Daikaijuzine 4.5

The latest issue of Daikaijuzine is out today. It's a web-zine so no hard copies :(. The magazine's unusual name is derived from the Japanese "dai" ("large" or "giant") and "kaiju" ("strange creature" or "monster"). A daikaiju is a giant monster. More specifically, it is one of the gigantic monsters Like Godzilla, King Ghidorah, or Mothra that appear in Japanese movies. With a name like that it seemed like the perfect market for a tale of a 400' foot pangolin terrorizing the city of Chicago.

The story is Panzersloth, and, if you notice an extra amount of wonderfulness in the telling that's due to my co-author, the extremely talented Leah Clarke.

I hope you'll find the story as much fun to read as it was to write.

Meeting the World's Giant Scaled Anteater Needs

I heard last night from Richard Crawford that Daikaijuzine would like to publish "Panzersloth" in their June 21, 2009 issue!

In his words:

There are not nearly enough stories that feature giant scaled anteaters, and I'm glad to see you have addressed this critical shortage.

This was a fun one to write, largely because it was a silly send-up of the giant monster movies of the 1950's. Mostly though, it was fun because it was a chance to work with my friend Leah Clarke. It's her second sale, the first having come just a couple of days earlier, and well-deserved. She is a writer to watch and a delight to work with.

And, just in case you were wondering what the giant creature that menaces Chicago in the story looks like. I present Pansy (normal-sized version).

Panzersloth

I'm doing my first intentional colaboration on a short story. "Panzersloth" will be a submission for the Giant Creatures anthology that Permuted Press is putting together. I'm working with Leah Clarke who is a delight to work with. (Note to self: Choosing a writing partner who is very talented, has a compatable sense of humor, and is fun to work with is a good strategy!)

The story involves a giant pangolin (that's a rare mammel that looks like a cross between an anteater and an armadillo) that attacks Chicago. It's (mostly thanks to Leah) the funniest story I've ever worked on.