John F. Allen – Page 4 – R.J. Sullivan Fiction

UPCOMING EVENT: RJ at Inconjunction: A Stalker’s Guide

by R.J. SullivanJune 18, 2014Leave a comment

So the Inconjunction Science Fiction and Fantasy Convention on the east side of Indianapolis (or as I call it, the old hometown) happens Fourth of July weekend, an awesome event celebrating all things speculatively geeky, and it’s always a highlight of my year. This year I’m attending as part of the Speculative Fiction Guild (SFG) and we’re hitting the con in a big way.

We’ll have a vendor’s booth with all of our titles, where I’ll have the Seventh Star collection of my paranormal thriller trilogy together in paperback for the first time. Convention pricing is: Haunting Blue: $15; Haunting Obsession: $12; Virtual Blue: $15.

Autographs are free and worth every penny you pay.

Also at the SFG booth: John F. Allen, Matthew Barron, and Eric Garrison. Directly next to us is SFG member Crystal Leflar, who’s running her OWN vendor booth as event marketer for Nightscape Press, so check out their array of titles along with her own books.

Inconjunction was the first con I ever attended over 20 years ago as Mrs. RJ’s date. The authors were my heroes and I always wanted to be where they were. Now I’m dpoing just that for my third time. Unreal.

So it turns out, the awesome people who throw Inconjunction (the Circle of Janus) moved their monthly meetings to a few miles down the road from where I live. I opened my big mouth and said “sure, the SFG will do as many panels as you want.” So they got us hopping this year!

Here’s your Stalker’s Guide to finding me.

Friday, July 4th

4 pm–Main Programming Room: Book Trailers–what are they good for? With: Eric Garrison and Author Co-Guest of Honor Kat Falls.

7 pm–Grand Ballroom 7 and 8: What are your favorites in genre television, and why? With: Mike Suess

8 pm–Grand Ballroom 7 and 8: Analyzing the History of the Comic Book Movie With: John F. Allen and Mike Suess.

Saturday, July 5

11 am–Indianapolis Ballroom D: SFG Writer’s Workshop: Point of View: Why it’s Better to Have One With: the SFG: John, Eric, Matt, and Crystal, plus Rosemary Laurey

1 pm–Room name coming: Discussion on genre television, title forthcoming: With John F. Allen

4 pm–Grand Ballroom 7 & 8: Making the Jump to a Series With: John F. Allen and Mike Shepherd.

7 pm–Harrison Room: SFG Writer’s Roundtable: Making the most of local settings in genre fiction With: The SFG: John, Eric, Matt, and Crystal.

10 pm–Grand Ballroom 7-8: Candlelight Horror Reading With: John F. Allen, Crystal Leflar and Jeff Seymour.

At this time, I have no plans to return Sunday.

While you’re there, say hi to Michael West, James Barnes of Loconeal Books, local filmmaker Kate Chaplin of Karmic Courage Productions, and check out the show by Five Year Mission.

WOW! How’s that for a packed weekend!

Red Lotus 2 now live

by R.J. SullivanMay 7, 2014Leave a comment

Yesterday Seventh Star Press launched Red Lotus: Innocence Lost, a “Super” Single short novella ebook at over 17,000 words (longer than a short story, but not a novel) for $1.99. The process started in the afternoon and took all day for all outlets to offer it. As with all my books, I have a devoted “leap” page for each product with all the details and the links that let you pick the outlet and format of choice with a click. All the links are live and you can view that page here.

While I was messing around with the new page, I kept tweaking with some other pages. I added a chronology to the Rebecca Burton Page and a similar list to the Blue Series page. I tweaked the look of the Haunting Obsession page And used John F. Allen’s art to spiffy up an introduction to the Red Lotus series and the first novella page, Fate of the Red Lotus.

So check it all out, look around, and I hope you enjoy Red Lotus: Innocence Lost as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Photo afterglow from Saturday’s Author Fair

by R.J. SullivanMarch 16, 20141 Comment

With "Virtual Blue" Nikki Howard! — With “Virtual Blue” Nikki Howard!

The drive was smooth and the weather perfect (though I’m glad I remembered my sunscreen) for the Fourth Annual Author’s Fair at That Book Place! But enough about me, if a picture is worth a thousand words, here’s a novella to check out!

Click here to access my Facebook photo album of the event.

Fourth Annual Author’s Fair at That Book Place

by R.J. SullivanMarch 10, 2014March 12, 20143 Comments

That Book Place 4th Annual Author’s Fair
Saturday, March 15, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
335 Clifty Drive; Madison, IN 47250
Click here for the website and
Click here to invite yourself to the Facebook Event (Best source of information)

This weekend marks my third consecutive appearance at the annual Book Fair at That Book Place in Madison, Indiana. Pretty cool, given this is only the fourth annual event.

At the second annual event, I was honored to be one of perhaps 20 authors. This year, Frank Hall, the owner of That Book Place, is making room for more than 40 authors. Fortunately, he’s expanded his store to double its previous size, which means room for more books and more authors than ever!

The Annual Book Fair at That Book Place has turned into quite a mini-gathering of regional authors. This year, I know for sure, that Seventh Star Press will be well represented, with authorly buddies John F. Allen, Eric Garrison, and Michael West joining me, plus Selah Janel and the awesome Stephen Zimmer. I expect to see Ren Garcia, Matt Adams, Tony Acree, and….wow, I just looked at the guests list. Click here to check it out for yourself.

It’s no exaggeration that That Book Place has thousands of new and used books in an astronomical variety of genres. And Frank makes sure that indy (and Indy) and small press authors are well represented at That Book Place. That’s why we love him, and that’s why we gather up in force at his little shop every year. John Allen recently called it the “pre-season event” of the convention season, and I think that explains it well.

This year I’ll be bringing the always popular Haunting Obsession, and new since last year , my latest novel, Virtual Blue. Although it is out of print, I will have very limited copies of the Haunting Blue paperback on hand. All paperbacks are sold through That Book Place, and as always, Frank is offering a discount on all Fair merchandise.

Autographs are free and worth every penny you pay.

If the weather is as warm as predicted, there’s a very good chance that Blue, the main character in my series, will make an appearance! She doesn’t like the cold, but it looks like the weather will hold out.

So come on out! I hope to see you there.

Spooky Author Book Bag Benefit Raffle to benefit MAP during Arts in the Park

by R.J. SullivanOctober 10, 2013October 10, 2013Leave a comment

This Saturday, the Mooresville Arts Partnership is re-launching Arts in the Park, an annual all day festival exhibiting and celebrating all aspects of art expression in the area. Local author R.J. Sullivan has ask for “a little help from his friends” and gotten it from, dark fiction authors John F. Allen, Matthew Barron, Nicole Cushing, and Crystal Leflar to instruct beginning-level writer’s workshops for all ages. Read all the details and sign up for a workshop time here!

We’ll also hold an all-day raffle at our canopy for a “Spooky Book Bag” of our work–$1 per ticket gets you one chance to win a set of books valued at over $60 without signatures–and the authors will sign and personalize each book on request.

This way, you can personalize a book for every horror reader on your gift list–or have all the books signed to you and keep them–we won’t tell.

To enter, find the Horror Authors Canopy. Raffle tickets are $1 each. Enter as often as you like. For each ticket you buy, we need your name and phone number (preferably a cell phone number you will be carrying with you at 5:30 that day, the time of the drawing) on the half you leave in the raffle.

Some notes:

Everyone who participates in the writer workshops earns one free ticket for the raffle. Children must have the ticket filled out by a parent.
100% of all proceeds go to MAP.
We’ll draw the winner following the 4 p.m. workshop, so some time after 5 p.m.
All tickets will be discarded responsibly. Tickets are to contact the winner. The rest will be destroyed.
Books will be “flat signed” unless the winner requests personalization. This will allow the authors to personalize books intended as gifts.
Parents take note: The books in the raffle and at the vendor tent contain adult content. We’ll do our best to sell responsibly, but we’re not going to card, nor will we judge what you let your kid read.

The Spooky Book Bag in detail. Links take you to the Amazon page:

The God Killers by John F. Allen; Secular City Limits by Mattthew Barron; We Are Dust and Death to the Brothers Grimm, both with a story by Crystal Leflar; Haunting Obsession by R.J. Sullivan–and maybe more! Plus bookmarks and other doodads.

These books and more can be purchased all day at the vendor tent! Authors will be around to sign all day.

Indiana Horror Authors to offer workshops at Mooresville Arts in the Park

by R.J. SullivanOctober 1, 2013October 8, 20134 Comments

Mooresville Arts in the Park
All Day Arts Festival Saturday, October 12!
Pioneer Park–Link to directions and park website
Flash fiction workshops and product tent!
Preregistration preferred, walk-ins welcome
Mooresville, IN
Website and Facebook

I’m very excited to announce an upcoming event taking place in my local community during the Arts in the Park festival at Pioneer Park Saturday, October 12, 2013. Several loccal local peer authors are joining me to serve as instructors during a series of free community workshops on crafting thrilling fiction. You’ll find us among dozens of community artists and performers who will sing, dance, and display their unique creations during the all-day festival. The event is free and open to the public.

We’re planning three one-hour sessions, aimed at, but not limited to, late elementary school through high school aged-writers-in-the-making. Adults who have recently caught the writing bug or who have put off their aspirations are also welcome. If you are interested in getting feedback from a professional author at no cost to you, you need to be here—don’t let the word “horror” scare you! We have an instructor to advise any beginner with a passion for writing thrilling tales of any genre.

The suggested format will be “flash fiction,” and the suggested theme will be “The Creature of Pioneer Park,” though writers are free to compose within their comfort zone. Writers can use the pens and paper provided, bring their own, or bring their laptops. Participants will spend the first half hour composing their work. During the last half hour, the authors will review the drafts and offer individualized instruction on how to best sharpen their writing skills. Writers may, alternatively, submit a pre-composed sample of their work for a critique (limit 1000 words).

Pre-registration is preferred, but walk-ins are welcome as long as we have the space. Click this link to pre-register.

The authors will strive to pair you with an instructor that best fits your style, and you will receive individualized instruction on your submission.

What is Flash Fiction? The unique challenge of flash fiction is to compose a “complete” story of roughly 1000 words. With fiction coming to readers on their pads, cell phones and reading devices, flash fiction has grown in popularity in recent years. It’s also ideal for a workshop. Not up the challenge? Don’t worry–writers may instead compose part of a larger story for review. To respect everyone’s time, instructors reserve the right to limit their review to roughly 1000 words per writer.

The Arts in the Park is an all-day event. The Artists’ Shelter will offer books by the instructors, who will be happy to sign and personalize every purchase. The free workshop sessions are courtesy of the Mooresville Arts Partnership, a non-profit organization that provides instruction in dance, tumble, visual arts, music, and drama to children and adults in the greater Mooresville area. Learn more at the MAP Website.

Here is the Facebook Arts in the Park event page and the Mooresville Pioneer Park Website.

The local author/instructors will include:

John F. Allen is an American speculative fiction author of Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Sci-Fi and Paranormal Mystery. He resides in Indianapolis, IN with his wife and two children. The God Killers, an urban fantasy, is his debut novel.

Matthew Barron spends his days mixing and analyzing human blood as a medical technologist in Indianapolis Indiana. His writing ranges from children’s books and short comics to robot erotica. His books The Lonely Princess and Secular City Limits are available now, and his short fiction has appeared in House of Horror, The Welcome to Indiana Comic Anthology, and the Roboterotica anthology.

Nicole Cushing is an author of weird, dark fiction. Her debut novella, Children of No One, received praise from several prominent genre outlets (Famous Monsters of Filmland wrote: “If you read one debut this year, this should be the one you read.”) Forthcoming books include The Choir of Beasts and The New God.

*

Crystal Leflar is a blogger book reviewer, previously with Fantasy magazine and Afterthoughts.com, now for Horror Novel Reviews. She’s a promotion specialist and slush reader for Nightscape Press. Her fiction has appeared in a variety of anthologies and she has several projects in the works.

R.J. Sullivan (you’re on his website!) writes paranormal thrillers and is expanding into science fiction. He is known locally as the story editor for the Morgan County Business Leader and as business writer “Copybob.” His books include Haunting Obsession, Haunting Blue, and Virtual Blue. His short fiction has appeared in the acclaimed anthologies Dark Faith Invocations and Vampires Don’t Sparkle.

Let’s get this party started!

by R.J. SullivanAugust 26, 20131 Comment

So over the weekend I opened the two-story lounge where I will be hosting a big party over the next couple of weeks.

No, I didn’t rent a ballroom. There, obvious joke over.

Two of my stories are going live within a few days of each other and I’m super-stoked. The release dates are extremely fluid because Seventh Star is a sort of crunch mode after some unavoidable delays earlier this summer, and both of my books post Very Soon Now. We just don’t know….exactly when. So I said “what the heck” and decided to host an interactive party on Facebook.

Okay, it’s more like a virtual lounge. In fact, that’s what I call it, the R.J. Sullivan Two-Story Release Party Lounge. I’m so clever. Essentially it’s a temporary public group on Facebook where fans, friends and peers can drop in and out and see the latest news, play some trivia, and I’ll raffle for all sorts of prizes, thanks to my author buds.

Plus–its primary purpose–to make it easy for you to track the release of my new science fiction Singles novelette, the Fate of the Red Lotus, due out mid week. And of course, capping off with the long-anticipated follow-up in the Adventures of Blue Shaefer–Virtual Blue! We’ll have excerpts and art reveals before it goes live.

And with the convenience of being in a group, the update posts won’t scroll several pages off your feed in a couple of hours. So even if you can only check in once a day, you won’t miss any updates.

Oh no, you’re thinking, I can’t bear to hear RJ talk about himself for days and days. To which I say–FREE stuff! You love to read, don’t you? (Yes, RJ, why else would we be here, duh!) So I’ve asked several of my talented and generous author buds to help make it worth your while to stick around, including Eric Garrison, John F. Allen, Chantel Noordeloos, Debra Holland, Kat French, and James W. Kirk, and that’s just the folks I reached out to on short notice.

The list is growing. We’ll have lots of ebook giveaways–mainly because ebooks are so easy to handle in something like this, but don’t be surprised if some “actual” things may need to be boxed and mailed before it’s over. Wow, I have a way with words.

So why are you still reading this? The party’s already started and going on without you. Click here already!

7th Annual Paranormal Meet n Greet August 10!

by R.J. SullivanAugust 6, 2013August 6, 2013Leave a comment

What: The 7th Annual Paranormal Meet n Greet
When: Saturday, August 10, Noon- 4 PM
Where: The Historic Haunted Hannah House, 3801 Madison Ave. Indianapolis, IN 46227
How Much: This event is 100% FREE! FREE for vendors and FREE for patrons! No registration required! Just show up!

Did we mention it’s free?

The 7th Annual Paranormal Meet n Greet is like an art festival across the lawn of a haunted house. Scratch that, it IS an art festival across the lawn of a haunted house. The event is set up primarily for local and regional ghost investigation groups to meet, network, exchange information, trade stories and otherwise hang out. Click here to join the Facebook event.

There will also be vendors of all sorts, and this will be the third annual appearance by the Indiana Horror Writers, with our huge selection of ghostly and ghastly tales to tempt you. I’ve been privileged to attend all three years of the IHW’s involvement with this, first as a new author promoting my first-ever novel, and now returning on the eve of my third book.

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2012, with RJ and "Maxine Marie" from Haunting Obsession. — 2012, with RJ and “Maxine Marie” from Haunting Obsession.

Last year it was the debut event of Haunting Obsession. And although I won’t be debuting anything new this year, I’ll [plenty of copies on-hand at the Indiana Horror Writer’s table, where we’ll have a LOT of new releases on tap between us.

Michael West will have a wide selection, including the just re-released Wide Game and the popular anthology Vampires Don’t Sparkle.

Eric Garrison is bringing the new edition of Four ’til Late, the first of his road ghosts trilogy.

John F. Allen makes his first appearance to this event as a published author with his urban fantasy The God Killers.

Crystal Leflar is bringing her own stories of horror and the supernatural as well as a variety of selections from Nighscape Press.

Kathy Watness is bringing a wide selection of anthologies that cover a range of the strange and fantastic.

Whether you prefer your scares ghostly or ghastly, you’ll find much to love at the Indiana Horror Writers tent. Hope to see you there!

The Hannah House is located at 3801 Madison Ave. Indianapolis, IN 46227. It can easily be reached from 465 by exiting on the US31 North exit, also known as East Street. The third light down is National Ave – go right. The very next light is Madison Ave. The house sits on the corner of this intersection.

R.J. Sullivan at Fandomfest

by R.J. SullivanJuly 19, 2013July 25, 20132 Comments

So this year, FandomFest in Louisville, KY, has, among other superstar guests, William Shatner, Stan Lee, Gillian Anderson, Colin Baker, Gene Simmons, some Walking Dead people, and others along those same lines.

Not that you care about that. You’re showing up to stalk me. It okay. I feel ya’, and I got ya’ covered.

I’ll be at the Seventh Star Table with…well, Seventh Star Authors, including my TCQ (The Corvus Quartet–Google Corvus Constellation) buddies, John F. Allen, Eric Garrison and Michael West. TCQ is a foursome of authors and friends who belong to the same publisher and all live in the Indianapolis area. We’ve combined our powers to brainstorm ideas, trade resources and in other ways support each other’s efforts for the greater good of the whole. Or something like that.

In any case, Seventh Star will have a strong presence again this year, and the regional author tract will include a full weekend of panels and opportunities to learn how we authors do our authorly thing so you future authors can figure out how you can become a future author also…but sooner. Or something like that. Yes, I get paid to do this, what’s your point?

So here’re my panels.

Friday
5:30 p.m. Effective Social Media–Room 106

Saturday
2:30 p.m. Episodic Fiction–Room 108
5:30 p.m. Paranormal Explorations–Room 109

Sunday
10:00 a.m. Beta Reading–Room 107

Here is the posted literary programming schedule in case you find something interesting I’m not a part of (unlikely as that seems.)

When I’m not here, I’ll be at the Seventh Star author’s table hanging out with my TCQ peeps, plus other Seventh Star authors, such as D. A. Adams, Steven Shrewsbury, Selah Janel, and I imagine Ali Justice and Stephen Zimmer will be coming by, too. Okay, I might sneak away to get some food, check out the other awesome authors and publishers, and photo-bomb Stan Lee so it looks like he’s holding a copy of Haunting Obsession (if possible).

Bottom line, it’s going to be a great weekend! Don’t miss it!

Seventh Star Press Authors of Indianapolis to hold signing at Bookmama’s

by R.J. SullivanJuly 11, 2013July 11, 2013Leave a comment

John F. Allen, Eric Garrison, R.J. Sullivan and Michael West are selling and signing at Bookmama’s in Irvington, Indiana, 9 Johnson Avenue (click that link for location and other details) this Saturday, July 13, from 2-3 p.m. The authors are all affiliated with Seventh Star Press and the Indiana Horror Writers.

Three authors are offering brand-new releases exclusive to this event first! When I say brand-new, I mean you can’t even purchase these books though normal retail or internet outlets for a few more days. I mean the first print run in still the mail to the authors and will get here just in time. Bookmama’s will be the very first place in the galaxy you can buy these books!!

Let’s break down the new stuff.

New voice John F. Allen will be offering the first book of the Ivory Blaque trilogy through Seventh Star, The God Killers, here BEFORE HIS OFFICIAL BOOK LAUNCH NEXT WEEK, featuring cover and interior art by Enggar Adirasa!

Eric Garrison will release Four ’til Late, the first book of his Ghost Roads Trilogy, with new cover and interior art by Bonnie Wasson!

Michael West is bringing the highly anticipated re-issue of The Wide Game, with new cover and interior art by Matthew Perry!

There will be author readings. And snacks. And temporary tattoos. A good time is guaranteed. Hope to see you there.

A complete listing of books available:

The God Killers by John F. Allen; Blue Spirit*, Four ’til Late, and Reality Check** by Eric Garrison; Haunting Blue*** (Limited copies!) and Haunting Obsession by R.J. Sullivan; Cinema of Shadows, Poseidon’s Children, Spook House, The Wide Game, and Vampires Don’t Sparkle! (Limited copies!) by Michael West.

Books are $15 per title except Haunting Blue, $20.00. All titles are Seventh Star Press releases unless otherwise indicated.

* Homebrew Net
** Hydra Publications
*** Damnation Books