Superheroes all have origin stories, right? So do writers’ publishing collectives. Crazy 8 Press was born outside the restrooms on the ballroom level of the Hunt Valley Inn hotel north of Baltimore, at a Shore Leave convention a little over a decade ago.
That’s the historic spot (nope, there’s no commemorative plaque there) where a half-dozen of us science fiction/fantasy writers frustrated over the state of Big Publishing decided, “Well, why the heck don’t we publish our own books and sell ‘em directly to readers?”
I was among that original group, but life being what it is, it’s taken me this long to actually present a book bearing the Crazy 8 logo. And it’s not science fiction—it’s a historical novel called Galloway’s Gamble.
I’m “best known” (if I’m known at all) for four decades of writing Star Trek stories. The original TV show inspired me to be a writer, and I was fortunate enough to sell “The Pirates of Orion” script to NBC’s animated Saturday morning revival in 1974 (as a 19-year-old college junior). I’d reached my goal of becoming a professional writer, and credits after that included many Star Trek novels, comics, and other science fiction.
