Konrath, J.A. - DRACULAS (A Novel of Terror)

BLAKE:Why release DRACULAS straight to Kindle?

JOE:A few reasons. First is one of publishers and rights. Having four authors collaborate on a book would be a nightmare to sell, because we all have print publishers who might want exclusives. Keeping it indie meant we weren’t bound by any preexisting contracts.

Second was speed. Self-publishing on Kindle allowed us to get this up in time for Halloween, whereas regular print would take a year to eighteen months.

Finally, we’re all selling well on Kindle, and it made sense to appeal directly to our fan bases.

BLAKE:Next up for me is finalizing a new book I’ve just finished. My first two novels, DESERT PLACES and LOCKED DOORS also just went up on Kindle for a reasonable $2.99, so I’m jazzed about that. “Serial,” which I wrote with Joe, is in the upcoming Shivers VI anthology, and I have a novella called “The Pain of Others” coming soon to Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine.

JOE:I’ve got two sci-fi ecopunk novels in the TIMECASTER series coming out in 2011 with Ace Berkley, and a few other super secret projects in the works. I’m writing the eighth Jack Daniels novel, called STIRRED, with Blake, which will also be the third in his Andrew Z. Thomas books (DESERT PLACES, LOCKED DOORS.) It’s a wrap-up to both of our series.

BLAKE:So we’re breaking that news here? Cool. I’m super-psyched to do STIRRED with Joe. The opportunity to work on a full-length novel with him and bring back a set of characters I’ve really been missing from my first two novels is a project I can’t wait to dive into.

JEFF:Next up for me is WOLF HUNT, which does for werewolves what DRACULAS did for vampires, except that I finished WOLF HUNT several months before DRACULAS, so actually it’s DRACULAS that does for vampires what WOLF HUNT did for werewolves. WOLF HUNT is funnier, though. My novella KUTTER, which is the heartwarming story (seriously!) about a sadistic serial killer whose life changes when he rescues a Boston Terrier (no, really, I’m serious about the heartwarming part), is going to be part of a two-novella collection called THE MAD & THE MACABRE, which also includes REMAINS by Michael McBride. And I’m working on other stuff.

PAUL:FATAL ERROR, the penultimate Repairman Jack novel, hit the street mid-October. Just finished a draft of THE DARK AT THE END, the (sort of) last Repairman Jack novel. I say “sort of” because the whole series ends with NIGHTWORLD which will come in 2012. Jack is a player in that novel, but the cast is an ensemble from across the Secret History.

JOE:What drew each of you to this project?

BLAKE:I loved the experience of writing “Serial” with Joe. It was a true collaboration in every sense of the word. Ever since we released that book, I knew I wanted to do something like that again, only bigger, a “Serial” squared, with double the writers, and of course, the story itself was going to have to be bigger. The prospect of essentially doing a vampire novel with four writers who could all more than hold their own in terms of scaring a reader to death really appealed to me. Considering the writers involved, I was expecting it to be a great experience. It turned out even better than I imagined. I work with Joe so much, I sometimes take it for granted what a huge fan of his I am as well, and working on this book, I was reminded of that again. Writing with F. Paul Wilson was a dream come true and a great privilege. I knew of Jeff’s work, but hadn’t read him yet. I will be correcting that oversight very soon, because man can he write!

PAUL:I know and have read all these guys. I met Jeff at various NECons over the years. Blake and I both drummed for the first Thriller Killer Band at the Phoenix Thrillerfest (he’s much better). I feel like I’ve known Joe forever, though I met him at a horror convention in 2004. Joe’s query came at a perfect time. I was just wrapping up the last Repairman Jack novel, THE DARK AT THE END, and had a window of free time. I’d worked with Joe before, knew, liked, and respected the other two participants, and this sounded like such a wild idea, how could I say no?

JEFF:When one is presented the opportunity to work on a collaborative novel with F. Paul Wilson, one says “Yes.” Joe and I had been lightly batting around the idea of a full-length novel collaboration ever since we’d finished SUCKERS. And I’d read Blake’s work based on Joe’s passionate recommendation and loved it. So basically I was just presented with an outstanding opportunity to piggyback off the success of everybody else, and took it.

JOE:I dug the main concept but didn’t have time to do it alone. It was fun working with you guys on other projects, so I was pretty sure we’d be able to make it work as a team. Funny thing is, I think it turned out better than if I’d done it on my own. You guys each brought unique flavor to the project, and came up with many ideas I would never have thought of.

So does anyone think there will be a sequel? A spin-off? A different project? I’ve got one in the back of my head called MUMMIES…

CUB SCOUT GORE FEAST

A Bonus Short Story by J.A. Konrath & Jeff Strand

“Isn’t this when you start telling scary stories, Mr. Hollis?”

Hollis grinned, staring at the boys around the campfire. Cub Scouts, none of them older than ten. For some, the first night they’d ever spent away from their families.

“Are you scouts sure you want to hear a scary story?”

“Yes!” they chorused.

“Even though it’s dark and we’re all alone in the spooky, menacing forest?”

“Yes! Yes! Yes!”

Hollis sat down on his haunches. His face became serious.

“Okay, I’ll tell you a scary story. Scary because it’s the absolute, hand-on-my-heart truth. You’ve all heard rumors about Troop 192, how they disappeared without a trace not too far from here, right?”

Several of the boys nodded.

“Well, the rumors were wrong. There were lots of traces of Troop 192. There were traces all over the place…on the ground, up in the trees, by the lake, maybe even under where you’re sitting right now. Imagine if you took a blender, like the kind your mothers use to make smoothies, but it was a giant blender, maybe…I dunno, eighteen feet high. And then you dropped the entire Troop 192 into it, and accidentally left the lid off, so that when you pressed the ‘blend’ button they sprayed all over the place. That’s what it looked like.”

“I heard it was just one kid who went missing,” said Anthony.

Hollis shrugged. “If you think one little kid has that many guts inside of his body, more power to you, but I was here. I saw it. It was gross .”

“My mom said they found him the next morning. He was playing Nintendo.”

“Oh, well, I guess your mom is in a position where she was allowed to accompany the law enforcement agencies on their search, huh? Did she somehow become deputized without anybody hearing about it? Do Hooters waitresses typically get to tag along on searches for missing children?”

“She works at Olive Garden.”

“Whatever. She wasn’t there on the night of the investigation. I’m telling you that it was the entire troop, and their insides were strewn as far as the eye can see.” Hollis made a grand gesture with both arms to emphasize the extent of the carnage. “And do you know who got blamed for it?”

Several of the scouts shook their heads.

“Madman Charlie. Oh, they arrested him, and sent him to the electric chair the next morning. But it wasn’t Madman Charlie. When Troop 192 was massacred, he was off murdering a young woman in a completely different county. No, Troop 192 wasn’t slaughtered by Madman Charlie. They weren’t even slaughtered by something…human.”