Sunday, September 5, 2010

Scott Nicholson-- Murdermouth: Zombie Bits


Scott Nicholson is a writer, journalist, and freelance editor living in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. He is author of Speed Dating with the Dead, Drummer Boy, and 10 other novels, five story collections, four comics series, and six screenplays. He also edited the free writing manual Write Good or Die. He's currently on the Kindle Giveaway Blog Tour, sponsored by Amazon, Kindle Nation Daily, and Dellaster Design.

Murdermouth: Zombie Bits is a collection of eight stories featuring zombies, including the original "A Farewell To Arms," written exclusively for this volume. It includes two tales from the Eden Studio "All Flesh" series, as well as the comic script for the Murdermouth pilot comic. Donate $25 and you can appear drawn as a zombie in the comic. It also includes a bonus story from Jack Kilborn, as well as Jonathan Maberry's "Zombie Apocalypse Survival Scorecard."

Q: What will e-readers like about your book?

Possibly nothing, if you don't like zombies. Generally, there is less emphasis on blowing off heads with shotguns and more exploration of how people handle extreme change and how their minds turn under survival pressure. Plus the obligatory "What would it be like to be a zombie?" However, I am pretty sure there are enough dripping body parts to satisfy your taste for zombie gore. And Maberry's scorecard will help prepare you for the end of the world, if we all live that long.

Q: Why did you go indie?

We're all as indie as we want to be. I published six novels in New York and two collections in the small press, so I have a pretty good understanding of how the business works. More importantly, how it does or doesn't work for me. Putting out my own work is the best choice right now, both artistically and commercially. I am grateful for my experiences and appreciate my paid apprenticeship in traditional publishing and I hope to do something in that arena again. However, I am truly enjoying the new partnerships I've made this year.

Q: Who are your favorite authors in your genre?

"Night of the Living Dead" is still one of my favorite movies, maybe because it takes itself so seriously, unlike the modern humorous-zombie genre. Romero is clearly the godfather, but I also enjoyed in fiction The Book of the Dead anthologies, and the work of Jonathan Maberry and Brian Keene. I never thought zombies would work in mainstream fiction until Keene launched the sub-genre practically single-handedly with "The Rising." Max Brooks isn't horror but I dig his work, and my friend Eric S. Brown is doing some crackling mash-up stuff.

Amazon link:
Smashwords link
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To be eligible for the Kindle DX giveaway, simply post a comment below with contact info. Feel free to debate and discuss the topic, but you will only be entered once per blog. Visit all the blogs on the tour and increase your odds. I’m also giving away a Kindle 3 through the tour newsletter and a Pandora’s Box of free ebooks to a follower of “hauntedcomputer” on Twitter. And, hey, buy my books and put me in the Top 100 and I’ll throw in another random Kindle 3 giveaway through the blogs. Thanks for playing. Complete details at http://www.hauntedcomputer.com/blogtour.htm

BONUS GIVEAWAY: Three people will be randomly selected from the comments to receive free zombie sketch cards drawn by Scott. Amateurish but one-of-a-kind, original art!

98 comments:

  1. Browsing my amazon.com cheap kindle books has lead me to some wonderful indie author finds. Authors I would have never known about with out "my precioussssss" . I love my kindle. I am a fan of PNR/UF and zombies just don't make great love interests, but some authors are finding a way to make it work. I do love the old fashion brain eating zombie though. I have a special place in my heart for horror (brought up on Stephen King).

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  2. Great interview! Scott is one of my absolute favorite authors and I'm so glad more people are getting to know who he is!

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  3. For $25 I can be a comic book zombie? HOLY !&%!*?, WHERE DO I SIGN UP?

    I have to agree, Brian Keene really got the "zombie" back into mainstream, though Max Brooks baited the hook with "World War Z," which I still love.

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  4. I feel like I'm following a band tour across Europe or something. You're doing a great job Scott.

    michaellmartinjr[at]gmail[dot]com

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  5. Thanks so much for doing what you do to help us find some great reading material and giving Idie authors a chance to get noticed

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  6. Hi Scott,
    Great to see you at my alltime favorite Indie Books Blog. Thank you for your hard work and for giving us Indies the chance to be featured here. I keep discovering wonderful new authors.
    Christa

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  7. I think indie authors are going to take over the world. One zombie at a time.

    Randymir@gmail.com

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  8. So excited about this blog tour. I'm finding so many fun new blogs and have found a great new author!

    kelly.r.morin(at)gmail(dot)com

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  9. Zombies! I have to admit I have not read much with them and will remedy that.

    Nadine stacypilot at yahoo dot com

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  10. Another entertaining post!

    candace_redinger at yahoo dot com

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  11. Good morning, Scott! You know I like to read between the lines and noticed this bit in your interview: "However, I am pretty sure there are enough dripping body parts..." I THOUGHT you had that looked at? Goaterrhea is a serious, yet easily treatable STD. PLEASE get it taken care of (and if you MUST take advantage of your farm animals, at least do it "safely")! Jeepers!

    Say "hey" to the missus for me (is she still trying to have your marriage annuled? I'm so glad she came to her senses)!

    CHEERS!

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  12. Zombies ftw! I have several little zombie figurines around here, and while they make me happy, I think they might be frightening my other toys with their nocturnal adventures. ;-)

    geekgirlunveiled at gmail dot com

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  13. It's been great to follow and find new-to-me blogs and authors.

    chey127 at hotmail dot com

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  14. Monster A Go-Go is one funny dude! Tz tz tz.

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  15. Have a great weekend!

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  16. You can never go wrong with Zombies.
    congrats Scott on your success.

    misty@kindleobsessed.com

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  17. I enjoy reading Indies and they abound for the Kindle. I like literary fiction, some paranormal, mysteries/thrillers/suspense and romance only if it has some other element like suspsense. Not into Sci Fi or Fantasy, which a lot of Indies write.

    My contact info is
    blog AT media-mover Dot com

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  18. Hi Scott,

    Another fascinating blog. Thanks for all the stories and movies you list, I am going to have fun checking them all out.


    caity_mack at yahoo dot com

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  19. Scott, I can't wait to get my hands on this one.

    Cheers,

    ~Dale

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  20. A Farewell to Arms is just too funny for a Zombie title. I'm thrilled about this whole ebook revolution. Your blog tour is a fun follow. Brenda varbonoff22@cox.net

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  21. I can't wait for Murdermouth to come out and to see what sort of horrible zombie your artist has made of me, Scott. I think that your allowing people to become a part of comic history with their donation was a fantastic idea.
    Thanks for bringing that, this blog tour and your openess to innovation and experimentation to the general public.

    calseeor (at) gmail (dot) com

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  22. I have to admit that I have never read a Zombie book and I am not into Zombies. Because I've seen a few Zombie flicks and know what Zombies do, it's hard for me to imagine one could do something original when writing a Zombie novel. There's always an infection outbreak, people turn into zombies, and those who weren't infected fighting to survive. If one of you think you could try to convince me there's a title I'd enjoy reading, let me know!

    -Jesse
    conrad.jd (at) gmail (dot) com

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  23. I'm a fan of horror but zombies don't do much for me. A Farewell to Arms is a hilarious title tho.
    Sorry, but what does indie stand for...independent??
    canadell@bellsouth.net

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  24. oooh, zombies! How fun :)

    kaitlynkline[at]gmail[dot]com

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  25. Have not read a lot of books featuring zombies. Looks like I will have to remedy that.

    kissinoak at verizon dot net

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  26. Hi Scott, I'm not generally a Zombie fan, but I've read several of your books and loved them all so far, so maybe I should give "Murder Mouth" a try
    Gail in Florida
    cowgirl3000 at gmail dot com

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  27. Over the past few months I've found myself reading indie authors almost exclusively on my kindle. And, I've never enjoyed reading more. Always interesting to learn who authors read themselves.

    k00lhandster@gmail.com

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  28. Great post Scott. Keep it up!
    tztomfromcali _ at _ gmail _ com

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  29. I read an excerpt of "Speed Dating with the Dead" on Kindle Nation, and immediately bought the rest so I could finish the story. I love a good haunted hotel story, and it didn't disappoint. Count me as a fan! Haven't really read much zombie fiction, but I love zombie movies. This is a cool idea to do a virtual book tour...

    Twitter @danatodd

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  30. I'm a huge fan of zombie lit. The authors you mentioned are fantastic. Justin Cronin's recent book was really good too.

    waitmantwillie at hotmail dot com

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  31. Zombies! Yeah! ... just sayin' ...

    twitter: @jerrygilreath

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  32. Zombies, huh? Would this be autobiographical, by chance?

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  33. I love zombie movies. I have only got to read one zombie book so far. I think they are fun to read. Need to get some into my reading piles. Night of the Living Dead is a great movie.
    katsrus(at)gmail(dot)com

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  34. Jesse, there is a huge subgenre of humorous, even romantic, zombie books out there--and yes, YA fiction has made zombies sympathetic, too. And zombies are out there in paranormal romance now, as love objects. The genre has pretty much come full circle, to the point of parodying itself.

    Canadell, yes, "indie" is independent. It's kind of a clumsy label for what's going on in publishing but it's more respectable than "self-publishing," which sounds lazy, and "vanity publishing," which sounds lazy and vain. "Indie" is something writers can be proudly defiant about, even if the writing is terrible like mine! I prefer the term "freedom fiction."

    Scott

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  35. Also, don't forget, we're making up Friday's rain date over at http://jakonrath.blogspot.com so go on over in the next week and comment on my post there to enter.

    Good luck!

    Scott

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  36. Romantic Zombie fic? Yipes. There's a scary thought.

    Another great stop on the tour...

    --Maria

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  37. I love this tour. Independence and creativity rule. I'm happy for your ability to follow these avenues.

    byonge@lonepinetv.com

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  38. I think I work with some zombies. Maybe I could write a novel about them. Hmmm. Great interview Scott. Reg

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  39. I love indie Kindle books! I've discovered some great authors. Thanks again to Scott for the blog tour. Now I have some great new blogs to read!

    lorraine_lanning[at]yahoo[dot]com

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  40. I have read many indie authors and prefer them to the "big name" authors, for the most part. All of which would not have been possible for me without my Kindle. It is the future of publishing, and it is now.

    stefanie647@msn.com

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  41. Live and learn. I love it! Having fun Scott and look forward to sleeping soon.

    whitejw@ameritech.net

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  42. Thanks Scott! That's so generous of you! :) Love your books!
    You can reach me at luvpinkpanther@gmail.com

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  43. As we say here "Zombies are just it" ;)
    Zombies are great and I have to say I love them... Am considering to write a book about it cause I dreamt of cloned zombies of myself *cough*
    mayarend -at- yahoo.com.br

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  44. Thanks for posting some zombie authors; I can add them to my list.

    Tracey D
    booklover0226 at gmail dot com

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  45. I love finding all these blogs through the tour.

    disneykayla(at)gmail(dot)com

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  46. I love Zombies....and the Evans City cemetery. There's a Living Dead festival on Halloween weekend. Lotsa fun for us zombie and Scott Nicholson fans!

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  47. Darn, another great blog to read ! (RSS>{click}) At this rate, by the end of the blog tour I am not going to have any time left for my Kindle!

    briank68{at}gmail{dot}com

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  48. Eeew to dripping body parts! LOL

    Maggie at tethered mommy dot com

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  49. Following your tour with great interest. Good luck!

    Doug

    dwdorow(at)gmail(dot)com
    Thrillersrus.blogspot.com

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  50. Thanks for mentioning Eric S. Brown. I know when the Simon and Schuster version of "The War of the Worlds Plus Blood, Guts and Zombies" hits in December, it's going to be a big deal. They're also doing "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Zombie Jim" in April 2011, but the Coscom Entertainment edition is still available until next month.

    The zombie genre is so versatile. Much more to it than just "Oh, there's zombies so let's try and survive." I think the post-apocalyptic angle of it is a very narrow view, which is why I'm very pleased to say--brag?--Coscom Entertainment's zombie books all take a unique look at the genre and provide new takes on our shambling friends.

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  51. This tour is wonderful. I am loving finding so many great blogs along the way!

    gigglesandlollipops at gmail dot com

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  52. I would LOVE a Kindle DX. Thanks for the opportunity to win one! :)

    P.S. Click on my name for my contact info. ;)

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  53. Thanks for doing this!

    sailorwind@gmail.com

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  54. Stopping by on the tour
    Jo Ann jackson
    jajjmj (at) quixnet (dot) net

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  55. Not crazy about zombie movies, but having recently read Cherie Priest's Boneshaker (now with more zombies!) I'm ready to expand my fiction list a bit. :)

    geekgirlunveiled at gmail dot com

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  56. Love the tour! Thanks!

    dancer_girl76(at)sbcglobal(dot)net

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  57. Good interview!

    authorjcphelps@yahoo.com

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  58. hmmm. kindle and free book? what's not to like! i am on the tour! spvaughan@yahoo.com

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  59. Wow that is some cover art.I love Zombie movies but so far have not got around to reading a zombie book have to get on the ball.
    sasluvbooks(at)yahoo.com

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  60. I would love to win a Kindle as E-books seem to be the new way of receiving books.

    rbooth43(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  61. Still hoping to win that kindle. Wouldn't say no to zombie art, either. :)

    bluefrog62@yahoo.com

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  62. stalking for that kindle! :-)

    neednspace at aol dot com

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  63. I actually just read Keene's The Rising this past weekend. A very cool read, and a much more inventive re-imagining of the zombie genre than I'd expected. Cool stuff.

    e-mail: rabidfox(at)ymail.com

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  64. I've not read about zombies yet, but have a couple of books in my TBR stack. Murdermouth looks interesting.

    andrea.infinger@gmail.com

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  65. I just added a couple of your books to my huge collection today. I can't wait to read them.

    lisaglidewell[at]gmail[dot]com

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  66. There's certainly been a lot of buzz about indie publishing lately. It's beginning to look like the way to go. How do you think this will affect traditional publishing in the long run?

    Margay1122(at)aol(dot)com

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  67. I recently watched "King of the Zombies" (1941). Crazy, campy and more funny than scary. Zombies are definitely intriguing.

    kristiedonelson(at)gmail(dot)com

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  68. Zombies too. This is certainly a good addition to your short story "The Vampire Shortstop" in L. Ron Hubbard's Writers of the Future collection.

    wakincade@gmail.com

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  69. Thanks for the great interview! Zombies are as good as some vampires to read about

    jellybelly82158 at gmail dot com

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  70. Wow!! I LOVE Zombies!!! Comics, movies, anything...I've seen it! :)

    Yah!! Thanks for the chance to win a Kindle! I've been wanting one since DAY 1. Woooot! :) purposedrivenlife4you at gmail dot com

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  71. LOL, I just posted recently about how I don't like zombies and won't write about them. But, of course, I meant I wouldn't write about them as a romantic interest.

    I've read one of your books and hope to read them all!

    lauralynnelliott@yahoo.com

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  72. I'm still not sure about zombies.
    My favourite zombie movie is Shaun of the Dead so maybe I'm just not taking them seriously enough.

    eva.s.black[@]gmail[.]com

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  73. Great interview! Sadly, I had not heard of Mr. Nicholson before this giveaway tour, but I'm always thrilled to find out about new-to-me horror authors.

    truebookaddict(at)gmail(dot)com

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  74. Zombies are my second favorite monster. My first favorite is that monster I've never read about before. I'm always enthralled by the new. But as far as the traditional horror monsters go, zombies -- fast or slow -- can't be beat.

    I have to admit, however, that zombies as an object of romance is not something that want to read. I generally don't have patience for self-parody.

    --Greg the Undead Rat

    theundeadrat (@) gmail (.) com

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  75. Margay, my complete predictions for the future of publishing are over at Debbi Mack's blog--http://midlistlife.wordpress.com (also giving away a signed paper book there!)

    Greg, yes, self-parody always signals the death of a trend! Unless you are Bob Dylan.

    Folks, I dropped the price of The Red Church to 99 cents, trying to crack the Top 100 and DOUBLE YOUR ODDS of winning a Kindle! So consider buying it for a buck (there's a free Kindle for PC download at Amazon, which is what I use myself) and tweet it and FB the link ( http://amzn.to/d0Lsa6 ) and tell your friends--doesn't take a whole lot to push it up. Sitting around #287 now.

    Thanks much for all your support and good luck winning those Kindles! (BTW I have paper books, too!)


    Scott

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  76. I thought I left a comment here last week, but apparently I didn't. 287? We will push it up to the other side of 100...

    crljqs1@gmail.com

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  77. I love zombie books! Please enter me :)

    ~Chrizette
    baychriz[at]gmail[dot]com

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  78. I don't read Scott's genre, but I will say that he is one of the nicest authors round these here parts and beyond to other parts. As well, he is suportive of other writers - I saw this at the P2P conference several years ago when I attended his seminar! Good Luck with the tour - been re-tweeting and Fb'ing

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  79. Zombies are full of win! Although, I do fear the impending zombie apocalypse. I keep my zombie survival guide by the bed - just in case.

    ♥mischievousmaya

    mischievousmaya@gmail.com

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  80. Honestly, I am tired of zombies, but woth Nicholson and Maberry involved, I'm excited.

    Andrew.r.sell@gmail.com

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  81. This collection is one I don't have, yet. I'll have to rectify that shortly.

    -Neal

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  82. Thanks for entering, everyone! You're still welcome to comment, of course, but entries are capped at 86 comments. I will be back later today to respond to comments, and also to announce the three randomly selected winners of my zombie sketch cards!

    Please follow the tour's other stops--schedule is at http://hauntedcomputer.blogspot.com

    Scott

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  83. Chey, Terri, and Greg The Undead Rat all win sketch cards (as randomly selected by Random.org). I will email you for mailing address. (Terri, you left no address and you blog is blogged so if you don't comment here, I don't know how to find you)

    Even if you won cards, you are still eligible for the Kindle DX, so keep playing! More prizes and fun down the road.

    Scott

    September 14, 2010 4:44 PM

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  84. There is something about Zombie books that are always fun to read. At least I think so...

    holly.n.bogue@gmail.com

    http://hollyb-08.blogspot.com

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  85. so psyched for this giveaway. and his book sounds good.

    wolfbauer3@gmail.com

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  86. I would love to win a kindle and
    love mystery and paranormal genre.
    My son just got a new kindle and I have to tell him about Scott's books.
    Joy at Books and Life
    jhoorm01atyahoodotcom

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  87. great contest and great author!

    monacart32 at hotmail dot com

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  88. This is awesome. Thanks for the giveaway.

    dorcontest at gmail dot com

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  89. awesome interview and giveaway!

    -Len-
    maidenveil(at)gmail(dot)com

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  90. Jeannine D
    wuzzum(at)gmail(dot)com

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  91. Awesome giveaway! I'd love to have a Kindle! :D
    LaQ

    LaQuiet(at)gmil(dot)com

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  92. I'd love to read this book (and the rest of the books he's written) on a new Kindle!

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  93. hufflepuffgrl13@yahoo.com

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  94. I like zombies = I'm going to LOVE your book! I can't wait to read it on the Kindle I'm going to win ;)
    emily_erickson@yahoo.com

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