Amanda HockingAmanda's Blog
Hello Zombies – Guestblog from Cassay
Hello Zombiepalooza! First off I would like the thank Amanda for having me here to talk about Zombies.
I have decided to focus on Zombies in movies and television because I am a huge TV/movie junkie. I have picked a few movies and TV shows that I will focus on and have put a classification to the zombie that is featured in each.
The Revengeful Zombie:
If you have ever watched the TV show Supernatural in Season 2 there was an episode called Children Shouldn’t Play With Dead Things. In this episode, the best friend of the zombie – she died in a horrible car accident decides to bring her back to life and is she ever pissed at her boyfriend and her best friend. Her boyfriend was cheating on her with her best friend. I would be pissed too. Boy did she ever get her revenge on these two. I would not want to be on a zombie’s “must get revenge on” list. I’m sure the zombie would make sure I felt whatever pain I caused them and times it by 10. Not a nice way to die. But then again when we are both zombies, we could have a zombie fight to the death.
The Stupid/Funny Zombie:
I’m talking about Shaun of the Dead and Zombieland zombies. These are the zombies that make you kill yourself laughing. The CG isn’t the best on these zombies so they don’t scare the living shit out of you. They are like the zombies you dress up as for Halloween.
Just remember the rules from Zombieland:
#1: Cardio
#2: Beware of Bathrooms
#3: Seatbelts
#4: Double Tap
#18: Limber Up
#31: Check the Back Seat
#32: Enjoy the Little Things
The Scary as Hell, Gives You Nightmares Zombies:
3 words for you – I Am Legend. Those zombies were scary as hell and gave me nightmares. They are super fast, super strong and their only weakness is they can’t go out in daylight. So instead of being able to see your attacker your pretty much screwed and have to stay out of the streets at night and run like hell if you want to save yourself.
So that is my take on Zombies. I prefer the stupid/funny zombies because I think I may be able to survive. Any other zombies and I think I’m a goner. Which Zombie would you like to encounter in the real world?
Thanks for reading my take on Zombies. Feel free to visit me at www.vampsweresandcassay.blogspot.com
Cassay
Zombiepalooza Giveaway & My Cat Can Beat Up Your Zombie!
Edie Ramer, author of the paranormal romance Cattitude, answers the age old question about who would win in a fight – cat or zombie?
She’s also donating TWO e-copies of her book for the a giveaway! More info on the giveaway follows the blog…
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I love my cat so much I wrote a book about her. She’s a sweetheart with me, but she’s got another side. She’s a great hunter and when she spies a mouse, you can bet that mouse won’t be living for long. She killed one already last week. I saw her playing with a mouse as I was typing, the mouse flying in the air, then it would fall to the carpet, and then she would send it flying again.
I thought it was her toy and remember thinking she hadn’t played with it for a while and that the squeak wasn’t working. It was only later that day, when I spotted it on its side in the hallway, that I realized it was real and it was dead. While I’d been revising my ms. (fittingly titled Dead People) and answering emails, she’d been three feet away from me, killing the mouse.
That wasn’t the first mouse she’s killed. A couple of times she’s played with a mice in our family room while our English setter watched from her comfy seat on the couch, as though the cat was doing it for her entertainment.
I’ve never seen zombies in real life, of course. Because they don’t exist. But in the movies, I’ve seen dogs attack them, and end up running from them. If zombies did exist (but they don’t, right?), then I can see why some dogs would run from them. Or like mine, stay on the comfy couch. But what isn’t shown in the movies are cats running away.
There are two reasons for this:
- 1. You try to direct a dozen or more cats and see how well they listen to you.
- 2. Cats are one hundred times faster than zombies. One hundred times meaner, too.
My sister lives in Phoenix, and they have a problem with stray cats. With all the foreclosures, many people are leaving their homes and letting their cats loose on the streets instead of taking them to an animal shelter. (My sister adopted a homeless cat that was hanging around her condo.)
I can easily see an army of feral cats taking down the zombies. Body parts strewn on sandy lawns, arms caught on cactus spines, heads rolling down the streets. Kids would use them as soccer balls.
So, don’t use a bat to kill a zombie, use a cat. And they’re good for mice, too. In fact, I think animal shelters could use a new slogan: Adopt a cat; kill a zombie.
Who do you think would come out on top? Dogs, cats or zombies?
Edie Ramer
Facebook: http://bit.ly/csoCc9
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It’s all in the Cattitude . . .
After Belle the cat switches bodies with a psychic on the run from a murderer, she wants her perfect cat body back instead of this furless human one. But she doesn’t count on falling in love with her former owner. Or that a CEO and a beauty queen want to use up her nine lives. Now is her chance to prove anything a human can do, a cat can do better.
“Cattitude is a magical tale that you won’t soon forget. Edie Ramer has a writing voice that charms, and she pulls the reader right into Belle’s amazing world.” –Cynthia Eden, author of Deadly Fear, I’ll be Slaying You, and Eternal Hunter.
The giveaway for TWO e-books of Cattitude has the same rules as the other Zombiepalooza giveaways –
1. To enter to win, comment on this blog, leaving an email address to contact you in case you win.
2. The giveaway runs from now until October 28th at midnight. On October 29th, TWO winners will be chosen by random.org and contacted. They have 72 hours to reply before the prize defaults to the runner-up.
3. Only one entry per giveaway. (But you can enter as many different Zombiepalooza giveaways as you want.)
4. International!! Anyone from anywhere can enter this giveaway!
Zombiepalooza Giveaway & Fresh Meat!
It’s a Zombieaplooza double feature! We get a dark flash-fiction from author Daniel Pyle, along with an ebook giveaway for his book Down the Drain. Giveaway info will after Daniel’s story…. Fresh Meat
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Morris watched from the shadowy alley as the group of zombies across the street lurched toward the apartment building’s open doorway. His weapon was hot against his back, outlined by a band of sweat that had soaked through his t-shirt. There had been no electricity for weeks, no streetlights, but because the moon was almost full, Morris could clearly differentiate the monsters from one another. The lead figure had a gaping cavity where its internal organs had once been and a single loop of intestines hanging over the waistband of its shredded pants. Behind was a smaller horror that might once have been a woman. Its outer flesh was, for the most part, missing, leaving only the kind of androgynous musculature you found pictured in an illustrated encyclopedia. The third had just one arm and leaned heavily to the side. It wore a Red Sox cap with a jagged bite taken out of the bill.
The zombies converged on the entryway and crowded through, their bare feet making little noise against the ground but their flesh smacking as they rebounded off one another and the doorframe. When they disappeared from sight, Morris abandoned his position and reached a hand over his shoulder. The sword came unsheathed with a soft, satisfying chime and reflected the moonlight when Morris swung it to his side.
He breathed through his mouth as he followed in the monsters’ wake, and although he was still disgusted by their pungency, he managed not to gag and give away his element of surprise.
Homing in on their prey with a hawk-like precision they shouldn’t have possessed, the zombies burst into an apartment on the left, leaving splinters where a barricaded door had been.
Inside, moonlight shone through a curtainless window, and Morris could see across the living room to a closed door on the other side. The sounds of movement from beyond it spurred the monsters on.
Morris struck out at Mr. One Arm first, punching the tip of the sword into the back of its Sox cap and pulling it free just as quickly. The zombie jerked sideways and fell. The thing’s companions turned toward Morris, their faces slack and emotionless. Morris swung his weapon only once, angling the blade so that it took off the top of the taller zombie’s head and then lodged in the skull of the short, skinned monstrosity. He stepped on the latter’s face and used both hands to pull the sword free.
There was more movement behind the door. Morris went to it and turned the knob. In the bedroom beyond, he found two young women cowering together on the floor amid cans of food and plastic water jugs.
The post-apocalyptic world was hard for a man like Morris—slim pickings and all that—but if you followed the zombies long enough, they always led you to fresh meat. He grinned, hefted the sword, and stepped into the dark room.
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If you enjoyed “Fresh Meat,” check out Daniel Pyle’s new novelette, Down the Drain, a creepy monster story that’s perfect for the Halloween season. You can read more about Down the Drain and the author at his website: http://www.danielpyle.com
Daniel Pyle is also offering an ebook for Down the Drain giveaway. It is an ebook, but he has it in various formats to support any ereader
When Bruce comes home to an emptier-than-usual house after a hard day of work, he doesn’t have the energy to do much more than drop into the tub.
What he doesn’t realize is that even when you think you’re completely, totally alone…you’re not.
“Pyle’s tight little monster tale packs a nasty wallop.”
—Michael Louis Calvillo, author of I Will Rise and As Fate Would Have It
—Michael Louis Calvillo, author of I Will Rise and As Fate Would Have It
The giveaway for the ebook of Down the Drain has the same rules as the other Zombieapalooza giveaways –
1. To enter to win, comment on this blog, leaving an email address to contact you in case you win.
2. The giveaway runs from now until October 28th at midnight. On October 29th, winners will be chosen by random.org and contacted. They have 72 hours to reply before the prize defaults to the runner-up.
3. Only one entry per giveaway. (But you can enter as many different Zombiepalooza giveaways as you want.)
Zombiepalooza Giveaway & Guestblog!
Disguiseshttp://lcglazebrook.blogspot.com
October is made for masks.
And I love it. That’s why I can be sweet, relatively innocent L.C. Glazebrook here at Zombiepoolaza and simultaneously be the creepy old Digger over at Bookgasm. I can be a fairy or a zombie, a creature or a clown, and all I have to do is change my mind. And a little make-up.
October is for the kid inside us, and the monster inside us. The angel inside us, or the demon. It’s all play, and it’s all safe. I’d rather risk the legendary apple in the razor blade any night over watching a silly ball descend in Times Square on New Year’s Eve with 100,000 drunken strangers, muggers, and celebrities packed onto fifty square feet of real estate.
Those of us who still love the world of imagination (which I’ll bet includes you, or you wouldn’t be reading this) are always eager to try out a new role or revisit some past persona. All it takes is slipping on a mask and dreaming, wishing, wanting.
Some people lose that magic. We call them “grown-ups.” They are out there fretting over mortgages, stock portfolios, politics. They live to get old. They look forward to it, the safety and security of a big fat pile of material goods upon which to die.
The rest of us get to live in the land of make-believe. The forests are dark and scary, the meadows full of flowers and dandelion snow. The clouds are white and soft or dark and moody. The distant kingdoms always contain evil overlords or benevolent white witches. We visit those lands in books and movies, and we visit them in our sleep, and when we’re alone, and when we see something that triggers a magic memory.
As a writer, I get to visit those lands as my life’s work. Some writers tell me life gets in the way of their writing, and I am always amazed, because writing IS my life, as much a part of my mask as anything. It might even be the most real—or the only real—thing about me.
That’s why I’m not afraid to stagger into the land of teen witches (October Girls), haunted hotels (Speed Dating with the Dead), spooky churches (The Red Church), or scary caves (Drummer Boy), or zombie landscapes (Murdermouth).
I hope you’ll come visit them with me, whether I am L.C., The Digger, or Scott. You can wear whatever mask you want!
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L.C. Glazebrook is an art teacher in Batesville, Indiana, the casket capital of the country. She was kicked out of Catholic school in seventh grade but has since recovered. Crystal & Bone is the first book in her October Girls series, and she’s also co-written the story collection Flowers with Scott Nicholson.
Scott Nicholson is author of The Red Church (on sale for 99 cents!), Drummer Boy, The Skull Ring, Speed Dating with the Dead, and nine other novels, five story collections, four comics series, and six screenplays. A journalist and freelance editor in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, he often uses local legends in his work. He’s currently on the Kindle Giveaway Blog Tour, with details at http://www.hauntedcomputer.com/blogtour.htm
Thank You For The Flowers is a collection of thirteen stories of suspense and imagination by award-winning author Scott Nicholson. The stories are a mixture of mystery, fantasy, and ghost stories. All have previously appeared in national publications.
I’ll be giving away a signed copy of Thank You for the Flowers paperback (by Scott, not LC!) under the same rules as the other Zombiepalooza rules.
1. To enter to win, comment on this blog, leaving an email address to contact you in case you win.
2. The giveaway runs from now until October 28th at midnight. On October 29th, winners will be chosen by random.org and contacted. They have 72 hours to reply before the prize defaults to the runner-up.
3. Only one entry per giveaway. (But you can enter as many different Zombiepalooza giveaways as you want.)
4. US only. Sorry to our international friends 🙁
Spark-lay! Plus Free Book Inside!
I’m Zoe Winters, and I’m a Monster Minimizer. I’m one of those people who decided things that go bump in the night should be turned into sexy fantasy material. For this reason, I don’t write zombies. I haven’t figured out how to make them sexy yet. Which is probably for the best because Amanda might come hunt me down.
Zombies are probably the only monster that is safe from me and most of us that write paranormal romance. Vampires, demons, werewolves… those I’ll turn into heroes. I blame Buffy for this sexy monster fixation. Before Buffy, I thought vampires were icky. They’re dead for God’s sake. And pale. And they drink blood. Just eww.
But then came Spike and Angel, and I thought…. hmmm vampires can be a little sexy. Okay, truth time… by the time Spike showed up on the screen I thought vampires can be a lot sexy. Since then we’ve had all sorts of pop-culture vampires that have been significantly less icky than Nosferatu. Dracula 2000 with Gerard Butler. Yummy. Damon and Stefan (go team Damon) from the Vampire Diaries, and then those sparkly ones Meyer created.
From there, many author imaginations went wild. If vampires could be sexy… what about demons and werewolves? How far will we go on our crazy monster minimizing mission for cheap thrills and entertainment? To infinity and beyond, baby.
We like these monsters “bad but not really.” Dark and sinister but warm and cuddly at the end of the day. A man who is a threat to anyone on the planet but us, cause we’re just so freaking special!
In honor of Amanda’s Zombiepalooza and as an apology for my monster minimizing problem, I’m going to give a signed print copy of Blood Lust to one commenter in the comments thread.
Here’s the description for Blood Lust. You can see my monster minimizing problem is quite serious:
It’s all about the blood…
Comprised of three novellas, Blood Lust gives readers a snapshot look at the world of the Preternaturals Series. (Future installments of the series will be novels.)
KEPT:
As a cat therian (shifter), Greta’s blood is already sought after to enhance spells and potions, but due to a quirk of her birth, her blood is potent enough to kill for. When her tribe plans to sacrifice her, Greta must ally herself with Dayne, the dangerous local sorcerer, and the only person strong enough to protect her.
CLAIMED:
For a vampire, Anthony isn’t a picky eater, but he’s drawn to Charlee’s blood more than any other. Like a fine wine saved for a special occasion, he’s denied himself this pleasure. But one night, high from the potent magical blood of another, he claims his prize and loses control. Ashamed of almost killing the one woman who means anything to him, he wipes her memory of the event. When Charlee awakens with complete amnesia, Anthony is the only one who can clean up the mess he’s made.
MATED:
Because of the vampiric blood that has run through her veins since birth, Jane has been a target for vampires who resent a human being “kindred.” She’s forced to disguise herself as a vampire groupie to appease them and safeguard her life. When she’s abruptly given to Cole, the leader of the werewolf pack, to satisfy a gambling debt, she discovers the blood running through her veins has a far greater impact on her destiny than she ever imagined.
Print and ebook copies are available at Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk. (other retailers coming soon.)
You can find me here:
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The giveaway for the paperback of Bloodlust has the same rules as the other Zombiepalooza giveaways –
1. To enter to win, comment on this blog, leaving an email address to contact you in case you win.
2. The giveaway runs from now until October 28th at midnight. On October 29th, winners will be chosen by random.org and contacted. They have 72 hours to reply before the prize defaults to the runner-up.
3. Only one entry per giveaway. (But you can enter as many different Zombiepalooza giveaways as you want.)
4. US only. Sorry to our international friends. 🙁