We are very sad to report that science fiction and fantasy author Dr. Debra Doyle passed away of a sudden cardiac event the evening of October 31, 2020 at the age of 67.
Debra was known for her numerous novels and stories co-authored with her husband James D. Macdonald (including their story “Gertrude of Wyoming” in our Altered States Of The Union anthology, her editorial work, her teaching work including her time with the Viable Paradise workshop, her doctoral thesis on Old English poetry, and her musical contributions to the Society for Creative Anachronism (under the name Malkingrey). She is survived by her husband, brother John Doyle, and children Katherine, Brendan, Peregrine, and Alexander.
The family has set up a GoFundMe campaign to cover funeral costs, the extent of which is not currently known. Any additional funds raised beyond what is needed for burial will be used to ease the transition for her husband, Jim.
A wake will take place after the pandemic eases, as is believed Debra would prefer.
Her family is accepting messages and memories at this Google Form.
All of us here at the asylum offer our deepest condolences to her family, friends, students, and fans.
‘You think, sir, that unless this document is recovered there will be war?’
‘I think it is very probable.’
‘Then, sir, prepare for war.’
Sherlock Holmes to Lord Bellinger, taken from The Second Stain by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
When it comes to war, I think we can all agree that no matter the reasons why we end up fighting, the business of it is, well… nasty. Like most people born after 1945, I cannot truly understand the horrors of it. Some 85 years have passed since its ending and despite the many terrible situations our world has faced since then, those horrors have diminished. We will remember, we say. But do we honestly recount the specifics of those who lost their lives so horrifically? I don’t think we always do.
When I wrote Progenitor for Crazy8Press, I decided on horror as my theme for the narrative. It made sense, since I set it during that terrible war. Yet the story itself isn’t about the war. It’s about a different kind of struggle under hideous circumstances, with a sci-fi(ish) twist.
Anyone who has read my work will know that I’m a character driven writer. I prefer dialogue and interactions over swathes of descriptive texts. Watching old sci-fi TV shows from the 50s and 60s, I find myself embroiled in their situations, lost inside a strange world that I can recognise… almost. And that’s what I wanted for this book. A sense of the real world, coupled with a terror that is far removed from it.
Progenitor, then, is a sci-fi horror mash-up with a little detective work thrown in for good measure. A story set in the backdrop of war, yet far enough away from it that it hardly features at all. A cataclysmic event in Washington, DC., finds the city destroyed by monsters. A few lone survivors, led by General William Marshall, escape to a facility that they hope they’ll be safe in. They couldn’t be more wrong.
The premise was borne from stories like The Thing andAlien. Combining the two, I put my heroes in circumstances that would test their strengths and weaknesses. Along the way, they come to understand that their world has changed. But there are still those misguided men who persist in holding onto their selfish and hideous ideals. Our heroes find themselves locked within a facility they thought would protect them. But they are not alone. They have to deal with an unscrupulous monster who has zero empathy for them or their predicament.
I hope that you enjoy the tale I’ve written. It has been a genuine joy delving into this genre. I, therefore, invite you to take a walk with General Marshall and his ragtag bunch of survivors but beware… the terrors that lurk within the pages, are not for the faint of heart.
Author, podcaster and fellow member Russ Colchamiro hosts a live panel to celebrate 10 Years of Crazy 8 Press, a consortium of science fiction, fantasy, mystery, and adventure authors including Aaron Rosenberg, Mary Fan, Robert Greenberger, Glenn Hauman, Michael Jan Friedman, Paul Kupperberg, and Peter David!
I love private eyes. Always have. Part detective, part crime stopper, part secret agent. And lots of mystery.
And yet Angela Hardwicke, my hard-boiled PI who has now appeared in eight of my books through Crazy 8 Press, seemingly came out of nowhere.
Then again, doesn’t that sound like a private eye?
An amalgam of Doctor Who, Blade Runner, and Philip Marlowe, Angela Hardwicke first appeared in Genius de Milo, the second in my Finders Keepers sci-fi comedy backpacking trilogy, which might seem an odd place for a private eye to show up in the first place.
Loosely based on a series of backpacking trips I took through Europe and New Zealand with a buddy of mine, Finders Keepers is a Bill and Ted-style romp about two loveable knuckleheads running around the globe having zany adventures, while simultaneously mixed up in a quest for a jar containing the Universe’s DNA.
Finders Keepers was supposed to be one and done, but I left it open-ended, and ultimately followed up with the sequels Genius de Milo and Astropalooza, with the scope of the three-book narrative far exceeding my expectations.
When Hardwicke first shows up in Genius de Milo, it’s a blink-and-you-miss-it appearance, but I knew even then I was onto something, so Hardwicke played a much larger and significant role in Astropalooza. After that I was utterly hooked, and knew I’d be writing Hardwicke stories again.
Before I gave her a stand-alone novel, however, much less her own series, I put together an anthology for Crazy 8 Press called Love, Murder & Mayhem—I served as editor—collecting 15 stories from as many authors contributing a range of sci-fi mysteries. It was in this collection I wrote my first Hardwicke short story, “The Case of My Old New Life and the One I Never Knew,” about arson in a rock club in the galactic realm of Eternity.
Since then I’ve written a half dozen Hardwicke short stories, taking her from one end of the Cosmos to the other, with cases about a massive helix of the Universe’s DNA, rerouting Halley’s Comet, a whodunnit in a daycare center, and a case about an AI on death row, “The Case of Jarlo’s Buried Treasure,” which appears as a bonus story at the end of my first Hardwicke novel, Crackle and Fire, on sale today.
On the surface, Crackle and Fire has Hardwicke tracking down an intern from a galactic accounting firm who has disappeared with sensitive corporate files.
Yet the mystery, as these things do, becomes much larger than Hardwicke ever envisioned—she soon finds herself embroiled in a deadly case of lies, intrigue, and murder, clashing with vengeful gangsters, MinderNot rallies, and a madman who’s come a long way to get what he wants.
Dig even deeper, though, and you’ll find that Crackle and Fire is as much about Hardwicke having to make a critical decision—can she be an intergalactic private and all that comes with it and be a mother to her young son who, for reasons I won’t share now, is not in her care?
It’s a critical question for Hardwicke, and the answers don’t come easy.
As you can see, Hardwicke and I have been getting to know each other. It’s been a great relationship so far, but we’re just getting started. Hopefully you’ll come to know her, too.
Crackle and Fire is Hardwicke’s first novel, with many more deadly cases yet to come. I’m working on the sequel now, and it’s a doozy.
The only question for you is: are you ready for the ride?
One of the three charity roasts, organized by David Mack. A day later, the idea for Crazy 8 Press was launched and everyone depicted here (from left: Mike Friedman, Bob Greenberger, David Mack, Keith R.A. DeCandido, and Dayton Ward) has contributed to at least one release in the past decade,
While he was taking care of business, a gaggle of authors at Shore Leave, the premiere fan-run con in America, were lamenting the idiocy of publishers letting marketing people drive editorial purchases. As a result, ideas that got us excited were being met with, “we can’t pigeonhole that so can’t sell it”.
We were watching other authors begin to self-publish, with more than a few forming their own consortiums. By the time Mike came out of the men’s room, we buttonholed him, since he started this thread of thinking earlier. Before we knew it, a group was forming.
From left: Glenn Hauman, Howard Weinstein, Peter David, Mike Friedman, Aaron Rosenberg, and Bob Greenberger introduce the world to Crazy 8 Press during our debut panel.
A year later, Crazy 8 Press made its triumphant debut at Shore Leave, with the authors publicly writing a round-robin novella that was our first release. Demon Circle was published at the beginning of fall 2011 and we have been going at it ever since.
We started with Mike, Aaron Rosenberg, Peter David, Howard Weinstein, Glenn Hauman, and Robert Greenberger. Others, who were part of the initial planning, bowed out, but we still called ourselves Crazy 8, because, why not? Soon after, Paul Kupperberg joined the band and a few years later, we welcomed in Russ Colchamiro. Two years back, we invited Mary Fan to the asylum. Kathleen O’Shea David and Jenifer Purcell Rosenberg both took turns trying to help our social marketing and wrangling the eight author cats. Silly them. But, both were welcomed to the party and each has contributed to several of our anthologies.
Our founding father, Mike Friedman, takes his turn writing our round-robin story, Demon Circle, in the brick prison, as an anxious public watched his sweat.
Crazy 8 Press is unique in that it has a decentralized structure as authors publish as they see fit, and we all join forces to help market and support each new release. About six years ago, we struck on the notion that since most of us attended Shore Leave, it was an ideal place to launch a new title and hit on the themed-anthology idea in order to showcase all of our us. Then we started inviting our friends and we generated some excitement.
Last year, we decided this was working so well, that we’d shift to twice a year releases, timed to our appearances at Farpoint in February and Shore Leave in July. Covid-19 sort of threw a spanner in the works so that first release, Mike’s Pangaea III, got delayed. But, tomorrow, right on schedule, Mary Fan’s Bad Ass Moms arrives right on time. Since it is coming out at the beginning of our tenth anniversary year, it also sports our brand new 10th anniversary logo.
We have plans brewing for the next twelve months, including some new titles, some merchandise, and whatever else we can do while socially distance and keeping one another safe.
This looks to be an exciting year for us so stay tuned for our announcements.
March 16, 2020 – Crazy 8
Press announced today it has agreed to release ZLONK! ZOK! ZOWIE! The
Subterranean Blue Grotto Guide to Batman ’66 – Season One, Jim Beard’s
celebration of the 1966 classic Batman television series. This new collection
of essays creatively examines each episode of the ABC series which aired during
the first half of 1966.
Edited by respected comic book writer
and essayist Jim Beard, the 208-page Bat-tastic collection will be released by
Crazy 8 in April, both as a trade paperback and eBook.
“There’s still so much to say
about this legendary TV series, and this book sets out to prove it,” said
Beard, who also wrote the opening essay examining the two-part pilot episode.
The worldwide Batman TV series phenomenon
starred Adam West and Burt Ward as the Dynamic Duo, adapting the DC Comics
series to the small screen, riding the Pop Art and Camp craze that were trends
during the turbulent 1960s. The show spawned a feature film and a bonanza of
merchandising the likes of which had never been seen before. Thanks to
syndication, the show has rarely been off the air and in the last decade has
spawned a fresh wave of merchandising.
Season one introduced viewers to
Batman, Robin, Alfred, and Commissioner Gordon, as well as iconic villains
including Julie Newmar as Catwoman, Frank Gorshin as The Riddler, Caesar Romero
as The Joker, and Burgess Meredith as The Penguin. And, of course, the
inaugural season thrilled fans with the Batcave, Wayne Manor, and one of the
most heart-pounding elements of the entire franchise — the Batmobile.
“Crazy 8 Press is always on the
look-out for kindred spirits, given most of our roots in comics,” said Crazy 8 co-founder
Robert Greenberger, who has spent more than 30 years as a comic book editor and
contributor for DC and Marvel Comics. “Previously, Crazy 8 released Rob Kelly’s
anthology Hey Kids, Comics, a look back at the joys of comic collecting.
It was high time we added to that portion of our inventory. Jim’s book project
seemed a perfect fit. And as we still see today, Batman never goes out of
style.”
The paperback ($14.99) and eBook ($4.99)
contains essays from Crazy 8’s Greenberger and long-time comic book writer Paul
Kupperberg, in addition to frequent Crazy 8 contributors Keith DeCandido, Will
Murray, and Dayton Ward. Other ZLONK! ZOK! ZOWIE! contributors include
long-time Batman writer Chuck Dixon, comics historian Peter Sanderson,
ComicMix contributor Ed Catto, 13thDimension.com’s Dan Greenfield,
the Batcave Podcast’s John S. Drew, Rich Handley, Alan J. Porter, Pat Evans,
Steve Thompson, Mark B. Racop, Joe Crowe, and, Chris Franklin.
“I’ve never ceased in being amazed and delighted
at fans’ appetite for a show that lasted barely over two years back in the
1960s,” Beard added. “It‘s a testament to not only the character’s overall
appeal, but specifically the unique take on Batman offered up in the series.”
Beard previously explored the television
series in Gotham City 14 Miles (Sequart), an anthology of essays
covering the length and breadth of Batmania. He is a regular writer for
Marvel.com, an essayist for pop culture collections, and made his Crazy 8 Press
debut in 2019’s Thrilling Adventure Yarns with a short story co-written
with his late wife Becky.
He is already at work on ZLONK! ZOK!
ZOWIE! Volume
two, exploring the complete second season, to be released by Crazy 8 Press in
2021.
ZLONK! ZOK! ZOWIE! The Subterranean
Blue Grotto Guide to Batman ’66 – Season One will be available for purchase
on Amazon’sand Barnes &
Noble’s sites,as well as various comic book, and mass media
conventions.
ABOUT JIM BEARD
Jim Beard pounds out adventure
fiction with classic pulp style and flair.
A native Toledoan, he was
introduced to comic books at an early age by his father, who passed on to him a
love for the medium and the pulp characters who preceded it. After decades of
reading, collecting and dissecting comics, Jim became a published writer when
he sold a story to DC Comics in 2002. Since then he’s written official
Spider-Man, X-Files, and Planet of the Apes prose fiction, Star Wars and
Ghostbusters comic stories, and contributed articles and essays to several volumes
of comic book history.
His prose work also includes Gotham
City 14 Miles, a book of essays on the 1966 Batman TV series; Sg.t Janus,
Spirit-Breaker, a collection of pulp ghost stories featuring an Edwardian occult detective; Monster
Earth, a shared-world giant monster anthology; and Captain Action:
Riddle of the Glowing Men, the first pulp prose novel based on the classic
1960s action figure.
Jim also currently provides regular content for Marvel.com,
the official Marvel Comics website.
