Saturday, January 19, 2008

NEW WORKS PUBLISHED

Some recent publishings featuring my writing include issue 2 of Bachelor Pad (which contains my short pulp fiction noir story A Hell of A Dame) and the first issue of Matthew Dunn's comic book Lonely Monsters (for which I contributed an essay on zombie cinema - see blog entry below).

Also, issue 68 of the great US digest magazine Paperback Parade contains an interview I conducted with legendary exploitation filmmaker Herschell Gordon Lewis, discussing the paperback novelizations he authored of some of his early classics, including Blood Feast and 2,000 Maniacs.

And issue 15 of the Australian tattoo magazine Downunder Tattoo Art features a page of my tattoo art designs.

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KISS 1980 AUSTRALIAN TOUR



I am currently preparing a proposal for a book which will look at the Australian KISS Tour of 1980. More than just a history of the tour, I plan for the book to be a reflection of Australia's youth culture of the period, and the social and cultural atmosphere which pervaded while the tour (and it's lead-up) took place.

With the 30th anniversary of the tour just a few years away, the time seems right for this book, and I am looking to hear from people who may be willing to help out in the following areas:

PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS: I am planning for one chapter of the book to consist of first-person accounts, written by people who not only went to the concerts, but those who wanted to go but weren't allowed, and even those who simply lived through the period.

PHOTOS: I would love to hear from anyone who has photos that they took during the concerts, public appearances, etc. Pics of you (or family/friends) in KISS make-up/t-shirts from the era (esp posing with members of the band or collections of KISS memorabilia) would also be great.

MEMORABILIA: If you have a collection of Australian KISS memorabilia from 1979-1981 I would love to use it for illustrative purposes in the book. If you live in Melbourne I can arrange a photographer to take photos of your collection, otherwise hi-res scans would be acceptable and most appreciated.

Please let me know if you are interested in helping out with this project, and I will keep your name on an email list and keep you up to date with developments. And please feel free to repost or forward on to anyone whom you feel may be able to help out...

LONELY MONSTERS



Illustrated and written by Melbourne artist Matthew Dunn, Lonely Monsters is a new, and much welcome, independant Australian horror comic.

The premise of Lonely Monsters is simple enough: zombies have taken over the city of Melbourne (and, we presume, the world). Most of the survivors have scattered, but a few brave souls have remained city bound, trying to scrounge out a living while simultaneously avoiding becoming a main course. Lonely Monsters follows the plight of this sorry band of survivors (not all of whom are the most desirable of characters).

The dialogue in Lonely Monsters is minimal, with Dunn using his artwork to generate most of the plot and atmosphere. With heavy black and grey overtones, the art is sombre and surrealistic, and effectively sparse in places. It's clear that the inspiration for Lonely Monsters comes from Dunn's love of both horror comics and zombie cinema, both classic and new (the comic reflects elements of George Romero's Night of the Living Dead, in that there is no explanation given for why the dead are rising, while the overall ambience of the book recalls the recent 28 Days Later and its sequel).

With a planned quarterly release schedule, the debut issue of Lonely Monsters features a beautifully lurid, color saturated cover, as well as some pages of preliminary sketch work, and a five page essay on zombie cinema (written by yours truly, who will hopefully be contributing a written piece to each issue - in Volume 2 I will be looking at the controversial subject of true crime memorabilia and serial killer artwork).

Lonely Monsters can be purchased from the book's official Cafe Press store (http://www.cafepress.com/lonelymonsters.197323224), and will also be available from select comic book and pop culture stores. You can also contact Matthew Dunn at his My Space page ( http://www.myspace.com/lonelymonsters) and keep up with developments at the Lonely Monsters Blogspot (http://www.lonelymonsters.blogspot.com/).

Copyright John Harrison 2008