A Study in Film

So, next week I'm shooting "Onyx Origins". It's going to be a unique shoot in a few ways.

For one, the movie itself is being shot specifically for "Con 9 from Outer Space" and as such will have elements of a 50s sci-fi movie, including it's style, but being a prequel to the "Alien Vengeance" movies I can't do the Onyx Character's origin story properly set in the 50s and without a bit of violence of gore. Also, we want to have a 3D piece to show people when we restart the fundraising campaign for AV-3D later this year, SO, an alternate version is being shot, for 3D and with some effects, language and violence the 50s version will not have. It's sort of a study in the history of sci-fi evolution to see what we're allowed to do now that was too "scary" 50 or 60 years ago.

There's also the 3D element. The movie will be in B&W for the 50's version and that is likely something we'll carry over for the updated version because anaglyph 3D (the type I'm using), tends to work better in 3D, but we're shooting in color, so I can make that decision in post.

We'll also be using a combo of 2D to 3D conversion and some shots in native 3D. One of the reasons for this is to test them side by side as it will save time, and thus money, in the feature movie down the line. If it works.

So expect to see a couple of versions, maybe even one that's pretty much "kid safe" of "Onyx Origins" late in 2012.

So, you wrote a book. Now what?

No, really, what?  This isn't an instructional on how to promote or sell your book, because I have no idea.  Get an agent or publisher would probably be the best idea, but I have a long record of not playing well with others.  So, I've made movies and promoted those a bit and thought the book would be the same thing.  Send it out for reviews, take my lumps, but get the title in front of people who want to give it a look and enjoy the silly monster scariness we put out.

Not as easy with a book.  Everybody wants to sell me ad space, but reading takes a lot longer than watching a movie, especially when you're taking notes to do a review.  So, getting a book reviewed by legitimate sources is tough.  Add to that the fact that you're competing with proven publishers who have easier to find  content and things get really difficult.

What about digital formats?  With the movies it's easy.  Sort of.  I mean, at least I use digital formats for watching movies and I use Netflix streaming and YouTube, so running my movies online with Amazon rental and streaming sites that pay me per play isn't really a mystery and I can test the waters on my own to make sure things are working as they should.  With books I still read PAPER.  I like hardcovers, but often buy paperbacks, especially trade paperbacks, to save some money and make them easier to carry on trips.  Laying out the paperback and proofing it took months, but it turned out beautifully!  And it's so easy to buy.  I still haven't listed it for bookstores because, again, unproven publishers have to compete harder for shelf space so I would like some reviews under my belt first.  Getting listed in the regular channels costs money and investments are hard to make for unproven content.

So, digital books are a mystery to me.  I made a .pdf file with illustrations that worked beautifully on our Kobo Reader and my Mom's.  I think it worked on our Sony (not sure we tried it) and the Amazon app on our phones was able to read it, but when we converted that to a Kindle file to get it listed on Amazon dot com it went to pieces.  Literally.  Pieces of it turned red and others disappeared.  Anyone reading this who bought that version, with the red text, please, return to Amazon and buy or borrow the new one we've loaded.  Much nicer.  Or at least I think it is from what I can test on my computer and phone, but I can't seem to borrow it as a "Prime" member even though we're enrolled in that program because I don't own the actual Kindle.  When someone has a complaint I can't help them with it because I'm not having the same experience they are and as a guy who has controlled his content from concept to creation for so long, this makes me nuts.  I want people to be able to get the book as cheaply as possible because I want thousands, even millions of people to enjoy my scary short stories and sleep with the lights on just one night because of me.  I want women to swoon over the cowboy on the cover because darn it, I look good in that hat, from the back, but mostly I'd like people to read the paperback, not because it costs more (I get roughly the same royalty as if they borrowed it on Prime), but because it's a better looking book with a tactile feel, that I think gets the overall essence the old school stories across better.

TRIVIA: Every human image on the cover of the book is me.  We needed to create a crowd, so we used shadows, wigs and post effects to cover my identity.

Need a read?
Check out the Horror Anthology, "Off the Rails and Other Tales" from Hocus Focus Productions!

This is another short passage from my book, "Off the Rails and Other Tales", now available as an ebook at http://www.hocfocprod.com/off_the_rails .  It will soon be available in paperback as well.

This passage has been altered just a bit from the actual book because in its original form it did contain some spoilers.  It takes place a bit later in the story and I don't want to give too much away, but you will get to "meet" three of the story's stranger characters.

Enjoy.


     Jackson swung around to face the ramp. The light from the lantern shone down upon three approaching figures. To his left he saw the woman from earlier; her shirt still stained with the blood and brains of her friend. To his right the fat man that had attacked Fox was dragging himself up the wooden ramp, pulling himself forward with his arms because his one good leg wasn’t strong enough to support his massive weight for very long. The figure in the middle is the one that made Jackson shudder. He was covered in course black hair and his arms hung long at his sides. Jackson decided that it must be the “ape-man” Sandra and Chuck had said stabbed Mrs. Phillysworth in the face.

     It took only a split second for Jackson to take in the whole scene. On the other hand the three would-be attackers were still reeling from the blinding sudden brightness of the lantern light when Jackson fired his first shot. He fired without really taking aim. He was still swinging the rifle around to face his enemies and let the first bullet fly when he was sure that none of his new friends were among the group on the ramp. The muzzle flash from the rifle blinded even the sergeant. The bullet burst forth, followed by a cloud of burning black powder. It tore through the thigh of the cannibalistic woman. The burning powder singed the shirt of the ape-man. The fat man let out of cry of fear and the woman fell off the side of the ramp.

Illustration from "Off the Rails"

      Jackson cocked the lever under the stock of the rifle to load another round. This time          he  raised the stock to his shoulder, intending to take careful aim at the ape-man and finish him off. Sgt. Jackson had made a fatal error, however, and underestimated the speed of the creeping fat man. Even wounded the huge man was powerful enough to grab Jackson’s ankle and swing the man to the floor of the train car.

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By the way, the ebook does include all of the interior illustrations that the regular paperback version will and you're welcome to request JPEGs of the front and back covers if you order the ebook.

Books, movies and shows, oh my!

So, the e-version of the book, Off the Rails and Other Tales has been availabel for a few days now and I'm hoping to get some feedback and reviews soon.  Meanwhile I'm getting ready for a casting in 11 days that will launch us into production of several shorts and two features.  I'm trying to decide what will be my next book (why wait for this one to be successful?  It will be and then I'll be able to hit the ground running.)  Also, a movie I exec produced is out on DVD and I want the world to know about that.

Meanwhile, I have 3 episodes of the The Simplest Things left to finish to round out season 2, several more Johnny Pitchman's to shoot and some CGM interviews to move on with.  The trouble with a lot of this is continuing to promote when cross promoting is becoming more and more difficult.  Cult Goddess Magazine leaves the door open to promote many projects, but the movies and books don't currently intersect.  Some of our shows our comedies now and some horror.  Most cross over at sci-fi, but do comedy audiences want to be scared?  Do people who watch Z-movies read?  Books I mean. 

I'm going to have to start making a promotional schedule.  So, when should I promote comedy, sci-fi and scary stuff?  Who is going to cons and wants to give stuff out?  Anybody have a horror related business and want to do the flip side of some bookmarks or mini-posters?

You guys are my cheerleaders.  My front line.  Tell your friends, enemies and strangers on the street about our website and they can find the rest from there.

http://www.hocfocprod.com/

Help Spread the Word about HFP.

With Facebook's new "Timeline" format taking over, people now need a "cover photo" for their profile page.
Well, we've got a bunch of cool, funny and cute ones and I'll keep making more.  Check my Facebook page to find out the monthly promotion that is going on for carrying one of our banners as your background image.  You might be able to get free stuff.

I tried to vary the designs a bit.  Some are more lighthearted and will work better on pages with brighter themes.


Using "stars" to push these down past the widgets.  I wanted to keep the photos the original 850x315 size so that they will fit correctly for anyone who decides one as a cover photo on Facebook.

Find out "Off the Rails" cover photo in an earlier Blog.

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Looks the same, but targets a more specific audience.

Use this one to make your own.  Copy it and "paint" over the text with black.  The white box approximates the space your profile picture will cover.

Be sure to let us know if you run with one of our banners, so we can thank you and maybe send you a goody.

Have fun!
Thanks.

The final image for Off the Rails!

This is a wider version of the paperback's cover.

Poster Art for "Off the Rails and Other Tales"

The book will be available in paperback and as a .pdf direct from my website at www.hocfocprod.com

Currently we're giving 5 people an opportunity to get an advance copy on .pdf for FREE.  Why?  Simple, we need some reviews and word of mouth and the method of getting the free book is promotion in itself.

Post the banner below as your Facebook Cover Photo in a Timeline profile for 1 week.  The first five people to do that and let us know so we can verify the 7 day period will get a copy of the book in a .pdf file as an email attachment.  (Obviously we'll need to see your Facebook page and your email address to send the file to).

Layouts

Adding new pages to the book always changes the layout a bit.  I've had the page numbers and contents pages in place for awhile, so I've tried not to mess with that second half of the book, after the contents page, unless I've had to do so.  Somehow, saving the file over and over and rewriting the old file always makes me nervous.  Anything before the contents page is fair game with one exception.  If I add an odd number of pages it shifts all of my two page designs. There are no pages that RELY on a two page look to complete an illustration, but I did have some illustrations opposite specific pages for effect.

Well, today, I added a single page "About the Author".  It threw my whole layout off and I already had a copyright and title page and all of my illustrations and dedications in place.  I could have added a blank page, but that seemed wasteful, so I decided to create another, introductory, illustration.  Still a simple line drawing, but something to set the mood. 

I took some elements from existing pages and mixed them and then added a background.  I tried using blurring, not easy with drawings this simple, to add a sense of depth.  Hopefully the print is sharp enough to show the full effect.

From "Off the Rails and Other Tales"