Editors' Note: If you missed them, read "Brinker's Contract" Part 1 and Part 2.
Brinker put on his stomach armor and headed for the café.
When he arrived, he ordered rum and coke. As the waiter placed the drink on his table, Brinker said, “I hear this is the place when I can find zombies. Any around tonight?”
“No, Sir. They don’t come here anymore. They stay away ever since the new owner brought in priests to exorcise the café.”
“Where can I find some?” He flashed a ten-dollar bill.
“They say many have gone to Destrudo.”
“Where’s that?”
“In the jungle. They say it’s a terrible place of black magic and terrifying voodoo ceremonies.”
“How do I get there?”
“I don’t know. But I urge you, for the sake of your mother, don’t go there.”
Brinker gave him the ten and pondered his next move.
After three drinks, he went from table to table offering fifty dollars to anyone who’d take him to Destrudo and back. He figured he’d take a quick look. If it seemed promising, he’d rent an SUV and go back the next day with his zombie-capturing gear.
Nobody would take him.
“What the hell’s the matter with you people? Doesn’t anybody want to earn fifty dollars? Know what that can buy in this miserable country?”
“Perhaps Mulu will take you,” somebody whispered. “She’s from Destrudo. Some say she’s a zombie. She’s in that carriage across the street. The one with the large horse.”
About Michael A. Kechula
Michael A. Kechula's stories have been published by 134 magazines and 41 anthologies. He’s won first place in 12 contests and placed in eight others. He’s authored three books of flash and micro-fiction: The Area 51 Option and 70 More Speculative Fiction Tales; A Full Deck of Zombies--61 Speculative Fiction Tales; I Never Kissed Judy Garland and Other Tales of Romance. eBook versions available at www.BooksForABuck.com and www.fictionwise.com. Paperbacks at www.amazon.com. His latest book, Writing Genre Flash Fiction The Minimalist Way - A Self Study Book, will be released December 2010.
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Friday, December 24, 2010
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Tim Burton Productions to Produce Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter film
 |
| "Am I not destroying my enemies when I make friends of them?" Source: Esquire |
"When the mother of future United States President Abraham Lincoln is murdered by a vampire, he begins a lifelong vendetta to rid the world of the heinous creatures." Or so goes author Seth Grahame-Smith's 2010 novel, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.
Grahame-Smith has teamed up with Fox and Tim Burton Productions to write the screenplay to his novel. According to The Wrap, Australian actor Eric Bana (Troy) may be playing the stake-wielding, Great Emancipator (despite the U.S.'s 16th president's lanky, 6'4" frame).
The film is scheduled for release on June 22, 2012.
Get a head start, and buy the novel on Amazon.com.
Brinker's Contract: Part 2 by Michael A. Kechula
Editors' Note: Did you miss Part 1? Read it here.
Four days later, Brinker arrived in Haiti. He was in a holiday mood until he stepped off the plane. Though he’d been in a lot of weird places during his bounty hunting days, none had ever made him feel so creepy. Something about the atmosphere seemed unholy. Ethereal sounds of jungle drums rode on humid breezes, fading in and out. Strange voodoo symbols fes-tered on graffiti-covered walls. He found himself getting the willies.
On the way to the hotel, he asked the cab driver where he could find zombies.
Laughing, the driver said he’d seen too many horror movies.
The hotel clerk said the same thing.
Somebody knocked while Brinker was unpacking his suitcase.
A chambermaid entered, carrying a vase of flowers. “Compliments of the hotel,” she said, putting the vase on a table.
When Brinker handed her a tip, he noticed a small black figurine with red eyes hanging from her cheap looking necklace.
“That’s quite interesting,” he said.
“What is, Sir?”
“The black thing on your necklace. What is it?”
She grabbed the figurine and tucked inside the top of her maid’s uniform.
“It’s nothing, Sir.”
“Then why did you hide it?”
“It is not for the eyes of unbelievers. Please, Sir, I do not wish to anger the gods.”
“Which gods?”
“I must leave now,” she said in a shaky voice.
“See this? It’s five American dollars. It’s yours if you answer my question. What gods will be angry with you?”
“Mazuzu and Azolu. The gods that protect me from zombies. They do the same for anyone who offers sacrifices to them. I must leave now.”
Brinker dropped another five on the table. “I have another question.”
She picked up the money and said, “What is your question?”
“Have you ever you’ve seen a zombie?”
“Many times. Like everyone else in Haiti. You’ll see them too, if you stay here long enough.”
“I have three more five-dollar bills. They’re yours if you sit down for a few minutes and answer a few more questions.”
Realizing how many chickens she could buy with so much money, she took a chair.
“What do you want to know?”
“Let’s start with your name.”
“Bahody.”
“Well, Bahody, here’s the situation. I made a bet with some of my friends back in America. They said zombies don’t exist. I bet them $10,000 that they do. So to win the bet, I must find some zombies and take their pictures as proof. Where can I find them?”
“Zombies prowl everywhere in Haiti. Especially tonight under the full moon.”
“Perhaps you can tell me exactly where to go so I can find some, especially females.”
“You should never have made such a bet,” she said. “Especially about the living dead. It’s bad juju.”
“I’ll take the risk. Tell me where to go.”
“Café Rico. It’s not far from this hotel. It’s an unholy place. They say rats drop dead when they get too close.”
“When I get there, who should I see to get in touch with zombies?”
“Don’t go. You’ll lose your soul.”
“It’s more important that I don’t lose my $10,000 bet. How do I get there?”
“Any cab driver will know the way.”
“It’s such a nice evening, I prefer to walk. Who knows, I may even see a zombie or two along the way.”
Clasping her black figurine, she hoped the gods would forgive her for leading the foolish American to zombies. But she needed the money he offered. "When you leave the hotel, turn left. Go three blocks. Turn right, and go six more.” She grabbed the money and hurried out.
About Michael A. Kechula
Michael A. Kechula's stories have been published by 134 magazines and 41 anthologies. He’s won first place in 12 contests and placed in eight others. He’s authored three books of flash and micro-fiction: The Area 51 Option and 70 More Speculative Fiction Tales; A Full Deck of Zombies--61 Speculative Fiction Tales; I Never Kissed Judy Garland and Other Tales of Romance. eBook versions available at www.BooksForABuck.com and www.fictionwise.com. Paperbacks at www.amazon.com. His latest book, Writing Genre Flash Fiction The Minimalist Way - A Self Study Book, will be released December 2010.
Four days later, Brinker arrived in Haiti. He was in a holiday mood until he stepped off the plane. Though he’d been in a lot of weird places during his bounty hunting days, none had ever made him feel so creepy. Something about the atmosphere seemed unholy. Ethereal sounds of jungle drums rode on humid breezes, fading in and out. Strange voodoo symbols fes-tered on graffiti-covered walls. He found himself getting the willies.
On the way to the hotel, he asked the cab driver where he could find zombies.
Laughing, the driver said he’d seen too many horror movies.
The hotel clerk said the same thing.
Somebody knocked while Brinker was unpacking his suitcase.
A chambermaid entered, carrying a vase of flowers. “Compliments of the hotel,” she said, putting the vase on a table.
When Brinker handed her a tip, he noticed a small black figurine with red eyes hanging from her cheap looking necklace.
“That’s quite interesting,” he said.
“What is, Sir?”
“The black thing on your necklace. What is it?”
She grabbed the figurine and tucked inside the top of her maid’s uniform.
“It’s nothing, Sir.”
“Then why did you hide it?”
“It is not for the eyes of unbelievers. Please, Sir, I do not wish to anger the gods.”
“Which gods?”
“I must leave now,” she said in a shaky voice.
“See this? It’s five American dollars. It’s yours if you answer my question. What gods will be angry with you?”
“Mazuzu and Azolu. The gods that protect me from zombies. They do the same for anyone who offers sacrifices to them. I must leave now.”
Brinker dropped another five on the table. “I have another question.”
She picked up the money and said, “What is your question?”
“Have you ever you’ve seen a zombie?”
“Many times. Like everyone else in Haiti. You’ll see them too, if you stay here long enough.”
“I have three more five-dollar bills. They’re yours if you sit down for a few minutes and answer a few more questions.”
Realizing how many chickens she could buy with so much money, she took a chair.
“What do you want to know?”
“Let’s start with your name.”
“Bahody.”
“Well, Bahody, here’s the situation. I made a bet with some of my friends back in America. They said zombies don’t exist. I bet them $10,000 that they do. So to win the bet, I must find some zombies and take their pictures as proof. Where can I find them?”
“Zombies prowl everywhere in Haiti. Especially tonight under the full moon.”
“Perhaps you can tell me exactly where to go so I can find some, especially females.”
“You should never have made such a bet,” she said. “Especially about the living dead. It’s bad juju.”
“I’ll take the risk. Tell me where to go.”
“Café Rico. It’s not far from this hotel. It’s an unholy place. They say rats drop dead when they get too close.”
“When I get there, who should I see to get in touch with zombies?”
“Don’t go. You’ll lose your soul.”
“It’s more important that I don’t lose my $10,000 bet. How do I get there?”
“Any cab driver will know the way.”
“It’s such a nice evening, I prefer to walk. Who knows, I may even see a zombie or two along the way.”
Clasping her black figurine, she hoped the gods would forgive her for leading the foolish American to zombies. But she needed the money he offered. "When you leave the hotel, turn left. Go three blocks. Turn right, and go six more.” She grabbed the money and hurried out.
About Michael A. Kechula
Michael A. Kechula's stories have been published by 134 magazines and 41 anthologies. He’s won first place in 12 contests and placed in eight others. He’s authored three books of flash and micro-fiction: The Area 51 Option and 70 More Speculative Fiction Tales; A Full Deck of Zombies--61 Speculative Fiction Tales; I Never Kissed Judy Garland and Other Tales of Romance. eBook versions available at www.BooksForABuck.com and www.fictionwise.com. Paperbacks at www.amazon.com. His latest book, Writing Genre Flash Fiction The Minimalist Way - A Self Study Book, will be released December 2010.
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Brinker's Contract: Part 1 by Michael A. Kechula
“Do you believe in zombies,” asked the beautiful, leggy lawyer representing Galaxy Pictures.
“About as much as the Tooth Fairy,” replied Brinker, a private investigator.
“I’ll bet you’d change your mind if Galaxy Pictures offered you a lucrative contract to find some.”
“Why give me the honor? This town’s full of hungry PIs who’ll do anything for a buck.”
“You’re the only one in Los Angeles who used to be a successful bounty hunter. If you found elusive fugitives, we figure you could find zombies. But before I say more, I’d like you to sign a confidential nondisclosure agreement.” Removing a document from her attaché case, she handed it to Brinker.
“Hmm. It says when I sign this you’ll tell me about one of Galaxy Pictures’ confidential projects. And if I mention it to anybody, especially to Galaxy’s competitors, your company will prosecute me to the fullest extent of the law.”
“Right. If you violate this agreement, I’ll make it my personal crusade to ruin your life. I assure you, Mr. Brinker, I’m very good at my job.”
Brinker couldn’t believe how such a gorgeous, innocent-looking woman could sound like a mafia bone buster.
He signed the agreement out of curiosity.
Tucking the document into her case, she said, “Galaxy is planning to produce a spectacular new movie. Something no studio has ever dreamed of much less attempted to produce. This will be the biggest project in the studio’s history. I’ve read the script. It’s dynamite. We expect ticket sales in the billions. Plus it could lead to a dozen sequels. Mr. Brinker, Galaxy intends to make the first movie in history that includes real zombies.”
Brinker chuckled. “That’s one of the craziest things I ever heard. Zombies don’t exist. Better inform your boss in case he hasn’t heard.”
“You’re wrong,” she said. “I’ve been to Haiti. I’ve seen one. Let me get to the point. Galaxy Pictures will hire you to go to Haiti and capture as many zombies as you can. We have lots of parts to fill in the new movie. However, you must include at least one female to play the key role as Queen of The Zombies.”
“What happens after I snag them?”
“Take them to the airport where we’ll have a chartered airliner waiting to fly them back here to Los Angeles. The company will pay $5,000 for each one you capture, as well as $300 per day for expenses. And once the zombies reach Los Angeles, you’ll be paid a bonus of $100,000. Do you believe in zombies now, Mr. Brinker?”
“You bet,” he said. “For that kind of money I’d believe there was an Emperor of Mars, and deliver him to Galaxy’s main gate. By the way, is it true that zombies eat human brains?”
“No. That’s an invention of Hollywood.”
“What do they eat?”
“Human intestines. But don’t worry. Galaxy’s model shop has developed tummy armor that’s thin, extremely strong, and very flexible. We’ll fit you before you leave. Make sure you wear it when you go zombie hunting.”
“How much time will you give me to deliver them?”
“Two months.”
“I’ll do it,” Brinker said.
Editors' Note: Read "Brinker's Contract: Part 2" December 23.
About Michael A. Kechula
Michael A. Kechula's stories have been published by 134 magazines and 41 anthologies. He’s won first place in 12 contests and placed in eight others. He’s authored three books of flash and micro-fiction: The Area 51 Option and 70 More Speculative Fiction Tales; A Full Deck of Zombies--61 Speculative Fiction Tales; I Never Kissed Judy Garland and Other Tales of Romance. eBook versions available at www.BooksForABuck.com and www.fictionwise.com. Paperbacks at www.amazon.com. His latest book, Writing Genre Flash Fiction The Minimalist Way - A Self Study Book, will be released December 2010.
“About as much as the Tooth Fairy,” replied Brinker, a private investigator.
“I’ll bet you’d change your mind if Galaxy Pictures offered you a lucrative contract to find some.”
“Why give me the honor? This town’s full of hungry PIs who’ll do anything for a buck.”
“You’re the only one in Los Angeles who used to be a successful bounty hunter. If you found elusive fugitives, we figure you could find zombies. But before I say more, I’d like you to sign a confidential nondisclosure agreement.” Removing a document from her attaché case, she handed it to Brinker.
“Hmm. It says when I sign this you’ll tell me about one of Galaxy Pictures’ confidential projects. And if I mention it to anybody, especially to Galaxy’s competitors, your company will prosecute me to the fullest extent of the law.”
“Right. If you violate this agreement, I’ll make it my personal crusade to ruin your life. I assure you, Mr. Brinker, I’m very good at my job.”
Brinker couldn’t believe how such a gorgeous, innocent-looking woman could sound like a mafia bone buster.
He signed the agreement out of curiosity.
Tucking the document into her case, she said, “Galaxy is planning to produce a spectacular new movie. Something no studio has ever dreamed of much less attempted to produce. This will be the biggest project in the studio’s history. I’ve read the script. It’s dynamite. We expect ticket sales in the billions. Plus it could lead to a dozen sequels. Mr. Brinker, Galaxy intends to make the first movie in history that includes real zombies.”
Brinker chuckled. “That’s one of the craziest things I ever heard. Zombies don’t exist. Better inform your boss in case he hasn’t heard.”
“You’re wrong,” she said. “I’ve been to Haiti. I’ve seen one. Let me get to the point. Galaxy Pictures will hire you to go to Haiti and capture as many zombies as you can. We have lots of parts to fill in the new movie. However, you must include at least one female to play the key role as Queen of The Zombies.”
“What happens after I snag them?”
“Take them to the airport where we’ll have a chartered airliner waiting to fly them back here to Los Angeles. The company will pay $5,000 for each one you capture, as well as $300 per day for expenses. And once the zombies reach Los Angeles, you’ll be paid a bonus of $100,000. Do you believe in zombies now, Mr. Brinker?”
“You bet,” he said. “For that kind of money I’d believe there was an Emperor of Mars, and deliver him to Galaxy’s main gate. By the way, is it true that zombies eat human brains?”
“No. That’s an invention of Hollywood.”
“What do they eat?”
“Human intestines. But don’t worry. Galaxy’s model shop has developed tummy armor that’s thin, extremely strong, and very flexible. We’ll fit you before you leave. Make sure you wear it when you go zombie hunting.”
“How much time will you give me to deliver them?”
“Two months.”
“I’ll do it,” Brinker said.
Editors' Note: Read "Brinker's Contract: Part 2" December 23.
About Michael A. Kechula
Michael A. Kechula's stories have been published by 134 magazines and 41 anthologies. He’s won first place in 12 contests and placed in eight others. He’s authored three books of flash and micro-fiction: The Area 51 Option and 70 More Speculative Fiction Tales; A Full Deck of Zombies--61 Speculative Fiction Tales; I Never Kissed Judy Garland and Other Tales of Romance. eBook versions available at www.BooksForABuck.com and www.fictionwise.com. Paperbacks at www.amazon.com. His latest book, Writing Genre Flash Fiction The Minimalist Way - A Self Study Book, will be released December 2010.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Brinker's Contract By Michael A. Kechula
"Brinker's Contract" by Michael A. Kechula is a weekly, four-part serial about Brinker, a bounty hunter sent to Haiti for one thing: zombies.Part One coming this Thursday.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Kickass Trailers: "Monsters"
Six years after Earth has suffered an alien invasion a cynical journalist agrees to escort a shaken American tourist through an infected zone in Mexico to the safety of the US border. Saturday, December 11, 2010
Writing Prompt: "Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn, and caldron bubble."
Source Writer's Digest
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Kickass Trailer: "Rare Exports"
A film for those who think they don't believe in Santa Claus anymore
In the depths of the Korvatunturi mountains, 486 metres deep, lies the closest ever guarded secret of Christmas. The time has come to dig it up!
This Christmas everyone will believe in Santa Claus.
Based on award winning shorts of director Jalmari Helander that have already acquired a cult reputation in the internet.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
The Unexpected Horror: The Road by Cormac McCarthy
The Road by Cormac McCarthy is a bleak, harrowing story of a nameless father and son struggling to survive in a post-apocalyptic world. Though darker than Stephen King's The Stand and Richard Matheson's I Am Legend combined, you'll never find The Road, winner of the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, categorized in the horror section at bookstores.Like King's and Matheson's works, McCarthy creates a desolate landscape of destruction where there are "nights dark beyond darkness and the days more gray each one than that had gone before. Like the onset of some cold glaucoma dimming away the world." However, unlike King and Matheson, McCarthy offers no glimmer of hope and no explanation for the destruction. The world is reduced to a blackened ash, and it will never recover.
Unlike traditional post-apocalyptic horror stories, The Road has no supernatural elements. There are no zombies, no vampires. Just regular people. Regular people who have turned savage and cannibalistic, killing, raping, and eating any survivor in their path. Though these people are only seen in fleeting passages, the father and son are in constant fear of their presence. As the father and son journey south in search of a warmer climate, they stumble upon signs of the cannibals, including, "a charred human infant headless and gutted and blackening on the spit."
The father and son are surrounded by despair. Conversations between the father and son are shown in quick bursts in between the blackened imagery of the landscape. "I wish I was with my mom," the son says. "You mean you wish that you were dead," the father replies. Throughout the course of the story there is an overwhelming sense of dread. The father is trying to remain strong for the sake of his son, but deep down, he knows there is no hope.
McCarthy's writing style is sparse and intense. The characters are constantly threatened by other survivors, harsh climate, and the lack of food, and as a reader, you will feel the threat, too. Each door opened may lead to a world of devestating horror, and your heart will pound every time the father "takes a look." Though the situation may be hopeless for the father and son, The Road is still worth the journey.
The Road written by Cormac McCarthy
Vintage International, 2006
287 pages
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
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