Latest Posts
Dynamite Entertainment's CEO on 10 Years of Explosive Comics
July 22, 2014
These days, both Army of Darkness and Red Sonja remain high-profile parts of a portfolio that Barrucci described as “very balanced.” (Army of Darkness No. 1992.1, a special issue featuring creators throughout the series’ run was announced Monday, as was an upcoming event series anchored by Red Sonja). “We have long-standing licenses affiliated with comic books, from the Kings Feature Syndicate’s Flash Gordon to Red Sonja, from Conde Nast’sThe Shadow and Doc Savage to the Gold Key line of Solar, Turok, and Magnus,” he listed. “Movies, television, and even gaming are well-represented in titles like Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell, Battlestar Galactica ,Grimm, Army of Darkness, Bob’s Burgers, Pathfinder, and Six Million Dollar Man. Novelists have chosen to expand their worlds with Dynamite, as with Patricia Briggs’ Mercy Thompson and Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files as well asDean Koontz, Brandon Sanderson and so many other great authors. I can name-drop all day, but my point is that – with so many licenses from such diverse media—we hope to appeal to audiences far and wide, whether comic fans or not.”
Read the full article @ The Hollywood Reporter.
Third error found in The City ARC
July 21, 2014
Fellow obsessive Erick has found another error in the advance copy of The City. This time it’s a missing open quotation mark on page 347. This one was also fixed in the trade release.
Best Books…chosen by Dean Koontz
July 21, 2014
The online article by Dean about his favorite books that I linked to yesterday will also be appearing in the 25 July 2014 print issue of The Week.
Dean Koontz's 5 favorite books
July 20, 2014
- In Sunlight and in Shadow by Mark Helprin
- The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman
- Hide Me Among the Graves by Tim Powers
- The Color of Light by William Goldman
- A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
Read the full article @ TheWeek.com.
Nights and Weekends: The City review
July 19, 2014
Once upon a time, Dean Koontz was known simply as a horror writer—one whose novels inspired many of his readers to sleep with the lights on. Lately, though, Koontz has been reinventing himself—and while you may not get the same leave-the-lights-on thrills from his latest novel,The City, you’ll be haunted by it nonetheless.
The City relates the unbelievable tale of young Jonah Kirk, as reflected upon by his 50-something self. The son of a singer and the grandson of a talented piano man, Jonah grew up surrounded by music—and it was inevitable that he would follow in his family’s footsteps. But if it hadn’t been for a magical woman—and a few remarkable dreams—things might have not turned out so well for Jonah Kirk.
Read, and listen, to the full review @ NightsAndWeekends.com.
First look @ Ask Anna
July 15, 2014
Yesterday I got my hands on an “Uncorrected Proof” of Ask Anna. Really it’s more of a promotional booklet at it contains just 12 pages including the front and back covers. Also, the proof lists a release date of 28 October 2104, while Amazon.com lists 7 October 2104. Looks like we’ll have to wait to see which is correct.
Another typo in The City ARC found
July 13, 2014
This one was found by Erick Garcia and occurs on page 210 of the ARC. The missing hyphen was found in time for the trade release. I’d say this kind of typo is a lot more common than the other one.
More Intensity
July 13, 2014
A while back I posted a gallery of my many editions of Intensity. Well, it turns out that through a conversation with Ted Armack, that I’d missed a few. So, here they are: three UK editions and one Russian.
The Write House by Dean Koontz
July 12, 2014
The Wall Street Journal published an article by Dean earlier this week regarding his home:
When real-estate values crashed in Southern California in 1991, my wife, Gerda, and I found an incredible opportunity in Newport Beach. We were able to buy 2½ acres on a bluff with unobstructed views of the Pacific.
After we closed, we spent the next four years with three different architects before we started building a house. When we finished, I became a more productive author, and today we enjoy our home so much that we rarely want to go out.
From the start, Gerda and I knew the house was going to take about seven years to finish. It was an insane undertaking for an author who writes six days a week, but eventually everything fell into place. I had been waiting my entire life to build a house that I would never want to leave.
Read the full essay @ WSJ.com.
Unread Books and the Ancient Enemy: An Interview with Dean Koontz
July 12, 2014
Here’s an interview from 1998 mostly about the film version of Phantoms.
“If you look at those movies (he cites Invasion of the Body Snatchers and the original Cat People), it was the psychological suspense of the moment that really gripped you. It’s harder to sell that to a studio these days because they don’t believe that people will sit still for that. I think they’re wrong. If there was anything I would have done more with Phantoms, it would have been to crank up that kind of psychological suspense higher than we have.”
Part of what separates Phantoms from the pack is the “less is more” attitude Koontz and his collaborators took toward the special effects. He explains, “If I were to totally translate my book to the screen, we’d need a budget three times the size of Titanic because of the gargantuan effects. Plus, I’m a little tired of movies that are nothing but effects; so are audiences. I don’t like mindless special effects movies. For people who like mindless special effects, we have a little of that. Basically, what interests me are stories that grip you and keep you. Your mind always does worse things than people can show in a movie.”
Read the full interview @ Lybarger Links.
The Best Baked Corn
July 12, 2014
As some of you may know Dean published the “Best Baked Corn” recipe in the December 19, 2010 issue of Parade Magazine. Needless to say, that isn’t one of the easier items to find these days. However, there’s now another way to get a copy of this recipe: just drop Nancy Huggins an e-mail (nancy.huggins@gmail.com) and ask to purchase a copy of her Enjoy the Recipes of Rich and Famous Celebrities – Second Edition for $24.99 plus shipping. Included within is Dean’s corn recipe and a brief accompanying essay, along with many other recipes form other authors, actors, and politicians ranging from Stephen King to Lady Bird Johnson.
For those looking for a little more information on the genesis of this cookbook, check out this article from The Beloit Daily News.
Koontz Kindle Single Jumps up Ebook Best-Seller List, Hachette Holds on
July 11, 2014
A Kindle Single from Dean Koontz and Penguin Random House has broken into the top-five of the Digital Book World Ebook Best-Seller list, a first for this list.
…The Neighbor by Dean Koontz is both a standalone Kindle Single selling for $0.99 as well as a prequel to a new novel from Koontz, The City, which came out July 1. The Neighbor is currently No. 4 on the ebook best-seller list. With less than a full week of sales, The City is currently No. 50 on the list (and therefore does not appear below). We’ll keep close watch over the next few weeks to see if and when The City has success that follows The Neighbor.
Read the full article @ Digital Book World.
Detours Limited Edition Sold Out In 55 Hours!
July 11, 2014
Well, if you were putting off ordering your copy of Detours, you’re out of luck.
The 1000 copy signed Limited Edition of Detours sold out in just 55 hours, which is especially amazing since it was offered over a holiday weekend when book sales are almost always nil. Thanks to everyone for all of your support!
Source: BrianJamesFreeman.com.
A 1989 film version of Phantoms?
July 10, 2014
We’re all aware of the 1998 Ben Afleck film version of Phantoms. However, according to the IMDB trivia page for the film, there was a version in development almost a decade earlier:
An adaptation of Phantoms was originally set to be made in the late 1980s/early 1990s by New World Pictures & Allied Vision Entertainment but was shelved after New World filed for bankruptcy.
I’d read this previously but had not ever found any actual documentation for such a film. Well, I’ve got some now. This is a page from a “trade magazine” from 1989. Unfortunately, I don’t have any further details at this time but if I find any I’ll be sure to share.
That typo wasn't just in the print version
July 10, 2014
Just a quick follow-up on my recent mention of the typo in the print ARC of The City. I remembered I had a eBook version of the the ARC too so I took a look. Yep, it’s there in the electronic version too. Would someone be willing to let me know if it got fixed in the official eBook release? (I don’t generally buy those.)
Dean's in People Magazine's Hottest Bachelors issue!
July 10, 2014
Well, an ad for The City is anyway. Don’t worry, from what I hear he and Gerda are doing just fine. 😉
Happy Birthday Dean!
July 9, 2014
Happy 69th birthday Dean. Keep on writing!
Dean on the Reading and Writing podcast
July 7, 2014
The 165th episode of the Reading & Writing podcast features an interview with bestselling writer Dean Koontz. Fourteen of Koontz novels have reached number one on the New York Times best seller list. Koontz’s latest novel THE CITY was published this week.
Listen to the episode @ readingandwritingpodcast.com.
Rutgers faculty and staff share the titles they can’t wait to tackle
July 7, 2014
Read the full article @ Rutgers Today.
Commercial for The City
July 6, 2014