So pleased to announce that The Holocaust Engine has received a Pinnacle Book Achievement Award for Fall, 2020.
It also puts us in esteemed company with several other winners from Evolved Publishing as shown below.
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For many writers, the ethereal landscape of the dreaming mind has generated countless wonders that amaze the dreamer and the reader alike.
Coleridge’s Kubla Khan sprang forth from an opium-influenced dream. Mary Shelley first met Frankenstein while she was dreaming. Mr. Hyde (and Dr. Jekyl) crept up on a feverish Robert Louis Stevenson in a dream. Edgar Allen Poe was the master of dream-mining, putting the quickly evaporating tales into print to share with the rest of us (and cause a few nightmares, too).
Today’s question: do you take inspiration from your dreams? Ever woke up, scribbled down the nonsense and tried to decipher it? Nuggets of wisdom? Puzzles to unlock? or just gibberish? If so, tell us about the experience and the result.
For those searching for a new book to curl up with as the seasons turn to Fall, our sneak peek is still available through Evolved Publishing.
Who sits in your co-pilot’s chair?
When you set down to create at a desk, laptop, easel or workbench, do you have a partner? We’ll share ours below, but we’d love to see yours in the comments section, including any suggestions for keeping that co-pilot happy.
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David Rike and I write as a team; brainstorming, plotting and scheming across a variety of mediums. However, when it’s time to set down the story in ink, our writing practices diverge quite a bit. See below for a bit of insight on who sits beside us when we create.
STEPHEN PATRICK:
“There’s always a furry friend beside me. Curled up in my lap, on my feet, on the couch beside me, somewhere close by. My current muse, Ash, a silver/smoke Maine Coon, always keeps a close watch. I’m pretty sure he’s hunting for any words that try to escape.”
DAVID RIKE:
“no partners. minimal distractions.”
One of the scariest elements of a good horror story is the anticipation, the furious flight of an imagination trying to explain what is to come. Fireside ghost stories are full of these experiences as the storyteller builds to a reveal.
Today’s question. What horror story (novel, TV, movie or campfire tale) built the best suspense for you? Was it satisfying to discover what was causing the “tap, tap, tap” sound coming from the roof of the car? Or did it fall flat, far from the terror of your own imagination.
Drop your comments below and and feel free to tell your own scary story.
It’s the first day of October. As we turn closer to Halloween, its time for a horror thought experiment.
What is the scariest book you’ve ever read?
After you read ours, drop yours in the comments. Hopefully, we’ll all find some new recommendations to help guide our Halloween reading!
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DAVID RIKE— it’s hard to feel true, visceral fear while reading. About as close as I’ve ever come as an adult was reading Dan Simmon’s “Carrion Comfort”.
STEPHEN PATRICK – I’ve loved horror for a long time, but for scary, the one that gets me, hit all the right notes and had a creepy silver cover. Kubrick’s movie aside, “The Shining” is atmospheric, isolating and squeezes so much terror from the nature of men. Also one of my prettiest books, the printing on top of the silver seemed to wear off at regular intervals, slowly replacing the tiny picture of Danny with another image (the reflection of the reader on the cover)
“How” do you write?
For my writer friends, what is your preferred method for putting it all down for your reader? Ours are at the bottom, but please drop yours in the comments. We want to see inside your process.
- Pencil + paper?
- Ink + notebook?
- Chisel + stone
- Fire + blanket
- In the Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
- Not at all (writing words down robs them of the freedom to be what they want to be)
DAVID RIKE: I only write in a notebook these days if I’m somewhere interesting enough (beach or mountainside) to justify the extra step of typing it up later. Otherwise it’s on a laptop, in an empty room, with mood music.
STEPHEN PATRICK: Pen + paper. I carry a notebook with me almost everywhere, specifically this one. I’ll burn through 2-3 each year (typically one in the Spring and one in the Summer), filling them with story seeds, character ideas, plot threads, lists, and all sorts of things. Sometimes they come to live in a work-in-progress. Other times they survive on the bookshelf until I hit a wall and skim through them, mining them for new ideas. I regularly find a solution to a problem that hasn’t arrived yet. Most recently, I’m using MS OneNote for the formal storytelling, using it to build up to a final draft in MS Word.
Fans of The Holocaust Engine or the authors can find our Facebook pages at the places below, including our brand new Readers Club where we can dive deeper into the book and the ongoing trilogy.
The first reviews for The Holocaust Engine are in:
“…a chilling community horror adventure like no other, and one which leaves you with a lump in your throat throughout.
Author team David Rike and Stephen Patrick have crafted one of the most interesting and original virus-style thriller novels I’ve read in a long while. As a horror fan, I felt that the violence, threat, and suspense were in excellent balance throughout the novel, with different aspects of fear coming through in a sophisticated way that elevates itself above shock value. The psychological aspect of how the area becomes divided really fascinated me, taking a small-town horror vibe and placing it in a wild section of waterways and tropical islands to enhance the danger. The more I got to know the characters and the progression of their skills, the more I wanted another book in this excellent series to devour right away. Overall, I would highly recommend The Holocaust Engine for fans of horror, thriller, and virus-style adventure novels.”– Readers’ Favorite Book Reviews, K.C. Finn (5 STARS)
“The Holocaust Engine is the first entry in a series that will certainly be an engrossing one, and I was pulled in right from the beginning. The authors start the story in an intriguing manner and as the reader follows the narrative, they become quickly enamored with the characters. The writing is polished and it flows with an unusual fluidity and crispness. I noticed the descriptive power of the prose and how strongly the imagery pops up in the pages. The setting is wonderfully written, and it reflects a society in chaos. The descriptions offer details that add depth to the story and allow readers to feel for the characters. The theme of survival is central in this narrative and while it features scenes that are crafted for fans of horror, I was so taken by the keen exploration of human nature. The characters are real, the pacing is fast, and the plot is a twisty one.”– Readers’ Favorite Book Reviews, Romuald Dzemo (5 STARS)
“I loved the story from the beginning. It starts with the death of Wesley Bontrager, which is not truly reported by the press—and this isn’t far from contemporary reality. What everyone thinks is that the professional quarterback committed suicide in the infirmary at the Metro West Detention Center while awaiting arraignment for the murder of his friend and teammate, George Cole. But before his death, he did things that are gruesome, like killing the guard and the nurse. When new characters come into the story it quickly becomes even more interesting. I particularly loved how the authors capture the general climate of a community under quarantine, the lies that authorities tell the population to hide the facts, and the natural human instinct for survival and the way it is written. This is a well-crafted horror story with memorable characters and an unusual plot. David Rike and Stephen Patrick keep the writing elegant and fill it with strong descriptions, creating an apocalyptic world where inhabitants struggle to survive through scarcity. There are gory, nerve-racking scenes. The Holocaust Engine is a fun and quick read, thanks to the beauty of language and the authors’ gift for storytelling and plot. I enjoyed the short chapters and suspenseful writing.”– Readers’ Favorite Book Reviews, Jose Cornelio (5 STARS)
This week’s question involves the “where” of writing. What is your favorite place to write, or Where do you do your best work?
DAVID RIKE: The Rocky Mountains. Unfortunately, that creative process is limited to two weeks a year
STEPHEN PATRICK: I’m a “couch creative”, doing my best work curled up on cushions at the house (typically by myself). Pillows are optional, even the angle of typing (sitting, prone, etc) is flexible. Two related features are the hot cup of coffee or tea (depending on the time of day), and access to my current notebook (for reference) and one resource book (for inspiration).
For our fans, friends and other writers, drop your favorites in the comments. Where do you write? or, where do you read? Any tips for those looking for a better/best place to engage the written word?