Breaking news here in my corner of the cave – all 8 published Scream Street books are now available for Amazon’s Kindle e-reader!

Yes, it’s official – Scream Street has gone digital!

You can read all about the release for The Kindle in the publishing industry magazine, The Bookseller, here… http://bit.ly/d9rBqs

…and download the books for The Kindle or Kindle App on your iPhone, iPod or iPad, here… http://amzn.to/cXb3zx

Tommy

PS – Don’t forget you can also read the Scream Street books as standalone apps for the iPhone, iPod and iPad here… http://bit.ly/djj0ri

…and as ebooks for your computer via the Waterstones website here… http://bit.ly/2hFFt8

Today is the 90^th birthday of Ray Harryhausen, creator and animator of some of the finest monsters in cinema.

In fact in interviews such as this one Harryhausen has always said he prefers the term ‘creature’ to ‘monster’ – an indication of the respect and reverence with which he approached his storytelling.

Each one of his lovingly-crafted stop-motion beasts has character, personality, life: that’s why, even though special effects techniques have changed, his work still looks fresh today.

To celebrate Mr Harryhausen’s birthday a big new exhibition is opening today at The London Film Museum. Hit the link for all the details.

I was woken this morning by a low chuckle that came from somewhere beyond the rim of my pit. I heard a soft, fluttering sound then something landed on my face.

What was it – some kind of parasitic spider-creature, trying to clamp itself to my brain? If only. It was this poster, and the return of my very worst nightmare:

Remember last June, when the monsters forced us to compete against each other for an audience’s amusement, and one of us was eaten? Well, at 1pm on Sunday 16th May at Bishop Greaves Theatre in Lincoln it will be HAPPENING ALL OVER AGAIN.

Who will be next down the monster’s gullet? Ali Sparkes? Tommy Donbavand? Mark Robson? Me? As you can see, our captors have cruelly reduced the number of contestants to four this time, the better to maximise our terror and desperation. With each of us facing a twenty-five percent chance of being devoured you can be sure that we will humiliate and debase ourselves all the more in our increasingly fevered efforts to escape a place on a monster’s menu.

For full details of our impending doom and exactly how you can come and watch, I present the following links:

Click here for the website of the Lincoln Book Festival, where you can download a full brochure of all the events.

Click here for the Bishop Greaves Theatre Box Office, where you can book tickets.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I feel another burst of sobbing coming on. ;D

Found myself passing Little Russell Street in London the other day (2 minutes from The British Museum), and popped in to see this wonderful exhibition by surely the king of the satirical pen Ronald Searle. He has just had his 90th birthday. It is a little sad that, apart a small handful of articles and a short, but entertaining TV interview (part of the exhibition), this momentous event seems to have been largely overlooked in this country. Sad, because he has been one of the most influential cartoonist for the past 70 odd years across such a wide spectrum of artists and cartoonist the world over. I’m not one to rant, so I won’t, other than to say he deserves better from the country in which he was born.

But hey, enough said. Do go and see it if you get a chance. Well worth it!

It’s launch day for Crawlers, and I’m twitchier than a man with a parasitic spider-creature climbing up his ribs, about to clamp itself to the back of his neck. ;D

For links to a brand new interview (with, um, me), a special Crawlers embeddable Flash widget(-!) and a video of SOMETHING VILE, take a look at the Crawlers News Page.

Best wishes all,

Sam

Stand by for a brand new collaborative story to be created spontaneously and episodically by all eight TBM authors. Over the coming weeks – or until the wheels fall off – we will be TAKING TURNS to write… THIS:

THE UNSPEAKABLE HORROR! may (or may not) contain:

A grater!
A pair of broken spectacles!
A jar of Marmite!
A test tube!
A sock full of toenail clippings!
A stuffed goldfish!
A glass eye! and:
The green chap in the awesome image above! (but only, as David tells us, ‘if we ask him nicely.’)

Prepare yourself, gentle reader, for a dazzling display of literary pyrotechnics! a boundary-bursting phenomenon of creative experimentation! or, quite possibly, an eight-car pile-up of total story carnage that makes no sense whatsoever!

YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED

Click here for Episode 1

I have an announcement to make!

Followers of TBM might remember Jethro’s Ace of Hearts, the story I posted here episodically together with some glorious artwork by our own David Melling.

Well: during the next week (starting Mon 8th March) I am going to serialize the opening scene of my new book, Crawlers.

The official launch date for the book isn’t until April. But right here, for free, every day for (as I’m currently planning-!) five days straight, you can get a special, early taste of what the book is like.

As an online-only bonus my words will be accompanied by some extraordinary images graciously provided for the purpose by digital artist Malcolm Harrison. Here’s an extra piece he sent me to give you an idea of what he can do.

I’m very excited. HEE HEE HEE HEE! Um, ‘scuse me. ;D

Til Monday then,

Sam

As the dread day dawns of the first anniversary of our incarceration in these caves, here’s a lovely thing I’ve just heard about that’s cheered me up a bit.

Commissioned by the UK government’s Department for Children, Schools and Families, The School Library Association has just produced Everyone’s Reading – a list of books the SLA reckons might inspire more 11 to 18 year olds to read for pleasure.

Every state secondary school in England has the chance to choose fifteen books from the Everyone’s Reading list for their school libraries for free. But as if all of that wasn’t awesome enough, to my great glee and delight I notice that the list contains books by no less than four of the Trapped By Monsters posse! Joe’s Jimmy Coates: Power, Andy’s Hero.com: Virus Attack and Ali’s The Shapeshifter: Stirring the Storm are all there, together with my own The Black Tattoo. Go us!

As you’ll see if you click here to take a look, there are some truly wonderful books on this list. I’m hugely thrilled and honoured that one of mine has been included. HEE HEE HEE HEE!

Sam

…and a gleefully monstrous Thursday to everyone else

This post is a warning. Prepare yourself for a final, climactic, gut-busting double helping of JETHRO’S ACE OF HEARTS, to be served right here at TBM slightly earlier than previously advertised – tomorrow, Friday 27th Nov 2009, at 0900 GMT.

Thanks to atomicshark and Joystiq for the charming image above.

Ah, now then. I knew there was something. I’ll be in Sheffield on Tuesday 24th. Why? Well, Tree Goblins has been shortlisted in the Shorter Novels Category. Probably should have mentioned this earlier.

Check out the shortlist at  www.sheffieldchildrensbookawards.co.uk

Wish me luck!