. Starring Roland Thompson and a large cast of supporting characters.

And, of course, THE EMISSARY is available for purchase on Saturday, November 30, 2019.

THE EMISSARY Goes Live!

The Kindle version of the new book is up and available for pre-order. The paperback should pop up in a day, maybe two. It's good to see a new book come to print, since it has been a couple of years since my last novel.

From the author of THE FLOCK comes THE EMISSARY, a novel of modern fantasy and horror.

In the North Carolina mountains the town of Jasperton has lost a fading enchantment that has protected it for almost one hundred years from an ancient curse. Martin and Amy Braun, separated, and their marriage almost at an end over the death of their young son, suddenly find themselves reunited to care for a lost child who bears a striking resemblance to their deceased boy. As the town begins to fall victim to the rising influence of an aged evil, they must decide if the child is an emissary for salvation, or for the malignant forces gathering within the town.

THE EMISSARY by James Robert Smith. I was very, very happy with the cover art!

Two Obsessions.

I have two obsessions in my life. One of them is writing, and the other is my pursuit of outdoor activities. The workday world has always pulled me in the opposite direction of both of these interests. One has to earn a living, in my case as a laborer, and that often makes it difficult to find the time to create or to retreat to a wild area where I can find solitude and peace.

Since I mainly write in seclusion, I find a similar peace when I create stories as I do when I hike or kayak to a far, isolated place to be surrounded by nature. And the journey to find quiet and to listen to the sounds of the wind in the trees or the calls of birds, absent of the growl of machinery helps to spur my imagination which, in turn, spins the wheels that grind the fiction.

I hope to always be an outdoorsman. If I could not walk into a deep forest or hike to the top of a peak separated from the cityscape, I would be lost. Similarly, if I was robbed of the pleasure to write stories and novels I would find myself in a great deal of pain.

So if you don't see me for a while or hear from me, be assured that I'm either creating a new story, or sitting quietly in a forest somewhere, observing the movements of Mother Nature.

Heart Rock at Pinnacle Park in Sylva, NC.

Climbing to the Pinnacle in Sylva, NC.

A CONFEDERACY OF HORRORS By James Robert Smith.

Bookstores!

I buy a lot of books. Unless I'm really short of funds (I put a lot of money into my 401k, so I do run short of money from time to time), I only buy new books from living authors (to make sure they get royalties). And, since I am not a fan of ebooks and I don't care for the looming publishing monopoly of Amazon.com I tend to purchase my books in bookstores.

For many reason I prefer bookstores and real books. I like browsing the shelves and I enjoy being able to pick up a book and leaf through it, making sure that it's the kind of book that will satisfy me.

This past week I was in one of the few remaining bookstores in my area. Yes, it was a superstore, but there are only a few independent booksellers remaining in my city and I wasn't near one of those. And I like Barnes & Noble bookstores anyway. I get a charge out of just being in a bookstore like that. I can pretend that publishing is not on its last legs and that the industry is dying and that soon there won't be any bookstores.

Walking around the stacks like that I get a sense of delight. I was not alone and the place was crowded and I was not the only one in there buying books. In fact, I had to wait in line to make my purchase. The couple in front of me spent almost $200 on books. I spent $36 and my wife spent $20 and I wasn't around to see how much the people behind me were spending. It felt good. I liked seeing that there is still a place where skilled authors can appear in print and people will stand in line to buy their work. It's going to be sad to see that all come to an end.

My take at the bookstore Friday night: REDSHIRTS by John Scalzi, and THIS BOOK IS FULL OF SPIDERS by David Wong.