Author Archives: James Pyles

“Woman Under Repair Part 1 Available Now!

repair

Promotional image from The Green Shoe Sanctuary

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.

As promised, my science fiction short story “Woman Under Repair” is available now. Just click the link and read part 1 for free in the May issue of the periodical The Green Shoe Sanctuary (alas, it could use a bit of editing).

I’ve never had one of my stories serialized before, but it reminds me that many classic science fiction novels from decades past were serialized first before becoming novels. I don’t know if that’s going to happen here, but it’s an interesting and exciting thought.

It also makes me think of the old “cliffhangers” from times gone by when not only stories, but films were constructed to bring the viewer back to the theater week after week to see what happened next.

Here’s the blurb:

Continue reading →

“Woman Under Repair” to be published by The Green Shoe Sanctuary magazine

under repair

© Mark mungkey Vincente – Found at coroflot.com

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.

My short story “Woman Under Repair” will be featured in three parts in The Green Shoe Sanctuary magazine themed “Under Construction.”

The dates are May 10th, 17th, and 24th. So starting tomorrow the 10th, click the link above and start reading my latest published short story.

This one’s special because the material comes from an “almost novel” that I wrote in a different form here on my blog a few years back.

Continue reading →

Review of the Lovecraft Country Episode “Strange Case”

ruby

Wummi Mosaku as Ruby Baptiste in the television show “Lovecraft Country”

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.

So, I watched the Lovecraft Country episode Strange Case last night. The title refers to the title of Robert Louis Stevenson’s novella The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, only Misha Green‘s version is far more disgusting.

The show starts where A History of Violence leaves off. Yahima (Monique Candelaria) has seemingly disappeared. Leti (Jurnee Smollett) thinks that Montrose (Michael K. Williams) has just let her go, but Atticus (Jonathan Majors) knows his Dad killed her. In a rage, Tic tries to beat Montrose to death, but Leti manages to stop him.

Montrose also destroyed the Book of Names, but Tic figures out that Leti photographed the pages. After rough sex (doesn’t this guy ever just kiss his girlfriend and treat her gently?), she develops the photos and he starts to work deciphering the code.

Continue reading →

Part Two of Reviewing “Lovecraft Country”

whitey

Letitia (Jurnee Smollett), Atticus (Jonathan Majors), and George (Courtney B Vance) in a scene from the show “Lovecraft Country”

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.

After my review of the first episode of Lovecraft Country Sundown, I thought I’d just keep watching and maybe review the entire first season as a whole. But after viewing three more episodes, because each show is so densely packed, I was afraid of losing a lot of the details.

So now that I’ve watched Whitey’s on the Moon, Holy Ghost, and A History of Violence, I thought I should recap them now.

In “Whitey’s on the Moon,” the creepy white guy at the door of the huge mansion in the middle of nowhere is William (Jordan Patrick Smith) and he seems to treat Tic, Leti, and George very well. They all wake up in their rooms with objects of their most cherished desires. George is hip deep in books while Leti has a closet full of wonderful clothes all exactly her size, and they couldn’t be happier.

Tic, on the other hand, remains deeply disturbed by their encounter with monsters the previous night, and finally comparing notes with the other two, realizes that they didn’t remember a thing. Even their car Woody has been restored to them. All of this is due to magic spells, but I’ll get to that.

Continue reading →

Review of Lovecraft Country episode “Sundown”

blood

Scene from the Lovecraft Country episode “Sundown”

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.

When I decided to review the first season of the television series Lovecraft Country, I didn’t know if it would be a single review of the series, episode by episode, or something in between.

Then I watched the first episode Sundown and was truly horrified, but not as you might imagine.

If you haven’t seen it and you care about that sort of thing, there are tons of spoilers ahead.

The show tells the tale of a young black man named Atticus “Tic” Freeman (Jonathan Majors), a veteran of the Korean War who is traveling by bus to his home in Chicago because his father has gone missing.

Continue reading →

Lovecraft Country First Season

lovecraft

© James Pyles

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.

This afternoon, I was at my local branch of the public library and I found the first season of Lovecraft Country on DVD. As some of you may know, I was critical of the timing of the premiere of this series during certain (ahem) events.

However, when I mentioned this in social media, I was told the series was being developed well before all of that happened, so I stand corrected. I also can’t miss the fact that since writer H.P. Lovecraft has been identified as a white supremacist, the title for the series has a double meaning.

Continue reading →

“Spring Into SciFi 2021” Arrived Today!

scifi

Promotional image for the anthology “Spring into SciFi 2021”

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.

It came by UPS today. It’s one thing to sell a story and another thing to hold it in your hands.

My short story “Wayback” is featured in the Cloaked Press anthology Spring Into SciFi 2021. I’m extraordinarily fortunate to be published in three of the four volumes in this series, and am thankful to the fine folks at “Cloaked” for their graciousness.

“Wayback” is the very first tale in my personal series with stories set in the same universe found in The Mechanical Dragon in the Zombie Pirate Press anthology ClockWork Dragons, The Deseret War found in the Immortal Works anthology A Mighty Fortress, and mentioned in my soon to be published novella Time’s Abyss

But before all of them, came “Wayback”. Here’s how it all began:

Continue reading →

“The Unreal Man” to be published at Dastaan World

St Paul's

St Paul’s Cathedral in London during the Blitz 1940

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.

I know I’ve talked about this one in the past. “The Unreal Man” was accepted for publication ages ago…and then everything stopped. Sometimes publishing houses change staff, change ideas, change goals and authors can be stuck in the middle.

However, I signed the contract with Dastaan World last night and so in about 90 days, this story will see the light of day.

This story is important to me because it’s my oldest concept. In one version or another, I’ve lived with this tale for over 40 years. I can’t wait to see it become real (or unreal).

Here’s a small sample:

Continue reading →

“Time’s Abyss” Now Available for Pre-Order

time's abyss

Promotional image for “Time’s Abyss.”

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.

No, it’s not a short story in an anthology. Time’s Abyss is a completely self-contained novella, book 10 of 12 in the Underground series published by Black Hare Press.

It’s available for pre-order from Amazon for delivery to your kindle device on October 15, 2021.

That’s right. There’ll be six month wait until you can dig into this nearly 30,000 word saga.

In the meantime, here’s the official “blurb.”

Continue reading →

“No Place Like Home” featured in “Magicks & Enchantments”

m and e

Promotional image for Magicks & Enchantments

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.

This is a little later than I’d hoped, but my short story “No Place Like Home” is finally available in the Blackbird Publishing anthology Magicks & Enchantments (also available HERE and HERE).

What would have happened if Dorothy hadn’t made it back to Kansas from Oz? What would have happened if she didn’t want to go? What would have it been like if the “good witch” Glinda had craved the ruby slippers for her own, and after a few minutes, hours, or days, what would the transformed Scarecrow, Tin Woodsman, and Cowardly Lion really have been like with their new attributes?

To find out, buy a copy of this anthology and read “No Place Like Home.” I promise, you’ll never think of Dorothy the same way again.

Continue reading →