Friday, May 31, 2013

An Introduction to Diabolique Magazine - "Biggest 'Ah-Ha!' Moments in Writing." - Greg Petaloudis



The following is an introduction to a magazine that tells it like it is. Further articles coming from them.
About Diabolique




About D I A B O L I Q U E:  Just a little over two years ago, a small group of artists, movie industry veterans and writers formulated idea to create a new kind of magazine aimed at discerning fans with a sincere interest in horror (both classic and contemporary) and the macabre… the kind of stimulating genre magazine that treats its readers with respect. The intent was to strive for the highest possible journalistic standards rather than pander to film studios and publish sugar coated press releases disguised as articles. Thus, D I A B O L I Q U E was born... a horror genre magazine that fosters a new kind of genre writing: one that engages the intellect, the heart, and the imagination...  aimed at intelligent adults. 

WHY D I A B O L I Q U E IS  DIFFERENT?  D I A B O L I Q U E is a lavishly illustrated, full color print and digital publication that explores every aspect of the horror genre, including film, theatre, literature, art, music, history and culture. It reveals fresh perspective and analysis of subjects old and new, from ancient folklore and Gothic classics to contemporary film releases and modern literary gems. Each issue overflows with a mixture of reviews, opinions, interviewsand feature articles. Contributors have included such horror genre  luminaries as Jonathan Rigby, David Del Valle, David Huckvale, Paul Murray, and Elizabeth Miller among others. In each new issue, readers will always find insightful commentary and criticism, with engrossing informationcomplemented by unique art, illustrations, and visually stunningfull-color design.

OUR GOAL: We have just produced issue #16, and so far, D I A B O L I Q U E has garnered worldwide acclaim from horror critics, studios, actors, directors and fans alike.  By presenting in-depth coverage & reviews, rare studio art work, visually stunning images, concise commentary & exclusive articles from a world-wide network of established writers and other experts including ones outside the usual genre circuit, D I A B O L I Q U E imparts a fresh perspective on the classics and many other exceptional Horror films that may be totally new to most readers. Additionally, D I A B O L I Q U E is printed on very high quality, heavy gloss paper, so each issue is a true Collector's item!

Many exceptional Horror, Sci-Fi  & Fantasy films have already been produced and are still currently being directed in different countries. Sadly, many that would greatly appeal to American movie audiences go largely unnoticed by "mainstream critics" and horror films fans alike!  D I A B O L I Q U E is changing all that by actively pursuing relationships with  authors & noted critics who specialize in Foreign Horror movies. 

To subscribe or purchase single copies, log onto: www.diaboliquemagazine.com


Sincerely, 
                   Greg Petaloudis
     Director of Marketing & Promotion
                HorrorUnlimited.com
          DIABOLIQUEmagazine.com

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Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Full Circle - Keith Minion - "Biggest 'Ah-Ha!' Moments in Writing."



     My “Ah-Hah!” Illustration Moment

     1959 – I was in Miss Sporty’s kindergarten class, and I happened to pick up a big picture book called “The Golden Book of Dinosaurs.” The illustrations were simply amazing. The book literally began the direction of my life because I started drawing, copying the dinosaurs in crayon, over and over again, creating what was my very first serious art. By Second Grade I was so good at it I was swapping T-Rex sketches for Twinkies.

     1973 – I was attending a prestigious art school in New England taking a Water Media Painting studio because (I was told) the professor taught traditional egg tempera painting techniques, skills I desperately wanted to learn. The professor was an elderly white-haired pipe-smoking gent who tended toward bulky hand-knit sweaters and ran a very low-key studio: you painted, he went one-on-one with you when you asked, and you learned. His name was Rudolph Zallinger.

     One day Professor Zallinger asked if we would mind seeing some of his own work. The next class he arrived with a small, framed painting covered in a towel. He set it on an easel, and lifted the towel away, revealing a Jurassic scene of a T-Rex-type carnivore taking a bite out of a Triceratops-type herbivore. My mouth dropped open, and I stammered, “That’s an illustration from ‘The Golden Book of Dinosaurs’.” Zallinger smiled around his pipe. “Why yes it is,” he said.

     Circle complete. 



Keith Minnion sold his first short story to Asimov’s SF Adventure Magazine in 1979. He has sold nearly twenty stories and novelettes since. Keith has illustrated professionally since the early 1990s, and has also done extensive graphic design work for the Department of Defense. He lives in a small town in eastern Pennsylvania. He is a former schoolteacher, DOD employee, and officer in the U.S. Navy. Keith has a short story collection called “It’s For You” out in print from White Noise Press, and in all the electronic formats with Crossroad Press. He also had a long story called “Island Funeral” published in 2011 in chapbook format by CD Publications. His first novel called “The Boneyard” (published as “The Bone Worms” in electronic formats from CD Publications in 2011) will be republished in 2013, greatly revised, in both soft and hardcover from Bad Moon Books. Stories in Eulogies II and Postscripts are also forthcoming.





A note about the article: If you follow your passion wherever it leads, your hard work and dedication will bring you full circle. You might learn from the one who inspired you to start your journey. You might be sitting next to the writer you have always admired at a signing. If we don't forget what it was like to be that kid absorbed in a picture book, then we won't lose that sense of wonder and imagination. And what is art but the expression of our imagination?  - Draven

Monday, May 27, 2013

Drafts - Brandon Ford - Biggest 'Ah-Ha!' Moments in Writing



Drafts
By Brandon Ford
             I’m ashamed to admit it, but when I first started stringing words together and creating my own stories, I was very much a one-and-done writer.  I’d complete a first draft and think of the work as finished, spelling and grammatical errors and all.  Not only that, but I wasn’t at all apprehensive about passing out these so-called “completed manuscripts” to friends and relatives in hopes of receiving feedback.  Okay, who the hell am I kidding?  I wasn’t hoping for notes.  I was hoping for praise.  I was hoping for “It’s brilliant!  I loved it!  Keep it the way it is!” because to be perfectly honest, I had absolutely no intention on editing or, God forbid, completing another draft.

             When I was in my late teens, I became more serious about my craft and began generating multiple drafts.  My “ah-ha” moment came when I saw the way the piece began to take shape the more time I dedicated to it.  I found that I got more ideas and the story became much more fleshed-out.  A fifty-page novella soon became an eighty-page novella.  Or a fifteen-page story became a twenty-page story.

              Nowadays, I never consider any work complete, whether it’s a short story, a novella, or a full length novel, unless I do at least two drafts.  The second draft is where the story really comes to life and I begin to see and realize things that never would’ve occurred to me had I not sat down to begin the first chapter again.  Only when I’m in the moment do I realize what should happen where and to whom.  I was never one of those writers who printed out drafts and made little notes in the margins or between lines.  For me, the best way to edit and revise is to simply begin again.  Anything less than two drafts is just lazy, plain and simple. I encourage you to do the same.




Brandon Ford (b. 1981 - ) is an American author of horror and suspense fiction. To date, he has written 3 novels (CRYSTAL BAY, SPLATTERED BEAUTY, and PAY PHONE) and a collection of short stories (DECAYED ETCHINGS). He has also contributed to several genre anthologies, including: CREEPING SHADOWS (a collection of three short novels), THE DEATH PANEL, SINISTER LANDSCAPES, MADE YOU FLINCH, and RAW: BRUTALITY AS ART. He currently resides in Philadelphia.

 His Amazon page is here.

Sunday, May 26, 2013

Don't Believe Your Eyes - Kimberly A. Bettes - Biggest 'Ah-Ha!' Moments in Writing



Our eyes are deceptive little buggers. They often see things for what they should be, not what they are. I learned this the hard way, after spending hour after hour, day after day working on a novel. I’d already learned years before that you never edit as you write. My new approach was to write it, and then immediately go to the beginning and start the editing process. After working my way to the end, I was satisfied that I’d found all the mistakes. Then time passed, and I decided to read the story. I was blown away to find that there were still mistakes hidden among all those words. So as it turned out, my new approach was wrong too. I then had to figure out why. Why wasn’t I catching all my mistakes? What was I doing wrong?

For my next novel, I decided to try something different. I wrote it, making notes of anything I needed to change during edits, and then I walked away from it. I worked on other projects, piddled around the house, whatever I wanted to do. But I didn’t as much as think about that novel for months. Then, I was ready. I tackled that sucker, and was absolutely amazed at how much easier it was to edit after I’d distanced myself from it. The words were fresh, and therefore it was easy to spot mistakes. Enough time had passed that my eyes didn’t see what should’ve been there, there saw what was (or wasn’t) there. It was an amazing moment for me to realize that this is the way it should be done. This was the secret. Write it, walk away. Edit, walk away again. Edit one more time, just to be sure.

Distancing yourself from your work ensures that you will find more of your mistakes. To find even more, read your work aloud as you edit. It’s harder for your eyes to trick you if they have to relay messages to your mouth. Your mouth will rat them out if they’re lying.





Kimberly A. Bettes is the author of several novels, including Held and Rage. She lives with her husband and son in the beautiful Ozark Mountains of southeast Missouri, where she terrorizes the residents of a small town with her twisted tales. It’s there she likes to study serial killers and knit. Serial killer who knit are her favorites. Her latest book, TWISTED, is available now at online retailers.

Find out more Kimberly here.