Week Of The Undead 2014 Presents: Jack Wallen

We're nearly there horror lovers, it's nearly the end of our WEEK OF THE UNDEAD! Don't forget to enter the EPIC GIVEAWAY at the end of today's post, and also use the COFFIN HOP link to check out some other cool blogs.

So today's author is none other than the very awesome - Jack Wallen. he's a man of many, many talents, a writer of many books, a blogger, a narrator - even narrating one of my own books - Odium Origins Part One. 
Of you haven't checked out some of his work by now, then you're missing out big time. His I Zombie I series is one of my favorites.

So let me hand it over to him...

Jack Wallen is a seeker of truth and a writer of words. Although he resides in the unlikely city of Louisville, Kentucky, he likes to think of himself more as an interplanetary soul … or so he tells the reflection in the mirror. He's also the author of:

I Zombie I I My Zombie My | Die Zombie Die | Lie Zombie Lie |
Zombie Radio | T-Minus Zero | The Last Casket | Hell's Muse |
Screampark | Klockwerk Kabaret | Shero | Shero II: Zombie A GoGo |
Shero III: Death by Cosplay | A Blade Away | Gothica | Endgame | Among You |

---

---

The Jack Wallen Interview

So, tell us a little bit about yourself.

Name: Jack Wallen

Social Media Links

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Zombie Radio |

What do you do when you’re not writing about the end of days?

If I’m not writing about the end of days, I’m writing about other dark, twisty things. When not writing, I enjoy a walk on the beach, quiet evenings...oh wait, never mind. You’ll find me riding my bike, running, playing guitar, enjoying stolen moments with the love of my life, playing with cats.

Tell us about your latest book?

Title: Among You

Brief run down in your own words: It’s a story about accepting yourself wrapped up in the guise of a “Monsters as the good guys” story. This book started out as a dream WAY back in high school. I eventually wrote it as a one-act play for young audiences, but new the story wasn’t complete. After much coaxing by my step-daughter, Courtney, Among You was born.

Release date: September 19th, 2014.

 Anything in particular that you want to say about it? Where did you get the inspiration from? Favourite characters? Tell us something unusual.

During a curious moment, while writing the book, I found inspiration from a song by Die So Fluid. It was that moment that led me into a relationship with the band and will be writing a new book staring them.

It’s a thing...you wait! ;-)

Among You holds a very special place in my heart. I tried to write the book so many times before, but it seemed to never want to come out. It wasn’t until I realized I had to focus it on a bit more older crowd (high school and up) that the story finally was able to come alive.

What are you working on next and when can we expect to get our greedy little mitts on it?


October 31st will be the release of The Nails Of Calvary. This is the sequel to Hell’s Muse. Both of these books would fold the religious right inside out with horror.

Among You Excerpt 

The second the car crossed into Tyler's End, the world – my world – changed. What I thought was going to be a visit to a first-class haunted house, turned out to be a journey into a magical world that would fold my definition of life inside out.

“Scott...” Sally whispered, “look at them...everywhere.”

“The costumes, the makeup...”

I couldn't find the words to describe what my eyes beheld. Walking about on the streets were horrific characters, all taken from the same page of the same book. As if time had no point or place in Tyler's End, every person was dressed in a variation of the same theme – Victorian England. Waist coats, bustles, stockings, ruffles...every piece a precise turn of fashion with a twist of the macabre.

It wasn't actually the clothing that brought about my bug-eyed awe. The makeup was astonishing. Every character's skin was a shade of grayish-green and looked cracked and aged by too much sun. Some had what looked like over-sized boils, threatening to pop, on their cheeks and lips. Some, mostly the males, had horns budding from the tops of their foreheads.

Sally pulled the car off into a cordoned-off field for parking. “They all look so, real.”

“And happy,” I added.

That was quite possibly the strangest thing of all – each and every one of the characters glowed with a joy that seemed to emanate from within. They talked, laughed...sang.

“This is...Sally, I don't know what to say.”

We got out of the car and spun on our heels to take it all in. There was so much. Even beyond the idea that the haunt of haunts awaited me, I couldn't get over the fact that the entire city seemed to be transformed into a horror-themed delight.

“It's Monsterville,” Sally said.

“What,” I asked.

Sally looked at me and smiled. “This place is like a town filled with monsters...Monsterville.”

“God ye good eve'n,” said one of the towns folk as he passed by. The tails of his coat swept up into the wind as if to wave 'hello'.

“What did he just say,” Sally asked.

“He said 'Good evening' in a Victorian England colloquialism. At least I think that's what that was. Or maybe he thought one of us sneezed. I don't really know for sure.”

“It doesn't matter, Scott; it's all so stinking charming.”

Sally reached out her hand to me. “Come on, let's go find the house.”

It wasn't hard. It seemed every member of the town criers assembly was headed in the same, general direction. That kind of deduction could be handled by a chimp.

“Scott,” Sally nearly squealed. She pointed ahead. “Look at it.”

It, the Gaultier House, was glorious beyond words. The building was a multi-story Victorian mansion that looked as if it had been plucked from some member of the English nobility and magically transported to the states. It was very out of place, but glorious in its oddity. Though it was certainly true to form in its architecture, there was a certain Tim Burton-esque element to the design. The manse stood three stories high with turrets on each corner that pointed and curled like elf or witch shoes. The whole of the design stood as a reminder that those who dwelled within were a nobility that no longer existed. The solid rock walls mocked anything modern builders could construct.

After spying the Gaultier House, I finally managed to see the town without my usual filters. Every element of the town seemed to work its way into the fabric of Halloween. The houses and buildings all seemed, on the surface, to be normal; but when you looked closer, you spotted fragments of strangeness littering the design. One three story house looked perfectly standard from one angle. The second you shifted your view, you spotted the slant and pitch of the walls – just enough to obscure normalcy.

There wasn't a straight line in sight. Every edge of every structure seemed to include some tick and trick in its shape and design.

I was in heaven.

Sally gave my shoulder a slap. “I think I see the ticket booth.”

She took off running. I couldn't help myself but to fall into perfect lock-step with Sally. I wasn't taking any chance in losing her here. It was Halloween night – a lot of crazy would happen within the next twelve hours. It always did.

We arrived at the ticket booth and dropped our cold, hard cash in front of the vendor who smiled and said, “Two tickets to the most unholy and frightening site you will ever witness. Please, make sure to pick up a brochure that explains everything you will need to know, before entering the double door entryway.”

Both Sally and I had our faces buried in the pamphlets, so we hardly noticed the two, be-costumed girls rush past us.

“Are we the only people here not dressed up,” asked Sally. “I feel so out of place.”

She was right. We were in an overwhelming minority. In the midst of the velvet and lace, we stood in denim and fake leather. I wasn't sure why every eyeball wasn't trained on us to ask if we failed to receive the memo about dressing the part.

“OMG,” proclaimed Sally. “There it is.”

My eyes followed her point and beheld what had to be the most wondrous spectacle I'd ever seen in my short lifetime. Seeing the house from even the slightest distance was one thing. Up close and personal brought everything into perspective. The house was tremendous in size and design. A perfect replica of a period long since forgotten. And yet...this wasn't a rebuild of a collapsed manse from days gone by – this was very real, very complete, and very...

“Amazing,” squealed Sally. “Scott, you must be peeing your pants. Scott? Earth to Scott.”

I hadn't heard her. I was too lost from taking in everything from every direction.

“I'm sorry, Sally. I just...”

“I know. Take your time; drink it all in.”

I felt like I was a little kid again, stepping foot on Disneyland soil for the first time. My world, always so small, had officially grown to magnificent proportions. Someone had reached their taloned fingers into my dreams and ripped the fantastical out, only to make it real in Tyler's End.

---

Discussion Time: The Old Slow Vs Fast Zombie Argument 

Click Here To Join In The Discussion

Finally...

COFFIN HOP is the ultimate horror author/artist/creator online event running annually from October 24-31 at COFFIN HOP

Come visit us October 24 - 31 to join hundreds of authors for seven full days of terror, mayhem, madness and unseemly shenanigans. Prizes and contests at every stop. Fiction, Fury and Fun!

Happy reading book whores,
from your horror hostess
Claire x

Don't forget to enter The Week Of The Undead Giveaway using the link below.

WEEK OF THE UNDEAD GIVEAWAY