S.G. Browne

Well, August went by pretty fast. Time flies when you’re doing edits and copy edits and galley edits on your zombie novella that’s been pushed up to an October 30 release date, while in between you’re finishing up your next book that you promised to your agent the day after Labor Day.

Yes, for the past month I haven’t had the time to do any writing that doesn’t involve either I Saw Zombies Eating Santa Claus or Big Egos, thus the dearth of blog posts. Actually, I haven’t done much of anything else, as I’ve been bouncing back and forth from one project to the other—which isn’t always the easiest transition to make, especially when you’re switching from a sentient zombie who is dressed up like Santa Claus to a narrator who sometimes believes he’s Elvis Presley, James Bond, or Captain Kirk, among others.

In case you’re wondering what it’s like to work on two projects at the same time, both of them under deadline, the last month went something like this:

• Turn in first draft of I Saw Zombies Eating Santa Claus on August 1
• Spend three days reintegrating with human beings, who you haven’t seen for the past two weeks and most of the past two months
• Catch a cold and get so sick you can’t write for most of the next week
• Work on edits of your next novel, Big Egos, which you stopped editing at the end of May to start writing your zombie novella
• Receive first round of edits on zombie novella; stop working on Big Egos for 4-5 days
• Send in edited draft of zombie novella; start working on Big Egos again for the next week
• Receive copy edits for zombie novella; spend entire weekend reading your novella out loud—twice; make edits; send back to publisher
• Work on Big Egos for the next ten day, rearranging chapters, fixing plot holes, and tying things together
• Send Big Egos off to agent the Wednesday after Labor Day
• Receive 1st Galley Page edits for I Saw Zombies Eating Santa Claus; spend all day Thursday reading galley pages out loud and making final fixes
• Take a long bike ride across the Golden Gate Bridge on Friday morning, eat some breakfast, watch a couple of episodes of Robot Chicken, and then write this blog post
• Go visit your mother

Now I get the weekend to relax, visit some friends and family, and then start working on Big Egos next week once I get edits back from my agent. Then it’s on to Super Duper. Or maybe another project I’ve been working on. Hmm…

And without further ado, the cover and copy reveal for I Saw Zombies Eating Santa Claus. Drum roll, please. Oh wait, you can already see it. So much for building up the suspense. Maybe I should have told you to close your eyes first.

No matter. So here you go. That’s the cover over there on your left and the copy hanging out down below the row of asterisks. Just in case you were confused. Which you’re not. I’ll get out of the way, now.

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How does the leader of a failed zombie civil rights movement from California rescue a group of his undead brethren and help a lonely Breather girl as he hides from a band of medical researchers while disguised as Santa Claus?

If you’ve never believed in Christmas miracles, then you probably wouldn’t understand.

Andy Warner has just escaped from a zombie research facility in Portland, Oregon, where he’s been subjected to experimental testing for the past year. With Christmas just days away, Andy figures that donning a jolly old St. Nick costume to throw off his would-be captors is just the ticket. But he never expects to encounter a sweet, lonesome nine-year-old girl who not only reminds Andy of the family he’s lost, but who thinks he’s the real Santa.

He also doesn’t count on being recognized as last year’s national quasi-celebrity by a clandestine group of decaying supporters who look to him for leadership. For the living and the undead, this unforgettable holiday tale will truly put on display just who is gnawing and who is nice….

Release date is November 13, 2012.

Available for pre-order at your local independent bookstore, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iTunes, and wherever books are pre-ordered.

While blogging has never been my passion, I realize that it’s been nearly a month since I posted anything. And there’s a reason for that. Unfortunately, it doesn’t involve sitting on a remote tropical beach with no Internet access.

About three months ago, I was approached by my publisher to see if I was interested in writing a Christmas themed zombie novella. I thought about it for a few days, wrote up a synopsis and pitched them an idea, and a couple of weeks later they came back and said OK.

Now I’ve never written anything on spec before. My first three novels were all completed, vetted by my agent, and then sold, so selling a book before I’d written a single word of it was a new experience. And writing a 40,000 word novella in a little over two months meant any creative energy I had was channeled into writing that novella.

Thus no blog posts. And a limited amount of interaction on Facebook and Twitter. I just didn’t have the time.

The good news is, the novella is done. The title?

I Saw Zombies Eating Santa Claus: A Breathers Christmas Carol.

Yes, the novella is a sequel to Breathers and picks up a year later, about a week before Christmas, with Andy waking up in a body farm in Portland, OR, where he’s spent the last year being experimented on at a zombie research facility.

I won’t give away too much of the plot, but it involves an escape, a Santa Claus costume, a lonely nine-year-old girl named Annie who reminds Andy of his own daughter, a couple of zombie handlers, and a trio of inept zombies.

I’ll share more about the novella in a later post, but at this point it’s scheduled for release on November 13, 2012, both in print as a small hardcover and as an eBook.

Now I need to get back to edits on my next novel, BIG EGOS.

It’s that time of year again when hordes of pop culture obsessed geeks and geekettes make the pilgrimage to southern California to pay homage to their favorite superheros, science fiction icons, and comic book characters.

Yes, my friends. It’s time once again for San Diego Comic-Con.

In addition to all of the actors and celebrities and icons of popular culture who will be in San Diego over the weekend, you’ll also find an assortment of authors and writers in attendance. Including me.

I’ll be appearing on a panel Saturday and doing several signings Friday and Saturday, with my schedule and where to find me listed below.

(Note that my signings on Friday are in specific booths on the main floor while my signings on Saturday both take place in the Sails Pavilion, the main autograph area, table AA09. The second signing on Saturday is a group signing for the soon to-be-released zombie anthology 21st Century Dead, edited by Christopher Golden.)

Friday, July 13
Signing: 2:00-3:00PM (Geekscape Booth #3919)
Signing: 4:00-5:00PM (Mysterious Galaxy Booth #1119)

Saturday, July 14
Urban Fantasy Panel: 10:30-11:30am (Room 5AB)
Signing: 11:30am-12:30pm (Sails Pavilion, AA09)
21st Century Dead Signing: 3:00-4:00PM (Sails Pavilion, AA09)
(Group signing with Amber Benson, Cody Goodfellow, John Skipp, Thomas E. Sniegoski, and Daniel H. Wilson)

But wait, there’s more!

For your post Comic-Con hangover, I’ll be appearing with Amber Benson, Cody Goodfellow, and John Skipp at Dark Delicacies in Burbank for another group signing to celebrate the official release of 21st Century Dead.

Tuesday, July 17
21st Century Dead Signing: 7:00-8:00pm (Dark Delicacies, Burbank)

There will also be copies of my novels available at the Burbank signing, just in case you were wondering. Even if you weren’t, I hope to see you in San Diego or Burbank.

There’s a new zombie anthology in town, and I’ve got a short story appearing in it. Okay, it’s not in town yet. 21st Century Dead, edited by Christopher Golden, officially pubs on Tuesday, July 17. And my short story, “Reality Bites,” is the fourth entry in the collection, right after a story by Orson Scott Card.

Just to clarify, “Reality Bites” has nothing to do with Winona Ryder, Janeane Garafolo, Ethan Hawke, or Ben Stiller. Instead, it tells the story of a couple of Hollywood producers who are looking for the next big thing in zombie reality television.

As I mentioned, the anthology officially hits the shelves on July 17 and it just so happens that I’ll be in southern California doing a group signing on that day at Dark Delicacies in Burbank with Amber Benson, Cody Goodfellow, and John Skipp, who all have stories in the collection.

July 17 – Burbank, CA
7:00PM
Dark Delicacies
3512 W. Magnolia Blvd.
Burbank, CA

In addition, Amber, Cody, Skipp and I will be doing another group signing at Comic-Con the weekend before, along with Thomas E. Sniegoski and Daniel H. Wilson, on Saturday, July 14:

July 14 – San Diego, CA
3:00-4:00PM (Autograph Area, Table 09)
Comic-Con
San Diego Convention Center
111 W. Harbor Drive
San Diego, CA

I’ll also be doing a couple of other signings and appearing on a panel for Lucky Bastard during the Comic-Con weekend. If you’re attending, you can find my complete schedule of events HERE.

If not, then I hope to see you in Burbank on July 17.