Skiing with Blake Crouch Spring Break 2011

Spring Break 2011 121
Originally uploaded by dhslit

I went west with my family for spring break and had the great pleasure of skiing for a day at Durango Mountain Resort with client Blake Crouch. The man has mad skills on telemark skis, folks. And due to a late afternoon navigation error, we almost wrote the beginning of a new Crouch horror novel which would have involved two idiots stranded on overnight on the backside of a mountain with inadequate clothing, no supplies and a storm blowing in.

Best cycling video ever from Rapha.

2010 NW Gentlemen's Race from RAPHA on Vimeo.


The narration is perfect.  Who wrote it?   And when do we get one of these races in Texas?

How totally cool.  The new Oni Press Mixtape – providing soundtracks to your favorite creators' comics, including Greg Rucka's Queen & Country and Stumptown, and Jen van Meter's Hopeless Savages. Now available for free download here.

Swierczynski's EXPIRATION DATE gets an Edgar nom!

Mystery Writers of America announces nominees for the 2011 Edgar Allan Poe Awards, honoring the best in mystery fiction, non-fiction and television published or produced in 2010. Our man Duane Swierczynski is on the Best Paperback Original list for his novel, EXPIRATION DATE. Way to go, Duane!

Koryta's So Cold The River Continues "Best of 2010" Run

Marilyn Stasio names her Notable Crime Books of 2010 in The New York Times and Michael's novel is on the list!

Here's her look back at some of the best mysteries of this year.

How we wound up topless

Tremendous Salon.com cover article by our good pal Laurie Pomeranz on braving breast cancer with friends. Cute friends. How we wound up topless

Swierczynski Brings Deadpool and Cable Together Again

Deadpool and Cable, Together Again

DEADPOOL & CABLE #26
Written by DUANE SWIERCZYNSKI
Penciled by LEO FERNANDEZ
Cover by DAVE WILKINS

Cable is dead, and no one’s more devastated than his old friend and partner, Deadpool (a.k.a. Wade Wilson, a.k.a. the Merc With the Mouth, a.k.a. the guy who’s in pretty much every other solicit this month). Sitting by Cable’s grave, Deadpool struggles to find the perfect way to honor his fallen mutant pal. Then… light bulb! Deadpool remembers Rumekistan, the troubled and totally fictional European country that Cable once tried to turn into a Utopia on earth. Deadpool travels there to establish up a Cable museum! A Cable amusement park! A Cable cable TV show! But Rumekistan isn’t quite what it used to be, and Deadpool’s appearance only makes things worse. To set things right, Deadpool will have to do more than just honor his old friend -- he must become him!

Greg Rucka in Dallas at Rathbun's Blue Plate Kitchen

Originally uploaded by dhslit

Dubya's book-signing wasn't the only big book event in Dallas last week. DHS Literary hosted a happy hour book-signing party at Rathbun's Blue Plate Kitchen last Tuesday night to celebrate the publication of New York Times best-selling author Greg Rucka's new novel, THE LAST RUN. Rucka was in Dallas on his book tour, after a signing at Murder By The Book in Houston on Monday night. Barnes & Noble was on hand to sell books and Zeus Comics was there with a pile of Greg's beautiful graphic novels for sale, too. The Rathbun's staff did a fantastic job with the food and drink for the event, and a large crowd turned out to welcome Greg to town and buy books. Thanks, everybody!

Word Balloon The Comic Book Interview Podcast: The Rucka 10 10 Debrief Part 2

Word Balloon The Comic Book Interview Podcast: The Rucka 10 10 Debrief Part 2: " Download The Mp3 here On This episode of Word Balloon, it's part 2 of The Rucka Debrief. Writer Greg Rucka talks more about his upco..."

Mulholland Books Releases Exclusive Excerpt of New Swierczynski novel

Check out this high octane blast of "playful mayhem."

The True Believer, by David Hale Smith

A literary agent has to be a True Believer. Some days it's a piece of cake.

Greg Rucka Signs 3-book Deal for New Series at Mulholland Books

Publisher's Weekly reports today that NYT bestselling author and award-winning comics creator Greg Rucka is moving to Little, Brown's Mulholland Books suspense imprint. Mulholland's John Schoenfelder bought world rights in a three-book deal from David Hale Smith of DHS Literary, Inc. Rucka's credits include two established book series, the novels featuring Atticus Kodiak and the Queen & Country international espionage series, as well as numerous comics, including his legendary creator-owned Queen & Country and his new crime series, Stumptown, and an astonishing amount of other great material. At Mulholland, Rucka will begin a new series involving "a former Delta Force operator who discovers that his allies are not who they appear to be and are pursuing a dark agenda far different than his own." The first book in the series is called Alpha.

NPR Includes Gischler's Go-Go Girls in "Apocalypse Trio"

A special end-of-days thanks to our new pal Ron Currie, Jr., for his awesome story here yesterday with his picks for...

Three Books To Help You Enjoy The Apocalypse!

Release of the new Dark Prophecy teaser trailer

INNOCENT MONSTER launches on Oct. 7!

Swierczynski takes on the Black Widow!

"Black Widow #6 is probably the most intense jumping-on point I’ve experienced in my comic-reading experience so far this year, and it’s earned its place in my heart for many a reason... it won me over as soon as I read its first page.

The way that Swierczynski manages to have readers looking one way while he lobs a rather nonchalant curve in the opposite direction is a skill that many-a-writer, selling double the numbers, have yet to master, yet Duane makes it look simple... Swierczynski & Garcia purposefully leave readers not just wanting to know more, but needing to.

Between the exciting story and effective art by Manuel Garcia I only have one question: Why aren’t you reading it?"

- Alternate Reality Comics

More love for Moe

Bookgasm is thrilled that "Reed Farrel Coleman’s Moe Prager is back, folks...INNOCENT MONSTER is another masterfully written descent into Prager’s world of regret and anguish...like most of the Prager series, it is utterly compelling and nearly impossible to put aside. So INNOCENT MONSTER is highly recommended for those willing to take a stroll down the darker side of human nature, with Coleman and Prager as your guide."

Gay Comic Book Character Hall of Fame

Flavorwire showcases significant gay characters in mainstream comics, and includes the best-selling BATWOMAN:

"Kate Kane’s Batwoman has, due in no small part to the stellar writing of Greg Rucka, become a well-rounded and intensely interesting character"

The summer Mystery Scene

Michael Koryta is the cover boy for Mystery Scene magazine's summer issue (#115).

Swing by your local bookseller for a copy today. Inside is Kevin Burton Smith's article "Michael Koryta: Take Me to the River" and Lynn Kaczmarek's write-up of "Stefanie Pintoff: In Old New York".

Gischler's chart-topper

CBR has a great interview with Victor Gischler, author of crime novels and "X-Men #1 – the only single issue to notch over 100,000 copies in sales estimates [in July] – which kick-started the heavily promoted 'Curse of the Mutants' storyline."