Well, I promised big news for The G.O.R.E. Score’s book series in the blog, and I’m not one to disappoint, so let’s get right to it.
After many months of self-publishing the first volume through Amazon and now being on the eve of the release of Volume 2, I’m thrilled to announce that The G.O.R.E. Score has been optioned by a publisher for a distribution deal!
I will be working with the talented team at Living Dead Press, who is also very excited about the opportunities that this collaboration will bring. Some of you astute readers will no doubt recognize LDP’s name as not only being the publishers of a few anthologies that my short stories have been featured in, but they are also the publisher of my upcoming book “Reviews of the Dead: 25 Zombie Movies to Die for.” The effort with The G.O.R.E. Score will be a true collaboration: LDP will act more as the distributor of the book, leaving the creation and editing of all the internal content of the book itself solely under my authority. LDP brings resources to the deal that I could only dream of: in addition to having both an established catalog of books and a rabid fan base, they are also well-ingrained in the horror community from a marketing standpoint as well. They routinely have ads in national magazines and publications like Fangoria and Rue Morgue, and they are ad sponsors for many horror conventions, including the upcoming HorrorHound convention right here in Indianapolis next month.
So, what does this deal mean for The G.O.R.E. Score, you might ask? Well, it impacts the book series only; the website and my routine for business there will remain unchanged. As for Vols. 1 and 2 of the print versions, both are undergoing some “window-dressing” changes before they are released under the Living Dead Press banner. We are taking this opportunity to change up the cover style of the series, as well as enhance the written content in the book with accompanying images as well.
It’s important to note for those of you who own Vol. 1 already, that there will be no changes made to the actual written content of the book. What you have on your shelves now is the exact same writings that will be available in the Second Edition. As I mentioned, the only changes are cosmetic: the change in cover style and the adding of images of each reviewed item’s movie poster, book cover, etc., to accompany every review. Vol. 2, since it has yet to be released, will see the light of day under the new formatting only, and the working idea for its cover is being scrapped in favor of the new design we’ve adopted.
And what is this fantabulous new approach to the covers, you might ask? So glad you asked! First, I want to note that for the cover revisions, I am continuing to work with my existing über-talented cover artist and brother-in-law, the incomparable Tom Schriner. The new covers will move away from the graphical representation of “Zombie Tony” as he reviews various works; instead, each cover will pay tribute, via homage, to different classic zombie movie posters, lovingly altered in parody to better reflect the tone and style of my writings. Tom and I, with the input and suggestions from the publisher, have been hard at work on mock covers for both books, and while we are not quite ready to officially announce which two timeless movie posters we have chosen to parody, we hope to be able to share that with you very soon, within the next week or two. Suffice it to say that these bad boys are going to look AMAZEBALLS, and the more I work with Tom on creating these masterpieces, the more excited I get to bring this new style of cover to life!
Those of you who have existing copies of Vol. 1 and the great cover it sports (and that includes mine and Tom’s poster-sized copies we have on our walls), consider yourselves lucky owners of a limited-supply, First Edition masterpiece! This version of the book will soon be pulled from Amazon and other retailers, in order to prepare for the re-worked edition and the release of Vol. 2, which should both be happening at roughly the same time. It’s an exciting time to be on-board with The G.O.R.E. Score, there is no doubt about that!
I’ll be sure to let everyone know both when the cover images are released, and when the books are actually live (undead?) and for sale. As always, the support and feedback I have been given thus far on both The G.O.R.E. Score and all my writings in general has been sincerely appreciated, and know that I literally could not do this without each and every one of you. Deeply, I thank you.
P.S. Don’t forget to visit http://tinyurl.com/dla2010 and vote for me in the Dead Letter Awards! Please cast your vote for The G.O.R.E. Score and I in the categories of Best Book, Non-Fiction/Reference and Best Zombie Website. Also, if you are so inclined, feel free to write my name in for the Fresh Meat Award, which honors the newcomer to the genre that has made the most impact over the last year. You do NOT have to vote in all categories, and you only have to leave your name and e-mail address, to help them watch for multi-sub entrants. Many thanks to all who have voted or who will click on the link and vote – voting ends in early March, so why not do it now, eh?
Currently Listening to: Barenaked Ladies "Maybe You Should Drive" (1994)
