A Sample of Hollow Shell: Part One

“What have I done?” Chris said as he slid down the living room wall.

A faint trail of gray smoke rose from the gun, slowly dissipating into the atmosphere and stinging his running nose. His hands shook uncontrollably, so bad the gun almost fell from his limp grasp.

“Why, God? Jesus…Why?” he gasped, the tears starting to roll down his stubbly face.

With each passing moment, panic at the realization of what he had just done started to settle in. It was a sickening feeling developing deep in the pit of his stomach. He felt a wave of nausea wash over him. He closed his eyes, drew in a deep breath, and let it out slowly.

Why am I calling out to God? he thought, as the idea of asking an all-mighty and benevolent creator for help had proved to be a waste of time. God didn’t seem to be present at the moment he put a bullet right between the eyes of his loving parents and once beautiful sister. Those same eyes that gazed down on him the day he was born. Eyes at one time filled with unconditional love, now glazed over in a pale aqua-blue glow. The look they once bore replaced with an insatiable hunger. Chris couldn’t let them live like that. His sister, so beautiful and caring; so young and full of dreams, had been turned into a deformed creature. There was nothing left of who she once was. The same sister Chris beat up a playground bully for. The same sister whose ice cream cone hit the floor and Chris readily gave her his. The thought of her pain made him tear up and the urge to scream rushed up through his throat like vomit.

She had come toward him with the same look as his parents, those hungry, lifeless eyes. His hand made steady by a surge of adrenalin gave him a brief moment of clarity and precision, though his vision had become blurry with tears. The sound of her moaning and shuffling feet became louder as she moved closer. He aimed, closing his eyes as he pulled the trigger, feeling the hammer kick back and the gun jolt in his hand. The abrupt discharge was followed by a soft thud. He opened his eyes and in that moment came to the sick realization that he was an only child and an orphan. All done by his own hands.

One more bullet left in the chamber, he thought to himself, and that one is going to be for me.

The searing heat of the gun singed the inside of his mouth, but he didn’t care. One squeeze and everything would be all right. Just a loud noise, maybe a little pain and his troubles would cease to exist. Or maybe there wouldn’t be any pain at all. It would be a coward’s way out, but given the current events and his decaying mentality, it felt like the right thing to do. He closed his eyes tight as his finger slowly depressed the trigger. Just a little more, he thought. Just do it!

Buy Hollow Shell: Part One

The Inspiration Behind “The Lady With Teeth Like Knives”

It’s pretty cool when you get to a point in your career where publishers invite you to anthologies. The days of blindly subbing a story to an anthology are dwindling, but with getting an invite, added pressure mounts. The publishers trusts you to deliver them a good story, and believe me there is nothing more embarrassing than being invited to participate in a book (usually with names much bigger than yourself) and then getting that rejection letter in the mail. Ouch.

Stuff of nightmares! 

I’ve come to admire the awesome people of Blood Bound Books. Marc, Theresa, and Joe are some of the nicest people in the business. However, much like the way I conduct business, friendship comes second when dealing with stories and books to be published. In fact, I received a very kind rejection from them for one story, and while it sucked because I wanted in the book so bad, it was the right thing to do. (Remember, when writing for an extreme horror anthology, make your story gross.)

I received an email from them for their new anthology titled Blood Rites. I’m not really into short fiction so much, so when tasked to write a story, I try to think of something a little unique and original. I had just watched the movie Insidious, and there is a part where it focuses on this horrific ghost lady, smiling with a row of sharp teeth. That image stuck with me the most from the movie, and I decided to make a story around it. In fact, I wrote the entire story while sitting in my truck at work one day. Just penned it out quick on a yellow paper tablet, went home, and then typed it up. Don’t you love it when inspiration strikes?

The tale is simple, and follows the story of a man who thinks he got away with murder. However, he finds himself haunted by the sinister ghoul, a lady whose teeth resemble knives. To my delight, the Blood Bound Staff thought enough of it to include it in their anthology, and what an anthology it is! I highly recommend getting it and adding it to your collection.

Buy this book, seriously!

Authors include: Brian Lumley, Joe McKinney, Nathan Crowder, Lisa Morton, Daniel O'Connor, Jeff Strand, John McNee, K. Trap Jones, Maria Alexander, Ed Kurtz, Desmond Warzel, Mark C. Scioneaux, Brad C. Hodson, Gregory L. Norris, Monique Bos, Aric Sundquist, Christopher Hawkins, Chad McKee, Adrian Ludens, Bryan Oftedahl, Angela Bodine, Matt Moore, and Douglas J. Lane. 

Visit the Publisher: Blood Bound Book Website

Buy the Book: Blood Rites

Hollow Shell and The Walking Dead

I start this blog post begging you not to misunderstand the intention of comparing my fledgling zombie serial to one of the greatest zombie sagas of all time. This is merely a way for me to get along the point of why do people love zombies so much, when it seems plenty consider them some sort of hot fad. I have news for you: zombies aren't going anywhere.

The Walking Dead is one of my favorite zombie stories ever, and that is because it focuses on what I like to focus on when I write about our ghoulish friends: the people. Post-apocalyptic stories have always been popular because it allows the reader a chance to reset their life and start on a platform where everyone is equal. Whether they have been a CEO or a janitor, when society collapses, it doesn't matter. A story like TWD holds our interest so well because the world has just been reset. As we see, some of the strongest and most ruthless survivors in the series came from low-level jobs. The world ending allowed them a new beginning, and a chance to act how they always wanted to; free from rules and societal norms. People love TWD because they place themselves in these crews trying to survive, and as their favorite characters struggle on with life, so does the reader contemplate what their decisions would be.

The zombies are merely a catalyst for the world to end. Whether it be an epic plague, a natural disaster, or even a nuclear attack; society has collapsed. The zombies are just one more thing to survive against in a world gone mad, and with people becoming hardened psychopaths, one must ponder who is just more evil: a mindless ghoul or a savage person?

I wrote Hollow Shell before TWD was even created, but waited six years before working on it and introducing it as a Kindle serial.  There are plenty of unintentional similarities (as there are in most books that focus on a zombie infested world) but the strong bond they share is the attention to human interaction. I try my best to write strong characters that the reader will care about and resonate with. When I read a book, I want characters I will care about, characters I will hate, and characters whose pain and emotions I will feel alongside them.

Though not a complex as TWD universe, Hollow Shell forces two very different people to become friends and start a journey together that will lead them down some very dark paths. Their faith and sanity will be tested as they learn to adapt to this unforgiving land that will kill you in the blink of an eye if you let your guard down. Part One and Two are both available, and for only $0.99, I think you’ll find it to be a fun, quick read that will hopefully have you wondering what happens next.

Cover Art for Hollow Shell: Part One 

Buy Part One: Hollow Shell: Part One

Buy Part Two: Hollow Shell: Part Two