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I Need a McFavor

Newsletter Posted on Tue, September 01, 2020 10:09:07

Building YouTube

Apparently, now that I have a publicist, I’m supposed to interact with people and be pleasant. Since there’s a raging pandemic killing people, that requires some different options.

Last Sunday I did a fun interview with Meredith Loughran at iNDEEvent. We talked about comics, creators, and cocaine. The whole interview is around fifteen minutes, so give it a watch when you can.

One thing I noticed was that authors who had active YouTube channels tended to have better traction than those who don’t. 

I have never messed with YouTube as an author, simply never saw the point. In other words, I have a YouTube channel, I just ignored it. Now, you may have noticed a theme with all I do, every social media account is found @BillMcSciFi. Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, Vimeo, Goodreads, are all @BillMcSciFi. It keeps things simple.

But, to make that a thing on YouTube I need to get one hundred people to subscribe to my channel. That’s where you come in. Just CLICK HERE, and then tap the big, red, subscribe button on the right hand side. 

To make all your hard work worth your time, I’ll start posting snippets, just a few minutes each, of me reading from my various books, stories, and ladling missives from fonts of floofy falderol every Thursday. I did a reading from The Brittle Riders at the last LA Book Fest and people seemed to like that.  

Apparently, I’m warm and engaging. 

Yeah, I was surprised too.

Anyway, please, CLICK HERE, tap the red button, and enjoy.

More to come.

 

Okay, let’s move on to everybody’s favorite new thriller, SPLICE: HIT BIT TECHNOLOGY. You can now get the paperback at Barnes and Noble and the Kindle at Amazon. Obviously, given what the country’s going through Barnes and Noble isn’t adding new stock. They’ve got months worth of stuff sitting around they need to sell first before they get to me. 

That said, they will happily send you your copy so you can read it in the safety of your own home or they can arrange for you to pick it up at a location near you. 

Now, I know some of you don’t have Amazon accounts so you can’t leave a review. If you read it and want the universe to know, you can always leave a review on my Good Reads page or on the Barnes and Noble page. All you need is a valid email address to post there.  

He is an enigma known only as Splice, a criminal mastermind with unlimited resources, cunning, and guile. A silent force who can make world leaders disappear in a miasma of blood and gore. But how did he get here? Where did he come from? The world may never know, but you will.

More below.



Finally, an update on the IBADAN COMIC CON in Nigeria. Due to lingering concerns about COVID-19, they are moving the dates to November 27th and 28th and the event will be strictly virtual. They tried working with authorities but it was finally decided that putting almost 20,000 people in a single building for two days was too great a risk to entertain. At least not until there’s a vaccine. 

I should also note that, despite public skepticism concerning the validity of the disease, officials in Nigeria have done a great job of testing and flattening the curve. So, we’ll support digitally for now and look forward to the day we can show up and shake hands with everyone.

In the meantime, here’s some comics you can check out now.

LEGENDS PARALLEL
Hadithi Sambamba Comix
Free samples online. A man, his mom, and her lover have to save the multiverse. No one said this shit would be easy. The perfect series for those who think quantum physics isn’t sexy, or violent, enough. One story, five Earths, twelve issues. Art by Leslie Tejlor.

HYBRID ZERO: JUGGERNAUT
Dr. Strangefate Publishing /Hadithi Sambamba Comix
Set in the distant future, Hybrid Zero is the story of a human/alien fusion and her strange family. They live in an era where sexuality, in all its joyful panoply, is lauded and violence is taboo. This group of aristocratic soldiers must face down their own petty, in the grand scheme of things, problems and stop a trans-dimensional creature before it destroys the universe. Or not. You know how things can get sometimes.

HYBRID ZERO: JUNGLE GRRL
Dr. Strangefate Publishing / Hadithi Sambamba Comix
In a far future the universe has taken many unusual turns. Genetic manipulation has led to many unforeseen consequences. One is, after Earth had been destroyed, a group of rich investors rebuilt it to be an amusement park like nothing you’ve ever seen. Complete with sex forests and dino clones. 

HYBRID ZERO: CASSANDRA AND THE CHANGELING SWORD
Dr. Strangefate Publishing / Hadithi Sambamba Comix
She’s a ninety-six year old dead chick whose spirit is in a new dimension where she’s now a young woman with mystical powers who lives with a chain smoking, hard drinking, MIT educated, prostitute who’s also a master craftsperson who creates all sorts of wonderful things to help keep Cassandra alive. Or whatever it is she is. 

RUH ROH RANGERS
Hadithi Sambamba Comix
Read for free online. Those meddlesome kids are all grown up. A savage satire featuring the work of the 2019 Glyph Nominated artist, Maku Tellez, this is the comic that will ruin your childhood and make your day. Scooby Dooby Don’t!

SVAROZIC
Hadithi Sambamba Comix
Read for free online. A woman trapped inside a man, a god trapped inside a human. Part of the Independent Creators Connection (ICC) ring anthology. Each character, created by different artists, has an elemental force controlled by a ring. They will try to stay alive as a dark menace hunts them down and tries and steal their powers. Art by SBRii.

THE EDGAR ALLAN POE CHRONICLES
Dren Productions, LLC
My take on The Oval Portrait has been included in a collection of sci-fi reimaginings of the works of Edgar Allan Poe featuring graphic artists who’ve worked on comics for Thor, Guardians of the Galaxy, Iron Man and many more. It’s a really cool project and I’m honored to be a part of it.

Until next week, stay safe, sane and inside.



McSciFi in McBrick and McMortar Stores

Newsletter Posted on Tue, August 25, 2020 08:43:56

Greetings Newbies! You picked a great day to join.

Some things are simply unrelated. For example, I use Mailchimp to get you your weekly dose of coolness and Shirley Manson promotes Mailchimp. That does not mean Shirley Manson promotes me. She should, but she doesn’t.

Other things are related. 

Yesterday, Azoth Khem and Watchdog Entertainment signed an agreement with Alicia Freeman Publicity to handle the promotion of SPLICE: HIT BIT TECHNOLOGY. Alicia comes with a stellar reputation as a true professional who increases her clients’ status in the public eye while boosting their bottom line. She’s also responsible for creating nude cults of rabid, vodka loving, pansexuals for them. That last part may just have been my fever dream. We’ll find out as time goes on.

Anyway, also yesterday, SPLICE: HIT BIT TECHNOLOGY was picked up by Barnes and Noble. This means you can, finally, get your sweaty hands on a hard copy of the book. Also, it means better royalties for us, at no additional cost to you, if you buy from B&N.

Right now, thanks to COVID-19, you can only order it for delivery or arrange pick up at your nearest location; they’re not stocking new titles just yet. Which is fine. We’re in their catalog and being added to more as I type. That’s the important part. 

Today Barnes and Noble, tomorrow the world!

MU HU HA HA  HA!!!

Okay, sorry, I’m calm now.

Much more below.



For the next slab of greatness, I turn my email blast over to the indefatigable Meredith Loughran.

Hello comic book fans and creators! 

iNDEEvent launches once again this weekend August 29-30th with our End of Summer Back & Back to School Book Sale.

We’ve got indie creators who are bringing their shows to the Saturday playlist and everyone is encouraged to tune in and interact. Sunday continues the fun with a new idea; a real selling component where we’ll have creators sitting with us during our “SELL BLOCKS”.

People will have an opportunity to hear pitches and support ongoing Kickstarters, IndieGoGo or other crowdfunding campaigns, or direct selling to customers and friends across multiple networks which include Geek Insider, Indie Volt, and the Comic Book Advocates Network. So mark your calendar for this coming weekend. And if you can’t make it to the live shows, no worries! They will be available for replay and our participants will be listed on our website. 

Bookmark http://indeevent.com for details and the schedule of events or check out #iNDEEvent on social media. See you there.
 

Since I have a dining room full of comics, and like selling them, I’m excited to be a part of this event. I will be hanging around all weekend, so feel free to drop by, say hi, and make someone buy you a copy of one of my comics. In fact, make them buy you two. You’re worth it.

Still more below. I’ve been busy.



The nice people over at Sweetycat Press have been McFans of McSciFi for a while. They included me in their WHO’S WHO OF EMERGING WRITERS, which featured over one hundred, up and coming, authors from all over the world, representing numerous genres.

Well, now, I’m beyond thrilled to announce they just released THE BOOK OF BOOKS, which details over one hundred new books you need to check out and there are two McSciFi listings; SPLICE: HIT BIT TECHNOLOGY and, the upcoming, Goptri of the Mists

As always, I’ll note that Sweetycat does not charge authors to be in their publications, and all editorial decisions are theirs, and theirs alone. 

Which makes all of this even cooler!

A little bit more below.




As you can tell, my multiverse is expanding. That makes it more important to me that you stay safe, sane, and inside. A lot of you have been here since day one so I’d hate to lose you now.

See you next week!



Stop McBy and Say McHi

Newsletter Posted on Tue, August 18, 2020 09:18:54

It’s That Exciting Time of the Year!

Or, it would be if we could safely go anywhere. Still, thanks to Zoom, Facebook Groups, and other services, we can assemble virtually. Which is something. And it is something I’m going to be doing again. On August 29th & 30th I’ll be one of the hucksters at iNDEEvent

Put together by the indefatigable Meredith Loughran, the event breaks out nicely over the two days. Saturday, the 29th, there will be a day filled with panels, hosted by creators from all over the world. On Sunday, the 30th, it will be a sell-a-thon where you can scan a QR code, bust out your credit card, and buy, buy, buy!

What makes this event a little different than others I’ve done is that it’s exclusively for comic books. So I’ll be mad pimping Hadithi Sambamba Comix.

More below.



In other exciting news, SPLICE: HIT BIT TECHNOLOGY is now rolling out as a hard copy. It will be available through Barnes and Noble and many other fine retailers. If it’s not up in your area yet, just check in later. Given how understaffed some places are right now, it may take them a bit to update their websites.

Sadly, no matter how cool you think I am. I’m not always a priority to mega-corporations. 

Hopefully, that will change some day.

Now, he’s an enigma known only as Splice; a criminal mastermind with unlimited resources, cunning, and guile. A silent force who can make world leaders disappear in a miasma of blood and gore. But how did he get here? Where did he come from? The world may never know, but you will.

Still some more to go.



In other comic related news, we have temporarily sold out of the Legends Parallel Graphic Novel. I will be restocking but, until then, we are offering it as a Print on Demand item. There’s no extra cost to you, so that’s one less thing to cause you grief. That said, there’s still a bunch of stuff you can enjoy, and find out more about at iNDEEvent next weekend. 

I’ll post appearance times next week, once everything’s nailed in.

Also, a quick update on the IBADAN COMIC CON in Nigeria. Due to lingering concerns about COVID-19, they are moving the date back a few months. They are working with Nigerian officials to make sure they comply with all health regulations but still can promote a fun event. They are hoping to have it all agreed to by this weekend. Once they have a hard date I’ll let you know.

In the meantime, here’s stuff you can check out now.

LEGENDS PARALLEL
Hadithi Sambamba Comix
Free samples online. A man, his mom, and her lover have to save the multiverse. No one said this shit would be easy. The perfect series for those who think quantum physics isn’t sexy, or violent, enough. One story, five Earths, twelve issues. Art by Leslie Tejlor.

HYBRID ZERO: JUGGERNAUT
Dr. Strangefate Publishing /Hadithi Sambamba Comix
Set in the distant future, Hybrid Zero is the story of a human/alien fusion and her strange family. They live in an era where sexuality, in all its joyful panoply, is lauded and violence is taboo. This group of aristocratic soldiers must face down their own petty, in the grand scheme of things, problems and stop a trans-dimensional creature before it destroys the universe. Or not. You know how things can get sometimes.

HYBRID ZERO: JUNGLE GRRL
Dr. Strangefate Publishing / Hadithi Sambamba Comix
In a far future the universe has taken many unusual turns. Genetic manipulation has led to many unforeseen consequences. One is, after Earth had been destroyed, a group of rich investors rebuilt it to be an amusement park like nothing you’ve ever seen. Complete with sex forests and dino clones. 

HYBRID ZERO: CASSANDRA AND THE CHANGELING SWORD
Dr. Strangefate Publishing / Hadithi Sambamba Comix
She’s a ninety-six year old dead chick whose spirit is in a new dimension where she’s now a young woman with mystical powers who lives with a chain smoking, hard drinking, MIT educated, prostitute who’s also a master craftsperson who creates all sorts of wonderful things to help keep Cassandra alive. Or whatever it is she is. 

RUH ROH RANGERS
Hadithi Sambamba Comix
Read for free online. Those meddlesome kids are all grown up. A savage satire featuring the work of the 2019 Glyph Nominated artist, Maku Tellez, this is the comic that will ruin your childhood and make your day. Scooby Dooby Don’t!

SVAROZIC
Hadithi Sambamba Comix
Read for free online. A woman trapped inside a man, a god trapped inside a human. Part of the Independent Creators Connection (ICC) ring anthology. Each character, created by different artists, has an elemental force controlled by a ring. They will try to stay alive as a dark menace hunts them down and tries and steal their powers. Art by SBRii.

THE EDGAR ALLAN POE CHRONICLES
Dren Productions, LLC
My take on The Oval Portrait has been included in a collection of sci-fi reimaginings of the works of Edgar Allan Poe featuring graphic artists who’ve worked on comics for Thor, Guardians of the Galaxy, Iron Man and more. It’s a really cool project and I’m honored to be a part of it.



As always, stay safe, sane and inside. If you can’t do that wear the freaking mask. 

Also, last week, sharp eyed readers let me know I was missing some pics in the collage I’d shared. 

I had no idea anyone paid that much attention.

Anyway, I found them, added them in, and now can present you a full collage of McSciFi Fun.

See you next week!



Another McTuesday

Newsletter Posted on Tue, August 11, 2020 09:06:11

Hello Everyone.

Time once again to check in on the multiverses of McSciFi. Last week, at the behest of the world’s greatest girlfriend (mine) we added personal delivery of any McSciFi merchandise as long as the buyer lives within one hour of South Chicago. We did our first, masked and socially distanced, delivery last Sunday and it was fun. We didn’t get any pics, sorry – I really suck at that, but we did drop off a copy of The Brittle Riders to an eager fan.

Also, speaking of merchandise, we have added several new options to the McSciFi GEAR tab. Plus sized T-shirts, bandannas, and more. There are over 120 options for each design. You can festoon your entire family, loved ones, and random strangers in all things McSciFi and still leave stuff unbought. 

So, click THIS LINK to fulfill all your fantastic fashion fantasies. 

More below.

As you may have heard, I have a couple of novels out. Hard copies of SPLICE: HIT BIT TECHNOLOGY and The Brittle Riders Omnibus Edition are on back-order, but headed your way. That said, if you want Book(s) 1, 2, or 3 of The Brittle Riders, just CLICK HERE to place your order. And, as noted above, if you live within an hour of South Chicago I’ll show up at your home with an autographed copy. 

Now, he’s an enigma known only as Splice; a criminal mastermind with unlimited resources, cunning, and guile. A silent force who can make world leaders disappear in a miasma of blood and gore. But how did he get here? Where did he come from? The world may never know, but you will.
*****
A brilliant man hosted a party. It was such a good party that it culminated in the death of all humanity. That story is boring and oft-told. This is not that story. This is the story of what happened next. The Brittle Riders, apocalypses are funny that way.

Check out the cool new promo graphics we have for each release.

More below.

Exciting news from Hadithi Sambamba Comix. After a long, and circuitous, journey, BOB: SINS OF THE SON is getting made. The whimsical story of the son of Death who wants to be a superhero in Chicago features a revamped Pater Noster and a little girl who makes sense of the world. His dad does not approve and his sister thinks he’s an idiot. 

Originally written to be an over-the-top porn satire, the script ended up going in a different direction and, at times, becoming almost sweet. A couple of rewrites later and I had a wonderful, teen friendly, story packed with action and spirituality. The debut issue will not be an origin story and will, instead, leap right into the deep end. I felt that the family of death was a graspable concept and context clues could fill in any gaps as you read along.

The art will be handled by, the legendary. ghoulbeanz. She handled all the art on Savorzic back when she was known as SBRii. There will also be a new logo created by Nick Holmes from Antlur. Nick created The Brittle Riders logo and rebuilt the logo for Legends Parallel. I think it’s safe to say this is going to be one spiffy looking title.

A little more below.

On a sad note, my long time friend, and internationally renowned music producer, Howie Beno passed away suddenly yesterday. I won’t bore you with stories of our exploits and will, instead, say he led a life well lived.

And he will be missed.

In the meantime, stay safe, sane, and inside, and, if you have to go outside, wear a fucking mask. 

See you next week.



Staying McSafe and McSane

Newsletter Posted on Tue, August 04, 2020 08:35:21

First off, some good news. Ryan Gatenby, the host of The Big Wakeup Call on WBIG, just celebrated the tenth year of sharing his show with the multiverse. I’ll let him tell you all about it.

We celebrated an entire decade of whatever it is we do here with calls from some of our favorite and most frequent guests, including Scott Aukerman from “Comedy Bang Bang,” Ben Gleib from “Idiotest” and the new “Nowhere Comedy Club,” Dylan Brody from “The Corona Dialogues,” Best-selling authors and fashion bloggers Heather Cocks & Jessica Morgan, and the only member of the 400 timers club, the World News Center’s Bill McCormick.

We also revisited clips from some of my favorite interviews over the years, including Graham Nash, Mike Love, Dick Cavett, Kristen Schaal, Vanessa Bayer, Jim Breuer, Jim Gaffigan, and Elvis Costello.

Plus:  the only two guests to say naughty words on our show, Aubrey Plaza and “Cake Boss”  Buddy Valastro!

Thank you for all of your support over the last ten years.  Thank you to all of my guests who have made the show so special.


The “400 timers club” refers to the number of times I have appeared on the show. I’ll be celebrating my tenth anniversary as a guest this October. 

CLICK HERE if you’d like to check it out.

More below.



In good news for me, and my landlord, SPLICE: HIT BIT TECHNOLOGY seems to be moving off the digital shelves and onto the sweaty devices of happy people all over the world. There was a minor technical glitch which slowed up the hard copy from being released, but it should be available by the time you’re done with work today.

On a fun note, one reader pointed out how much they enjoyed the book since it’s not science fiction. It is, it’s just not set in the distant future or on an alien world. More like CSI, and its myriad collection of related shows, it’s near future scifi. That means the tech in the book is on a drawing table somewhere, but it’s nowhere near the streets.

Now, he’s an enigma known only as Splice; a criminal mastermind with unlimited resources, cunning, and guile. A silent force who can make world leaders disappear in a miasma of blood and gore. But how did he get here? Where did he come from? The world may never know, but you will.

Obviously, thanks to the pandemic, the film has been delayed since putting film crews in national hot spots is a bad idea. Or, as I like to say, killing people you like is rude. That said, I am blessed to be working with functioning adults and they’re not going to rush into anything until they’re convinced it’s safe to do so. 

More below.



In fun comic book news, Hadithi Sambamba has packaged up Hybrid Zero and Legend Parallel into a single promotion to help people understand, more fully, what they’re getting into.

Two remarkably cool, gender fluid, multiverses to play in. We live in a country where naked women are art and naked men are terrifying, ergo these books are artfully terrifying. Not just naughty pics, there’s words and plots too.

It’s a rapidly expanding multiverse and you don’t want to miss a thing.

LEGENDS PARALLEL
Hadithi Sambamba Comix
Free samples online. A man, his mom, and her lover have to save the multiverse. No one said this shit would be easy. The perfect series for those who think quantum physics isn’t sexy, or violent, enough. One story, five Earths, twelve issues. Art by Leslie Tejlor.

HYBRID ZERO: JUGGERNAUT
Dr. Strangefate Publishing /Hadithi Sambamba Comix
Set in the distant future, Hybrid Zero is the story of a human/alien fusion and her strange family. They live in an era where sexuality, in all its joyful panoply, is lauded and violence is taboo. This group of aristocratic soldiers must face down their own petty, in the grand scheme of things, problems and stop a trans-dimensional creature before it destroys the universe. Or not. You know how things can get sometimes.

HYBRID ZERO: JUNGLE GRRL
Dr. Strangefate Publishing / Hadithi Sambamba Comix
In a far future the universe has taken many unusual turns. Genetic manipulation has led to many unforeseen consequences. One is, after Earth had been destroyed, a group of rich investors rebuilt it to be an amusement park like nothing you’ve ever seen. Complete with sex forests and dino clones. 

HYBRID ZERO: CASSANDRA AND THE CHANGELING SWORD
Dr. Strangefate Publishing / Hadithi Sambamba Comix
She’s a ninety-six year old dead chick whose spirit is in a new dimension where she’s now a young woman with mystical powers who lives with a chain smoking, hard drinking, MIT educated, prostitute who’s also a master craftsperson who creates all sorts of wonderful things to help keep Cassandra alive. Or whatever it is she is. 

More below.




As always, if you’d like to convert your friends and colleagues to the cult of McSciFi just SHARE THIS LINK and let them sample my worlds for free. The more adventurous among them will be devoted followers soon enough. And, if you think you’ve missed something, feel free to peruse it at your leisure. 

In the meantime, I can’t emphasize enough how important it is for people to take this pandemic seriously. Wear a mask, wash your hands, and stay six feet, or more, away from people you’re not living with. An entire family my girlfriend knows, including their week old infant, all tested positive. Odds are they’ll be fine, they’re young and healthy. But, had it not been caught, they could have spread it to their older relatives, or someone with underlying medical issues, and those people would die. 

Also, even if you live, almost thirty percent of patients have lingering health issues ranging from minor lung irritation to early onset dementia. One personal friend lost twenty percent of her lung capacity and had to quit her job. She’s twenty-five.

If you want to know more about this just CLICK HERE for a series of articles I wrote that have vetted facts.

Until next week, stay safe, sane, and inside.



You’re All McWonderful

Newsletter Posted on Tue, July 28, 2020 10:05:43

Welcome to the newsletter!

I know everyone has busy lives and things to do, so I’ll try and keep this a little shorter than War and Peace. But, I have to tell you some exciting news. I am proud to announce that the, gloriously NSFWHybrid Zero multiverse has spawned another title. 

It’s called NEUTRINOS and tells the sordid tale of an all female rock band touring the galaxy in a beater spaceship. While all they want is to have sex, consume large quantities of drugs, and play rock and roll, the universe has other plans for them. If you’ve ever wondered how buying an alien goat caller in a flea market could lead to the violent overthrow of a government, this will fill in the gaps for you.

More below.


In non-comic news, SPLICE: HIT BIT TECHNOLOGY continues to gather new fans. The paperback will  be dropping next week and begin being shipped to stores. I can honestly say nothing I’ve written has gotten visceral, and positive, reactions like this book. Based on my emails people seem to believe I went to their homes and kicked them in the groin as they read the last page.

For the record, I haven’t been doing that.

Now, he’s an enigma known only as Splice; a criminal mastermind with unlimited resources, cunning, and guile. A silent force who can make world leaders disappear in a miasma of blood and gore. But how did he get here? Where did he come from? The world may never know, but you will.

My other massive tome, The Brittle Riders, is also being released as a paperback, or useful cudgel – depending on your point of view, and shall soon be pawed by the fawning masses. Or so we hope. There’s a reason this book was voted one of the best examples of world building by Science Fantasy Hub. It takes readers into a place they thought they knew intimately and proves them wrong on every page. 

If David Brin came off a three day tequila bender and dropped acid, he would have written The Brittle Riders. After the death of every man, woman, and child on the planet things get a little weird. Apocalypses are funny that way.

More below.



In, kind of exciting, comic book news, I’ve been fielding calls from comic book stores that are close to reopening, or have recently done so, about stocking Hadithi Sambamba Comix in their stores. In fact the first order just went out. It wasn’t massive, but it was an order. 

And, this is the cool part, it was an order placed by customers. People wanted it, so the store reached out and got it. And we’re starting to see, a little more, similar activity. Right now I can fulfill orders with the stock I have in my dining room, but I’m hopeful we can start direct shipping from the printer soon.

That would be good for our bottom line and the pockets of our creators. 

Well, that’s enough fun for one day. I wouldn’t want to tax your systems. As always, if you know a special someone whose life would be enhanced by owning some McSciFi just CLICK HERE and burn that credit card to a nub.

In all seriousness, thank you for your continued support and stay safe, sane, and inside.

See you next week.



The McPeople are McSpeaking

Newsletter Posted on Tue, July 21, 2020 09:08:00

As the pandemic keeps raging across our nation, and help seems remote – at best, it’s kind of nice to know some good has come out of this mess. People are reconnecting with family members, taking some time away from their digital devices and experimenting with books (it’s how I got addicted back in the 60s so I’m hopeful again), and generally trying to not go insane.

So far so good here at Casa del SciFi. I hope you’re doing okay too.

On the subject of reading, and I kind of am, I thought I’d share some preliminary reviews of SPLICE: HIT BIT TECHNOLOGY.

I couldn’t put it down. An incredible read. – BH

Wonderful book! – WD

For a book without names, it has some memorable characters. – TZ

The ending hit so hard, I’m still shaking. – HE

You get the idea. People are digging SPLICE

More below.

I recently did a radio show with, the legendary, Desiree Duffy. For those who missed it, and that may account for three or four of you, she was kind enough to post a video version online. You can CLICK HERE to see me in all my pandemic glory – the goatee’s looking good – and hear us talk, in depth, about The Brittle Riders

I got to share one fun story, which I’ll share here, in more depth, as well. Thanks to the pandemic people have had more free time. This has led to some unlikely conversations. One such involves me and a young Chinese lady living in England. We met on Twitter. She decided to bolster her grasp of English by reading The Brittle Riders. Given the bad things I do to words in the series, I bend English into four dimensional pretzels, it would not have been my first choice. But, hey, it has an appendix, and context clues are still context clues.

I wished her the best and figured that was that.

I was wrong.

She would reach out to me with questions, comments, and began sharing parts of her personal life. Two people who wouldn’t have glanced at each other were now becoming friends. Well, we all have some serious down time at the moment so we may as well do something positive.

Anyway, she finished The Brittle Riders and gifted me with this gem; “It’s like Frankenstein’s monsters won.”

That is it in a nutshell, with all the historical and social baggage it implies.

If she could make it through twelve hundred pages of apocalyptic dystopia, you can too.

This is a story where old meets new, where religion meets science in an epic story of what happened ‘after’ our world changed. It is masterfully written with attention to detail and it sympathetically manages to bridge the gap between faith and technology.

More below.

Not to worry everyone! I’m still writing comics for Hadithi Sambamba. While it’s true our distributor succumbed to the financial perils of the pandemic, we’re slowly, but surely, working to fill that loss. 

For now, we’re hewing close to the best practices that worked before. That means you can check out titles online for free and order hard copies to be delivered to your sweaty palms. In discussions we’ve had with other comic book companies, we are seeing the landscape change. We will adjust as need be. But, for now, let”s have some fun.

Quick note for the uninitiated, Hybrid Zero is wildly NSFW!

Hybrid Zero: Juggernaut – Almost one hundred pages of awesomeness for you to ogle. The story of a multiverse where consensual sex is lauded, violence is taboo, and a family of genetically modified assassins may be its only hope.

Hybrid Zero: Jungl Grrl – The titular, implication intended, heroine lives on an alien made Earth working in a sex park as she and her best friend parse philosophy, drink beer, and try to stay on the good side of the alien catipuss who’s their boss, Mr. Blome.

Hybrid Zero: Cassandra and the Changeling Sword – A ninety year old, dead, woman is trapped in the body of a young shinobi and preparing to battle her evil twin, who’s not related to her as far as anyone knows, while they ride on an earth located on the back of a turtle. It also has a prostitute who has a degree in engineering. Because …. why not?

Legends Parallel has mature themes and some nudity. It’s up to you how you feel about that.

Legends Parallel – Just in case quantum physics wasn’t violent, or sexy, enough for you. LEGENDS PARALLEL is a, single story, comic book which will span twelve issues. It tells the tale of five Earths, each very different from the others, and the one woman who wants to control them all. A man, his mom, and her lover have to save these worlds. No one said this shit would be easy.

Next, we have the mildly salacious look at the old Scooby Do comics.

Ruh Roh Rangers – Those meddlesome kids are all grown up. A savage satire featuring the work of the 2019 Glyph Nominated artist, Maku Tellez, this is the comic that will ruin your childhood and make your day. Scooby Dooby Don’t!

This next one was written for, and with the help of, teens. LGBTQIA friendly too.

Svarozic – A woman trapped inside a man, a god trapped inside a human. Part of the Independent Creators Connection (ICC) ring anthology. Each character, created by different artists, has an elemental force controlled by a ring. They will try to stay alive as a dark menace hunts them down and tries and steal their powers.

I think that’s enough for now.

Please, stay safe, sane, and inside. See you next week.



Attempting Global McConquest

Newsletter Posted on Tue, July 14, 2020 12:22:22
Welcome Newbies!

It’s always exciting to see new names pop up on the email list. And it’s kind of heartwarming to think people want to be here. Since there are so many newbies I figured I’d change my banner to pics of me. While watching me juggle planets is cool, and a lot of fun to do, it’s not quite what I look like. And, since you’re here, it seems only fair to let you know who you’re sharing the internet with.

This last weekend was a whirlwind of interviews and digital conventions. Well, one of each. 

Still, with planning, and making sure all my stock was ready to be sold, effort was dispersed. 

The first event I e-attended was INDEEvent created by Meredith Loughran, who previously put together the last Geek Insider event which was also graced by my presence. This time, I got to talk about pants; whether I wear them (only on demand), if I like them (not really), and how they influence my writing style. Yes, it’s true, I’m a pantser. That means, while I may have characters in mind when I start writing, I have no plot, no predefined goal, nothing to stop me from writing whatever I, or the characters, want.

As I noted at the event, I tend to throw letters at a screen and pray they turn into words. I worry about the story later. I even did that with SPLICE: HIT BIT TECHNOLOGY despite the fact I was working off an existing property created by Watchdog Entertainment

One odd thing I’ve learned is that unpublished authors always tell me that’s the wrong way to write. Published authors, like the fun people at the cool party, can go either way. 

Oh well, CLICK HERE if you’d like to hear me talk about my pants and the importance of a postage stamp. Seriously, I go on and on about the damn stamp. Or, contrariwise, you can hear a nice lady explain how she writes notes about her notes so her notes have notes all before she writes the story. She is not a pantser. But she is sweet. You know what? Just go listen. It’s fun and you may learn something.

My next event was a one-on-one interview with Desiree Duffy on MyStar95, a Tampa based radio station. This time I actually got to focus on one thing I’ve written; The Brittle Riders. And, boy howdy, was it fun doing a deep dive into that universe. I was able to talk about all the religion I’ve hidden amidst the ruins (TONS!), the various and sundry ways I was able to use linguistic tenses to clarify the points-of-view of the titular characters, and some of the history of the book itself. 

Bonus, there’s some behind the scenes stuff from my days in Chicago radio and shout outs to small towns in Wisconsin. As you know, every radio interview needs shout outs to small Wisconsin towns.

CLICK HERE to schedule a viewing of the podcast, where you can gape in awe at my new pandemic goatee, 

More below.



I know there are some of you asking, “Yo, McSciFi, ya’ll cool and all, but when can we meet you in Nigeria?”

This year was to have been the year that happened but, currently, smart Americans are hunkered down at home and we’re all banned from all international travel in any case. We’re the number one plague nation in the world. So, yeah, we’re doing something great again.

Anyway, I may be physically staying in Chicago but my spirit wanders wide, as does the postal service. 

All of that means I’m joining the, fun and fine, people at Hadithi Sambamba, the publishing home of every comic I’ve written thus far, to put together a prize package for IBADAN COMIC CON

Spare me the cliches. Nigeria is a beautiful country, yes – I’ve been there, and a vibrant culture that’s rapidly emerging on the global market. The chance to get represented there is our first real step to being distributed there and around Africa. Since you can fit all of the United States in the upper left-hand corner of Africa, that’s not a market to be sneezed at.

Come to think of it, given COVID-19, just don’t sneeze at all.

Anyway, the event will open its doors, yes, there will be people gathering, on August 28. CLICK HERE for tickets.

But wait! There’s more!




When I’m not creating fictional dystopian hellscapes I’m writing about the one we live in over at World News Center. Most of the articles there end up being the foundations for my weekly appearances on The Big Wakeup Call with Ryan Gatenby. Click his name to wish him a Happy Birthday.

Last week, I got to talk to the makers, and creators, of NOVID. That’s a free app that helps scientists get ahead of the spread of COVID-19 while supplying you with real time assessments of your risks. I’ve been using it and have to admit to being impressed. Anyone dealing with people on a regular basis should definitely use it. 

It shares none of your personal data. It can’t since you don’t supply any to start with. 

I know it’s scary as hell out there but this is a great way to start to control those fears. If you click THIS LINK you can download the app, write the creators with any questions you may have, or just read more about it. 

Of course there’s a little bit more below.



The whimsical pixies over at Azoth Khem are ramping up promotions for SPLICE: HIT BIT TECHNOLOGYThe Brittle Riders, and, eventually, Goptri of the Mists. Now that the worst of the pandemic is over in the civilized world, they can begin filling bookstores with their content. We all hope they’ll be able to do so in America soon as well. But that’s looking like it’s a ways off at the moment.

Still, if there’s someone in a town, anywhere on the planet, who reads English, we want them to have the chance to read McSciFi. I think it’s the least we can do.

No one asked me, but that’s what I think.

I want to thank each and every one of you for following along and supporting my mad quest to find readers. 

Please, until we meet again, stay safe, sane, and inside.

Oh, and here’s more cuteness for you to ooh and aww at.



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