In anticipation of the October 20th release of her latest novel, Blood Game, author Iris Johansen finally talks about the eagerly-awaited new
thriller featuring forensic sculptor Eve Duncan. To see the video interview, go to:
www.irisjohansen.com

Writersprison.com is looking for some savvy interns to look over press releases, ferret out writing-related stories, and help us keep the content flowing on a regular basis. Time’s flexible, and you can pretty much focus on your favorite types of stories (so long as they’re well-written, of course). Need a good resume builder? Enjoy keeping your finger on the pulse of certain genres and the authors who fill the book shelves? Drop us a line at:

editor@chantingmonks.com

and we’ll get you started. We’re also looking for stringers who can cover book signings, public appearances, and anything related to the world of writing, so if you’re a bookworm who haunts your local Barnes & Noble, Borders or independently-owned book store, here’s a chance to get involved and spread the word about the work you’re passionate about. Got a great pic from a signing? Send it our way. Give us the basics (who, what, where and when) and we’ll post it in our gallery. Write up the event and it may wind up on our NEWS page. No regular commitment necessary.

#1 New York Times Best-selling Author Christine Feehan and Brenda Novak have announced FAN 2010, scheduled for March 5 – 7th in Sacramento, California aboard the 1920’s river boat The Delta King. According to Novak, the pair have been planning all kinds of fun, including parties and giveaways, with Saturday night devoted to a murder mystery dinner including some of Novak’s villains. Only 100 registrants can be accepted, so if you’d like to be a part of this sure-to-be-fantastic event, it’s recommended that you sign up fast. You can find all the details at:

http://www.fanconvention.net/

Having rebuilt author Franklin E. Wales’ website from the ground up, Mark E
Argerake of Keeper Web Design, has decided to expand his author’s clientele.
Basic sites (like Frank’s) are $300 to rebuild or create from scratch. If you need
something more than that, something more extravagant, Mark will customize
a quote based on your needs and budget. Keeper specializes in HTML,
JavaScript, PHP, MySql, eCommerce, CMS, among others.

For readers of Writer’s Prison, Mark has offered to knock $50 off the price,
as well as supply one free year of webmaster/maintenance services. Simply
mention Writer’s Prison, Joseph M. Monks, or Franklin E. Wales in the notes
section.

http://www.keeperwebdesign.com/

Prolific B-movie screenwriter and producer Harry Alan Towers, who made more than 100 films, working with such cult stalwarts as horror legend Christopher Lee and director Jess Franco, died July 31st at age 88, after a brief illness.

While Towers generally worked on low-budget fare, he favored literary adaptations by such writers as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Edgar Alan Poe, Agatha Christie and Edgar Wallace. During the 1960s and 1970s, he wrote and produced dozens of films, sometimes credited as Peter Welbeck. Numbered among the actors Towers worked with were well-known stars Orson (Citizen Kane) Welles, Michael York, Michael (Dressed to Kill) Caine, Richard Harris, James Earl Jones and Tony (Some Like It Hot) Curtis.

Towers often shot in exotic locations, such as South Africa, Ireland and
Bulgaria on films such as “The Face of Fu Manchu,” the Iran-filmed “Ten Little
Indians,” South African classic adaptation “Cry the Beloved
Country” and “Klondike Fever.” His association with Italian giallo auteur Franco produced films which have become underground classics, including “Venus in Furs,” “Eugenie,” “Marquis de Sade: Justine” and “Night of the Blood Monster.”

Longtime Vanity Fair correspondent Dominick Dunne, the journalist and bestselling author of numerous books and essays, who covered high-profile celebrity trials such as those of accused murderers O.J. Simpson, Eric and Lyle Menendez and Claus von Bülow, as well as the rape case of William Kennedy Smith, has died, according to his son, actor Griffin Dunne. He was 83. Dunne had been battling bladder cancer, and died at his Manhattan home.

Dunne’s books include the best-selling novels “The Two Mrs. Grenvilles,” “A Season in Purgatory,” and “An Inconvenient Woman,” among others. According to Vanity Fair, his final book, “Too Much Money: A Novel,” is due for release in December.

Dunne, who often wrote about the crossing paths of crime and high society, was no stranger to violence. His daughter, actress Dominique Dunne (Poltergeist), was murdered in 1982. The crime would impact all his future writings, and his career eventually swung into that of a columnist and correspondent as famous as the defendants he covered. A documentary on Dunne’s life, “After the Party,” is currently available on DVD.

Scott Grossberg, author of The Masks of Tarot and the creator behind Oracle Cards appears on The Unexplained World radio show, where he answered questions, Gave co-hosts Edward and Annette nothing-hidden readings, and took listener phone calls. Fans of the occult can hear the broadcast repeated here: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/tuw/2009/08/24/Unexplained-World

The folks putting on Santa Fe’s Left Coast Crime convention have updated their web site, and information about the March gathering can be found at: http://www.leftcoastcrime.org/2011/

Science Fiction author Toni Sweeney is the guest over at http://inspiration-ink.blogspot.com/, where she talks about her latest release, Blood Sin.

Michael Connelly announced via his mailing list and web site that 2008 bestseller, THE BRASS VERDICT (featuring Mickey Haller and series fave Harry Bosch), has been released as a mass market paperback in the USA and Canada. The softcover’s also available currently in the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand.

Author Jeffrey Deaver’s The Bodies Left Behind, (winner of the “Best Thriller Of The Year” award from the International Thriller Writers Organization) has just been released for the first time as a mass market paperback in the USA and Canada, according to Deaver’s web site. The book will be released in paperback in the UK and Ireland in October, 2009. Visit JeffreyDeaver.com to read an excerpt and an interview, watch a video, and hear a clip from the audiobook.

David Hine, best-known as a writer on superhero comic book titles such as X-Men, SPAWN and The Brave and the Bold, has turned his focus to horror with his new book, FVZA: Federal Vampire and Zombie Agency, due out this October. The series, which will feature double-sized monthly issues, will be available from Radical Comics. The folks at FANGORIA have scored an in-depth interview with Hine, which can be found here: http://bit.ly/p1mXz.

A must-have (or at least, must-read) for fans of the classic creatures which predated Jason, Freddy and Michael Myers, the heyday of the Universal Monsters is commemorated in the new book, Universal Studios Monsters: A Legacy of Horror, by Michael Mallory. Available from Universe Publishing, $40.00, the 252 page retrospective is chock full of screen shots and publicity photos, and extensively covers the work of the studio which turned so many monsters into icons. Currently available at Amazon.com

Indie filmmaker Danny Draven’s latest project isn’t a new fright feature, but instead The Filmmaker’s Book of the Dead, soon to be released by Focal Press. Meant as an educational tool for would-be moviemakers looking to break into the biz, the book touches on everything from preproduction to shooting to finding distribution, with input from a number of film professionals offering up advice and tales of lessons learned. Included are interviews with makeup F/X legend turned actor Tom Savini, Troma founder Lloyd Kaufman, Robert (Freddy Kreuger) Englund, Blood Feast and 2000 Maniacs creator Herschell Gordon Lewis and Charles Band (who provides the book’s foreword) among others. For more on the book and author, visit: http://bit.ly/gR7yy

Clive Barker’s Hotel, a script from co-writers Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton (who also penned Saw sequels IV, V and VI), has been picked up by ABC, according to the Hollywood Reporter. A haunted hotel is the centerpiece for a series of supernatural events, putting the project squarely in the scribes’ wheelhouse. Barker himself is attached as a producer, with Joe Daley on board as co-producer and McG’s Wonderland Sound and Vision in negotiations to produce as well, opening the door for McG to jump into the director’s chair if the project moves forward.

It was a sad weekend here at WP, as word came down that the body found near the abandoned vehicle belonging to Dale Hudson was indeed that of the true crime author. Our condolences go out to Dale’s wife and family. The true crime community has lost a good colleague and friend. Rest well, Dale, and thanks for leaving several books behind for us.

Three-time finalist and first-time Golden Heart award winner Kelly Ann Riley is interviewed this week at BodyCount Inc. Find the interview and more at: http://bodycountinc.blogspot.com

For fans of H.P. Lovecraft, good news. Cthulhu Unbound Volume 2, edited by John Sunseri and Thomas Brannan has been released. The collection features tales by Tim Curran, William Meikle, Peter Clines, Douglas P. Wojtowicz, Mark Zirbel and others. You can find Cthulu Unbound Vol. 2 at Permuted Press, Barnes & Noble, Amazon.com and other booksellers.

Frightmaster Douglas Clegg has put up a book trailer for his latest, Isis. You can view the trailer at http://www.IsistheVideo.com, where you can also sign up for Clegg’s newsletter (highly recommended) and keep up with the author’s current and upcoming projects.

Author Sephera Giron will be in New York City on Thursday, August 20th reading at IN THE FLESH. For more details, visit: http://inthefleshreadingseries.blogspot.com/. Giron can also be seen in the upcoming Slime City Massacre 2, Greg Lamberson’s recently-lensed sequel to, what else? Slime City Massacre. Giron plays Ruby, wife of cult leader Zachary. For more on Giron, visit her official site at: http://www.sepheragiron.com.