It’s shameless-self-promotion time.  Issue 10 of The Quarterly Journal of Superhero Fiction (Fall, 2009) has just been released.  This issue features a story I wrote called “The Return of Power Boy.”  I should note that this is the first story I ever authored.  The story originally was supposed to be included as part of a Comic Geek Speak prose project that never manifested (listeners of the CGS podcast may recognize the chraracters named Peter and Bryan, who play a very important role in the story).  The Return of Power Boy was my gateway into scifi and fantasy writing.  Without giving too much away, the story provides a very dark look at what happens when the super villain wins his never ending battles against his heroic nemesis.  In a strange case of coincidence, this story was the inspiration for my upcoming novel, Sky Girl: Rebirth, which will be released by iEnovel early next year.  And while Sky Girl ended up being much different character and a more light-hearted book, there are definitely some common themes between the two tales.  

The Quarterly Journal of Superhero Fiction (Issue 10) of is available here and at Amazon through the link below (I’ve also added it to the Cup of Geek Amazon store).  Once again, if you would like a signed copy, please email me.

Release and product information after the jump:

Contents

NON FICTION
Thinking Outside the Longbox, Frank Byrns
Interview -Jackie Kessler

FICTION:
Camellia Chameleon, Donna Farley
The Scent of Rose Petals, Ian Thomas Healy
Dinner For Three, Erin M. Kinch
Death Game, Russell J. Fellows
A Son of the Night, KC Ball
The Power of the Dead, Orrin Grey
The Return of Power Boy, Joe Sergi
No Hero, Chad Carver
The Good Fight, Greg Boxer
Chick Food, Spencer Koelle
Everyone is the Hero of Their Own Movie, Matt Betts
River Rat, Tom Cardamone 

Official Description (From the www.thousand-faces.com):

Ten issues - I can hardly believe it myself. Seems like it was just yesterday that we got this whole thing rolling, then you look up and it's been two and a half years and you find yourself at Issue #10.

And what a fine issue it is. Twelve pieces of original superhuman fiction from twelve of the best and brightest writers working in the 'independent fiction' world today. (Sort of like 'indy music' or 'indy film' - right?!?) One of my favorite Thousand Faces writers (and proud new mom!) Erin M. Kinch returns to our pages for the third time with "Dinner For Three." And Matt Betts, last heard from waaaay back in Issue #1 ("Officer White Takes a Sick Day") is back with his flash fiction piece "Everyone is the Hero of Their Own Movie."

And that's it for returning favorites. I find myself very pleased to inform you that of the twelve writers in Issue #10, ten of them are publishing stories in A Thousand Faces for the very first time. Ten for ten. Or something.

Donna Farley opens Issue #10 with her seasonally-appropriate Halloween tale, "Camellia Chameleon." And while Donna's tale is the only one this issue that deals explicitly with All Hallow's Eve, there are three more stories in the Fall issue would certainly feel at home in any horror fan's collection: Orrin Grey's "The Power of the Dead," Spencer Koelle's "Chick Food", and Tom Cardamone's melancholic "River Rat."

Newcomer Russell J. Fellows takes us to Small Town, USA for a tale of super-powered survival that would make Count Zaroff proud in "Death Game."

Fans of more traditional superhero action won't be disappointed with this issue, either; Greg Boxer brings us "The Good Fight", while longtime reader Joe Sergi delivers his Thousand Faces debut, "The Return of Power Boy." KC Ball gives us The Gargoyle in "A Son of the Night", and Chad Carver introduces a hero of the Deep South, The Haymaker, in "No Hero."

And last, but certainly not least: the highly-coveted "Editor's Choice Award" returns in time to be bestowed upon Ian Thomas Healy's Golden Age tale "The Scent of Rose Petals." Read it with a dry eye. I dare you.

Go ahead. I'll wait right here.
* * *
Issue #10 also marks the return of our periodic series of interviews with the top names in original superhero fiction. This time around, we have A Thousand Questions for Jackie Kessler, one half of the dynamic writing duo behind the new superhero novel Black and White. And if you haven't had the good fortune to pick up a copy of Black and White, here's your chance to win an autographed copy: Simply mention A Thousand Faces on your own blog/website/Facebook/wherever. Send me the link at fbyrns@thousand-faces.com. I will then take all of the entries, place them all inside my Thor helmet, and pick a winner. Easy enough, right?

Send me those links! Win some excellent (and FREE!) superhero fiction!

Product Details

Paperback: 168 pages
ISBN-10: 1449587062
ISBN-13: 978-1449587062
Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.4 inches
Shipping Weight: 11 ounces