Publicly humiliated

So almost a month ago I recv’d an email from a blogger who said she saw the book trailer for The Darkness and wanted to know if she could request a paperback copy to review and use as a giveaway on her blog. Sure, I send it off.

About an hour ago I got the most hateful email I have ever gotten from anyone. It was the blogger who requested the book and she out of her mind saying that she does not review books that goes against the grain of her faith. I got to her blog and the 1st thing I see is a copy of The Darkness with pages ripped out burning in her fireplace. Her post was an uncensored version of the email she sent. She has over two thousand followers and there were a lot of comments to her post…

A lot of hateful, racially and religiously derogatory comments. I can not even begin to tell you how upset I am, I feel like I’ve been spit on my stomach hurts and I have been reduced to tears. I tried self-medicating by eating some chocolate cake but its not working because it doesn’t even taste good.
I can’t write anymore because I can’t stop shaking

Sorry for the absence...

January 22nd 2012 Today’s Horrorscope:
Snakes, scorpions, and spiders – these things are just a few of the dangerous things in life you need not worry about. Deranged surgeons soliciting for a few unsuspecting patients to perform experiments on, however…

Dark days: Wednesday, Thursday

How to survive a horror movie tip # 44:
Stay on the fucking trail!

Happy News Years and sorry for the absence. I’ve been busy, a lot has happened since the last time I touched base with you guys, the 1st this in Artificial Light is now available for purchase! It was released Friday the 13th January 2012…14 days later than the projected December deadline. There are a few little things that I wished I had done differnenty but as a whole I am really happy with the way it turned out.

I’m already starting to get some reviews and so far so good!
http://www.amazon.com/Artificial-Light-Spectrum-Trilogy-ebook/product-reviews/B006WHJY0C/ref=cm_rdp_hist_hdr_cm_cr_acr_txt?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13412054-artificial-light-crystal-connor

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/reviews/Artificial-Light%2FCrystal-Connor/1108219208

Remember when I lost my mind and accepted a writing challenge in the middle of the rework of Artificial? Well my story “The Christmas Wish” was accepted and the anthology by NorGus press is now available for purchase as well.

I also have a story in Static Movement’s anthology “Sowing The Seeds of Horror.”

I am gearing up to go on another book tour and well as attending two conventions in the next few months. In March I will be in Salt Lake City with Tori Titus as we make it rain at World Horror Con and then I will be at Crypticon in May with Yvette Montoya for some more weather working in the Pacific North West.

As far as writing goes I have already begun working on Shadows but I think I am going to take the rest of January of so that I can recenter myself and let the 3rd story open itself up to me.

I'll talk you guys all later, have a safe week ahead!

The Federal Vampire & Zombie Agency’s (FVZA) legendary Dr. Hugo Pecos

Word of the Day: Quisling PRONUNCIATION: (KWIZ-ling) noun: A traitor, especially one who aids in invading enemy.

How to Survive a Horror Movie tip # 50
The full moon is not a good time to go out and "watch the stars in the country".

In his 30-year career with the FVZA, Dr. Hugo Pecos rose from fledgling scientist on the Zozobra Project to directorship of the entire Southwest Region. Dr. Pecos has his done his fair share to rid the country of vampires and zombies. Dr. Pecos agreed to take time out of his very busy schedule to grant me this interview.



Notes From The Author: Thank you Dr. Pecos for taking time out of your busy schedule to speak with us today. There is a plethora of information on your website explaining the purpose of the FZVA and the type of research that is being conduct at the Santa Rosa Institute. Was there one thing that prompted such an aggressive warning and public awareness campaign or was it a series of smaller events that forewarns of an ominous bigger picture?

Dr. Pecos: The main impetus for my site was the relaxing of regulations governing research of vampire and zombie blood and tissue. There was a stricter level of vigilance in the years after the FVZA was disbanded. Now that we’re 35 years away from that, restrictions have been relaxed and I’m concerned that we could have a problem.

NFTA: While you were employed by SRI you developed a vaccine that brought the vampire population down to acceptable levels. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that the populations of both vampire and zombie communities are on the rise. With that being the case do you feel that the FZVA academy in Albuquerque, New Mexico, along with FZVA offices around the country should be reopened?

Dr. Pecos: Yes, I do believe there should be, at the very least, one training and recruitment center for the FVZA. There are very unique challenges in combating vampires and zombies, and neither the military special forces or law enforcement are trained for it.

NFTA: Speaking of your tenure at SRI, Dr. Edward Westhead the current director of SRI was one of your students. Did you feel a sense of betrayal when he ended your employment?

Dr. Pecos: There’s no denying it hurts to get replaced, especially when you believe that you are in the right. Dr. Westhead was a good scientist at one time, but I think he got caught up in the politics of SRI. He put personal ambition above all else.

NFTA: I’m currently working on a story called The Lazarus Antidote, which is base wholly on the information from your websites srigenetics.com & fvza.org. Who was the first author or graphic novelist who contacted you in regards to requesting permission to use the information from your websites and how does it feel to know that your work has inspired so many other craftsmen in the genre?

Dr. Pecos: It’s great, I’m very happy to hear about these projects because they build awareness and that’s all I ever wanted with the site. I originally was approached by a movie company called Contrafilm about developing something based on the FVZA. They had partnered with a comic book company called Radical Comics and were looking for a project to team up on. Rather than pitch a story to a studio, they thought it would be better to have a tangible work—in this case a graphic novel—to show the executives. I hope to see more and I’m looking forward to your story. I love the title!


NFTA: Oh my gosh, thank you. I’m really excited (and a little nervous) for you to read my story as well. I was just really inspired when I found your website and just knew that there was a story there. Speaking of which there really is a ton of information on your two websites, how long did it take for you to have enough content to launch the sites?

Dr. Pecos: I believe there were only six pages of material when I launched the site back in April 2001. Over the next six months I kept adding to it and adding to it. I’ve slowed down in recent years, but I could probably keep adding to it for the next 50 years, if I can come up with an antidote to aging.

NFTA: Well I heard that the Santa Rosa Institute is working on that right now, lol just kidding! You have thousands of facebook friends and fans, and your youtube videos are reaching 30, 000 views, and I see at least one FVZA t-shirt or ball cap at every convention I go to. Did you ever image that the FVZA would be so significant in terms of Internet vampire and zombie research?

Dr. Pecos: Initially I wondered if anyone would ever visit the site, but the number of visitors grew steadily over the first year. The Internet has proven to be a great resource for information. Of course, you have to be savvy to separate the wheat from the chaff. It’s amazing to think how far zombie and vampire awareness has spread in just the last 10 years. I like to think I’ve had something to do with that, but there are a lot of people out there who are very thoughtful and diligent in their research.


NFTA: Speaking of conventions do you do the con circuit and if so what horror or zombie conventions do you or will be attending?

Dr. Pecos: I don’t like to travel anymore so I haven’t been to any conventions. I was asked to attend the New York and San Diego conventions. Maybe I will make one in the next year or two. They look like fun!

NFTA: They are! Dr. Pecos I cannot begin to thank you enough for your time today and with all the help you’ve provided me in writing The Lazarus Antidote. Before I let you go is there anything else you would like to add, or say to your fans, your opponents, or to Dr. Westhead?

Dr. Pecos: Thank you for helping to spread the word.

Find Dr. Pecos on Facebook!
For more information on the FVZA please visit:
www.fvza.org

For more information on the Santa Rosa Institute please visit: www.srigenetics.com

For more information on Radical Comics please visit http://radicalpublishing.com/

For more of Zombie Girl reviews please visit:
www.youtube.com/user/joyce3187

Challenge accepted!

Word of the Day: Retrodiction pronunciation: (ret-roh-DIK-shuhn) noun: Using present information to make an assertion about the past; an instance of such an assertion.

How to survive a horror movie tip #16:
Nothing is ever over if it is still night-time!

Ok, so what my idiot ass did in the smack dab ass middle of the final edits for Artificial AND a blog tour was accept a challenge to write a 2,000 to 5,000 word Christmas tell of terror…in just 20 days.

Well, I got it done!

I can only image what my editor is going to do when I present her with this project with its enhanced deadline.

Meanwhile back on the farm I am almost done with The Lazarus Antidote and it’s turning out to be one hellofa story, can’t wait for you guys to read it. Again sorry for the absence been writing like crazy.

The One Star Review

Word of the day:
Necropolis pronunciation (ne-KROP-uh-lis) noun:
A burial place, especially a large and elaborate cemetery belonging to an ancient city.

How to survive a horror movie tip # 8
Always check the back seat of your car.

I got my 1st “real” one star review today but and I have to tell you it wasn’t very insightful besides I’m not even sure it should be called a review as the reviewer states that the book wasn’t finished.

So I cruised thru Amazon and Goodreads to find & compare other one star reviews because in my opinion if a reviewer doesn’t finish the book then there shouldn’t be a rating or a review but what became unsettlingly clear is that I didn’t find any one star “reviews” what I found instead were some pretty mean and down right nasty comments, and I couldn’t help but wonder why so many people would gleefully leave these types of comments:

“The author and the editor really need to go back to school. Or possibly they are still IN school because I think a 3rd grade student could have done better.”

How does that help? But more importantly …who do you think you are?

“This is just one of these books you knew, going into it, that you were never going to like it, and yet, after you finish it, you remain with a sour taste in your mouth.”

If your going to call your self a “reviewer” basically a book critic and authors are bearing the cost of sending you their book, then don’t you have the obligation to 1 read the book and 2 give it a in- depth, well rounded review?

"One star, because I paid money for this. I'd give it 2 stars if it was free..."

After all the purpose of writing a review/critique is twofold: (1) identify the weaknesses in the piece and (2) offer some constructive advice to the author that might lead to improvement in the story. To just bash the story without providing something useful to the author is not really being professional.

The feedback below is for a short story of mine called The Lazarus Antidote and I am sharing this with you because I think this is what a constructive criticism is supposed to look like:

“As a customer, this wasn't necessarily my cup of tea as far as horror goes, so I'm probably going to be more critical than someone who would specifically be looking for a story like this...I had the same problem with Handling the Undead. I am also pretty blunt, so I hope I don't offend you.

As a reviewer, I thought the two "articles" at the beginning were a nice touch, but too long -- I could see some people wondering when the meat of the story will begin. The further I read into it, the more I liked it...the dialogue helped move the story along. I absolutely love how you divided up the story, instead of traditional chapters! Some other good points: the story is very original, and it looked like you may have actually done some research, instead of just making stuff up out of nothing.

Now, I may sound critical, but despite my personal feelings, I can think of several people who would truly enjoy a story like this, so I don't think you need to make any changes.”

And here is a review for The Darkness that is less than glowing:

“I had the privilege of reading an ARC of The Darkness, by Crystal Connor the other day. It was a slow starter, but I had to find out what was going to happen with Adam, and so it kept me reading until the end.

"I reacted to this book the way I react to some of Dean Koontz's work-one minute I'll be loving it and then a few pages later I've become detached from the story. "I used to call you Mommy." I admit, prior to that sentence I was a little bored.

But suddenly I wanted to know all about this mysterious caller. That caller was Adam. I did have trouble connecting to the characters. We also get a lot of names of colleagues and organizations thrown at us in the beginning of the book, but not a real sense of who anyone is. I think the author did this on purpose-it seems to highlight Adam's early lifestyle, for instance.

We're pages in before we're 'introduced' to our narrator/main character, Artemisia, and I never did get around to liking her. But again, I don't think she was meant to be likeable. I don't always love books of this genre. But that's a personal quirk and shouldn't be reflected on the author. If you enjoy sci fi and horror, there's every chance you'll enjoy this book.”

If you’re going to call yourself a reviewer and you’re reaping the benefits of free books then get off your pretentious high horse and read and review the books and keep your nasty comments out of it. You need to realize that, the NaNoWriMo aside, it takes six months to a year to write a book and that’s before the rework.

If you come across a book you simply cannot finish take it to Half Price Books and trade it in for one you will read. Or better yet, why don’t you write a book and let’s us review it. I promise someone will be just as nice to you as you were when writing a review.

Then you’ll know what it feels like when someone comes along and says this about your work.

“So I'll leave it with one star, because it certainly doesn't deserve two stars. Now it sits in my Bookmooch pile, waiting to be requested so that I can pawn it off on some other unsuspecting fool. Hopefully it will end up somewhere far enough away so that the reader won't try to hunt me down and take revenge on me for the pain I have inflicted on them.”

My Apologies

Word of the day:
Nubile (NOO-bil –byl, NYOO-) adj
1.Sexually attractive (referring to a young woman)
2.Ready or suitable for marriage (referring to a young woman)

How to survive a horror movie tip # 31
If it stars snowing on the inside of your house and the hallway gets real dark … take your dumb ass outside!

I am so sorry about my absence and silence, I’ve got a lot going on and am really busy but in the best way.

For one Artificial Light is almost done (whoo hoo!), I am gearing up to go one another blog book tour and I’ve also started working on the 3rd book in The Spectrum Trilogy =D Oh! A 2nd edition of The Darkness is in the works and I have been confirmed as a vendor at World Horror Con!!!!!

TTYGS

Testing mobile blog posting

Sent from my HTC smartphone on the Now Network from Sprint!