Welcome to The Eat Your Heart Out event! Whether you like classic horror, zombies or short stories, there is a great variety of novels to choose from this Valentine’s Day. You can check out the full list below:
Make sure you hold out until February 14 to purchase these books because for Valentine’s Day they will all be reduced to only 99 cents each! https://www.facebook.com/#!/events/1492330050991663/?fref=ts Now lets meet a few of these amazing authors, Starting with the very cool Sarah. Sarah Lyons Fleming![]() Getting to know you & your book. Name, contact and purchase links. Sarah Lyons Fleming http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DX73ZPY http://www.SarahLyonsFleming.com SarahLyonsFleming@gmail.com http://www.facebook.com/SarahLyonsFleming Tell us the name of the book you have in the Eat your Heart out event and a little bit about it. Until the End of the World Here’s my short blurb: It’s a story of true love, friendship, survival, redemption, and humor in the face of the end of the world. Oh, and beer. Tell us something unusual about it. Hmm, unusual, huh? I guess that I wrote it as post-apocalyptic zombie chick-lit, but I’ve gotten a lot of great reviews from men. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by that. Who’s your favourite character? And do you have a worst? Nelly is my favorite, hands down. But I love them all; I grew to love the ones I hated. The ones I didn’t, I got to kill. What work do you have coming up in the future? The second book of the Until the End of the World series, AND AFTER, will be out in the spring. I have a novella about one of the characters which will be out shortly. But it’s a “side”-quel and contains major spoilers, so should only be read after the book. Zombies, books & other things. What are some zombie books or authors that you would recommend to others and why? I haven’t read a ton of zombie books--weird, I know. I have a ton on my To Be Read list that I haven’t gotten to yet, but I can recommend a couple that I’ve read that are a bit more character-driven than most: 100 DAYS IN DEADLAND--Rachel Aukes. Rachel gives us real characters who are unsure, conflicted and trying their best to survive a nightmare. UNTIL THE END and the sequel, AFTER THE END- Tracey Ward. (New Adult) The two main characters are funny and real. Do you have a Z’ Plan in place? You know if the apocalypse started a plan on what you are going to do and where you will hide out, and if so will you share it with us? I’ve got a good list of lesser-known stores to loot, if that’s what you mean. Kidding! Sort of. I’ll only loot when most everyone’s dead. Until then, I’ll hunker down with my stored food and weapons. You don’t want to try to come after my supplies--I’m a very good shot. Kidding! Actually, no, I’m not. :) What makes you want to write about zombies? I love (and hate) the way they don’t stop. They’re mindless, but they’re also single-minded. They can ruin any moment of any day, and there’s no rhyme or reason to it. It’s so terrifying, yet fascinating. How do you like your zombies? Slow and shambling or Fast and clever? Slow and shambling for me. That’s not to say that I don’t like fast ones, I just don’t write them, maybe because I think all the characters would be dead in ten minutes. Chapter 1 Excerpt: UNTIL THE END OF THE WORLD |
Today is the kind of spring day that used to make me feel like anything was possible. That it would all work out in the end. I used to love days like this. Of course, that was before I started avoiding spring altogether. |
Josh Hilden

Name, stalker links and purchase links.
Josh Hilden
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/josh-hilden-author/116260821801432
Twitter: http://twitter.com/josh_hilden
Website: www.joshhilden.com
Blog: http://joshhilden.com/universal-josh/
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Josh-Hilden/e/B0094ACFPA/
Tell us the name of the book you have in the Eat your Heart out event and a little bit about it.
“The Shores of the Dead Book 1: The Rising”
The first book of a three book Zombie Apocalypse Series (with a short story anthology thrown in for fun).
Tell us something unusual or interesting about it.
The series has a slight supernatural bent to it. The cause is mystical in nature and there are bits and pieces within the series with mystic overtones. That being said I tried very hard to keep the “Magic” elements small and used more for enhancement as opposed to being the central thrust.
Who’s your favourite character? And do you have a worst?
Benny Millette is my favorite character. He’s not the big hero or the heart throb, he’s a genuinely good human being trying to protect his friends and family in a world gone mad.
Arn Jacobson is my worst … if I told you why it might spoil things.
What work do you have coming up in the future?
I am always working.
At the moment I am working on a novel called “Frankenstein, King of the Dead” which I hope to have available for purchase at Gen Con 2014 in Indianapolis.
Zombies, books & other things.
What are some zombie books or authors that you would recommend to others and why?
In my opinion Rhiannon Frater, Tim Long, and Eloise Knapp are the best Zombie authors working today. Not only do they write excellent horror but all three of them are masters of character creation. They’ve created characters that will always be with me (Cyrus, Kate, and Katie/Jenni).
Do you have a Z’ Plan in place? You know if the apocalypse started a plan on what you are going to do and where you will hide out, and if so will you share it with us?
My plan is to “Bug In” I’ve made plans to fortify my home and hold out until the temperature drops and the dead freeze, then me and my family HUNT!
What makes you want to write about zombies?
No fictional subject has ever scared me more than zombies. The terror turned into fascination which in turn fed the fear.
How do you like your zombies?
Slow and shambling
or
Fast and clever
Slow and shambling but that’s not to say fast isn’t terrifying. I think the Walking Dead (TV Show) has struck a good balance when it comes to zombie speed and mental acuity.
The Shores Of The Dead Excerpt : Chapter Eight
Chapter Eight |
Eli Constant

Eli Constant lives in Virginia with her husband, two daughters and rescue dog. She spends her days mothering, puttering about the house doing this and that and, of course, writing.
Her debut novel, “Dead Trees,” published in the winter of 2012. It is a dystopian thriller focusing on the trials of a mother across a post-apocalyptic, hostile landscape. Eli is obsessed with human nature and the choices people make when faced with insurmountable odds. She hopes to approach this obsession with every piece of writing, examining the nuances of humanity’s many faces.
Her published works, available on Amazon and at various retailers, are “Dead Trees,” “DRAG.N,” & “Mastic.” Her upcoming projects include “Let’s Scare Cancer to Death” (charity anthology out March 1st 2014, headed by TW Brown and May December Publications), “Fading Hope” (a multi-author, progressive anthology, birth child of Jack Wallen), “The Murderous Campbells” (a three-author anthology), “Dead Trees II” & a novel of interconnected zombie stories, tentatively titled “Children of the Z.”
Getting to know you & your book.
Stalker links and purchase links, shoe size… actually, you can leave off the shoe size, that’s not really important…
But what if they want to buy me shoes, Claire? I love shoes…
https://twitter.com/Author_EliC
https://www.facebook.com/authorEliConstant
www.eliconstant.com
http://authoreliconstant.wordpress.com/
Book Purchase links (Amazon)
http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Trees-Eli-Constant-ebook/dp/B00APYKD7G/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1391886592&sr=8-1&keywords=eli+constant
http://www.amazon.com/Mastic-Eli-Constant-ebook/dp/B00FMHGX5W/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1391886521&sr=8-2&keywords=eli+constant
http://www.amazon.com/DRAG-N-Eli-Constant-ebook/dp/B00C0YRR6Y/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1391886521&sr=8-3&keywords=eli+constant
Tell us the name of the book you have in the Eat your Heart out event and a little bit about it.
“Dead Trees.” It’s a dystopian thriller focusing on the trials of a mother across a post-apocalypse and hostile landscape.
Here’s the blurb:
Elise Swanson is a widow and mother. She fights with gun and knife against nail and claw, praying she can keep her little, broken family safe. She drives and drives, day after day, trying to escape a threat that seems… inescapable. The Beasties.
Subterranean humanoids, existing since the dawn of man, have arisen from the belly of the earth. Civilization is a ghost of yesterday. Remaining humans fight for survival.
Pit stop fights with beasties define survival-road. Against all odds, Elise, her daughters and their new companions reach a safe zone.
There’s no rest for the weary as Elise is drafted quickly into the heart of human resistance, her knowledge may be the key, the only hope humanity has of reclaiming their home from the Beasties.
What will happen when a Neural Engineer, a medical researcher and a computer wizard are humanity’s best hope? The answer might be surprising
Wrapped up in all the uncertainty, violence, science lingo and beasties, they will find a strange solution to a new Earth.
And her name is Margaret.
Tell us something unusual or interesting about it.
It’s been described as a zombie novel without the zombies. I guess it just has that feel. There are many elements that are different, however- like the limitations my antagonists have: sensitivity to light, poor vision, anatomical traits that must adapt to surface life- products of evolving underground. And the advantages the Undergrounders are different too- they have the speed, the acute hearing, the clawed hands, so effective at ripping into human flesh.
Who’s your favourite character? And do you have a worst?
My favourite character in “Dead Trees” doesn’t enter the story until well past the halfway point; her name is Margaret and she’s a beastie/human crossbreed with wicked intelligence, accelerated growth and silver-white hair. She doesn’t get as much attention in this instalment, but when “Dead Trees II” releases, readers will find this character at the forefront of the storyline, matured and ready for action.
Hmm. I guess my least favourite character in the book is a secondary character named Allison. She’s a little too weak for my tastes, a little too whiney. I will say, though, that she redeems herself a bit toward the end.
What work do you have coming up in the future?
I’m delighted to say I have lots on the horizon for this year: Next month, the charity anthology headed by TW Brown and published by May December Publications, “Let’s Scare Cancer to Death” comes out. I’m proud to be a part of it, since all the proceeds go to the V Foundation for cancer research.
Also this year, I have a joint anthology with several authors headed up by Jack Wallen; it’s tentatively titled “Fading Hope” and focuses on just that, fading hope in impossible situations. It’s a look at humanity and human reaction.
In a fully cooperative effort, I’m working with Claire C. Riley & Ken Mooney on a 3-novella anthology revolving around a singular, group-decided theme- serial killers, specifically, serial killers inspired by cult classic films and historical figures. It’s going to be amazing.
For my independent work- I have several submissions out to different publishers, short stories mostly. I’m also currently writing “Dead Trees II,” due out early this Fall & a book of interconnected zombie stories inspired by my contribution to “Let’s Scare Cancer to Death.” Lastly, and it’s far in left field, I’ve written a Space Opera. That I’m just sitting on… debating, wondering when the time will be right to enter into that genre’s world.
Zombies, books & other things.
What are some zombie books or authors that you would recommend to others and why?
Well, I know this is going to sound like ass-kissing, but Claire is my favourite Indie author. I’ve read Odium and Odium Origins twice. I’ve pimped them out to my friends, recommended them on social media. I even check her reviews on Goodreads and Amazon to see if she’s gotten new ones. Yeah… that’s the kind of freaky fangirl stalker I am.
Do you have a Z’ Plan in place? You know if the apocalypse started a plan on what you are going to do and where you will hide out, and if so will you share it with us?
My family and I would hit the pavement and head straight to my dad’s house. He’s a retired Air Force SERE (search, evasion, resistance & escape) instructor. I tell the absolute truth when I say that my dad has a bunker full of equipment, food and go-bags (backpacks with everything you’d possibly need to survive on the road). You want to know where he lives? Right. Like I’m going to tell you.
What makes you want to write about zombies or the apocalypse?
To tell you the truth, it’s not what I had in mind when I started writing. Never once thought about zombies when I was crafting the Undergrounders in “Dead Trees.” My contribution to “Let’s Scare Cancer to Death” was my first attempt at a zombie story. I loved writing it; I’d write it again in a skinny minute. Which makes me think that there are a lot of flesh-eating deadheads in my future.
How do you like your zombies?
Slow and shambling
or
Fast and clever?
I have mixed feelings about this- which translates into my first zombie story “Z Children” in the LSCtD anthology I was talking about. In that story, the children are fast and clever & the adults are slow and shambling. The reasoning behind that is explained in the story.
Dead Trees Excerpt
Dead Trees Excerpt: |
RJ Spears

Name, stalker links and purchase links.
Name: R.J. Spears
Website: http://rjspears.com/
Blog: http://rjspears.blogspot.com/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5445765.R_J_Spears
Books:
Forget the Alamo: http://www.amazon.com/Forget-Alamo-Zombie-Novella-Zombies-ebook/dp/B00CJHOW9M/ref=la_B00APKD4BC_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1391722282&sr=1-5
Forget Texas: http://www.amazon.com/Forget-Texas-Zombies-R-J-Spears-ebook/dp/B00FK3V678/ref=la_B00APKD4BC_1_7?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1391722301&sr=1-7
Sanctuary from the Dead: http://www.amazon.com/Sanctuary-Dead-R-J-Spears-ebook/dp/B00E4DRQM4/ref=la_B00APKD4BC_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1391722313&sr=1-4
Tell us the name of the book you have in the Eat your Heart out event and a little bit about it.
Forget the Alamo tells the story of a U.S. Marshall and his protectee being stranded in the Alamo at the start of a zombie outbreak. He teams up a rag-tag band of survivors to escape the hordes of undead as they face many obstacles to in a perilous ride out of the city.
Tell us something unusual or interesting about it.
Forget the Alamo was inspired by a trip I made to San Antonio. My wife and I toured the Alamo and my wife said you ought to write a book about people trapped in the Alamo surrounded by zombies. It was a lot of fun to write. I usually work with detailed outlines and this book had one, but it was sketchy at best. So, I felt I was free to take the story where the events led me. One fun fact is that a famous zombie author who happens to live and work in San Antonio makes a brief cameo appearance. The other fun fact is that is has a sequel – Forget Texas.
Who’s your favourite character? And do you have a worst?
In Forget the Alamo, it is the hero, U.S. Marshall Grant. He’s a smarter, braver, and more competent version of me. The only way I’m better than him is that I’m funnier, but he does have his moments. There are no real villains in this book because it is tale of survival versus the undead.
What work do you have coming up in the future?
Funny you should ask. The second book in my Books of the Dead series launches on the same day as the Eat Your Heart Event, February 14. It is called Lord of the Dead and it is the sequel to Sanctuary from the Dead which was released in 2013. Lord of the Dead follows the protagonist of Sanctuary from the Dead and the group he works with to survive the zombie apocalypse. If anyone’s interested in short stories, I just released a collection of my horror short stories called Dark Matters in January. It is available on Amazon and contains 15 frightening tales – seven of which feature zombies.
Zombies, books & other things.
What are some zombie books or authors that you would recommend to others and why?
This a tough question. There are some good ones.
The Walking Dead rates up there. It’s truly epic now.
Rhiannon Frater’s As the World Dies series is really engaging. I think she gives some of the most realistic portrayals of people in a zombie apocalypse.
I’m a big fan of Joe McKinney. His Dead City was the first zombie book I ever read and it as a great intro to zombie fiction.
World War Z was a real page turner.
Carrie Ryan’s The Forest of Hand and Teeth was very inventive.
Dan William’s Mace of the Apocalypse is another book that is close to Rhiannon Frater’s writer in that the characters are easy to relate to.
There are so many more. Stephen Knight, Catt Dahman, Joe Maberry. There are some great writers out there writing compelling zombie fiction.
Do you have a Z’ Plan in place? You know if the apocalypse started a plan on what you are going to do and where you will hide out, and if so will you share it with us?
My plan is sketchy at best. Just as you would plan for any natural or social disaster, you have to consider what might happen and what you would have to do. First, I live in a fairly large metropolitan area and I’m getting the heck out of there. More people means more zombies. We would probably go to my hometown which is much smaller and more manageable.
What makes you want to write about zombies?
I think I can trace my love of zombies back to seeing George Romero’s Dawn of the Dead. It made an indelible mark on me when I saw it when it was released. That scenario percolated in my head for years. Before turning to writing horror, I wrote crime and mystery fiction, but something about zombies just drew me in. I felt I had a story to tell and just went at it.
How do you like your zombies?
Slow and shambling
or
Fast and clever?
Slow and shambling – please. Fast and clever and I’m dead.
Excerpt & Blurb From Forget The Alamo
EXCERPT FROM FORGET THE ALAMO: | BLURB FROM FORGET THE ALAMO |
Kurt Fawver

Name: Kurt Fawver
www.facebook.com/kfawver
www.twitter.com/banalapocalypse
www.kurtfawver.com
http://www.amazon.com/Forever-Pieces-Kurt-Fawver/dp/0615903967
Name of my book: Forever, in Pieces. It's a collection of eighteen decadent short stories that fall under the aegis of horror, dark fantasy, and weird fiction.
Tell us something unusual or interesting about it.
It's dark, literary, and really spans the gamut of genres. There are stories in here that might be called science fiction and stories that might be called bizarro. I try to never write exactly the same type of story twice, so I'm constantly shifting between genres and tropes and styles. I think the effect on the collection is to make every story unique and vibrant in its own right.
Who’s your favourite character? And do you have a worst?
My favorite character is Derrick McCoy in the story “Bolt” (which, as it happens, is one of the two zombie stories in the collection). I love writing post-apocalyptic survivors because I don't think most of them would be heroes – they'd be insane people with quite a bit of luck and a little bit of ingenuity.
My worst character? I don't have one. They're all spectacular in their own way!
What work do you have coming up in the future?
I have a story forthcoming in Weird Tales, a story in the upcoming Tor anthology Midian Unmade, and a story in the upcoming Dragon's Roost Press anthology Desolation: 21 Tales for Tails.
Zombies, books & other things.
What are some zombie books or authors that you would recommend to others and why?
Tony Burgess' Pontypool, Max Brooks' World War Z, Brian Keene's Rising series, Stephen King's Pet Sematary.
Do you have a Z’ Plan in place? You know if the apocalypse started a plan on what you are going to do and where you will hide out, and if so will you share it with us?
Sort of. First off, I'd hit the nearest pharmacy and loot everything in sight. Meds will be worth more than guns or ammo in a post-apocalyptic scenario. Next, it's off to find a weapon. Since ammo will eventually deplete, I'd prefer to stick with bladed weapons. That's a problem, though, considering there aren't sword smiths around every corner. Still, I'd like to find an implement with a sharp edge as my primary weapon. Then it's a matter of getting to a structure near clean, running water and boarding up windows. A couple runs to liquor stores and gas stations later (can't have enough flammable liquids in a zombie apocalypse) and you're on your way to setting up a base camp.
What makes you want to write about zombies?
They're a very multifaceted metaphor. They can work perfectly to act as a symbol of mindlessness, of consumerism, of overpopulation, of avarice, of hopelessness... and the list goes on and on. Because they have so many potential metaphorizations, they can be deployed in practically infinite varieties of narrative.
How do you like your zombies?
Slow and shambling – death is an impediment, not a superpower.
Forever In Pieces Cover & Blurb
|
Forever, In Pieces Excerpt
Book excerpt (a full story from the collection):
For the Unhaunted
Some people swore that the house was haunted. It had to be haunted. After all, every other house on the block was haunted. In fact, every other house in the Dixon's entire neighborhood had at least one apparitional resident. Some were even blessed with two or three or more. There was no reason to assume that the Dixon's house should be so different, so bereft of undead energy. When friends and family came to visit, they all claimed to hear a shuffling of disembodied feet in the attic or insisted that they'd seen the hazy form of a torso squirming about in the bathroom. They all wanted to believe that Kat and Ryan weren't unable to call forth a being from the Other Side. But Kat and Ryan knew the truth: the house wasn't haunted. It was just a series of well-polished rooms and elaborately furnished dreams.
Try as they might, in eight years of marriage the Dixons hadn't been able to channel a single specter. At first, they did what everyone else did: they burned incense and lit candles, chanted archaic incantations and hung crystals. They welcomed the past into their lives and opened themselves to a future set in nostalgia. But no spirits came. While their friends threw seance parties and compared the static burble of one another's EVP recordings with delight, Kat and Ryan sat at home, staring into empty corners and darkened hallways.
The couple began to consult psychic professionals and make appointments with the best mediums in the state; they sacrificed chickens and goats and prayed to skeletal gods. Still no spirits came. Still no howls of joyful madness echoed through their living room. Days grew longer; nights grew calmer. Ghosts were everywhere but in their home. So, Kat and Ryan decided to take more extreme measures. If they wanted a spirit of their own, they were going to have to force it inside.
They robbed an unmarked grave and reburied the brittle corpse in their backyard; they invited an elderly homeless man to their house for dinner, then beat him to death and smeared his blood across their walls; they tried violent orgies and sex magics. Nothing worked. A spirit would not come to them. They were barren. Then Kat became pregnant.
While her stomach swelled, the Dixons considered the possibilities before them. To be sure, raising a child would be wonderful, but having a ghost was what made life worth living. The tingling excitement of revelation that arose from finding out who your spirit really was and the comfort of knowing that your spirit would never fully abandon you, that it would float by the side of your deathbed and would continue on indefinitely, carrying with it a memory of its time as your special ghost: these were the things that gave meaning to existence. Everyone said as much, and Kat and Ryan believed. They wanted a specter desperately. They wanted to be haunted. And so, when the time came, they both gripped the handle of the butcher knife as it slid across their son's soft, fatty, freshly-powdered throat. They watched, together, while bubbles and blood commingled on a sky-blue onesie. A tear rolled down Kat's cheek. Ryan's unused hand trembled.
Surely, this would work. If a ghost would not come to them, they would make a ghost.
As the spark in the baby's eyes sputtered out, something in another room fell to the floor and shattered.
Nothing was ever the same again after that.
Who needs flowers and chocolates for Valentines anyway?
Happy reading!
Claire ♥
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