Author Archives: Gary W. Olson

Back in the saddle again…

Posted by Gary W. Olson on

Good morning, everyone, just wanted to briefly announce that the new GaryWOlson.com is now up and active (and actually has been since Saturday afternoon, when I did the switch from Joomla to WordPress). All the pages and blog entries have been transferred over, and all the old URLs have been redirected to the new ones. The RSS feed was also redirected to the new one (https://www.garywolson.com/feed/), so if RSS is how you keep up with this blog, you won’t need to make any changes (unless you want to, I mean).


I’ve also taken the opportunity to implement a couple new features. It’s now possible to subscribe to my blog entries via e-mail (not to be confused with subscribing to my newsletter, which will still be a no-more-than-once-a-month-and-usually-less affair), and the box for doing that is on the left column of my website pages. It’s also possible to use Google Translate to shift everything into another language entirely, though I won’t be able to vouch for how accurate it is.


Now that this is out of the way, I can finally get back to trying to wring the rest of the first draft of The Morpheist out of my brainmeats…

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Gary W. Olson is the author of the dark fantasy novel Brutal Light and several previously published and forthcoming short stories. He can be found via his website, his blog, on Facebook, on Twitter, and in many other far-flung places on the Internet.

Joomla out, WordPress in–major site revamp this weekend!

Posted by Gary W. Olson on

Last weekend, I made brief mention of some “site maintainance” that was going to happen over the weekend–namely, me upgrading this website’s current Joomla version (1.5) to the more current 2.5. Unfortunately, I discovered that the component I use for blogging won’t work wth 2.5, and doesn’t currently have a 2.5 upgrade. So, I could either wait for them to eventually produce one, or I could do what I was strongly considering anyway, which is to scrap Joomla entirely and rebuild this site as a WordPress site. As the title of this entry reveals, I decided to go ahead with option two.

So this week I’ve been building a test version of the site in a super-seekrit subdomain, mainly so I can make some necessary design choices, see how things look, fix issues with links and image displays and such. When that’s done, which should be soon, I’ll export all those posts and pages, scrap this site, install wordpress, and import the lot again. I expect to be doing this sometime over Memorial Day weekend, so if you drop by and things are looking funky, or altogether absent, that’s why. I’m doing as much prep work as possible in advance, so hopefully this downtime will be minimal.

Though all the URLs to all the things will be changing, I’ll be setting up redirects so that anyone coming to the site from someplace else using old links will get directed to the correct content in its new location. The RSS feed for the site will also be changing (to https://www.garywolson.com/feed/), though I think WordPress is smart enough to recognize the old feed address and deliver accordingly. (Clicking it now will only send you to an error page. I knew you were wondering.) Hopefully this won’t result in you who follow this blog directly via RSS being flooded by entries. I’ll be temporarily disabling the syndications to Facebook (NetworkedBlogs), LiveJournal, Dreamwidth, Amazon, and GoodReads, just in case.

See you on the other side!

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Gary W. Olson is the author of the dark fantasy novel Brutal Light and several previously published and forthcoming short stories. He can be found via his website, his blog A Taste of Strange, as @gwox on Twitter, and in many other far-flung places on the Internet.

Fading Light, Reading Pics, Site Maintainance, Free Links

Posted by Gary W. Olson on

Fading Light CoverI got some good news recently — my bizarro/horror short story Goldilocks Zone was accepted into the anthology Fading Light: An Anthology of the Monstrous, edited by Tim Marquitz. That’s the awe-inspiring cover on the left, with artwork by Jessy Lucero–click on the image to see it in its full-size tentacly glory. Fading Light‘s gonna be droppin’ on September 1st from Angelic Knight Press, and in addition to my story, it features monstrously good tales from Malon Edwards, Jake Elliot, Lee Mather, Edward M. Erdelac, and more. You’re gonna want to catch this one!

Also, Bethany Grenier recently posted some pictures from the reading/q&a/signing we did at Nicola’s Books in Ann Arbor on May 7th… here, here, and here. (Left to right, that’s Bethany, Jim C. Hines, me, and Emmy Jackson.) Had a good time, and am looking forward to possibly returning in the fall!

In other news, I’m going to be doing some website upgrades this weekend–basically upgrading GaryWOlson.com from Joomla 1.5 to 2.5, and slipping in a new template for the site’s look. Hopefully this will be smooth and mostly transparent, but if you drop by the site this weekend and things are looking screwy… well, I’ll be workin’ on it. (Hopefully after this upgrade, it’ll be easier to leave comments on the blog, and I’ll be able to implement some things I’ve been putting off.)

But enough about that. You’re here for the free links, right? (Yeah, I said free links, not free drinks… hey, where’re you goin’?)

One of the big blowups from the past week started here, with an author’s story of how her first short story to be accepted for publication was mangled and slimed by the anthology’s editor and publisher (Undead Press). A harsh tale, but heartening in how that, since the story came out, a lot of light has been shone on this festering boil of a publisher.

In other news of dickery, Lincoln Crisler recently related that bureaucracy is making it very difficult for spouses of military personnel to find employment. But the pushback has started, led by his wife, Consuela, and there’s a way you can help–by signing this petition. It just takes a few moments, and will help a lot of people.

Mad Science: Giovanni Aldini, Corpse Reanimator–all about Giovanni Aldini, the macabre scientist rumored to be a real-life inspiration for Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Shocking!

Apparently, now, there’s a project going on that involves mounting laser guns on sharks. Really. Of course, when I read this, I immediately suspected that Karina Fabian was behind it somehow…

This Turkish Doctor Who takeoff is… is… look, it just is, okay? I had to lie down for a while after watching this.

Here’s a video that’s evidence that Farmer Brown’s switched crops, and is now growing magic mushrooms. That, or the cows are more than they seem.

Finally, there’s this video, which is simply titled “Japanese racing rendition.” As far as I can tell, it’s technically SFW (safe for work). It is also weird as hell, and something you will never, ever be able to unsee. You have been warned!

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Gary W. Olson is the author of the dark fantasy novel Brutal Light and several previously published and forthcoming short stories. He can be found via his website, his blog A Taste of Strange, as @gwox on Twitter, and in many other far-flung places on the Internet.

Short Reviews: Angi Shearstone’s BloodDreams #1 / Tim Marquitz’s Resurrection

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BloodDreams #1 by Angi Shearstone

Jonny, the lead singer of a punk rock band, seems to have pulled his life back together after years of struggling with his addictions. His band has a chance to make it big, and he has a chance to marry the love of his life. But fate, and a vampire, have other plans. As Jonny struggles with his new addiction, his friends wonder if he has simply abandoned them again, while a group of vampire hunters set their sights on him.

The first issue of BloodDreams, written and painted by Angi Shearstone, plunges headlong into a world where vampires have been hunted to the brink of extinction. The art is gorgeous and macabre, and the story flies out of the gate, revealing just enough to let readers keep up while hinting at many more juicy revelations to come. There are a lot of layers of bloody intrigue to be peeled back, and I’m looking forward to more.

Resurrection (Book 2 of the Demon Squad series) by Tim Marquitz

Some guys get all the hell. Frank ‘Triggaltheron’ Trigg, having barely averted armageddon two months before in the previous Demon Squad book, is back in the soup when he’s beset by several near-simultaneous crises–a zombie-resurrecting necromancer, a called-in favor that means killing a being that already killed a powerful demon’s top enforcers, and the rumored resurrection of the Antichrist. He’s got to deal with hidden agendas, long odds, dire consequences, apocalyptic endgames, and worst of all, blue balls.

All this is delivered fast and hot, and is a hell of a lot of fun. Trigg is an entertaining, dirty-minded and snarky narrator, sort of like that uncle you never see anymore because of the restraining order. The action and the twists in this tale are well-paced and superbly delivered, running all the way to the surprise at the end that sets up book three. I enjoyed this one a lot, and am looking forward to the next.

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Gary W. Olson is the author of the dark fantasy novel Brutal Light and several previously published and forthcoming short stories. He can be found via his website, his blog A Taste of Strange, as @gwox on Twitter, and in many other far-flung places on the Internet.

Reading/Panel at Nicola’s Books 5/7/12 / New Free Short Story to Newsletter Subscribers

Posted by Gary W. Olson on

Just to remind the locals following this blog, I’ll be doing my first ever public reading from Brutal Light at Nicola’s Books in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Monday 5/7 at 7 p.m (tomorrow). Also there doing readings that night will be Jim C. Hines, author of the popular Princess Novels fantasy series from DAW Books, Bethany Grenier, author of Sings with Stars, and Emmy Jackson, author of Empty Cradle: The Untimely Death of Corey Sanderson. Come on out and enjoy the multiple readings, signings, and lively discussion from four Michigan authors!

In other news, ever since I started up this newsletter, my horror short story The Body in Motion has been the free gift for subscribing. It’s about time it gets swapped out for something else… and that something is a dark fantasy story called Never Seen by Waking Eyes. In it, a woman with a connection to a strange power source is kidnapped, held hostage to obtain a certain rare book, and Nick Havelock must rescue her. Or must he?

If that sounds rather familiar, it should. Never Seen by Waking Eyes was a story I wrote about 8-9 years ago for an anthology that never saw publication, and became the seed for my dark fantasy novel Brutal Light. It was kind of fun for me to revisit the story and see what parts made it into the novel more-or-less intact (aside from being rewritten from first person to third), and what parts turned out to be very different. Hopefully you’ll enjoy it as well. Of course, the only way that’ll happen is if you subscribe (or if you’re already a subscriber)…

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Gary W. Olson is the author of the dark fantasy novel Brutal Light and several previously published and forthcoming short stories. He can be found via his website, his blog A Taste of Strange, as @gwox on Twitter, and in many other far-flung places on the Internet.

Con Report: PenguiCon 2012

Posted by Gary W. Olson on

I’ve attended most of the PenguiCons since they started ten or so years ago, so I was particularly looking forward to this year’s, which was to be the first I’d be at where I was doing a panel. That panel was “Fantasy vs. Dark Fantasy vs. Horror: What Happened to the Boundaries?”, and it was really the first thing I did after registering on Friday (April 27th).

I was somewhat nervous, despite having done panels before, as I was the only person conducting the panel–another first for me. Fortunately, I needn’t have worried. Not only was the panel well attended (by between 15-20 people), we were all seated around a circular table (as opposed to the usual row-of-panelists facing rows-of-attendees scheme), which really helped me with making the panel into what I wanted it to be, which was a discussion. It also helped that the topic was one that I’d suggested, and that it was something I’d already put a serious amount of thought into, thanks to all the publicity I’d done for Brutal Light (coming up with answers to questions on ‘why write dark fantasy,’ which in the process had me explaining what I believed dark fantasy to be). The discussion was fun and at the end, I gave away a couple signed copies of Brutal Light.

From then on, I went into attendee-mode. Since I didn’t get a room at the hotel (being as I’m both cheap and local), I set out for various panels that attracted my interest. I dropped in on the opening ceremonies, and got treated to seeing John Scalzi playing ukelele and singing Prince’s “Kiss.” Even though my life was much more complete after that, I kept on with the evening, catching Mikey Mason‘s Geek Rock Comedy Show, and generally tracking down and chatting a bit with friends I usually only see at local cons.

Saturday was more of the same, plus drinking. PenguiCon is pretty massive, and in addition to literature has lots of programming for tech, science, gaming, and more, and there’s always something going on. I did manage to hit a few panels, including one on “DC Comics’ New 52,” and one called “Strike a Pose!”, loosely inspired by a famous blog posting by Jim C. Hines (and this followup). My wife showed up that evening and we spent the rest of it hanging with friends, dancing and enjoying some tasty mixed drinks. (Sadly, as I had to drive, I kept my enjoyment to a couple drinks, with plenty of time to let the buzz subside before I headed out. Next year I definitely have to get a room, at least for Saturday night.)

I ended up skipping Sunday altogether, for reasons of laziness. But all in all, I had a good time, met a bunch of cool people, and am very much looking forward to next year’s PenguiCon!

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Gary W. Olson is the author of the dark fantasy novel Brutal Light and several previously published and forthcoming short stories. He can be found via his website, his blog A Taste of Strange, as @gwox on Twitter, and in many other far-flung places on the Internet.