### ### ##### \ Soulz At Zero # # # # \\ ### ##### # \\\ Proudly Presents # # # # \\\\ ### # # ##### \\\\\ The Death Certificate! -----THE-DEATH-CERTIFICATE------VOLUME-1-ISSUE-2---------NOVEMBER-1994----- Staff: The Stranger, Jack Flack - Editors, Writers. Black Sunshine - Writer. (*) If you are interested in contributing to The Death Certificate please let one of the editors know. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- When life is woe, And hope is dumb, The World says "Go!" The Grave says "Come!" Arthur Guiterman, "Betel-Nuts" --------------------------------------------------------------------------- + Table of Contents + 1. Words from the Editors 2. SAZ News 3. Horror News 4. Reviews 5. The Writers Block 6. Final Words ------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Words from the Editors: Jack Flack: I always feel like I should start out with a good crypt keeper's laugh right about now ... First and foremost, let me welcome all the boys and ghouls to pack number III ... This issue of the Death Certificate is jam packed with news and reviews of horror books, movies, and computer games! I would also like to thank and greet our new helpers of SAZ, Faethor, who is helping the SAZ pack go nation-wide, and Black Sunshine, our newest writer! Her stuff is really great folks, so be sure to check it all out. I also put in a few more gifs, since I got a few letters from people saying they liked them before. Feel free to use any of our logos or gifs on your own board, to help pass the word around. And to all those people who have send me applications, let me say thanks, and keep trying. I think The Stranger covers everything else in pretty good detail, so I will end this and let you get back to the regularly scheduled program ... - Jack Flack/SAZ ------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Stranger: This is a good time at Soulz At Zero, a lot of great things are happening for us. We've gone national, we've got a new member. But at the same time we're still not getting many responses to our work. If you like the pack, just send us a quick note on any board we're on. If you don't like the pack and maybe you have some suggestions on how we can make it better, tell us. We know that are packs are getting downloaded but we'd really like to know what you think of them. So please send comments. This is a big issue of the Death Certificate so I'm going to cut my editorial short this month. I really don't have much to say anyway. I hope you enjoy this pack and I hope you share it with a friend or two. If you run a bbs and want to be a distributor send us a message telling us so. Or if you want to be in the group, just fill out the application and send it to us. Now, turn down the lights, keep your eyes wide open, and pray you don't find your name, on The Death Certificate... The Stranger ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Account ye no man happy till he dies. Euripides, "Daughters of Troy" ------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Soulz At Zero News Well there's a lot of good news this month and just a little bad so lets get the bad out of the way. Our second pack has only been downloaded around thirty times so far which is half as much as are first pack. Hopefully we won't lose that many people with this pack. Let's hear some good news. Our first pack has been downloaded sixty times here in Oklahoma! We want to thank everyone who got it and every sysop who kept it up on there board. SAZ goes national!! Thanks to Faethor, packs one and two are now floating around in Nevada, Illionis, South Carolina, Georgia, and a few other states. If anyone there would like to be a distributor or would like to be a member, just leave us a message on either X-Force or Late Nite BBS here in Oklahoma. Well we are really excited to welcome our first new member into the group this month, Black Sunshine. She has been published in many undergroud magazines and we are looking forward to seeing her work in Soulz At Zero. Along with writing poems and stories, she's also going to help me with the Death Certificate by writing some articles and reviews. So check out her work that's included in this pack. We're sure your going to love it. What does Soulz At Zero need? A viewer. We had hoped to have one in this pack but at the present time that I am writing this it would seem we will not be able to. Hopefully we have one in this pack and in that case forget all about this paragraph. But if there isn't one in this pack and you can make a viewer, send us mail. That's the newz for this month. See ya next time. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- 'Tis now the witching time of night, When churchyards yawn and hell itself breathes Contagion to this world. William Shakespeare, Hamlet ------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3. Horror News by The Stranger: New in Bookstores: One of the rising stars of horror just released two new books. "Much Mojo" is the sequal to an earlier novel by Joe called "Savage Season." His other new book is "Writer of the Purple Rage" which is a collection of short stories. Both are out only in trade hardbacks at about $20-25 a piece and there also out in limited edition formats for about twice that much. Both are worth the money if you've got it and they can be found at Realms of Fantasy in Norman. Author Kim Newman's new novel "The Quorum" should be out this month in hardback format. This is a book about friends making a deal with the devil and I'd suggest you wait for the paperback version to come out next year. Melanie Tem who wrote "Wilding" and "Prodigal" has a new book out called "Revenant." Tem has a very distinct style of writing and her books are usually very feminine. Michael Arnzen releases "Grave Markings" for the Dell Abyss line of books. Dell Abyss also has new releases by Dale Hoover, "65mm", Nancy Holder, "Dead in the Water", and Daniel Glover, "Harrowgate." Dell Abyss should be releasing the new Dennis Etchison soon also. A tough book to find but worth the trouble is a new collection of short stories by David Schow called "Black Leather Required." The problem is this book is not cheap. Thirty bucks and its not even very thick. But if you like your stories with a little sex and a whole lot of violence this is for you. Realms of Fantasy has a few copies. "Strange Angels" by Kathe Koja has been released from Dell in hardback form. She is becoming one of the hottest writers of strange horror but you might want to check out one of her earlier paperback books first before laying down twenty bucks for this one. She has a style of writing that you either love or hate. Ed Gorman releases "Blood Moon" from St. Martin's Press. It's much more a crime novel than horror but Gorman can write, no matter what the genre. "Near Death" is the new paperback novel by Nancy Kilpatrick. This is a vampire book which has been getting some good reviews. If you like vampire stories then you might want to check it out. One of the top female writers, Nancy A. Collins releases "Wild Blood" in paperback format for Roc publishing. Collins is most known for her vampire books such as "Sunglasses After Dark." "Narror Houses" is a new anthology with orginal stories by Rick Hautala, Kim Newman, Ramsey Campbell, Jonathan Carrol, Rex Miller and a lot more. New at theatres: "Wes Craven's New Nightmare" is out and its a sequal to the "Nightmare on Elm Street" movies starring the orginal cast, including Wes Craven as himself. "Mary Shelly's Frankenstein" starring Robert DeNiro as the monster and Kenneth Branaugh as Dr. Frankenstein has also just reached the theatres. This one looks good and should be worth the price of admission. The one everyone has been waiting for comes out this month, Anne Rice's "Interview With The Vampire" starring Brad Pitt, Christian Slater, and Tom Cruise as the vampire Lestat. The previews and reviews so far for this movie have been great. This one promises to be a big hit at the box office. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ All it comes down to is that the living are dying and the dying are living but that people, whether alive or dead, are still fucking afraid. Douglas Winter, "Less Than Zombie" ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4. The Reviews: Books: Insomnia By Stephen King, Viking Publishing, 1994. Weird and bad. Those are the two words you usually hear first when you talk to someone who is reading this book or has finished it. And I'm here to tell you that this book is weird and bad. Its a three hundred page book written in over seven hundred and fifty pages. But if there's one thing this book has going for it is that it's a change for King from where he was going. His last two novels, Geralds Game and Dolores Claiborne, were in my opinion his worst books ever. They had very little if any horror elements to them at all. Well Insomnia has what some may call horror, little bald doctors carrying scalpels and such, but its not what I'd call a horror novel. The quick summary of the book is that its about an old man who can't sleep and he begins to see the auras of people. And trouble is brewing in his hometown of Derry (the same location as IT) as Susan Day, the head lady of the pro-choice movement is coming and is in danger from Ed Deepneau and his violent pro-life friends. I don't want to give much away so I'll just say that all of the characters in the book are part of something big and everyones life is in danger unless the old man can save them. Half way into the book you start to think that Susan Day is coming and then the excitement will begin. But no, all of a sudden the book starts getting even stranger than it was to begin with sending our characters off to different worlds and then finally bringing Susan Day four hundred pages later at the very end of the book. For King fans this book does have a few very vague references to IT and it does have one or two foreshadowing looks at the Dark Tower series but for the most part this is King way off the mark. It seemed he tried to get away from what he was doing and wanted to write something very different but spent too much time thinking about how to make the story weird and not enough time putting effort into the writing. The first two hundred pages or so are fun and if this was a three hundred or four hundred page book that would be great buts it a seven hundred and after the first two hundred the book just gets boring and hard to follow. It will probably make a good movie if they try it but it makes a very long and boring novel. The Stranger... --------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Pet, by Charles L. Grant, Tor Pub, 1986. There is no writer who writes real horror better than Charles Grant. Stephen King has been to Grant's level before but hasn't stayed as consistent as Grant. And by "real horror" I mean the kind that scares you rather than trying to gross you out. The kind of stories you tell around a camp fire when the moon is full. The kind of stories that have no blood and guts, no scenes of sex for no reason other than to sell books, only scenes about the things that hide under a childs bed or in the closet. Only the things that can really scare us are in a Charles Grant story. "The Pet" is considered his best work so far. This is the story of a young boy named Don Boyd who is having all sorts of trouble trying to be a teenager in Ashford, New Jersey. School trouble, girl trouble, family trouble. Everything is falling in on him. And if that wasn't enough, there's a killer in Ashford who's next victim might be Don. But Don has made friends with an animal, or should I say, the ghost of an animal. A horse has been coming out of the fog to help Don with his problems. The only problem is that the pet tends to kill everyone who gets in Don's way. And Don's angry at everyone and he's beginning to lose control. "The Pet" is really about growing up as a seventeen-year-old who just doesn't fit in. The horror elements make this book a good one buts it the way Grant shows Don's life and troubles that make this a great book. No book since King's "IT" has dealt so well with the emotions of being a child as this one does. This is a horror novel that will truly make you feel more emotions then just a scare, it will make you care about Don Boyd and you may find yourself thanking God you don't have to be seventeen again. The Stranger... ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Darkborn By Matthew J. Costello, Diamond Pub, 1992. There's a quote on the front of the book from one of my favorite writers, Rick Hautala, that says "Costello delivers" and nothing in a long review can say it better than that. Costello delivers in his horror novels. His mainstream stuff which he's been writing recently is crap but his horror is horror. His horror books guarantee a scare every few pages and the stories are easy to follow and easy to become a part of. Few write the really scary stuff better than Matthew Costello. Costello writes very short paragraphs, ranging from one to three sentences at the most. So the reading goes by quick and the words that he does use or usually not just fillers, they're there for the scare. Here's a short passage from this book: The ants on his lips, his eyelids, all over his face, and some moving down to the tender flesh of his neck -- all of them began to bite. He tried to twitch, to move his face, shake them off... He was tempted to push at them with his tongue. Force them away. Maybe he could blow them off. But that would mean opening his mouth. That's what they wanted. The book is about five friends who played a game twenty-seven years ago to awaken a creature from hell. But even though it was a game, the creature is alive, and searching for them. So the kids who are now men find them selves in a face to face battle with the thing that they created years ago. And who ever loses the battle, will lose their life and their souls. This is a bad summary because I don't remember the book too well but trust me this is a good one. Read this one and then check out some other Costello books like Midsummer and Beneath Still Water. You won't be disappointed. The Stranger... ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SplatterPunks Edited by Paul M. Sammon, St. Martins Press, 1990. This is a collection of short stories written in a style that horror people call splatterpunk. For those of you who don't know, splatterpunk is very much like a Friday the 13th type movie. There's usually a lot of blood, a whole lot of violence and some sex thrown in for no reason. The first great splatterpunk anthology was The Book of The Dead edited by Skipp and Spector, but this book is considered one of the best collections of this type of work. Two of my three favorite short stories of all time are in this book. Douglas E. Winter's "Less Than Zombie" and Richard Christian Matheson's "Red." If you have not read both of those stories, find them and do it. Be warned that Winter's tale is very violent and graphic. Joe R. Lansdale's award winning story "Night They Missed the Horror Show" is also included in the book along with a chaptor from a Ray Garton novel that was taken out because the publishers thought it was too much. This book has many of the big name authors of short stories including Clive Barker, Rex Miller, Edward Bryant, John Skipp, and even a story by Mick Garris who is the director of Stephen King's Sleepwalkers and The Stand. This is a great anthology, a lot of really good writers with really strong stories. If you don't like it a little violent, I don't recommend reading this. And you may want to stay away from the Garton piece, there's good reason why that one was kept out of his novel. Enjoy. The Stranger... ------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Waiting Room By T.M. Wright, Tor Pub, 1986. T.M. Wright is one of my favorite writers. There is no one out there writing the way he does. The bad thing about Wright is that after you read a few of his books you start to think that there all the same book. T.M. writes ghost stories mainly, and a good emount of his twelve or so books deal with ghost children who grow out of the ground to reak havoc on those foolish adults who would try to live near them. But that's not what "The Waiting Room" is about. Sam Feary has just met an old friend from High School who he hadn't seen in some years. But there's something wrong with his friend and he won't tell Sam what it is. But Sam finds out. It seems his friend Abner has crossed over the boundary of the living and the dead. You see the world as we know it right now is being occupied by dead people who are walking around waiting to have judgement passed on them. But we can't see them because there in a different dimension, if you will. But Abners been there. And now the dead want Sam to join them, forever. This was the first T.M. Wright book I had ever read and after reading this one I went out and bought every book I could find by him. This book has a very mainstream feel to it, while his other books have more of a style to them. This book left me shivering, it will do the same for you. Try reading "The Island" when you get done with this one. Both are truly what ghost stories are suppose to be. Dean Koontz says of "The Waiting Room": "A quietly building, sinister, creepy tale. Wright has a unique imagination." The Stranger... --------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Last Vampire Trilogy by Christopher Pike Books I and II Review by Black Sunshine Another vampire story. Lately, those are filling the bookshelves and bringing in the money for book stores across the country. I'm glad Pike has decided to jump on the bandwagon and bring his unique story-telling to a very old tale. Pike's fame has travelled a very strange road. He has been called the Stephen King of young adult fiction, his paperbacks making the New York Times Bestseller list, yet ironically, his brilliant "adult" novels have yet to catch on. His latest endeavor, this vampire trilogy, brings to light all the old adages concerning vampires and rips some of them to shreds. His vampires can go out into the sunlight, although they are weaker and just generally do not like to. A stake to the heart does not kill them, they do not turn into bats or sleep in coffins or fear crosses and holy water, and the only way to create new vampires is by exchanging massive amounts of blood with a mortal. The main character, Alisa Perne, is a 5000-year old vampire who believes she is the last one on earth. When she finds herself being stalked, she follows her only lead, a private investigator who is digging into her past. Before she can learn everything, however, she is forced to kill him. She then goes after his son, Ray, in an attempt to find out what the investigator had known about her and who was stalking her. Her search leads her to her old enemy from fifty centuries before. In the midst of all this, she finds herself inexplicably attracted to Ray, and after giving him his immortality, he becomes her reluctant partner in a quest to discover who is infesting Los Angeles with vampires and why. While there are a few new twists, it is evident that this plot has been reworked over and over again by others long before Pike. What makes this trilogy so compelling and different from others is Pike's use of theology and philosophy to discuss the reality of vampires as the characters grapple with their own existences. Another thing that is hard to ignore about the story is Alisa herself. She is beautiful (and hardly looks her age, trapped in the body of an eighteen year old); strong (she takes on three gang-members all with weapons and brings them to their knees in less than five seconds); wealthy (she lives on a six and a half million dollar estate. I guess being five thousand years old, you'd gain a lot of resources); and powerful (she can make people do things with a look or a touch or a certain tone in her voice). She is also aggressive, alluring and self-confident-- she can kick serious ass and is nearly invincible. You want to like her if only for her near-perfection. Reading about her and her long, long life, you root for her to succeed and stop her nemesis, and find whatever it is that would make her happy, even if she is sometimes manipulative and arrogant. Of course, destiny makes it nearly impossible for her to be happy... I'm looking forward to reading the resolution to the series when it is released some time early next year. Though the covers and the blurbs on the back of the novels are targeted at teenagers, there is much to be learned within them from someone of any age. As I mentioned, Pike writes with an insight that few writers have, with an honesty and clarity that leaves few untouched after they have finished reading. The fact that these "teenager-aimed" novels are making the New York Times Bestseller list is proof that I'm not the only one who's aware of this. If nothing else, the books in this trilogy do set up some interesting relationships and horror scenes, particularly when Alisa and Ray are feeding, or when they are exhibiting their immense amounts of vampiristic strength. You could just look at it as another vampire story, but you'd be missing out on a lot of the issues that are broached. Either way, it would be hard not to enjoy. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Music: Danzig, 4. American Recordings. In 1994 Danzig finally received the recognition they deserved through the release of a live album that included the song "Mother" which was first recorded on their first album years ago. Thanks to MTV and even some radio airplay, "Mother" became a huge hit and Danzig became a household word. Riding on that success, Danzig releases its fourth studio album entitled 4 and with a mixture of melodic choruses and evil lyrics this album should reach the true fans along with the newer ones. That is, if anyone ever plays the songs. The first single was suppose to be "Until You Call On The Dark" which promised to be a huge hit because this song is so catchy and so dark all at the same time. One problem, MTV won't play the video because of the lyrics. The lyrics in question go: "I want to be the God that kills/I want to be the Christ that dies, upon the fire of infamy." That seemed to be to heavy for MTV. But word of mouth is what sold the first three Danzig albums and that might work this time. This album is much more a mixture of different styles in comparison with the other three records. There are songs that sound like they could have come off of any one of the previous records. Even a song called "Bringer of Death" sounds like it could have come off of a Samhain record. Unlike past slow Danzig songs, the ones on this record are bad. But there are so many songs that rock that its easy to love this album. From the somewhat funky feel of "I Don't Mind The Pain" to the screams of "Brand New God" this record lives up to the hype. There are two problems though, besides a few awful slow songs. First, Danzig seems to feel that they need to move away from rocking songs and possibly move closer to Nine Inch Nail sounding songs. There's atleast two songs that have a very industrial sound to them and though it works on one of the songs, it doesn't on the other. The song "Can't Speak" is one of the worst songs I've ever heard, it's right up there with "Paralyzed" by Kiss. The other problem with Danzig is that they just fired their drummer Chuck Biscuits. He was a big part of the band, especially the live show and he will be missed. Of course Glenn Danzig is the main part of Danzig but this might bring atleast a small change to a great band. The album ends on song 66 on your CD with a gregorian chant to the demons which is worth finding on your player once and then you won't need to hear it again. This is by far the best hard rock album out, especially in this time when alternative rock is taking over the airwaves. Pick up the album and learn something. And by the way, Danzig's coming to the Roxy this month. They are great live. The Stranger... ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Computer Games: GABRIEL KNIGHT: Sins of the Fathers (CD-Rom version) Gabriel is doomed before we even meet him. He is a man of German origin (with a Southern accent??), and comes from a long line of Shattenjagers (or Shadow Hunters). Ruggedly handsome and pretentious, yet somehow also insecure, he isn't aware of his ancestry. All he does know is that his dreams of sacrifice and death are haunting his waking hours, so he begins extensive research for a non-fiction book on voodoo. He's in no better area to do so: New Orleans, Louisiana, where coincidentally, there have recently been a string of killings the police are labelling the "voodoo murders" because of the obvious sacrificial remains. He manages to get his hands on "classified" information about the murders through his police buddy, whose voice is amusingly read by Mark Hamill of the Star Wars trilogy fame. The deeper Gabriel gets pulled into the mystery, the less it becomes a research project and the more it becomes an attempt to delve into his dark past and heritage. His quest is long, tedious, and far-reaching, taking him out of New Orleans to a gothic family castle in Germany and to the savage jungles of South Africa. Only after he understands his background can he then return to try to defeat the evil in New Orleans. Jane Jensen, game designer and creator, was a previous writer of horror stories, which is evident in the game. Playing it, one gets the feel that it was or could be easily adapted to or from novel form. Jensen, however, has used this to her advantage, giving us three-dimensional characters who actually manage to create, in all their glorious pixels, a real chemistry through their dialogue; a Louisiana setting so rich and realistic we feel as if are visiting every time we load the game; and a comprehensive chronicle of voodoo, including its gods, its origins, and its importance in black history. All of this, plus the startlingly meticulous graphics and the over 7,000 lines of recorded voice, combines to provide a game well worth playing. The plot itself, while very ingenious in some respects, was really not as mysterious as it should have been, partially due to the graphic novel included in the box. After reading it, you already know more about Gabriel's past than he does, which doesn't set up much conundrum for the game-player. The real mysteries of the game are of the usual Sierra brand-- doing one thing that will enable you to do another that will enable you to do another that will enable you to end the day and further progress the game. Some of these puzzles are exceptionally hard, and while not impossible to figure out, you shouldn't expect to solve the game in a week unless you run up your phone bill calling the Sierra BBS. I feel I must also warn you that this game has two endings (the "right" one and the "wrong" one and I'm sure you will want to see both) and neither one of them ends in the typically happy fashion. It is disturbing to see Gabriel's fate laid out for him, as he carries out the birthright of his ancestors. This was, however, the only real way it could all end. Perhaps this is one reason why the game stuck with me for so long; the resolution is not easily forgotten. Overall, I highly recommend this game for anyone into horror and/or mystery. A lot of scenes of the game are genuinely creepy and the game reeks of an almost sickening authenticity. Even if voodoo doesn't interest you, it will have you addicted in the first fifteen minutes while you marvel at one of two things: Tim Curry (of The Rocky Horror Picture Show; does the voice of Gabriel in the game) putting on a Southern accent, or the first time one of the characters says "fuck" in the middle of a comment. Black Sunshine ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The 7th Guest An eerie mansion, complete with the ghosts of six guests (the last humans to set foot inside it) and the mocking voice of the mansion's devilish owner, Henry Stauf, is the setting for this ground-breaking CD-Rom game. The opening sequence, which gives us a chilling account of Stauf's past, tells of his talent for creating amazing toys and puzzles that were one-of-a-kind and sought after all over the world. Until the children who owned them started dying, that is. The main character is you! Seen from the first person point of view, you never get a glimpse of yourself as you wander about the mansion, however, you do talk to yourself in a perplexed male voice while trying to solve the various riddles and puzzles throughout the game. As you roam in and out of rooms, scenes of the occurrences of the last people to set foot in the mansion (a collection of six seemingly mismatched guests) unfold before you. You learn a little at a time, like why were they there, how did they know each other, how did they die, and who was the mysterious 7th guest that they all anticipated. You, yourself, as the main character, have no idea what you are doing bumbling around in the dark house until the resolution of the game, until you understand what has taken place there before you. The music, scenery and voices combine to create one of the spookiest game atmospheres I've ever experienced. Visually, the stark contrast between the lighting and the shadows playing over the massive blocks of antique furniture and the broad, sweeping hallways seems to blend well with the sudden appearances of the ghosts and help set up an acute sense of loneliness and alienation as you wander about the mansion. The music and sound effects add an even sharper dimension to this, creating a tension I've felt before only from movies and books. This is what I mean when I say the game is ground-breaking. Solving the game requires a different kind of skills than most adventure games. In each room, at least one puzzle is contained, a puzzle which relies very heavily on logic, problem- solving skills and deduction skills. Some are easy, but as you progress through the game, they get harder and harder to solve. You can go downstairs into the library to get a clue on how to solve a puzzle, and if you still can't get it, the game will solve it for you, but what fun is that??? I would like to say that I solved every puzzle on my own, but there were a couple that I spent days on and couldn't get anywhere with and was anxious to just move on with the plot. This is definitely not the kind of game you want to play to relax. The mental skills this game employs seem to require that the game-player have an IQ of at least 135 and not be worn out from other activities. In short, don't play this game right before you go to bed, or after a hard day. It will frustrate you to no end! But sometimes frustrating is good. In my vast computer gaming experience, I have learned that the more a game frustrates me, the more I like it, even if I don't realize it until I've finished it. The 7th Guest was no exception. It gives you a feeling of smug satisfaction to overcome one of the challenging obstacles and progress the game. The uniqueness of this game is its novelty; I find it hard to believe anyone would be unpleased with the uniqueness of this one. Black Sunshine -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Up and coming computer game reviews by Black Sunshine... Interactive horror movie, Dracula Unleashed The Legacy, Realm of Terror Alone in the Dark 1 and 2 Also look for... The Eleventh Hour, long-awaited sequel to The 7th Guest Phantasmagoria, Sierra interactive horror movie that is rumored to have the equivalent of eight feature length films under its belt ------------------------------------------------------------------------- And it was clear she couldn't go on! The door was opened and the wind appeared, The candles blew and then disappeared, The curtains flew and then HE appeared, Said, "Don't be afraid, Come on, Mary," And she had no fear And she ran to him And they started to fly..... She had taken his hand..... "Come on, Mary: Don't fear the Reaper!" Blue Oyster Cult ------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5. The Writer's Block By The Stranger... Okay, I'm going to keep this short. This month in "The Writer's Block" I'm going to talk about getting published. As I said in the last issue, I've never been published before but I can share some tips that I've learned while trying. Okay, we're going to start off with this scenerio: You've written a short story or poem that you really like and feel it could be published. The first step is to work on your piece. Edit it until every word fits in and every spelling mistake is gone. When it looks great, go back and look through every sentence and make sure it's as good as it could possibly be. If you see a short sentence such as "Jack walked over to the kitchen table," see if there's any adjectives you could put in there to describe the situation more. After you have your story done as well as it can be, give it to a friend and let them read it. If they have problems reading parts, have them make notes so that you can discuss it with them and possibly change it. After this step is over give your work to anyone else who will read it and allow them to check it over. You've checked your work, your friends and maybe a teacher or another writer have checked your work. Now it's time to find out where to send your work. If there's a magazine that you know of that publishes the type of story you write, pick up a copy and see how your story measure ups to the ones published in the magazine. If you don't know any magazines that publish your style of fiction, then go to the library. There are a few good books in your reference section that will help you find markets for your story/poem. These books usually have different subjects such as science fiction or mystery for you to look under. Okay, you've found a few magazines that your story might fit into. Some editors like it when you've read their magazines so that you know exactly what type of story they're looking for. So you might want to send away for a copy of a magazine that you are interested in. The next step is to send away for their guidelines. Guidelines are little rules on what the magazines are looking for, how much they'll pay, how long the piece can be, whom to send it to, and stuff like that. To get the guidelines you usually just have to send a self-addressed-stamped-envelope and they will send you it. Okay, you've sent away and recieved the guidelines for four different magazines. Choose the one that looks best for your story/poem. Now, print your piece on white typing paper and make sure the printing is dark. Give a lot of space on the margins and don't go all the way down on the paper, nor do you want to start at the very top of the page. Don't staple the pages together, instead put a paper clip on the top left. Also, make sure you put your name, address, phone number, and word count (the amount of words your story uses) in the top left corner of the first page. A few lines down put in the title of the story and your name centered underneath. And then on every page in the top right hand corner, put your first initial and then your last name, then the page number and a small part of the stories title. You may also include a cover sheet which I do recommend. It should just be a little information about you and about your story. But don't tell to much about your story. Put a self-addressed-stamped-envelope behind your work in the paperclip. Now put your story/poem in a big envelope, one just a little bigger than the size of your paper. Seal it up, put enough postage on the outside and send it away. Poem submission usually don't take more than two to three weeks for a reply. But stories can take from two monthes to eight monthes. And you cannot send the same story out to two different editors until you have heard from the first one you sent your piece out to. That is because you have given up your rights (publishing rights) to the first person you sent the story to and so you cannot sell your story to someone before the first person has a chance to accept it. Waiting for a response is hard. Getting a rejection notice isn't much easier. But many editors will tell you whats wrong with your work so that by the next time you send it out you can fix it. Editors are usually nice to writers unless you have done something wrong like sent in a hand written ten page story or something. Just keep writing and send your work in. With every piece you write you'll get better and hopefully one day you'll be good enough to be published. I promised I'd make this one short and I just kept going. Sorry. Next time we'll talk about something else. Not sure what yet. See you then. The Stranger... ------------------------------------------------------------------------- God will not look you over for medals, degrees, or diplomas, but for scars. Elbert Hubbard, Epigrams ------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6. Final Words: Well that's it for this issue of The Death Certificate. We hope you enjoyed it and we thank you for taking the time to read it. If you have any comments or suggestions then just drop us a letter on any board in the 405 area that we happen to be on. We are always looking for new members or anyone who can help Soulz At Zero so drop us a line if you want to be a part of the group. Thanks to all of those out there who have and continue to support us. Look for the next pack around the second week of December and have a great Thanksgiving. Soulz At Zero ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Your fingers black from ink as your shaking hands glide down the page, trying to see if your name is on the death certificate. The wind screaming against the window, begging to get in, to get to you. And at last you find the dotted line, written in blood the letters that form your name. A sudden gasp caught in your throat, a flicker of the lights until they fade off completely. The cold touch of fingers as a hand reaches across the bare skin of your neck. Goosebumps rise from your neck just as the lights shine on once more. And once again you are alone. Before you lies the death certificate, your name is no longer written. You have escaped death, for now. The Stranger... ------------------------------------------------------------------------ (C) Copyright SAZ 1994.