2000 AD Online Forum

Hey all, just wanted to give you the heads-up on my latest horror novel, on release now from SNOWBOOKS. I know many of you were kind enough to take a chance on my previous release, FLU. Hopefully you'll enjoy this slightly different take on the zombie apocalypse...

THE BLURB:

As tattoo artist Star begins to ink her first client on a spring Sunday morning, something goes horribly wrong with the world...Belfast's hungover lapse into a deeper sleep than normal, their sudden deaths causing an unholy mess of crashing cars, smoldering televisions and falling aircraft.
In the chaotic aftermath a group of post-apocalyptic survivors search for purpose in a devastated city. Ageing DJ Sean Magee and shifty-eyed Barry Rogan find drunken solace in a hotel bar. Ex-IRA operative Mairead Burns and RIR soldier Roy Beggs form an uneasy alliance to rebuild community life. Elsewhere, a mysterious Preacher Man lures shivering survivors out of the shadows with a promise of redemption.

Choked by the smell of death, Ireland's remaining few begin the journey toward a new life, fear and desperation giving rise to new tensions and dark old habits.

But a new threat creeps slowly out of life's wreckage...

'Drop Dead Gorgeous is a stand out book.' --Horrorbound.com

'A heck of a good novel...' --Fatally-Yours.com

'A gritty drama... Do not miss!' --Liberation Frequency

'If you're into action-laced horror, vivid gore and a cranked up attitude, Drop Dead Gorgeous is your kind of read.' --Lip Service

'Worthy of George Romero's finest moments...'
--Total Tattoo Magazine

DDG will be available throughout all good book stores or you can pick it up right now from:

AMAZON UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Drop-Dead-Gorgeous-Wayne-Simmons/dp/1906727988/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1295891512&sr=8-1

THE BOOK DEPOSITORY: (with free worldwide shipping): http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/book/9781906727987/Drop-Dead-Gorgeous

Hope some of you guys get a chance to read it! Thanks for your time...

As part of my ongoing celebration of apoc-shocker DROP DEAD GORGEOUS' re-release, I've invited some zombie horror hacks over to guest-blog at my site. First up is Mr Simon Bestwick, talking about his acclaimed zombie novel, TIDE OF SOULS (Abaddon Books) as well as what else he has planned... aided by the voices in his head!

http://waynesimmons.org/blog/?p=235

That's my copy ordered from Amazon, there's only one copy left according to the site.If it's anything like Flu it should be a fooking good read.


filip

Sounds good, will keep an eye out for it.

flip, thanks so much! Hope you enjoy it! :)

Maryanddavid, cheers! should be creeping into stores like FP, Waterstone's etc. over the next few weeks :)

The Blog Swap contiunes with zombie horror author, Bowie Ibarra (DOWN THE ROAD -Permuted/ Simon and Schuster) guesting at my blog today. Bowie talks about the ULTIMATE weapon for maximum zombie slayage!

http://waynesimmons.org/blog/?p=241

DROP DEAD GORGEOUS is starting to seep into Waterstone's (see below link and click on 'store availability' to see if it's at your local store):

http://www.waterstones.com/waterstonesweb/products/wayne+simmons/drop+dead+gorgeous/7884788/

I'll be signing copies of both my apoc-shockers (REALLY starting to like this lil' moniker I've conjoured up) at Leicester Highcross Waterstone's on Sunday 6th Feb, with fellow horror hack, David Moody. HUGE thanks to Highcross manager, Steven Caunt for all his support, as well as generally looking cool and having tattoos almost as kick-ass as mine :D

That's my copy ordered!

Quote from: dangermouse3597 on 29 January, 2011, 10:52:26 PM
That's my copy ordered!

You're a gent, DM! Thanks for giving DDG a go :)

Hey, are you going to the SFX weekender?

I'm afraid not HOO-HAA I think a 12 hour drive is a bit much, well that and the not being able to get holidays at this time of year.

Recieved my copy this morning now to find time to read it.


filip

Wayne, my mate Big Simon will be along to the sfx weekender, and has instructions to pop over and say hi to you from me. If you want to try and hardsell him a novel, he's a very very nice man and probably a soft target!
SBT

Quote from: SmallBlueThing on 31 January, 2011, 06:37:37 PM
Wayne, my mate Big Simon will be along to the sfx weekender, and has instructions to pop over and say hi to you from me. If you want to try and hardsell him a novel, he's a very very nice man and probably a soft target!
SBT

Fantastic! I'll be sure to take advantage of his good nature :)

(that's not Simon Marshall-Jones, is it?)

Quote from: flip-r mk2 on 31 January, 2011, 02:55:12 PM
Recieved my copy this morning now to find time to read it.


filip

Tell me about it! My TBR pile is now the entire bookshelf! Thanks for the buy, filip! Hope you enjoy the read :)

As part of the ongoing celebration of the (re) release of my apoc-horror, DROP DEAD GORGEOUS, I'm blog-swapping today with fellow zombie horror hack, Joe McKinney (author of DEAD CITY). Check out his excellent use of blogspace!

http://waynesimmons.org/blog/?p=250

As I continue to celebrate the (re) release of my apoc-shock novel, DROP DEAD GORGEOUS, I'm delighted to welcome David Moody to the stage for the latest in this series of Blog Swaps. Dave has been a true inspiration and support to me from the very beginning of my writing career and it's always a pleasure and honour to have him guest at my site.

http://waynesimmons.org/blog/?p=260

Quote from: HOO-HAA on 01 February, 2011, 12:09:31 PM

Fantastic! I'll be sure to take advantage of his good nature :)

(that's not Simon Marshall-Jones, is it?)

Heh- no, the very last thing SMJ could be accused of is being "big"! This is my old Dr Who-fan friend Simon, who is ridiculously tall and is a manager/team leader/whatever, in WH Smiths. He'll be there with a selection of his multiple children and possibly his wife. I don't know if the other Simon is going, but he might be. It's ridiculous that I'm not, to be honest, seeing as it's only a short taxi ride away- but a combination of cost and other plans have got in the way. Would have been nice to pop along though.

SBT

Quote from: SmallBlueThing on 03 February, 2011, 09:48:03 AM

Quote from: HOO-HAA on 01 February, 2011, 12:09:31 PM

Fantastic! I'll be sure to take advantage of his good nature :)

(that's not Simon Marshall-Jones, is it?)

Heh- no, the very last thing SMJ could be accused of is being "big"! This is my old Dr Who-fan friend Simon, who is ridiculously tall and is a manager/team leader/whatever, in WH Smiths. He'll be there with a selection of his multiple children and possibly his wife. I don't know if the other Simon is going, but he might be. It's ridiculous that I'm not, to be honest, seeing as it's only a short taxi ride away- but a combination of cost and other plans have got in the way. Would have been nice to pop along though.

SBT

Another time, Steev. And the first beer's on me :)

It'd be great to meet lil' Simon as well, of course.

All in good time!

My copy arrived today. It'll get a special reading pile boost so I hope to get to reading it soon enough. Looking forward to it after Flu

Quote from: Colin_YNWA on 03 February, 2011, 04:42:00 PM
My copy arrived today. It'll get a special reading pile boost so I hope to get to reading it soon enough. Looking forward to it after Flu

Colin, hope you enjoy it as much as FLU! :) Thanks for the buy!

Just a quick note, fellow boarders, on my plans for the weekend (oo-er!).

First up, I'm at the SFX WEEKENDER (Camber Sands), taking part on the panel 'What Scares us in the 21st Century?' alongside 2000AD's very own Al Ewing (5pm on Friday)!

For the rest of SFX, I'll be pub-quizing, drinking, flogging books and making a general nuisance of myself - if you're about, be sure to throw things at me and/ or pronounce my mother a harlot.

Then on Sunday it's off to Leicester Waterstone's for a signing with David Moody!

It'd be great to see some of you guys :)

Quote from: HOO-HAA on 03 February, 2011, 05:44:27 PM
Then on Sunday it's off to Leicester Waterstone's for a signing with David Moody!

Ooooooo Leicester.... what time on Sunday?

Oh yea, and which Watersone's? There's two...

Quote from: betel_uk on 03 February, 2011, 07:19:25 PM
Oh yea, and which Watersone's? There's two...

Sorry, bud. It's Highcross :)

What time you going to be there?

Finished reading DDG on Sat night , another fooking excellent read Wayne.Once again you have left me wanting more, any plans for a follow up.



filip

Quote from: betel_uk on 03 February, 2011, 08:53:45 PM
What time you going to be there?

Ah, sorry, mate! Missed you - it was 3-5pm.

Here's the skinny on the whole weekend - it was a really great time and I met with some really nice folks (Steev, I met Big Simon - really cool guy!)

http://darkcentralstation.com/?p=1141

Quote from: flip-r mk2 on 07 February, 2011, 01:47:58 AM
Finished reading DDG on Sat night , another fooking excellent read Wayne.Once again you have left me wanting more, any plans for a follow up.



filip

filip, I think this is the first review of the Snowbooks DDG! So, I'm particularly delighted you enjoyed it! And yep, sequel's almost done and should be out towards the end of the year :)

To my knowledge, this is the first review of the new Snowbooks edition of my apoc-horror, DROP DEAD GORGEOUS. And it's a cracker! Thanks to Emmy Ellis for giving the book a go. Check out what she had to say at...

http://mizlovelovesbooks.blogspot.com/2011/02/drop-dead-gorgeous-by-wayne-simmons.html?zx=23240d800bbeb08f

Well I'm mid way through and it is pretty good so far mate.

Saw your books (3 copies each) on the shelves of Waterstones Birmingham today, Hoohaa.

I got to turn to my friend and proudly say "Hey, I'm aware of this guy's presense on a comic related messageboard I lurk on". My friend was as impressed as he should be.

Strangely both books were in the Crime section.

Quote from: Dunk! on 12 February, 2011, 03:17:40 PM
Saw your books (3 copies each) on the shelves of Waterstones Birmingham today, Hoohaa.

I got to turn to my friend and proudly say "Hey, I'm aware of this guy's presense on a comic related messageboard I lurk on". My friend was as impressed as he should be.

Strangely both books were in the Crime section.

The crime section?! Well, a lot of humour could be gained from that fo-pa, couldn't it?! :)

Cheers, Dunk, for the heads-up! I must say it always makes my heart skip a beat when I see any of my books in Waterstone's or Forbidden Planet or the like. Thanks again, man :)

They had them in Sheffield's Waterstones the other week when I was in. You've gone mainstream man!

Quote from: Colin_YNWA on 13 February, 2011, 11:56:35 AM
They had them in Sheffield's Waterstones the other week when I was in. You've gone mainstream man!

Excellent! Good to see DDG getting out there. I think Flu was in over 170 branches of Waterstone's at its peak (I can follow its stocking via the Waterstone's website - but it's nothing compared to seeing the book in the flesh, so to speak).

Today I finally saw a copy of FLU in my local Waterstones... in the teenage fiction section. I moved it back up to the horror section on the upper floor.

SBT

Well I really enjoyed the book Sir! I stayed up until 1AM to finish it which means I'm a bit tired as I get up at 6:30...

Quote from: SmallBlueThing on 15 February, 2011, 02:06:21 PM
Today I finally saw a copy of FLU in my local Waterstones... in the teenage fiction section. I moved it back up to the horror section on the upper floor.

SBT

Steev, the kids are alright! Why deny them?!  :P

Seriously, though... what the hell?! Crime, Young Adult...

Quote from: dangermouse3597 on 15 February, 2011, 08:18:27 PM
Well I really enjoyed the book Sir! I stayed up until 1AM to finish it which means I'm a bit tired as I get up at 6:30...

Wow, man! That's the best compliment a writer can ever receive! Thank-you for taking a chance on DDG and delighted you enjoyed it so much! :)

Well literally just finished this a few minutes ago and so thought I'd put down some initial feelings.

Well firstly it chuffing great. Better than 'Flu' which I enjoyed too and like its predecessor a real page turner . The writing is more confident, cleaner and less fussy, because of this is more expressive. It really feels like the writer of Flu having a second go. The structure is the same. The characters are front and center. Initially seemingly unconnected as the story progresses they slowly become drawn together as their stories cross. Again the apocalyptic events, at least for the first two thirds mere back drop to very human tales.

Unlike Flu however the third and final part makes the 'events' very much part of the story. At first as this stage of the story started I really resented it. It felt like an unnecessary intrusion onto a tale that was doing quite nicely thank you and was frankly even more horrific in its own way. Even though you knew it was coming foreshadowed throughout the first two thirds, it felt out of place and jarring. Then when trapped in its thrilling gore it clicks and makes perfect sense as a way to conclude the story. Heck there's even a further neat explanation which you can chose to take or leave as you please.

The story for me (and I have a long history of getting this type of thing wrong) casts Northern Ireland (and the rest of the world but it around Belfast that we are witnesses) into a kind of purgatory. People taken from the world and having to process their guilt and sins, however much they try to avoid it, before they can move on. The end is therefore an almighty judgement from the dead, or even the still living and not always fair at that.

As I've said with Flu though its fantastically drawn and complex characters that make the book the success it is. I'm really looking forward to whatever Wayne does next.

Oh and it was a truly fantastic opening as well.

More than a guilty pleasure.

Can't argue with that- I've written a review that'll go up on the blog this weekend.

Colin, I caught your review on Amazon this morning and was really bowled over by it. Thanks for taking the time to write it!

You've hit the nail on the head with your comments on the writing style - DDG was first released in 2008 (and written around 2006). Since then, I've written its sequel at draft stage, as well as flu (and its sequel at draft) and a further novel, Plastic Jesus, that's currently with my agent to sell. Long and short is that somewhere in-between all that, I got a chance to do several revisions of DDG for its Snowbooks release and I think that's really helped shape this release.

Again, dude, my heartfelt thanks for such a considered review :) 

Don't thank me just keep up the great work. I'm really learning a lot from reading a genre (in novels) that I thought long behind me. Its exposed a prejudice towards genre novels that given how many genre comics I read is rank hypocrisy that only available time will stop me putting properly right! So Wayne my opinion of genre novels rests in you're hands for the time being... so far so good!

Well, I've plenty more up my sleeve for you, Colin! :)

The board's very own Richmond Clements reviews DROP DEAD GORGEOUS at the Hi-EX blog! Thanks to Rich for taking the time to both read and review the book, and his very kind words:

'All in all, this is a fast paced and bloody horror novel. I'm genuinely interested in reading what Simmons does next- I suspect he could be a major new talent....'

READ MORE:

http://hiexcomics.blogspot.com/2011/02/drop-dead-gorgeous-review.html?spref=fb

Another review of DDG, this one from Theresa at TERROR TREE:

The gist: '...So DDG, which delivers with the horror, the fear and the characterisation, persuades the reader to ask; 'Who are the monsters?'

READ MORE: http://terror-tree.co.uk/reviews/

Check out my interview in (rather ironically for an anarchist!) the 'Royal Wedding Special' of Men's Mag, ELITE. It's a super glossy read, featuring loads of foxy girls... and then me on page 62! Thanks to Richard Ronald for the grilling! :D

https://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Feliteonlinemagazine.com%2FIssue12%2FIssue12.html&h=2d196ze_gAkoVN-vvqO5-wkVWIw.

I'm going to be scribbling on books at this weekend's LIVERPOOL TATTOO CONVENTION. Come on over to my stall, say hallo and get yourself a book that's been described by Chris Frickin Jones (Physical Graffiti) as 'the grotesque lovechild of George A. Romero and Charles Dickens...' :D

http://www.tattooconvention.co.uk/

Check out my interview on horror blog, THE GINGER NUTS OF HORROR (cool name, dontcha think?!)  :D

http://thegingernutcase.blogspot.com/2011/05/hello-folks-for-your-reading-pleasure.html

I'm Spam-Spam-Spamming my own thread! :D

Heartwarming review of my apoc-shocker, DROP DEAD GORGEOUS. 'It's dark, unrestrained, vicious, broken-hearted, dangerously beautiful, and it's got a foul mouth' says the lovely Sarah Elliot of Bewitched, Bothered & Bespectacled. Thanks, Sarah! :)

http://sarahxxlouise.wordpress.com/2011/06/21/book-review-drop-dead-gorgeous-wayne-simmons/