“The world only exists in your eyes. You can make it as big or as small as you want.”
“You don’t write because you want to say something, you write because you have something to say.”
“All good writing is swimming under water and holding your breath.”
Many of you have probably been wondering where the heck I’ve been, blogging two, three times per month. Well, lately I’m going through a very hectic divorce. Yes, I’ve split up and moved away from my now ex-significant other. We shared four wonderful years together as a couple, gave birth to a scifi nut for a toddler, but with a 70% divorce rate in the United States, hey, sometimes these things are not meant to last. On June 10th (and maybe beyond), it’s all about who gets the custody and visitation and when and where (I’ll probably get the kid on the weekends). But New York Court can be a dragging process when it comes to this. I’d like to thank all of my friends I grew up with in Manhattan, my friends in Brooklyn, all of my very supportive friends–all 2,500 of you–on Facebook, for cheering me up, for being there for me. Even though there is more legal stuff ahead, a lot of you took the teary moments and depression away. I’d like to also thank you for your privacy concerning all these family matters at this time. Sometimes love is not meant forever. What this does mean, however, is I need to get my ass writing more when all this is over. I have a roof over my head. It’s a room… cozy… $500 a month with utilities (I know peeps), and for a Native New Yorker and Bohemian like myself it will suit me just fine. I feel as if I’ll get more work done now. Perhaps better work, as I’ll be able to concentrate. Oddly enough though, the way the visitation proceedings are playing out—minus the paranormal elements, of course—they’re roughly 70% similar to my first Amazon Kindle title: Visitation Rights.
for Amazon Kindle and most other Digital Readers/Platforms
Sometimes very small fragments of art imitate life…
…and sometimes very small fragments of life imitate art.
Damnation Books – Direct Link:
http://www.damnationbooks.com/book.php?isbn=9781615720088
Other Amazon Kindle & eBook Titles by Dagstine:
https://lawrencedagstine.com/ebooks-kindle-dagstine/
ISBN 13: 978-1-61572-008-1
ISBN 10: 1-61572-008-1
Welcome to my life…
In the next couple of weeks I will be continuing my bimonthly series of Free Fiction. This time I will be serializing a science fiction-themed novella about two orphans that get stranded during an interplanetary adoption. It takes place on the largest planet in the universe — The planet Ragnarok (aptly named after the warring Gods of Norse Mythology, which later supposedly caused a lot of catastrophes concerning Mother Nature and the like for Mankind). You’ll understand why as you get into it over the course of the year. There are even a few flashback sequences similar to the series LOST. On Ragnarok, Quadrant 4, located on the outer rim of the Cat’s Eye Nebula, like most of my worlds, there are eighteen seasons. Unlike Earth, which has only four. The good guys are a bunch of giant lizards with chest communicators. Think the Silurians from Doctor Who, only bigger, stronger. Bad guys are a bunch of elemental wind creatures who harvest meat by “shadowy” & “vampiric” means. These guys are the horror element to the story. Main orphan characters are Chelsea and Blake, and you are sure to fall in love with these two kids. Mind you, this serial is FIRST DRAFT, so if you see the occasional typo or a bit of redundancy, I don’t plan on publishing this anywhere but my homepage. Entertainment purposes only. I could best describe the early portions as a cross between Lord of the Flies, the movie Pitch-Black, and Living Amongst the Lizards (short story). Serials shall run between 2,500 and 5,000 words in length. Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, etc. Once again, all first draft.
I already have a batch of finished short stories and novelettes set in these two eras. Some accepted, too.
Story One: “A Town of Crows” – Killer Scarecrows after the Civil War now appearing in Steampunk Tales #6. See eBooks & Kindle.
Story Two: “A Time and Place for Monsters” – a very long novelette with vampires and werewolves during the Great Depression coming to Cover of Darkness. Also, a bit of back history concerning President Hoover and The Monsters. Never before done.
Story Three: “The Two-Sided Market” – Dedicated to H.G. Wells/Parallel Piece.
Story Four: “The Great Martian Depression” – Scifi currently appearing in The Martian Wave Issue#1.
Story Five: “FDR and the Locusts” – Franklin D. Roosevelt and BIG Insects, with a plot twist.
Cleopatra VII - Brooklyn Museum of New York 2008 - 2009
There are two finished stories, finally edited, featuring Cleo as a fourteen-year-old. They take place between Ancient Egypt and Rome. Alternate History meets Historical Fantasy, and there will also be mages, sorcerers, the undead, gods, and demigods! Also, the stories begin with Mark Antony as narrator for the first page and ends with him conceptually. Here, I decided to experiment.
Story One: “Young Cleopatra and The Whispering Ancients”
Story Two: “Young Cleopatra and The Eye of Horus.”
Story Three: UNTITLED (coming 2011, and concerning the suicide of Mark and Cleo).
Next, later in the year off to Pompeii and some more fiction in Rome. Introducing the Children of Ash short stories/novelettes. All stand-alone tales, which I often prefer.
Story One: “The Children of Ash” – After Volcano Day.
Story Two: “The Nightmare Lair” – Inside the Volcano.
Story Three: “The Vampires of Pompeii” – The Romans have some neighbors. 😉
I’m also thinking up a totally “messed-up” Caligula-style crossover piece as well. Of course, this is still not a guarantee that a market will accept all of them. Never is.
I also noticed that a lot of Fresh Blood PDFs were sold. Like 40 or 50 in the first two, three weeks. At $3.50, yeah, it’s a great price. If you own a reader, click on eBooks & Kindle and treat yourself to a copy. You can also now read PDFs on the Amazon Kindle, or download the free iPhone/iPad application off of Amazon.com as well. I’d like to thank all of you. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it. The same with my scarecrow story in Steampunk Tales #6 (www.steampunktales.com).
Other than that, there are ten brand new short stories and novelettes completed, my first novella is in the editorial screening stages, and ten brand new acceptances for 2010-2011. I wish I had the time to blog ten times per day, but life does not permit me such luxury. I’ll try and fit what I can. Historical stories take two, three weeks alone. However, some acceptances are to print anthologies. So stay tuned! SF serial starts Late April/May 2010. It’s gonna be fun!
Cheers,
Lawrence Dagstine
Print Magazines * Amazon Kindle * The iPhone/iPad * Sony & PDF Download
Other New Entries: “General News”
P.S.: Speaking of crazy historical tales, enjoy the new season of Doctor Who. Series Five with Matt Smith!
The scarecrows are finally here!!! Steampunk horror, Neo-Victorian literature, and pulp adventure and mayhem during the post-Civil War. A tale with a twist. An invasion of epic proportion! A novelette! Characters we care about, and an unexpected plotline. Hundreds of pages worth of Penny Dreadfuls for your pocket: PDF Format, iPad and iPhone, Mobipocket, and through Amazon Kindle! Featuring more than 500+ pages of fiction. Only $1.99 in most formats (Kindle prices may vary).
Steampunk Horror and the Post-Civil War!
Digital Novelettes and Thrills and Chills!
"A Town of Crows" by Lawrence Dagstine
*eBOOKS & KINDLE:*
Apple iPhone – iPad – iPod Touch – PDF Version – Amazon Kindle
“A TOWN OF CROWS” by Lawrence R. Dagstine
Hurry Up! Buy Now!
AUTHOR LINE-UP: G.D. Falksen, Joe Goodson, Lawrence Dagstine, Katherine Isham, Arkwright, Karl Custer, Larry C. Kay, John F. Montagne, Andrew Singleton. Cover Art by Brian Bowes. Steampunk Marketing, Evelyn Kriete.
Past Dagstine-Featured Editions!
"The Freak from the Past" by Lawrence Dagstine
Author’s Note: ‘probably one of my scariest novelettes to date…’
Other New Entries: “eBooks & Kindle” and “Magazines”
You can now purchase the PDF version of FRESH BLOOD: Tales from the Speculative Graveyard, downloadable to PC or Macintosh computers, Amazon KINDLE, and Sony eReader among other devices for only $3.50! That’s right, own 160 pages, all short stories for an affordable price. Fresh Blood, my 2009 debut collection, from Sam’s Dot Publishing. Electronic Format! Available at the War Gamer Vault. Link below. Or just click on the picture.
FRESH BLOOD by Lawrence R. Dagstine
Published by Sam’s Dot Publishing – Now a PDF!!
ORDER FRESH BLOOD – PDF for your Computer or Readers:
http://www.wargamevault.com/product_info.php?products_id=78120
In other news, certain Sam’s Dot Magazines will not only be available in print on their regularly released basis, but they too will eventually go into PDF format where you can download the publications to your readers (such as Cover of Darkness). I’ll be in a decent number of their pubs this year, so stay tuned for that. Also, I’ve had a lot of luck in the anthology department as of late. Anthologies, which can be found in the Books & Anthos section of this homepage, will now be released under “New Anthology” or “New Antho.” Also, expect “New Releases” and a Dagstine application and imprint. Once again, whatever can be purchased in print will be attainable for reading devices. Nothing overnight, but stay tuned.
Other New Entries: “Books & Anthos” and “eBooks & Kindle”
A chilling tale by Lawrence R. Dagstine
Added: The following picture above was obtained on MySpace.
Added: If you’re interested in this artist’s work, please visit his site and consider purchasing something: http://www.eeriepa.com/home/
My 2009 debut short story collection, FRESH BLOOD, filled with 160 pages of dark science fiction stories and twisted horror tales is now coming to PDF/e-Format. You can get it from one of the largest RPG retailers on the Web. DriveThruRPG.com! Or, for just a few dollars more, you can splurge for the print copy and see what all of last summer’s buzz was about. Just do a search for “Sam’s Dot Publishing”. It might take a while for the publisher’s page to go up.
Vampires * Zombies * Ghosts * Giant Lizards * Alternate Universes
FRESH BLOOD in PDF/E-Format - ISBN: 978-0-9819696-2-6
Order the PDF or e-Version for upload to your readers at… DriveThruRPG.com:
For a little more, the softcover version at The Genre Mall:
http://www.genremall.com/anthologiesr.htm#freshblood
Fresh Blood by Lawrence Dagstine - PRINT VERSION
Other New Entries: “Books & Anthos”
The Golden Age makes its return in digital format. So does the Industrial Revolution, Neo-Victorian Horror, and lots of other spooky historical tales. Come one, come all to Steampunk Tales! Where many adventures, horrors, and mysteries await. Some of the best short stories by short story giants and rising stars in the field. On my eBooks & Kindle page you too can order my brand new stories alongside many other talented authors within the Steampunk genre. And at a very affordable price. Behold the future of fiction magazines! Read them anytime, anywhere! Previous editions have featured such authors as Jay Lake, Catherynne M. Valente, G.D. Falksen, Jillian Venters, Phil Brucato, Brenda Cooper, and myself, among others.
Also appearing in Steampunk Tales #2
For your iPhone/iPod Touch, PDF, and KINDLE
Also check out Lawrence Dagstine in Issue #2:
https://lawrencedagstine.com/ebooks-kindle-dagstine/
Penny Dreadfuls * Victorian Pulps for your readers!
(*Also available as a PDF, Kindle, or through Mobipocket*)
Sample look at Steampunk Tales:
Other New Entries: “eBooks & Kindle” and “Magazines”
"Visitation Rights" by Lawrence Dagstine
Story: “Visitation Rights”
Type: Paranormal Drama
Pub: Damnation Books, 2009
www.damnationbooks.com
ISBN 13: 978-1-61572-008-1
ISBN 10: 1-61572-008-1
"The Freak from the Past" by Lawrence Dagstine
Story: “The Freak from the Past”
Pub: Steampunk Tales #2, 2009
www.steampunktales.com
Featuring 10 Semi-Pro & Professional Authors
KINDLE * SONY eREADER * iPHONE/iPOD TOUCH * PDA/SMART PHONES
Other New Entries: “eBooks & Kindle”
Welcome to the Internet premiere of my paranormal story in digital format, Visitation Rights. It is available for download to practically all manners of reading devices, and at a very affordable price. Read it on the bus, the subway, in your bed, or in the park. Visitation Rights (a different kind of ghost story; you’ll never see the ending coming), published by Damnation Books: www.damnationbooks.com
"Visitation Rights" by Lawrence Dagstine
AMAZON KINDLE (order direct):
MY eBooks & Kindle page:
https://lawrencedagstine.com/ebooks-kindle-dagstine/
ISBN 13: 978-1-61572-008-1
ISBN 10: 1-61572-008-1
With that said, join Damnation Books at KILLERCON 2009 this September in the biggest convention state in the U.S.: Las Vegas, Nevada.
Other New Entries: “eBooks & Kindle”
The Golden Age makes its return in digital format. So does the Industrial Revolution, Neo-Victorian Horror, and lots of other historical weird tales. Come one, come all to Steampunk Tales! Where many adventures, horrors, and mysteries await. Some of the best short stories by short story giants and rising stars in the field. On my eBooks & Kindle page you too can order my brand new stories alongside many other talented authors within the Steampunk genre. And at a very affordable price. Behold the future of fiction magazines! Read them anytime, anywhere!
Steampunk Tales – Issue #2
For your iPhone & iPod Touch
Penny Dreadfuls * Victorian Pulps for your readers!
(*Also available as a PDF or through Mobipocket*)
What exactly is Steampunk?
http://www.steampunktales.com/steampunk.html
Issue #2 Authors: Phil Brucato, David Wellington, Brenda Cooper, Jillian Venters, Arkwright, G.D. Falksen, Lawrence R. Dagstine, Mark Rossmore, Angie Montmartre, Philip Challis, and cover art by Paul Sizer.
More about Steampunk Tales:
Emulating the style of the pulp adventure magazines of the 1920s and ’30s, Steampunk Tales contains first-run, original fiction written by an A+ list of award-winning authors. Issue #1 contains 10 stories, each running between 4,300 to 11,000 words, for an unbelievable price. Authors contributing to issue #1 include Jay Lake, Catherynne M. Valente, Phil Brucato and G.D. Falksen. The cover art was painted by popular artist Melita “missmonster” Curphy.
Other New Entries: “eBooks & Kindle” and “Magazines”
It is with great pleasure that I announce a couple of things. One, now that the writing population is slowly starting to embrace the digital age, this site will not only act as a homepage and plug-page for magazines and upcoming science fiction, fantasy and horror venues, but also be a store. You will be able to buy and then download short stories, novelettes, and novellas — most brand new, no reprints — from yours truly. I am open to further freelancing, networking, and marketing with other authors if they too would like to be a part of this store (like trading purchase info links). I advertise you, you advertise me. I sell your work, you sell mine. With that said, stay tuned to this site between now and mostly 2010. The future may be digital, but it still looks good from where I’m at.
Alas, print is dying...
This site will also act as the occasional home of the “short story review”, the science fiction media news source and, later down the road, a new and unique kind of cross-marketing, branding-upon-branding, product placement and more. To be honest, I’m surprised most bigger houses haven’t jumped on a similar bandwagon yet. Who knows, maybe it’s because the economy is still shoddy. It’s what will also hopefully help fund the new venture come 2011. I’d have to say that 2010 will also see an end to a majority of all print-related periodicals in “genre” featuring my stories in it. I’ve been informed that 2011 would be a sort of conversion stage. Or a few months after Kindle 3 comes out and prices on readers drop. Whichever comes first. Oh well. However…
The best part of all this is you will be able to go to places like Mobipocket, Fictionwise, and Amazon. You will be able to own my works on such reading devices as the Sony eReader, Kindle, Jetbook, iTouch, and so much more. Matter of fact, my first e-title will be debuting shortly. So stay tuned to the tab at the top of this page, entitled: “eBooks & Kindle”.
Thank You,
Lawrence R. Dagstine
Edited to Add: Fresh Blood Contest also coming soon…
Press release 1 of 3, copied and pasted below:
Damnation Books
Trade Paperbacks, Novellas, Novelettes, e-Books and e-Stories
Killercon 2009 info: www.killercon.org
Ten to fifteen years ago, a new technology was developed called print-on-demand (POD). Publishers and small authors alike who didn’t know any better explored it as a means to getting their works into print. The Web, fairly new by publishing standards, helped become a vehicle for this phenomenon. Back in those days you didn’t have to worry about garages or basements filled with over 500 or more titles not being sold. No, you could order two or three at a time without having to sweat. Vanity presses took the most advantage of this, but now anyone and their mother can become a writer-turned-printer-turned-publisher (if you get the gist). Still, no matter how far POD has come, no matter how much it has been utilized and what it is capable of, media in the form of a virtual entity will eventually – no, I’m sorry, inevitably – reign supreme.
Amazon’s Kindle 2: http://www.amazon.com/gp/…548931&pf_rd_i=507846
So toward the end of February 2009, Amazon’s new eReading gadget, KINDLE 2 makes its stunning debut. You can go and preorder it now for a mere $359.00 – kind of steep, if you ask me – or you could wait five to ten years until every book, magazine, and news periodical known to man makes the switch regardless. And that goes for the unknown or semi-popular ones, too. Think about it: saving trees and saving money, even saving shelf space unlike ever before, while being able to listen to music, read your favorite blogs, and go wireless on buses and subways or the road. Amazon and Sony know what they’re doing. In these tough times, where publishing companies are laying off hundreds if not thousands, where pro and non-pro magazines are folding left and right or going on hiatus, companies like Amazon are taking small steps through the cracks into what I call the ‘future of written word-related media’.
E-publications are more cost-effective than print. So get with the program now, before it’s too late. I’ll miss hardcovers and paperbacks like every other reader or writer from my generation. But if we don’t assimilate now, we may be missing out on a mighty fine resurgence. Only in a different format.
What do you think of the Kindle 2, or eBooks and eReaders in general?
Come, take a KINDLE poll with me…
Cheers,
Lawrence R. Dagstine
Lawrence Dagstine: Author 
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