Black Sabbath Charity Anthology Now Available!

I’m proud to be a part of this project. I’m sharing the TOC with so many great writers, and I have to admit I think my story kicks ass. Help a great cause and pick up a copy!

Now live on Amazon and Wide ebook distribution to be released on Godless September 22, 2024

From the publisher who brought you Nature Triumphs: A Charity Anthology of Dark Speculative Literature, Dark Moon Rising presents Symptom of the Universe: A Horror Tribute to Black Sabbath

A worldwide gathering of award winning horror authors have come together to craft a collection of dark fiction stories covering every album and every era of Black Sabbath. Each story is inspired by one of Black Sabbath’s greatest songs from the biggest hits to the most obscure album tracks. SYMPTOM OF THE UNIVERSE: A HORROR TRIBUTE TO BLACK SABBATH is an immediate classic for rock fans and horror fans alike. Featuring the talents of Stewart Giles, J. Rocky Colavito, Sidney Williams, Tom Lucas, Thomas R. Clark, Ezekiel Kincaid, Neil Kelly, Tony Millington and many more, curated and edited by J.C. Maçek III with a foreword by Martin Popoff, Symptom of the Universe will whet your appetite for horror and rock at the same time.

All proceeds are being donated to the Dio Cancer Fund

Trigger warnings: Themes of addiction, mental health, and self-harm

Are you ready for a rocking read??

Amazon E-Book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DDJPL9CV

Amazon Paperback:

https://www.amazon.com/Symptom-Universe…/dp/194598791X

Wide Distribution: https://books2read.com/u/bPn0oJ

Tom LucasLeave a comment

AuthorCon III was a blast!

Last month, I shared a table at Scares That Care: AuthorCon III with my good friend and fab author, Sidney Williams. Scares That Care is a horror author convention that I have wanted to attend for some time, but I was waiting until I had something new out to promote…and that something needed to be horror. So, thanks to Research Randy, I had a good excuse to make it happen.

I don’t do a lot of events. Not because I’m something special, but in my eyes, it’s quite the opposite. What do I have to offer? Most of the other authors really have their act together. Their tables look amazing, they are great at engaging passers-by, and they seem to sell a lot of books. Super cool for them and mad props! I dearly wish I follow suit, but I seem to lack a critical piece in my own psyche to make that happen. It might be my personal relationship with the craft of writing, my personality, my reading habits, or maybe just a poor attitude. I dunno, but it keeps me from beating the streets to really sell some books. I find it exhausting and somehow a bit artificial. All the selling…for me the only real reason to sell books is so that I can present my work to new readers, and those new readers will enjoy the experience.

Or maybe it’s a problem of EGO.

Whatever my hang-up is, the bottom line is that I had a really good time. My friend Sid is a great host and as it had been some time since we had spent time together in the 3-D world (not Zoom) — that was pure joy. I also enjoyed meeting several new authors such as Ashon Ruffins and Eric Butler. I was also reunited with my 2014 New Bizarro Author Series classmate Scott Cole, and met a wonderful couple from the UK that knew my work from that same series.

I should do this kind of stuff more often. I really should. I hope I come back to embracing it soon. Seeing so many authors, readers, and fans was an invigorating tonic.

Tom LucasLeave a comment

Rain Taxi Reviews Research Randy

How is that for some joyful alliteration? It was highly unexpected, but to my surprise the esteemed Rain Taxi Review of Books allowed me through the doors. All I ever want is to create work that is entertaining, intelligent, and quite simply, fun.

Rain Taxi Review of Books is not normally a publication that would cover my work, and I am excited by the prospect of reaching an audience that would not discover my books otherwise.

The quarterly is quite inexpensive and I’m sure they would love your support. Well written, thoughtful reviews for 25 years going. Check them out here. I have no affiliation with them, I just think that it’s important to respond to nice things in kind.

Tom LucasLeave a comment

An Evening with Tom Lucas at the Kerouac House

The video from my recent author talk is now available!

Put together by the awesome John King (the Drunken Odyssey podcast), this evening at the Kerouac House (Orlando, FL) gave me the opportunity to revisit previous works and read a little from the new book, Research Randy and the Mystery of Grandma’s Half-eaten Pie of Despair.

(Which could use some reviews on Amazon or Goodreads, if you are so inclined)

Although no one sat in the front row, I assure you that there was a room full of people in front of me…at least I think so.

Tom LucasLeave a comment

All Things Writing: interview

With Research Randy and the Mystery of Grandma’s Half-eaten Pie of Despair now available for pre-order (at your favorite bookseller), the publicity train has fired up and left the station.

My first stop was a very enjoyable interview by Bryan Nowak for his podcast All Things Writing. Besides running a successful podcast, Bryan is amazing writer of science fiction, mystery, and horror. Learn more about Bryan here.

We talked about world building, the craft of writing, my books new and previous, and some other interesting tidbits.

You can listen here or find the All Things Writing podcast on your podcatcher of choice.

Thanks. Hope you enjoy.

Tom LucasLeave a comment

Cover Reveal Time!!!!

Wow, I’ve been sitting on this one. Very pleased to present the cover for Research Randy and the Mystery of Grandma’s Half-eaten Pie of Despair, coming out Halloween 2023.

Pre-orders for print and e-book available on Amazon as well as most booksellers.

ARCs and press kits are available for book reviewers and book bloggers. Leave a comment below and we’ll set it up.

Book Description:

The stars of a beloved series of children’s books, the clever Research Randy and his supernaturally sensitive sister Charlie, solved many cases in the idyllic coastal town of Serenity Bay to the delight of many readers over the last 30 years.

But now, suddenly transported to the creepy hamlet of Effingmouth, they find themselves in a bizarre place where nothing is what it seems, people are strange and secretive, and something awful lurks in the shadows.

This might be a mystery they don’t want to solve.

Research Randy reads like YA horror and can be if you want it to be. It’s also a weird mash-up of cosmic horror, eldritch terrors, nostalgia trip and a meta love letter to Lovecraft’s Cthulhu mythos.

Hope you check it out!

Tom LucasLeave a comment