It's official: my robot overlords have picked up book three in my Collector series! THE BIG REAP is set to see the light of day sometime in 2013, following this February's DEAD HARVEST and September 2012's THE WRONG GOODBYE.
How psyched am I? Freakin' very. For one, THE BIG REAP takes a turn both epic and unexpected, and I'm pretty sure it's gonna rock. For two, you just know the cover will be mind-blowing. (Yeah, that's right: I mostly made this deal so's I could get me yet another kick-ass pulp cover. If I've got to keep cranking out crazy fantasy-noir adventure novels to get 'em, then so be it.)
The Contest
To celebrate today's announcement, I think I'll give away free stuff. What free stuff, you ask? How about three DEAD HARVEST prize packs, featuring a signed copy of DEAD HARVEST (The Collector Book One), as well as bookmarks, fridge magnets, custom DEAD HARVEST M&Ms, and whatever other crazy-ass DEAD HARVEST swag I happen to have lying around my house.Who's eligible? If you're reading this, then you are. Period. End of story.
What do you have to do? Here's where things get fun.
See, my main character, Sam Thornton, is undead, damned to hell for all eternity on account of a deal he made with a demon to... well, you'll just have to read the book to find out what his deal was for.
What I wanna know is, what's your deal? If you were to bargain away your immortal soul, what would you want in return? Fame? Fortune? Supercool dance moves? (Right, like wishing for supercool dance moves wouldn't also bring you fame and fortune.)
So to enter to win one of three DEAD HARVEST prize packs, leave a comment on this post, telling me what your deal would be. If your comment isn't linked back to your blog/website/whatever, be sure to post your full name as well. The contest will be open from the second this post goes live to midnight on 6/28 (a week from now for those playing along at home.) Winners will be selected at random, so no pressure to be poignant/funny/smart/whatever, but if you post a particularly good one, I may well give you Twitter props. Feel free to enter as many times as you'd like, although when it comes time for the random drawing, I'll enter each person playing just the once. Check back 6/29 for the results.
So have at it, peeps, and try to keep it semi-respectable; this may not exactly be a family blog, but you'll get no bonus points for filth, and I reserve the right to delete comments deemed inappropriate.
Let the soul-bargaining begin!
30 comments:
Ooh, fortune for sure. Or better yet, a superpower that I can turn on and off at will, like invisibility or esp. Something I could put to use to make my own fortune thereby allowing me to do whatever I want whenever I want without worrying about bills :)
I would want time. Time to myself without altering anyone else's day. Extra time where I could indulge myself with a good book, the chance to write or be otherwise artistic. I wouldnt need much - just an extra hour or so a day where I could slip into an alternate time slot and do my thing without interruption or stress. Wouldnt that be awesome?
It's funny you mention this, because my wife and I were just talking about something similar the other night. We were watching the NBA playoffs, and this commercial with LeBron James came on, where he's taking off from the free throw line to dunk, and it's in all slow motion, etc. Julia said, "If I had a genie give me three wishes, I think I'd use one of them just to spend 24 hours in a body like that, that can do all those crazy things I can't even dream of. Do you think that would be a waste?" The conversation didn't go much beyond my response of, "There are plenty of great bodies out there I'd like to spend some time in, and LeBron James's ain't one of them." We did agree that it wouldn't be a waste of a wish, though.
As for me, who can watch The Avengers and not want to be able to leap around and just smash the bejeezus out of EVERYTHING like Hulk can, right? I don't know that I'd want to be brute-intelligence Hulk, but I could live with "slightly dumber than me"-intelligence Hulk if I could do that.
I'd want the ability to alter reality through story telling. Like you wake up in the morning and it's pouring down with rain, but you get to the front door and describe 'As he opened the door he realised that the grey clouds that had shrouded the sky all morning had disappeared and the persistent hissing of the rain with it.' And like that, zzzup, all the clouds are gone. You could go the world round making lives better literally with stories, or cause untold mischief.
I'd want 5 more deals, but I'm greedy that way. :)
Fortune would be tough to turn down, because I've always thought having the power to change other lives would be unbeatable. So long as one used it for good. Unless we're talking about Newt, then have at it.
Congrats on the continued deal, BIL, can't wait to get to it!
The ability to obtain any book my heart desired. Thus, gaining the best personal library in the world and in which Dead Harvest would be included. All subsequent Chris Holm titles to be added as well. Rod Wiethop
I really want the ability to write. What mean by that is, I read all these great novels and fantastic authors and I would love to be able to write like them. Just to know that when I put pen to paper others will read it and enjoy it like I have done with so many others. I know it's simple but it would be awesome to have that as a "super power".
Knowledge. And I mean _everything_ - I want to know what Napoleon had for breakfast on his 5th birthday, what really happened before the Big Bang, how it is to be a magpie, why equipment that developes a personality always seem too develop an unpleasant one. For starters.
So what would I trade my soul for? The first thing that comes to mind, of course, would be my child's life, but that's not very creative LOL
How about allomancy? :)
I'd want the ability to go back in time (my lifetime in particular) and relive the good stuff. Most people would want to change the bad stuff (me too)but who wouldn't want to relive something?
Cindy @writelane
I would want the power to let go. To let go my worrying, my fears and insecurities, but also my (mostly material) wants. I don't mean the big stuff, like I want to be happy, or I want my child to be happy and healthy and have a joyful life, but the little stuff, like I want all the books and I want an Airbook or I want to be able to be as funny as whoever is funny at that moment etc. To just let it all go and live in the now and enjoy whatever that now has to offer, whether it's a good cup of coffee, a beautiful book or something awesome/funny/loving/smart my girls do or say. Oh and if that letting go also means shedding those extra kgs I'm carrying around, that would be good too ;-)
I'd be tempted to make a deal and have my dissertation finished...
Bacon double-cheeseburger and fries.
In this heat, I'd sell my soul for a cheeseburger and a milkshake. I know there's a place down the street where I can grab this, but it's a bit pricey. Actually, I just remembered there's a Wendy's nearby… bah… you know what, I'm in no mood to leave the house right now.
World peace. I mean, I can't make the devil/demon/etc madder, right? Right?
I'd bargain away my soul to save another... and I'd ask for a coca-cola classic with extra ice for good measure.
There are some mature, thoughtful comments here. Holm has quality people for readers.
I'd still rather SMASH though.
No one's more surprised than me, Chris; I'd probably wish for eye-lasers or the ability to eat poutine every day without throwing a clot. Instead, you all show me up with some truly fantastic bargains. Keep 'em coming!
Mind hopping. Superpowers are cool and all, but I would most like the ability to briefly hop into someone's brain for a bit. Sorta like Quantum Leap, although I wouldn't want to be stuck there. No mind reading either. I want to "think" like someone else, albeit briefly. Neil DeGrasse Tyson would be my first brain hop.
Without a doubt, I'd trade it for unlimited Fractured Prune doughnuts (made-to-order doughnuts in Oceany City, MD.) Ask Kieran about them. I think it'd be more than a fair trade.
World peace. Just kidding. I'd want supreme bowling skills. The kind of fame and fortune that come with bowling as opposed to a movie star or political figure is much more desirable. It is universal truth that bowling groupies are a much higher class of human being than folks who live their lives around TMZ or MSNBC. They're also better conversationalists and in general, can do more push-ups. And if I'm going to sell my soul to be adored, I want to be adored by strong people. Plus, Bill Murray gave a lot of credibility to bowling stardom.
I want a copy (a *real* copy, with pages and covers and dust jackets and all that good stuff, not one of those electronic things) of every book I want to read, and will want to read in the future, and the time to read them all. I can't die until I've read every single book I want to read. (Which means, of course, that I'll be immortal and never have to pay the devil.)
I would say unlimited wisdom, but then I would learn that it was pretty stupid to trade away my soul. So maybe I'll go for cash.
Let's say it's a situation when I'm losing my soul anyway. That's a given, so at the end of it I'll be in Hell. There's only one prize that makes that deal worth while, and that's if when I get there I'll be in charge.
I want Lucifer's job.
To become the most powerful novelist in HISTORY!! That or maybe the power to hunt down all Twilight fans and show them the error of thier ways. I'm picturing a kind of Ghost Rider confrontation where I stare into their eyes causing them to beg for fogiveness!
To be Chris F. Holm! Wouldn't that rock?! Super scientist by day and literary genius by night, plus all the perks.
To fix anything. Which would cover everything from a hole in the roof to a broken heart. Say it with me now... awwwwwww.
YUM.
Hi Chris,
I'd like to be as good at things as I imagine I am. Like being one of best footballers (soccer players) in thr world. Being able to speed read with total recall. Learn languages in hours rather than years...oh, and to win competitions.
Seth
I'd like to get a superpower to control procrastination. With that superpower I'd control the whole world.
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