As promised, the IRS has determined I really am Robert Greenberger and Barnes & Noble has made my story, “A Matter of Faith”, available for Nook readers. Please try it let me know what you think.
All posts by Bob Greenberger
“A Matter of Faith” Now Available for Kindle Readers
After technical difficulties slowly derailed the best laid plans of Crazy 8 Press, my old story, “A Matter of Faith” is now available for the Kindle. The Nook edition will follow next week (once the IRS confirms I am really myself).
As discussed here recently, it’s one of two original short stories I’ve written and published through the years and I am pleased as punch to be able to have them available once more.
By all means, invest the 99 cents and see for yourself. As a bonus, there will be a sample chapter of Mike Friedman’s Fight the Gods, which will be available later this month. If you buy it, thank you. I certainly want your feedback.
“A Matter of Faith” is All you Need
I first met Brian Thomsen when he was editing the Questar line of science fiction for Warner Books. Even though DC Comics was a division under the Book division’s purview at the time, the two never shared events. We worked a floor apart and it might as well have been a world away.
Brian, though, was a comics fan and delighted in breaking that barrier. In time, as happens everywhere, Brian chose to move on and became a freelance editor, writer, and book packager. (He would also continue to visit DC on Wednesdays, bringing Julie Schwartz sushi for lunch and they would chat, which resulted in Brian co-authoring Julie’s must read autobiography Man of Two Worlds.)
During all this time, Brian knew I was honing my craft, and finally getting some fiction assignments. One day, after lunch was over, Brian told me he had sold an anthology called Mob Magic and did I want to contribute. He’d already gotten a commitment from Denny O’Neil and I knew I’d be in good company. I wrote a story called “Solo” and it saw print, the book barely got noticed and life continued.
Crazy 8 Goes Crazy at San Diego
In its first appearance at the defining convention of what’s cool in American pop culture, Crazy 8 Press was well-represented. Any of the Hollywood hotshots who attended the party hosted by Wayne Brady party Saturday night saw the C8 logo displayed prominently on the invite, and was able to pick up one of the specially designed collectible C8 cards. And, courtesy of party overlord Michael Davis, Peter David was spotted talking up C8 to Wayne Brady himself.
Speaking of the ubiquitous David, an overview of his career was the main topic of the International Media Tie in Writers Association panel on Friday where he was given that organization’s lifetime achievement award, the “Faust.” There he discussed, among other things, the current state of the industry that gave rise to the writer’s cooperative called Crazy 8, and was garnering MUCH interest in the endeavor from other writers in the audience. He was also seen talking up C8 to an interviewer for Ain’t It Cool News, getting the word out as far as it will reach.
Writing in Confined Spaces
Just the other day, we were talking about writing “Demon Circle” in a tight, confined space. To demonstrate we were not kidding, we wanted to share with you some shots that prove our truthfulness. These were taken by Shore Leave’s official photographer, Jen Rohrbach Snyder, who doubles as a professional photographer in her Maryland business Lux Amoris.
The story remains available for purchase as a eBook with all the proceeds going to the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, a group dedicated to providing funds to support comic book creators and retailers in defending their right to free speech. They have several cases on their docket and every nickel will help. One reason we chose this fund is because our own Peter David serves on their Board of Directors in addition to the fact that as authors, we vigorously believe in defending our rights against those who seek to impose their will on others.
The first image is of our founder, Michael Jan Friedman, then there’s Bob Greenberger, trying to get used to the keyboard. Author Scott Pearson begs Mike for advice on how to be famous. Bill Leisner stands behind him, eavsdropping. Finally, Aaron Rosenberg, in his quiet, unassuming way, ignores the distracting crowds and focuses on making his contribution sing.
The Story Behind the Story of “Demon Circle”
“There’s no way we’re going to get all of this mopped up in time!”
A good first line can get you intrigued, or excited. It is designed to draw you in and set the tone for what you are about to read.
It can spark as many imaginations as there are people in the room to hear the words.
At Shore Leave, we wanted to celebrate our debut and do some good at the same time so we decided to write a round-robin short story based on a first line submitted by a fan. All those interested ponied up $2 a line and submitted a form. During our Crazy 8 Press panel at Noon Saturday, people continued to fill out forms as we discussed our plans.
Peter David then read out each line submitted, without attribution, and gauged the audience’s response. We narrowed down the lines until finally; the line atop this column won the support of the fans and the writers.
Once the final line was selected, Peter revealed the name of the winner, who turned out to be fellow author Kevin Dilmore.
As the panel ended, we set up a spare Mac Book in our reserved space and attached an external monitor so fans passing by could watch our progress. While Glenn Hauman and Bob Greenberger fussed with the technical issues, Michael Jan Friedman, batting leadoff, was furiously scribbling notes. Once a document was set up, Mike got to work.