Yes, here we are folks.  The new anthology is now here...at least the ebook is.  The proofs for the paperback should be coming today, so if it looks good, it should go live in the next few days.  For now, take a look at the fabulous new cover, description, and table of contents, which includes 12 fantastic authors.  To say we're excited about this product is a bit of an understatement!

…a young man tries to build a better life while trapped in a mall after a plague has killed off most of humanity…

…zombies overrun a world gone mad, leaving a boy with no choice but to rely on possibly mystical means of escape…

…Halloween night brings out a darkness so threatening that a young couple’s only hope of survival may be a procession of strange, ghostly children…

…when the world is given a brief glimpse of divinity, a formerly disabled man must come to grips with the fact that not everything is as good as it seems…

These tales and many more await in The Gate 2: 13 Tales of Isolation and Despair, the new collection edited by Robert J. Duperre. Thirteen talented authors have been assembled, bringing with them the best they have to offer in a wide range of horror, be it slice-of-life or paranormal in nature. Also included are two bonus stories by the editor.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction
Plastic by J.L. Bryan
The Indian Rope Trick by D.P. Prior
Night Night by Daniel Pyle
Dead Things by Michael Crane
Does Laura Like Elephants? by Steven Pirie
39 Days by Robert J. Duperre
The Candle Eaters by K. Allen Wood
Black Mary by Mercedes M. Yardley
Exhibit C by David McAfee
The Canoe by Joel Arnold
Destination by Benjamin X. Wretlind
The Ghastly Bath by Dawn McCullough-White
Worldwide Event by David Dalglish
2 Bonus stories by Robert J. Duperre
Traipsing Through the Dark: The Stories Behind the Stories

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE ON AMAZON.COM!

That's right, folks!  A new collection of horror shorts is almost upon us!  The Gate 2: 13 Tales of Isolation and Despair should be ready to publish come the middle of February.  All the stories are in, and all that's left is editing and the illustrations and cover from TRO's better half.  I'm really, really excited about this anthology.  All the stories are fantastic, and there are a few that rank right up there with the best fiction I've ever had the pleasure of reading.  There are a ton of great new writers featured, as well as a few carryovers from the first compilation.  Oh, and check this out:

 

That right there is Chorus, an illustration by the fabulous Jesse Young that both inspired one of the stories within and will appear on the back cover.  Just looking at it, I'm sure you can see the direction in tone this collection is going to take.

And now, here is the current table of contents, in the order I have them set to appear.  As always, with two months left before release, both titles and order may change:

INTRODUCTION
Plastic by J. L. Bryan
Chorus by Robert J. Duperre
The Indian Rope Trick by D.P. Prior
Destination by Benjamin X. Wretlind
39 Days by Robert J. Duperre
Worldwide Event by David Dalglish
The Canoe by Joel Arnold
Night Night by Daniel Pyle
The Candle Eaters by K. Allen Wood
Does Laura Like Elephants? by Steven Pirie
Black Mary by Mercedes M. Yardley
Dead Things by Michael Crane
The Ghastly Bath by Dawn McCullough-White
Traipsing Through the Dark: The Stories Behind the Stories
BONUS 14th STORY

So that's it!  Peace to all you gentle readers, and we'll see you soon.

RJD

Wow.  It's been almost two months since I've posted here.  TWO MONTHS!  Can you believe that???

Anywho, since it's now closing in on the end of November, I figured it's time to come at y'all with some much-needed updates as to what's going on in the world of TRO.

First of all, I've had three short stories appear in different anthologies over the last two months.  The first is a tale called CHORUS (inspired by one of Jesse's drawings), that appears in J.L. Bryan's DARK TOMORROWS alongside Amanda Hocking, Joel Arnold, and S.W. Benefiel.  The second is one of the favorite tales I've ever written, a little ditty called 39 DAYS, which leads off the Daniel Pyle-edited UNNATURAL DISASTERS compilation, including the likes of the fantastic Scott Nicholson, William Meikle, and J.A. Titus.  And finally, I wrote a disturbing short titled ONE GOOD TURN that is included in the Holiday Special Ebook Edition of SHOCK TOTEM MAGAZINE.  In this issue it's the staff who gets to shine, as the editors and reviewers (moi!) steal the show, our voices heard loud, squishy, and (mostly) clear.

In other news of a more US variety, I'm right now putting the finishing touches on the 3rd Rift book, DEATH SPRINGS ETERNAL.  From there it's on to editing and proofing, and Jesse then has to get his ass in gear with the cover and illustrations.  This is both an exciting and nerve-wracking project, as it's so different than either of the first two books.  However, I'm confident it's still a good book - I'm thinking it's the best of the bunch so far - so we'll see how that plays out.  The release date is (fingers crossed) January 5th.

After that, it's on to the second installment of THE GATE.  For this one, I've collected stories from 10 fantastic writers - a few carryovers from the first issue, plus some rather exciting additions.  The tentative release date is February 15th, though with the unexpected snowfall at the beginning of the month setting Jesse back a bit, it might end up being closer to the end.

This is a REALLY busy time for us.  Personally, my schedule is jam-packed with projects, which means my partner's is, as well.  Interested to see what my plan is from here on forward?  Here's a list of what I have slated to be released through January 2013:

January 5, 2012 - DEATH SPRINGS ETERNAL: THE RIFT BOOK III
February 15, 2012 - THE GATE 2: 13 TALES OF ISOLATION AND DESPAIR
March/April 2012 - THE FOREVER MAN (working title)(novella)
July 2012 - THE SUMMER SON: THE RIFT BOOK IV
November 2012 - THE GATE 3: 13 STORIES OF MONSTERS AMONG US
January 2013 - THE MIRROR OF SOULS: COVENANT BOOK 1

So there you have it.  That's six planned releases in a span of 12 months.  Too ambitious?  We'll see...

Peace, folks, and we'll chat soon.

RJD

Well, today's a day I've been excited about for some time now.  That's right, The Fall has been reviewed by Pushy Fox over at Bewitched Bookworms, a fantastic blog run by 5 magnificent ladies!  Now Pushy (Heather) has been quite complimentary about this particular book, which goes to show that she 1) is awesome, and 2) has a lot of good taste.  And just to have our little slice of fiction reviewed alongside the likes of Meyer, Pittacus Lore, Amanda Hocking, JL Bryan, and the rest of the paranormal fiction crowd is really quite exhilarating.

Oh, and as an added bonus, the review comes complete with a giveaway of both The Fall and Dead of Winter!  So head on over there, write a comment with your email address, and wait a little bit for your chance to win actual hard copies of our first 2 books! 

This is a great day, folks.  We're ron-a-roll, and we're not about to stop here.

Read the Bewitched Bookworms review of The Fall here.