WPNZR

FLASH FICTION: THE PARALLEL

2012-01-10T10:33:00.000-08:00

Welcome back to Weaponizer. It's 2012, so LETS ALL ACT LIKE THE WORLD'S GONNA END and have some fun yeah? Our first story of this tremendous Year of Apcoalypse is an exclusive multimedia experience: this Flash Fiction piece by Dan Black was inspired by his new album 'The Parallel' by Mild Maynyrd. You can download the album FREE from Black Lantern Music here, or press play on the image above to stream the album as you read!

The dust bowl got us moving. I’ll never forget that billowing monster looming on the horizon, inching closer hour by hour, tumbling over itself and infecting all it touched. Sometimes I still see it: a black cloud, spitting venom and creeping into the boundaries of my consciousness ...READ FLASH FICTION: 'THE PARALLEL'

FINDING HOME: COMMUNITY IN APOCALYPTIC WORLDS

2011-12-27T05:36:00.000-08:00

Just breaking the Xmas silence to mention something exciting - a new collection of short stories called Finding Home - Community in Apocalyptic Worlds (Timid Pirate Press) is now available to buy. It features a short story by our erstwhile Weaponizer editor, Bram E. Gieben! Perfect for that late Christmas gift, or if you have Amazon dollars to spend. Here's an interview from the Innsmouth Free Press with the collection's editor, Caroline C. Dombrowski.

DETAILS HERE

SEE YOU IN 2012!

2011-12-21T07:07:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays from the Weaponizer crew. We'll be back with more short fiction, serials, comics and features in the 2012. Have a good one!

FLASH FICTION: A HELPING HAND

2011-12-12T03:50:00.001-08:00

Today's flash fiction is a piece about why you should think twice about helping the elderly, from regular contributor Stephen Toase.

Slowly, so he could keep pace, I led him to a spot where the traffic eased. All the while he talked, about distant grandchildren and people long dead. He told me he came into town to be part of the crowd, so for a few hours he could shrug off the loneliness that hung round him like a shroud ...READ FLASH FICTION: 'A HELPING HAND' NOW!

SERIAL: THE DAY THE SUN DIDN'T SHINE - PART V

2011-12-08T04:19:00.000-08:00

Harlequinade's metaphysical horror-satire THE DAY THE SUN DIDN'T SHINE continues!

He walked through corridor after corridor, down stairs and up ramps, through doorways and over rubble, until he had no-idea where he had been or where he was going. Not being able to see more that a few feet around him came as a relief, as the pervasive darkness all around could be hiding all manner of silent horrors ...READ 'THE DAY THE SUN DIDN'T SHINE' CHAPTER 5 NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

SERIAL: WORKING CLASS PALADIN, CHAPTER 8

2011-12-06T05:12:00.000-08:00

C. Brian Hickey's action-packed magickal thriller WORKING CLASS PALADIN continues! Tommy's healing complete, he prepares to take on Mister Sticks, with the help of Practitioners Clyde and Jason December!

Tommy chewed the asphalt of I-93 Northbound under the truck’s wide tires. He had war songs on the CD player - good, honest punk rock. It was a short hop from Charlestown to Medford, where The Blogger had directed them, but he checked his kit a hundred times as he went ...READ 'WORKING CLASS PALADIN' CHAPTER 8 NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING!

FICTION: BAD DAY CLAY

2011-12-05T06:22:00.001-08:00

A strange little fantasy tale now from David D. Sharp, about two mythical creatures and their adventure in the realm of spheres.

There was a rumbling and both Clay and the girl looked up to see the shadow of another sphere approaching theirs. It’s surface was covered in water and as it neared, it began to rain gently down upon them. Clay, accustomed to such events, kneeled and sunk his hands into the earth to hold on but already Sophie was being lifted upwards by the other sphere’s pull ...READ FICTION: 'BAD DAY CLAY' NOW!

NONFICTION: HANNAH'S HORRORSHOW - 'BLOOD FEAST'

2011-11-30T05:05:00.000-08:00

Please welcome our new horror film columnist, HJ RODGERS, who will be writing regular reviews of classic horror movies, in the series we're calling HANNAH'S HORRORSHOW! First up, a review of the classic movie by Herschell Gordon Lewis, BLOOD FEAST!

READ THE REVIEW!

WATCH THE PREVIEW!

SERIAL: WEAPON EYES, SIR, CHAPTER 12

2011-11-28T04:59:00.000-08:00

Paul S. Grimsley's biopunk SF thjriller WEAPON EYES, SIR continues! Hemmed in by military espionage brute Grunewald, Stanley panics and searches for help in the transhuman underground. But will he get more than he bargained for?

he had to tread carefully everywhere he went - at least that was the point he had been operating from, but that way of thinking was starting to drag him down and he needed to do something else. one accident, one stupid mistake, and this was where he found himself? the whole world gone topsy turvy? the response to his fuck up seemed disproportionate to him ...READ SERIAL: 'WEAPON EYES, SIR' CHAPTER 12 NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

FLASH FICTION: SISTERLY LOVE

2011-11-28T04:35:00.000-08:00

Please welcome Vic Errington, new to Weaponizer. His first flash fiction piece for the site is a short, suspenseful tale about the conflict in the Middle East.

She first came at noon on Monday. Soldiers scrambled for cover. The old woman stood naked, gazing vacantly into the Green Zone. Western soldiers shouted in Arabic:“Put your hands in the air and drop to your knees.” I watched as the woman remained silent, unmoving, unnerving, in the dusty Baghdad sunlight. Then the Muezzin called midday Adhan, interrupting the standoff ...READ FLASH FICTION: 'SISTERLY LOVE' NOW!

FLASH FICTION: DREAMS OF MUTILATION

2011-11-14T05:12:00.000-08:00

Welcome back! We've been in hiding for the last week, as editor Bram did some work on his own projects, and the fearless buccaneers aboard the good ship Black Lantern stayed busy, as they re-launched their website. We're back this week with more installments of our serials, more flash fiction and more new writers! First, meet Langdon Hickman, who describes himself as a 'young, foolish man.' His first tale for us is an SF / fantasy flash fiction about a barren, sleeping world. Watch out for the locusts...

Once, before their existence was reduced to the dream, they had cities, buildings, great gates that lead to other worlds. Their locust hordes swarmed out, swept clean the countless millions of worlds they found, bringing back bits of bone and flesh and stone with which the dreamers stitched their home ...READ FLASH FICTION 'DREAMS OF MUTILATION' NOW!

WELCOME TO WEAPONIZER

2011-11-04T07:39:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Weaponizer.

We publish Flash Fiction, longer Fiction, ongoing Serials, Comics, and now a quarterly magazine in print and download format!!

We also publish a diverse range of Nonfiction, including interviews with artists, film-makers, writers and musicians, plus devastating opinion pieces from our Staff Writers. We also blog and microblog about whatever we've found online today. Check out the WeaponWear Store WeaponWear Store for tees, hoodies and more!

Anyone can contribute to Weaponizer.

Subscribe to the WPNZR Feed for regular updates on new content.

* image via Barton onWhitechapel. Thanks!

SERIAL: WEAPON EYES, SIR, CHAPTER 11

2011-11-04T07:26:00.000-07:00

Paul S. Grimsley's biopunk thriller WEAPON EYES, SIR continues! Someone shady is putting the frighteners on Burlesk... What will this mean for Stanley?

sat in his office, burlesk was worried about what he had done; wondered how, given the power grunewald possessed, how he had even managed to leave the area without being picked up on some kind of surveillance device. the phone rang. he didn't want to pick it up ...READ CHAPTER 11 OF 'WEAPON EYES, SIR' NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

WEAPONIZER WRITERS HARLEQUINADE & I-CAM READING IN EDINBURGH: THIS FRIDAY!

2011-11-02T04:01:00.000-07:00

From Edinburgh Guide.com:

Esc f8, the country’s only theatre company dedicated to producing science fiction is to take its maiden voyage this Friday in ‘Black Sky’ – an evening of science fiction stories.
The setting is the Scottish Storytelling Centre, but director Tom Freeman promises an intergalactic experience. “We have a great group of stories to tell, a touch of classic science fiction and some excellent local writers performing their own work. The audience will be taking an Intergalactic tourism flight with us, and we hope to provide some fun in-flight entertainment. Explore the strange and the strangely familiar; Time, Space and Worlds beyond this... oh and maybe even a robot or two if you’re lucky.”

Freeman is an experienced Edinburgh actor and will be performing, along with actress and clown Cat Somerville. ‘Dark Clown’ Harlequinade, and local writer Cam Wong will be performing their own work. Both are regular contributors to the fiction magazine Weaponizer. It is hoped this event will be a launch pad to further opportunities to see Science Fiction on stage in the capital. Esc f8 was founded this year by Freeman and physical performer Cameron Hall as a reaction to a lack of examples of the genre in local entertainment, and as a way to engage with writers and fans of the genre. “This storytelling event is just the beginning” Freeman explained, “We have plans for all sorts – Zombies, Cowboys, Victorians… just watch this space, if you excuse the pun.”

www.escf8.org

The event starts at 7pm and tickets are £6/£4 from Scottish Storytelling Centre. As there will be some bad language under 12s are not advised to attend.

FICTION: PROPER PREPARATION

2011-11-01T09:59:00.000-07:00

Richard Fannon's an old hand round these parts - he was one of the first clutch of writers to join the Weaponizer clan. Today, he brings us a speculative fiction story about people with 'complex lifestyles.' Intrigued? Read on...

The door identified him as he approached and had unlocked itself by the time he touched the handle. Last out and first in, as always. In an hour or so, the first regulars would start filtering in from wherever they had spent the night and everything needed to be ready. The roomba trundled up to him – it had cleaned and polished the floors overnight and wanted to be resupplied. He nudged it away and it trundled back to its charging point, correctly interpreting the nudge to mean that he'd deal with it later ...READ SHORT FICTION: 'PROPER PREPARATION' NOW!

FLASH FICTION: FAST FOOD

2011-10-31T09:25:00.000-07:00

The best Flash Fiction is like a shock of electricity, or a bullet to the head. It hits hard, tears you up, and leaves you bloody and batteered, wondering what the fuck just happened. This little fragment comes to you from K. Patrick Glover, the scribe behind BALE'S GAME and A WICKED LITTLE TOWN. Boom!

The bullet sliced through my chest like a hot knife through butter. I could feel it tearing its way through muscles and flesh and arteries. In my mind's eye, I could see it ripping a nasty hole in the back of my leather bomber jacket ...READ FLASH FICTION: 'FAST FOOD' NOW!

SERIAL: THE DAY THE SUN DIDN'T SHINE - PART IV

2011-10-31T04:24:00.000-07:00

Harlequinade's satirical comedy-horror tour of the afterlife, THE DAY THE SUN DIDN'T SHINE, continues!

Further down, he came to a door with a handwritten sign: ‘DIVINE SIMULATIONS, Auditions Today.' He walked in to a room filled with devils dressed mostly as St Peter, Jesus, Buddha or Mohammed, but some as Mickey Mouse, Marilyn Monroe, L Ron Hubbard and Elvis ...READ PART IV OF 'THE DAY THE SUN DIDN'T SHINE' NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

If you enjoy this free story, please support the author by buying his collection of scripts, poems, stories, tracts and sigils.

The Harlequinade by AL Maloney: £5 inc p&p. Paypal to parsonharlequin@gmail dot com. Please include your address in the email.

SERIAL: WEAPON EYES, SIR, CHAPTER 10

2011-10-28T04:38:00.000-07:00

Paul S. Grimsley's biopunk thriller WEAPON EYES, SIR continues! Someone's following Stanley... but is it the police, or someone worse...?

stanley started frequenting the places where most of the enquiries were coming from - haunting the corners; disguised and careful not to attract attention; and he would sit and watch and wait for someone who started pushing and pushing hard to find a certain person - him ...READ 'WEAPON EYES, SIR' CHAPTER 10 NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

SERIAL: KANSAS, CHAPTER 22

2011-10-27T04:20:00.000-07:00

Matthew McLean's cyberpunk espionage thriller KANSAS continues! Hatcher is coming to collect on Manoloff's debt... but there's a surprise in store for him!

Under Nixon's direction, Nick Manoloff had found and hired three that looked like they could give even Dragon's thug a rough tumble. Each was covered in body mods, with the dog-headed one being the most unsettling to look at. However, as uncomfortable as Nick was, it was the woman that made him the most nervous. She was beautiful but the scars of the many surgeries that had sculpted her amazing shape still remained across her skin like dental floss lines. While it didn't mar her attractiveness it left one with the anxious feeling that she might fall apart, slide into different pieces onto the floor at any moment ...READ 'KANSAS' CHAPTER 22 NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

SERIAL: THE DAY THE SUN DIDN'T SHINE - PART III

2011-10-24T05:51:00.000-07:00

Rapper, performer, musician and writer Harlequinade's psychedelic melding of Burroughs, Dante and fairytale imagery continues today, in Part III of the ongoing serial THE DAY THE SUN DIDN'T SHINE ...

The fields opened out into a vast plain on which an enormous swineherd in rags whipped and drove around a flock of creatures, fantastic and striking in their grandeur: fauns, centaurs, dodos, greymalkins, mermaids in vats on rickety wooden wagons being pulled by eight legged horses, giant serpents with constantly morphing displays of radiant flowers sprouting from their spines, minotaurs, strange tentacled fish people, sphinxes, swarms of insects coagulating into the forms of people, hunched and snarling gargoyles, kappas, jabberwokks, Chinese phoenixes, harpies, massive tigers with a head at both end... and on... and on ...READ PART III OF 'THE DAY THE SUN DIDN'T SHINE' NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

ALSO AVAILABLE!!
'The Harlequinade' by AL Maloney
£5 inc p&p.
Paypal to parsonharlequin@gmail dot com.
Please include your address in the email.

FICTION: THE NOSE OF THE CHEESE

2011-10-20T04:35:00.001-07:00

Editor of the literary blog Our Penniless Write, Glasgow-based writer Jane Hartshorn joins Weaponizer today with her first story, a tale of a minister and a football fan brought together by coincidence or fate, with unexpected consequences...

He began to wonder where the ant had come from, and was struck with the horrible thought that perhaps the pulpit was riddled with ants. He was essentially atop an enormous ant hill! He tried to push the image from his mind. He was afraid his words would bend around the image and sculpt a swarming black cloud in the air above the congregation. He needed his mind to be vacant, opaque. The words needed to have a life of their own and not be informed by his own discoloured thoughts ...READ 'THE NOSE OF THE CHEESE' NOW!

SERIAL: WEAPON EYES, SIR, CHAPTER 9

2011-10-20T04:03:00.000-07:00

Paul S. Grimsley's biopunk thriller WEAPON EYES, SIR continues! The Weapon Eyes hit the streets again, this time controlled by the cops... what do you think happens next?

the first cops with weapon eyes to hit the street had undergone rigorous psychological testing to make sure that they were mentally sound and unlikely to abuse the power they were being trusted with. extensive background checks were carried out to make sure that they had no affiliations with any kind of hate groups or extremist organisations - and only when they came up squeaky clean were they added to the shortlist ...READ CHAPTER 9 OF 'WEAPON EYES, SIR'

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

FICTION: OF HOPE

2011-10-17T09:47:00.000-07:00

New Weaponeer, Colorado-based KRISTOPHER D. BRULOTTE contributes his first story to the site, a subtle and understated tale of hope, family and loss in a post-apocalyptic land.

It was the Volvo in the ditch that did it to me today, brought the memories rushing back like a wall of water set loose from a dam burst. I almost missed it, with all the moss and overgrowth, but a glint off the chrome letters on the trunk was enough to catch my eye. I read them aloud, Volvo, and that was all I needed to fall into the morass of memories. I spent the better part of the day lost in thought and recollection; the memories of those days were the cornerstone to a long and jaded odyssey. I recalled my father. I don’t know how he stayed so optimistic. Maybe he wasn’t and it was just his poker face. Maybe he was just trying to keep hope alive in me ...READ 'OF HOPE' NOW

SERIAL: KANSAS, CHAPTER 21

2011-10-17T08:45:00.000-07:00

Matthew McLean's cyberpunk espionage thriller 'KANSAS' continues! Nick, fearing for his life after a visit from Dragon and Hatcher, gets an offer he can't refuse...

Nick Manoloff was not a well man. The decades-old French brandy, his imported genuine tobacco cigars, the comforting and rich upholstery of the Garbisch chair; such things usually brought him comfort as he savored them. But this night he slugged his brandy, chewed on his cigar, sweated and squirmed in his chair. Only one thing occupied Nick Manoloff's mind. The crushed corner of his brick fireplace ...READ 'KANSAS' CHAPTER 21 NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

SERIAL: THE DAY THE SUN DIDN'T SHINE, PART II

2011-10-10T09:12:00.000-07:00

Harlequinade's Dantean horror fairytale THE DAY THE SUN DIDN'T SHINE continues!

Further along the strange subterranean road, there started to appear what looked like shopfronts cut into the rock wall. They all had bizarre signs, faded and decrepit, and all seemed boarded up, although there were always bright lights seeping out from the shutters ...READ PART 2 OF 'THE DAY THE SUN DIDN'T SHINE' NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

SERIAL: WORKING CLASS PALADIN, CHAPTER 7

2011-10-10T08:02:00.000-07:00

C. Brian Hickey's two-gun magickal adventure WORKING CLASS PALADIN continues! Guest-starring Jason December!

The scene in the building’s lobby was bedlam. Jason and Father Joe dragged Tommy’s limp, bloody form to the garage level after Jason took care of the monsters. The one leading the charge, Mister Sticks, had slunk away crablike, his face shattered by Tommy’s last charged punch. They threw Tommy in the passenger seat of Jason’s Porsche, streaking the fine leather upholstery with crimson. He bade Father Reardon speak the address of the rectory into his phone, then told him to go there. Skippa rocked back and forth, slapping himself in the head; Jason spoke a Word to calm him ...READ 'WORKING CLASS PALADIN' CHAPTER 7 NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

SERIAL: KANSAS, CHAPTER 20

2011-10-05T10:54:00.000-07:00

Matthew McLean's cyperpunk espionage thriller 'Kansas' continues, as Hatcher and Dragon pay a little visit to an old business associate...

"This is some really nice cognac you have here," a disembodied voice announced from behind Nick's chair. Nick spun to acknowledge the would-be conneiseur, and was rewarded with a disgusting caricature of a man, a proverbial bull behind Nick's living room bar. The thing was looking at his top shelf, the home of his collected liquors and confectionaries ...READ 'KANSAS' CHAPTER 20 NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

FLASH FICTION: ANATOMY OF A DAY

2011-10-04T05:02:00.001-07:00

A quick flash fiction piece from one of our newest writers, Glasgow-based Damian Reilly. A tiny slice of real life, vividly observed, from a man of few words. Enjoy!

It was cold and dark as Abramson headed past the sandstone buildings to catch his bus. He liked to read the free newspaper during his journey to work but today he couldn't focus. He stared out the window at nothing in particular, scratching the dry skin on the palm of his right hand ...READ FLASH FICTION: 'ANATOMY OF A DAY' NOW!

NONFIC: THE NOUGHTIES - WTF JUST HAPPENED? 2003: A TALE OF TWO DISCOS

2011-09-29T04:00:00.000-07:00

Celebrated blogger, producer, DJ and label-runner Niall O' Conghaile (aka The Niallist) returns with another essay analysing the music of the 'Noughties. It's 2003, and a young Niallist is getting caught up in the emergence of a new-old sound originating in New York City...

Half way through 2002 a 12" single appeared on a New York label that would, for better or for worse, come to define most of the indie pop music of the Noughties. I include it here in 2003 because it was slept on on its original release, only beginning to make waves in the 2002 end of year charts and early 2003 'new talent' lists, leading to a lot of expectations for the follow up single which was released almost exactly a year later. The record in question was 'Losing My Edge,' the band was LCD Soundsystem ...READ '2003: A TALE OF TWO DISCOS' NOW!

NEW SERIAL: HARLEQUINADE'S 'THE DAY THE SUN DIDN'T SHINE'

2011-09-29T03:21:00.000-07:00

Today sees the start of a new dark apocalyptic horror / science fiction serial by HARLEQUINADE. One of Weaponizer's most critically acclaimed writers, emerging from a background in performance poetry and drawing upon literature, opera, masks, puppetry and clown, Hq aims to bridge surrealism with mythology; celebrity culture with carnival freak shows; the weird and mundane; the gorgeous and grotesque. Creating works of thermo-nuclear hip-hop to blackest visual theatre; abstract stand-up comedy to ferocious dancefloors, his various projects encompass a wide range of disciplines, but all aim to excite, bamboozle and enthrall. His show 'The Ratcatcher' debuts at The Arches Live Theatre Festival in Glasgow this weekend: if you are in town, try and grab a ticket. For now, get fired into Harlequinade's new serial, THE DAY THE SUN DIDN'T SHINE.

On the day that the sun didn’t shine, TD was admiring his latest creation. Slumped against the pipes, bleeding from the mouth, she wakes up and stares with wide eyes around. She sees TD, and screams; gargling with blood ...READ PART 1 OF 'THE DAY THE SUN DIDN'T SHINE' NOW!

(A NOTE FROM THE EDITOR)
Another week, another disastrous attempt at scheduling from me. Sorry folks! Your humble editor has been finishing up a story for submission to a particular literary fiction anthology, which is due tomorrow. This has kept me up late a few nights this week, and I just haven't had time to keep the site under control. Anyway, I have 5 minutes now, so here's a few new pieces...
/texture

NONFICTION: THE MASON LANG FILM CLUB PRESENTS 'THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR'

2011-09-23T05:37:00.000-07:00

Our resident Occultist and Shepherd of the Weird, Ian 'Cat' Vincent, returns with another thought-provoking essay of film criticism. This time he introduces a lesser-known classic of the 'Your Reality Isn't Real' genre, 'The Thirteenth Floor.'

Unlike The Matrix, The Thirteenth Floor was not a success, either financially or critically. It came and went pretty much without notice. I only found out about it when it showed up in the bargain bin of a local video shop. It’s a shame, really - not only is it a nicely-constructed and performed little thriller, but it actually goes far deeper into the ramifications of the Your Reality Isn’t Real sub-genre than its better-known counterpart. It also has a history that stretches back to the year I was born - one that along the way takes in one of Europe’s most well-regarded cinematic auteurs, Ranier Werner Fassbinder ...READ PART 2 OF 'THE MASON LANG FILM CLUB' NOW!

READ PART 1: THE MASON LANG FILM CLUB PRESENTS... THE MATRIX

READ THE MASON LANG FILM CLUB INTRODUCTION

FLASH FICTION: THE PROTOTYPE

2011-09-22T08:04:00.001-07:00

Please welcome another new writer, Niall McMahon, with his first story, an SF tale about bioweaponry.

The sky is a bloodbath. Red as hell. The sun sits on the horizon haemorrhaging fire, igniting the clouds. Jesus, it looks like heaven is wounded – emptying its arteries into the jet stream. I feel night’s shadow at my back, and for once I don’t care. Let it come. Let me die beneath this slaughterhouse sunset. This is all my fault ...READ 'THE PROTOTYPE' NOW!

FICTION: MY FIRST CAR

2011-09-22T07:11:00.000-07:00

A new writer joins us today, say hello to Andrew S. Guthrie. His first short story for us is amulti-perspective narrative about an American classic, the 1978 Chevy Omega.

As soon as I got the car, I hit the road. I had never hit the road like that before, even though I was an American. I rode a bicycle. I never left my city. I occasionally rented a car. This kid out in the suburbs, in the crawl space of his parent’s house, he wants to make something of himself. So he drags out some paper, an old typewriter, and acts like a writer, putting a blank sheet in the roller and staring at it for long moments ...READ 'MY FIRST CAR' NOW!

SERIAL: WEAPON EYES, SIR, CHAPTER 8

2011-09-22T07:02:00.000-07:00

Paul S. Grimsley's biopunk thriller WEAPON EYES, SIR continues! As the plans for the Weapon Eyes start to come into focus, it looks like democracy itself might be under threat...

he found the whole situation fascinating - something that had begun as a fashion accessory, a lifestyle choice, had morphed into something that actually posed a threat. it had also managed to enter the mainstream culture and had been accepted by groups who would have been staunchly opposed to the philosophy of the liberal hippies and punks who had created the weapon eyes. the NWA came to prominence as one of the biggest supporters of every right-thinking patriot who wanted to protect their homestead being equipped with weapon eyes ...READ 'WEAPON EYES SIR' CHAPTER 8 NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

FICTION: NIGHT OF THE SUPER WHITEY

2011-09-22T06:46:00.000-07:00

Let's face it: we've all been there. The Technicolor Yawn. Yodelling down the Porcelain Telephone. Doing a Jackson Pollock. We've all felt the cold touch of the toilet seat on our feverish, sweat-soaked faces, and breathed out a riot of interesting highlights from our last day's meals. Whatever your poison: weed, booze (or more likely both), or simply because of a dodgy sausage, or cheap sushi, we've all experienced a whitey before... but perhaps not one quite as bad as the one BB Smith experienced...

Three shots of frozen Russian vodka later I was still partaking in smoking the rotating, weed filled, cone. First I sensed it in my chest, an awful burning sensation. As I tried to rub away the feeling, saliva began to fill at the back of my throat. I spat it into Colin’s kitchen sink, making sure that I ran the tap afterward to chase away the gloopy liquid from my sight. Stan pointed out that I was looking a whiter shade of pale, ‘super white’ if I am to quote him correctly. Not good ...READ 'NIGHT OF THE SUPER WHITEY' NOW!

SERIAL: KANSAS, CHAPTER 19

2011-09-22T05:32:00.001-07:00

Weaponizer presents the continuation of Matthew McLean's cyberpunk espionage thriller KANSAS! Jhel Phen returns to check on his surveillance operation, and little by little, the net closes on the augmented ex-mercenary known as the Butcher...

"First of all," Jhel began, slowly covering the distance back to Lee as he spoke, "Street assets would never be able to touch the Butcher. You read the file; five years military, three of which were in a Special Forces unit noted for cybernetic augmentation. He can shrug off nine millimeter bullets like you or I shake off rain drops. And God knows what they had him doing after they sprang him from Leavenworth. Any group of street punks you could pull in would get eaten alive." ...READ 'KANSAS' CHAPTER 19 NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

WEAPONIZER

2011-09-22T04:49:00.000-07:00

Hi folks, it's your friendly neighbourhoood edit-jockey here, Texture.

I don't editorialize much here anymore, but I thought I should explain why our scheduling's been so erratic (again!) this month, and let you know about what's coming up today and next week.

This week I started studying towards a Masters in Creative Writing at Glasgow University. It's been an intense, mad week or two since getting to Glasgow - one of the first essays I was given to read was the fantastic 'The Ecstacy of Influence' by Jonathan Lethem, which really got my juices flowing. It's an impassioned defence of the public domain, of cut-and-paste art, and an attack on the Disneyfication of intellectual property. As a Creative Commons site, this is just the kind of thing we like here at Weaponlabs!

Last night I went to a Glasgow-based writers' social group, where I heard a very inspiring speech defending the concept of curation and publisher's lists, and giving encouraging views onthe e-book industry, from the founder of Cargo Publishing, Mark Buckland. Cargo, for those who've been hiding under a rock for the last few years, are a tremendously exciting online and solid-state publisher based in Glasgow, who work with writers such as Alan Bisset and Ewan Morrison, among many others. Mark's speech was just as inspiring as the Lethem article, and it feels good being in a city so packed with literary and publishing talent. They're doing some tremendously exciting things with e-books in the next few months, so keep 'em on your radar!

The only drawback of my exiting week was a distinct lack of content on the site, which I still run pretty much solo. I'd been hoping to keep the schedule as regular as possible, but this week I've fallen behind! So this is just a wee note to say that today I'll be putting up new chapters of KANSAS and WEAPON EYES, SIR, plus a flashfic and a short story, to make up for the radio silence! Next week we'll be back to our regular schedule, and we'll have a new serial starting by avant-maverick Harlequinade.

Also, I'm going to spend today combing the submissions box for new Weaponeers - so if you've submitted a story to us for the first time and haven't heard back yet, look for an email today! Thanks for your patience - I'm looking forward to working with you all.

Finally, I've also spent this week looking at printing options for the Weaponizer Quarterly. Although we've failed to get issue 2 out in a timely fashion, we've learned a lot from the sales and marketing of issue 1, and we'll be back with a new format, a cheaper cover price and loads of exciting content by January 2012. Keep an eye on this blog for news about how to submit your work! Issue 1 is still available to order online, with over 70 pages of exclusive stories, comics, articles and illustrations. Grab yourself a copy today!

Thanks for your support, folks... Weaponizer is going places this year and next, I'm enormously excited about it, and I hope you'll come along for the ride.

Peace!

/texture

SERIAL: BALE'S GAME, CHAPTER 14

2011-09-16T06:01:00.000-07:00

K. Patrick Glover, author of our recent Wild West webcomic A WICKED LITTLE TOWN, returns to the fray in earnest this week, jumping back into his noir-thriller serial BALE'S GAME! Bale and his assistants are on Caldwell's trail, and it looks like they've found a significant clue! Read Chapter 14 today, or read the whole saga from the start!

"Caldwell isn’t going to send the bill for a backup credit card to his actual address, which wouldn’t be out here in California anyway," said Bale. "At best, that address is a mail drop, which forwards things on to him. If we show up at his drop, he’s bound to have a system in place to alert him and he’ll stop using the card, making him harder to track. At worst, the whole card and name were planted and the address is a fucking death trap." ...READ 'BALE'S GAME' CHAPTER 14 NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

FICTION: WHITE SUGAR

2011-09-12T04:05:00.001-07:00

A tongue-in-cheek graveside monologue today from Glasgow-based author Andrew Taylor. Don't read this until AFTER you've eaten lunch, 'kay?

When you can feel your heart beat in your brain you know it was a rough night. Quite why everyone is wearing sunglasses, I don’t know. They can’t be feeling any worse than me and I’m managing. Mine are in my pocket in case things get worse. They’re talking about putting Cristina somewhere, in a box I suppose? This is a funeral parlour after all ...READ 'WHITE SUGAR' NOW!

FICTION: SYMPATHY

2011-09-09T05:12:00.000-07:00

K. Patrick Glover, the scribe behind our recent webcomic A WICKED LITTLE TOWN, returns with a one-shot tale about an ancient dance between accuser and accused. His serial BALE'S GAME returns next week!

The well-dressed man stood from his chair and stepped closer to me for just a moment. I thought he was going to touch me and the very thought chilled me to the bone. He was so close that I felt sure that I would feel his breath upon my cheek but I felt nothing. “When do you think it is,” he whispered ...READ 'SYMPATHY' NOW!

SERIAL: STILETTO EYE & RAZORGUT AND THE SHRIEKING FIRE SPAWN OF THE INNER CORE

2011-09-08T06:08:00.000-07:00

Everyone's favourite Louis Jordan-loving, Cadillac-driving adventurers in the realms of mystery, horror and metafiction are back! Dwayne Coltrane and the HyperDeathPsychoRock Three present the 18th adventure of... STILETTO EYE & RAZORGUT!

StilletoEye and RazorGut cruised Betsy, their sleek black 55 Cadillac, through the foggy streets, the gloom punctuated by the occasional oil lamp. As they approached the huge iron gates, embroided with the elaborate initials JV, a huddled gatekeeper creaked them open and motioned StilletoEye and RazorGut through. They drove up towards the imposing mansion that sat upon the crest of the hill, surrounded by the thick fog and silhouetted against the full moon ...READ 'STILETTO EYE & RAZORGUT' CHAPTER 18 NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

SERIAL: WEAPON EYES, SIR, CHAPTER 7

2011-09-07T03:43:00.000-07:00

Paul S. Grimsley's biopunk thriller WEAPON EYES, SIR returns today, as we delve further into the conditions that gave rise to the Weapon Eyes. Espionage, violence and greed in Chapter 7 - Military Budgets!

they always had people keeping an ear to the ground for any rumbles from the so-called counter-culture - it was a fucking petri dish from which they stole freely. the illusion of freedom that these morons laboured under was conducive to the more intelligent among them coming up with lots of different inventions that, with a little work, could have military applications ...READ 'WEAPON EYES, SIR' CHAPTER 7 NOW!

FLASH FICTION: GET YOUR THRIFT ON

2011-09-05T11:51:00.000-07:00

Paul S. Grimsley's biopunk thriller serial WEAPON EYES, SIR returns this week on Wednesday, so to whet your appetite, here's a quick flash fiction about temporal dislocation and charity shops from the man himself.

one day he would be a small child and the next day he would be a large child. it was thought that he was a mirror, but what he reflected no one could quite work out. there was a rumour of quantum entanglement being involved - that some laboratory had linked him with someone in a temporally distant location, but of course there was no proof ...READ FLASH FICTION: 'GET YOUR THRIFT ON' NOW!

NONFICTION: THE TEUTHIC SINGULARITY

2011-09-02T07:25:00.000-07:00

Dire warnings of imminent apocalypse today, as Pornokitsch-er Jared Shurin starts seeing signs of the return of Lovecraft's Great Old Ones, or at least their main player... Cthulhu! There are some cool links in this piece too, so mind and click through!

Lovecraft's principal warning is that Cthulhu is not the end-game, but the opening act. Something 'squamous' and 'eldritch' lives under the ocean and, when the time is right, its psychic frequency begins to resonate with the minds of surface sensitives. Perhaps this warning should be heeded ...READ NONFICTION: 'THE TEUTHIC SINGULARITY' NOW!

FLASH FICTION: FINALLY! THE WEATHER!

2011-09-01T05:00:00.000-07:00

Peter Morrison returns with a virulent little Flash Fiction which paints a picture of a world where celebrities get the reward they deserve on Oscar night...

The young couple stepped out of a limo; she was wearing a gravity defying red dress from designer Okino Asawa, while he looked splendid in traditional black tux. Curie’s fans chanted his name – Jerry – to the visible discomfort of Jiin; the star’s fans have gained a reputation for being particularly vicious towards any woman associated with their boy ...READ FLASH FICTION: 'FINALLY! THE WEATHER! NOW!

SERIAL: WORKING CLASS PALADIN, CHAPTER 6

2011-09-01T04:12:00.000-07:00

Writer C. Brian Hickey has created an eldritch, spellbinding 'verse for his urban / occult fantasy tales, first wowing us with the adventures of Jason December, Corporate Warlock, and then moving on to create Tommy Gallagher, a mysterious Paladin with with two enchanted guns, The Sisters. Things are really hotting up in Working Class Paladin, as a major villain of the piece, Mister Sticks (who will be familiar to those of you who read the Weaponizer Quarterly) unfolds his dastardly plans. Genomic intoxicants, mystical mysteries and two-fisted demon-punching await in Chapter 6 of WORKING CLASS PALADIN, with a special guest appearance by Jason December! WORLD FIRST! WEAPONIZER TEAM-UP!

Shapes moved from behind the stone pillars and doorways. They were like Macca, that same color and that same horrific quality, but each was terrible and unique. One had his legs split into four, so he crept like a silent centaur. Another was all claws, a long, scythe-like beak protruding from her mouth, and eyes where her breasts once were. They numbered almost a dozen. Tommy had already marked his shots, one into each pulsating sac that glowed before him, when he felt a wet, sticky penetration into his brain ...READ CHAPTER 6 OF 'WORKING CLASS PALADIN' NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

SERIAL: KANSAS, CHAPTER 18

2011-08-29T06:13:00.001-07:00

Matthew McLean's hi-tech, neo-cyberpunk espionage thriller KANSAS makes a welcome return today! Hatcher and Dragon explore Dragon's futuristic casino, while the agents Durham and Nixon look on....

It wasn't the first time the casino had suffered a hacking attempt. Far from it. But usually the attacks, at least the exciting ones, were more subtle and used less obvious methods. Still, like the financial nets, casinos had their own drawing power as a target of the console jockeys, from experienced hands looking to siphon credits into the casino for free play on the casino's behalf to hard-line crooks looking to offload credits from the casino into a numbered account somewhere, to the inexperienced and fresh hackers who were just trying to test their toolsets on targets that couldn't bring serious corporate or legal power to bear should they get wise to the attempt ...READ 'KANSAS' CHAPTER 18 NOW!

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

A WICKED LITTLE TOWN: GRAND FINALE!

2011-08-26T09:00:00.000-07:00

Let's have a big round of applause for K. PATRICK GLOVER & KEITH PERKINS! Their Wild West murder mystery A Wicked Little Town concludes today!

It has been a real rollercoaster ride for our heroes Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp, and it has been a joy to watch the art and writing come together on this project. Look out for limited-edition collectors prints of AWLT and KINK WALKER in late 2011, exclusively from Weaponizer Press! Fort now, click through and enjoy the season finale of A WICKED LITTLE TOWN!

>>READ THE FINAL CHAPTER OF ' A WICKED LITTLE TOWN'

>>READ FROM THE BEGINNING

On a personal note, as Editor I'd like to publically extend my thanks first of all to K.P.G. and Keith for their patience and dedication in keeping this serial running (nearly) on time, and for taking a chance on us as their publisher. You handled the teething problems (which were all at our end) patiently and professionally, and I'm very grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with you. Looking forward to Season 2!

I'd also like to thank our web ninja Cook, who handled the tech side of things and designed our comics section's navigation and feel. Thanks guys! Onwards and upwards!

- texture

FLASH FICTION: A MAN'S WORK

2011-08-25T05:13:00.000-07:00

Another old hand (excuse the pun) here at Weaponizer, Vertigo Jones, returns with a flash fiction that manages to echo both Dostoevsky and steampunk in under a thousand words.

Leniel rises, and finishes donning his attire, puts on his pants and silk jacket in a burgundy so dark as to be black, fastens his tie. It snakes perfectly, through his fingers, almost magically into place under the old man's watchful eye. He would now sweep up the tools of his trade, His phones, identity papers, the sliver of plastic that he would explain was a key, and his Grandfather, as though in fugue would hold upto the light, bewilderment mapped out in the rugged crevices of his face. The computer, phone, a slender briefcase laden with items he would carefully request the names of, and immediately forget ...READ 'A MAN'S WORK' NOW!

FICTION: WE ARE SURE WE CAN SEE THEM

2011-08-24T03:21:00.000-07:00

Will Couper has been with us from nearly the beginning of Weaponizer, and we're proud to present a brand new full-length short story from him today. It's a horror piece, the setup of which will be familiar to viewers of 'Most Haunted' and shows of that ilk. All together now... 'Mary loves Dick... MARY LOVES DICK...'

He found himself looking at her eyes and how wrong they were. It was hard to stop from staring, so he kept taking short, furtive glances and he couldn’t quite pin down what it was about her eyes that bothered him. The more he looked, though, the more he was convinced that something was amiss about her ...READ 'WE ARE SURE WE CAN SEE THEM' NOW!

FLASH FICTION: A DEMON, EMBRACED

2011-08-22T05:50:00.000-07:00

Master of the micro-horror tale, Neal Turner returns with this disturbing little Flash Fiction...

Its eyes fell upon mine with the intensity of a bright blue spark, burning into my retinas. The deep carvings, the grooves and creases around those eyes tightening and loosening, contorting and writhing, a mass or squirming eels ... READ FLASH FICTION: 'A DEMON EMBRACED' NOW!

NONFICTION: THE MASON LANG FILM CLUB PRESENTS 'THE MATRIX'

2011-08-22T05:20:00.000-07:00

Our regular film critic, occultist and expert on The Weird, Ian 'Cat' Vincent returns with an essay on The Matrix!

Remember when The Matrix was cool? Before the hyperreal religion of Matrixism, the pop-philosophy tomes, the disillusionment of the two awful sequels, the weak computer games, the thinly-populated MMORPG, the bullet-time tricks used in every ad and cheap spoof that came down the pipe... remember how great it was to have a hugely popular movie that pretty much everyone had seen and most of 'em had liked, that gave you a way in to talking about Gnosticism and perception and postmodern reality and awesome kung-fu flicks and anime to anyone? Didn't last long, did it? But while it lasted, it was a powerful thing.... READ 'THE MASON LANG FILM CLUB PRESENTS TRHE MATRIX' NOW!

READ 'THE MASON LANG FILM CLUB' - AN INTRODUCTION

COMICS: A WICKED LITTLE TOWN, CHAPTER 14

2011-08-19T10:33:00.000-07:00

The penultimate chapter of the Wild West Webcomic A WICKED LITTLE TOWN premieres today on Weaponizer! Keith Perkins art and layouts are really impressive in this episode, and writer K Patrick Glover has the tension wound tight as we approach the thrilling conclusion!

READ 'A WICKED LITTLE TOWN: CHAPTER 14' NOW!

READ FROM CHAPTER 1!

COMICS: A WICKED LITTLE TOWN, CHAPTER 13

2011-08-12T04:24:00.000-07:00

A WICKED LITTLE TOWN - CHAPTER 13 - CLICK TO READ NOW!

COMICS: A WICKED LITTLE TOWN, CHAPTER 12

2011-08-05T11:40:00.000-07:00

A WICKED LITTLE TOWN continues! K. Patrick Glover and Keith Perkins turn up the heat in their murder mystery / wild west webcomic!

READ CHAPTER 12 OF 'A WICKED LITTLE TOWN' NOW

COMICS: A WICKED LITTLE TOWN, CHAPTER 9

2011-07-15T06:00:00.000-07:00

Hi folks! Chapter 9 of our ongoing Western mystery A WICKED LITTLE TOWN is live on the site today!

Outside the court room, our heroes get tangled up in yet another violent crime...

READ CHAPTER 9 NOW!

CHAPTER 8

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

COMICS: A WICKED LITTLE TOWN - SKIP WEEK - CHRIS GRAVES PIN-UP

2011-07-13T16:36:00.000-07:00

Weaponizer's second skip week Pin-Up, this one by Chris Graves, for the western noir webcomic A Wicked Little Town by K. Patrick Glover and Keith Perkins.

Chris Graves is creator of the webcomic SPACE SHARK. See more at http://spacesharkcomic.blogspot.com/ and check out his dA page http://www.mummy-boy.deviantart.com/

COMICS: A WICKED LITTLE TOWN - SKIP WEEK

2011-06-25T01:50:00.000-07:00

A Wicked Little Town is currently taking a short break - we return to the western noir webcomic by K. Patrick Glover and Keith Perkins in 2 weeks time.

Meanwhile, Mike Rooth has provided this magnificent pin-up of Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday to keep our levels of gorgeous gun-toting badassery at maximum.

Mike Rooth is a freelance fantasy illustrator and comic artist operation out of Ontario. His recent work on Poker Face Oddity for Hadron Colliderscope shows just how versatile he is as an artist.

You can contact Mike for custom commissions or any of your illustration needs at mike@mikerooth.com or by following uncouthRooth on twitter.

COMICS: A WICKED LITTLE TOWN, CHAPTER 7

2011-06-17T07:45:00.000-07:00

Chapter 7 of A Wicked Little Town is up on Weaponizer now! Click the image above.

The legends of the old west are lining up for a confrontation in the latest part of K. Patrick Glover and Keith Perkins' superb Wyatt Earp webcomic.

Editorial note: Many apologies for the lack of new posts this week, I have been having some difficulties with malicious wares. Normal service is now resumed.

The link for Chapter 6 of A Wicked Little Town, which should have been posted last Friday, is here.

SERIAL FICTION: BALE'S GAME, CHAPTER 13 - LOOKING UNDER THE BOARD

2011-06-11T04:12:00.000-07:00

Hunter and hunted, Jon Bale retraces his steps to find out how Caldwell knows so much about him in 'Looking Under the Board' Chapter 13 of Bale's Game by K. Patrick Glover, up on Weaponizer now.

Inside, I took a table at the back of the bar and ordered a shot of bourbon, a beer and a burger. The waitress gave me a dirty look, but brought my drinks.

“Do you know me?” I asked.

“You hit my brother in the head with a shot glass. Got him barred.”

“Sasquatch?”

READ "LOOKING UNDER THE BOARD" BALE'S GAME, CHAPTER 13, NOW.

NEW READERS: START HERE
READ FROM THE BEGINNING

SERIAL FICTION: WORKING CLASS PALADIN, CHAPTER 5 - INTERLUDE

2011-06-05T20:49:00.000-07:00

"INTERLUDE" - Chapter 5 of Working Class Paladin is up on weaponizer now.

A glimpse behind the nightmare curtain is in store as author C. Brian Hickey's supernatural horror serial steps away from protagonist Tommy Gallagher and his unlikely new sidekick Jason December to show a little of what lurks beneath the surface...

He dug through his jacket pocket, and found a small red stone on a worn leather thong. He spoke strange words into it, just like he was taught, and space sphinctered outward in front of him.

He stepped through the hole in the world and was somewhere else.

He walked out into a predator’s lair; the air smelled of blood and rot and shit. The tile squelched under his shoes; he didn’t dare think of what was all over the floor...

READ INTERLUDE, CHAPTER 5 OF WORKING CLASS PALADIN, NOW.

New Readers:
--READ WORKING CLASS PALADIN FROM THE START
--READ MORE JASON DECEMBER
--READ MORE C. BRIAN HICKEY

FICTION: MORE THAN ANYTHING IN THE ENTIRE WORLD by Claire Alexander

2011-06-04T05:17:00.000-07:00

Original image 'Toes Twiddling' by C. Chase Taylor

Weaponizer is delighted to present writer Claire Alexander with her first short story for us, MORE THAN ANYTHING IN THE ENTIRE WORLD. Try not to squirm too violently...

Throughout her twenties, Julia did not wear Jimmy Choos or Manolos like her mother may once have done. Her feet caused her too much pain. Peep-toe shoes would mean that her longest toe would stick out the front. She worried that if she was to trip up she would scrape this toe on the pavement and it would hurt beyond any pain she had ever experienced...

READ MORE THAN ANYTHING IN THE ENTIRE WORLD, NOW

COMICS: A WICKED LITTLE TOWN, CHAPTER 5

2011-06-03T03:54:00.000-07:00

In Chapter 5, of 'A WICKED LITTLE TOWN', Doc Holliday prescribes himself a little medicinal to aid with his own line of inquiry.

Weaponizer's western noir webcomic by writer K. Patrick Glover and artist Keith Perkins redraws the frontier.

Click the image above to read Chapter 5 now!

COMICS: A WICKED LITTLE TOWN, CHAPTER 4

2011-05-31T08:57:00.000-07:00

K. Patrick Glover and Keith Perkins' webcomic 'A WICKED LITTLE TOWN' continues! In Chapter 4, the investigation goes on and old scores are resurfacing... Click the image above to read Chapter 4!

SERIAL FICTION: BALE'S GAME, CHAPTER 12 - PAWN TO QUEEN FOUR

2011-05-27T05:38:00.000-07:00

Jon Bale and inscrutable Company girl Jennifer have some good old-fashioned detective work to do in 'Pawn to Queen Four' Chapter 12 of Bale's Game by K. Patrick Glover, up on Weaponizer now.

It was a nice house in a nice neighborhood. Upper middle class, lots of children running around, all the lawns neatly maintained. Garden gnomes in almost every yard. That was weird. Still, not the place you’d expect to find a family of spies.

We parked on the street and walked up the front walkway. Everything looked immaculate. You’d never know something horrible had happened inside...

READ "PAWN TO QUEEN FOUR" BALE'S GAME, CHAPTER 12, NOW.

NEW READERS: START HERE
READ FROM THE BEGINNING

FLASH FICTION: HORSE by Louise Boyd

2011-05-23T10:20:00.000-07:00

Original image "Hovel / Schuppen" by solar.empire

Weaponizer is delighted to welcome new recruit Louise Boyd to the corps. Her first piece of writing for us is the haunting flashfic, "Horse", and there are more to come. You can read Louise blogging about writing here.

...A young girl turned old in a year, curled in a ball listens to the septic weeping walls dripping on concrete. Her lungs are full of rot, from the damp air she breathes. In the corner, something moves, too blurred to define. It circles her, stays in the shadows. She can feel the eye that led her here, feel its hunger to feed... READ "HORSE" NOW

COMICS: A WICKED LITTLE TOWN, CHAPTER 3

2011-05-20T08:14:00.000-07:00

K. Patrick Glover and Keith Perkins' webcomic 'A WICKED LITTLE TOWN' continues! In Chapter 3, Holliday and Earp examine the scene of an apparent suicide... is it more than meets the eye? Click the image below to read Chapter 3!

NEW READERS: START HERE

Read 'A WICKED LITTLE TOWN' from the beginning...

SERIAL FICTION: WEAPON EYES, SIR - CHAPTER 6 - WEAPONIZER

2011-05-19T06:14:00.000-07:00

Paul S. Grimsley's biopunk apocalypse ramps up the transhuman interest as a visionary new player takes to the stage in Chapter 6 of Weapon Eyes, Sir...

After he had reached a point where no more ink could be worked into the intricate designs that covered his body he decided that scarification offered reinterpretative design options that might satisfy his hunger. Yet again he found himself pushing hard at another barrier and the idea of subdermal implants came to him... READ "WEAPONIZER", CHAPTER 6 OF WEAPON EYES, SIR.

NEW READERS:
READ WEAPON EYES, SIR FROM THE BEGINNING

Paul's book Warchalking is available here. "Nine tales that skin reality."

SERIAL FICTION: KANSAS, CHAPTER 17: CRASH JOB

2011-05-18T04:18:00.000-07:00

'CRASH JOB' - Chapter 17 of Kansas, is now up on weaponizer. Matthew McLean's cyberpunk espionage thriller serial is the latest thing in five-minutes-into-the-future suspense

With Hatcher under intense surveillance by the dogged Durham and Nixon, a dark episode from his secret history comes to light...

The two professionals sat in silence. After a moment, Nixon turned back to the surveillance equipment. He had learned more about his partner in the last few minutes than he had in the last few months. His face turned an eerie green as it bathed in the monitor lights.

"So how do you want to handle this?" ...READ THE REST OF 'CRASH JOB', CHAPTER 17 OF KANSAS, NOW.

NEW READERS - START HERE
READ KANSAS FROM THE BEGINNING
Series Catchup post here

NON-FICTION: THE NOUGHTIES - WTF JUST HAPPENED? 2002 - A GOLDEN AGE

2011-05-17T08:35:00.000-07:00

Niall O'Conghaile - AKA The Niallist - is a blogger, DJ, producer and co-founder of Little Rock Records. In the third of this series of discursive articles for Weaponizer he continues his pop-cultural post-mortem on the first decade of the 21st century. Under the microscope this time is the Jubilee Year, 2002, and an epic clash of civilisations...

2002, how shall we define thee? With dance acts or with rock bands? Because that's where my head was at the time - a child of early Nineties rock who had fallen happily in love with the dance culture of the late Nineties, and could now feel them both fighting for custody of my very identity...
READ THE NOUGHTIES - WTF JUST HAPPENED? 2002 - A GOLDEN AGE, NOW

COMICS: A WICKED LITTLE TOWN, CHAPTER 2

2011-05-16T04:03:00.000-07:00

K. Patrick Glover and Keith Perkins' webcomic 'A WICKED LITTLE TOWN' continues! In Chapter 2, we see Doc Holliday's people-reading skills come to the fore, as the legend of the Wild West's most famous lawmen unfolds! Click the image below to read Chapter 2!

NEW READERS: START HERE

Read 'A WICKED LITTLE TOWN' from the beginning...

WEAPONIZER QUARTERLY: ISSUE #1 OUT TODAY!

2011-05-09T05:32:00.000-07:00

WEAPONIZER QUARTERLY: CONDITION: LAUNCH!
Issue #1 available for $16.50 as a physical objectt ov doom, or $3.99 as a PDF / iPad thing.

Spring 2011 - DEBUT ISSUE!

The first issue features science fiction and horror stories by Mark Harding of Mutation Press, Justin Childress, Mo Ali, Andre Navarro of Pitch Black: The Webcomic, Andrew C. Ferguson of Writers’ Bloc, Paul Grimsley and C. Brian Hickey, with art by Mo and Andre, plus Emmanuel Hernaez aka MojoKingBee and others, plus a four-page photography spread by cover artist Robin.

There’s non-fiction from Pornokitsch alt.history specialist Jared Shurin, Elle Matheuse and Grimly Whetfox, talking about comets, judgemental behaviour, and lucid dreaming, plus interviews with screenwriter / director Eric Heiserrer (A Nightmare on Elm Street / The Thing), recent Planet Mu signing and DJ legend Chrissy Murderbot, and San Francisco Witch House label-head Ben Verslius of Tundra Dubs.

We’ve also got an EXCLUSIVE prequel to K. Patrick Glover and Keith Perkins’ new webcomic serial, ‘A Wicked Little Town’, plus more comics from Richard Fannon and artist Lee Smart, and an illustrated vampire story by Harlequinade and Inkmoth.

NEW WEBCOMIC STARTS TODAY! 'A WICKED LITTLE TOWN' BY K. PATRICK GLOVER & KEITH PERKINS

2011-05-06T02:34:00.000-07:00

The wait is over - it is finally here! The hotly anticipated new Western comics serial from author K. PATRICK GLOVER (The Invisible Skein / Bale's Game) and artist KEITH PERKINS!

Over the coming months, the dynamic duo will be re-telling the epic story of Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday, two of the most famous and celebrated lawmen the Wild West ever produced.

Weaponizer is enormously proud to present this long-form, ongoing webcomic, by two extremely talented creators. I hope you will join us every Friday for new episodes of A WICKED LITTLE TOWN!

Click the image below to read Chapter 1!

A WICKED LITTLE TOWN: THE RECOLLECTIONS OF WYATT EARP - CHAPTER 3, THE INCIDENT WITH CLAY ALLISON

2011-05-05T06:53:00.000-07:00

K.Patrick Glover is back again, with another excerpt from the memoirs of Wyatt Earp. Today, we see some action, as Earp and his deputy take on Clay Allison! Be here TOMORROW for the first installment of A Wicked Little Town!

Now Texas cowhands, well, civilized isn’t a word many used to describe them. They liked to whoop it up and have their fun, which often involved hurrahing a town. Hurrahing means that they’d ride through town, drunk as hell, firing their guns off at street lamps, signs, buildings, whatever they saw. And in a crowded town, that often led to people being shot by mistake ...READ CHAPTER 3: 'THE INCIDENT WITH CLAY ALLISON' NOW!

A WICKED LITTLE TOWN: THE RECOLLECTIONS OF WYATT EARP - CHAPTER 2, HOW I BECAME A LAWMAN

2011-05-04T03:07:00.000-07:00

K.Patrick Glover returns with another excerpt from the memoirs of Wyatt Earp. Today, we learn how Wyatt got his first badge of office...Read more of The Recollections of Wyatt Earp tomorrow, and be here on Friday for the first installment of A Wicked Little Town.

One of the men took off his badge, dropped it in the dirt and walked off. The other was still shaking his head, refusing to go in. I walked up and asked them what was going on, very direct like. I was young and pretty straight forward. I hadn’t learned the politics of things yet ...READ CHAPTER 2: 'HOW I BECAME A LAWMAN' NOW!

WEAPONIZER QUARTERLY: A QUICK UPDATE

2011-05-04T02:50:00.000-07:00

Texture here, just weighing in with a quick update about the Weaponizer Quarterly.

THE GOOD NEWS
The magazine is finished and ready to print - as soon as I receive the final image I am ready to publish. That could be later today, or it could be the end of the week - keep your eyes peeled for more news. The other piece of good news is that it looks absolutely fantastic - the artwork is impressive and vibrant, the writing is superb, and it all flows nicely.

Also, there are various 25% off sales that MagCloud run from time to time - I will try and get access to this promo code, and promote it when I launch the magazine.

THE BAD NEWS
I had modelled my assumed cover price ($10 approx) on another P.O.D. mag which grew out of the Whitechapel forum, Allen Wiggs' fantastic MAKE SOMETHING. Allen's page count for his magazine turns out to be quite a bit shorter - about half - which is why the Weaponizer Quarterly will be more expensive. I am full of regret about the unit cost of the printed magazine - you're looking at paying $16.50 US (which is just under £10 UK), with $2 shipping on top. That is nearly twice what I had been aiming for.

I have added a small markup to the printed magazine - Weaponizer will make approximately $2 per sale. The reason for doing this is that I don't want to keep doing the Quarterly as P.O.D. forever, so I need to build up a stake to be able to consider pro-publishing.

Secondly, I want to pay contributors, prefereably from Issue 2 onwards. So although the outlay for a P.O.D. mag such as this is zero, and the artists and writers have generously donated their work, I still need to make a profit in order to guage the size of the paying market, and figure out a page rate for contributors.

The PDF / iPad / Kindle version will be available too - this will be $4. Weaponizer makes more money from the digital issues in terms of profit, so I'll be encouraging people to purchase the magazine this way too. This is likely to be the bigger market - if sales are good enough, the digital distro can fund making the printed mag cheaper. It is also worth noting that you get a free digital version with the printed mag.

The other way of doing this would be to make the digi version free, and put no markup on the magazine... I'm resistant to this because of the arguments stated above, and also because I believe that the content the artists and writers have created is worth paying for. I hope sincerely that you agree!

CONCLUSIONS

1 - The first print issue will be expensive - I hope you feel it is worth the purchase. I will be making every effort to research ways of bringing the cost down by issue two, whether this means making a limited print run, selling adverts, or finding other ways to monetize the project.

2 - Depending on how sales turn out, I will consider making the Quarterly a digital-only project.

3 - I am much better at commissioning content than I am at business!

I'd love to hear your views and comments on all of the above, either below the jump or by email - you can contact me at texturemusick@gmail.com for a quick response, or hit me up on Facebook or Twitter.

Thanks in advance for your support!

P.E.A.C.E.
/texture

A WICKED LITTLE TOWN: THE RECOLLECTIONS OF WYATT EARP - CHAPTER 1, HOW I MET DOC HOLLIDAY

2011-05-03T02:22:00.000-07:00

Friday sees the start of an all-new old-fashioned Western comic on the Weaponizer site: 'A Wicked Little Town', written by K. Patrick Glover and illustrated by Keith Perkins. We've got an exclusive 6-page comic prelude featuring in Issue 1 of the Weaponizer Quarterly, and to get you even more excited, an exclusive series of short 'memoirs' from Wyatt Earp, the story's central character, running from today until Friday. In today's extract, we learn how Wyatt Earp met his faithful friend and companion, Doc Holliday.

We spent the early afternoons shooting bottles out at the edge of town. The evenings we spent playing cards, but he mostly took it easy on me. I met his woman, a saloon girl named Kate Fisher. I don’t think she liked me, even back then, but Kate had problems with anyone who took some of Doc’s attention away from her. I never took it personally ...READ CHAPTER 1: 'HOW I MET DOC HOLLIDAY' NOW!

WEAPONIZER QUARTERLY: COMING SOON

2011-04-28T07:45:00.000-07:00

Above is the absolutely astounding cover for Issue #1 of our new magazine, the Weaponizer Quarterly. The photograph is by Robin LeBlanc, a promotional shot from theforthcoming independent movie SCARS. We are in the final stages of proofing the magazine, and will have a release date for you imminently!

The first issue features science fiction and horror stories by Mark Harding of Mutation Press, Justin Childress, Mo Ali, Andre Navarro of Pitch Black: The Webcomic, Andrew C. Ferguson of Writers' Bloc, Paul Grimsley and C. Brian Hickey, with art by Mo and Andre, plus Emmanuel Hernaez aka MojoKingBee and others, plus a four-page photography spread by cover artist Robin.

There's non-fiction from Pornokitsch alt.history specialist Jared Shurin, Elle Matheuse and Grimly Whetfox, talking about comets, ~~the beauty myth~~ judgemental behaviour, and lucid dreaming, plus interviews with screenwriter / director Eric Heiserrer (A Nightmare on Elm Street / The Thing), recent Planet Mu signing and DJ legend Chrissy Murderbot, and San Francisco Witch House label-head Ben Verslius of Tundra Dubs.

We've also got an EXCLUSIVE prequel to K. Patrick Glover and Keith Perkins' new webcomic serial, 'A Wicked Little Town', plus more comics from Richard Fannon and artist Lee Smart, and an illustrated vampire story by Harlequinade and Inkmoth.

Watch this space for an announcement on the release date, pricing and how to order, very soon!

P.E.A.C.E.
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SERIAL FICTION: BALE'S GAME, CHAPTER 11: PAWN TO KING FOUR

2011-04-28T06:22:00.000-07:00

Jon Bale finds yet more reasons to regret his association with The Company, as Caldwell draws him deeper in to his web of deceit and revenge... 'Pawn To King Four' Chapter 11 of Bale's Game by K. Patrick Glover.

The file offered no insight as to what Caldwell had been doing in those missing time periods. In fact, it never even questioned them. There was also no mention of Caldwell leaving the Company payroll. The file ended abruptly, 18 months ago, in Ireland ...READ 'BALE'S GAME' CHAPTER 11 NOW!

NEW READERS - START HERE

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

SERIAL FICTION: WORKING CLASS PALADIN, CHAPTER 3 - PIPEBOMB ON LANSDOWNE

2011-04-21T08:41:00.000-07:00

"Pipebomb on Lansdowne" - Chapter 3 of Working Class Paladin is up on weaponizer now - and author C. Brian Hickey has a magnificently devilish surprise in store... This supernatural horror serial promises much more to come in the way of twists and turns, but we'd expect nothing less from the wicked brain behind Jason December and the author of 'Shriekonomics,' 'Catchy' and 'The Harrow Pit'. Tommy Gallagher has a hard road ahead...

Father Reardon looked ashen in the doorway. A young man, dressed in a shirt and tie and wearing a messenger bag, stood holding a manila envelope.

“He says it’s for The Paladin.”

Tommy moved fast as tragedy, lashing out and grabbing the kid by his tie, holding him fast as he drew. “Who sent you?”

The youth gurgled, his eyes darting back and forth, from the gun, to the priest, to Tommy’s crazy blue eyes.... READ PIPEBOMB ON LANSDOWNE, CHAPTER 3 OF WORKING CLASS PALADIN, NOW.

NON-FICTION: FIELD GUIDE TO THE MEMETIC APOCALYPSE

2011-04-19T04:57:00.000-07:00

Weaponizer is proud to present our first article from new weaponhead Jared Shurin. Looking at the viral meme as a viral meme within pop-culture, the Field Guide to the Memetic Apocalypse maps the evolution of world-bursting semantics into an existential threat. Charting the first fleeting glimpses of it in horror literature, through transmission by video, to its occult presence in the work of Warren Ellis and Grant Morrison, Jared reviews the evidence that the immanent eschaton is textual.

The internet of things allows developers to pair code and text in an expansive new way, but coating viruses in a spoonful of boob-sugar is a trick as old as the porn industry. And viruses are comparatively simple: computers process information more rapidly than our squidgy human gray-lumps. Computers are up to the uncreative rigor of suicide-by-algorithm, for us mammals, it'd be like jamming an alphabet block through the eye... READ FIELD GUIDE TO THE MEMETIC APOCALYPSE NOW.

Original image for this article came from Propnomicon

SERIAL FICTION: WEAPON EYES, SIR - CHAPTER 5 - THE FIGHT IN THE DOG

2011-04-16T08:36:00.000-07:00

The cyberpunk skies are darkening over Weaponizer: Hunted by the powers-that-be, weapon-eyed fugitive Stanley begins to glimpse the shape of the future for his persecuted meta-tribe of weaponized humans, in "The Fight in the Dog", Chapter 5 of Weapon Eyes, Sir.

This increasingly apocalyptic biopunk thriller serial by Paul S. Grimsley is grinding rapidly up through philosophical, technological and psychological gears as it approaches eschatological velocity. Hold on tight...

Stanley had a network now - they were all off the grid and moving through the country on backroads and secret tunnels which had been built with a stunning rapidity. They were not trying to engage in any kind of war; they were trying to avoid one - a handful of nomadic tribes of transhumanists playing a game of cat and mouse with people who wanted them dead... READ "THE FIGHT IN THE DOG", CHAPTER 5 OF WEAPON EYES, SIR, NOW.

READ WEAPON EYES, SIR FROM THE BEGINNING

Paul's book Warchalking is available here. "An outline around the present time's corpse."

FLASH FICTION: EIN BÄR by Stephen Toase

2011-04-14T07:00:00.000-07:00

Brand new weaponizer author Stephen Toase kicks off what promises to be a hectic few days of free-flowing flashfic as we deploy some of our wonderful new weapons. The serials have been killing it lately, but it's time for some rapid-fire salvos of micro-narrative ordnance. Ein Bär is first off the launcher, a cautionary dream about playing games. Consider this one a warning shot, weapons HOT.

Frau Schneider was refilling the cups of thick black coffee when the bear walked into HellesPlatz, panting heavily in his fur from the high afternoon sun... READ EIN BÄR NOW

Original image for this story Bear-Boy by Surf~n~Skate

SERIAL FICTION: BALE'S GAME, CHAPTER 10 - ROOK TAKES PAWN

2011-04-13T18:09:00.000-07:00

First blood has been drawn and weathered bounty hunter Jon Bale is still recovering from the exchange when a sinister visitor presents him with a tempting offer in 'Rook Takes Pawn' Chapter 10 of Bale's Game by K. Patrick Glover.

“Better?” she asked.

I cleared my throat a couple of times, then answered her. “Yes, thank you.” My voice was rough, but steady. “Who are you?”

“Jennifer. You can call me Jenn.”

“Police?”

“No. They’re in the hall outside.”

READ "ROOK TAKES PAWN" BALE'S GAME, CHAPTER 10, NOW.

NEW READERS: START HERE
READ FROM THE BEGINNING

MUTATION PRESS / ROCKET SCIENCE - CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

2011-04-13T02:13:00.000-07:00

Attention SF writers! Mark Harding's utterly marvelous MUTATION PRESS, which last year published the award-winning collection 'Music From Another World,' is looking for submissions for its new anthology, 'Rocket Science.'

From the brief:

ROCKET SCIENCE is looking for stories which realistically depict space travel and its hazards. The reader needs to know what it would be like to be there. This doesn’t mean stories must be set in interplanetary or interstellar space; but the technology and science involved must be present somewhere. It could be a story set in a spacecraft, on an asteroid or space station; or about a mission soon to leave Earth’s surface. It could be a first contact, a rescue against the odds, or a study of some unusual space phenomenon. Whatever suits. Don't be afraid to be literary. But no space opera, definitely no space opera.

Submissions will be accepted from 1 Aug 2011 to 31 Oct 2011. I will definitely be giving this one a bash - I suggest you lot do as well (Couper, Hickey... I'm looking at you!)

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SERIAL FICTION: KANSAS, CHAPTER 16: STEPPING

2011-04-12T07:24:00.000-07:00

In 'STEPPING' - Chapter 16 of Kansas, the action shifts back to Hatcher and Dragowski as they concern themselves with acquiring some new toys. Cyberpunk paranoia is fused with hard-boiled humour in Matthew McLean's futuristic espionage thriller serial.

These suitcases were, by virtue of their craftsmanship, already worth more than the hardware they carried. The fact that they were probably kevlar lined with internal frames that could withstand the abuse of even the most aggressive baggage handler was just additional testament to their worth. Hatcher carefully unzipped them both before flipping the covers back simultaneously.

It was the first time he had even thought of the word 'Christmas' in many, many months...
READ THE REST OF 'STEPPING', CHAPTER 16 OF KANSAS, NOW.

NEW READERS - START HERE
READ KANSAS FROM THE BEGINNING
Series Catchup post here

SERIAL FICTION: WORKING CLASS PALADIN - CHAPTER 2 - IF I SHOULD FALL FROM GRACE WITH GOD

2011-04-07T10:15:00.000-07:00

The second part of prolific weaponhead C. Brian Hickey's serial fiction Working Class Paladin is up on Weaponizer now. The creator of corporate sorceror Jason December and author of 'Shriekonomics,' 'Catchy' and 'The Harrow Pit' continues the story of Tommy Gallagher, a scarred and hard-bitten (sometimes literally) Boston Irishman reluctantly coming to terms with his unwitting transformation into a vessel of immense magical power. An exorcist haunted by demons within and demons without, Tommy wrestles with the violent destiny that has claimed him while living nightmares stalk the countryside of Massachusetts. This tale will make your skin prickle and your hair stand on end. Don't miss it.

He looked at the pistols in their holsters, hung on a hook by the door. Enormous things--like less ostentatiously designed Desert Eagles--made just for him. The metal shone like polished silver, solidly built, but light as a feather, and on each of the ivory grips was a design that matched that on his palms perfectly.

Just for him.

They’d shown up on the rectory’s steps three days after he’d arrived, the only indicia was a note on the box, in a steady, sure hand: “For The Paladin”...READ WORKING CLASS PALADIN, CHAPTER 2 - 'IF I SHOULD FALL FROM GRACE WITH GOD' NOW!

NON-FICTION: THE NOUGHTIES - WTF JUST HAPPENED? 2001 - ALL EYES ON NEW YORK

2011-04-05T15:28:00.000-07:00

Niall O'Conghaile - better known in subterranean circles as The Niallist - is a blogger, DJ, producer and co-founder of Little Rock Records. He suffers from a terrifying encyclopaedic knowledge of all the kinds of music that make you bleed, orgasm and die. In this series of non-fiction articles for Weaponizer he casts a forensic eye back over the fraught noughties, identifying the key events, movements and personalities that defined the musical evolution of that decade. This week's target year is 2001 and our guide leads us into the ruined glass and concrete canyons of New York in search of those moments in time that can help to explain exactly WTF just happened?

At the end of the year when the focus was on Afghanistan and the drums of retribution were pounding, where then were the "chemical generation"? Where was this so-called "changed world" of ours? Where exactly was the peace, love, unity and respect? To these eyes it seemed that they just rolled over and died. I felt betrayed, powerless and angry... READ THE REST OF 'THE NOUGHTIES: WTF JUST HAPPENED? 2001 - ALL EYES ON NEW YORK' NOW.

SERIAL FICTION: WEAPON EYES, SIR. CHAPTER 4, AXIS TILT

2011-03-31T20:22:00.000-07:00

Paranoia gives rise to something much uglier in "Axis Tilt", fourth chapter of Weapon Eyes, Sir - the technological SF thriller serial with transhumanist biopunk DNA - by Paul S. Grimsley. Forget the goggles, you need Weapon Eyes, Sir.
Get Paul's book Warchalking here. "An outline around the present time's corpse."

The first riots sparked in LA but it soon became a national phenomena, with any area containing high numbers of transhumanists coming under attack from people scared witless by the stories circulating through the media... READ "AXIS TILT", CHAPTER 4 OF WEAPON EYES, SIR, NOW.

READ WEAPON EYES, SIR FROM THE BEGINNING

SERIAL: BALE'S GAME, CHAPTER 9 - PAWN TAKES PAWN

2011-03-30T19:40:00.000-07:00

Seasoned professional and badly hungover bounty hunter Jon Bale gets a nasty shock over coffee as the board becomes a smaller and smaller place in Chapter Nine of BALE'S GAME, the neo-noir espionage thriller serial from K. Patrick Glover.

I tried to get my thoughts together. The coffee was helping.

Caldwell grinned. “That should clear the fog a bit, right?” He pulled a stack of photos from his pocket and spread them out on the table in front of me. “Were you close, Jon?”

I looked down at the pictures and saw my friend, Jake. The pictures left little doubt, but I had to ask.

“Is he?”

READ "PAWN TAKES PAWN" BALE'S GAME, CHAPTER 9, NOW.

NEW READERS: START HERE
>>READ FROM THE BEGINNING

SERIAL: KANSAS, CHAPTER 15: MOVING FORCES

2011-03-29T13:51:00.000-07:00

Matthew McLean's post-cyberpunk espionage thriller KANSAS ratchets up the tension with the spooks on stakeout for a new arrival at the Casino el Liberal...

"When the knock came at the door Nixon cursed and jumped up from his place at the window, quickly leaving the surveillance equipment behind. As he walked to the door, crossing the floor of the suite, he drew his sidearm." ...READ KANSAS - CHAPTER 15 NOW

NEW READERS - START HERE

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

Series Catchup post here

WEAPONIZER WELCOMES NEW EDITOR! QUARTERLY MAGAZINE ANNOUNCEMENT!

2011-03-26T11:40:00.000-07:00

PLEASE WELCOME OUR NEW EDITOR, TOM SEWEL

Tom Sewel is better known to Weaponizer readers as Citrus Creed. A freelance journalist and writer, who blogs over at notevensurewhy, Tom has been a staunch supporter of Weaponizer over the last few years, helping out a lot behind the scenes and contributing ideas and research to the site's ongoing development, and producing stories like the staggeringly awesome 'Normative Free'. I am enormously pleased to be handing over the keys to Tom for the next few months, as one of the first in a series of Guest Editors personally selected by me to run things while I concentrate on bringing some new Weaponizer projects to fruition.

WEAPONIZER QUARTERLY

The first of these new projects is The Weaponizer Quarterly, a magazine featuring exclusive content from the Weaponizer writers, artists and photographers I have had the pleasure of working with over the last four years.

The first issue, which will be released in April, features interviews with rising star and Chicago juke scene regular CHRISSY MURDERBOT, whose My Year of Mixtapes this blog followed religiously, as he prepares to release a new album on Planet Mu. We also have interviews with Witch House / Experimental label boss Ben Verslius of TUNDRA DUBS, home of AIMON and Skeleton Kids, and ERIC HEISERRER, the man who recently rebooted the A Nightmare on Elm Street and The Thing franchises. Not to mention exclusive fiction, articles, comics and more - including an exclusive 6-page prologue to Weaponizer's new ongoing webcomic, A WICKED LITTLE TOWN, by K. Patrick Glover and Keith Perkins.

2011 is going to be an exciting year for Weaponizer, with lots of new projects and ways to get involved. As I hand over to Tom, who will be your host for the next wee while, running both the Weaponizer Feed, our Tumblr, and our Twitter, @Weaponizer. I'd like to say a huge thank you to all our contributors, readers and supporters over the years. Thanks for reading! It's been a genuinely transformative experience running the site, and I am looking forward to seeing what Tom and his successors bring to the table.

If you want to stay up to date with what I am up to, please come and follow me over to the Texturemusick tumblr, my LiveJournal, and my Twitter account @FluxTales, and of course keep an eye on our sister site Black Lantern Music for my forthcoming EP, 'Parasomnia.'

Big love peoples. Keep it Weapon!

P.E.A.C.E.
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FLASH FICTION: THE MOST INCREDIBLE GIFT

2011-03-26T10:20:00.000-07:00

Here's a wee short story from myself, originally written for The434 on Facebook. It's a scary little psychological horror - hope you enjoy! Eyes peeled for an announcement today about our new Guest Editor, and the forthcoming Weaponizer Quarterly magazine. Thanks for reading! Original image 'Untitled' by Philip Romeyn, some rights reserved.

It was my birthday recently, and I received the most incredible gift. It was about three and a half inches long; eight-sided, with a number of ridged brackets along the middle so it folded outwards, like a mechanical lotus. The sides were made of a fabric like silk – fantastically fine and soft, but also firm to the touch, like wood. Permeable, but sturdy ...READ FLASH FICTION: 'THE MOST INCREDIBLE GIFT' NOW!

SERIAL FICTION: STILLETTO EYE & RAZORGUT & THE TREASURE ISLAND COVEN

2011-03-17T09:19:00.000-07:00

After their narrow brush with death two weeks ago in a futuristic under-sea base, the deadly duo return to dry land... but for how long? Find out now in the thrilling case of STILLETTO EYE & RAZORGUT AND THE TREASURE ISLAND COVEN! By swamp blues legends Dwayne Coltrane & The HyperDeathPsychoRock Three. The original image for this chapter is 'Desert Island' by Matthew Winterburn.

As they drifted along, they came to the wreckage of a ship and all around them floated barrels and planks with rough sailors clinging on to them. The current carried all of the rag-tag survivors and StilletoEye and RazorGut onto a sandy, palm tree’d beach, on an island none of them had seen coming ...READ CHAPTER 17: 'STILLETTO EYE & RAZORGUT & THE TREASURE ISLAND COVEN' NOW!

NEW READERS: START HERE

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

FLASH FICTION: FARRAGO'S CHEESE

2011-03-15T13:07:00.000-07:00

Meet new Weaponeer Morag Edward, a veteran of the Edinburgh-based literary group Writer's Bloc. Her work has appeared in the 'Read By Dawn' anthologies and in other places, and she is a veteran of the Writers' Bloc performance nights. Her first tale for us is a funereal comedy, set in Greyfriar's Kirkyard, a famous graveyard in Weaponizer's home town of Edinburgh! The original image for this story is 'Skull' by Alan Miller.

Farrago stood outside his tomb until the stonemasons had packed up their tools, then he bolted and locked the tomb door securely. He gave the chains one last rattle then looked around to see who might be watching. Farrago had been very fortunate to inherit precious room amongst the tightly-packed bodies of Greyfriar’s kirkyard. The homeless, the Covenanters and the thieves observed him leave. Farrago preferred to be alone. His plans were to ensure this continued after death ...READ FLASH FICTION: FARRAGO'S CHEESE NOW

NEW SERIAL FICTION! WORKING CLASS PALADIN

2011-03-10T10:06:00.000-08:00

Weaponizer is HUGELY excited and honoured to present the first chapter in a new ongoing serial by the magnificent C. Brian Hickey (creator of Jason December, author of 'Shriekonomics,' 'Catchy' and 'The Harrow Pit'). WORKING CLASS PALADIN is an all-new supernatural thriller, featuring Hickey's familiar milieu of demons, outcasts and seriously messed up supernatural adventures! The tough, two-fisted hero of the tale is the 'working class paladin' of the title, Tommy Gallagher - a man with a gift for exorcism, a set of intricate scars, two enchanted pistols, and a healthy skepticisim about religion. He walks the mean streets of Boston, taking on cases of posession and demonic influence, helping fight the obscene creatures of The Pit. Hang on to your souls - this is going to be one HELL of a ride! The original image for this series is 'Torso & Rosary' by Arnaud Crucifix.

The girl slumped as black liquid began to seep at the corners of her mouth. He quickly holstered The Sisters and rolled her over so she wouldn’t asphyxiate on the ichor that was pouring out of her mouth. Tommy could think of some truly bad ways to go out, but pulling a John Bonham on demon shit was near the top. The ichor pooled on the hardwood, and evaporated ...READ 'WORKING CLASS PALADIN' CHAPTER 1 NOW!

TEXTURE INTERVIEWS STANLEY ODD

2011-03-09T07:33:00.000-08:00

Stanley Odd are leading the charge in Scottish hip-hop. Signed to Circular Records, they tour and gig tirelessly up and down the country, gaining rave reviews and faithful fans wherever they go. The interplay between charismatic emcee Solareye and golden-lunged singer Veronika Elektronika drives the band, while T-Lo (piano), Scruff Lee (guitars), Ad Mac (bass) and newest member Samson (on drums) deliver the riffs and beats with a precision musicianship rarely found in live hip-hop. Drawing comparisons to The Roots or the Beastie Boys might describe their sound, but perhaps because of Solareye’s wonderful West Coast dialect and banter, it doesn’t quite cut it as a description. Quite simply, Stanley Odd are that rarest of beasts: a Scottish hip-hop band with broad appeal who put on one hell of a show.

Click for the full interview online at The Skinny! Photo by Sol Nicol, all rights reserved.

BLACK LANTERN ON DANGEROUS MINDS

2011-03-09T02:07:00.000-08:00

Our good friend Niall O'Conghaile has written up a profile of our sister-site, Black Lantern Music, for the website Dangerous Minds. There's a player below - stream some of our greatest hits so far. Click through below to read the whole article!

Black Lantern Music is a British netlabel that folks in the States probably haven’t heard, but should. Based in Edinburgh, and launched in late 2009, the label deals in hip-hop, electronica, dubstep, breakbeat and jazz. The bastard children of Grant Morrison’s late 90s sigil experiments and early Rawkus, with a healthy love of poetry and politics, It is closely associated with the Weaponizer website (well worth a read when you have a few spare hours). The label mostly centers around the work of artists Texture, Morphamish, Asthmatic Astronaut and Harelquinade, who have a supergroup of sorts called the Chemical Poets, also featuring the producer Gung Who and the MC Tickle. Although they’re not even two years old yet, the catalog has swelled to a very impressive 32 releases ...READ ORIGINAL ARTICLE ON DANGEROUS MINDS

FILM: CHEMICAL POETS - TWENTY TENTACLE

2011-03-08T09:35:00.000-08:00

Broken word, grotesque burlesque, punk venom, ritual invokkation... the light entertainment at the end of the tunnel...

TWENTY TENTACLE is the first devised show by the Chemical Poets, performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Fetsival as part of PBH’s Free Fringe in 2010. Weaponizer is extremely proud to present a live performance from the run, shot and cut by Chris Dishon and Gemma McCausland.

The performance consists of high-speed hip-hop poetry performed at a rate of 202 words per minute (an average of 3.38 words per second).

Containing songs, political diatribes, science fiction stories, thought experiments and linguistic sigil magick, TWENTY TENTACLE will thrill, entertain and astound!

Chemical Poets - Twenty Tentacle from Chemical Poets on Vimeo.

PRESS FOR CHEMICAL POETS:

'Ginsberg's famous line 'whole intellects disgorged in total recall' springs to mind when you hear these literary outsiders in full flow ...you quickly find yourself absorbed in the collision of reflexive word-play and information-age angst, drawn in by their complex verbal rhythms and emphatic chants. Channelling the fractured energy of 'Generation Y'... exceptionally inventive.'
(Three Weeks, review of 'Twenty Tentacle' * * * *)

'Apocalyptic soundclash ... underground sensations.' (The Skinny)

‘Likeably spiky.’ (The Scotsman)

'Brilliant.' (The Book Cafe, BBC Radio Scotland)

'Rich depths indeed... ideas splash and crash meaning nothing & everything; truth made transparent will turn you into some kind of demented nodding hound, lapping it all up; slinky, snaky rhymes will make you grin... glorious juxtaposition... Get out there and hear 'em.'
(Brikolage Zine)

‘More than hip-hop, more than live art, much more than poetry.’ (Underword)

SERIAL FICTION: KANSAS, CHAPTER 14 - PLACE SETTINGS

2011-03-08T03:00:00.000-08:00

Matthew McLean's post-cyberpunk espionage thriller KANSAS continues, as shadowy criminal mastermind Dragon introduces his agent Hatcher to the Madrid underworld.

"This is still roomier than those barracks at Camp Sushi." Hatcher wasn't the kind of person who cared too much for where he slept, long as it was somewhat isolated and he could control access to the area if needed. Camp Sushi had been their unofficial term for the jump-off point in Northern California before they had deployed to Malaygay. ...READ KANSAS - CHAPTER 14 NOW

NEW READERS - START HERE

READ FROM THE BEGINNING