BOOKS
THE PHANTOM CIRCUIT
Releases January 1, 2022
SYNOPSIS
After twenty-eight-year-old Lyft driver Erica Westfield learns her popstar sister is dead, the last thing she wants to deal with is a stupid hacker threatening to delete her sister’s Facebook profile. Let alone a hacker who brings up Bloody Mary.
Since childhood, when Erica and her sister played the classic game of Bloody Mary one night, she has been haunted by the shadows Mary sent after her through the mirror. They’re always nearby, waiting for the right moment to pull her through to a void somewhere far beyond the cosmos. Erica has tried to ignore them, but this hacker seems to know about them too. It turns out she’s not talking to a hacker at all, but the lost spirit of a girl named Macy Abigayle, a lone wanderer who perished long ago on the Oregon Trail. Macy has been trapped within those same shadows Erica has been running from, within Bloody Mary’s realm on the other side of every mirror, including Erica’s computer screen. Bloody Mary sentenced Macy to relive the most traumatic moments of her life for eternity. Only Erica can help her escape.
To do so, Erica must race to the other side of Bloody Mary’s mirror by facing the memories of her dead sister, including the ones she wishes she could forget. If she fails, all her remembrances of her sister will be lost—and she and Macy will be trapped within the mirror forever.
Pre-orders available now. Click on the links below!
Pre-Order the novel on Amazon here!
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My short story, Beethoven's Baton, is featured in BAKER STREET IRREGULARS VOLUME 1.
Thirteen authors, including Gail Z. Martin, David Gerrold, and Jonathan Maberry, come together to pen short stories innovating Sherlock Holmes, adapting and revolutionizing the iconic character.
Sherlock Holmes is one of the most iconic and lasting figures in literature. His feats of detection are legendary, and he continues to capture audiences today in stories, movies, and on TV. In this new anthology, Baker Street Irregulars, authors present the celebrated detective in more than a dozen wildly entertaining new ways. In Ryk Spoor’s thrilling “The Adventures of a Reluctant Detective,” Sherlock is a re-creation in a holodeck. In Hildy Silverman’s mesmerizing “A Scandal in the Bloodline,” Sherlock is a vampire. Heidi McLaughlin sends Sherlock back to college, while Beth Patterson, in the charming “Code Cracker,” turns him into a parrot. The settings range from Russia in the near-future to a reality show, from a dystopian world to an orchestra. Without losing the very qualities that make Sherlock so illustrious a character, these authors spin new webs of mystery around their own singular riff on one of fiction’s truly singular characters.
You can purchase the anthology through Diversion Books at:
http://www.diversionbooks.com/books/baker-street-irregulars/
KIRKUS REVIEWS
Kirkus Reviews says BAKER STREET IRREGULARS VOLUME 1 is "bound to lead to next year’s anthologies"
You can read our review here:
https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/michael-ventrella/baker-street-irregulars/
AUDIBLE
The audio book for Baker Street IRREGULARS VOLUME 1 is now available on Audible:
https://www.audible.com/pd/Mysteries-Thrillers/The-Baker-Street-Irregulars-Audiobook/B06XPNDTMV/?
FILM GENRE FOR THE SCREENWRITER
I helped edit my former film professor's book, FILM GENRE FOR THE SCREENWRITER. I was also a content contributor.
Film Genre for the Screenwriter is a practical study of how classic film genre components can be used in the construction of a screenplay. Based on Jule Selbo’s popular course, this accessible guide includes an examination of the historical origins of specific film genres, how and why these genres are received and appreciated by film-going audiences, and how the student and professional screenwriter alike can use the knowledge of film genre components in the ideation and execution of a screenplay.
Explaining the defining elements, characteristics and tropes of genres from romantic comedy to slasher horror, and using examples from classic films like Casablanca alongside recent blockbuster franchises like Harry Potter, Selbo offers a compelling and readable analysis of film genre in its written form. The book also offers case studies, talking points and exercises to make its content approachable and applicable to readers and writers across the creative field.
You can purchase this on Amazon at:
https://www.amazon.com/Film-Genre-Screenwriter-Jule-Selbo/dp/1138020834