Emmettville is free, Dec 24th-29th

Merry Christmas you filthy animals! Don't forget to swing on by the Amazon store and pick up your free copy of Emmettville. It's a terribly dark tale of alcoholism, infidelity and murder. It's right up your alley, you deviant you. mybook.to/emmettville

Cheerleaders

I couldn't ask for a better cheerleader then my wife. It's amazing to me just how supportive she is of me, of my writing. I love you, Tessa!

Favorite Time Waster

When I'm wasting time that should be spent writing, I like to pretend I'm actually doing "writing related" things. For example: I probably spent two hours today tweaking my Scrivener template to perfection. It's beautiful. It really is. It is so beautiful in fact, that I actually want to write something instead of idly fucking around.
Will I? Let's hope.
Sometimes these little exercises do serve a purpose. They get me excited. They get me thinking about writing again. I like planning, organizing, outlining and streamlining my process for efficiency. It's just who I am.
What about you? Are you a planner or a pantster? What is your favorite method of procrastination, of wasting time when you should really be writing?

How to Intensify Conflict & Deepen Characters—The Wound

 This is just too good not to share. Many thanks to Kristen Lamb.

http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/2014/09/03/how-to-intensify-conflict-deepen-characters-the-wound/

Busy...

I've been busy. So busy. Too busy. We've recently moved off-grid, out to the country and radically downsized which is awesome. The downside is I have at least a million projects to complete before the snow flies. Actually, I like projects.The downside is I have no time to write. I am still journaling, but my fictional characters are stuck in limbo for the time being. I hope they'll hang in there and have a fantastic story to tell me once I get the homestead in order.

Read Face Off for Free!

You can can download or read online for free right now!
https://www.scribd.com/doc/245040418/Face-Off

Face Off is a short story detailing Ray Thornton's unfortunate encounter with flesh eating larvae.

Kindle Countdown Deal on Emmettville

Emmettville is on sale for just $0.99 now through March 22nd.

Http://mybook.to/emmettville

On A Wintry Hallow's Eve

1

I love Halloween, Jake Leerson thought and put his lock-back knife, into the right rear pocket of his Levi’s. He had a feeling this would be the best Halloween ever. On October 31st of 1989, four people were brutally slain; two of them children, forever changing the landscape of an otherwise peaceful little town nestled in the pines and in the shadow of the mountain. Hysterical mothers kept the phone lines busy at the Precinct throughout the night.

The snow was falling hard, and the icy winds bit at Jake’s cheeks as he closed door number 17 of the Cedars Motel. He moved the knife to his front pocket and whistled as he did so, walking into town.

Third Street was filled with joyful cheers from young children. Leerson caressed the knife in his pocket, then took it out and into his hand.

He trailed a group of ten year olds for a block and a half before they noticed the man behind them. The children quickened their paces a bit, then ran, rounding the corner of the grade school. Jake was disappointed to see the school was open for some sort of carnival, offering the little shits safe haven.

Onward.

Jake continued until he came upon a fifteen year old boy egging cars. His knife made a snapping sound as it locked into place. The happy little egger turned only to catch a knife in the forehead. A four inch flap of skin hung down over his eyes. Jake slit his throat before he could scream or even think of it.

Leerson dragged the boy out of the street and into the hedges, then folded the bloody knife, returning it to the security of his own pocket.

His hands were cold, crossing Second Street and towards GMC realty. Only the office manager was there, so Leerson walked in.

“What can I do for ya’, sir?” asked the gray haired man and smiled.

The smile faded when Jake produced the knife. The old man turned to run but tripped over the chair behind him. Leerson picked the small, balding man up off the floor with his left hand and pressed the knife to his throat. The little man began to plead for his life when he became entranced with Jake’s dark green eyes. Leerson pushed the knife hard into the man’s throat, and warm blood began to spurt. Jake grabbed the dead man’s gloves and turned out the lights.

His hands were warm now against the biting winds. Next victim, Leerson thought and walked towards uncharted territory. On Second Street, Jake came upon Collin Johnson and his father, Larry. His knife resisted opening now, for it was encrusted with dried blood. Neither Collin nor his father heard the knife, or Jake’s footsteps behind them. But when the knife went into Larry’s left eye——they did hear that. Pop!

Little Collin was too terrified to do much of anything but just stand there and gape at what was happening. Jake cut Larry’s throat, just above the Adam’s apple, silencing his very vocal objections. The Adam’s apple hung by a thin piece of skin. Larry stumbled and then fell forward to the cold pavement—dead. Momentarily, Jake felt sick to his stomach, but it passed.

Collin couldn’t move, frozen by terror; Leerson took it to his advantage and slashed the boy across the cheek. Now Jake heard what the boy’s lungs had held back before.

“HEEEELLLPPP!!!!!!“

“Jesus, this kid can scream,” Jake thought. He plunged the knife deep into the seven year old’s chest...

“That’ll learn ya,“ Jake said almost conversationally. Collin said a little prayer in his head and he died. Several people had seen his face through their windows as he passed beneath the street lights. Soon the place would be swarming with cops.

It might be time to play inside…

2

Mark Woods tucked his son Brian into bed after a long night of trick-or-treating. Mark turned on his son’s night light and clicked his bedroom light off.

“Good night, Son”

“Night, Daddy”

Mark closed the bedroom door, turned off the television and the lights, and made his way up the creaking stairs to his bedroom, where his wife Keri was already fast asleep. Mark laid down, hands clasped behind his head, exhaled freely, and stared at the roughly textured ceiling until he drifted off to sleep.

Hello? 1970's calling--we want our ceiling texture back...

Jake Leerson silently stepped in through the unlocked front door of the Woods’ home. Leerson stepped quietly and carefully across the carpet of the living room until he came to a sleeping Brian’s room. The small, eight year old boy slept on his stomach, mouth wide open, and only half way covered by his thick, down comforter. He looks so peaceful, Jake thought, and drew out his knife once again. Service with a smile, Leerson thought ridiculously.

Mark snapped awake hearing footsteps downstairs and went for the .357 magnum in the top drawer of his nightstand. He loaded six hollow point shells into the cylinder and grabbed a handful more for good measure. Mark walked to the extreme right side of the staircase, where they creaked a little less, though he wouldn’t have been surprised had the intruder heard the sound of Mark’s heart beating against his ribcage.

Brian awoke with a startle, “Ahhh!”  upon hearing the intruder kneel down at his bedside. Mark ran down the staircase now, not caring if the whole world heard him.

Thunderous footsteps prompted Jake to rush out of Brian’s bedroom and lay wait aside the doorway of the stairs. Mark leapt right into the knife which was waiting for him at the last step. Luckily, the knife entered his abdomen at such an angle, as to do no serious internal damage. Mark fell to the carpeted floor and trained his pistol on Leerson. The first shot hit its mark into Jake’s left shoulder. Flesh exploded around the wound spewing blood generously on freshly painted walls. The knife dropped from Leerson’s hand, and he ran with his right hand cupped over his shoulder. The sound of the .357 shook the house once again. This time the shot went into Jake's lower back, passing through his stomach, blood and intestine splashed across the front door. For Jake Leerson, Halloween was over.

Brian called out,”Daddy?!” Mark dropped the gun and ran for his son’s room where he found Brian unharmed, standing up on his bed. Mark Woods held his son in his arms and he cried.

Download here for free: http://www.scribd.com/doc/212086326/On-a-Wintry-Hallow-s-Eve-Henrichsen-Rusty

Solaris Mortem...Coming Soon

 

Terry Brown is a long haul trucker on his way home from Bakersfield when it happens. Solar flares that make the Carrington Event look like child's play, wash the world in blinding, white light and all at once, the world as we know it comes to a stop. Powerful EMP blasts knock out the grid worldwide as the sun continues its hellacious flares for nearly 24 hours. Terry takes to the road on foot, meeting every manner of calamity on his 250 mile sojourn home to his sister Katherine and her two children; Jonathan and Tabitha. They're the only family Terry has left and family means everything, particularly now. Some blame God, some blame the government, but one thing is for certain; power players never let a good tragedy go to waste.

GoodReads Winners

I have received the winners list for Emmettville and will ship your copies tomorrow morning. Thank you for entering and enjoy!

Ebook Marketing Survey

A lot of valuable information in here for indies.

http://blog.smashwords.com/2013/05/new-smashwords-survey-helps-authors.html

Stephen King and I are friends...

Conclusive proof that I am a dork. I don't care; I'm excited!

Five Free Review Copies of Emmettville

Getting reviews is kind of like levitating a heavy rock with a leaf blower, or wrestling a cougar. It's hard. That's why I am offering five free kindle downloads of Emmettville. I ask that you write an honest review within 3 weeks if you are a winner. If you're not a fan of the horror genre or you shudder at profanity, blasphemy and violence, then this book is not for you and we'll probably both be happier if you don't enter.

Check it out at mybook.to/emmettville

If you're interested, comment below or drop me a line at hdesignllc@gmail.com

What people are saying about Emmettville

Thank you readers! Nothing brightens a writer's day like a positive review.

Another GoodReads Book Giveaway!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Emmettville

by Rusty Henrichsen

Giveaway ends February 14, 2014.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Writer's Woes

I am getting to the point where drastic measures must be taken. My book, Emmettville, has been downloaded by nearly 500 people. This is good. While the reviews are positive, (also good) the purchase to review rate is dismal. I want your reviews.

I am offering to chew glass, then gargle with bleach when I get to 10 reviews.

Who knows what I might do for 20...

mybook.to/Emmettville